Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: World Air Quality Report
Mains level: Air pollution in Delhi
Delhi remained the most polluted capital city in the world but India, on the whole, had improved its average annual PM 2.5 (particulate matter) levels higher in 2020 than in 2019, according to a report from World Air Quality Report Air.
Try this question from CS Mains 2015:
Q.Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata are the three megacities of the country but air pollution is a much more serious problem in Delhi as compared to the other two. Why is this so?
World Air Quality Report
- It is released by a Swiss air quality technology company IQAir.
- IQAir is an air quality technology company that since 1963 seeks to empower individuals, organizations and communities to breathe cleaner air through information, collaboration and technology solutions.
- The 2020 Report is based on PM2.5 data from 106 countries that have been measured by ground-based monitoring stations.
Highlights of the report
- Of the 14 most polluted cities, 13 were in India.
- When ranked by cities, Hotan in China was the most polluted, with an average concentration of 110.2 µg/m³, followed by Ghaziabad in Uttar Pradesh at 106.
- Delhi’s concentration level, based primarily on data from the Central Pollution Control Board, was 84.1 µg/m³ in 2020, a 15% improvement from the 98.6 µg/m³ recorded in 2019 — a consequence of the lockdown.
- Bangladesh and Pakistan were the countries in 2020 with worse average PM 2.5 levels than India, says the report.
- China ranked 11th in the latest report, a deterioration from the 14th in the previous edition of the report. In the 2020 report, 106 countries were evaluated.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: ACT-Accelerator
Mains level: Coronovirus outbreak
ACT-Accelerator, a global coalition formed in April 2020 to fight the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is facing a severe fund crunch to meet its goals for 2020-21.
ACT-Accelerator
- The Access to COVID-19 Tools Accelerator (ACT Accelerator) is a G20 initiative announced on 24 April 2020.
- A call to action was published simultaneously by the World Health Organization (WHO).
- The ACT Accelerator is a cross-discipline support structure to enable partners to share resources and knowledge.
- It comprises four pillars, each managed by two to three collaborating partners:
- Vaccines (also called “COVAX”)
- Diagnostics
- Therapeutics
- Health Systems Connector
- India is an active donor in this alliance.
Try this PYQ based on a global coalition:
Q.Consider the following statements:
- Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC) to Reduce Short Lived Climate Pollutants is a unique initiative of G20 group of countries.
- The CCAC focuses on methane, black carbon and Hydrofluorocarbons.
Which of the above statements is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither 1 nor 2
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Map marking of these countries
Mains level: Issues in Africa
In a move that is set to further undermine stability in East Africa, Kenya has said that it will not take part in proceedings of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) over its maritime border dispute with neighbouring Somalia.
Can you recall the terms like “Scramble for Africa”, “Paper Partition of Africa”? If yes, then you know very well the malady of the present-day Continent of Africa.
What is the news?
- Nairobi has accused the top UN body of bias.
- The move comes after Somalia’s decision to sever diplomatic relations with Kenya in December after it accused Nairobi of meddling in its internal affairs.
- The maritime dispute is said to form a crucial part of the diplomatic quarrel between the two countries.
The disputed area
- The main point of disagreement between the two neighbours is the direction in which their maritime boundary in the Indian Ocean should extend.
- According to Somalia, the sea border should be an extension of the same direction in which their land border runs as it approaches the Indian Ocean, i.e. towards the southeast.
- Kenya, on the other hand, argues that the territorial southeast border should take a 45-degree turn as it reaches the sea, and then run in a latitudinal direction, i.e. parallel to the equator.
- Such an arrangement would be advantageous for Kenya, whose coastline of 536 km is more than 6 times smaller than Somalia’s (3,333 km).
Why is this area important?
- The triangular area thus created by the dispute is around 1.6 lakh sq km large and boasts of rich marine reserves.
- It is also believed to have oil and gas deposits.
- Both Somalia and Kenya have accused each other of auctioning off blocks from this area, Al Jazeera reported.
How have Kenya and Somalia tried to resolve the dispute?
- After negotiations to resolve the issue bilaterally failed, Somalia in 2014 asked the ICJ to adjudicate.
- Kenya resisted, arguing that the world court did not have jurisdiction to hear the case.
- In 2009 both countries had a commitment to settle the dispute out of court.
- However, in February 2017, the ICJ ruled that it did have the right to rule in the case, and in June 2019 said that it would begin public hearings.
- These hearings never took place, as Kenya successfully applied to have them postponed thrice– the last one being in June 2020, when it cited difficulties due to the Covid-19.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: PCA
Mains level: Cairn Issue
In December 2020, a three-member tribunal at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Netherlands ruled against India in its long-running tax dispute with the U.K.-based oil and gas company Cairn Energy.
PCA Ruling against India
- The tribunal ordered India to pay about $1.4 billion to the company.
- Following this, Cairn Energy has successfully moved courts in five countries, including the US and the UK to recognise its claim as per the arbitration award.
- The Netherlands, France, and Canada are the other three countries.
- Such recognition by courts opens the door for Cairn Energy to seize assets of the Indian government in these jurisdictions by way of enforcing its claim, in case the latter doesn’t pay its dues.
What is the dispute about?
- The dispute started in early 2014 when Indian tax authorities started questioning Cairn Energy requesting information on the group’s reorganization in the financial year 2006-07.
Issue over the tax due
- This escalated, and by 2015, the authorities had sent the company a draft assessment order, assessing in the process that there was a principal tax amount of $1.6 billion that was due.
- The year in reference, 2006-07, was one in which big corporate changes and developments took place in Cairn Energy.
Basis of the tax demand: Sale of Shares
- It was the year in which it not only undertook a corporate reorganization but also floated an Indian subsidiary, Cairn India, which in early 2007 got listed on the Indian Stock Market.
- Through the corporate reorganization process, Cairn Energy had transferred all of its India assets, which were until then held by nine subsidiaries in various countries, to the newly-formed Cairn India.
- But the tax authorities claimed that in the process of this reorganization, Cairn Energy had made capital gains worth ₹24,500 crores.
- This, the department asserted, was the basis of the tax demand.
Is this case similar to Vodafone’s battle with the government?
- The Vodafone case in 2007 was triggered by Hong Kong’s Hutchinson Telecommunications’ sale of its stake in India’s Hutchinson Essar to Vodafone based out of the Netherlands.
- The Hong Kong firm made a capital gain on this, which the Indian tax authorities deemed fit to tax.
- They held that Vodafone should have withheld the tax, and therefore imposed liability on it.
- The Supreme Court quashed the taxman’s demand that the sale of shares, in this case, would amount to transfer of a capital asset within the meaning of Section 2(14) of the Indian Income Tax Act”.
What governs the Sale of Shares?
- In the Union Budget of 2012, the Income Tax Act, 1961 was amended to make sure that even if a transfer of shares takes place outside India, such a transfer can be taxed.
- This was done when the value of those shares is based on assets in India. And this was applied retrospectively.
Cairn won over Retrospection
- The action against Cairn Energy was based on this move.
- India lost its arbitration case against Vodafone as well, with the government being asked to fork out around ₹80 crores.
What happened after the tax claims in the Cairn Energy dispute?
- After receiving a draft assessment order from the tax authorities, Cairn UK Holdings Ltd. appealed before the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal.
- The tribunal, while providing the company relief from back-dated interest demands, however, upheld the main tax demand.
- The company had initiated proceedings of arbitration under the U.K.-India bilateral investment treaty.
- But during this time, the government sold Cairn’s almost 5% holding and seized dividends totalling ₹1,140 crore due to it from those shareholdings and set off a ₹1,590-crore tax refund against the demand.
What was the main argument of Cairn Energy during the arbitration?
- The claimants, Cairn Energy and Cairn UK Holdings argued that till the amendment was made to tax retrospectively in 2012, there was no tax on indirect transfers.
- Indirect transfers here meant transfer by a non-resident of shares in non-Indian companies which indirectly held assets in India.
- The application of the 2012 amendments, they alleged, constituted “manifest breaches” of the U.K.-India bilateral investment treaty.
What was India’s defence during the arbitration?
- India’s counter to the main charge of Cairn Energy was that its 2006 transactions were taxable irrespective of the 2012 amendments.
- It argued that “Indian law has long permitted taxation where a transaction has a strong economic nexus with India”.
- It said even if it is retrospective, it is “valid and binding applying the longstanding constitutional, legislative and legal framework in which the claimants have invested”.
What did the arbitration tribunal rule?
- The tribunal said the tax demand violated the U.K.-India bilateral investment treaty.
- The tribunal said India “failed to accord Cairn Energy’s investments fair and equitable treatment” under the bilateral protection pact it had with the United Kingdom.
- It also ordered India to compensate Cairn Energy and its subsidiary for “the total harm suffered” as a result of the breaches of the treaty.
India’s way ahead
- It has been reported in the media that India will appeal against the tribunal’s decision.
- If enforcement proceedings are initiated, India is confident of addressing them and will strongly defend its interests.
Back2Basics: Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA)
- It is an intergovernmental organization located in The Hague, Netherlands.
- It is not a court in the traditional sense but provides services of arbitral tribunal to resolve disputes that arise out of international agreements between member states, international organizations or private parties.
- The cases span a range of legal issues involving territorial and maritime boundaries, sovereignty, human rights, international investment, and international and regional trade.
- The PCA is constituted through two separate multilateral conventions with a combined membership of 122 states.
- The organization is not a United Nations agency, but the PCA is an official United Nations Observer.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: OPEC+
Mains level: India's oil import
India, the world’s third-biggest oil importer, has said that the decision by major producers to continue with output cuts as prices move higher could threaten the consumption led-recovery in some countries.
Try this PYQ:
Q.The term ‘West Texas Intermediate’, sometimes found in news, refers to a grade of
(a) Crude oil
(b) Bullion
(c) Rare earth elements
(d) Uranium
What is the news?
- The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies, a group known as OPEC+, agreed not to increase supply in April as they await a more substantial recovery in demand amid the COVID-19.
- Crude prices rose after the announcement and are up 33% this year (meanwhile India flaring up prices to 100 Rs/litres for Petrol).
What is OPEC+?
- The non-OPEC countries which export crude oil along with the 14 OPECs are termed as OPEC plus countries.
- OPEC plus countries include Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Brunei, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Mexico, Oman, Russia, South Sudan, and Sudan.
- Saudi and Russia, both have been at the heart of a three-year alliance of oil producers known as OPEC Plus — which now includes 11 OPEC members and 10 non-OPEC nations — that aims to shore up oil prices with production cuts.
Concerns for India
- Rising oil prices are posing fiscal challenges for India, where heavily-taxed retail fuel prices have touched record highs, threatening the demand-driven recovery.
- India imports about 84% of its oil and relies on West Asian supplies to meet over three-fifths of its demand.
- As one of the largest crude-consuming countries, India is concerned that such actions by producing countries have the potential to undermine consumption-led recovery.
- This would hurt consumers, especially in our price-sensitive market.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Freedom of speech
Mains level: Free speech related issues
The Freedom House report titled “Democracy under Siege” in which it has been claimed that India’s status as a free country has declined to “partly free”, is misleading, incorrect, and misplaced.
The US who claims to be the champion of Human Rights has turned another sermon to India through its Freedom House Report. This report presents an inherently flawed and biased analysis of Indian democracy.
Rebuttal to specific points
(1) Discriminatory policies against Minorities
- The GoI treats all its citizens with equality as enshrined under the Constitution of the country and all laws are applied without discrimination.
- Due process of law is followed in matters relating to law and order, irrespective of the identity of the alleged instigator.
- With specific reference to the North East Delhi riots in February 2020, the law enforcement machinery acted swiftly in an impartial and fair manner.
- Proportionate and appropriate actions were taken to control the situation.
- Necessary legal and preventive actions were taken by the law enforcement machinery on all complaints/calls received, as per law and procedures.
(2) Use of Sedition Law
- “Public Order’ and ‘Police’ are State subjects under India’s federal structure of governance.
- The responsibility of maintaining law and order, including investigation, registration, and prosecution of crimes, protection of life and property, etc., rests primarily with the concerned State governments.
- Therefore, measures as deemed fit are taken by law enforcement authorities to preserve public order.
(3) Government response to COVID-19 through Lockdown
- Between March 16 to 23, most State governments/UT resorted to partial or full Lockdown in their respective State/ UT based on their assessment of the COVID-19 situation.
- Any mass movement of people would have spread the disease rapidly throughout the country.
- The government was fully conscious that during the period of an inevitable Lockdown, people should not face undue distress.
- India has, on a per capita basis, registered one of the lowest rates of active COVID-19 cases and COVID-19 related deaths globally.
(4) Government response on human rights organizations
- The Indian Constitution provides for adequate safeguards under various statutes, including the Protection of Human Rights Act 1993 for ensuring the protection of human rights.
- This Act provides for the constitution of an NHRC and SHRC in the States for better protection of human rights and for matters connected to this subject.
(5) Intimidation of academics and journalists and crackdown on expressions of dissent by media
- The Indian Constitution provides for freedom of expression under Article 19. Discussion, debate, and dissent are a part of Indian democracy.
- The GoI attaches the highest importance to the safety and security of all residents of the country, including journalists.
- It has issued a special advisory to States and UTs on the safety of journalists requesting them to strictly enforce the law to ensure the safety and security of media persons.
(6) Internet shutdowns
- Temporary suspension of the telecom services, including the internet, is governed under the provisions of the Temporary Suspension of Telecom Services (Public Emergency or Public Safety) Rules, 2017.
- Hence, the temporary suspension of telecom/internet services is resorted to with the over-arching objective of maintaining law and order under strict safeguards.
(7) FCRA amendment leading to freezing of Amnesty International’s assets has led to declining in ranking
- Amnesty International had received permission under the FCRA Act only once and that too 20 years ago.
- Since then Amnesty International, despite its repeated applications, has been denied FCRA approval by successive governments since as per law it is not eligible to get such approval.
- However, in order to circumvent the FCRA regulations, Amnesty U.K. remitted large amounts of money to four entities registered in India, by misclassifying the remittance as FDI.
- A significant amount of foreign money was also remitted to Amnesty India without MHA’s approval under FCRA.
- This malafide rerouting of money was in contravention of extant legal provisions.
- Owing to these illegal practices of Amnesty, the previous government had also rejected the repeated applications of Amnesty to receive funds from overseas.
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The Food Waste Index Report 2021 was recently released by the UNEP.
Even though the world produces enough food to feed twice the world’s present population, food wastage is ironically behind the billions of people who are starving.
Food Waste Index
- The Food Waste Index is released by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and partner organisation WRAP.
- It measures tons of wasted food per capita, considering a mixed stream of products from processing through to consumption.
- It was prepared by using data from 54 countries and then extrapolated to the remaining countries.
- Contrary to belief, the study by the UNEP revealed that food waste was a global problem and not that of just the developed world.
Highlights of the 2021 report
- The report has revealed that 17 per cent of all food available at consumer levels was wasted in 2019.
- That year, some 690 million people had to go hungry.
- The food waste amounted to a whopping 931 million tonnes of food sold to households, retailers and restaurants.
- Waste at household, foodservice and retail amounted to 79, 26 and 13 kilogram /capita / year respectively.
- The data, though scarce, revealed that food waste was substantial, regardless of income level.
Data on India
- The report notes that food waste at the consumer level happens in almost every country, regardless of income level.
- In South Asia, while 50 kilograms of food is wasted per person each year at the household level in India.
- Others include- 65 kilograms of this happening in Bangladesh, 74 kilograms in Pakistan, 76 kilograms in Sri Lanka, 79 kilograms in Nepal and 82 kilograms in Afghanistan.
Why it is important to prevent food wastage?
- Food waste also has a substantial environmental, social and economic impact.
- Food loss and waste cause about $940 billion per year in economic losses. Reductions can save money for farmers, companies, and households.
- For example, 8-10 per cent of global greenhouse gas emissions are associated with food that is not consumed.
- Reducing food waste would cut greenhouse gas emissions, slow the destruction of nature through land conversion and pollution, enhance the availability of food and thus reduce hunger and save money.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Freedom of speech
Mains level: Free speech related issues
US-based human rights watchdog Freedom House has accused the present government of driving India toward authoritarianism with a lockdown scapegoating of minorities and a crackdown on critics, and downgraded India’s status from ‘Free’ to ‘Partly Free’, in its annual report.
Freedom in the World Report
- It is Freedom House’s flagship annual report, assessing the condition of political rights and civil liberties around the world.
- It is composed of numerical ratings and supporting descriptive texts for 195 countries and 15 territories.
- The report has been published since 1973, allowing Freedom House to track global trends in freedom over more than 40 years.
- Freedom House, which is largely funded through U.S. government grants, has been tracking the course of democracy since 1941.
What did the report say?
Political and civil rights
- India’s freedom score, calculated using indicators of political rights and civil liberties, dropped four points to 67 this year, pulling the country down into the ‘Partly Free’ category.
- India appears to have abandoned its potential to serve as a global democratic leader, elevating narrow nationalist interests at the expense of its founding values of inclusion and equal rights for all.
Reference to Kashmir
- In a year when social media censorship has been hotly seated, while the government shut down Internet connectivity in Kashmir as well as on Delhi’s borders, India’s Internet freedom score dropped to just 51.
Crackdown on protesters
- Last year, the government intensified its crackdown on protesters opposed to a discriminatory citizenship law and arrested dozens of journalists who aired criticism of the official pandemic response.
Judicial Independence
- It noted that judicial independence had also come under strain.
- It pointed to the case of a Delhi HC judge who was transferred immediately after reprimanding the police for taking no action during riots in the capital that leftover 50 people dead.
Religious freedom
- Minorities were disproportionately blamed for the spread of the virus and faced attacks by vigilante mobs.
- Uttar Pradesh’s law prohibiting forced religious conversion through interfaith marriage was also listed as a concern.
Rising Authoritarianism
- Rather than serving as a champion of democratic practice and a counterweight to authoritarian influence from countries such as China, the government is tragically driving India itself toward authoritarianism, the report stated.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: LinkedIn Opportunity Index 2021
Mains level: Gender bias in India
The Opportunity Index 2021 highlights the difference in perception of available opportunities in the market for men and women in India.
LinkedIn Opportunity Index 2021
- The report seeks to understand how people perceive opportunities and the barriers that stand in the way of achieving them.
- This year’s report dives deep to understand how women perceive opportunities, and how the gender gap is further slowing down career progress for working women in India amid the pandemic.
LinkedIn is an American business and employment-oriented online service that operates via websites and mobile apps. Launched on May 5, 2003, the platform is mainly used for professional networking and allows job seekers to post their CVs and employers to post jobs
Highlights of the report
India’s working women still face the strongest gender bias across Asia Pacific countries.
- Covid impact: Nine in 10 (89%) women state they were negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
- General Bias: 1 in 5 (22%) working women in India said their company’s exhibit a ‘favourable bias’ towards men at work when compared to the regional average of 16%.
- Work opportunity: While 37% of India’s working women say they get fewer opportunities than men, only 25% of men agree with this.
- Pay: This disparity in perception is also seen in conversations about equal pay, as more women (37%) say they get less pay than men, while only 21% of men share this sentiment.
- Promotion: In India, more than 4 in 5 working women (85%) claim to have missed out on a raise, promotion, or work offer because of their gender, compared to the regional average of 60%.
- Family burden: Lack of time and family care stop 7 in 10 Indian women from progressing in their careers.
- Maternity: Consumer sentiment from the report shows that more than 7 in 10 working women (71%) and working mothers (77%) feel that managing familial responsibilities often come in their way of career development.
Scope for equality
- The report shows that even though 66% of people in India feel that gender equality has improved compared to their parents’ age.
- In India, the top three job opportunities sought by both men and women are job security, a job that they love, and a good work-life balance.
- But despite having similar goals, more women (63%) think a person’s gender is important to get ahead in life when compared to men (54%).
Barriers faced by Indian women
- Lack of required professional skills and a lack of guidance through networks and connections are also some of the other barriers that get in the way of career development for working women in India.
What next?
- Organisations should step up to provide robust maternity policies and flexibility programs.
- Reduced and flexible schedules, more sabbaticals, and new opportunities to upskill and learn are critical offerings that can help organizations attract, hire, and retain more female talent.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: IAEA
Mains level: Irritants in the deal and threats posed by Iran's nuclear programme
The move by the US administration under Biden to revive the Iran nuclear deal has once again turned the spotlight on the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which played a key role in enforcing the original nuclear deal from which Trump withdrew the US in 2018.
Try this question from CSP 2020:
Q.In India, why are some nuclear reactors kept under “IAEA Safeguards” while others are not?
(a) Some use Uranium and others use thorium.
(b) Some use imported uranium and others use domestic supplies.
(c) Some are operated by foreign enterprises and others are operated by domestic enterprises.
(d) Some are State- owned and others are privately-owned.
What is IAEA?
- The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is an international organization that seeks to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy and to inhibit its use for any military purpose, including nuclear weapons.
- As the preeminent nuclear watchdog under the UN, the IAEA is entrusted with the task of upholding the principles of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty of 1970.
- It was established as an autonomous organisation on July 29, 1957, at the height of the Cold War between the U.S. and the Soviet Union.
- Though established independently of the UN through its own international treaty, the agency reports to both the UN General Assembly and the UNSC.
What are its safeguards?
- Safeguards are activities by which the IAEA can verify that a State is living up to its international commitments not to use nuclear programmes for nuclear-weapons purposes.
- Safeguards are based on assessments of the correctness and completeness of a State’s declared nuclear material and nuclear-related activities.
- Verification measures include on-site inspections, visits, and ongoing monitoring and evaluation.
Basically, two sets of measures are carried out in accordance with the type of safeguards agreements in force with a State.
- One set relates to verifying State reports of declared nuclear material and activities.
- Another set enables the IAEA not only to verify the non-diversion of declared nuclear material but also to provide assurances as to the absence of undeclared nuclear material and activities in a State.
Why in news again?
- The IAEA and Iranian diplomats struck a “temporary” deal to continue inspection of Iran’s nuclear plants for three more months, which keeps at least the diplomatic path to revive the deal open.
- However, there have always been questions about the Agency’s ability to work independently, without being drawn into big power rivalries.
IAEA success: Civil nuclear solution
- The IAEA is active in championing civil nuclear solution to a number of areas like health, which is one of the main areas of peaceful application of nuclear know-how.
- That apart, in recent years, the IAEA is also active in dealing with climate change, pandemic containment and in the prevention of Zoonotic diseases.
- The IAEA was the first to announce that the North Korean nuclear programme was not peaceful.
- North Korea finally expelled IAEA observers and as a result, there are no on-the-ground international inspectors in North Korea.
- The world is reliant on ground sensors and satellite imageries to observe North Korea’s nuclear actions.
Issues with IAEA
- What the IAEA missed in terms of real authority over sovereign states, it compensated for that by cultivating some tall leadership whose actions kept the issue of non-proliferation on the multilateral table.
- It proved to be ineffective to prevent power politics from influencing nuclear negotiations.
- This was particularly visible when Pakistan pursued a nuclear weapons programme in the 1980s and despite overwhelming evidence in possession of the American authorities.
- They did not pursue the case effectively through the IAEA because of the cooperation between the U.S. and Pakistan on the Afghan front.
- IAEA does not have any power to override the sovereign rights of any member nation of the UN.
- The uneven authority produced results when in the case of Iran when the Agency’s efforts were backed by big powers.
- One major criticism of the IAEA is that it never challenges the nuclear dominance of the five permanent members of the UNSC, who themselves hold some of the biggest nuclear arsenals of the world.
IAEA and India
- The IAEA-certified the nuclear power plant at Rawatbhata in Rajasthan in 2012, which drew criticism as the power plant had two incidents of leakage of nuclear material earlier that year.
- The second incident affected at least four workers who worked in the nuclear power plant and had caused concern among the scientific community.
Iran challenge
- The coming weeks will, however, test the 63-year old organisation as Iran remains suspicious of the exact intentions of the Biden administration.
- The current episode, which involves regional political concerns like Saudi-Iran and Iran-Israel rivalries as well as the American interests in the region, will certainly test the IAEA.
- It will also test the ability of the IAEA to deal with powerful states from its position of “uneven authority”.
- The main negotiation on this front is dependent on Tehran’s demand for lifting American sanctions. Iran has said its compliance will depend on the lifting of sanctions.
Future prospects
- The issues involved between Iran and the U.S. indicate that they are not part of the mandate of the IAEA.
- Iran also requires assurance that once activated, the deal will not be abandoned in future by an American President in the way that Trump had done in 2018.
- Tying all the loose ends of this difficult negotiation will be the biggest challenge for all parties.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: TRIPS Agreement
Mains level: TRIPS regulations
India and South Africa have jointly moved a proposal at the WTO’s Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) council for a waiver to help more countries get access to medicines and vaccines during the pandemic.
Q.WTO and multilateralism is dying in the face of a greater reliance on plurilateral and bilateral trade pacts. Discuss. (250W)
What is the TRIPS Agreement?
- The TRIPS is an international legal agreement between all the member nations of the World Trade Organization (WTO).
- It establishes minimum standards for the regulation by national governments of different forms of intellectual property (IP) as applied to nationals of other WTO member nations.
- Its agreement was negotiated at the end of the Uruguay Round of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) between 1989 and 1990 and is administered by the WTO.
- The TRIPS agreement introduced intellectual property law into the multilateral trading system for the first time and remains the most comprehensive multilateral agreement on intellectual property to date.
Why did India move such a proposal?
- TRIPS waiver would deal with the question of equity along with global growth and livelihoods.
- It is not only that we are coming in the way of life but it is very simple economics, asserted India’s ambassador.
- For a commercial business of $30-40 billion of annual vaccine output of a few companies, we are coming in the way of $6-7 trillion of global GDP output in one year.
Premise behind it
- In 2001, developing countries, concerned that developed countries were insisting on an overly narrow reading of TRIPS, initiated a round of talks that resulted in the Doha Declaration.
- The Doha declaration is a WTO statement that clarifies the scope of TRIPS, stating for example that TRIPS can and should be interpreted in light of the goal “to promote access to medicines for all.”
Global response for the move
- Fifty-seven WTO members have backed the proposal brought out by India.
- But the EU, U.S., Japan and Canada have opposed the idea stressing the importance of intellectual property for innovation.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: ICOLD
Mains level: NA
The International Commission on Large Dams (ICOLD) Symposium was inaugurated by the Minister for Jal Shakti.
What is the news?
- ICOLD in collaboration with Central Water Commission (CWC) has organised a Symposium on “Sustainable Development of Dams and River Basins”.
- The symposium is being organised to provide an excellent opportunity to Indian Dam Engineering Professionals and Agencies to share their experiences, ideas and latest developments.
Try this PYQ:
Q.Which one of the following pairs is not correctly matched?
Dam: Lake River
(a) Govind Sagar: Satluj
(b) Kolleru Lake: Krishna
(c) Ukai Reservoir: Tapi
(d) Wular Lake: Jhelum
About ICOLD
- The ICOLD is an international non-governmental organization dedicated to the sharing of professional information and knowledge of the design, construction, maintenance, and impact of large dams.
- It was founded in 1928 and has its central office in Paris, France.
- It consists of 100 member national committees which have a total membership of about 10,000 individuals.
- The official languages of the commission are English and French.
Key initiatives: World Register of Dams
For the purpose of inclusion in the World Register of Dams, a large dam is defined as any dam above 15 metres in height OR any dam between 10 and 15 metres in height that meets at least one of the following conditions:
- the crest length is not less than 500 metres
- the capacity of the reservoir formed by the dam is not less than one million cubic metres
- the maximum flood discharge dealt with by the dam is not less than 2 000 cubic metres per second
- the dam had especially difficult foundation problems
- the dam is of unusual design
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: India Energy Outlook Report, 2021
Mains level: India energy sector
The International Energy Agency (IEA) has recently released the India Energy Outlook 2021 report.
Try this MCQ:
Q.The Global Energy Transition Index recently seen in news is released by:
a) International Energy Agency (IEA)
b) World Economic Forum (WEF)
c) International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA)
d) International Solar Alliance
Highlights of the India Energy Outlook Report
(1) Energy consumption
- India at present is the fourth-largest global energy consumer behind China, the United States and the European Union.
- It will overtake the European Union as the world’s third-largest energy consumer by 2030.
- It will account for the biggest share of energy demand growth over the next two decades.
(2) Energy demand
- India accounts for nearly one-quarter of global energy demand growth from 2019-40 — the largest for any country.
- Its share in the growth in renewable energy is the second-largest in the world, after China.
- A five-fold increase in per capita car ownership will result in India leading the oil demand growth in the world.
- Also, it will become the fastest-growing market for natural gas, with demand more than tripling by 2040.
(3) Industrial consumption
- By 2040, India is set to account for almost 20 per cent of global growth in industrial value-added, and to lead global growth in industrial final energy consumption, especially in steelmaking.
- The nation accounts for nearly one-third of global industrial energy demand growth to 2040.
(4) Dependence on fossil fuels
- To meet its energy needs, India will be more reliant on fossil fuel imports as its domestic oil and gas production stagnates.
- India’s oil demand is seen rising by rising by 74 per cent to 8.7 million barrels per day by 2040 under the existing policies scenario.
- The natural gas requirement is projected to more than triple to 201 billion cubic meters and coal demand is seen rising to 772 million tonnes in 2040 from the current 590.
(5) Coal trade
- India currently accounts for 16 per cent of the global coal trade.
- Many global coal suppliers were counting on growth in India to underpin planned export-oriented mining investments.
(6) Per-capita emission
- On a per-capita basis, India’s energy use and emissions are less than half the world average, as are other key indicators such as vehicle ownership, steel and cement output.
- India will soon become the world’s most populous country, adding the equivalent of a city the size of Los Angeles to its urban population each year.
About International Energy Agency
- The IEA is a Paris-based autonomous intergovernmental organization established in the framework of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in 1974 in the wake of the 1973 oil crisis.
- It was initially dedicated to responding to physical disruptions in the supply of oil, as well as serving as an information source on statistics about the international oil market and other energy sectors.
- At the end of July 2009, IEA member countries held a combined stockpile of almost 4.3 billion barrels of oil.
- They are required to maintain total oil stock levels equivalent to at least 90 days of the previous year’s net imports.
- The IEA acts as a policy adviser to its member states but also works with non-member countries, especially China, India, and Russia.
- The Agency’s mandate has broadened to focus on the “3Es” of effectual energy policy: energy security, economic development, and environmental protection.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Willingness to pay mechanism
Mains level: Air pollution in Delhi
Air pollution claimed approximately 54,000 lives in Delhi in 2020, according to a Greenpeace Southeast Asia analysis of the cost to the economy due to air pollution.
Try this question from CS Mains 2015:
Q.Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata are the three megacities of the country but the air pollution is a much more serious problem in Delhi as compared to the other two. Why is this so?
Deaths due to Air Pollution
- Globally, approximately 1,60,000 deaths have been attributed to PM 2.5 air pollution in the five most populous cities — Delhi, Mexico City, Sao Paulo, Shanghai and Tokyo.
- Six Indian cities — Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad and Lucknow — feature in the global analysis.
- An estimated 25,000 avoidable deaths in Mumbai in 2020 have been attributed to air pollution.
- Bengaluru, Chennai and Hyderabad estimated an approximate 12,000, 11,000, and 11,000 avoidable deaths respectively due to polluted air.
The ‘Cost Estimator’
- The ‘Cost Estimator’, an online tool that estimates the real-time health impact and economic cost from fine particulate matter (PM 2.5) air pollution in major world cities.
- It was deployed in collaboration between Greenpeace Southeast Asia, IQAir and the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA).
- Using real-time ground-level PM 2.5 measurements collated in IQAir’s database, the algorithm applies scientific risk models in combination with population and public health data.
Computing the “Lost Years”
- To show the impact of air pollution-related deaths on the economy, the approach used by Greenpeace is called ‘willingness-to-pay.
- It refers to a lost life year or a year lived with a disability is converted to money by the amount that people are willing to pay in order to avoid this negative outcome.
- The cost estimator also sustained the estimated air pollution-related economic losses of ₹1,23,65,15,40,000.
Greenpeace recommends-
- Despite a temporary reprieve in air quality owing to the lockdown, the latest figures from the report underscore the need to act immediately.
- The need of the hour is to rapidly scale up renewable energy, bring an end to fossil fuel emissions and boost sustainable and accessible transport systems.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Tree Cities of the World
Mains level: Urban forestry
Hyderabad city has received another feather in its cap by being chosen as one among the ‘Tree Cities of the World’.
Tree Cities of the World
- The Tree Cities of the World programme is an international effort to recognize cities and towns committed to ensuring that their urban forests and trees are properly maintained, sustainably managed, and duly celebrated.
- This status is accorded by the Arbor Day Foundation jointly with the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the UN.
- To receive recognition, a town or city must meet five core standards:
- Establish Responsibility
- Set the Rules
- Know What You Have
- Allocate the Resources and
- Celebrate the Achievements
Try this question:
Q.The Miyawaki Forests technique has to potential to revolutionize the concept of urban afforestation in India. Discuss.
Why it is a great achievement?
- Hyderabad is the only city in the country to have been selected for this recognition in response to its commitment to growing and maintaining urban forestry.
- The recognition stands Hyderabad alongside 120 cities from 23 countries, including developed nations such as USA, UK, Canada, Australia and others.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: New York Convention
Mains level: Not Much
Cairn Energy has filed a case in a U.S. district court to enforce a $1.2 billion arbitration award it won in a tax dispute against India. Cairn aims to enforce the award under international arbitration rules, commonly called the New York Convention.
New York Convention
- The Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards is commonly known as the New York Convention.
- It was adopted by a UN diplomatic conference on 10 June 1958 and entered into force on 7 June 1959.
- It requires courts of contracting states to give effect to private agreements to arbitrate and to recognize and enforce arbitration awards made in other contracting states.
- Widely considered the foundational instrument for international arbitration, it applies to arbitrations that are not considered domestic awards in the state where recognition and enforcement are sought.
What was the case?
- The Indian government has lost an international arbitration case to energy giant Cairn Plc over the retrospective levy of taxes and has been asked to pay damages worth $1.2 billion to the UK firm.
- The Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague has maintained that the Cairn tax issue is not a tax dispute but a tax-related investment dispute and, hence, it falls under its jurisdiction.
- India’s demand in past taxes, it said, was in breach of fair treatment under the UK-India Bilateral Investment Treaty.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: UN HRC
Mains level: US policies revision after regime change
The Biden administration is set to reengage with the much-maligned UN Human Rights Council that former Donald Trump withdrew from almost three years ago.
Try this PYQ:
Q.Consider the following:
- Right to education.
- Right to equal access to public service.
- Right to food.
Which of the above is/are Human Right/Human Rights under “Universal Declaration of Human Rights”?
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) Only 1
(c) 1, 2 and 3
(d) Only 3
Why did the US pulled-out earlier?
- Trump pulled out of the world body’s main human rights agency in 2018 due to its disproportionate focus on Israel.
- Israel had received by far the largest number of critical council resolutions against any country.
- The Trump administration took issue with the body’s membership, which currently includes China, Cuba, Eritrea, Russia and Venezuela, all of which have been accused of human rights abuses.
About UN Human Rights Council
- The UNHRC describes itself as “an inter-governmental body within the UN system responsible for strengthening the promotion and protection of human rights around the globe.
- It addresses situations of human rights violations and make recommendations on them.
- The first session took place from June 19-30, 2006, three months after the Council was created by UN General Assembly Resolution 60/251 on March 15 that year.
- The UNHRC has the ability to discuss all thematic human rights issues and situations that require its attention throughout the year.
- The HRC replaced the former United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR).
HRC Meetings
- The Human Rights Council holds no fewer than three regular sessions a year, for a total of at least 10 weeks.
- The meetings take place for four weeks in March, for three weeks in June, and for another three weeks in September.
- The sessions are held at the UN Office in Geneva, Switzerland.
- If one-third of the Member States so request, the HRC can decide at any time to hold a special session to address human rights violations and emergencies.
Membership
- The Council is made up of 47 UN Member States, which are elected by the UNGA through a direct and secret ballot.
- The General Assembly takes into account the contribution of the candidate states to the promotion and protection of human rights, as well as their voluntary pledges and commitments in this regard.
- Members of the Council serve for a period of three years and are not eligible for immediate re-election after serving two consecutive terms.
- As of January 1, 2019, 114 UN Member States have served on the HRC. Both India and Pakistan are on this list.
- The HRC has a Bureau of one President and four Vice-Presidents, representing the five regional groups. They serve for a year, in accordance with the Council’s annual cycle.
Seat distribution
- African States: 13 seats
- Asia-Pacific States: 13 seats
- Latin American and Caribbean States: 8 seats
- Western European and other States: 7 seats
- Eastern European States: 6 seats
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: CPI
Mains level: Prevalence of corruption in India
The Transparency International (TI)’s corruption perception index (CPI) was recently released for 2020.
Another set of useful data in news to be noted by aspirants. Such data are essential and need to be memorized. One must note here. Such data recur every year. So it is not a big task to deal with such numbers along with other critical indices.
About the Corruption Perception Index
- The index ranks 180 countries and territories by their perceived levels of public sector corruption.
- It uses a scale of 0 to 100, where 0 is highly corrupt and 100 is very clean.
Global prospects
- Denmark and New Zealand top the index, with 88 points. Syria, Somalia and South Sudan come last, with 14, 12 and 12 points, respectively.
- Nearly half of countries have been stagnant on the index for almost a decade, indicating stalled government efforts to tackle the root causes of corruption.
- More than two-thirds score below 50.
India’s performance
- The CPI score for India is constant this year as well as the previous year’s score.
- India’s rank is 86 out of 180 nations with a score of 40.
- It was ranked at 80th position out of 180 countries in 2019 with a score of 41.
A comparison with neighbours
- At 40, India’s score is below the average score of the Asia-Pacific region (31 countries) and global average, the CPI 2020 report stated.
- India’s overall score is also two points less than that of China, which docked at 78th position, with a score of 42.
- Pakistan, however, scored just 31 points, falling at the 144th position on the index.
What does it mean for India?
- India is still very low on corruption Index, the report said, noting that experts feel the CPI does not reflect the actual corruption level in any country.
- The integrity score determines the corruption situation of a country.
Recommendations made by TI
To reduce corruption and better respond to future crises, Transparency International recommends that all governments:
- Strengthen oversight institutions to ensure resources reach those most in need. Anti-corruption authorities and oversight institutions must have sufficient funds, resources and independence to perform their duties.
- Ensure open and transparent contracting to combat wrong-doing, identify conflicts of interest and ensure fair pricing.
- Defend democracy and promote civic space to create the enabling conditions to hold governments accountable.
- Publish relevant data and guarantee access to information to ensure the public receives easy, accessible, timely and meaningful information.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: EDISON alliance
Mains level: Global action against digital divide
The World Economic Forum (WEF) has announced the launch of an Essential Digital Infrastructure and Services Network (EDISON) Alliance.
The peculiarity of name ‘EDISON Alliance’ creates a hotspot here for prelims. UPSC may either crate confusion over purpose or parent organization. The alliance is yet to take shape completely; hence there is an ambiguity over its members.
EDISON Alliance
- Geneva-based World Economic Forum (WEF), which describes itself as an international organization for public-private partnership, will serve as the secretariat and platform for the EDISON Alliance.
- A wider group of ‘Champions Leaders’ will advise and support the Alliance, the WEF said while announcing the launch.
- Alliance aims to work towards ensuring global and equitable access to the digital economy.
- Its prime goal is to ensure an unprecedented level of cross-sectoral collaboration between the technology industry and other critical sectors of the economy, according to the WEF.
Why need such an alliance?
- Access to digital technologies has enabled many to work, learn and live during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- However, the pandemic has exposed and exacerbated existing gaps and inequalities in almost half of the global population.
- Some 3.6 billion people, remain offline and broadband services are too expensive for 50 percent of the population in developed countries, the WEF said.
- This hampers access to health, education, and economic inclusion.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: OST, INF Treaty, New START policy
Mains level: US-Russia power tussle
The Russian lower house of Parliament, the Duma has ratified a new START nuclear treaty with the US. Both countries had “agreed in principle” to extend the arms treaty by five years with Joe Biden swearing-in.
The New START, INF and the Open Skies …. Be clear about the differences of these treaties. For example- to check if their inception was during cold war era etc.
New START Treaty
- The New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) pact limits the number of deployed nuclear warheads, missiles and bombers and is due to expire in 2021 unless renewed.
- The treaty limits the US and Russia to a maximum of 1,550 deployed nuclear warheads and 700 deployed missiles and bombers, well below Cold War caps.
- It was signed in 2010 by former US President Barack Obama and then-Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.
- It is one of the key controls on the superpower deployment of nuclear weapons.
A reset to Trumps policies
- In February 2020, the US withdrew from the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF), accusing Moscow of violating the agreement.
- Russian then had proposed a one-year extension without conditions of the last major nuclear arms reduction accord, the New START Treaty between Russia and the U.S.
- If it had fallen, it could have been the second nuclear weapons treaty to collapse under the leadership of Trump.
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