Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Golden Birdwing
Mains level: NA
A Himalayan butterfly named golden birdwing is now India’s largest recorded butterfly.
Try this MCQ:
Q.The Himalayan Golden Birdwing recently seen in news is a:
a)Biggest butterfly
b)Smallest avian specie
c)Biggest freshwater fish
d)Honeybee
Golden Birdwing
- A Himalayan butterfly named golden birdwing is now India’s largest, a record the southern birdwing held for 88 years.
- The male golden birdwing is much smaller at 106 mm.
- With a wingspan of 194 mm, the female of the species is marginally larger than the southern birdwing (190 mm) that Brigadier William Harry Evans, a British military officer and lepidopterist, recorded in 1932.
- It was an individual of the southern birdwing which was then treated as a subspecies of the common birdwing.
Other butterflies in news
- The Malabar Banded Peacock or the Buddha Mayoori which was recently declared the ‘State Butterfly’ of Kerala will have a dedicated butterfly park in Kochi.
- Tamil Nadu has also recently declared Tamil Yeoman (Cirrochroa Thais)as its state butterfly to symbolise its rich natural and cultural heritage, in a move aimed at boosting the conservation efforts of the attractive insects.
- Other states to have state butterflies are Maharashtra (Blue Mormon), Uttarakhand (Common peacock), Karnataka (Southern birdwings).
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Sakteng Wildlife Sanctuary
Mains level: China's territorial expansion plans
In a bid to further its territorial ambitions, China has recently claimed the Sakteng wildlife sanctuary in Eastern Bhutan as its own territory.
Practice question for mains:
Q.What are the various fronts of Chinese imperial expansionism across the South Asian Region?
About the Sakteng WLS
- Sakteng is a wildlife sanctuary located mostly in Trashigang District and just crossing the border into Samdrup Jongkhar District, Bhutan.
- It is one of the country’s protected areas.
- It is listed as a tentative site in Bhutan’s Tentative List for UNESCO inclusion.
Certain unresolved issues
- The boundary between China and Bhutan has never been delimited.
- There have been disputes over the eastern, central and western sectors for a long time.
- China last month attempted to stop funding for the Sakteng sanctuary from the U.N. Development Programme’s Global Environment Facility (GEF) on the grounds that it was “disputed” territory.
Reasons for the dispute
- According to written records, there has been no mention of Eastern Bhutan, or Trashigang Dzongkhag (district), where Sakteng is based as per boundary negotiations held between the two countries between 1984 and 2016.
- The negotiations have not been held since the Doklam standoff between Indian and Chinese troops in 2017.
- Bhutan has always maintained a discreet silence on its boundary negotiations with China, and it does not have any formal diplomatic relations with Beijing.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 3- Illicit drug seizures in India and neighbourhood
According to the latest World Drug Report of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), the fourth highest seizure of opium in 2018 was reported from India, after Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Drug seizures in India and neighbourhood
- The maximum of 644 tonnes of opium was seized in Iran, followed by 27 tonnes in Afghanistan and 19 tonnes in Pakistan.
- In India, the figure stood at four tonnes in 2018.
Heroin
- Heroin is manufactured from the morphine extracted from the seed pod of opium poppy plants.
- Iran reported the highest seizure of heroin (25 tonnes), followed by Turkey, United States, China, Pakistan and Afghanistan.
- India was at the 12th position in the world.
Global pattern
- 97% of the total global production of opium in the past five years came from only three countries.
- About 84% of the total opium was produced in Afghanistan, from where it is supplied to neighbouring countries, Europe, west Asia, south Asia and Africa.
- From Myanmar, which accounts for 7% of the global opium production, and Laos, where 1% of the opium is produced, it is supplied to east and south-east Asia and Oceania.
- Mexico accounts for 6% of the global opium production, while Colombia and Guatemala account for less than 1% of global production.
Some other details
- The report said that the global area under opium poppy cultivation declined for the second year in a row in 2019.
- It went down by 17% in 2018 and by 30% in 2019.
- Despite the decline in cultivation, opium production remained stable in 2019, with higher yields reported in the main opium production areas.
- Quantities of seized opiates remained concentrated in Asia, notably in south-west Asia (70%).
- Asia is host to more than 90% of global illicit opium production.
- Also, it is the world’s largest consumption market for opiates and also accounts for almost 80% of all opiates seized worldwide in 2018.
Consider the question asked in 2018 “India’s proximity to two of the world’s biggest illicit opium-growing states has enhanced her internal security concerns. Explain the linkages between drug trafficking and other illicit activities such as gunrunning, money laundering and human trafficking. What countermeasures should be taken to prevent the same?”
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: REMCL
Mains level: Paper3- Railways to become Zero Carbon emission mass transport
A new dawn ushers on Indian Railways as it endeavors to be self-reliant for its energy needs as directed by the Prime Minister and solarise railway stations by utilizing its vacant lands for Renewable Energy (RE) projects.
Moving towards ‘Net Zero’ Carbon Emission Railways
- The Ministry of Railways has decided to install solar power plants on its vacant unused lands on mega-scale.
- The use of solar power will accelerate the mission to achieve a conversion of Indian Railways to ‘Net Zero’ Carbon Emission Railway.
- Railway Energy Management Company Ltd. (REMCL) is working to further proliferate the use of solar energy on mega scale.
- It has already floated tenders for 2 GW of solar projects for Indian Railways to be installed on unutilised railway lands.
Projects along operational railway lines
- Indian Railways is also adopting an innovative concept of installation of solar projects along operational railway lines.
- This will help in preventing encroachment, enhancing the speed and safety of trains and reduction of infrastructure costs due to direct injection of solar power into the traction network.
- With these mega initiatives, Indian Railways is leading India’s fight against climate challenge.
- These are significant steps towards meeting its ambitious goal of being a net zero carbon emissions organisation and meeting India’s Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDC) targets.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: International Finance Corporation
Mains level: Paper 3- Credit supply to MSME
The World Bank and the Government of India signed the $750 million agreement for the MSME Emergency Response Programme to support increased flow of finance into the hands of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), severely impacted by the COVID-19 crisis.
How will the agreement protect the MSME sector
1. Unlocking liquidity
- The Government is focused on ensuring that the abundant financial sector liquidity available flow to NBFCs and that banks.
- Banks and NBFCs have turned extremely risk-averse.
- This project will support the Government in providing targeted guarantees to incentivize NBFCs.
- Project will also support banks to continue lending to viable MSMEs to help sustain them through the crisis.
- It will be achieved by de-risking lending from banks and Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) to MSMEs.
- This derisking will be done through a range of instruments, including credit guarantees.
2. Strengthening NBFCs and SFBs
- Improving the funding capacity of the NBFCs and Small Finance Bank (SFBs), will help them respond to the urgent and varied needs of the MSMEs.
- This will include supporting government’s refinance facility for NBFCs.
- In parallel, the IFC is also providing direct support to SFBs through loans and equity.
3. Enabling financial innovation
- Only about 8 percent of MSMEs are served by formal credit channels.
- The program will incentivize and mainstream the use of fintech and digital financial services in MSME lending and payments.
- Digital platforms will play an important role by enabling lenders, suppliers, and buyers to reach firms faster and at a lower cost.
- The digital platform will be helpful especially to small enterprises who currently may not have access to the formal channels.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Explaining the increase of Li in the the Universe
Mains level: Not much
In a study recently published in Nature Astronomy scientists from Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA) along with their international collaborators have provided a robust observational evidence for the first time that Li production is common among low mass Sun-like stars during their He-core burning phase.
Importance of lithium in our life
- Light inflammable, metal lithium (Li) has brought about transformation in modern communication devices and transportation.
- A great deal of today’s technology is powered by lithium in its various shades [remember Li-ion battery!].
- But where does the element come from?
- The origin of much of the Li can be traced to a single event, the Big-Bang that happened about 13.7 Billion years ago, from which the present-day Universe was also born.
Why lithium was thought to be different?
- Li content in the physical Universe has increased by about a factor of four over the life of the Universe.
- However, the rest of the elements carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, iron, nickel and so on which grew about a million times over the lifetime of the Universe.
- Li, however, understood to be an exemption!
- Current understanding is that lithium in stars like our Sun only gets destroyed over their lifetime.
- As a matter of fact, the composition of all the elements in the Sun and the Earth is similar.
- But, the measured content of Li in the Sun is a factor of 100 lower than that of the Earth, though both are known to have formed together.
So, what the new finding suggests?
- This discovery challenges the long-held idea that stars only destroy lithium during their lifetime.
- It implies that the Sun itself will manufacture lithium in the future.
- This is not predicted by models, indicating that there is some physical process missing in stellar theory.
- Further, the authors identified “He flash”.
- “He flash” is an on-set of He-ignition at the star’s core via violent eruption at the end of the star’s core hydrogen-burning phase, as the source of Li production.
- Our Sun will reach this phase in about 6-7 billion years.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 3- Achievements of Indians
Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis, India’s ‘Plan Man’ and the architect of the country’s statistical system is more relevant now in times of Covid pandemic when we grapple with the lack of data.
Analysing 1944 Bengal famine
- He conducted a large-scale sample survey of Bengal’s famine between July 1944 and February 1945.
- Sample survey helped in causal analysis and to assess the extent of the disaster and an estimate of the number of people affected.
Relevance today
- Bengal’s famine survey reminds us that we need estimates of the millions who will lose jobs or livelihoods in today’s pandemic.
- The extent of feasibility, success and problem of online access also needs to be properly estimated in this new dawn.
- Mahalanobis is perhaps more relevant today when the accuracy of different sorts of data is under the scanner.
- Mahalanobis envisaged large-scale sample surveys as statistical engineering rather than pure theory of sampling.
- He was instrumental in establishing the National Sample Survey (NSS) in 1950 and the Central Statistical Organization in 1951.
Data accuracy
- Mahalanobis was very careful about data accuracy in his surveys.
- In Kautilya’s Arthashastra, there is mention of the need for cross-checking by an independent set of agents for data collection.
- This, according to Mahalanobis, was the “striking feature in the Arthashastra”.
- This might have prompted him to have an independent supervisory staff during the conduct of field operations by the NSS.
- His initial training in Physics might have made him conscious about errors in measurement and observation.
- The desire to have built-in cross-checks and to get an estimate of errors in sampling led him to introduce the Inter-Penetrating Network of Subsamples.
- The network is considered as the curtain-raiser for re-sampling procedures like Bootstrap.
- Bootstrap is a revolutionary concept of statistics.
Difficulties in conducting surveys
- Even Mahalanobis could have faced hardship had he wished to conduct surveys now.
- First, even in pre-COVID-19 India, it’s widely reported that surveyors were facing tremendous resistance from people due to some sociopolitical reasons.
- Pronab Sen, Chairman of the Standing Committee on Economic Statistics, and former Chief Statistician, expressed his concern that the survey system is already in “deep trouble”.
- Conducting household surveys with the Census as the frame would be “very tough” going ahead.
- The problem will intensify due to COVID-19.
Use of technology for survey
- Mahalanobis never shied away from technology.
- He was instrumental in bringing computers to India.
- The Mahalanobis-led Indian Statistical Institute procured India’s first computer in 1956 and the second in 1959.
Consider the question asked in 2019 “How was India benefitted from the contributions of Sir M.Visvesvaraya and Dr M. S. Swaminathan in the fields of water engineering and agricultural science respectively?”
Conclusion
Mahalanobis wrote: “Statistics are a minor detail, but they do help.” This is an eternal truth. What Mahalanobis didn’t spell out is that one needs a top statistician for listening to the heartbeats of data and for framing data-based policy decisions for human welfare and national development.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: The East China Sea, the Bohai Sea, the Yellow Sea, the South China Sea
Mains level: Paper 2-India's Indo-Pacific vision and China's BRI
As India tries to diffuse the tension along the disputed northern border with China, it must focus on the other potential fronts that China could open. India Ocean could be the next one. This article examines the centrality of the Indian Ocean for China and their approach to the region.
India’s Indo-Pacific vision
- This vision is based on our historical associations with this region.
- This vision also acknowledges the importance of the Indian Ocean in building prosperity in this century.
- So, the key points of this vision are thus-
- 1) Inclusiveness, openness and ASEAN centrality and unity.
- 2) India does not see the Indo-Pacific Region as a strategy or as a club of limited members.
- 3) It is not directed against any country.
China should have equal access
- China is not a littoral state in the Indian Ocean.
- Historically, Chinese naval activity was limited to the East China Sea, the Bohai Sea, the Yellow Sea, and the South China Sea.
- In today’s context, China is the second-largest economy and the world’s largest trading nation.
- The sea-lanes of communication in the Indian Ocean are vital to her economy and security.
- Under international law, China should have equal access to the Indian ocean.
China’s “Malacca Dilemma”
- China thinks that others would block the Malacca Straits to “contain” the Chinese.
- So, China has strategized to dominate not just the Malacca Straits, but the ocean beyond it.
- The PLA Navy (PLAN) made its first operational deployment in the Gulf of Aden in 2008.
- In 2009 China planned for overseas base or facility.
- In 2010 a China State Oceanic Administration report alluded to plans to build aircraft carriers.
BRI: Overcoming the deficiencies China face in India Ocean
- The US hegemony and India’s regional influence in the Indian Ocean are thought of as a challenge to China.
- So, China focused on 3 inherent deficiencies that they wanted to overcome.
- (a) China is not a littoral state.
- (b) Its passage through key maritime straits could be easily blocked.
- (c) The possibility of US-India cooperation against China.
- How to overcome these deficiencies?
- (1) carefully selecting sites to build ports — Djibouti, Gwadar, Hambantota, Sittwe and Seychelles.
- (2) By conducting activities in a low-key manner to “reduce the military colour as much as possible”.
- (3) By not unnerving India and America by cooperating at first, then slowly penetrating into the Indian Ocean, beginning with detailed maritime surveys, ocean mapping, HADR, port construction and so on.
China acting on the plans
- The PLA’s new base in Djibouti is the prototype for more “logistics” facilities to come.
- More port construction projects like Gwadar and Hambantota, are being offered to vulnerable countries.
- These projects are commercially unviable but have military possibilities,
- Chinese “civilian” vessels routinely conduct surveys in the EEZ of littoral states.
- In January 2020 the PLA Navy conducted tripartite naval exercises with Russia and Iran in the Arabian Sea.
- They have the largest warship building programme in the world.
Consider the question “What constitutes India’s Indo-Pacific vision? Elaborate on the factors that explain China’s reluctance to subscribe to this vision.”
Conclusion
The idea of Indo-Pacific might potentially derail the carefully crafted Chinese plan. So, they now wish to cause alarm by raising fears about Great Power “strategic collision” caused by the so-called American-led “containment” strategy. It is important to look past their propaganda.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Vienna convention
Mains level: Paper 3- Italian marines case
The tribunal’s judgement in the Italian marines case was in Italy’s favour. But the basis used in the judgement could set a wrong precedent. India also ensures a fair trial against the marines in Italy. So, what would be the wrong precedent and why would be trial against marines will continue in Italy? Read to know…
Background
- On February 15, 2012 two Italian marines were held for killing two Indian fishermen
- Fishermen were in India’s Contiguous Zone, 20.5 nautical miles off the Kerala coast.
- And the marines were part of a security contingent on the Enrica Lexie, an Italian commercial oil tanker.
What is said in the judgement
- The tribunal was established by the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS).
- ITLOS was under the provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
- Only the operative portion of the tribunal’s award is available till now.
- It held that the marines were entitled to immunity in relation to the acts that they committed.
- The tribunal also said that India is precluded from exercising its jurisdiction over the Marines.
- However, the tribunal found that by firing on the fishermen Italy was guilty of “violating India’s freedom and right of navigation”.
- The tribunal majority agreed with the Italian plea that the marines had immunity for they were state officials.
The judgement could set the wrong precedent
- India’s stand was that UNCLOS is not concerned with issues relating to immunity.
- Immunity of state officials has to be governed by specific multilateral or bilateral treaties or agreements.
- It should not be invoked to settle issues of jurisdiction.
- Even if Italian marines are considered as state officials, they were serving on a commercial vessel.
- Italy did so unilaterally without the cover of any multilateral or bilateral arrangement.
- There is no convention that such persons as the marines in such cases are immune from local criminal jurisdiction.
- Only heads of states, heads of governments and foreign ministers customarily enjoy immunity abroad apart from accredited diplomats who are covered by the
- Countries may now enact specific laws to give immunity to their military and para-military personnel and others by declaring them state official.
- This can lead to an increase in tensions generally and especially between inimical states.
What should be the next course of action for India
- Indian government should ensure that Italy is made to pay fully for the loss of life and the suffering it has caused in this matter.
- The government should also ensure that it closely monitors the case proceedings in the Italian court against two marines.
- This is also a time for the executive and judicial branches of the Indian state to introspect on how they handled the whole affair politically, diplomatically and legally.
Consider the question “The judgement of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea in Italian marines case was based on the immunity of state officials. What could be the implication of invoking immunity of state official in this judgement? What should be the next course of action for India?”
Conclusion
As a good international citizen, India has accepted the tribunal’s award. Now it must ensure that Italy fully honours it. The matter remains open.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 3- Policy changes and reforms needed for growth of India
There is no doubt that an economically prosperous India will be well placed to deal with China effectively. So, to achieve this prosperity India urgently needs to embark upon the path of reforms.
How much China has moved ahead
- In 1987, both countries’ nominal GDPs were almost equal.
- China’s economic opening-up has left India behind, contributing to a military imbalance.
- China’s economy was nearly five times larger than India’s in 2019.
- Not coincidentally, from rough parity in 1989, China’s military spending last year more than tripled India’s.
- Heightened vigilance along the LAC demands summoning scarce resources.
- If India cannot close the economic gap and build military muscle, Beijing may feel emboldened to probe the subcontinent’s land and maritime periphery.
Reforms: Key to progress
- In 1991, India enacted changes allowing markets to set commodity prices.
- But it did not similarly liberalise land, labour and capital.
- Now, the government has delivered mixed messages about a revitalised reform agenda.
- Some States have temporarily lifted labour restrictions.
- Some others intend to make land acquisition easier.
But a call for self-sufficiency could do harm
- India emphasis on self-reliance could inhibit growth and constrain investment in a more vigorous foreign and defence policy.
- Greater self-sufficiency is desired.
- Home-grown manufacturing of critical medicinal ingredients or digital safeguards on citizens’ personal data would reduce vulnerabilities.
- Imposing restriction to help the local defence industry would hamper acquisitions helping balance China.
Competition from other countries
- China is facing intense scrutiny for its role in the pandemic, geopolitical competition, trade wars, and economic coercion.
- Businesses are revisiting whether or not to diversify suddenly exposed international value chains.
- India’s competitors [like Bangladesh, Vietnam] are trying to attract the businesses shifting out form China.
- These countries are highlighting their regulatory predictability, stable tax policies, and fewer trade obstacles.
- While India remains outside the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, competitors are wooing companies seeking lower trade barriers.
- Asian countries are pushing ahead: Vietnam just inked a trade deal with the European Union that threatens to eat into India’s exports.
Way forward
- India needs increased exports and investments to provide more well-paying jobs, technology.
- Before committing to long-term, multi-billion investments, companies often want to test India’s market through international sales.
- Liberalisation remains the tried-and-true path to competitiveness.
- If India can unite its people and rapidly strengthen capabilities, it will likely discover that it can deal with China effectively.
Consider the question “Do you agree with the view that slowdown in the reforms in land, labour and capital after the reforms of 1991 restricted Indias economic progress? Give reasons in support of your argument.
Conclusion
The choices that India makes to recapture consistent, high growth will determine its future. Bold reforms offer the best option to manage Beijing and achieve greater independence on the world stage.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Export of India's agricultural products
Mains level: Paper 3- Increasing India's net agri-exports
India has been the net exporter of agricultural commodities since 1991, however, there is scope for increasing its net export. This article suggests the strategy to achieve this.
Foreign exchange reserve: then and now in terms of grains
- In the mid-1960s the country had about $400 million.
- If India had spent all its foreign currency reserves just on wheat imports, it could have imported about seven million tonnes (mt) of wheat.
- Today, India has foreign exchange reserves of more than $500 billion.
- Even if the country has to buy 20 mt of wheat at a landed cost of $250/tonne, it will spend just $5 billion it is just one per cent of its foreign exchange reserves.
- In that sense, the biggest reform in the last three decades that has led to “aatma nirbharta” in food is the correction of the exchange rate.
- Another factor is coupling and the gradual integration of India with the world economy.
- This has helped India increase its foreign exchange reserves from $1.1 billion in 1991 to more than $500 billion today.
India: Net exporter of agricultural products
- India has been the net exporter of agricultural products ever since the economic reforms began in 1991.
- The golden year of agri-trade was 2013-14 when net agricultural trade surplus was $24.7 billion.
- In 2019-20, agri-exports were just $36 billion, and the net agri-trade surplus at $11.2 billion.
- With this dull performance doubling agri-exports by 2022 looks almost impossible.
Let’s look at what India exports
- Marine products with $6.7 billion exports top the list.
- The second is rice at $6.4 billion of which basmati is at $4.6 billion and common rice at $2.0 billion.
- Next is spices at $3.6 billion.
- Other items are buffalo meat at $3.2 billion, sugar at $2.0 billion, tea and coffee at $1.5 billion, fresh fruits and vegetables at $1.4 billion, and cotton at $1 billion.
Strategy to increase export
- If one chalks out a strategy we would need to keep in mind the principle of “comparative advantage”.
- That means exporting more where we have a competitive edge, and importing where we lack competitiveness.
- Together power and fertiliser subsidies account for about 10-15 per cent of the value of rice and sugar produced on a per hectare basis.
- So, we should offer similar incentives for exports of high-value agri-produce like fruits and vegetables, spices, tea and coffee, or even cotton, as we do for rice and sugar?
Decreasing the edible oil imports
- On the agri-imports front, the biggest item is edible oils — worth about $10 billion i.e. more than 15 MT.
- India needs to decrease imports through augmenting productivity and increasing the recovery ratio of oil from oilseeds and in case of palm oil, from fresh fruit bunches.
- The maximum potential of increasing production lies in oil palm.
- This is the only plant that can give about four tonnes of oil on a per hectare basis.
- India has about 2 million hectares that are suitable for oil palm cultivation — this can yield 8 mt of palm oil.
- But it needs a long term vision and strategy.
Issue of subsidy to rice and sugar
- Rice and sugar cultivation are subsidised through free power and highly subsidised fertilisers, especially urea.
- It is leading to the virtual export of water because of their high water requirements.
- One kg of rice requires 3,500-5,000 litres of water for irrigation, and one kg of sugar consumes about 2,000 litres of water.
- This leads to increased pressure on scarce water and highly inefficient use of fertilisers.
- It may be worth noting that almost 75 per cent of the nitrogen in urea is not absorbed by plants.
- It either evaporates into the environment or leaches into groundwater making it unfit for drinking.
Consider the question “While India has been the net exporter of agricultural products ever since the economic reforms of 1991, it is far from realising its potential to become the leading agri-produce exporter. In light of this, suggest the strategy that India should follow to increase India’s net agri-exports.”
Conclusion
The government must focus on augmenting export and decrease import dependence in agricultural products which will further its goal of aatmanirbharta and doubling the farmers’ income.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Opening railways for private players
Mains level: Paper 3- India railways: Challenges and opportunities
Indian Railways has launched the process of opening up train operations to private entities on 109 origin-destination (OD) pairs of routes using 151 modern trains.
Practice question for mains:
Q. Indian Railways has been the lifeline of India’s growth story since Independence. Discuss various opportunities and challenges ahead of its privatization.
Why such a move?
- From a passenger perspective, there is a need for more train services, particularly between big cities.
- The Railway Board says five crore intending passengers could not be accommodated during 2019-20 for want of capacity, and there was 13.3% travel demand in excess of supply during summer and festival seasons.
Moving the paralyzed system
- The Railway Board has moved ahead with a long-pending plan, setting a tentative schedule for private train operations, expected to begin in 2023 and in 12 clusters.
- At present, scheduled passenger train services remain paralyzed during the COVID-19 pandemic, and various railways have been running only specials such as those for workers.
What is the background of the decision?
- The present bid is only for a fraction of the total train operations — 5% of the 2,800 Mail and Express services operated by Indian Railways.
- The overall objective, however, is to introduce a new train travel experience for passengers who are used to travelling by aircraft and air-conditioned buses.
- Without an expansion, and with the growth of road travel, the share of the Railways would steadily decline in the coming years.
Bibek Debroy Committee Recommendations
- Several committees have gone into the expansion and the modernization of Indian Railways.
- In 2015, the expert panel chaired by Bibek Debroy constituted by the Ministry of Railways a year earlier, recommended that the way forward for the railways was “liberalisation and not privatization”.
- It asked for entry of new operators “to encourage growth and improve services.”
- It also made it clear that a regulatory mechanism was a prerequisite to promote healthy competition and protect the interests of all stakeholders.
Why is the move significant for Indian Railways?
- For the Railways, one of the largest organisations in the country, operating not just trains for passengers and freight, but also social institutions such as hospitals and schools represents a radical change.
- It was estimated that a one rupee push in the railway sector would have a forward linkage effect of increasing output in other sectors by ₹2.50.
- Train services operated by Indian Railways cover several classes of passengers, meeting the social service obligation to connect remote locations, and adopting the philosophy of cross-subsidy.
- In more recent years, it has focused on revenue generation through dynamic demand-based pricing.
Private players will be game-changers
- Private operators are not expected to shoulder the burden of universal service norms, and will focus on revenue.
- Even the first IRCTC-run trains have a higher cost of travel between Lucknow and Delhi than a Shatabdi train on the same route that almost matches it for speed.
- So private operators would have to raise the level of their offering even higher, to justify higher fares, and attract a segment of the population that is ready to pay for this difference.
- The government would have to explain that it has monetized its expensive fixed assets such as track, signalling and stations adequately for the taxpayer, who has paid for them.
Challenges ahead
- Several critical issues remain unaddressed. For one, there will be questions over the financial viability of some routes.
- Railways also tend to cross-subsidise passenger fares through freight revenue.
- This translates to below-cost pricing, which will make it difficult for private players to compete.
- On the other hand, higher fares needed to cover costs might bring them in direct competition with airlines, pricing them out of the market.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Scattering of light
Mains level: Paper 3- Raman spectroscopy
Mumbai-based researchers have turned to Raman Spectroscopy to detect RNA viruses present in saliva samples.
Try this question from CSP 2017
Q.Which Indian astrophysicist and Nobel laureate predicted rapidly rotating stars emit polarized light?
(a) Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar
(b) CV Raman
(c) Ramanujan
(d) Amartya Sen
The Raman Spectroscopy
- Raman spectroscopy is an analytical technique where scattered light is used to measure the vibrational energy modes of a sample.
- In 1928, Raman discovered that when a stream of light passes through a liquid, a fraction of the light scattered by the liquid is of a different colour.
- While Raman was returning from London in a 15-day voyage, he started thinking about the colour of the deep blue Mediterranean.
- He wasn’t convinced by the explanation that the colour of the sea was blue due to the reflection of the sky.
- As the ship docked in Bombay, he sent a letter to the editor of the journal Nature, in which he penned down his thoughts on this.
Subsequently, Raman was able to show that the blue colour of the water was due to the scattering of the sunlight by water molecules.
- By this time he was obsessed with the phenomenon of light scattering.
How does it work?
- The Raman Effect is when the change in the energy of the light is affected by the vibrations of the molecule or material under observation, leading to a change in its wavelength.
- Significantly, it notes that the Raman effect is “very weak” — this is because when the object in question is small (smaller than a few nanometres), the light will pass through it undisturbed.
- But a few times in a billion, light waves may interact with the particle. This could also explain why it was not discovered before.
- In general, when light interacts with an object, it can either be reflected, refracted or transmitted.
- One of the things that scientists look at when light is scattered is if the particle it interacts with is able to change its energy.
Applications
- Raman spectroscopy is used in many varied fields – in fact, any application where non-destructive, microscopic, chemical analysis and imaging is required.
- Whether the goal is qualitative or quantitative data, Raman analysis can provide key information easily and quickly.
- It can be used to rapidly characterize the chemical composition and structure of a sample, whether solid, liquid, gas, gel, slurry or powder.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Winter grade diesel
Mains level: Not much
India’s armed forces may soon be using winter diesel for operations in high altitude areas such as Ladakh, where winter temperatures plummet to extremely low as -30° Celsius.
This year BS-VI compliant fuel was in news. Try differentiating the Winter Diesel with the BS-VI fuel.
What is Winter Diesel?
- Winter diesel is a specialised fuel that was introduced by Indian Oil Corp. Ltd. last year specifically for high altitude regions and low-temperature regions such as Ladakh, where ordinary diesel can become unusable.
- The flow characteristics of regular diesel change at such low temperatures and using it may be detrimental to vehicles.
- Winter diesel which contains additives to maintain lower viscosity can be used in temperatures as low as -30°C and that besides a low pour point, it had higher cetane rating — an indicator is the combustion speed of diesel and compression needed for ignition.
- It has lower sulphur content, which would lead to lower deposits in engines and better performance.
Back2Basics: BS-VI fuel
- Sulphur content in fuel is a major cause for concern. Sulphur dioxide released by fuel burning is a major pollutant that affects health as well.
- BS-VI fuel’s sulphur content is much lower than BS-IV fuel.
It is reduced to 10 mg/kg max in BS-VI from 50 mg/kg under BS-IV.
This reduction makes it possible to equip vehicles with better catalytic converters that capture pollutants. However, BS-VI fuel is expected to be costlier that BS-IV fuel.
With inputs from:
[pib] Winter-grade diesel
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Art and culture
Mains level: Not much
During his day-long whirlwind visit, PM Narendra performed Sindhu Darshan Puja at Nimu, the forward brigade place in Ladakh.
Sindhu Darshan Puja.
⦁ Sindhu Darshan Festival is a festival of India held every year on full moon day (on Guru Purnima) in the month of June.
⦁ It is held at Leh, in Ladakh District of Ladakh. It stretches for three days.
⦁ It was first started in the October by veteran politician L.K. Advani, 1997 and continues to be held every year since then, attracting large number of foreign and domestic tourists.
⦁ The main reason behind the celebration of Sindhu Darshan Festival is to endorse the Indus River (Sindhu River) as an icon of the communal harmony and unity of India.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: SUP
Mains level: Paper 3- Plastic waste and its management
The threat posed by plastic waste to the environment is well established. The corona pandemic has led to an increase in plastic waste. This article suggests some ways to deal with the issue.
Rising plastic use during pandemic
- In 2018, a report by McKinsey estimated that, globally, we generate 350 million tonnes of plastic waste.
- Only 16 per cent of it is recycled.
- Today, due to pandemic the amount of plastic waste we are generating is much higher than that estimated in the McKinsey report.
- The Guardian recently reported that there are possibly more masks than jellyfish in the oceans today.
Management of plastic in India
- We have the Plastic Waste Management Rules of 2016, which were updated and amended in 2018.
- In fact, India saw incredible momentum in its fight for effective management of plastic waste in the last year.
- The Prime Minister made clarion calls for a jan andolan (people’s movement) to curb the use of single-use plastic(SUP).
- Jan andolan was also to ensure proper disposal of all plastic waste.
- Also, the entire country rallied together under the banner of the Swachhata Hi Seva campaign.
Why single-use plastic is different
- Plastic is not the problem, our handling of it is.
- We need plastic, but not SUP, which is difficult to dispose of effectively, and that is where the problem lies.
- It is important to understand this distinction.
- By understanding this distinction we may change our behaviour and our lifestyles, to balance our need for plastic with effectively managing its waste.
Way forward
- One way to approach the issue is to treat it not just as an environmental problem but as an economic opportunity.
- We require new business models which are designed for sustainability.
- In Uganda, they are melting plastic waste to make face shields which are being sold for just a dollar each.
- But, most of all, we need a tectonic shift in the behaviour of consumers.
- We need consumers to care about their role in the plastic waste value chain.
- Under phase 2 of the Swachh Bharat Mission (Grameen) village communities are now starting to plan for setting up waste collection and segregation systems, with material recovery facilities at the block- level.
- Change is possible when we take necessary steps to Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Recycle and, when all else fails, Remove, or dispose of plastic waste safely and effectively.
- Raising awareness amongst the public of the harm caused by plastic pollution through education and outreach programs to modify behavior.
- A movement against plastic waste would have to prioritise the reduction of single-use plastic such as multi-layer packaging, bread bags, food wrap, and protective packaging.
- Promote Alternatives, before the ban or levy comes into force, the availability of alternatives need to be assessed, hence the government may:
- Provide economic incentives to encourage the uptake of eco-friendly and fit-for-purpose alternatives that do not cause more harm.
- Support can include tax rebates, research and development funds, technology incubation, public-private partnerships and support to projects that recycle single-use items and turn waste into a resource that can be used again.
- Reduce or abolish taxes on the import of materials used to make alternatives.
- Provide incentives to the alternative industry by introducing tax rebates or other conditions to support its transition from plastic industry.
- Expanding the use of biodegradable plastics or even edible plastics made from various materials such as bagasse (the residue after extracting juice from sugarcane), corn starch, and grain flour.
- Use of microbeads in personal care products and cosmetics must be prohibited.
- Target the most problematic single-use plastics by conducting a baseline assessment to identify the most problematic single-use plastics, as well as the current causes, extent and impacts of their mismanagement.
- Consider the best actions to tackle the problem of plastic waste management (e.g. through regulatory, economic, awareness, voluntary actions) given the country’s socio-economic standing.
- Assess the potential social, economic and environmental impacts (positive and negative) of the preferred short-listed plastic waste management measures/actions, by considering how will the poor be affected, or what impact will the preferred course of action have on different sectors and industries.
- Identify and engage key stakeholder groups like retailers, consumers, industry representatives, local government, manufacturers, civil society, environmental groups, and tourism associations in order to ensure broad buy-in.
- Explaining the decision and any punitive measures that will follow, as a result of non compliance of plastic management rule.
- Use revenues collected from taxes or levies on single-use plastics to maximize the public good, thereby supporting environmental projects or boosting local recycling with the funds and creating jobs in the plastic recycling sector with seed funding.
- Enforce the plastic waste management measure effectively, by making sure that there is clear allocation of roles and responsibilities.
- Monitor and adjust the plastic waste management measure if necessary and update the public on progress.
Consider the question “What are the legal provisions for plastic waste management in India? Suggest the ways to deal with the issue of plastic waste effectively.”
Conclusion
The corona pandemic crisis should not blind us to the plastic crisis and we should try to bring about the behaviour change when it comes to the use of plastic and devise the economic model.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: FDI
Mains level: Paper 3- Differentiating between trade and investment
Differentiating between trade and investment is necessary for reaping the benefits that come with foreign investment in firms. However, the concerns over the source of funds are not unfounded. So, some caution is warranted in dealing with FDI.
Let’s look into the debate
- Government is asking its citizens to aim for self-reliance.
- So, should India continue to allow investment inflows from China? This is the debate.
- China has invested $4 billion in Indian startups in the past 5 years.
- This amount would be higher if funds located in tax havens with Chinese ownership are also accounted for.
Some of the questions raised in the debate
- Is trade of products like buttons, crockery same as long-term foreign investments in high-risk new age technology-driven products?
- Is it economically prudent for a country to fulfil all its capital requirements or compromise on innovation due to lack of thereof?
Trade vs FDI
- Trade just helps the country fulfil its requirements of those goods and services (G&S) that may not available in the country.
- Investments provide the capital to build infrastructure that can plug the G&S deficit, even, sell it to other markets.
- Trade just provides entry of G&S.
- FDI inflow is a route for transferring capabilities, technology, building linkages, business capabilities etc.
- FDI helps generate employment, public assets, tax revenues and develop markets, none of this is contributed by the trade of merchandise.
- Foreign investment does have an adverse impact on domestic markets in the short-run by crowding out domestic competition or investment.
- In fact, attracting FDI in employment-intensive sectors can create positive economic and social spillovers.
- Possibilities to increase exports often arise from companies with significant levels of FDI.
- Foreign investor exposes itself to regulatory, economic and geo-political risks of the country.
Foreign investment in Indian firms: Two aspects to consider
- While discussing the funding composition of the likes of Paytm, OYO hotel chain or Ola, two aspects need to be considered.
- 1) These companies are Indian companies operating under the law of land, creating economic opportunities for the youth and contributing to the welfare of the Indian community.
- 2) Success of these ventures is not solely due to the investment, but because of the novelty of the product offering.
- Investments in start-ups involve high risk; the list of failed start-ups with Chinese investment is bound to be much longer.
- In the absence of technology giants in India, we may also end up draining the brain to countries with a stronger financial ecosystem for fresh ideas.
Apprehension over FDI in India
- Apprehensions related to investments from any country per se, are not unwarranted in India.
- This is mainly because history suggests foreign investment can potentially lead to economic colonisation.
- However, times have changed and so has the world order.
- Steady inflow of investments can exist without impacting the economic or political stability of the country.
- To do so we should practice some of the following recommendations.
How to address the concern over FDI
- Investment funds can be set up outside the home country of the investor or be routed through companies located at tax havens.
- It is not always possible to map the investor to the country.
How to solve this problem
- To solve this identify sectors based on sensitivity, the investment required, technology, employment and social impact.
- Tighten regulations related to data storage and access by companies through data localisation in these sensitive sectors.
- Modify the offset policy in defence to ensure a certain portion of the profits is invested in the SMEs.
- To further India’s interests in nascent sectors such as machine learning, HealthTech, maximum period for an investor to be invested in a greenfield should be limited to 10 years.
- All firms receiving foreign investment should have a plan to contribute to India’s exports within the product lifecycle and minimum employment generation.
- Ease listing norms for firms so that funds through public and private placement can be raised by wholly Indian owned companies.
- BSE SME & Start-ups Platform has helped 322 companies raise Rs. 3,320.48 crores from the market. Start-ups should be encouraged to make use of the platform wherever possible.
- Domestic procurement of raw material and intermediate goods has to be non-negotiable as far as possible.
Consider the question “What are the challenges and opportunities associated with foreign investment and suggest the ways to address the challenges.”
Conclusion
From being treated as a ‘dumping bazaar’ to now attracting investors, India does not need to shy away from investments; it certainly needs to be wary of pure trade which limits India’s potential and drive to produce indigenously.
Back2Basics: Offset policy
- The offset policy, introduced in 2005, mandates foreign suppliers to spend at least 30% of the contract value in India.
- It was first revised in 2006 and then again in 2011 and in 2016. Another round of tweaking is currently underway.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: APIs
Mains level: Paper 3- Indian pharmaceutical industry
Abrupt ban on import from China would harm the India pharmaceutical industry and disrupt the supply of several essential medicines. Any attempt at reducing the dependence on China for APIs should be strategies, argues the author.
Dependence of Indian pharma industry on China
- India is the third-largest producer of finished drugs in the world.
- However, India relies significantly on China for supplies of active pharmaceutical ingredients APIs.
- An estimated 70 per cent of API requirements of India’s pharmaceutical industry are sourced from China.
- For some drugs, such as paracetamol and ibuprofen, this dependence is almost 100 per cent.
- This import reliance has been fuelled by environmental controls in India and competition with China, which has higher volumes of production and lower costs.
Implications of banning import from China
- Restricting or banning the import of APIs would cause significant disruption to the Indian pharmaceutical industry
- The pharmaceutical industry had $40 billion in revenues in 2018-19, according to Pharmexcil.
- Such a prospect is especially of concern to potential patients.
- Indian pharmaceutical industry annually exports $20 billion worth of medicine.
- An ad hoc or reactive decoupling could disrupt the production of a wide range of medicines in India and globally.
- Such disruption could affect the availability of Dexamethasone and painkillers, such as paracetamol and ibuprofen, as well as antibiotics, such as penicillin.
- The impacts would be especially high in low and middle-income countries.
- In many African countries, in fact, India supplies almost 50 per cent of the medicines in value terms.
Lessons from the past: Policy initiative matters
- Market share of foreign-owned multinationals in India was 80-90 per cent in 1970 in the pharmaceutical industry.
- It fell to 50 per cent by the early 1980s, and down to 23 per cent today.
- The prices of medicines in India fell from being amongst the highest in the world to amongst the lowest.
- But this did not happen through sudden decoupling from foreign multinationals or a complete boycott or ban on imports.
- The 1970 Indian Patent Act removed product patent protection in pharmaceuticals.
- So, the 1970 Patent Act is widely lauded for facilitating the growth of India’s industry.
- India also benefited from the 1973 Foreign Exchange Regulation Act (FERA) and the subsequent New Drug Policy (1978).
- Thus, a series of policy initiatives succeeded in tilting the balance in favour of Indian-owned firms.
But does it mean we have to depend on China forever?
- No, but reducing dependence on China will not be easy to achieve.
- In India, any decoupling from China must be strategic, with significant policy support.
- It will take time for a paced indigenisation.
Government moves to reduce dependence for API
- In March, the government announced Rs 3,000 crore to develop three bulk drug parks.
- The government also announced Rs 6,940 crore to manufacturers of 53 bulk drugs over the next eight years.
- Planning ahead towards greater domestic production of APIs, as well as reduced dependence on China, is an understandable and sensible policy objective.
- Despite a decline in recent decades, India has a stronger starting point than most countries given the continued presence of some API production capabilities.
- Indian firms have capacities, for instance, to produce COVID-19 treatments, including Remdesivir.
Consider the question “What are the APIs? Why India depends on other countries for it and what are implications of it? Suggest ways to reduce this dependence.”
Conclusion
In the short run, boycotts or bans would be counter-productive for the Indian industry, while also affecting access to much-needed medicines to India’s citizens and beyond. In the long run, however, reducing dependence on China would be strategically prudent.
Back2Basics: What are APIs?
- Active pharmaceutical ingredient (API), is the term used to refer to the biologically active component of a drug product (e.g. tablet, capsule).
- Drug products are usually composed of several components.
- The API is the primary ingredient.
- Other ingredients are commonly known as “excipients” and these substances are always required to be biologically safe, often making up a variable fraction of the drug product.
- The procedure for optimizing and compositing this mixture of components used in the drug is known as “formulation.”
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Ladakh and its topography
Mains level: India-China border skirmishes and their impacts on bilateral relations
With the long-standing border standoff with China, Ladakh, a rugged, high-altitude region that is generally far removed from the lives and imagination of most Indians, has become part of our daily conversations and worries.
Let’s have a look at a short primer on the region, its history, and some of the places where Indian soldiers are locked in conflict with the Chinese army. Try remembering its geographical features.
Ladakh through the History
- Lying between the Kunlun mountain range in the north and Himalayas to the south, Ladakh was originally inhabited by people of Indo-Aryan and Tibetan descent.
- Historically the region included the valleys of Baltistan, Indus, and Nubra, besides Zanskar, Lahaul and Spiti, Aksai Chin, Ngari and Rudok.
- Located at the crossroads of important trade routes since ancient times, Ladakh has always enjoyed great geostrategic importance.
- At the beginning of the first century AD, Ladakh was part of the Kushan Empire. Till the 15th century, it was part of Tibet and was ruled by dynasties of local Lamas.
- Later it changed hands multiple times, alternating between the kingdoms of Kashmir and Zhangzhung.
- In 1834, Gen Zorawar Singh, a general of Raja Gulab Singh who ruled Jammu as part of the Sikh empire, extended the boundaries of Maharaja Ranjit Singh’s kingdom to Ladakh.
Partition, Pakistan and Chinese occupations
Immediately after India’s Partition, tribal raiders (the disguised Pakistani Army) attacked Ladakh. They captured Kargil and were heading for Leh when they were confronted by the Indian Army, who got back Kargil.
- Although India has always considered Aksai Chin to be part of Jammu and Kashmir, in the 1950s the Chinese built a highway, called western highway or NH219, connecting Tibet with Xinjiang through this region.
- It was always more easily accessible to the Chinese than to the Indians, who were across the Karakoram.
- India learnt of this road in 1957, and it was one of the causes of the 1962 India-China war, after which China strengthened its control over this region.
- China today claims Aksai Chin to be part of Hotan County of its Xinjiang province.
- Pakistan ceded the Shaksgam Valley, which was part of the Baltistan region north of the Karakoram, to China following a Sino-Pakistani agreement signed on March 2, 1963.
Ladakh through the Chinese eyes
- China’s forays into the region began after the 1949 Communist Revolution, when Chairman Mao Zedong, a veteran of guerrilla warfare, began consolidating China’s periphery as part of his expansionist designs.
- The PLA occupied Tibet in 1951 and then began to eye Ladakh.
- The reason was that the road connecting Kashgar in Xinjiang to Lhasa in Tibet had to pass through Aksai Chin, which was held by Indians but was seldom patrolled by them.
Galwan Valley in the limelight
- The Tibetan revolt of 1959 and the Dalai Lama’s flight to India saw China further strengthening its military presence in Ladakh to ensure the security of NH 219.
- India reacted with its ‘forward policy’ as part of which it began setting up Army posts in the region to prevent Chinese expansion.
- This resulted in the initial clash between the Indian and Chinese forces in the Kongka Pass area in 1959.
- Later, Galwan Valley became the scene of action when the Indian Army established a post to cut off the Chinese post in the Samjunjling area, marking the beginning of the 1962 war.
Pangong Tso: The contested lake
- In the latest face-off, Indian troops first spied the Chinese on the banks of Pangong Tso.
- This lake, which is one-third in India and two-thirds in China, is of great tactical significance to the Chinese who have built infrastructure along both its sides to ensure the speedy build-up of troops.
- Chinese incursions in this region aim at shifting the LAC westward so that they are able to occupy important heights both on the north and the south of the lake, which will enable them to dominate the Chushul Bowl.
- The narrow Chushul valley, which lies on the road to Leh with Pangong Tso to its north, was an important target for the Chinese even during the 1962 war. It was here that the Battle of Chushul was fought.
Strategic SSN: To the far north
- The area spanning Galwan, Depsang plateau, and Daulat Beg Oldie (DBO), is called Sub-Sector North (SSN).
- This enclave that lies to the east of the Siachen glacier is of immense significance given its proximity to the Karakoram Pass, close to China’s western highway or NH 219 going to Aksai Chin.
- It’s the SSN that provides land access to Central Asia through the Karakoram Pass.
- Domination of this area is also crucial for the protection of the Siachen glacier, lying between the Saltoro ridge on the Pakistani side and the Saser ridge close to the Chinese claim line.
- The Galwan heights overlook the all-weather Durbuk-Shyok-Daulat Beg Oldie (DSDBO) Road, which connects Leh to DBO at the base of the Karakoram Pass that separates China’s Xinjiang Region from Ladakh.
- Domination over these heights allows China to easily interdict this road.
Why is China stubborn on Galwan?
- Occupation of Galwan will neutralize the tactical advantage India gained by building the all-weather Durbuk-DBO road over the last two decades.
- Last year, the Border Road Organisation (BRO) made this rugged terrain even more accessible by completing the 430-metre-long bridge across the Shyok River.
- With this, the Darbuk route to DBO became available round the year, and the travel time of troops to the SSN was halved.
- It was this bridge, coupled with the ongoing work on a link road to LAC in this area, prompted the PLA to enter Galwan.
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The Indian Railways has announced that it achieved 100 per cent punctuality of its passenger trains on July 1, a never-before feat.
Try this question:
Q.Discuss various issues crippling the punctuality of the Indian Railways.
A big achievement for Railways
- Usually, the Indian Railways run over 13,000 passenger trains and over 8,000 freight trains every day.
- It is important to remember the context – very few trains are running now, and the punctuality of the Railways can hardly be compared with its own performance on this count in pre-COVID times.
- The 100 per cent punctuality has been achieved when the network is running just 230 passenger trains – along with about 3,000 loaded freight trains and 2,200 empty ones.
- This is no mean achievement – it is indeed not an easy task given all the constraints that the Railways usually face while running a train on its designated path and time slot.
Why do trains get delayed in India?
- There are a number of reasons, which is also why the achievement of the Railways is significant.
- There are unforeseen situations such as a failure of assets like the signalling system and overhead power equipment.
- Several types of breakdowns can occur, related to rolling stock, tracks, etc., that make a train lose time along the way.
- Then there are external unforeseen problems like run-over cattle and humans, agitations on the tracks, and the like.
And what have the Railways been doing right?
- The maintenance of tracks was carried out in a quick time during the COVID period in various critical sections, so the average speed increased, and stretches of slowing down were minimized.
- Better and modern signalling is also making an impact.
- Another reason is better planning and operations analysis.
How do the delays impact the overall system?
- In normal times, these failures take away a lot of scheduled time when the train is detained even for a short time because making up the lost time during the remainder of the journey is a tricky business.
- It’s not as though a train can just run faster to make up for a lost time. In a network chock-a-block with trains, a train hardly ever has such leeway built into its pre-set path.
- Any train that gets delayed inordinately due to whatever reason during the journey theoretically eats into the “path” – or time slot allotted on the track – of another train.
- It then becomes a matter of which train to prioritise. Conventionally, Rajdhanis and premium trains get priority of path over ordinary mail/express trains.
- Freight trains, whose runs are not exactly time-sensitive, are usually held up to make way for passenger trains.
But why do the Railways have to juggle operations in this way?
- It’s a constantly dynamic scenario in which railway operations professionals take calls all the time.
- At the heart of the problem are network capacity constraints. It basically means that there are more trains than the network can handle in a given time bracket.
- Around 60 per cent of all train traffic is on the Golden Quadrilateral, even though it represents just about 15 per cent of the total network.
- There are projects to enhance capacity by building additional lines and modernizing signalling systems, etc.
Minimizing the delays
- The Railways are working on what is called a “zero-based timetable”.
- In this concept, which is to be introduced soon, every train that enters the network is justified based on needs and costs.
- It is expected to make train operations more seamless.
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