Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: BECA
Mains level: Paper 2- India-US and optimism
The growing pace of India-US bilateral engagement has raised hopes in several quarters. However, there are several issues that must be considered and need to avoid excessive optimism.
Timing of 2+2 dialogue
- The India-US 2+2 third meeting was held in Delhi only a week before the US presidential elections.
- The government felt that it was important to seal the Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement (BECA) without delay.
- Other reason could be government’s assessment that there is bipartisan support in the US for higher and positive bilateral ties.
Need for caution in India’s approach
- In India-US ties, the leading outside consideration is China.
- A Biden presidency, should that be the choice of the American people, would seek to ensure that China’s rise is not at the cost of the US’s global pre-eminence.
- However, the strategy and methods it employs would be different from that of its predecessor.
- Further, even a Trump 2 administration, with the election done, may change course in its China approach.
- Hence, caution and prudence are good diplomatic watchwords.
- It is good that the agreements for a full defence engagement with the US are in place.
- But it is one matter to have them done and an entirely different one insofar as the nature and intensity of cooperation.
- So, India’s tradition of relying on its own strengths in matters of national security should not be eroded in the hope that an outside power would provide useful inputs.
Alliance Vs. Partnership
- India-US ties are in the framework of a partnership, not an alliance.
- The partnership may not be based on opposition to an outside element, the alliance almost always is.
- Alliances also demand a much higher price than partnerships, through loss of autonomy if the ally is a bigger power.
Excessive enthusiasm on Quad may be premature
- The 2+2 joint statement does not name China but its thrust is clear.
- The Quad is based on a commonality of concerns on account of China’s actions.
- India’s decision to go along with a more purposive group, including through its maritime exercises, is in keeping with its interests.
- The real direction that the Quad will take has to await the US’s overall China strategy over the next few years.
- Excessive enthusiasm on the Quad front may, therefore, be premature.
Way forward
- India has to change the nature of its economic and commercial ties with China.
- Thus, the joint statement’s reference on the need to “enhance supply chain resilience and to seek alternatives to the current paradigm” was timely, though here, again, the future US approach is not entirely certain.
- The areas where the bilateral partnership has the potential of evolving most positively for India relate to health, education and science and technology.
- There should not be any reluctance in developing ties in defence industries, too, but it cannot be forgotten that no country will part with any of its critical technologies.
- But there cannot be a substitute for developing indigenous capacity for India’s needs for weapon systems.
Conclusion
India-US ties will move positively forward but there will be imponderables ahead, principally arising out of US strategies towards China. But, a close embrace of another country is always problematic.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: ASER
Mains level: State of school education in India
The ASER Wave 1 Survey was recently released since the COVID-19 crisis interrupted this years’ trajectory.
Practice question for mains:
Q.Discuss the efficacy of the One-Nation- One-Board System and its limitations.
About ASER Survey
- This is an annual survey (published by education non-profit Pratham ) that aims to provide reliable estimates of children’s enrolment and basic learning levels for each district and state in India.
- ASER has been conducted every year since 2005 in all rural districts of India. It is the largest citizen-led survey in India.
- It is also the only annual source of information on children’s learning outcomes available in India.
How is the survey conducted?
- ASER tools and procedures are designed by ASER Centre, the research and assessment arm of Pratham.
- The survey itself is coordinated by ASER Centre and facilitated by the Pratham network. It is conducted by close to 30,000 volunteers from partner organisations in each district.
- All kinds of institutions partner with ASER: colleges, universities, NGOs, youth groups, women’s organisations, self-help groups and others.
- The ASER model has been adapted for use in several countries around the world: Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Pakistan, Mali and Senegal.
Assessment parameters
- Unlike most other large-scale learning assessments, ASER is a household-based rather than school-based survey.
- This design enables all children to be included – those who have never been to school or have dropped out, as well as those who are in government schools, private schools, religious schools or anywhere else.
- In each rural district, 30 villages are sampled. In each village, 20 randomly selected households are surveyed.
- Information on schooling status is collected for all children living in sampled households who are in the age group 3-16.
- Children in the age group 5-16 are tested in basic reading and basic arithmetic. The same test is administered to all children.
- The highest level of reading tested corresponds to what is expected in Std 2; in 2012 this test was administered in 16 regional languages.
- In recent years, this has included household size, parental education, and some information on household assets.
Key Findings
1.Enrollments:
- 5.5% of rural children are not currently enrolled for the 2020school year, up from 4% in 2018.
- This difference is the sharpest among the youngest children (6 to 10) where 5.3% of rural children had not yet enrolled in school in 2020, in comparison to just 1.8% in 2018.
- Due to the disruptions caused by the pandemic, families are waiting for the physical opening of schools to enrol their youngest children, with about 10% of six-year-olds not in school.
- Among 15-16 year-olds, however, enrollment levels are slightly higher than in 2018.
- The proportion of boys enrolled in government schools has risen from 62.8% in 2018 to 66.4% in 2020, while for girls, that number has gone up from 70% to 73% in the corresponding period.
- Patterns show a slight shift toward government schools, with private schools seeing a drop in enrolment in all age groups.
- The Centre has now permitted States to start reopening schools if they can follow Covid-19 safety protocols but the majority of the country’s 25 crore students are still at home.
2.Availability of Smartphones:
- Among enrolled children, 61.8% live in families that own at least one smartphone which was merely 36.5% in 2018.
- About 11% of families bought a new phone after the lockdown, of which 80% were smartphones.
- WhatsApp is by far the most popular mode of transmitting learning materialsto students, with 75% of students receiving input via this app.
3.Availability of Learning Material:
- Overall more than 80% of children said they had textbooks for their current grade.
- This proportion was higher among students enrolled in government schools (84.1%) than in private ones (72.2%).
- In Bihar, less than 8% got such materials from their schools, along with 20% in West Bengal, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.
- More than 80% of rural children in Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Kerala and Gujarat received such input.
4.Learning Activities:
- Most children (70.2%) did some form of a learning activity through material shared by tutors or family members themselves, with or without regular input.
- 11% had access to live online classes, and 21% had videos or recorded classes, with much higher levels in private schools.
- About 60% studied from their textbooks and 20% watched classes broadcast on TV.
Suggestions
- Fluid Situation: When schools reopen, it will be important to continue to monitor who goes back to school as well as to understand whether there is learning lossas compared to previous years.
- Building on and Strengthening Family Support: Parents’ increasing levels of education can be integrated into planning for learning improvement, as advocated by National Education Policy, 2020. Reaching parents at the right level is essential to understand how they can help their children and older siblings also play an important role.
- Hybrid Learning: As children do a variety of different activities at home, effective ways of hybrid learning need to be developed which combine traditional teaching-learning with newer ways of “reaching-learning”.
- Assessment of Digital Modes and Content: In order to improve digital content and delivery for the future, an in-depth assessment of what works, how well it works, who it reaches, and who it excludes is needed.
- Mediating the Digital Divide: Children from families who had low education and also did not have resources like smartphones had less access to learning opportunities. However, even among such households, there is evidence of effort with family members trying to help and schools trying to reach them. These children will need even more help than others when schools reopen.
Way Forward
- Covid-19 has left the nation with deep economic distress and uncertainty over school-reopenings and thrown open new challenges in every sector.
- The nationally representative sample highlighted the role played by the families where everyone in the family supported children regardless of their education levels.
- This strength needs to be leveraged by reaching out to more students and reducing the distance between schools and homes.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: CAATSA, COMCASA, LEMOA , BECA
Mains level: India-US relations as a response to China
India and the United States have signed the Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement (BECA), which, along with the two agreements signed earlier — the LEMOA and the COMCASA.
Try this question for mains:
Q. What is the troika of “foundational pacts” of India with the US? Discuss each of them. (150W)
Completing the troika
- The two agreements signed earlier are— the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA) and the Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement (COMCASA).
- This completes a troika of “foundational pacts” for deep military cooperation between the two countries.
What is BECA?
- BECA will help India get real-time access to American geospatial intelligence that will enhance the accuracy of automated systems and weapons like missiles and armed drones.
- Through the sharing of information on maps and satellite images, it will help India access topographical and aeronautical data, and advanced products that will aid in navigation and targeting.
Benefits of BECA
- This could be a key to Air Force-to-Air Force cooperation between India and the US.
- BECA will provide Indian military systems with a high-quality GPS to navigate missiles with real-time intelligence to precisely target the adversary.
- Besides the sailing of ships, flying off aircraft, fighting of wars, and location of targets, geospatial intelligence is also critical to the response to natural disasters.
What was the LEMOA about?
- LEMOA was the first of the three pacts to be signed in August 2016.
- LEMOA allows the militaries of the US and India to replenish from each other’s bases, and access supplies, spare parts and services from each other’s land facilities, air bases, and ports, which can then be reimbursed.
- LEMOA is extremely useful for India-US Navy-to-Navy cooperation since the two countries are cooperating closely in the Indo-Pacific.
Concretizing the mutual trust
- The critical element that underpins LEMOA is mutual trust.
- Without trust, no country will be willing to expose its military and strategic assets such as warships to the facilities of another country.
- The signing of LEMOA was in itself an affirmation of the mutual trust between the two militaries, and its application will enhance the trust.
- It took almost a decade to negotiate LEMOA, and the exercise in a sense bridged the trust deficit between India and the US and paved the way for the other two foundational pacts.
What about the COMCASA?
- COMCASA was signed in September 2018, after the first 2+2 dialogue during Mrs. Swarajs’ term as EAM.
- The pact allows the US to provide India with its encrypted communications equipment and systems so that Indian and US military commanders, and the aircraft and ships of the two countries, can communicate through secure networks during times of both peace and war.
- The signing of COMCASA paved the way for the transfer of communication security equipment from the US to India to facilitate “interoperability” between their forces.
Specific context and practical benefit for India
- The strengthening of the mechanisms of cooperation between the two militaries must be seen in the context of an increasingly aggressive China.
- Amid the ongoing standoff on the LAC in Ladakh — the longest and most serious in three decades — India and the US intensified under-the-radar intelligence and military cooperation at an unprecedented level.
- These conversations facilitated information-sharing between the two countries, including the sharing of high-end satellite images, telephone intercepts, and data on Chinese troops and weapons deployment along the LAC.
Conclusion
- Such agreements mark the enhancement of mutual trust and a commitment to the long-term strategic relationship.
- The US wants India to move away from Russian equipment and platforms, as it feels this may expose its technology and information to Moscow.
- So far, India is going ahead with the purchase of the S-400 air defence missile system from Russia, and this has been a sticking point for American interlocutors.
- For its part, India is wary of Pakistan’s deep-rooted ties with the Pentagon, and Washington’s dependence on Rawalpindi for access to Afghanistan as well as its exit strategy.
- But, because of the clear and present danger from China, New Delhi’s strategic embrace of Washington is the obvious outcome.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Atlantification
Mains level: Impact of climate changes
Scientists have uncovered “hotspots” where some parts of the Barents Sea are starting to more closely resemble the Atlantic. They call this phenomenon “Atlantification”.
Try this MCQ:
Q.The Atlantification phenomenon sometimes seen in news is most closely related to which of the following seas/water bodies?
a) Norwegian Sea
b) Kara Sea
c) Barents Sea
d) Baffin Bay
What is Atlantification?
- Streams of warmer water from the Atlantic Ocean flow into the Arctic at the Barents Sea.
- This warmer, saltier Atlantic water is usually fairly deep under the more buoyant Arctic water at the surface.
- Lately, however, the Atlantic water has been creeping up. That heat in the Atlantic water is helping to keep ice from forming and melting existing sea ice from below.
- This process is called “Atlantification”.
- The ice is now getting hit both from the top by a warming atmosphere and at the bottom by a warming ocean.
Reasons for it
- In the background of all of this is global climate change.
- The Arctic sea ice extent and thickness have been dropping for decades as global temperatures rise.
- As the Arctic loses ice and the ocean absorbs more solar radiation, global warming is amplified.
- That affects ocean circulation, weather patterns and Arctic ecosystems spanning the food chain, from phytoplankton all the way to top predators.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: EOS-01
Mains level: Not Much
India would launch its latest earth observation satellite EOS-01 and nine international customer spacecraft onboard it’s PSLV-C49.
Try this PYQ:
Q.The term ‘IndARC’, sometimes seen in the news, is the name of:
(a) An indigenously developed radar system inducted into Indian Defence
(b) India’s satellite to provide services to the countries of Indian Ocean Rim
(c) A scientific establishment set up by India in Antarctic region
(d) India’s underwater observatory to scientifically study the Arctic region
EOS-01
- EOS-01 is intended for applications in agriculture, forestry and disaster management support.
- This is the first launch by the Indian Space Research Organisation since the COVID-19-induced lockdown came into force in March.
- This will be the 51st mission of ISRO’s workhorse, the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle.
What is Earth Observation Satellite (EOS)?
- An EOS or remote sensing satellite is a satellite used or designed for Earth observation (EO) from orbit, including spy satellites and similar ones intended for non-military uses such as environmental monitoring, meteorology, cartography and others.
- Starting with IRS-1A in 1988, ISRO has launched many operational remote sensing satellites.
- Today, India has one of the largest constellations of remote sensing satellites in operation.
- Currently, *thirteen* operational satellites are in Sun-synchronous orbit and *four* in Geostationary orbit.
- The data from these satellites are used for several applications covering agriculture, water resources, urban planning, rural development, mineral prospecting, environment, forestry, ocean resources and disaster management.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Pelagornithids
Mains level: Not Much
Scientists have identified the fossil of a giant bird that lived about 50 million years ago, with wingspans of up to 21 feet that would dwarf today’s largest bird, the wandering albatross.
Try this PYQ:
Q.The term “Sixth mass extinction/ sixth extinction is often mentioned in the news in the context of the discussion of
(a) Widespread monoculture practices in agriculture and large-scale commercial farming with indiscriminate use of chemicals in many parts of the world that may result in the loss of good native ecosystems.
(b) Fears of a possible collision of a meteorite with the Earth in the near future in the manner it happened 65 million years ago that caused the mass extinction of many species including those of dinosaurs.
(c) Large scale cultivation of genetically modified crops in many parts of the world and promoting their cultivation in other parts of the world which may cause the disappearance of good native crop plants and the loss of food biodiversity.
(d) Mankind’s over-exploitation/misuse of natural resources, fragmentation/loss of natural habitats, destruction of ecosystems, pollution and global climate change.
Pelagornithids
- Called Pelagornithids, the birds filled a niche much like that of today’s albatrosses and travelled widely over Earth’s oceans for at least 60 million years.
- They are known as ‘bony-toothed’ birds because of the bony projections, or struts, on their jaws that resemble sharp-pointed teeth, though they are not true teeth, like those of humans and other mammals.
- The bony protrusions were covered by a horny material, keratin, which is like our fingernails, the researchers said.
- Called pseudoteeth, the struts helped the birds snag squid and fish from the sea as they soared for perhaps weeks at a time over much of Earth’s oceans, they said.
Their extinction
- The pelagornithids came along to claim the wingspan record in the Cenozoic, after the mass extinction and lived until about 2.5 million years ago. Around that same time, teratogens, now extinct, ruled the skies, they said.
- The newly described fossil — a 50 million-year-old portion of a bird’s foot — shows that the larger Pelagornithids arose just afterlife rebounded from the mass extinction 65 million years ago, when the dinosaurs, went extinct.
- The last known pelagornithid is from 2.5 million years ago, a time of changing climate as Earth cooled, and the ice ages began.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Highlights of the report
Mains level: Household electricity supply in India
NITI Aayog, Ministry of Power, Rockefeller Foundation, and Smart Power India have together launched the ‘Electricity Access in India and Benchmarking Distribution Utilities’ report.
About the report
- It is based on a primary survey conducted across 10 states––representing about 65% of the total rural population of India.
- Aimed at capturing insights from the demand (electricity customers) as well as supply-side (electricity distribution utilities), the report seeks to:
- Evaluate the status of electricity access in India across these states and distribution utilities along all dimensions that constitute meaningful access
- Benchmark utilities’ capacity to provide electricity access and identify the drivers of sustainable access
- Develop recommendations for enhancing sustainable electricity access
Key findings of the report:
- As much as 92% of customers reported the overall availability of electricity infrastructure within 50 metres of their premises; however, not all have connections, the primary reason being the distance of households from the nearest pole.
- Overall, 87% of customers have access to grid-based electricity. The remaining 13% either use non-grid sources or don’t use any electricity at all.
- The hours of supply have improved significantly across the customer categories to nearly 17 hours per day.
- Nearly 85% of customers reported to have a metered electricity connection.
- Access to electricity is observed in 83% of household customers.
- Considering the overall satisfaction level, a total of 66% of those surveyed were satisfied––74% of customers in urban areas and 60% in rural areas.
Recommendations made
The key recommendations provided in the report are in the areas of policy and regulation, process improvement, infrastructure and capacity-building of utilities. Other recommendations included:
- prioritizing the release of new connections for non-household customers
- transfer of subsidies or other benefits directly into a customer’s account
- enhanced technology-driven customer service; ensuring 100% metering of customers
- segregation of feeder lines
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: TRIPS
Mains level: Paper 3- Issues with free trade
Issues with free trade are making themselves more evident in the aftermath of the Covid pandemic. The article analyses the growing influence of the capital and how it is benefiting the few.
Issues with free trade
- Debates about free trade revolves around value of economic growth vs. the values of justice.
- The Economist (October 5) says “Investor-state dispute-settlement (ISDS) clauses of international trade and investment agreements give foreign investors the right to resort to a secretive tribunal to seek compensation when they are in disagreement with a host government.
- They threaten governments who want to pass laws that seem self-evidently in their country’s and even the world’s interests.
- The interests of remote financial investors are considered superior to the rights of local people represented by their own democratically elected governments.
- TRIPS (the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of International Property Rights) is another egregious example.
- Lobbies of multinational pharma companies want to protect their investors with intellectual monopolies under TRIPS, denying affordable medicines to the world’s poorer people.
- New business models are throwing more workers into short-term contractual arrangements to make it easier for investors to do business.
How it is relevant in India
- The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) notification 2020 make it easier for investors to take over lands for projects by debilitating the assessment process which requires that communities be heard.
- The new labour codes passed by Parliament to simplify regulations have also weakened the rights of workers to be represented by unions.
- In India, terms of trade have been stacked against small farmers to keep prices low for consumers.
- Terms are also against small enterprises in financial markets, and also when they supply to large buyers in global supply chains.
- The terms of trade are unfair for all workers who are on the supply side of labour markets vis-à-vis those who pay them.
- Small people do not have clout in any market. Those with more money set the terms of trade.
Governance crisis
- Capitalism runs on the principle of property rights: Those who own more must have a greater say in the governance of the enterprise.
- Money is speaking too much in fixing the rules of the game: It influences elections; it controls the media; it powers lobbies for reforms at international and national levels.
Conclusion
The way the rules of the economy and trade are made must change to create a more just and resilient world. Voices of the poorest people and their associations must be heard more loudly than the opinions of the rich and their lobbies.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: APMC Act
Mains level: Paper 3- Agri bills and their implications for the farmers.
Agri-bill passed by the Parliament resulted in the protest from farmers from several states. The bills have also been challenged on the legal footing as well. This article explains how the bills will benefit the farmers and also examines the legal basis used for their passage.
States trying to nullify the agri bills passed by Parliament
- Parliament has passed three bills on agriculture reform. This has evoked protests, largely in Punjab and Haryana.
- Taking recourse to Article 254 of the Constitution, the Punjab government has passed its own bills to nullify some provisions of the central acts.
- Similar action by the Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan governments seems to be on the anvil.
Legal justification for Parliament passing the laws related to agriculture
- The Constitution has placed agriculture on the state list.
- Various petitions have also been filed in the Supreme Court claiming that the central laws infringe upon the jurisdiction of state governments.
- However, it is the Centre which decides and announces support prices for major crops for the entire country.
- It also decides issues such as bank loan waivers.
- International agreements and multilateral trade in agricultural products also fall in the Union government’s domain.
- Agricultural and dairy products, in fact, had a prominent role in India not joining the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).
- Entry 33 in the concurrent list limits the power of states in agriculture, by empowering both governments to legislate on production, trade and supply of a range of agricultural foodstuffs and raw material.
Use of Article 254 to bypass Central law
- The Punjab bill has set in motion the process of states taking refuge under Article 254 to pass their own pieces of legislation.
- All state bills that seek to nullify central acts have to be approved by the President after they have received the consent of the governor of the state.
Way forward
- Reformist chief ministers and astute policy planners should grab this opportunity and encourage investment in private infrastructure to create supply chains and give the farmer the benefit of demand-led prices.
- They should also take appropriate action to create institutional mechanisms, such as farmer producer organisations or aggregators, to ensure greater farmer participation.
Conclusion
It would be in the interests of the farming community and state governments to give the much-delayed reform measures a fair chance by giving them access to competitive purchases, affording better prices.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Schemes for DisComs
Mains level: Paper 3- Financial issues faced by the DisComs
The article analyses the factors responsible for financial difficulties faced by the DisComs and suggests the ways to deal with the issues.
Important role of the DisComs
- Distribution Companies (DisComs) are the utilities that typically buy power from generators and retail these to consumers.
- For all of India’s global leadership for growth of renewable energy, or ambitions of smart energy, the buck stops with the DisComs.
- The days of scarcity of power are over.
- The physical supply situation has mostly improved.
- But the financial picture has not brightened much.
Analysing the data on liabilities of the DisComs
- ₹90,000 crore (later upgraded to ₹1,25,000 crore) was earmarked for DisComs in ₹20-lakh crore package announced in the wake of Covid-19’s economic shock.
- The Power Finance Corporation (PFC)’s Report on Utility Workings for 2018-19 showed dues to generators were ₹2,27,000 crore, and this is well before COVID-19.
- It also showed similar Other Current Liabilities.
- DisComs have delayed their payments upstream (not just to generators but others as well) — in essence, treating payables like an informal loan.
But why do DisComs not pay on time?
- Ideally, DisComs should not incur losses as they enjoy a regulated rate of return.
- While AT&C losses can explain part of any gap. Major reasons are as discussed below:
1) Regulatory issue and cash-flow gap due to it
- The first problem starts at the regulatory level where even if DisComs performed as targeted, across India, they would face a considerable cash flow gap.
- This cash flow gap was ₹60,000-plus crore in FY18-19 compared to their then annual cost structure of ₹7.23-lakh crore.
2) Payabeles issue: Due from consumers, state and regulatory gap
- These dues are of three types.
- First, regulators themselves have failed to fix cost-reflective tariffs thus creating Regulatory Assets,which are to be recovered through future tariff hikes.
- Second, about a seventh of DisCom cost structures is meant to be covered through explicit subsidies by State governments.
- Third, consumers owed DisComs over ₹1.8 lakh crore in FY 2018-19, booked as trade receivables.
- State governments are the biggest defaulters, responsible for an estimated a third of trade receivables, besides not paying subsidies in full or on time.
3) Challenge of renewable energy
- The rise of renewable energy means that premium customers will leave the system partly first by reducing their daytime usage.
- And as battery technologies mature, their dependence on DisComs may wane entirely.
- Even without batteries, regulations permitting, they may want to find third party suppliers under competitive models.
Impact of Covid pandemic
- COVID-19 has completely shattered incoming cash flows to utilities.
- The revenue implications were far worse since the lockdown disproportionately impacted revenues from so-termed paying customers, commercial and industrial segments.
- Reduced demand for electricity did not save as much because a large fraction of DisCom cost structures are locked in through Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) that obligate capital cost payments, leaving only fuel savings with lower offtake.
Way forward
- We will probably need a much larger liquidity infusion than has been announced thus far, but it also must go hand-in-hand with credible plans to pay down growing debt.
- We need a complete overhaul of the regulation of electricity companies and their deliverables.
- We need to apply common sense metrics of lifeline electricity supply instead of the political doleout of free electricity even for those who may not deserve such support.
- For the rest, regulators must allow cost-covering tariffs.
Consider the question “Examine the factor responsible for making the DisComs financial unviable? Sugget the pathways to deal with the issues faced by the DisComs”
Conclusion
The financial problems of DisComs have been brewing for many yearsHowever, if business as usual was not even good enough before COVID-19, it will not be workable for the current national needs of quality, affordable, and sustainable power.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not Much
Mains level: India-Myanmar relations
The Foreign Secretary and Chief of the Army Staff have recently visited Myanmar reflected India’s multidimensional interests in the country.
Try this question:
Q.Myanmar is the key in linking South Asia to Southeast Asia and the eastern periphery becomes the focal point for New Delhi’s regional outreach. Analyse.
India-Myanmar relations
- There are two lines of thinking that drive India’s Myanmar policy: engagement with key political actors and balancing neighbours.
- For Myanmar, the visit would be viewed as India’s support for its efforts in strengthening democratization amidst criticisms by rights groups over the credibility of its upcoming election.
Non-interference in internal politics
- The political logic that has shaped India’s Myanmar policy since the 1990s has been to support democratization driven from within the country.
- This has allowed Delhi to engage with the military that played a key role in Myanmar’s political transition and is still an important political actor.
- A key factor behind the military regime’s decision to open the country when it initiated reforms was, in part, to reduce dependence on China.
India as an alternative
- By engaging Myanmar, Delhi provides alternative options to Naypyidaw.
- This driver in India’s Myanmar policy has perhaps gained greater salience in the rapidly changing regional geopolitics.
Recent initiatives
- Like in other neighbouring countries, India suffers from an image of being unable to get its act together in making its presence felt on the ground.
- The inauguration of the liaison office of the Embassy of India in Naypyidaw (the capital) may seem a routine diplomatic activity.
- However, establishing a permanent presence in the capital where only a few countries have set up such offices does matter.
- Interestingly, China was the first country to establish a liaison office in Naypyidaw in 2017.
- India has also proposed to build a petroleum refinery in Myanmar that would involve an investment of $6 billion.
Strategic calculus
- This is an indication of Myanmar’s growing significance in India’s strategic calculus.
- It also shows India’s evolving competitive dynamic with China in the sector at a time when tensions between the two have intensified.
- Another area of cooperation that has expanded involves the border areas.
- Furthermore, the recent announcement that India was transferring a Kilo-class submarine to Myanmar demonstrates the depth of their cooperation in the maritime domain.
The balancing act
- For Delhi, the balancing act between Bangladesh and Myanmar remains one of the keys to its overall approach to the Rohingya issue.
- Delhi has reiterated its support for “ensuring the safe, sustainable and speedy return of displaced persons” to Myanmar.
- By positioning as playing an active role in facilitating the return of Rohingya refugees, India has made it clear that it supports Myanmar’s efforts and also understands Bangladesh’s burden.
- For Delhi, engaging rather than criticizing is the most practical approach to finding a solution.
Conclusion
- For India, Myanmar is key in linking South Asia to Southeast Asia and the eastern periphery becomes the focal point for New Delhi’s regional outreach.
- Delhi’s political engagement and diplomatic balancing seem to have worked so far in its ties with Myanmar.
- Whether it has leveraged these advantages on the ground to the full is open to debate.
- The aforementioned initiatives could be the beginning of change on the ground by establishing India’s presence in sectors where it ought to be more pronounced.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not Much
Mains level: Abrogation of Art. 370
People, as well as investors outside Jammu and Kashmir, can now purchase land in the Union Territory (UT) as the Centre has notified new land laws for the region.
What is the new criterion?
- Under the newly introduced J&K Development Act, the term “permanent resident of the State” as a criterion has been “omitted”, paving the way for investors outside J&K to invest in the UT.
- Under the ‘transfer of land for the purpose of promotion of healthcare or education’, the government may now allow the transfer of land.
- According to amendments made to “The Jammu & Kashmir Land Revenue Act, Samvat, 1996”, only agriculturists of J&K can purchase agricultural land.
- No sale, gift, exchange, or mortgage of the land shall be valid in favour of a person who is not an agriculturist.
- No land used for agriculture purposes shall be used for any non-agricultural purposes except with the permission of the district collector.
- Under a new provision, an Army officer not below the rank of Corps Commander can declare an area as “Strategic Area” within a local area, only for direct operational and training requirements.
Note: These laws do not apply to the UT of Ladakh. The Centre is likely to notify separate land laws for the UT of Ladakh soon.
Criticisms of the move
- Political parties have opposed the move citing the sale of the state.
- With these new laws in place, tokenism of the domicile certificate has been done away with, as purchasing non-agricultural land has been made easier.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: UAPA
Mains level: UAPA
The Centre has designated 18 key operatives and leaders of extremists groups as individual terrorists under the recently-amended Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).
Try this question for mains:
Q.“Anti-terror laws should not be used as a tool to silence the critics of the government.” Discuss in context to the recent amendments to the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).
About UAPA
- The UAPA is aimed at effective prevention of unlawful activities associations in India.
- Its main objective was to make powers available for dealing with activities directed against the integrity and sovereignty of India
- It is an upgrade on the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act TADA, which was allowed to lapse in 1995 and the Prevention of Terrorism Act (POTA) was repealed in 2004.
- It was originally passed in 1967 under the then Congress government led by former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
- Till 2004, “unlawful” activities referred to actions related to secession and cession of territory. Following the 2004 amendment, “terrorist act” was added to the list of offences.
Recent amendments
- The Centre had amended UAPA, 1967, in August 2019 to include the provision of designating an individual as a terrorist.
- Before this amendment, only organisations could be designated as terrorist outfits.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Artemis, SOPHIA, VIPER
Mains level: Study of water on moon
The Moon has water at places where none had been detected before and has potentially more water than previously believed in regions where it was already understood to exist.
Try this MCQ:
Q.NASA’s VIPER mission sometimes seen in news is related to the study of-
a)Moon
b)Venus
c)Sun
d)None of these
Water on the moon
- In two separate studies in Nature Astronomy, scientists have reported findings with potentially huge implications for sustaining humans on the Moon in the future.
- One study reports the detection of water on the Moon’s sunlit surface for the first time.
- The other estimates that the Moon’s dark, shadowy regions, which potentially contain ice, are more widespread than thought.
Why is the discovery of water important?
- Apart from being a marker of potential life, water is a precious resource in deep space.
- For astronauts landing on the Moon, water is necessary not only to sustain life but also for purposes such as generating rocket fuel.
- NASA’s Artemis programme plans to send the first woman and the next man to the Moon in 2024 and hopes to establish a “sustainable human presence” there by the end of the decade.
What was known about water on the Moon?
- Previous Moon studies, including by the ISRO Chandrayaan-1 mission, have provided evidence for the existence of water.
- In 2009, the Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) instrument aboard Chandrayaan-1 found water molecules in the Polar Regions.
What is different in the new discovery?
- This time, it is confirmed H20 molecules, discovered in Clavius Crater in the Moon’s southern hemisphere.
- And it is the first time water has been detected on the sunlit side, showing it is not restricted to the shadowy regions.
- SOFIA, which is a modified Boeing 747SP jetliner that flies at altitudes up to 45,000 feet, has an infrared camera that picked up the wavelength unique to water molecules.
- The data showed water in concentrations of 100-412 parts per million trapped in 1 cubic metre of soil.
How could the water have formed?
- Space rocks carrying small amounts of water could have bombarded the Moon.
- Alternatively, the Sun’s solar wind could have carried hydrogen, which then reacted with minerals in the lunar soil to create hydroxyl, which later transformed into water.
- The sunlit surface retaining the water presents a puzzle since the Moon does not have a thick atmosphere.
- One possibility is that the water gets trapped into tiny bead-like structures that were created in the soil by impacts from space rocks.
- Alternatively, the water could be hidden between grains of lunar soil and sheltered from the sunlight, NASA said.
So, how widespread is water on the Moon?
- On the sunlit side, it is not yet known whether the water SOFIA found is easily accessible.
- On the other hand, the hidden, shadowy pockets on the lunar surface called “cold traps” are spread across a combined 40,000 sq km, the other study has reported.
- The cold traps have gone without sunlight for potentially billions of years. If they do contain ice, it means water is going to be more accessible than previously assumed.
What next?
- SOFIA will look for water in additional sunlit locations to learn more about how the water is produced, stored, and moved across the Moon.
- Meanwhile, NASA’s Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover (VIPER) will carry out a mission to create the first water resource maps of the Moon.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: GST
Mains level: Changes in taxation after GST regime
Officials have indicated that the government is considering bringing natural gas under the ambit of the GST regime.
Try this question from CSP 2018:
Q.Consider the following items:
- Cereal grains hulled
- Chicken eggs cooked
- Fish processed and canned
- Newspapers containing advertising material
Which of the above items is/are exempt under GST (Goods and Services Tax)?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1, 2 and 4 only
(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4
Why such demands?
- Global energy MNCs have called on the government to bring natural gas under the GST regime.
- Currently petrol, diesel, aviation turbine fuel, natural gas and crude oil fall outside India’s Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime.
Why is it important to bring natural gas under the GST regime?
- Bringing natural gas under the GST would lead to a reduction in the cascading impact of taxes on industries such as power and steel, which used natural gas as an input.
- This would do away with the central excise duty and different value-added taxes imposed by states.
- This would lead to an increase in the adoption of natural gas in line with the government’s stated goal to increase the share of natural gas in the country’s energy basket from 6.3% to 15%.
Back2Basics: GST
- GST launched in India on 1 July 2017 is a comprehensive indirect tax for the entire country.
- It is charged at the time of supply and depends on the destination of consumption.
- For instance, if a good is manufactured in state A but consumed in state B, then the revenue generated through GST collection is credited to the state of consumption (state B) and not to the state of production (state A).
Must read:
https://www.civilsdaily.com/goods-and-services-tax-2/
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- Contrasting India and China's engagement with West Asia
The article draws parallels in the past in India and China’s engagement with West Asia and contrasts it with the present approach adopted by China in dealing with the region.
Strategic autonomy
- According to a former Foreign Secretary of India, Vijay Gokhale, the ideation of ‘strategic autonomy’ is much different from the Nehruvian era thinking of ‘non-alignment’.
- Speaking in January 2019, Mr. Gokhale said: “The alignment is issue based, and not ideological.”
India’s engagement with West Asia
- Pre-dating 2020, India’s outreach to West Asia sharpened since 2014.
- Oil-rich Gulf states looked at India as investment alternative away from the West to deepen their own strategic depth.
- India also doubled down on its relations with the likes of Abu Dhabi and Riyadh, giving open economic and political preference to the larger Gulf region.
- While engagements with Israel moved steadily forward, Iran lagged behind, constrained by U.S. sanctions, which in turn significantly slowed the pace of India-Iran engagements.
China’s engagement with West Asia
- China’s overtures have been steadily more adventurous as it realises two major shifts that have taken place in West Asia.
- First, the thinking in the Gulf that the American security safety net is not absolute.
- Second, the Gulf economies such as Saudi Arabia, even though trying to shift away from petro dollar, will still need growing markets to sell oil to in the coming decade as they reform their economic systems.
- The obvious two markets here are China and India.
Similarity in India and China’s approach to West Asia
- Both India and China employed similar versions of ‘non-alignment’ thinking is in West Asia based on equitable engagement with the three poles of power in Saudi Arabia, Iran and Israel.
- Both countries did it without getting involved into the region’s multi-layered conflicts and political fissures.
- However, deteriorating U.S.-China ties, the COVID-19 pandemic that started in China, followed by the Ladakh crisis, is forcing a drastic change in the geopolitical playbooks of the two Asian giants, and, by association, global security architectures as well.
Changing approach of China
- A report in September shone a light on a $400 billion, 25-year understanding between Iran and China, with Beijing taking advantage of abandonment of the Iran nuclear deal.
- China is no longer happy with a passive role in West Asia, and through concepts such as “negative peace” and “peace through development”.
- In concert with tools such as the Belt and Road Initiative, Beijing is now ready to offer an alternative model for “investment and influence”.
- It remains to be seen, however, how China balances itself between the poles of power while backing one so aggressively.
Stability of the region and opportunity for India
- From India’s perspective, the overt outreach to the Gulf and the ensuing announcements of multi-billion-dollar investments on Indian shores by entities from Saudi Arabia and the UAE is only New Delhi recognising the economic realities of the region.
- Despite entanglements in the Yemen war and general tensions between the Gulf states and Iran, the likes of Saudi Arabia, the UAE and so on have maintained relatively strong and stable economic progression.
- Israel’s recent peace accords with the UAE and Bahrain add much further weight towards a more stable Gulf region — the caveats withstanding that the operationalisation of the accords is smooth and long-lasting.
Consider the question “Despite turbulence in the region, India’s engagement with West Asia has always been characterised by non-alignment and ethos of equitable engagement. In light of this, elaborate on India’s approach to the region and region’s importance for India.”
Conclusion
While in the recent past, the Indo-Pacific, with the development of the Quad, has taken centre stage, other geographies such as West Asia have also started to showcase bolder examples of New Delhi and Beijing’s metamorphosing approaches towards the international arena.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- India-US relations
Changing geopolitical factors have accelerated further the deepening of India-US ties. The article analyses the current circumstances and evolution of the bilateral relations.
Background against which 2+2 dialogue taking place
- The 2+2 dialogue between India and the United States in Delhi this week marks an important moment in bilateral relations.
- The 2+2 dialogue comes just three weeks after the foreign ministers of the Quad — or the Quadrilateral Security Framework — met in Tokyo.
- It also takes place amidst a profound structural shift in great power politics as well as turbulence in the international economic order intensified by the coronavirus pandemic.
- The dialogue follows India’s first-ever participation in a meeting of the exclusive Five Eyes grouping that facilitates intelligence-sharing among the US, Canada, UK, Australia and New Zealand.
- A few days ago, Delhi announced the much-awaited expansion of the annual Malabar exercises to include Australia.
Background of the past engagements
- Signing the historic civil nuclear initiative ended India’s prolonged atomic isolation in the world laid the outline of a broader framework for security cooperation.
- Due to the deep divisions within the national security establishment, the leadership and some political constraints faced by the government, the coalition broke up.
- The focus was on keeping visible distance from the US in the name of non-alignment, strategic autonomy, and the quest for a multipolar world.
- The relationship survived those years, thanks to the US’s perseverance.
3 Factors responsible for rapid progress in the US-India ties
1) Chines aggression on northern border
- The huge military crisis on the northern borders with China that is well into the sixth month is the first factor.
- In the past, India avoided closer security ties with the US in deference to Beijing’s sensitivities.
- In contrast, the government now has refused to pay heed to Chinese sensitivities over its policy on security cooperation with the US.
2) Disruption caused by the corona pandemic
- The coronavirus has sharpened the US debate on the dangers of excessive economic interdependence on China.
- Meanwhile, India has begun to reduce its commercial ties to Beijing in response to the PLA’s Ladakh aggression.
- This has created the conditions for a new conversation between India and the US on rearranging global supply chains away from China.
- So, the Quad Plus conversations have drawn in Brazil, Israel, New Zealand, South Korea and Vietnam with a view to rearrange the global supply chain.
3) Focus on critical technologies
- Third factor is critical technologies like artificial intelligence that promise to transform most aspects of modern life — including security, political economy and social order.
- Delhi and Washington are now focused on finding ways to collaborate on the critical technologies of the 21st century and work with their partners in setting new global rules for managing them.
Conclusion
As the regional and global order faces multiple transitions, the incentives for Delhi and Washington to sustain and advance India-US partnership are stronger than ever before and will continue into the next administration.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not Much
Mains level: Transparent and accessible judicial proceedings
Attorney General of India has pushed for live-streaming court proceedings to make hearings accessible to all. But CJI sounded a cautionary note, saying it was susceptible to “abuses.”
Why such demands?
- In a first in India, the Gujarat High Court has begun live streaming of Court Proceedings on YouTube.
- The issue of live-streaming came up as a Special Bench led by the CJI was taking stock of the virtual court system initiated soon after the pandemic lockdown.
Live-streaming of Court
- Justice Chandrachud was one of the three judges on the Bench that gave the verdict on live-streaming in September 2018.
- In fact, he had noted in his separate opinion that live-streaming of proceedings would be the true realization of the “open court system.”
- His suggestions were later adopted as guidelines in the September 2018 judgment.
Why there should be live-streaming?
- Improved accountability: Live-streaming of court proceedings would serve as an instrument for greater accountability and formed part of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.
- Living up the expectation of Constitution: Live Streaming of Court proceedings is manifested in public interest. Public interest has always been preserved through the Constitution article 19 and 21
- Empowering the masses: It will enable the legal system to deliver on its promise of empowering the masses.
- More transparency: It will encourage the principle of open court and reduce dependence on second-hand views. It will effectuate the public’s right to know.
- This would inspire confidence in the functioning of the judiciary as an institution and help maintain the respect that it deserved as a co-equal organ of the state.
- Academic help: Live streaming may also be a help for academic purposes.
Issues with live-courts
The Parliamentary Standing Committee (PSC) of the Department of Personnel, Public Grievances and Law and Justice have tabled its report on the functioning of Virtual Courts and Digitization of Justice Delivery in Parliament.
Following are the four key considerations and recommendations of the committee as far as mainstreaming of virtual courts is concerned:
(1) The question of access:
- A large number of litigants and advocates lack internet connectivity and requisite infrastructure and means to participate in virtual hearings and the process. This has serious implications.
- The obvious one being that a large chunk of our citizenry is vulnerable to being excluded from the process of justice delivery owing to factors beyond their control.
- The committee also opined that the judiciary considers solutions such as mobile video conferencing facilities to allow for meaningful participation from those living in remote geographies.
(2) The degree of comfort:
- A highly underrated but equally consequential factor is whether everyone, even if access to reliable internet connectivity is universal, is comfortable and well versed with the new tools and mediums of justice delivery.
- Big, well-to-do law firms and advocates in urban areas would face no issues as compared to those participants in rural areas given the digital divide.
(3) The idea of open courts itself:
- Virtual courts allegedly threaten the constitutionality of Court proceedings and undermine the importance of Rule of law which forms a part of the basic structure of the Constitution.
- Expressing concern over the opaqueness of such hearings, critics state that virtual courts are antithetical to the open court system given the limited access that they allow for.
(4) The question of Privacy and Data Security:
- This is where the report makes some interesting and innovative suggestions vital to the performance of any digital justice delivery mechanism.
- It also took note of the fact that most virtual court proceedings in India currently take place using third-party software or platforms and a few of them have already been rejected earlier on grounds of being unsafe to use.
- The committee noted how courts across the world have had instances of intrusion and data privacy or security concerns while adapting to an entirely virtual mode of conducting hearings.
Still, digital records are necessary
- Litigants depend on the information provided by lawyers about what has transpired during the course of hearings.
- When the description of cases is accurate and comprehensive; it serves the course of open justice.
- Again, if a report on a judicial hearing is inaccurate, it impedes the public’s right to know.
Best examples
- Internationally, constitutional court proceedings are recorded in some form or the other.
- In Australia, proceedings are recorded and posted on the high court’s website.
- Proceedings of the Supreme Courts of Brazil, Canada, England and Germany are broadcast live.
- The Supreme Court of the US does not permit video recording, but oral arguments are recorded, transcribed, and available publicly.
- And democracies aside, in China, court proceedings are live-streamed from trial courts up to the Supreme People’s Court of China.
Significance of open-courts
- India stands alone amongst leading constitutional democracies in not maintaining audio or video recordings or even a transcript of court proceedings.
- Court hearings can be turning points in the life of a nation: ADM Jabalpur comes readily to mind. More recently, there is any number of cases where the Supreme Court’s judgments have changed citizens’ lives.
- Ayodhya, Aadhaar, Section 377, Sabarimala, NRC and the triple talaq judgments are among them.
Various moves for accessibility
- Over the last few years, the Supreme Court has taken steps to make justice more accessible. The Court started providing vernacular translations of its judgments.
- Non-accredited journalists were permitted to live-tweet court proceedings. During the lockdown, journalists have been permitted to view virtual court proceedings in real-time.
Way forward
- There should be live-streaming cases of constitutional and national importance as a pilot project, including Constitution Bench cases.
- Matrimonial cases and those involving national security could be excluded.
- There must be a reasonable time-delay (say 10 minutes) between the live court proceedings and the broadcast to ensure any information which ought not to be shown, as directed by the court, can be edited from being broadcast.
- The judiciary must also employ a press officer to liaise with the media, and issue simultaneously one or two page summaries of its judgments to facilitate greater public understanding.
- There has to be a greater reliance on written briefs and the significance accorded to them, time limits for oral arguments, and a greater emphasis on preparation in advance.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Plasma therapy
Mains level: Efficacy of the plasma therapy
Recently published findings on convalescent plasma therapy on Covid-19 patients have triggered a debate over its efficacy.
Plasma Therapy
- Plasma is the liquid part of the blood. Convalescent plasma, extracted from the blood of patients recovering from an infection, is a source of antibodies against the infection.
- The therapy involves using their plasma to help others recover. For Covid-19, this has been one of the treatment options.
- The donor would have to be a documented case of Covid-19 and healthy for 28 days since the last symptoms.
How is it done?
- The process to infuse plasma in a patient can be completed quickly.
- It only requires standard blood collection practices, and extraction of plasma.
- If whole blood is donated (350-450 ml), a blood fractionation process is used to separate the plasma.
- Otherwise, a special machine called aphaeresis machine can be used to extract the plasma directly from the donor.
- While blood is indeed extracted from the donor, the aphaeresis machine separates and extracts the plasma using a plasma kit, and the remaining blood components are returned into the donor’s body.
WHO’s guidelines
- WHO guidelines in 2014 mandate a donor’s permission before extracting plasma.
- Plasma from only recovered patients must be taken, and donation must be done from people not infected with HIV, hepatitis, syphilis, or any infectious disease.
- If whole blood is collected, the plasma is separated by sedimentation or centrifugation, then injected in the patient.
- If plasma needs to be collected again from the same person, it must be done after 12 weeks of the first donation for males and 16 weeks for females, the WHO guidelines state.
What has happened to spark the debate?
- An ICMR study has found convalescent plasma was not associated with a reduction in progression to severe Covid-19 or all-cause mortality.
- While the use of this therapy seemed to improve the resolution of shortness of breath and fatigue in patients with moderate Covid-19, this did not translate into a reduction in 28-day mortality or progression to severe disease.
- Progression to severe disease or death at 28 days after enrolment occurred in 44 (19%) of the participants in the intervention arm as compared to 41 (18%) in the control arm.
What happens if ICMR does remove the therapy from its guidelines?
- The authorisation of convalescent plasma as a treatment for Covid-19 in India has led to questionable practices such as calls for donors on social media, and the sale of convalescent plasma on the black market.
- The ICMR has been cautious because of the trial findings.
- However, those guidelines are not necessarily binding and it is too early to dismiss convalescent plasma therapy. But there are other issues.
- The therapy involves resource-intensive processes such as plasmapheresis, plasma storage, and measurement of neutralizing antibodies.
Way ahead
- This is a new virus, and around the world, the evidence is still emerging on the best therapeutic options.
- Covid care is individualized care. Use of the right medication on the right patient does work.
- Some of the therapies can be continued on compassionate grounds.
- However, the potential harms of the non-immune components of convalescent plasma should be rigorously investigated.
- Only donor plasma with detectable titers of neutralizing antibodies should be given to trial participants, to ensure that the potential for benefit exists for all intervention arm patients.
Try this question:
Q.What is convalescent plasma therapy? Discuss its efficacy and limitations for COVID-19 treatment.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Bundi architecture
Mains level: Not Much
A recent episode of the Ministry of Tourism’s Dekho Apna Desh Webinar series has focused on the architectural heritage of Bundi, Rajasthan.
Try this PYQ:
Q.With reference to Dhrupad, one of the major traditions of India that has been kept alive for centuries, which of the following statements are correct?
- Dhrupad originated and developed in the Rajput kingdoms during the Mughal period.
- Dhrupad is primarily a piece of devotional and spiritual music.
- Dhrupad Alap uses Sanskrit syllables from Mantras.
Select the correct answer using the codes given below:
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1, 2 and 3
(d) None of the above
About Bundi
- Bundi erstwhile capital of Hada Rajput province known as Hadauti located in south-eastern Rajasthan is one such place.
- Bundi is also known as City of step walls, blue city and also as Chotti Kashi.
- In ancient times, the area around Bundi was apparently inhabited by various local tribes, of which the Parihar Tribes, Meena was prominent.
- Later the region was governed by Rao Deva, who took over Bundi from Jaita Meena in 1242, renaming the surrounding area as Haravati or Haroti.
- For the next two centuries, the Hadas of Bundi were the vassals of the Sisodias of Mewar and ruled by the title of Rao until 1569, after Emperor Akbar.
Important architecture
- The City of Bundi grew outwards Taragarh hill. A small habitat developed at the foothills of the fort itself.
- The location of the royal palace was on a steep slope overlooking the valley below, providing a view of the vast surrounding hinterland.
- Garh Mahal became the focus and an imposing landmark on the skyline of Bundi was visible from the valley below. In the next 200 years, the entire cluster was built.
- The best example of medieval Indian city exhibiting water harvesting methods adopted at settlement level as well as the finest examples of water architecture.
- Location of Baoris and Kunds outside the walled city was also influenced by social considerations as access to baoris and kunds were located within the walled city was controlled.
Architectural heritage of Bundi can be classified as:
1) Garh (Fort): Taragarh
2) Garh Mahal (Royal Palace)
- Bhoj Mahal
- Chattar Mahal
- Ummed Mahal
3) Baori (Step well)
- Khoj Darwaja ki Baori
- Bhawaldi Baori
4) Kund (Stepped tank)
- Dhabhai ji ka Kund
- Nagar Kund & Sagar Kund
- Rani Kund
5) Sagar mahal (Lake Palace)
- Moti Mahal
- Sukh Mahal
- Shikar Burj
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