Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Drought
Mains level: Read the attached story
A United Nations report ‘Drought in Numbers’ has revealed that many parts of India fall under the list of regions that are vulnerable to drought globally.
What are Droughts?
- Drought is a prolonged dry period in the natural climate cycle that can occur anywhere in the world.
- It is a slow-onset disaster characterized by the lack of precipitation, resulting in a water shortage.
Types of Droughts
- Meteorological drought is defined usually on the basis of the degree of dryness (in comparison to some “normal” or average amount) and the duration of the dry period.
- Agricultural drought should be able to account for the variable susceptibility of crops during different stages of crop development, from emergence to maturity.
- Hydrological drought is associated with the effects of periods of precipitation (including snowfall) shortfalls on surface or subsurface water supply (i.e. streamflow, reservoir and lake levels, and groundwater).
- Socioeconomic drought is associated with the supply and demand of some economic goods with elements of meteorological, hydrological, and agricultural drought.
What is the Drought in Numbers report?
- The Drought in Numbers report is a collection of data on the effects of droughts on our ecosystem and how they can be mitigated through efficient planning for the future.
- The report also helps inform negotiations surrounding key decisions by the UNCCD’s 197 member parties at the 15th Conference of Parties (COP15), currently underway in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.
- Drought, land restoration, and related aspects such as land rights, gender equality and youth empowerment are among the top considerations at COP15.
What is COP15?
- The UN Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) COP15 focuses on desertification, land degradation, and drought.
- The theme for the conference is “Land. Life. Legacy: From scarcity to prosperity.”
- The conference has brought together government representatives, private sector members, and civil society stakeholders to ensure that land continues to benefit present and future generations.
What does the report entail?
- The number and duration of droughts around the world has increased by an alarming 29% since 2000.
- Globally, droughts in the same period caused economic losses of approximately $124 billion.
- Drought conditions can force up to 216 million people to migrate by 2050.
- Other factors at play along with drought could be water scarcity, declining crop productivity, rise in sea levels, and overpopulation.
- The report also stated that India’s GDP reduced by 2 to 5% between 1998 and 2017 due to severe droughts in the country.
Gendered impacts of drought
- Research shows that women and girls in emerging and developing countries suffer more in terms of education levels, nutrition, health, sanitation, and safety as a result of droughts.
- The burden of water collection also disproportionately falls on women (72%) and girls (9%).
- The report notes that they may spend up to 40% of their caloric intake fetching water.
What are the environmental aspects?
- The largest increase in drought losses is projected in the Mediterranean and the Atlantic regions of Europe.
- Australia’s megadrought in 2019-2020 contributed to “megafires” resulting in one of the most extensive losses of habitat for threatened species.
- About three billion animals were killed or displaced in the Australian wildfires.
- Around 12 million hectares of land are lost each year due to drought and desertification.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Stockholm+50
Mains level: Not Much
Stockholm+50 conference — a follow-on to the 1972 conference to be held in Stockholm from 2-3 June 2022 is the one that started the environmental movement we see today.
What is Stockholm +50?
- Stockholm +50 is an international environmental meeting hosted by the United Nations General Assembly to be held in Stockholm, Sweden from 2-3 June 2022.
- The theme of Stockholm+50 is “a healthy planet for the prosperity of all – our responsibility, our opportunity.
- In 1972, the UN Conference on the Environment in Stockholm was held, and it was essentially the first conference that managed to address environmental issues on the right level.
- Fifty years later, the United Nations is back in Stockholm to commemorate that important milestone.
Significance: Establishment of UNEP
- In 1972, some 122 countries attended, and participants adopted a series of principles on the environment, including the Stockholm Declaration and Action Plan for the Human Environment.
- The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) was created as a result of the conference.
What is India’s connection with this?
- Then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi in her seminal speech in the conference brought forward the connection between ecological management and poverty alleviation.
- Her call remains as pertinent now as then: “We have to prove to the disinherited majority of the world that ecology and conservation will not work against their interest but will bring an improvement in their lives.”
Why is Stockholm +50 important?
- There was a lot of media attention around COP26 last year where world leaders gathered to continue the work to uphold the actions promised by the Paris Agreement, 2015.
- Later this year, there will be COP27 in Egypt, where organizers will aim to make the conference a radical turning point in international climate efforts.
What will be happening at Stockholm +50?
- The event in the beginning of June will see representatives from around the world gather in Stockholm to discuss how to achieve a sustainable and inclusive future for all.
- Stockholm +50 could usher in a much-needed new boost to environmental awareness and action for the next half-century, just as it did five decades ago.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Sela Pass
Mains level: Strategic border infrastructure
The strategically-significant Sela Tunnel project in Arunachal Pradesh is nearing completion well before the deadline.
What is Sela Tunnel Project?
- The Sela Tunnel is the longest bi-lane road tunnel in the world.
- The total length of the project, including the tunnels, the approach and the link roads, will be around 12 km.
- The tunnel is being constructed by the Border Roads Organisation at an altitude of 13,800ft near the Indo-China border.
- It is being built on the 317km long Balipara-Charduar-Tawang (BCT) road which connects West Kameng, East Kameng and Tawang districts of Arunachal Pradesh to the rest of the country.
Why is the project important?
- All-weather connectivity to Tawang and other forward areas in the sector will be the most important advantage that the project promises.
- At the moment, Sela pass stays closed for a few winter months.
- The project will provide a new alignment on the axis towards the LAC, and allow movement of military and civil vehicles all through the year.
Significance of the tunnel
- China is undertaking massive infrastructure development and troop build-up in the Rest of Arunachal Pradesh (RALP) area.
- In military parlance, the RALP is an area in Arunachal Pradesh other than the Kameng area.
- Other than the Kameng area consisting of East and West Kameng districts, the rest of the State is referred to by the Army as the RALP.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS)
Mains level: Not Much
A team of scientists from Australia have found that babies at risk of the mysterious Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, or SIDS, generally have low levels of an enzyme called butyrylcholinesterase (BChE) in their blood.
What is SIDS?
- Sudden Infant Death Syndrome refers to the sudden and unexpected death of an otherwise healthy infant under the age of one, generally while they are sleeping.
- Most SIDS-related deaths occur in infants between the age of 1-4 months.
- According to the NHS website, parents can reduce the risk of SIDS by not smoking while pregnant or after the baby is born and ensuring that the baby is placed on their back when they sleep.
- Some health experts have said that it is associated with issues in the part of an infant’s brain that controls breathing and waking up.
Prevalence of SIDS
- SIDS, also known as ‘cot death’, has claimed the lives of thousands of children across the West.
- US estimates that about 3,400 babies die suddenly and unexpectedly every year.
- Meanwhile, the United Kingdom reports about 200 such deaths annually.
What does the new study say?
- The study assessed whether there was something inherently different in babies that succumbed to SIDS.
- The researchers compared dried blood samples from 655 healthy babies, 26 babies who died due to SIDS and 41 babies who died of other causes.
- The team found that around nine of ten babies who died from SIDS had lower levels of BChE enzymes than the babies in the other two groups.
What is the BChE (Butyrylcholinesterase) enzyme responsible for?
- These enzymes are responsible for sending out signals that make a baby wake up, turn her head, or gasp for breath.
- It is part of the autonomic system, and controls function like blood pressure and breathing.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- How Ukraine war is reducing India's options
Context
What was initially assumed in New Delhi to be a quick confrontation between Russia and Ukraine, the war in Europe is now raging on with no end in sight, and with its long-term implications yet unknown.
Why Ukraine war may reduce India’s options
- For several weeks during late March and April, it seemed as though the Ukraine war presented a number of geopolitical options for New Delhi to choose from.
- War may limit India’s options: Instead of enhancing New Delhi’s ability to make strategic choices in its broader region, the Ukraine war may actually limit the number of options available to New Delhi for at least three reasons.
- 1]Absence of Russia for balancing purposes: Russia as a key strategic partner is no longer available to India for balancing purposes.
- 2] Increased Chinese influence in the region: Russia’s sudden absence from the Asian balance of power equations has further enhanced Chinese influence in the region.
- By the time the war ends, whatever may be the shape of the global balance of power, the regional balance of power would have irretrievably shifted in Beijing’s favour.
- 3] Indo-Pacific region moving out of focus: Given that the United States and its western partners are more interested on the Ukraine theatre today, their focus on China is already taking a hit, if not yet on the Indo-Pacific.
India’s dilemmas in medium to long term
1] Managing China
- Weakened US influence in South Asia: While the Ukraine war has strengthened and revitalised the U.S.-led military and political coalition globally, it is bound to weaken the American influence in the Southern Asian region.
- China is the biggest beneficiary of the U.S./western retrenchment from the region which gives it a free hand in it.
- Russia not available: For New Delhi, Moscow is no longer available for its pursuit of its regional interests, and the U.S.’s ability to produce favourable geopolitical outcomes for India in the region is shrinking as well.
- While there is little doubt that in the longer run, a war-fatigued and weakened Russia will become a junior partner to China, India today does have an opportunity to get Moscow to nudge Beijing to stop its irredentism on the LAC.
- If the Chinese side, taking advantage of the Ukraine distraction, heats up the LAC, India would have to turn to the West and the U.S. for support (political, diplomatic, intelligence, etc.).
- This would invariably hurt Russian interests.
- Russia, it is important that two of its Asian friends — China and India — do not clash at least while the war is still on.
- While this may be a useful way to manage the Chinese aggression on the LAC in the short term, this will depend on how China views its dynamics with Russia and that of Russia with India.
- Herein lies the challenge for India.
- India’s engagement with Indo-Pacific region: If China were to stabilise the LAC at the nudging of Russia, it would also expect India to go slow on the Indo-Pacific, something India can ill-afford to do.
- Inability to exploit contradictions: While, under normal circumstances, India could have utilised the many inherent contradictions between Moscow and Beijing, the Ukraine war has suspended those contradictions.
2] How Ukraine war affected India’s north-western continental strategy
- India’s north-western continental strategy, in particular towards Afghanistan and Central Asia, too will get complicated due to the Ukraine war.
- For over a year now, the Line of Control (LoC) with Pakistan is calm and the violence in Kashmir has come down.
- More pertinently, New Delhi’s presence from Afghanistan has entirely disappeared.
- So, it appears that the calm in Kashmir and along the LoC is a quid pro quo for the Indian withdrawal from Afghanistan.
- If this is a bargain New Delhi accepts, it will not only mean giving up its strategic interests in Afghanistan but also reducing its engagement in the Central Asian region as well at a time China is making feverish inroads into the region, right in the backyard of the Russian sphere of influence.
- Had Moscow not been caught in the Ukraine war, it would have fended off Beijing’s attempts to take over its backyard (in one sense, China is doing to Russia using economic means what the North Atlantic Treaty Organization has been doing to Russia using military means).
- During the December summit, India and Russia had decided on a number of initiatives focusing on Central Asia and Afghanistan.
- They are unlikely to be revived anytime soon, ceding further ground to China and Pakistan.
Conclusion
The combined geopolitical impact of the ill-timed U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, Russia’s Ukraine war, and the rapid expansion of Chinese influence goes to show how New Delhi’s geopolitical choices have suddenly shrunk due to the Ukraine war.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Gavi
Mains level: Paper 2- Future pandemic preparedness
Context
COVID-19, which disrupted supply chains across countries and in India too, marks an inflection point in the trajectory of immunisation programmes.
UIP: Showcasing India’s strength in managing large scale vaccination
- India’s Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP), launched in 1985 to deliver routine immunisation, showcased its strengths in managing large-scale vaccine delivery.
- This programme targets close to 2.67 crore newborns and 2.9 crore pregnant women annually.
- Full immunisation: To strengthen the programme’s outcomes, in 2014, Mission Indradhanush was introduced to achieve full immunisation coverage of all children and pregnant women at a rapid pace — a commendable initiative.
- India’s UIP comprises upwards of 27,000 functional cold chain points of which 750 (3%) are located at the district level and above; the remaining 95% are located below the district level.
- The COVID-19 vaccination efforts relied on the cold chain infrastructure established under the UIP to cover 87 crore people with two doses of the vaccine and over 100 crore with at least a single dose.
Why strong service delivery network is essential?
- While we have, over the years, set up a strong service delivery network, the pandemic showed us that there were weak links in the chain, especially in the cold chain.
- Nearly half the vaccines distributed around the world go to waste, in large part due to a failure to properly control storage temperatures.
- In India, close to 20% of temperature-sensitive healthcare products arrive damaged or degraded because of broken or insufficient cold chains, including a quarter of vaccines.
- Wastage has cost implications and can delay the achievement of immunisation targets.
Measures and initiatives in strengthening vaccine supply chains
- The Health Ministry has been digitising the vaccine supply chain network in recent years through the use of cloud technology, such as with the Electronic Vaccine Intelligence Network (eVIN).
- Developed with support from Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, and implemented by the UN Development Programme through a smartphone-based app, the platform digitises information on vaccine stocks and temperatures across the country.
- This supports healthcare workers in the last mile in supervising and maintaining the efficiency of the vaccine cold chain.
Way forward
- Electrification: There is a need to improve electrification, especially in the last mile, for which the potential of solar-driven technology must be explored to integrate sustainable development.
- For instance, in Chhattisgarh, 72% of the functioning health centres have been solarised to tackle the issue of regular power outages.
- This has significantly reduced disruption in service provision and increased the uptake of services.
Conclusion
India has pioneered many approaches to ensure access to public health services at a scale never seen before. Robust cold chain systems are an investment in India’s future pandemic preparedness; by taking steps towards actionable policies that improve the cold chain, we have an opportunity to lead the way in building back better and stronger.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- The SC aligning with collective conscience of India
Context
The Supreme Court’s seminal intervention in a batch of petitions challenging the constitutional validity of section 124A of the Indian Penal Code is a watershed moment in the progressive expansion of human rights jurisprudence.
Abuse of sedition law
- The slapping of sedition charges against political opponents and others in Maharashtra, Punjab, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh have confirmed that the abuse of the sedition law is no longer an aberration.
- It has become a norm that has hollowed out the constitutional guarantee of fundamental rights and exposed individuals to the rigour of draconian laws unjustly invoked, outraging national sensitivities as never before.
Significance of the move
- In what is seen as a first in judicial history, the Supreme Court has virtually rendered redundant the provision of a criminal law without expressly declaring it as unconstitutional.
- In an example of judicial statecraft, the court has shielded individuals against a harsh law without trenching on Parliament’s legislative remit or the executive’s command over policy decisions.
- Plenary jurisdiction: Exercising plenary jurisdiction, the Supreme Court is expected to see through its suggestions/orders to the government, particularly when these concern the non-negotiable fundamental rights of citizens.
- Suggestive jurisdiction: As an organ of the state, the Supreme Court’s suggestive jurisdiction is clearly in accord with its declared law (Nagaraj, 2006) that the state (of which the court is an integral constituent), is under a duty not only to protect individual rights but is also obliged to facilitate the same.
- Validating the nations role: The court-inspired initiatives would also validate the nation’s preeminent role in the shaping of a new world order.
Implications of the law
- Nudging the government towards anti-lynching law: As with the sedition law, it can nudge the government to enact an anti-lynching humanitarian law as suggested by it and a comprehensive law against custodial torture.
- Law against custodial torture: The absence of an anti-custodial torture law, a glaring gap in the architecture of the criminal justice system, is inexplicable considering the command of Article 21, recommendations of the Select Committee of Rajya Sabha (2010), the Law Commission of India (2017) and the Human Rights Commission and the judgments of the Supreme Court (Puttaswamy, 2017; Jeeja Ghosh, 2016; and Shabnam, 2015).
- Implications for the UAPA: It is expected likewise from the court to intervene suitably and read down the UAPA and other criminal laws that have been repeatedly misused to trample upon the civil liberties and rights of the people.
Conclusion
This is indeed the moment to seize, as the government reviews the nation’s legal structures. The initiatives suggested above are in aid of democracy anchored in the inviolability of human rights and would enhance India’s soft power in our engagement with the international community.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Biological Diversity Act, 2002
Mains level: Proposed amendments and issues
What is issue:
A senior parliamentarian has expressed concern over the Biological Diversity (Amendment) Bill, 2021, which is in the final stages of consultations in the Joint Parliamentary Committee.
Biological Diversity Act (BDA), 2002:
- The BDA, 2002 was enacted for the conservation of biological diversity and fair, equitable sharing of the monetary benefits from the commercial use of biological resources and traditional knowledge.
- The main intent of this legislation is to protect India’s rich biodiversity and associated knowledge against their use by foreign individuals.
- It seeks to check biopiracy, protect biological diversity and local growers through a three-tier structure of central and state boards and local committees.
- The Act provides for setting up of a National Biodiversity Authority (NBA), State Biodiversity Boards (SBBs) and Biodiversity Management Committees (BMCs) in local bodies.
- The NBA will enjoy the power of a civil court.
What are the proposed Amendments?
The amendment bill seeks to reduce the pressure on wild medicinal plants by encouraging the cultivation of medicinal plants and Decriminalizes certain offences.
- Biological resources sharing: Exempts Ayush practitioners from intimating biodiversity boards for accessing biological resources or knowledge (Vaids and Hakims)
- Research promotion: Facilitates fast-tracking of research, simplify the patent application process
- Bring in foreign investment: Seeks to bring more foreign investments in biological resources, research, patent and commercial utilisation, without compromising the national interest
Need for the Amendment
- Simplifying process: Concerns were raised by Ayush medicine, seed, industry and research sectors urging the government to simplify, streamline the profession.
- Easing compliance: They urged govt to reduce the compliance burden to provide for a conducive environment for collaborative research and investments.
- Access and Benefit-sharing: It also sought to simplify the patent application process, widen the scope of access and benefit-sharing with local communities.
- Exemptions: Ayush practitioners have been exempted from the ambit of the Act, a huge move because the Ayush industry benefits greatly from biological resources in India.
- Certain offences: Violations of the law related to benefit-sharing with communities, which are currently treated as criminal offences and are non-bailable, have been proposed to be made civil offences.
- Imbibing Nagoya Protocol: This bill provides to reconcile the domestic law with free prior informed consent requirements of the 2010 Nayogya Protocol on ABS.
Criticisms of the bill
- No consultation: The bill has been introduced without seeking public comments as required under the pre-legislative consultative policy.
- No profit-sharing: There are ambiguous provisions in the proposed amendment to protect, conserve or increase the stake of local communities in the sustainable use and conservation of biodiversity.
- Commercialization: Activists say that the amendments were done to “solely benefit” the AYUSH Ministry.
- Loopholes to Biopiracy: The Bill would mean AYUSH manufacturing companies would no longer need to take approvals.
- Ignoring Bio-utilization: The bill has excluded the term Bio-utilization which is an important element in the Act. Leaving out bio utilization would leave out an array of activities like characterization, incentivisation and bioassay which are undertaken with commercial motive.
- Exotic plants cultivation: The bill also exempts cultivated medicinal plants from the purview of the Act but it is practically impossible to detect which plants are cultivated and which are from the wild.
- De-licensing: This provision could allow large companies to evade the requirement for prior approval or share the benefit with local communities.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Total factor productivity
Mains level: Not Much
India’s total factor productivity (TFP) growth has seen a moderate decline compared to the global experience, though it remains above that of emerging markets and developing economies, according to a recent report.
What is Total factor productivity (TFP)?
- Productivity levels measure the relationship between total products or output, and inputs or factors of production employed.
- Labour productivity is a measure of total output divided by the units of labour employed in the process of production.
- However, TFP is a measure of total output divided by a weighted average of inputs; i.e., labour and capital.
- Improvements in TFP bring down production costs, raise output levels, and lead to a higher gross domestic product.
- While total productivity measures all-inclusive productivity, TFP is a measure of production efficiency.
How has India fared thus far?
- A recent Reserve Bank of India (RBI) report points to a moderate decline in TFP growth compared to the global experience.
- TFP growth rate for India during the 2010-2019 period was approximately 2.2%, as against -0.3% for emerging markets and developing economies.
- During the pandemic, the TFP for India declined by 2.9% in 2020 and marginally improved by 0.1% in 2021.
- In 2022, TFP growth rate is projected to increase to 2%.
- As per estimates, TFP growth contributed to 30% of India’s GDP growth during 2010-2018.
- It was largely driven by public administration, quality education and social works.
What has been the TFP trend across the world?
- Global productivity growth has witnessed a prolonged slowdown since 2010, with the deceleration sharper in emerging and developing economies.
- This is ascribed to a weakening investment climate, and lower employment growth levels in developed economies, among others.
- TFP growth for the world economy was 0.7% in 2021 and may shrink by 0.5% in 2022.
What are the ways to improve TFP?
- India’s initiatives around skill development and the new education policy are steps in the right direction, since they focus on boosting manpower employability.
- Quality education, better healthcare, nurturing of innovation, introduction of efficient technology and processes in domestic companies and reduction in misallocation of resources can help improve TFP levels.
- Though the country’s ranking in the Global Innovation Index, 2021 has improved to 46, it still has some distance to go.
How can the industry improve productivity?
- Improved TFP minimizes per-unit cost facilitating the horizontal expansion of consumption demand, thereby improving the standard of living.
- Employers have fortunately started acknowledging the fact that manpower is an essential component in profit earnings.
- Today, the focus has shifted to retaining talent, which is limited in supply.
- This positive transformation seen after the pandemic needs to be further extended.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: World Forestry Congress, Seoul Declaration
Mains level: Not Much
The participants from 141 countries gathered in person and online at the 15th World Forestry Congress in Seoul, Republic of Korea adopted the Seoul Forest Declaration.
Seoul Forest Declaration
- Shared responsibility: The Declaration urges that responsibility for forests should be shared and integrated across institutions, sectors and stakeholders.
- Increased investment: Investment in forest and landscape restoration globally needs to triple by 2030 to meet internationally agreed commitments and targets on restoring degraded land.
- Moving towards circular economy: One of the key takeaways was the importance of moving towards a circular bioeconomy and climate neutrality.
- Innovative green financing mechanisms: To upscale investment in forest conservation, restoration and sustainable use, and highlighted the potential of sustainably produced wood as a renewable, recyclable and versatile material.
- Decision-making: It urged the continued development and use of emerging innovative technologies and mechanisms to enable evidence-based forest and landscape decision-making.
Other takeaways
- Close cooperation among nations is needed to address challenges that transcend political boundaries.
- This was strengthened at the Congress by the launch of new partnerships such as the:
- Assuring the Future of Forests with Integrated Risk Management (AFFIRM) Mechanism and
- Sustaining an Abundance of Forest Ecosystems (SAFE) Initiative
Back2Basics: World Forestry Congress
- The first World Forestry Congress first held in Rome in 1926. After that, it is held about every six years by the UN-FAO.
- In 1954, FAO was entrusted with supporting Congress preparations in close cooperation with the host country and proudly continues to do so today. .
- It has been providing a forum for inclusive discussion on the key challenges and way forward for the forestry sector.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Urban Heat Islands
Mains level: Read the attached story
Several parts of the country are reeling under heat wave conditions. Cities, especially, are a lot hotter than rural areas. This is due to a phenomenon called an “urban heat island”.
Urban Heat Island
- An urban heat island is a local and temporary phenomenon experienced when certain pockets within a city experience higher heat load than surrounding or neighbouring areas on the same day.
- The variations are mainly due to heat remaining trapped within locations that often resemble concrete jungles.
- The temperature variation can range between 3 to 5 degrees Celsius.
Why are cities hotter than rural areas?
- Green cover: Rural areas have relatively larger green cover in the form of plantations, farmlands, forests and trees as compared to urban spaces.
- Transpiration: Transpiration is a natural way of heat regulation. This is the scientific process of roots absorbing water from the soil, storing it in the leaves and stems of plants, before processing it and releasing it in the form of water vapour.
- Heat-regulation: Urban areas are often developed with high-rise buildings, roads, parking spaces, pavements and transit routes for public transport. As a result, heat regulation is either completely absent or man-made.
- Construction: Cities usually have buildings constructed with glass, bricks, cement and concrete all of which are dark-coloured materials, meaning they attract and absorb higher heat content.
This forms temporary islands within cities where the heat remains trapped.
How can urban heat islands be reduced?
- The main way to cut heat load within urban areas is increasing the green cover; filling open spaces with trees and plants.
- Other ways of heat mitigation include appropriate choice of construction materials, promoting terrace and kitchen gardens, and painting white or light colours on terraces wherever possible to reflect heat.
What has NASA said on urban heat islands in India?
- NASA recently pointed out heat islands in urban parts of Delhi, where temperatures were far higher than nearby agricultural lands.
- It used its Ecosystem Spaceborne Thermal Radiometer Experiment (Ecostress) on the International Space Station.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Places associated with Buddha
Mains level: Buddhist architecture
Prime Minister in Lumbini, on the occasion of Buddha Purnima, said that his birthplace Vadnagar in Gujarat’s Mehsana district had been a great centre for Buddhist learning centuries ago.
Vadnagar’s ties with Buddhism
- In 2014, the excavation work has brought up Buddhist relics and around 20,000 artefacts, some dating back to the 2nd century.
- Among these are an elliptical structure and a circular stupa along with a square memorial stupa of 2×2 metres and 130 centimetres in height with a wall enclosure.
- It is like a platform which has a chamber in the centre that resembles a pradakshina path.
- Further, bowls said to be used by monks have been found during the excavations, which have a terracotta sealing with inscriptions of namassarvagyaya and a face-shaped pendant with tritatva symbol.
- Sacred relics of the Buddha were even found in Devni Mori in Aravalli district of Gujarat.
In travellers record
- Vadnagar is mentioned often in the Puranas and even in the travelogue of the great Chinese traveler, Hiuen Tsang (7th century), as a rich and flourishing town.
- He is believed to have visited the state in 641 AD.
- It adds how some of the names attributed to Vadnagar in history are Chamatkarpur, Anandpur, Snehpur and Vimalpur.
- It also had snippets about other Buddhist heritage sites in Gujarat, such as Junagadh, Kutch and Bharuch.
Back2Basics: Places associated with Buddha
These are three of the few holiest sites in Buddhism:
- Bodh Gaya in Bihar, the site of the enlightenment of Gautama Buddha under a tree and top site in the list of world heritage sites in India.
- Kesaria stupa is a Buddhist stupa in Kesariya, located at a distance of 110 kilometres (68 mi) from Patna, in the Champaran (east) district of Bihar, India. The first construction of the Stupa is dated to the 3rd century BCE. Kesariya Stupa has a circumference of almost 400 feet (120 m) and raises to a height of about 104 feet (32 m).
- Nalanda was a renowned Buddhist University in the ancient kingdom of Magadha (modern-day Bihar) in India.Buddhist texts describe it as a Mahavihara, a revered Buddhist monastery.
- Sarnath near Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, the site of the first sermon (Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta), where Buddha taught about the Middle Way, the Four Noble Truths and Noble Eightfold Path.
- Kushinagar in Uttar Pradesh, the site of the Buddha’s parinirvana and home of many famous meditation & prayer offering sites in India.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- Focusing on public health engineering
Context
As we confront the public health challenges emerging out of environmental concerns, expanding the scope of public health/environmental engineering science becomes pivotal.
Why does India need a specialised cadre of public health engineers
- Achieving SDGs and growing demand for water consumption: For India to achieve its sustainable development goals of clean water and sanitation and to address the growing demands for water consumption and preservation of both surface water bodies and groundwater resources, it is essential to find and implement innovative ways of treating wastewater.
- It is in this context why the specialised cadre of public health engineers, also known as sanitation engineers or environmental engineers, is best suited to provide the growing urban and rural water supply and to manage solid waste and wastewater.
- Limited capacity: The availability of systemic information and programmes focusing on teaching, training, and capacity building for this specialty cadre is currently limited.
- Currently in India, civil engineering incorporates a course or two on environmental engineering for students to learn about wastewater management as a part of their pre-service and in-service training.
- However, the nexus between wastewater and solid waste management and public health issues is not brought out clearly.
- India aims to supply 55 litres of water per person per day by 2024 under its Jal Jeevan Mission to install functional household tap connections.
- The goal of reaching every rural household with functional tap water can be achieved in a sustainable and resilient manner only if the cadre of public health engineers is expanded and strengthened.
- Different from the international trend: In India, public health engineering is executed by the Public Works Department or by health officials. This differs from international trends.
Way forward
- Introducing public health engineering as a two-year structured master’s degree programme or through diploma programmes for professionals working in this field must be considered to meet the need of increased human resource in this field.
- Interdisciplinary field: Furthermore, public health engineering should be developed as an interdisciplinary field.
- Engineers can significantly contribute to public health in defining what is possible, identifying limitations, and shaping workable solutions with a problem-solving approach.
- Public health engineering’s combination of engineering and public health skills can also enable contextualised decision-making regarding water management in India.
Conclusion
Diseases cannot be contained unless we provide good quality and adequate quantity of water. Most of the world’s diseases can be prevented by considering this. Training our young minds towards creating sustainable water management systems would be the first step.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Buddhist circuit
Mains level: Paper 2- Regional cooperation
Context
Recent developments — in Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Pakistan — underline the geographic imperative that binds India to its neighbours in the Subcontinent.
Need for intensive regional cooperation for managing the new dangers
- Working with the logic of geography has become an unavoidable necessity amidst the deepening regional and global crises accentuated by Russia’s war in Ukraine.
- As higher oil and food prices trigger inflation and popular unrest across the region, more intensive regional cooperation is one of the tools for managing the new dangers.
Hope for transcending internal divide between India and Sri Lanka
- India’s relations with Sri Lanka underline the importance of continuous tending of political geography.
- Tradition of hosting political exile: India has had a long tradition of hosting political exiles from the region.
- Whether it was the Dalai Lama from Tibet or Prachanda from Nepal, Delhi has welcomed leaders from the neighbourhood taking shelter in India.
- Negative consequences: There is a dangerous flip side to this positive tradition in the Subcontinent.
- India has paid a high price for the decision in the early 1980s to train and arm Sri Lankan Tamil rebels.
- Hope for transcending internal divide: The current crisis in Sri Lanka raised hopes for transcending the internal ethnic divide in the island nation and rebuilding political confidence between Colombo and Delhi.
- Material and financial support to Sri Lanka: Delhi’s unstinting support — both material and financial — for Colombo during this unprecedented economic and political crisis has generated much goodwill in Sri Lanka.
Relations with Nepal and role of cultural ties
- Possibilities in cultural geography: Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent visit to Lumbini, the birthplace of Lord Buddha in Nepal, highlights the immense possibilities of cultural geography in reshaping the Subcontinent’s regional relations.
- The idea of a “Buddhist circuit” connecting the various pilgrimage sites across the India-Nepal border has been around for a long time.
- India and Nepal have come together in developing the Buddhist circuit.
- Religion and culture are deeply interconnected in South Asia.
- Developing all religious pilgrimage sites across the region, and improving the transborder access to them could not only improve tourist revenues of all the South Asian nations, but could also have a calming effect on the troubled political relations
- That China has built a new airport near Lumbini and Modi is avoiding it points to the turbulent triangular dynamic between Delhi, Kathmandu, and Beijing.
- Revitalising the shared cultural geography inevitably involves better management of economic geography.
- Infrastructure development on Indian side: The last few years have seen the Indian government step up on infrastructure development on the Indian side and accelerate transborder transport and energy connectivity in the eastern subcontinent.
Recent trends in India-Pakistan relations
- Cultural ties: Despite their frozen bilateral political relationship, Delhi and Islamabad had agreed to open the Kartarpur corridor at the end of 2019 across their militarised Punjab border.
- There is much more to be done on reconnecting the Subcontinent’s sacred geographies — including the Ramayana trail and Sufi shrines.
- While parts of the region are aligning their policies with the geographic imperative, Pakistan would seem to be an exception.
- Ignoring the geographic imperative: Given the depth of its macro economic crisis and massive inflation, one might have thought Pakistan would want to expand trade ties with India in its own economic interest.
- But Pakistan’s politics are hard-wired against the logic of geography.
- Delhi had little reason to believe that Pakistan’s new government can alter its self-defeating policy towards India.
- But it must continue to bet that the geographic imperative will eventually prevail over Islamabad’s policies.
Conclusion
Realists might want to argue that current trends in the Subcontinent point to India’s growing agency in shaping its neighbourhood and that Pakistan will not forever remain an exception. For Delhi, the policy question is whether India can do something to hasten the inevitable change in Pakistan.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: NA
Mains level: Read the attached story
The Supreme Court will hear a challenge to the order of a civil court in Varanasi directing a videographic survey of a temple- mosque complex upholding the Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991.
What is the Places of Worship Act?
- The long title describes it as an Act to prohibit conversion of any place of worship and to provide for the maintenance of the religious character of any place of worship.
- It holds places of worships as it existed on the 15th day of August, 1947, and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.
When was this law passed?
- The Act was brought in 1991 by the then pseudo-secular government at a time when the Ram temple movement was at its peak.
- Then, communal tensions in India were at peak.
- Parliament determined that independence from colonial rule furnishes a constitutional basis for healing the injustices of the past.
- It sought to provide the confidence to every religious community that their places of worship will be preserved and that their character will not be altered.
What are its provisions?
- Anti-conversion: Section 3 of the Act bars the conversion, in full or part, of a place of worship of any religious denomination into a place of worship of a different religious denomination — or even a different segment of the same religious denomination.
- Holiness of a place: Section 4(1) declares that the religious character of a place of worship “shall continue to be the same as it existed” on August 15, 1947.
- Litigation: Section 4(2) says any suit or legal proceeding with respect to the conversion of the religious character of any place existing on August 15, 1947, pending before any court, shall abate — and no fresh suit or legal proceedings shall be instituted.
- Exception for Ayodhya: Section 5 stipulates that the Act shall not apply to the Ramjanmabhoomi-Babri Masjid case, and to any suit, appeal or proceeding relating to it.
Issues with the law
- The law has been challenged on the ground that it bars judicial review, which is a basic feature of the Constitution.
- It imposes an “arbitrary irrational retrospective cutoff date”, and abridges the right to religion of Hindus, Jains, Buddhists and Sikhs.
What is the recent controversy?
- The temple-mosque complex in Varanasi clearly shows that the mosque stands over a rundown temple.
- Videography shows the presence of Hindu deities inside the mosque.
- Right-wing propagandists highlight the intention of Aurangzeb behind leaving remnants of the temple to keep reminding communities of their historical fate and to remind coming generations of rulers of their past glory and power.
What did the Supreme Court say in its Ayodhya judgment?
- The constitutional validity of the 1991 Act was not under challenge, nor had it been examined before the Supreme Court Bench that heard the Ramjanmabhoomi-Babri Masjid title suit.
- The Places of Worship Act imposes a non-derogable obligation towards enforcing our commitment to secularism under the Indian Constitution.
- The law is hence a legislative instrument designed to protect the secular features of the Indian polity, which is one of the basic features of the Constitution.
- The Places of Worship Act is a legislative intervention which preserves non-retrogression as an essential feature of our secular values.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Rice fortification
Mains level: Issues with fortified food
A report has flagged issues due to threats posed to anaemic persons over iron over-nutrition created by rice fortification.
Highlights of the report
- No prior education: The activists discovered that neither field functionaries nor beneficiaries had been educated about the potential harms.
- No warnings issued: There were no warning labels despite the food regulator’s rules on fortified foods.
- No informed choice: The right to informed choices about one’s food is a basic right. In the case of rice fortification, it is seen that no prior informed consent was ever sought from the recipients.
What are the risks highlighted?
- Thalassemia, sickle cell anaemia and malaria are conditions where there is already excess iron in the body, whereas TB patients are unable to absorb iron.
- Consumption of iron-fortified foods among patients of these diseases can reduce immunity and functionality of organs.
Endemic zones identified
- Jharkhand is an endemic zone of sickle cell disorder and thalassemia, with a prevalence of 8%-10%, which is twice the national average.
- Jharkhand is also an endemic zone for malaria — in 2020, the State ranked third in the country in malaria deaths.
What is Fortification?
- The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has explicitly defined fortification.
- It involves deliberate increasing of the content of essential micronutrients in a food so as to improve the nutritional quality of food and to provide public health benefit with minimal risk to health.
Types of food fortification
Food fortification can also be categorized according to the stage of addition:
- Commercial and industrial fortification (wheat flour, cornmeal, cooking oils)
- Biofortification (breeding crops to increase their nutritional value, which can include both conventional selective breeding, and genetic engineering)
- Home fortification (example: vitamin D drops)
How is fortification done for rice?
- Various technologies are available to add micronutrients to regular rice, such as coating, dusting, and ‘extrusion’.
- The last mentioned involves the production of fortified rice kernels (FRKs) from a mixture using an ‘extruder’ machine.
- It is considered to be the best technology for India.
- The fortified rice kernels are blended with regular rice to produce fortified rice.
How does the extrusion technology to produce FRK work?
- Dry rice flour is mixed with a premix of micronutrients, and water is added to this mixture.
- The mixture is passed through a twin-screw extruder with heating zones, which produces kernels similar in shape and size to rice.
- These kernels are dried, cooled, and packaged for use. FRK has a shelf life of at least 12 months.
- As per guidelines issued by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, the shape and size of the fortified rice kernel should “resemble the normal milled rice as closely as possible”.
- According to the guidelines, the length and breadth of the grain should be 5 mm and 2.2 mm respectively.
But why does rice have to be fortified in the first place?
- India has very high levels of malnutrition among women and children.
- According to the Food Ministry, every second woman in the country is anaemic and every third child is stunted.
- Fortification of food is considered to be one of the most suitable methods to combat malnutrition.
- Rice is one of India’s staple foods, consumed by about two-thirds of the population. Per capita rice consumption in India is 6.8 kg per month.
- Therefore, fortifying rice with micronutrients is an option to supplement the diet of the poor.
What are the standards for fortification?
- Under the Ministry’s guidelines, 10 g of FRK must be blended with 1 kg of regular rice.
- According to FSSAI norms, 1 kg of fortified rice will contain the following: iron (28 mg-42.5 mg), folic acid (75-125 microgram), and vitamin B-12 (0.75-1.25 microgram).
- Rice may also be fortified with zinc (10 mg-15 mg), vitamin A (500-750 microgram RE), vitamin B-1 (1 mg-1.5 mg), vitamin B-2 (1.25 mg-1.75 mg), vitamin B-3 (12.5 mg-20 mg) and vitamin B-6 (1.5 mg-2.5 mg) per kg.
How can a beneficiary distinguish between fortified rice and regular rice?
- Fortified rice will be packed in jute bags with the logo (‘+F’) and the line “Fortified with Iron, Folic Acid, and Vitamin B12”.
Advantages offered
- Health: Fortified staple foods will contain natural or near-natural levels of micro-nutrients, which may not necessarily be the case with supplements.
- Taste: It provides nutrition without any change in the characteristics of food or the course of our meals.
- Nutrition: If consumed on a regular and frequent basis, fortified foods will maintain body stores of nutrients more efficiently and more effectively than will intermittently supplement.
- Economy: The overall costs of fortification are extremely low; the price increase is approximately 1 to 2 percent of the total food value.
- Society: It upholds everyone’s right to have access to safe and nutritious food, consistent with the right to adequate food and the fundamental right of everyone to be free from hunger
Issues with fortified food
- Against nature: Fortification and enrichment upset nature’s packaging. Our body does not absorb individual nutrients added to processed foods as efficiently compared to nutrients naturally occurring.
- Bioavailability: Supplements added to foods are less bioavailable. Bioavailability refers to the proportion of a nutrient your body is able to absorb and use.
- Immunity issues: They lack immune-boosting substances.
- Over-nutrition: Fortified foods and supplements can pose specific risks for people who are taking prescription medications, including decreased absorption of other micro-nutrients, treatment failure, and increased mortality risk.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: States reorganization
Mains level: Read the attached story
It was on May 16, 1975 that Sikkim became 22nd state of the Union of India.
Why in news?
- While in many modern narratives, the tale of the former kingdom under the Namgyal dynasty acquiring Indian statehood begins in decades close to the 1970s.
- The real story, according to experts, can only be understood by tracing the events back to 1640s when Namgyal rule was first established.
Sikkim’s accession into India: A complete timeline
(1) Attacks during Namgyal Rule
- Beginning with Phuntsog Namgyal, the first chogyal (monarch), the Namgyal dynasty ruled Sikkim until 1975.
- At one point, the kingdom of Sikkim included the Chumbi valley (part of China now) and Darjeeling.
- In the early 1700s, the region saw a series of conflicts between Sikkim, Nepal, Bhutan, and Tibet, which resulted in a shrinking of Sikkim’s territorial boundaries.
(2) Under East India Company
- When the British arrived, their expansion plans in the Indian subcontinent included controlling the Himalayan states.
- The kingdom of Nepal, meanwhile, continued with its attempts to expand its territory.
- This resulted in the Anglo-Nepalese war (November, 1814 to March, 1816), also known as the Gorkha war, which was fought between the Gorkhali army and the East India Company.
- Both sides had ambitious expansion plans for the strategically important mountainous north of the Indian subcontinent.
- In 1814, Sikkim allied with the East India Company in the latter’s campaign against Nepal.
- The Company won and restored to Sikkim some of the territories that Nepal had wrested from it in 1780.
(3) Administrative control of British
- A turning point in the history of Sikkim involves with the appointment of John Claude White as Political Officer of Sikkim.
- Sikkim by then was a British Protectorate under the Treaty of Tumlong signed in March, 1861.
- As with most of the Indian subcontinent that the British had under their administrative control, the kingdom of Sikkim, although a protectorate, had little choice in the administration of its own kingdom.
- The Namgyal monarch could not criticise decisions made by the British, but the ruler did complain about this influx of Nepali migrants into the kingdom.
(4) Scenario after 1947
- Three years after India’s Independence in 1947, Sikkim became a protectorate of India.
- In 1950, a treaty was signed between the then Sikkim monarch Tashi Namgyal and India’s then Political Officer in Sikkim, Harishwar Dayal.
- A clause in the treaty read: “Sikkim shall continue to be a Protectorate of India and, subject to the provisions of this Treaty, shall enjoy autonomy in regard to its internal affairs.”
(5) Chinese invasion of Tibet
- China’s invasion of Tibet in 1949 and Nepal’s attacks on Sikkim throughout the kingdom’s history were cited as reasons why the kingdom needed the support and protection of a powerful ally.
- Further, the talk of persecution of Tibetans after China’s arrival at the scene generated fear of the possibility of Sikkim suffering a similar fate.
(6) Dalai Lama’s Arrival
- In March 1959, the 14th Dalai Lama escaped from Tibet.
- After the Dalai Lama reached Indian borders, he and his entourage settled at the Tawang monastery in Arunachal Pradesh.
- A month later, he travelled to Mussoorie, where he met then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru to discuss the future of the Tibetan refugees who had travelled with him.
- The repercussions of India’s decision to welcome and give refuge to the Dalai Lama sent a message to some in Sikkim that unlike China, aligning with India would guarantee their protection and security.
- This was the perspective of the ruling elite in Sikkim.
(7) Public discontent against monarchy
- The period between the 1950s and the 1970s marked growing discontent in Sikkim.
- Primarily, there was anger against the monarchy because of growing inequality and feudal control.
- Anti-monarchy protests grew in 1973, following which the royal palace was surrounded by thousands of protesters.
- Indian troops arrived after the monarch was left with no choice but to ask New Delhi to send assistance.
- Finally, a tripartite agreement was signed in the same year between the chogyal, the Indian government, and three major political parties, so that major political reforms could be introduced.
(8) Attempts for constitutional development
- A year later, in 1974, elections were held, where the Sikkim State Congress led by Kazi Lhendup Dorji won, defeating pro-independence parties.
- That year, a new constitution was adopted, which restricted the role of the monarch to a titular post, which Palden Thondup Namgyal bitterly resented.
- In the same year, India upgraded Sikkim’s status from protectorate to “associated state”, allotting to it one seat each in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.
- Opposed to the move, the monarch attempted to bring international attention to it soon after.
(9) Finally accession into India
- A referendum was held in 1975 where an overwhelming majority voted in favour of abolishing the monarchy and joining India.
- A total 59,637 voted in favour of abolishing the monarchy and joining India, with only 1,496 voting against.
- Sikkim’s new parliament, led by Kazi Lhendup Dorjee, proposed a bill for Sikkim to become an Indian state, which was accepted by the Indian government.
Also try this PYQ:
Q.The latitudes that pass through Sikkim also pass through:
(a) Rajasthan
(b) Punjab
(c) Himachal Pradesh
(d) Jammu & Kashmir
Post your answers here.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Repo Rate
Mains level: Inflation targetting by MPC
Earlier this month, the RBI, in a surprise move decided unanimously to raise the “policy repo rate by 40 basis points to 4.40%, with immediate effect”.
What is the Repo Rate?
- The repo rate is one of several direct and indirect instruments that are used by the RBI for implementing monetary policy.
- Specifically, the RBI defines the repo rate as the fixed interest rate at which it provides overnight liquidity to banks against the collateral of government and other approved securities under the liquidity adjustment facility (LAF).
- In other words, when banks have short-term requirements for funds, they can place government securities that they hold with the central bank and borrow money against these securities at the repo rate.
- Since this is the rate of interest that the RBI charges commercial banks such as SBI and ICICI Bank when it lends them money, it serves as a key benchmark for the lenders to in turn price the loans they offer to their borrowers.
Why is the repo rate such a crucial monetary tool?
- According to Investopedia, when government central banks repurchase securities from commercial lenders, they do so at a discounted rate that is known as the repo rate.
- The repo rate system allows central banks to control the money supply within economies by increasing or decreasing the availability of funds.
How does the repo rate work?
- Besides the direct loan pricing relationship, the repo rate also functions as a monetary tool by helping to regulate the availability of liquidity or funds in the banking system.
- For instance, when the repo rate is decreased, banks may find an incentive to sell securities back to the government in return for cash.
- This increases the money supply available to the general economy.
- Conversely, when the repo rate is increased, lenders would end up thinking twice before borrowing from the central bank at the repo window thus, reducing the availability of money supply in the economy.
- Since inflation is caused by more money chasing the same quantity of goods and services available in an economy, central banks tend to target regulation of money supply as a means to slow inflation.
What impact can a repo rate change have on inflation?
- Inflation can broadly be: mainly demand driven price gains, or a result of supply side factors.
- This in turn push up the costs of inputs used by producers of goods and providers of services.
- It is thus spurring inflation, or most often caused by a combination of both demand and supply side pressures.
- Changes to the repo rate to influence interest rates and the availability of money supply primarily work only on the demand side.
- It makes credit more expensive and savings more attractive and therefore dissuading consumption.
- However, they do little to address the supply side factors, be it the high price of commodities such as crude oil or metals or imported food items such as edible oils.
Try this PYQ:
Q.If the RBI decides to adopt an expansionist monetary policy, which of the following would it not do?
- Cut and optimize the Statutory Liquidity Ratio
- Increase the Marginal Standing Facility Rate
- Cut the Bank Rate and Repo Rate
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
Post your answers here.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Ramgarh Vishdhari TR
Mains level: Tiger Conservation
Ramgarh Vishdhari Wildlife Sanctuary is now notified as a tiger reserve after a nod by the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC).
Ramgarh Vishdhari TR
- Ramgarh Vishadhri, located mostly in Bundi district and in part in Bhilwara and Kota districts.
- It is also home to the Indian wolf, leopard, striped hyena, chinkara, antelope and foxes among other animals.
- It is now India’s 52nd tiger reserve and Rajasthan’s fourth, after Ranthambore, Sariska and Mukundra.
- The reserve will be spread in an area of 1,501.89 sq km.
- The area has been called ‘critical’ for the movement of tigers by wildlife experts and conservationists.
- Though the tiger population in Ramgarh itself was not high, it plays an important role in connecting the Ranthambore and Mukundra Tiger Reserves of Rajasthan.
Back2Basics: Tiger Reserves
- The Tiger Reserves of India were set up in 1973 and are governed by Project Tiger, which is administrated by the National Tiger Conservation Authority.
- A National Park or Wildlife Sanctuary that is considered significant for protecting tigers can be additionally designated as a Tiger Reserve.
- A Tiger Reserve consists of a ‘Core’ or ‘Critical Tiger Habitat’, which is to be managed as an inviolate area, and a ‘Buffer’ or Peripheral area immediately abutting a Core area, which may be accorded a lesser degree of habitat protection.
- This is the typical zonation of a Tiger Reserve.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Article 19
Mains level: Paper 2- Issues with Section 124A
Context
In a brief order delivered in S.G. Vombatkere vs Union of India, a three-judge Bench of the Supreme Court of India effectively suspended the operation of Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code.
What was the basis for the reconsideration?
- This direction was issued after the Union government filed an affidavit informing the Court that it had decided to re-examine the law.
- The Bench believed that the offer to reconsider the provision, if nothing else, showed that the Government was in broad agreement with the Court’s prima facie opinion on the matter, that the clause as it stands “is not in tune with the current social milieu, and was intended for a time when this country was under the colonial regime”.
Section 125A and issues with it
- Section 124A defines sedition as any action — “whether by words, signs, or visible representation” — which “brings or attempts to bring into hatred or contempt or excites or attempts to excite disaffection towards the Government established by law in India”.
- The word “disaffection”, the provision explains, “includes disloyalty and all feelings of enmity”.
- The adopted Constitution did not permit a restriction on free speech on the grounds of sedition.
- In the 1950s, two different High Courts struck down Section 124A as offensive to freedom.
- But, in 1962, in Kedar Nath Singh vs State of Bihar, a five-judge Bench of the Supreme Court reversed these verdicts.
- The Court paid no heed to the debates that informed the Constituent Assembly.
- Instead, it found that Section 124A was defensible as a valid restriction on free speech on grounds of public order.
- However, while upholding the clause, the Court limited its application to “acts involving intention or tendency to create disorder, or disturbance of law and order, or incitement to violence”.
- Vague terms: The decision failed to recognise that terms such as “disaffection towards the government”, which are fundamentally vague.
- Marginalised sections affected: Since then, in its application by law enforcement, the limitations imposed in Kedar Nath Singh have rarely been observed.
- As is often the case with abuses of this kind, it is the most marginalised sections of society that have faced the brunt of the harm.
- Reading of fundamental rights changed: Since 1962, when the judgment was handed out, the Supreme Court’s reading of fundamental rights has undergone a transformative change.
- Time to reconsider Kedar Nath: This altered landscape meant that when fresh challenges were mounted against Section 124A, the time to reconsider Kedar Nath Singh had clearly arrived.
- In the long run, the decision in Kedar Nath Singh will require a clear disavowal.
- But in nullifying Section 124A, albeit for the present, the Court has provided provisional relief — allowing those accused of the offence to both seek bail in terms of the order, and to have their trials frozen.
Conclusion
To protect our democracy, we must ensure that the constitutional guarantees to personal liberty and freedom do not go in vain. For that, each of our penal laws must be animated by a concern for equality, justice, and fairness.
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