Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: GST Council
Mains level: Paper 3- Issues with special treatment to states contributing more to GST pool
The article highlights the issues with the demand for special treatment of states with higher contribution to GST pool.
Debate on GST
- The issue of GST concessions on COVID relief has brought into focus the structural flaws in the GST structure.
- In this process, the structure and design of GST — essentially a tax on consumption — is being questioned.
- The issue of “rich” states versus “poor” ones, the decision-making process in the GST Council, and the representation of various states in the Council have also come into the focus.
Why States should be treated equally in GST Council
1) Consensus on GST
- The structure and design of GST and its basic features, as enshrined in the 101st Constitution Amendment Act, were unanimously adopted and endorsed by Parliament.
- The broader and finer points of the law, were thoroughly discussed and debated and recommended by the GST Council after a complete consensus.
- These were further debated and approved by not only Parliament but also by each of the state legislatures.
- There was complete consensus even on the issue of delegated legislation — something unheard of in a federal environment.
2) Equality of all states
- In this process of consensus building, no state was accorded even the slightest of special privilege.
- That is why the consensus surrounding GST was unprecedented whether in India or any other federation.
- Therefore, arguing for special treatment of some states is a dangerous idea, particularly in governance, and more so in a welfare state.
- For, this would open the gates for elitist arguments such as special rights for bigger taxpayers, unequal voting rights in elections and preferential treatment for a select few.
3) Issues with greater contribution to GST revenue pool
- It is not correct to argue that the GST collected in a state represents the revenue of that particular state for, under the GST mechanism, the tax deposited by a taxpayer in a state is a function of largely the value of supplies made by such taxpayer.
- Approximately 50 per cent at the aggregate level and much higher at the state level of such values are of an inter-state nature.
- In other words, most supplies made from any producing state are consumed elsewhere and the revenue in such a situation naturally and rightfully accrues to the destination state.
4) No transfers based on a formula
- It is equally fallacious to argue that under GST, most of the revenue is collected by the Union and is transferred to the states on the basis of some formula.
- The quantum of IGST revenue that is settled to any state is directly related to the returns filed in that state and the cross utilisation of credit exhibited in such returns; part of this settlement also comprises tax on supplies destined to that state, as exhibited in the returns of such suppliers.
- There is no “formula” as such for “transfer” of revenue collected by the Centre. Instead, such “transfers” are directly relatable to the consumption (whether intermediate or final) in any state.
5) Locational or geographical advantage
- There is another dimension to the higher revenue collection in a few states.
- One may note that such states enjoy locational or geographical advantages, being mostly coastal and immensely suited to the needs of trade and distribution as also manufacturing.
- Also, the disadvantage to such states on account of lower availability of certain vital minerals like coal and iron ore was undone by the principle of freight equalisation resorted to in the years following Independence.
- This contributed, in no small measure, to the development of such states.
6) Unequal transfers of Central receipts
- The argument of unequal transfers of central receipts also does not hold water, either in India or in any other federation.
- As is well known, such transfers are intended for correcting horizontal fiscal imbalances in a federation.
Conclusion
We should thus concentrate on carrying forward the glorious traditions of perhaps the only institution of co-operative federalism that we have been able to build so far.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Crop Insurance Scheme
Mains level: PMFBY succes and failures
Maharashtra CM has urged the Prime Minister for state-wide implementation of the ‘Beed model’ of the crop insurance scheme Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bhima Yojana (PMFBY).
Consider this question:
Q.Payouts released often exceed the premium collected in PMFBY. Discuss this limitation of the PMFBY where insurance firms refuse to bid in drought prone regions.
What is PMFBY?
- Launched in 2016, the flagship PMFBY insures farm losses against inclement weather events.
- Farmers pay 1.5-2% of the premium with the rest borne by the state and central governments.
- It is a central scheme implemented by state agriculture departments as per central guidelines.
- For farmers, the low rate of premium and relatively decent coverage make the scheme attractive.
- Prior to 2020, the scheme was optional for farmers who did not have loans pending, but mandatory for loanee farmers.
- Since 2020, it has been optional for all farmers. In Maharashtra, over the years, more non-loanee farmers have enrolled, although it was optional for them.
Issues faced in Maharashtra
- Voices were raised in Maharashtra about the need to change the scheme.
- Delay in claim settlement, failure to recognize localized weather events, and stringent conditions for claims were among the concerns. Another complaint was about alleged profiteering by insurance companies.
- For Maharashtra, where farmers predominantly depend of monsoon rains to water their crops, the scheme soon turned out to be non-profitable for insurance companies given the high payments they had to make.
- Payouts were close to or exceeded the premium collected in some years, leading to losses to insurance companies.
What is Beed model the state government wants implemented?
- Located in the drought-prone Marathwada region, the district of Beed presents a challenge for any insurance company.
- During the 2020 kharif season, tenders for implementation did not attract any bids. So, the state Agriculture Department decided to tweak the guidelines for the district.
- The state-run Indian Agricultural Insurance Company implemented the scheme.
- Under the new guidelines, the insurance company provided a cover of 110% of the premium collected, with caveats.
- If the compensation exceeded the cover provided, the state government would pay the bridge amount.
- If the compensation was less than the premium collected, the insurance company would keep 20% of the amount as handling charges and reimburse the rest to the state government.
Greater role for States
- In a normal season where farmers report minimal losses, the state government is expected to get back money that can form a corpus to fund the scheme for the following year.
- However, the state government would have to bear the financial liability in case of losses due to extreme weather events.
Why is the government pushing for it for the entire state?
- The reason why Maharashtra is pushing for this scheme is that in most years, the claims-to-premium ratio is low with the premium being paid to the company.
- In the Beed model, the profit of the company is expected to reduce and the state government would access another source of funds.
- The reimbursed amount can lead to lower provisioning by the state for the following year, or help in financing the paying the bridge amount in case of a year of crop loss.
- For farmers, however, this model does not have any direct benefit.
Challenges ahead
- The chances of the model being implemented for the present Kharif season appear slim.
- Questions remain on how the state government is going to raise the excess amount, and how the reimbursed amount would be administered.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: G7
Mains level: Read the attached story
At the invitation of UK PM, PM Modi will participate in the Outreach Sessions of the G7 Summit this week.
Note the members of G7 and G20. UPSC may puzzle you asking which G20 nation isn’t a member of G7.
The Group of 7
- The G-7 or ‘Group of Seven’ includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
- It is an intergovernmental organization that was formed in 1975 by the top economies of the time as an informal forum to discuss pressing world issues.
- Initially, it was formed as an effort by the US and its allies to discuss economic issues.
- The G-7 forum now discusses several challenges such as oil prices and many pressing issues such as financial crises, terrorism, arms control, and drug trafficking.
- It does not have a formal constitution or a fixed headquarters. The decisions taken by leaders during annual summits are non-binding.
- Canada joined the group in 1976, and the European Union began attending in 1977.
Evolution of the G-7
- When it started in 1975—with six members, Canada joining a year later—it represented about 70% of the world economy.
- And it was a cosy club for tackling issues such as the response to oil shocks.
- Now it accounts for about 40% of global gdp.
- Since the global financial crisis of 2007-09 it has sometimes been overshadowed by the broader g20.
- The G-7 became the G-8 in 1997 when Russia was invited to join.
- In 2014, Russia was debarred after it took over Crimea.
Agenda of G-7 this year
- The UK currently holds the presidency of the G7 and has invited India, along with Australia, Republic of Korea and South Africa, as guest countries for the Summit.
- The meetings will be held in hybrid mode.
- The theme for the summit is ‘Build Back Better’ and the UK has outlined four priority areas for its presidency:
- leading the global recovery from coronavirus while strengthening resilience against future pandemics;
- promoting future prosperity by championing free and fair trade;
- tackling climate change and preserving the planet’s biodiversity; and
- championing shared values and open societies.
Is India attending it for the first time?
- Since 2014, this is the second time PM Modi will be participating in a G7 meeting.
- India had been invited by the G7 French Presidency in 2019 to the Biarritz Summit as a “Goodwill Partner” and the PM participated in the Sessions on ‘Climate, Biodiversity and Oceans’ and ‘Digital Transformation’.
- During Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s UPA rule, India attended the G8 five times.
- Russia was indefinitely suspended in March 2014 after the annexation of Crimea, reducing the count of the G8.
What to watch out for at this G-7 summit?
- This will be President Biden’s first visit to Europe, where he will signal his key message “America is back”.
- He has flown down to the UK, where he will meet British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Queen Elizabeth II and other allies at the G7 summit.
- He’ll continue on to a NATO conclave in Brussels on June 14, before his conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Geneva two days later.
- This sequencing of events has been done to coordinate Washington’s moves of consultations with allies before meeting the Russian President.
- This ties in well with the US President’s initial foray into multilateralism — he held the first summit of leaders of “the Quad” — Australia, India, Japan and the US.
- This was aimed at increasing vaccine production and aligning their positions toward Beijing.
Why is this meeting important?
- The US-Russia relations are going through a rough patch — some analysts even refer to it as possibly their nadir since the end of the Cold War.
- Interestingly, the venue of the Biden-Putin meeting — Geneva — is the place where then US President Ronald Reagan held his first meeting with Soviet Union’s Mikhail Gorbachev in 1985.
- The key element that is making Washington take the important step of engaging with Moscow to contain the damage in their bilateral ties is that the US wants to focus on its strategic rival, China.
What’s in it for India?
- India has long called for reforming global institutions and groupings to reflect modern-day geopolitical realities.
- Trumps’ offer to expand G7 fitted into New Delhi’s idea of being part of the global high table.
- With an assertive China looming, the US is calling all like-minded countries to partner in dealing with Beijing.
- If Biden and Johnson want to take the leap forward and constitute a global democratic alliance of 10-11 countries, it will be an important signal.
- India is likely to get vaccines from the US — both directly as well as through COVAX. Initial estimates suggest India will get about 2 to 3 million vaccines in the first tranche.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Breach of Privilege
Mains level: Parliamentary privileges
An MP has filed a breach of privilege motion against the Lakshadweep Administrator for denying him permission to visit the islands, preventing him from meeting his cadre and people of the island.
Breach of Privilege
- The powers, privileges and immunities of either House of the Indian Parliament and of its Members and committees are laid down in Article 105 of the Constitution.
- Article 194 deals with the powers, privileges and immunities of the State Legislatures, their Members and their committees.
- Parliamentary privilege refers to the right and immunity enjoyed by legislatures, in which legislators are granted protection against civil or criminal liability for actions done or statements made in the course of their legislative duties.
Answer this PYQ in the comment box:
Q.With reference to the Parliament of India, which of the following Parliamentary Committees scrutinizes and reports to the House whether the powers to make regulations, rules, sub-rules, by-laws etc. conferred by the constitution of delegated by the Parliament are being properly exercised by the Executive within the scope of such delegation?
(a) Committee on Government Assurances
(b) Committee on Subordinate Legislation
(c) Rules Committee
(d) Business Advisory Committee
What constitutes a breach of this privilege?
- While the Constitution has accorded special privileges and powers to parliamentarians and legislators to maintain the dignity and authority of the Houses, these powers and privileges are not codified.
- Thus, there are no clear, notified rules to decide what constitutes a breach of privilege, and the punishment it attracts.
- Any act that obstructs or impedes either House of the state legislature in performing its functions, or which obstructs or impedes any Member or Officer of such House in the discharge of his duty, or has a tendency, directly or indirectly, to produce such results is treated as a breach of privilege.
- It is a breach of privilege and contempt to print or publish libel reflecting on the character or proceedings of the House or its Committees or on any member of the House for or relating to his character or conduct as a legislator.
Procedure followed in cases of an alleged breach
- The Legislative Assembly Speaker or Legislative Council Chairman constitutes a Privileges Committee consisting of 15 members in the Assembly and 11 members in the Council.
- The members to the committee which has quasi-judicial powers are nominated based on the party strength in the Houses.
- The Speaker or Chairman first decides on the motions.
- If the privilege and contempt are found prima facie, then the Speaker or Chairman will forward it to the Privileges Committee by following the due procedure.
- At present, there is no Privileges Committee in either House of the state legislature.
- The Committee will seek an explanation from all the concerned, will conduct an inquiry and will make a recommendation based on the findings to the state legislature for its consideration.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Atlantic Charter
US President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson seeks to sign a new Atlantic Charter.
What is Atlantic Charter?
- The Atlantic Charter was a statement issued on 14 August 1941 that set out American and British goals for the world after the end of World War II.
- The charter’s adherents signed the Declaration by United Nations on 1 January 1942, which was the basis for the modern United Nations.
- The charter inspired several other international agreements and events that followed the end of the war.
- The dismantling of the British Empire, the formation of NATO, and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) all derived from the Atlantic Charter.
Why sign new charter?
- At their meeting, the two leaders plan to sign what they’re calling a new Atlantic Charter, pledging to “defend the principles, values, and institutions of democracy and open societies.”
- US hopes to reassure European allies that the US had shed the transactional tendencies of Donald Trump’s term and is a reliable partner again.
- The US staunchly opposed the Brexit movement, the British exodus from the European Union that Mr. Johnson championed, and has expressed great concern with the future of Northern Ireland.
- Biden once called the British leader a “physical and emotional clone” of Trump.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: CHIME Telescope, Fast Radio Bursts
Mains level: NA
Scientists with the Canadian Hydrogen Intensity Mapping Experiment (CHIME) Collaboration have assembled the largest collection of fast radio bursts (FRBs) in the telescope’s first FRB catalog.
CHIME Telescope
- CHIME is an interferometric radio telescope at the Dominion Radio Astrophysical Observatory in British Columbia, Canada.
- It consists of four antennas consisting of 100 x 20-meter cylindrical parabolic reflectors with 1024 dual-polarization radio receivers suspended on support above them.
- The telescope receives radio signals each day from half of the sky as the Earth rotates.
- While most radio astronomy is done by swiveling a large dish to focus light from different parts of the sky, CHIME stares, motionless, at the sky, and focuses incoming signals using a correlator.
- This is a powerful digital signal processor that can work through huge amounts of data, at a rate of about seven terrabytes per second, equivalent to a few percent of the world’s Internet traffic.
What are FRBs?
- FRBs are oddly bright flashes of light, registering in the radio band of the electromagnetic spectrum, which blaze for a few milliseconds before vanishing without a trace.
- These brief and mysterious beacons have been spotted in various and distant parts of the universe, as well as in our own galaxy.
- Their origins are unknown and their appearance is highly unpredictable.
- But the advent of the CHIME project has nearly quadrupled the number of fast radio bursts discovered to date.
- With more observations, astronomers hope soon to pin down the extreme origins of these curiously bright signals.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: AISHE Survey
Mains level: Read the attached story
Union Education Minister has announced the release of the report of All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) 2019-20.
This newscard provides useful data about the state of higher education in India on various parameters. Such data should not be missed while substantiating any point in answer writing.
About AISHE
- AISHE was established by the Ministry of HRD for conducting an annual web-based survey, thereby portraying the status of higher education in the country.
- The survey is conducted for all educational institutions in India on many categories like teachers, student enrolment, programs, examination results, education finance, and infrastructure.
- This survey is used to make informed policy decisions and research for the development of the education sector.
- This Report provides key performance indicators on the current status of Higher education in the country.
Highlights of the 2019-20 Report
(1) Total Enrolment
(2) Gross Enrolment Ratio
(3) Gender Parity Index (GPI)
- GPI in Higher Education in 2019-20 is 1.01 against 1.00 in 2018-19 indicating an improvement in the relative access to higher education for females of eligible age group compared to males.
(4) Pupil-Teacher Ratio
- TPR in Higher Education in 2019-20 is 26. In 2019-20: Universities: 1,043(2%); Colleges: 42,343(77%) and stand-alone institutions: 11,779(21%).
(5) Enrolment in higher education
- 38 crore Students enrolled in programs at under-graduate and post-graduate levels.
- Out of these, nearly 85% of the students (2.85 crore) were enrolled in the six major disciplines such as Humanities, Science, Commerce, Engineering & Technology, Medical Science and IT & Computer.
(6) Doctorate pursuance
- The number of students pursuing PhD in 2019-20 is 2.03 lakh against 1.17 lakh in 2014-15.
(7) Total number of teachers
- The Total Number of Teachers stands at 15,03,156 comprising of 57.5% male and 42.5% female.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Freight transport in India
Mains level: NA
NITI Aayog, RMI and RMI India’s new report, Fast Tracking Freight in India: A Roadmap for Clean and Cost-Effective Goods Transport, presents key opportunities for India to reduce its logistics costs.
Freight transport in India
- Freight transportation is a critical backbone of India’s growing economy, and now more than ever, it’s important to make this transport system more cost-effective, efficient, and cleaner.
- Due to the rising demand for goods and services, freight transport demand is expected to grow rapidly in the future.
- While freight transport is essential to economic development, it is plagued by high logistics costs and contributes to rising CO2 emissions and air pollution in cities.
Highlights of the Roadmap
- According to the report, India has the potential to:
- Reduce its logistics cost by 4% of GDP
- Achieve 10 gigatonnes of cumulative CO2 emissions savings between 2020 and 2050
- Reduce nitrogen oxide (NOx) and particulate matter (PM) emissions by 35% and 28%, respectively, until 2050
- The report outlines solutions for the freight sector related to policy, technology, market, business models, and infrastructure development.
Various recommendations
- The recommendations include increasing the rail network’s capacity, promoting intermodal transport, improving warehousing and trucking practices, policy measures and pilot projects for clean technology adoption, and stricter fuel economy standards.
- When successfully deployed at scale, the proposed solutions can help India establish itself as a leader in logistics innovation and efficiency in the Asia–Pacific region and beyond.
Transforming the system
- As India’s freight activity grows five-fold by 2050 and about 400 million citizens move to cities, a whole system transformation can help uplift the freight sector.
- This transformation will be defined by tapping into opportunities such as efficient rail-based transport, the optimization of logistics and supply chains, and a shift to electric and other clean-fuel vehicles.
- These solutions can help India save ₹311 lakh crore cumulatively over the next three decades.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Hindu Kush Himalayas
Mains level: Melting of glaciers
Up to two billion people in southeast Asia can face food and water shortages even as the Hindu Kush Himalayan (HKH) mountain ranges lose up to two-thirds of its ice by 2100, a United Nations-backed research flagged.
Hindu Kush Himalayas
- The HKH region, often referred to as the ‘Third Pole’, is spread over 3,500 square kilometers across eight countries including India, Nepal, and China.
- The range forms the western section of the Hindu Kush Himalayan Region (HKH) and is the westernmost extension of the Pamir Mountains, the Karakoram, and the Himalayas.
- It divides the valley of the Amu Darya (the ancient Oxus) to the north from the Indus River valley to the south.
- It contains the world’s third-largest storage of frozen water after the Antarctica and Arctic.
- Over 240 million people live in the region’s mountains; 1.7 billion live in the river basins downstream, while food grown in these basins reaches three billion people.
Continuous warming
- HKH region continues to warm through 21st century even if the world was able to limit global warming at the agreed 1.5 degrees Celsius.
- Another study published in 2019 on the ice thickness of glaciers had estimated that glaciers in the HKH may contain 27 percent less ice than previously suggested.
- The HKH region lies downwind from some of the most heavily polluted places on Earth. This threatens agriculture, climate as well as monsoon patterns.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- Need for investment in public healthcare in South Asia
The article contrasts the public healthcare system in South Asian countries with that of their Southeast Asian peers and highlights the shortcomings.
Subpar public healthcare system
- Super spreader events, a fragile health infrastructure neglected for decades, citizens not following health protocols, and logistical mismanagement were the factors responsible for the destruction in the second Covid-19 wave.
- What has exacerbated the situation is a subpar public healthcare system running on a meagre contribution of a little over 1% of India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
- While the private medical sector is booming, the public healthcare sector has been operating at a pitiful 0.08 doctors per 1,000 people, World Health Organization’s (WHO) prescribed standard ois1:1000.
- India has only half a bed available for every 1,000 people, which is a deficient figure even for normal days.
- Bangladesh and Pakistan fare no better, with a bed to patient ratio of 0.8 and 0.6, respectively, and a doctor availability of less than one for every 1,000 people.
- While ideally, out-of-pocket expenditure should not surpass 15% to 20% of the total health expenditure, for India, Bangladesh and Pakistan, this figure stands at an appalling 62.67%, 73.87% and 56.24%, respectively.
Lack of investment in healthcare
- Major public sector investments by the ‘big three’ of South Asia, i.e., India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh, are towards infrastructure and defence, with health taking a backseat.
- While India has the world’s third-largest military expenditure, its health budget is the fourth-lowest.
- Indian government in this year’s budget highlighted an increase of 137% in health and well-being expenditure, a closer look reveals a mismatch between facts and figures.
- In Pakistan, even amidst the pandemic, the defence budget was increased while the spending on health remained around $151 million.
- Not too far behind is Bangladesh, with decades of underfunding culminating in a crumbling public healthcare system.
- Major public sector investments by the ‘big three’ of South Asia, i.e., India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh, are towards infrastructure and defence, with health taking a backseat.
- A quick look at pre-pandemic sectoral allocations explains the chronically low status of human development indicators in the three countries.
Learning from Southeast Asia
- Southeast Asia has prioritised investments in healthcare systems while broadening equitable access through universal health coverage schemes.
- Vietnam’s preventive measures focused on investments in disease surveillance and emergency response mechanisms.
- Even countries like Laos and Cambodia are making a constant effort towards improving the healthcare ecosystem.
- All have done much better than their South Asian peers.
Conclusion
Learning from the devastation unleashed by the pandemic, South Asian countries must step up investment in their public healthcare sectors to make them sustainable, up to date and pro-poor; most importantly, the system should not turn its back on citizens.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- Scrutinising the States
The article highlights the excessive focus on the Union government and the lack of scrutiny of the functioning of the States in various areas.
Need for focus on the States
- In discussions on reforms or debates about public expenditure, there is an excessive focus on the Union government.
- This focus reflects our mindset that there is a “Centre”, though constitutionally, there is no “Centre”. There is the Union government.
- There is not as much interest in State Finance Commissions and their recommendations as it is in the Union Finance Commission’s recommendations.
- Alternatively, there is limited scrutiny of state-level expenditure, or fiscal devolution and decentralisation of decision-making within states, or tracking functioning of state legislatures.
- Most factor markets we seek to reform are on the concurrent list or the state list.
The Annual Review of State Laws 2020: Key findings
- PRS Legislative Research published this report and it focuses on the legislative work performed by states in the calendar year 2020.
- The annual review has been done in the pandemic year as 2020 saw the first wave of the pandemic.
- It covers 19 state legislatures, including the Union territory of Delhi, which together accounts for 90 per cent of the population of the country.
1) Low Productivity
- As a benchmark, the Parliament met for 33 days in 2020.
- Pre-2020, these 19 states met for an average of 29 days a year.
- In 2020, they met for an average of 18 days.
- When they met in 2020, States passed an average of 22 Bills (excluding Appropriation Bills).
- Karnataka passed 61 Bills, the highest in the country.
- The lowest was Delhi which passed one Bill, followed by West Bengal and Kerala, which passed two and three Bills respectively.
2) States pass Bills without scrutiny
- The report states that the State legislatures pass most Bills without detailed scrutiny.
- In 2020, 59 per cent of the Bills were passed on the same day that they were introduced in the legislature.
- A further 14 per cent were passed within a day of being introduced.
- In Parliament, Bills are often referred to Parliamentary Standing Committees for detailed examination.
- In most states, such committees are non-existent.
3) Information not shared by the legislature
- Information and data on state legislatures is not easily available.
- While some state legislatures publish data on a regular basis, many do not have a systematic way of reporting legislative proceedings and business.”
- Typically, information becomes available when countervailing pressure is generated.
- Reports like this help to do that.
Consider the question “In discussions on reforms, or debates about public expenditure, there is an excessive focus on the Union government. However, on reforms and public expenditures, we also need to focus on scrutinising the states”. Comment.
Conclusion
Scrutinising States on various areas of their functioning is important to hold them accountable. The availability of data from state legislatures is an opportunity to monitor them better.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: MSP system
Mains level: Issues over MSP
The Central government has hiked the minimum support price (MSP) for the coming Kharif season. The decision was taken by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs.
Answer this PYQ from CSP 2018 in the comment box:
Q.Consider the following:
- Areca nut
- Barley
- Coffee
- Finger millet
- Groundnut
- Sesamum
- Turmeric
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has announced the Minimum Support Price for which of the above?
(a) 1, 2, 3 and 7 only
(b) 2, 4, 5 and 6 only
(c) 1, 3, 4, 5 and 6 only
(d) 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 7
What is the Minimum Support Price (MSP) system?
- MSP is a form of market intervention by the Govt. of India to insure agricultural producers against any sharp fall in farm prices.
- MSP is price fixed by GoI to protect the producer – farmers – against excessive fall in price during bumper production years.
Who announces it?
- MSP is announced at the beginning of the sowing season for certain crops on recommendations by Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices(CACP) and announced by Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) chaired by the PM of India.
Why MSP?
- The major objectives are to support the farmers from distress sales and to procure food grains for public distribution.
- They are a guaranteed price for their produce from the Government.
- In case the market price for the commodity falls below the announced MSP due to bumper production and glut in the market, government agencies purchase the entire quantity offered by the farmers at the announced MSP.
Historical perspective
- Till the mid-1970s, Government announced two types of administered prices:
- Minimum Support Prices (MSP)
- Procurement Prices
- The MSPs served as the floor prices and were fixed by the Govt. in the nature of a long-term guarantee for investment decisions of producers, with the assurance that prices of their commodities would not be allowed to fall below the level fixed by the Government, even in the case of a bumper crop.
- Procurement prices were the prices of Kharif and rabi cereals at which the grain was to be domestically procured by public agencies (like the FCI) for release through PDS.
- It was announced soon after harvest began.
- Normally procurement price was lower than the open market price and higher than the MSP.
Crops Covered
- Government announces minimum support prices (MSPs) for 22 mandated crops and fair and remunerative price (FRP) for sugarcane.
- The mandated crops are 14 crops of the kharif season, 6 rabi crops and two other commercial crops.
- The list of crops is as follows:
- Cereals (7) – paddy, wheat, barley, jowar, bajra, maize and ragi
- Pulses (5) – gram, arhar/tur, moong, urad and lentil
- Oilseeds (8) – groundnut, rapeseed/mustard, toria, soyabean, sunflower seed, sesamum, safflower seed and nigerseed
- Raw cotton
- Raw jute
- Copra
- De-husked coconut
- Sugarcane (Fair and remunerative price)
- Virginia flu cured (VFC) tobacco
Exception for Sugar
- The pricing of sugarcane is governed by the statutory provisions of the Sugarcane (Control) Order, 1966 issued under the Essential Commodities Act (ECA), 1955.
- Prior to 2009-10 sugar season, the Central Government was fixing the Statutory Minimum Price (SMP) of sugarcane and farmers were entitled to share profits of a sugar mill on 50:50 basis.
- As this sharing of profits remained virtually unimplemented, the Sugarcane (Control) Order, 1966 was amended in October 2009 and the concept of SMP was replaced by the Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP) of sugarcane.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Bitcoin
Mains level: Cryptocurrencies regulation in India
El Salvador, a small coastal country in Central America, on became the first in the world to make Bitcoin, a digital currency, legal.
Lessons for India
While there are many precedents El Salvador sets for a global debate on cryptocurrency, we explore what this means in the Indian context.
(1) Not a precedent for monetary policy
- The development in El Salvador changes little in terms of Indian monetary calculations around cryptocurrencies.
- The dynamic underpinning the whole move is that El Salvador has no monetary policy of its own and hence, no local currency to protect.
- The country was officially ‘dollarized’ in 2001 and runs on the monetary policy of the US Federal Reserve.
- The move is in part motivated by loose and expansionary Federal Reserve policy.
(2) Coexistence with USD
- The dollar will continue to remain the dominant currency in the country and Bitcoin would exist side by side.
- Indeed, some analysts have pointed out how bitcoinization might change nothing on the ground if “legal tender” is to be considered by its strict legal definition.
- However, as a result of this development, El Salvador becomes a most interesting case study of how the dollar and bitcoin would coexist side by side, and how that would play out for Bitcoin adoption.
(3) Not merely currency but technology
- The overall use of Bitcoin appears less motivated by its use as a currency and much more by the image and investment boost this could give the country towards innovation.
- El Salvador believes that this move will be good for luring “technology, talent, and new ideas” into the country.
- The move into Bitcoin ties in with larger efforts to revive a stalling economy and bring back growth into the country post-Covid.
(4) Potential shift in remittances
- The impact Bitcoin has on these remittance inflows would be worth monitoring for India, which is home to the largest remittance market in the world.
- Remittances make up close to 20% of El Salvador’s GDP with flows approximating $6 billion annually.
- Many citizens lack a bank account and digital banking has low penetration.
- In this scenario, there are multiple intermediaries in the remittance chain who take cuts of as high as 20%.
(5) Impact on money laundering
- The implication of this move for money laundering is unclear at the moment.
- Currently, El Salvador is not considered deficient under the FATF money laundering requirements.
- However, with large scale cryptocurrency inflows and outflows, it would be expected that El Salvador would comply with the 2019 FATF guidance on Virtual Currencies.
Conclusion
- The overall takeaway for India from the El Salvador case is not in the monetary sense at all.
- This is the wealth that India has in spades and has barely protected with policy.
- While deliberations continue in India on the monetary and financial regulations around cryptocurrency.
- It is important that attention be paid to incentives for India’s developers working on key innovations in the space.
Back2Basics: Bitcoin
- Bitcoin is a decentralized digital currency, without a central bank or single administrator, that can be sent from user to user on the peer-to-peer bitcoin network without the need for intermediaries.
- Transactions are verified by network nodes through cryptography and recorded in a public distributed ledger called a blockchain.
- The cryptocurrency was invented in 2008 by an unknown person or group of people using the name Satoshi Nakamoto.
- The currency began to use in 2009 when its implementation was released as open-source software.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Ethanol blended petrol
Mains level: Ethanol blended petrol (EBP) Program
The government of India has advanced the target for 20 per cent ethanol blending in petrol (also called E20) to 2025 from 2030. E20 will be rolled out from April 2023.
What is the move?
- A government-appointed panel has recommended to the Centre to keep the price of ethanol-blended petrol lower than normal petrol in view of lower calorific value as also to incentivize people to go for the clean fuel.
- This measure is aimed at reducing the country’s oil import bill and carbon dioxide pollution. This new initiative is also part of measures to improve energy security and self-sufficiency measures.
Roadmap for Ethanol Blending
- The central government has released an expert committee report on the Roadmap for Ethanol Blending in India by 2025.
- The roadmap proposes a gradual rollout of ethanol-blended fuel to achieve E10 fuel supply by April 2022 and phased rollout of E20 from April 2023 to April 2025.
- Currently, 8.5 per cent of ethanol is blended with petrol in India.
- In order to introduce vehicles that are compatible the committee recommends roll out of E20 material-compliant and E10 engine-tuned vehicles from April 2023 and production of E20-tuned engine vehicles from April 2025.
What is included in the roadmap?
(1) Energy security
- The Union government has emphasized that increased use of ethanol can help reduce the oil import bill.
- India’s net import cost stands at $551 billion in 2020-21. It is estimated that the E20 program can save the country $4 billion (Rs 30,000 crore) per annum.
- Last year, oil companies procured ethanol worth about Rs 21,000 crore.
- Hence it is benefitting the sugarcane farmers.
- Further, the government plans to encourage the use of water-sparing crops, such as maize, to produce ethanol, and the production of ethanol from the non-food feedstock.
(2) Fuel efficiency
- There is an estimated loss of six-seven per cent fuel efficiency for four-wheelers and three-four per cent for two-wheelers when using E20, the committee report noted.
- These vehicles are originally designed for E0 and calibrated for E10.
- The Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers informed the expert committee that with modifications in engines (hardware and tuning), the loss in efficiency due to blended fuel can be reduced.
(3) Recalibrating engines
- The use of E20 will require new engine specifications and changes to the fuel lines, as well as some plastic and rubber parts due to the fuel’s corrosive nature.
- The engines, moreover, will need to be recalibrated to achieve the required power-, efficiency- and emission-level balance due to the lower energy density of the fuel.
- This can be taken care of by producing compatible vehicles.
(4) Vehicles rollout
- E20 material compliant and E10 compliant vehicles may be rolled out across the country from April 2023, the committee noted.
- These vehicles can tolerate 10 to 20 per cent of ethanol-blended petrol and also deliver optimal performance with E10 fuel.
- Vehicles with E20-tuned engines can be rolled out all across the country from April 2025.
- These vehicles would run on E20 only and will provide high performance.
(5) Flex-fuel
- A flexible-fuel vehicle (FFV) is an alternative fuel vehicle with an internal combustion engine designed to run on more than one fuel and both fuels are stored in the same common tank.
- The Union ministry of road transport and highways issued a gazette notification March 2021 mandating stickers on vehicles mentioning their E20, E85 or E100 compatibility.
- This will pave the way for flex fuel vehicles.
Why such a move?
(1) Fuel efficiency
- Considering just the end use also indicates that CO2 emissions from blended fuel are lower than that for petrol since ethanol contains less carbon than petrol and produces less CO2.
- The blended fuel burns more efficiently with a more homogenous mixture, which leads to a decrease in CO2 emissions compared with pure petrol.
- The carbon dioxide released by a vehicle when ethanol is burned is offset by the carbon dioxide captured when the feedstock crops are grown to produce ethanol.
- Comparatively, no emissions are offset when these petroleum products are burned.
(2) Emission reduction
- Use of ethanol-blended petrol decreases emissions such as carbon monoxide (CO), hydrocarbons (HC) and nitrogen oxides (NOx), the expert committee noted.
- Higher reductions in CO emissions were observed with E20 fuel — 50 per cent lower in two-wheelers and 30 per cent lower in four-wheelers.
- HC emissions reduced by 20 per cent with ethanol blends compared to normal petrol.
- Nitrous oxide emissions, however, did not show a significant trend as it depended on the vehicle / engine type and engine operating conditions.
- The unregulated carbonyl emissions, such as acetaldehyde emission were, however, higher with E10 and E20 compared to normal petrol.
- However, these emissions were relatively lower. Evaporative emission test results with E20 fuel were similar to E0.
Global shreds of evidence
- An increase in the ethanol content in fuels reduced the emissions of some regulated pollutants such as CO, HC and CO2.
- However, no such change in emissions was observed for nitrogen oxides emissions.
- The addition of ethanol, with a high blending octane number, however, allowed a reduction in aromatics in petrol.
- Such blends also burn cleaner as they have higher octane levels than pure petrol but have higher evaporative emissions from fuel tanks and dispensing equipment.
Challenges ahead
- Petrol requires extra processing to reduce evaporative emissions before blending with ethanol.
- It is crucial to study the emissions from flexible fuel vehicles not only for the regulated gases but also the unregulated ones.
- But producing and burning ethanol results in CO2 emissions.
- Hence, net CO2 emission benefit depends on how ethanol is made and whether or not indirect impacts on land use are included in the calculations.
- In summary, as we progress towards higher blending of ethanol, careful monitoring and assessment of emissions changes will be needed to make sure that emission reduction potential can be enhanced.
Back2Basics: EBP Programme
- Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) programme was launched in January, 2003 for supply of 5% ethanol blended petrol.
- The programme sought to promote the use of alternative and environment-friendly fuels and to reduce import dependency for energy requirements.
- OMCs are advised to continue according to priority of ethanol from 1) sugarcane juice/sugar/sugar syrup, 2) B-heavy molasses 3) C-heavy molasses and 4) damaged food grains/other sources.
- At present, this programme has been extended to the whole of India except UTs of Andaman Nicobar and Lakshadweep islands with effect from 01st April 2019 wherein OMCs sell petrol blended with ethanol up to 10%.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: QS World University Ranking
Mains level: State of higher education in India
The Prime Minister has congratulated IIT Bombay, IIT Delhi and IISc Bengaluru for top-200 positions in QS World University Rankings 2022.
QS World University Rankings
- QS World University Rankings is an annual publication of university rankings by Quacquarelli Symonds (QS).
- It comprises the global overall and subject rankings (which name the world’s top universities for the study of 51 different subjects and five composite faculty areas).
- It announces ranking for five independent regional tables (Asia, Latin America, Emerging Europe and Central Asia, the Arab Region, and BRICS).
Highlights of the 2022 Report
- IIT Bombay ranks joint-177 in the world, having fallen five places over the past year.
- IIT Delhi has become India’s second-best university, having risen from 193 ranks in last year’s ranking to 185 in the latest ranking. It has overtaken IISc Bangalore, which ranks joint-186.
- The Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bengaluru, has been ranked the “world’s top research university.
- The top three institutions globally are — Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), University of Oxford, and Stanford University ranked at number one, two, and three respectively.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Sardar Sarovar Dam
Mains level: NA
The Sardar Sarovar Dam is providing irrigation water in summer for the first time in history.
Sardar Sarovar Dam
- The Sardar Sarovar Narmada Dam is a terminal dam built on the Narmada river at Kevadia in Gujarat’s Narmada district.
- Four Indian states, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Rajasthan, receive water and electricity supply from the dam.
- The foundation stone of the project was laid out by Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru on 5 April 1961.
- The project took form in 1979 as part of a development scheme funded by the World Bank through their International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, to increase irrigation and produce hydroelectricity
- Called the ‘lifeline of Gujarat’, it usually has no water for irrigation during summers.
Answer this PYQ in the comment box:
Q.Which one of the following pairs is not correctly matched?
Dam/Lake River
(a) Govind Sagar: Satluj
(b) Kolleru Lake: Krishna
(c) Ukai Reservoir: Tapi
(d) Wular Lake: Jhelum
A successful model of river water sharing
- River Narmada is a classic case of Integrated River Basin Planning, Development, and Management, with water storage available in all major, medium, and minor dams on the main river and its tributaries.
- Its water is shared amongst four party states – Gujarat, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra — in the ratio stipulated by the 1979 award of the Narmada Water Dispute Tribunal.
How has it saved water for summers?
- During the monsoon from July to October, the reservoir operation is well synchronized with the rain forecast in the catchment area.
- The strategic operation of River Bed Power House (RPBH) ensures that minimum water flows downstream into the sea and maximum water is used during the dam overflow period, which is not calculated in the annual water share.
- These measures help in maximizing the annual allocation of water share.
- Similarly, in non-monsoon months, the measures for efficient use of the allocated share typically include minimizing the conventional and operational losses.
- It includes: avoiding water wastage, restricting water-intensive perennial crops, adopting of Underground Pipelines (UGPL); proper maintenance and operation of canals on a rotational basis.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Dihing Patkai NP
Mains level: NA
The Assam government has notified Dihing Patkai as a National Park, four days after creating the 422-sq. km Raimona National Park in western Assam’s Kokrajhar district.
Dihing Patkai NP
- Dihing Patkai, in focus a year ago for illegal coal mining in the vicinity, encompasses the erstwhile Dehing Patkai Wildlife Sanctuary, the Jeypore Reserve Forest and the western block of the Upper Dihing Reserve Forest.
- The 234.26-sq. km Dihing Patkai straddling eastern Assam’s Dibrugarh and Tinsukia districts is a major elephant habitat and 310 species of butterflies have been recorded there.
- The park has 47 species each of reptiles and mammals, including the tiger and clouded leopard.
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Q.Which one of the following National Parks has a climate that varies from tropical to subtropical, temperate and arctic?
(a) Khangchendzonga National Park
(b) Nandadevi National Park
(c) Neora Valley National Park
(d) Namdapha National Park
NPs in Assam
- Assam now has the third most National Parks after the 12 in Madhya Pradesh and nine in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
- The five older National Parks in the State are Kaziranga, Manas, Nameri, Orang and Dibru-Saikhowa.
- Kaziranga and Manas are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
- They are also tiger reserves along with Nameri and Orang.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: AMRUT, SBM
Mains level: Paper 2- Clean and green future of Indian cities
This year, the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration is being launched, building towards the goals of this decade. In light of this, the article highlights the mitigating potentials of various missions undertaken by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs.
A networked approach to achieving the SDG
- The delicate balance between sustainable development and environmental protection is one of the core targets of the UN 2030 agenda for sustainable development.
- A networked approach to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals has been included in India’s policy and political discourse.
- The motto of the 2030 agenda — “Leave no one behind” — very much embodies the essence of Gandhiji’s philosophy of sarvodaya through antyodaya.
- This guiding principle has long been a part of the execution of the national programmes and missions of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA).
Achieving SDGs through flagship missions of MoHUA
- In 2014 the Swachhata movement was launched.
- It was, in effect, the harbinger of a total transformation of our urban landscape.
- In June 2015, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs launched flagship mission — Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban), Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT) and the Smart Cities Mission.
- The SDGs are reflected in the core objectives of these missions.
- They have achieved their set targets while ensuring that sustainable development is a non-negotiable part of them.
Ensuring sustainable development
1) Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban)
- It focuses on achieving an open-defecation-free India, building solid waste management capacity and bringing about behavioural change.
- Cooperative and competitive federalism have become the driving force behind this citizen-led jan andolan.
- It is estimated that the various initiatives under SBM-U can mitigate 17.42 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2022.
2) Smart Cities Mission
- The Smart Cities Mission is aiding technological advancements of our cities to improve governance, sustainability and disaster risk resilience.
- Smart solutions are being implemented to improve energy efficiency and non-motorised transport capacity in urban centres.
- The Climate Smart Cities Assessment Framework has been adopted which aims to help cities adapt, collaborate and exchange best practices to achieve international standards for green, sustainable and resilient urban habitats.
3) AMRUT
- Under AMRUT, water supply and management, energy efficiency and increased green spaces have been part of the goal in 500 target cities.
- As of today, 1,831 parks over 3,700 acres have been developed, 85 lakh street lights have been replaced, resulting in energy saving of 185.33 crore units (kWh), and 106 water bodies have been rejuvenated.
- The mission is likely to result in the mitigation of 48.52 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent of GHG emissions by 2022.
4) Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban)
- With 1.12 crore houses sanctioned, Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban) has focused on new construction technologies that are innovative, environmentally friendly and disaster-resilien.
- The Prime Minister launched six Light House Projects on January 1, 2021.
- These are already under construction.
- Additionally, about 43.3 lakh houses are being constructed where fly ash bricks/blocks and concrete blocks are being used.
- Overall, the mission has the potential to mitigate around 12 million tonnes CO2 equivalent of GHG emissions by 2022.
5) Metro rail
- An energy-efficient mass rapid transit system, is operational in 18 cities with over 720 km of line constructed.
- Another 1,055 km of new lines is under construction in 27 cities.
- This network is expected to mitigate around 21.58 million tonnes of CO2 eq GHG from 2015-2022.
- Cumulatively, the national missions under the MoHUA are projected to mitigate GHG emissions equivalent to more than 93 million tonnes of CO2 by 2022.
Conclusion
A progressive track of urban development while keeping sustainability, disaster risk resilience and community building at its core has been the guiding principle of the government. It will help us preserve our environment, restore ecosystems and mitigate the risks posed by climate change in the coming decade.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- Tackling disinformation
The article highlights the issues mentioned in the UNHRC report on disinformation and freedom of expression.
UNHRC Report: Upholding human rights helps dealing with falsehood
- The UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) Special Rapporteur submitted her report on “Disinformation and Freedom of Opinion and Expression” recently.
- The UNHRC report specifically speaks of information disorder that arises from disinformation.
- Impact of disinformation: Such information disorder leads to politically polarisation, hinders people from meaningfully exercising their human rights, and destroys their trust in governments and institutions.
- Human rights provide a powerful and appropriate framework to challenge falsehoods and present alternative viewpoints.
- Upholding human rights is useful in dealing with falsehood in two ways:
- 1) Freedom of opinion and expression enables governance and development.
- 2) Civil society, journalists and others are able to challenge falsehoods and present alternative viewpoints.
- So, the report says that human rights friendly governance is both possible and doable; it is also desirable, as it protects political power against itself.
Review of the business model needed
- The report asserts that reactive content moderation efforts” are unlikely to make any worthwhile difference in the absence of a serious review of the business model that underpins much of the drivers of disinformation and misinformation.
- Problems of inconsistent application of companies’ terms of service, inadequate redress mechanisms and a lack of transparency and access to data re-emerge constantly.
- Aalthough the platforms are global businesses, they do not appear to apply their policies consistently across all geographical areas or to uphold human rights in all jurisdictions to the same extent.
Need for legislative clarity on twin concept of misinformation and disinformation
- The report highlights the lack of legislative and judicial clarity on the twin concepts of “disinformation” and “misinformation”.
- It emphasises that the intention to harm is decisive to the disinformation.
- “Disinformation” is false information disseminated intentionally to cause serious social harm.
- In contrast, misinformation consists in the dissemination of false information unknowingly.
- Nor are these terms to be used interchangeably.
- Acknowledging the fact that “extremist or terrorist groups” frequently engage in the dissemination as part of their propaganda to radicalise and recruit members, the report disfavours any state response that adds to human rights concerns.
Other factors contributing to growth of disinformation
- The growth of disinformation in recent times cannot be attributed solely to technology or malicious actors, according to the report.
- Other factors such as digital transformation and competition from online platforms, state pressure, the absence of robust public information regimes, and digital and media literacy among the general public also matter.
- Moreover, disinformation enhance the frustrations and grievances such as economic deprivation, market failures, political disenfranchisement, and social inequalities.
- Disinformation is thus not the “cause but the consequence of societal crises and the breakdown of public trust in institutions”.
- Strategies to address disinformation will succeed only when these underlying factors are tackled.
Issue of use of disinformation by states
- A 2020 Oxford study of “Industrialised Disinformation” mentions that as many as “81 governments” use “social media to spread computational propaganda and disinformation about politics”.
- Some authoritarian countries like Russia, China and Iran capitalised on coronavirus disinformation to amplify anti-democratic narratives.
- Online disinformation also results in offline practices of violent social excursion on actually existing individuals and communities such as ethnic, gender, migrant, sexual minorities.
Consider the question “Reactive content moderation efforts are simply inadequate without a serious review of the business model that underpins much of the drivers of disinformation and misinformation on the social media platforms.” Critically examine.”
Conclusion
Will future itineraries of human rights in the digital era repeat past mistakes? The report offers grist to the mill for profound thought and conscientious action.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Variants of coronavirus
Mains level: Paper 3- Importance of genomic sequencing in dealing with the pandemic
The article highlights the importance of genomic sequencing in dealing effectively with the pandemic and suggest the scaling up of genomic sequencing.
Why genomic sequencing is important
- An effective COVID-19 pandemic response requires, inter alia, keeping track of emerging variants and then conducting further studies about their transmissibility, immune escape and potential to cause severe disease.
- The success of the United States and the United Kingdom in containing the virus also goes to scaled-up genomic sequencing, tracking the emerging variants and using that evidence for timely actions.
- The data from genomic sequencing has both policy and operational implications.
- Our scientific knowledge and understanding about emerging strains is going to be the key to deploy public health interventions (vaccines included) to fight the pandemic.
- The emerging variants — with early evidence of higher transmissibility, immune escape and breakthrough infections — demand continuous re-thinking and re-strategising of the pandemic response by every country.
Insufficient genomic sequencing in India
- Though the procedural steps such as setting up the Indian SARS-CoV2 Genomic Consortia, or INSACOG have been taken, the sequencing has remained at a very low level of a few thousand cases only.
- The challenge of insufficient genomic sequencing is further compounded by slow pace of data sharing.
Steps need to be taken
- 1) Scale-up genomic sequencing: India needs to scale up genomic sequencing, across all States.
- More genomic sequencing is needed from large urban agglomerations.
- A national-level analysis of collated genomic sequencing data should be done on a regular basis and findings shared publicly.
- 2) Research on vaccine effectiveness: The Indian government needs to invest and support more scientific and operational research on vaccine effectiveness.
- Rethink vaccine policy: There are early indications of immune escape and reduced vaccine effectiveness against the Delta variant (especially after one-shot).
- These are the questions that experts need to deliberate and come up with the answers.
Consider the question “What is genomic sequencing and how it could help in dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic? Suggest the steps India need to take to use genomic sequencing in curbing the pandemic.”
Conclusion
As India prepares for the third wave, increasing genomic sequencing and use of scientific evidence for decision making are not a choice but an absolute essential.
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