Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- India-Sri Lanka relations
Context
Ranil Wickremesinghe’s election as the President of Sri Lanka in a crucial Parliament vote on July 20, 2022, gives India an opportunity to take the lead in the foreign aid game in its neighbourhood.
Background of the crisis in Sri Lanka
- Sri Lanka has been facing economic turbulence since its pre-emptive default on its foreign debt obligations in mid-April this year.
- Following the debt default and a shortage of dollars, the Sri Lankan economy is experiencing stagflation.
- Inflation has spiralled to over 50%, translating into higher food and fuel prices.
- Sri Lanka’s worst economic crisis since its independence in 1948 is due to a tepid recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine conflict shock and economic mismanagement under the administration of the Rajapaksas.
- Sri Lanka is also facing challenges in getting foreign aid, as 60% of the world’s poorest countries are also experiencing debt distress.
Opportunities for India
- In the first six months of 2022, Indian aid worth $3.8 billion has flowed to Sri Lanka through loans, swaps and grants.
- This is India’s largest bilateral aid programme in recent times.
- Stabilising Sri Lanka’s economy could prove to be a major win for Indian’s ‘neighbourhood-first’ policy.
- Moreover, once the Sri Lankan economy stabilises, India can deepen its trade and investment linkages with Sri Lanka, transcending the current humanitarian aid relationship.
- On the other hand, an unstable Sri Lankan economy could pose security risks to India and lead to a flood of refugees across the Palk Strait.
- This is an opportunity for India to strengthen bilateral and regional partnerships.
- Countering Chinese influence: In recent years, China has emerged as a major partner for Sri Lanka, especially for infrastructure projects, many of which are under scrutiny now.
- This provides an opportunity for India to upscale its aid and cement its first mover advantage over China by leading an aid consortium for Sri Lanka, working closely with other friendly countries such as the United States, Japan and the European Union as well as the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Why China is reluctant to help?
- China worries that unilaterally restructuring Sri Lanka’s debt or giving it moratoria would set a new precedent in its lending practices, leading to a queue of similarly distressed countries seeking debt relief from Beijing.
- Furthermore, China, which is a G2 economy, and wanting to challenge the U.S., does not want its reputation to be tarnished by bailing out a floundering economy.
Steps Sri Lanka needs to take
- Concluding the talks with Sri Lanka: The government must show that it is serious about stabilising the economy by concluding talks on an IMF programme which will increase taxes and utility prices to raise revenue and increase interest rates to control inflation.
- Economic reforms: It has to implement structural reforms to make the economy more open to trade and investment and allow market forces to determine resource allocation.
- National consensus on IMF program: It has to build national consensus on implementing the IMF programme and reforms by explaining that this is the only solution to the crisis.
- Anti-corruption policies: It has to restore the rule of law and enforce strong anti-corruption policies (including asset declarations for all parliamentarians and a strong anti-corruption office supported by the United Nations).
- Reset foreign policy: It has to reset foreign policy towards a more neutral direction.
Conclusion
With political will and the right set of policies, Sri Lanka stands a sporting chance of achieving some economic normalcy within the next three years. India stands to gain by supporting Sri Lanka in its hour of need. A friend in need is a friend indeed.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: PM-Kisan
Mains level: Paper 2- Phasing out the unwarranted subsidies
Context
Many in India have been lamenting for quite some time the culture of political populism and “freebies”
Fiscal stress due to subsidies
- Technically, a subsidy is the unrecovered cost of any service (or good) provided by the government.
- Freebies such as distribution of televisions, free cycles or laptops are the most highly visible and discussed freebies, but they are fiscally insignificant compared to the much larger subsidies on food, fertiliser and petroleum.
- Though curbed in recent years, these “visible” subsidies in government budgets remain a major source of fiscal stress.
- Then there is a range of “invisible” subsidies, especially in state government budgets, not always recognised as such, but which are also very large.
- The deficit between the receipts and expenditure of a government department in providing a service is the unrecovered cost of providing that service, that is, a subsidy, even if not recognised as such in the budget.
- Examples include the unrecovered cost of providing public education, healthcare, irrigation, power, water supply and sanitation.
Some facts about the subsidies
- Relation with per capita income: The volume of subsidies as a proportion of GDP comes down with rising per capita incomes, but very gradually.
- The total volume of subsidies came down from 13 per cent of GDP way back in 1987-88 to a little over 10 per cent by 2015-16, almost 30 years later.
- Contribution of central government: The central government accounts for less than 30 per cent of total subsidies, provided mainly for economic services including food.
- Merit subsidies: From the total volume there is a very small number of “merit subsidies” which might be warranted in public interest.
- All governments have provided a food subsidy for poor households by bi-partisan consensus for decades.
- Then there is basic education and health services which have large benefits for society beyond the benefit accruing to the immediate recipient of the service, what economists call “externalities”.
- Also in case of expenditure on water supply and sanitation, where again the benefit to society is much larger than that accruing to the immediate recipient of the service — for example, prevention of infectious diseases.
- These four “merit” subsidies account for only a third of total subsidies.
- Unwarranted freebies: Thus, two-thirds of total subsidies, about 6 per cent of GDP, are unwarranted freebies which should be eliminated.
Way forward
- Phasing out the unwarranted freebies: If central and state governments could step beyond their business as usual budgets and take bold measures to phase out these unwarranted freebies, along with much of the tax exemptions and concessions, which amount to about 5 per cent of GDP, that would free up huge fiscal space.
- Universal basic income: There is a growing demand in many advanced countries, which already have large social security schemes, to provide a minimum “Universal Basic Income” for all.
- Providing a small safety net for the poor in countries like India, which have no social security system, is the least that any caring government can do.
- MGNREGA is the largest and longest-standing income support programme in India for the unemployed in rural areas.
- But it is often not regarded as such as it entails payment against performance of work.
- The usual complaint against such schemes is that they artificially raise rural wages, reduce the incentive to search for work, and that the poor blow up these freebees on liquor etc.
- Since MGNREGA and similar schemes in the states pay much less than the minimum wage, they obviously cannot raise rural wages beyond what is the legal minimum wage anyway.
Conclusion
Phasing out the unwarranted subsidies will enable a massive reduction in the combined fiscal deficit of the Centre and the states, while at the same time stepping up required expenditure on education, health and infrastructure.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 3- Food inflation in India
Context
Globally, inflation is now the prime concern of governments, even as there is a speculation that a recession may not be far behind.
Is inflation in India driven by the global factors?
- The Governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has been reported as saying that there was a “need to recognise global factors in inflation”.
- However, the current inflation in India is, even largely, due to global factors is wrong, and harmful.
- While the price of edible oils and the world price of crude may have risen following the Ukraine war, the impact of this development on overall inflation in India, measured by the rise in the consumer price index, would depend upon their share in the consumption basket of households, which is relatively low.
- For the commodity groups ‘fuel and light’ and ‘fats and oils’, chosen as proxies for the price of imported fuel and edible oils, respectively, inflation has actually been lower in the first five months of 2022 than in the last five months of 2021.
- On the other hand, for the commodity group ‘food and beverages’, it was exactly the reverse, i.e., inflation has been much higher in the more recent period.
- Contribution of domestic factors: The estimated direct contribution of this group to the current inflation dwarfs that of all other groups, establishing conclusively that the inflation is driven by domestic factors.
Inadequacy of monetary policy to address the food-price driven inflation
- Issues with the monetary policy: Starting in May, the repo rate has been raised.
- Raising the interest rate in an attempt to control inflation, implicitly assumes that it reflects economy-wide excess demand.
- Such a diagnosis of the current inflation is belied by the fact that the price of food is rising faster than that of other goods i.e., its relative price has risen.
- So, the excess demand is in the market for foodstuff, and it is this that needs to be eliminated.
- The inadequacy of monetary policy to address food-price-driven inflation has been flagged by economists internationally.
- at the World Economic Forum’s annual meet held at Davos, Switzerland in June, Nobel Laureate Joseph Stiglitz observed that raising interest rates is not going to solve the problem of inflation. It is not going to create more food.
- Jerome Powell is reported stating that even though the Fed’s resolve to fight inflation is unconditional, “a big part of inflation won’t be affected by our tools”.
- This is an acknowledgement that there is only so much a central bank can do when battling inflation driven by the rise in energy and food prices.
Way forward
- Need for supply side interventions: To hold on to the view that inflation in India is due to excess aggregate demand curable by raising interest rates ensures that attention is not paid to the necessary supply-side interventions.
Conclusion
India is suffering from undercurrent of a food price inflation, which, by exacerbating poverty, stands in the way of a more rapid expansion of the economy.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Indo-Pacific Ocean Initiative
Mains level: Paper 2- India-Vietnam relations
Context
India and Vietnam are celebrating the 50th anniversary of their diplomatic relations.
India-Vietnam relations background
- Commonalities: India’s relations with Vietnam — some of which is based on a set of historical commonalities — predate any conflict between India and China as well as that between China and Vietnam.
- Political and security engagement: As India pursues its ‘Act East Policy’, Vietnam has become a valuable partner in India’s political and security engagements in the Indo-Pacific region.
Growing convergence between India and Vietnam
- Convergence of strategic and economic interests: Bolstering friendship between the two countries is a natural outcome of a growing convergence of their strategic and economic interests, and also their common vision for peace, prosperity and their people.
- Shared strategic concerns: The two countries are working to address shared strategic concerns (such as energy security and open and secure sea lines of communication), and make policy choices without undue external interference.
- Given India’s broadening economic and strategic interests in the region and Vietnam’s desire for strategic autonomy, both countries will benefit from a stronger bilateral relationship.
- Shared apprehension about China: India and Vietnam face territorial disputes with and shared apprehensions about their common neighbour, China.
- Vietnam is of great strategic importance because its position enables it to control ‘the South China Sea — a true Mediterranean of the Pacific’.
- The maritime domain, therefore, has become an essential element of India and Vietnam cooperation.
- More importantly, India sees an open and stable maritime commons being essential to international trade and prosperity; therefore, it has an interest in protecting the sea lanes.
- There are some other potential areas for New Delhi and Hanoi to further deepen collaboration, such as meaningful academic and cultural collaborations, shipbuilding, maritime connectivity, maritime education and research, coastal engineering, the blue economy, marine habitat conservation, and advance collaboration between maritime security agencies.
Four factors responsible for growing maritime engagement with Vietnam
- 1] Countering China: India’s aspiration to counter an assertive China by strengthening Vietnam’s military power.
- 2] Security sea lines: With India’s increasing trade with East and Southeast Asia, India has begun to recognise the importance of its sea lines of communication beyond its geographical proximity; the South China Sea occupies a significant geostrategic and geo-economic position, resulting in India’s renewed interests in the South China Sea.
- 3] Development in maritime domain: India desires to intensify its presence to track potential developments in the maritime domain that could affect its national interests.
- 4] Naval partnership: The Indian Navy underlines the importance of a forward maritime presence and naval partnership that would be critical to deter potential adversaries.
- India’s maritime strategic interests in the region are well established, including the fact that almost 55% of India’s trade with the Indo-Pacific region passes through the South China Sea.
Strategic and defence cooperation
- Ever since the formal declaration of a strategic partnership in 2007 and Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in 2016, the scope and scale of the India-Vietnam strategic and defence cooperation, particularly in the maritime domain, is deepening with a clear vision, institutional mechanisms.
- The signing of ‘Joint Vision for Defence Cooperation’ and a memorandum of understanding on mutual logistics support in June 2022 has further strengthened mutual defence cooperation.
- Enhancing Vietnam’s defence capabilities: While a U.S.$100 million Defence Line of Credit has been implemented, India has also announced early finalisation of another U.S.$500 million Defence Line of Credit to enhance Vietnam’s defence capability.
- New Delhi has also agreed to expand military training and assist the Vietnam Navy’s strike capabilities.
Cooperation in Indo-Pacific region
- India is willing to take a principled stand on territorial disputes in the hope that it contributes to the stabilisation of the Indo-Pacific.
- Such positions align closely with Vietnam’s stance on the management of the South China Sea disputes.
- The two countries are also engaging in wide-ranging practical cooperation in the maritime domain through a maritime security dialogue, naval exercises, ship visits, Coast Guard cooperation, and training and capacity building.
- Working in various frameworks: Both countries have found mutual convergences on cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region and are synergising their efforts to work in bilateral as well as other sub-regional and multilateral frameworks, such as the Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA), the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC), the Mekong-Ganga Cooperation, ADMM-Plus or the ASEAN Defence Ministers Meeting-Plus.
- Both countries are also looking at collaboration around the seven pillars of the Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative (IPOI).
Conclusion
The road map agreed upon by the leaders will be helpful in addressing common challenges and decisively navigating towards making an India-Vietnam partnership that helps in stability in the Indo-Pacific.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Dollar Index
Mains level: Paper 3- Depreciation of rupee
Context
Rupee hits the all-time low of 80 against US dollar recently. The enormity of the challenges can be gauged by these numbers: Since the beginning of war, foreign exchange reserves have declined by $51-billion, total portfolio outflows have been $23 billion, and the current account deficit is now certain to breach $100 billion.
Is depreciation of rupee sign of weak domestic fundamentals?
- In case of strong domestic fundamentals: In an ideal world, if domestic economic fundamentals are strong, the depreciation of the rupee should be accompanied by an appreciation of the Dollar Index (DXY) along similar lines.
- In case of weak fundamentals: Between January 2008 and February 2012 and October 2012 and May 2014, on a cumulative basis, the rupee had lost a whopping 48.7 per cent against the USD, even as the DXY had appreciated by a modest 5.2 per cent.
- This indicates that much of the decline in rupee value then was purely because of weak domestic macro fundamentals.
- Current scenario: The rupee has depreciated by a modest 5.6 per cent since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, though the DXY has appreciated by 11.3 per cent.
- Thus, the recent decline in the rupee has been more because of the strengthening of the dollar and not because of weak fundamentals at home.
Reasons for the dominance of dollar
- In principle, Bretton Woods ensured that the dollar would be a “trust” currency.
- The US sits at the centre of an international financial system where its assets have been in high demand.
- For instance, frantically growing Asian economies whose penchant for US government securities have also made them susceptible to sudden changes in expectations and economic sentiments sweeping the globe.
- The recent disturbances in the global supply chain and volatile commodity prices have only made the job more difficult.
What explains the recent strengthening of dollar
- High interest rates in the US: The recent gains in the dollar have come along expectations of aggressive monetary policy by the US Fed compared to other major jurisdictions, particularly, the Eurozone and Japan.
- Markets expect the Fed to continue on its path of interest rate normalisation with multiple rate hikes.
- Low interest rates in the Eurozone: The European Central Bank (ECB) appears behind the curve, its communication with markets is as uncertain as the political and climatic hot winds criss-crossing the Eurozone.
- Low interest rates in Japan: The Bank of Japan has taken a completely divergent path, continuing its accommodative monetary policy despite the hammering of the yen.
- This has augured well for the dollar, obscuring the question of how the Fed failed to anticipate the surge in inflation.
Measures by the RBI and the government
- As currencies reel under the weight of an unrelenting dollar, questions on the rupee’s performance and future are a natural corollary, more so in the wake of hitting the psychological mark of Rs 80/dollar.
- In 2013, when the rupee was in a free fall, stability was finally restored but it came at a cost — a debt buildup of $34.5 FCNR(B).
- This time, the RBI and government have taken a long-term view of bolstering dollar inflows, which is perfectly justified.
- The RBI, in close tandem with the government, has been supportive of the rupee, and is also now embarking on an unprecedented journey to internationalise the currency.
Conclusion
A direct casualty of the Ukraine war is that the Indian rupee has now depreciated by 5.6 per cent against the dollar. In terms of relative performance, however, the rupee has done quite well compared to most of its counterparts.
Back2Basics: US Dollar Index
- The U.S. dollar index (USDX) is a measure of the value of the U.S. dollar relative to a basket of foreign currencies.
- The USDX was established by the U.S. Federal Reserve in 1973 after the dissolution of the Bretton Woods Agreement.
- It is now maintained by ICE Data Indices, a subsidiary of the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE).
- The six currencies included in the USDX are often referred to as America’s most significant trading partners, but the index has only been updated once: in 1999 when the euro replaced the German mark, French franc, Italian lira, Dutch guilder, and Belgian franc.
- Consequently, the index does not accurately reflect present-day U.S. trade.
Bretton Woods Agreement and Systems
- The Bretton Woods Agreement was negotiated in July 1944 by delegates from 44 countries at the United Nations Monetary and Financial Conference held in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire.
- Thus, the name “Bretton Woods Agreement.
- Under the Bretton Woods System, gold was the basis for the U.S. dollar and other currencies were pegged to the U.S. dollar’s value.
- The Bretton Woods System effectively came to an end in the early 1970s when President Richard M. Nixon announced that the U.S. would no longer exchange gold for U.S. currency.
FCNR(B)
- An FCNR ( Foreign Currency Non-resident) account is a type of term deposit that NRIs can hold in India in a foreign currency.
- FCNR (A) was introduced in 1975 to encourage NRI deposits.
- The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) guaranteed the exchange rate prevalent at the time of a deposit to eliminate risk to depositors.
- In 1993, the apex bank introduced FCNR (B), without exchange rate guarantee, to replace FCNR (A).
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Anti-defection law
Mains level: Paper 2- Inner-party democracy
Context
The ousting of Boris Johnson as leader of the British Conservative Party is the latest in a series of coups periodically mounted by the party’s MPs. What is instructive about this whole process, however, is how much power ordinary MPs have over the Prime Minister.
Lack of inner-party democracy in India
- A Prime Minister in UK has to be able to maintain the confidence of his own backbencher MPs at all times or risk political oblivion.
- If there is a sense that the leader is no longer acceptable to the country, then a well-oiled machine springs into action to protect the party’s electoral gains by providing fresh leadership.
- In India, PM exercises absolute authority over party MPs, whose ability to even diverge slightly from the official government line on routine policy matters is almost non-existent.
- Impact of anti-defection law: The Prime Minister’s power is strengthened by India’s unique anti-defection set-up, where recalcitrant MPs who do not manage to carry two-thirds of their colleagues with them can always be disqualified.
- Lack of autonomy: In effect, MPs do not enjoy any autonomy at all to question and challenge their party leadership.
- Prime Ministers or Chief Ministers at the State level are chosen by party high command, and then submitted to MPs/MLAs to be rubber stamped.
Way forward
- Strengthening local constituency party: It is time for India to seriously consider empowering its elected representatives, to ensure accountability for party leadership.
- MPs in the U.K. are able to act boldly because they do not owe their nomination to the party leader, but are selected by the local constituency party.
- In India, however, it is the party leadership that decides candidates, with an informal consultation with the local party.
- Amending anti-defection law: Neither do MPs in the U.K. stand a risk of disqualification if they speak out against the leader, a threat perpetuated in India through the anti-defection law.
- These factors are the biggest stumbling blocks towards ensuring inner-party democracy in India.
- System on the lines of 1922 Committee in UK: In U.K. where individual Conservative MPs write to the 1922 Committee (which comprises backbench MPs, and looks out for their interests) expressing that they have “no confidence” in their leader.
- If a numerical or percentage threshold (15% of the party’s MPs in the U.K.) is breached, an automatic leadership vote is triggered, with the party leader forced to seek a fresh mandate from the parliamentary party.
- Of course, the only way such a model would work is if an exception is made to the anti-defection law.
Conclusion
Inner-party democracy is a essential for keeping the spirit of democracy alive. Westminster model dictates that control over candidates must shift from central party leaders to local party members.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- Curtailing unparliamentary expressions
Context
The Lok Sabha secretariat recently released a booklet of unparliamentary words that will henceforth be banned and if used, will be expunged, it created an uproar among the opposing parties.
Historical Background
- In the early days of parliamentary functioning in England, members would challenge one another to a duel if they felt dishonoured by another member’s speech.
- It led to the Speaker of the House of Commons removing the offending words from the written proceedings.
- In 1873, the constitutional theorist Erskine May started recording words and expressions that the Speaker considered unparliamentary in an eponymous guide to parliamentary procedure.
- Later editions of the book laid down the principle of parliamentary language.
Who decides the nature of a word
- MPs have freedom of speech in Parliament.
- But the presiding officers of Parliament have the final authority on what gets recorded in the day’s proceedings.
- MPs can also draw attention to any unparliamentary words and urge the chair to delete them.
- Any reporting of the parliamentary discussion that includes the deleted portion is a breach of parliamentary privilege and invites the ire of the House.
- Deleted words are then added by the parliament secretariat to its compilation of unparliamentary expressions.
- Why context is important? In any language, the context in which an individual uses a word is critical.
- “Context” means how the word is said, the circumstances in which it is said and when it is said.
Issues with addition of unparliamentary words
- Effectiveness of measure: The first issues about the list is its effectiveness in maintaining decency in parliamentary debates.
- Impact on the debate: The second that that needs to be considered is the effectiveness of such a list help in promoting or stifling discussion.
- Role of technology: Technological advances have ensured that Parliament can no longer control how its proceedings are recorded and disseminated.
- As a result, even if Parliament edits its record, the unparliamentary expression will be available online.
- In such a scenario, a compilation of the words classified as unparliamentary will not deter an MP from using them.
Conclusion
Parliament is all about the cut and thrust of debate. And in a political discussion, a restriction of unparliamentary expression, without considering context, will unnecessarily stifle the voices of MPs.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Environmental Impact Assessment
Mains level: Paper 3- Climate change and its impact on India
Context
In the absence of COVID-19, climate change-induced disasters would have been India’s biggest red alert in recent years.
India’s vulnerabilities
- Temperatures over the Indian Ocean have risen by over 1°C since the 1950s, increasing extreme weather events.
- India is the fourth worst-hit in climate migration.
- Heat waves in India have claimed an estimated 17,000 lives since the 1970s.
- Labour losses from rising heat, by one estimate, could reach ₹1.6 lakh crore annually if global warming exceeds 2°C, with India among the hardest hit.
- Extreme heat waves hit swathes of India. Heatwaves are aggravated by deforestation and land degradation, which also exacerbate fires.
- Agriculture, being water-intensive, does not do well in heat wave-prone areas.
Way forward
- Two part approach: India needs a two-part approach:
- Adaptation: one, to adapt to climate impacts by building resilience against weather extremes, and
- Mitigation: to mitigate environmental destruction to prevent climate change from becoming more lethal.
- Climate resistant agriculture: Agricultural practices which are not water-intensive and to support afforestation that has a salutary effect on warming.
- Financial transfers can be targeted to help farmers plant trees and buy equipment — for example, for drip irrigation that reduces heavy water usage.
- Crop diversification: Climate-resilient agriculture calls for diversification — for example, the cultivation of multiple crops on the same farm.
- Climate-resilient agriculture calls for diversification — for example, the cultivation of multiple crops on the same farm
- Managing vulnerable regions in coastal zones: Floods and storms are worsened by vast sea ingress and coastline erosion in the low-lying areas in the south.
- It is vital to map flood-risk zones to manage vulnerable regions.
- Environment Impact Assessments must be mandatory for commercial projects.
- Design changes: Communities can build round-shaped houses, considering optimum aerodynamic orientation to reduce the strength of the winds.
- Roofs with multiple slopes can stand well in strong winds, and central shafts reduce wind pressure on the roof by sucking in air from outside.
- Moving away from fossil fuels: Adaptation alone will not slow climate damages if the warming of the sea level temperatures is not confronted.
- Leading emitters, including India, must move away from fossil fuels.
- Expanding and protecting forest cover: a big part of climate action lies in protecting and expanding forest coverage.
- India gains from being part of the Glasgow declaration on forest protection that 141 countries signed in 2021.
- Management of dams: Nearly 295 dams in India are more than 100 years old and need repairs.
- In stemming landslides in Uttarakhand, regulations must stop the building of dams on steep slopes and eco-fragile areas, as well as the dynamiting of hills, sand mining, and quarrying.
- Climate financing: India’s share in disaster management should be raised to 2.5% of GDP.
- Climate finance is most suited for large-scale global funding from the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and the Asian Development Bank.
- But smaller-scale financing can also be vital.
Conclusion
For public pressure to drive climate action, we need to consider climate catastrophes as largely man-made.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: I2U2
Mains level: Paper 2- Geopolitics in the Middle East
Context
The US President’s visit to Saudi Arabia and Israel highlights not only some new trends that are reshaping the region but also eternal truths about international politics that are lost in the din of public discourse about the Middle East.
What is the significance of the visit
1] The US is not abandoning the Middle East
- Contrary to the popular perception in the US, the region, and India, the US is not about to abandon the Middle East.
- Many in the US political class believed that given America’s oil independence from the Middle East no longer needed the region.
- American withdrawal from Afghanistan last year intensified these concerns and the region looked for alternative means to secure itself.
- But as in the Indo-Pacific and Europe, the Biden Administration has concluded that it can’t cede its regional primacy in the Middle East and is ready to reclaim its leadership.
- But as in the Indo-Pacific and Europe, the Biden Administration has concluded that it can’t cede its regional primacy in the Middle East and is ready to reclaim its leadership.
2] No direct involvement
- While the US will stay put in the Middle East, it is certainly changing the manner in which it acts.
- In the past, the US saw itself as the sole provider of regional security and was ready to send its troops frequently into the region.
- While the US does not want to be drawn directly into the region’s wars, it is determined to help its partners develop capabilities to secure themselves.
- Arab-Israel reconciliation: Efforts are also being taken to produce greater reconciliation among Arabs and Israel and create stronger networks within and beyond the region to strengthen deterrence against adversaries.
- The current effort to craft a Middle East Air Defence coalition is an example of this,
- The I2U2 signals that the US no longer views the Middle East in isolation from its neighbourhood.
3] Setting aside the differences on democracy vs autocracy debate
- Biden had to modify his sweeping rhetoric about the “conflict between democracies and autocracies” as the principal contradiction in the world.
- To sustain the US position in the region, Biden had no option but to sit with leaders of monarchies and autocracies that are America’s long-standing partners.
4] Nation above identities
- Biden’s focus on national interest found an echo in the Middle East, which is learning to put nation above other identities such as ethnicity and religion.
- In the past, the region seemed immune to nationalism as it focused on transcendental notions of “pan Arabism” and “pan Islamism”.
- Although the idea of Arab solidarity on the Palestine issue endures, many Arab leaders are not willing to let that come in the way of normalisation of relations with Israel.
- A critical section of the Arabs, long seen as irreconcilably opposed to Israel, are now joining hands with the Jewish state to counter threats to their national security from Iran.
- Many Gulf kingdoms, including Saudi Arabia and the UAE, are now consciously promoting a national identity among their peoples.
- Despite shared religion, Turkey’s leader Recep Erdogan has in recent years sought to undermine many of the Arab regimes.
- Qatar has often found itself closer to non-Arab Turkey and in opposition to its Gulf Arab neighbours.
Conclusion
Delhi, whose Middle East policy today is imbued with greater realism, can hopefully discard the inherited ideological inertia, avoid the temptation of seeing the Middle East through a religious lens, and strive hard to realise the full possibilities awaiting India in the region.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 3- Forest landscape restoration
Context
This month is time for Van Mahotsav, which literally means “celebrate the forest”.
Why tree planting matters
- According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), deforestation and forest degradation contribute around 12% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
- The total area occupied by primary forests in India has decreased by 3.6%.
- Tree planting comes with varied environmental and ecological benefits.
- Forests are integral in regulating ecosystems, influencing the carbon cycle and mitigating the effects of climate change.
- Annually, forests absorb roughly 2.6 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide.
- This absorption includes nearly 33% of the carbon dioxide released from burning fossil fuels.
- Livelihood: Forests are a boon for local communities and their livelihoods by functioning as a resource base for goods and services.
- Enrich soil fertility: According to academics from the World Resources Institute, forest ecosystems enrich soil fertility and water availability, enhancing agricultural productivity, and in turn the rural economy.
- Prevents erosion and flooding: Tree planting prevents erosion and stems flooding.
- Sustainable forest crops reduce food insecurity and empower women, allowing them to gain access to more nutritional diets and new income streams.
- Agroforestry lessens rural-to-urban migration and contributes to an increase in resources and household income.
- Planting trees is deeply linked to the ‘wholistic’ well-being of all individuals, the community, and the planet.
Afforestation through forest landscape restoration
- Typically, governments have relied on afforestation and reforestation as a means of establishing trees on non-treed land. These strategies have now evolved.
- Focus on forest landscape restoration: The focus is now on forest landscape restoration — the process of regaining ecological functionality and improving human welfare across deforested or degraded forest landscapes.
- Community participation: Forest landscape restoration seeks to involve communities in the process of designing and executing mutually advantageous interventions for the upgradation of landscapes.
- Nearly two billion hectares of degraded land in the world (and 140 million hectares in India) have scope for potential restoration as forest land.
- Ensuring diversity of species: A crucial aspect of this process is to ensure the diversity of the species while planting trees.
- Natural forests with diverse native tree species are more efficient in sequestering carbon than monoculture tree plantations.
- Planting diverse species is also healthier for local communities and their livelihoods.
- An international study published earlier this year in the journal, Science, found that diversifying species in forest plantations has a positive impact on the quality of the forests.
Programs and initiative for forest restoration
- The span 2021-2030 is the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, emphasising efforts to restore degraded terrestrial ecosystems including forests.
- Bonn Challenge: In 2011, the Bonn Challenge was launched with a global goal to restore 150 million hectares of degraded and deforested landscapes by 2020 and 350 million hectares by 2030.
- India joined the Bonn Challenge in 2015, pledging to restore 26 million hectares of degraded and deforested land by 2030.
- An additional carbon sink of 2.5 billion-3 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent through forest and tree cover is to be created by 2030.
- There are a myriad government programmes such as Compensatory Afforestation, the National Afforestation Programme, the National Mission for a Green India (Green India Mission), the Nagar Van scheme and the Forest Fire Prevention and Management Scheme to name a few.
- The Green Skill Development Programme is for the youth who aspire to attain employment in the environment and forest sectors.
Challenges
- Forest restoration in India faces hurdles in terms of the identification of areas for restoration, a lack of importance accorded to research and scientific strategies in tree planting, stakeholders’ conflicts of interest, and financing.
Way forward
- To be successful, forest landscape restoration must be implemented proactively, bolstering landscapes and forest ecosystems to be durable and adjustable in the face of future challenges and societal needs.
- Involvement of stakeholders: It also needs the involvement and the alignment of a host of stakeholders including the community, champions, government and landowners.
- Participatory governance: The restoration of natural forest ecosystems can be strengthened through participatory governance by engaging stakeholders.
- Taking into account socio-economic context: Vulnerable forest-dependent communities should be factored in, and any effort should be tailored to the local socio-economic context and landscape history of a region.
Conclusion
In today’s world, forests need to be celebrated more than ever before. Simultaneously, more forests need to be created and restored.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 3- Agri-GDP
Context
The United Nations latest report, “Population Prospects” forecasts that India will surpass China’s population by 2023, reaching 1.5 billion by 2030 and 1.66 billion by 2050.
Poverty eradication: Lessons from China
- China’s story since 1978 is unique – the country has achieved the fastest decline in poverty.
- Its experiences hold some important lessons for India, especially because in 1978, when China embarked on its economic reforms, its per capita income at $156.4 was way below that of India at $205.7.
- Today, China is more than six times ahead of India in terms of per capita income – China’s per capita income in 2021 was $12,556, while that of India was $1,933 in 2020.
- China started its economic reforms in 1978 with a primary focus on agriculture.
- Contribution of agriculture: It broke away from the commune system and liberated agri-markets from myriad controls.
- Increase in agri-GDP: As a result, during 1978-84, China’s agri-GDP grew by 7.1 per cent per annum and farmers’ real incomes grew by 14 per cent per annum with the liberalisation of agri-prices.
- Creation of demand: Enhanced incomes of rural people created a huge demand for industrial products, and also gave political legitimacy for pushing further the reform agenda.
- The aim of China’s manufacturing through Town and Village Enterprises (TVEs) was basically to meet the surging demand from the hinterlands.
- Population factor: China introduced the one-child per family policy in September 1980, which lasted till early 2016.
- It is this strict control on population growth, coupled with booming growth in overall GDP over these years, that led to a rapid increase in per capita incomes.
- Chinese population growth today is just 0.1 per cent per annum compared to India’s 1.1 per cent per annum.
Growth story of Indian agriculture
- Over a 40-year period, 1978-2018, China’s agriculture has grown at 4.5 per cent per annum while India’s agri-GDP growth ever since reforms began in 1991 has hovered at around 3 per cent per annum.
- Market and price liberalisation in agriculture still remains a major issue, and at the drop of any hint of food price rise, the government clamps down exports, imposes stock limits on traders, suspends futures markets, and pushes other measures that strangle markets.
- Implicit taxation of farmers: The net result of all this is reflected in the “implicit taxation” of farmers to favour the vocal lobby of consumers, especially the urban middle class.
Way forward
- Population control: The only way is through effective education, especially that of the girl child, open discussion and dialogue about family planning methods and conversations about the benefits of small family size in society.
- Effective education: As per the National Family Health Survey-5 (2019-21), of all the girls and women above the age of 6 years, only 16.6 per cent were educated for 12 years or more.
- Based on unit-level data of NFHS5 (2019-21), it is found that women’s education is the most critical determinant of the status of malnutrition amongst children below the age of five.
- Unless a focused and aggressive campaign is launched to educate the girl child and provide her with more than 12 years of good quality education, India’s performance in terms of the prosperity of its masses, and the human development index may not improve significantly for many more years to come
- If government can take up this cause in sync with state governments, this will significantly boost the labour participation rate of women, which is currently at a meagre 25 per cent, and lead to “double engine” growth.
- Nutrition interventions: The NFHS-5 data shows that more than 35 per cent of our children below the age of five are stunted, which means their earning capacity will remain hampered throughout life. They will remain stuck in a low-level income trap.
Conclusion
From a policy perspective, if there is any subsidy that deserves priority, it should be for the education of the girl child. This policy focus can surely bring a rich harvest, politically and economically, for many years to come.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: 74th Constitutional Amendment Act
Mains level: Paper 2- Municipal finances
Context
Recently, the Indian Institute for Human Settlements (IIHS) analysed data from 80 urban local bodies (ULBs) across 24 States between 2012-13 and 2016-17 to understand ULB finance and spending, and found some key trends.
Health of municipal finances
- The 74th Constitution Amendment Act was passed in 1992 mandating the setting up and devolution of powers to urban local bodies (ULBs) as the lowest unit of governance in cities and towns.
- Constitutional provisions were made for ULBs’ fiscal empowerment.
- Challenges in fiscal empowerment: Three decades since, growing fiscal deficits, constraints in tax base expansion, and weakening of institutional mechanisms that enable resource mobilisation remain challenges.
- Revenue losses after implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) and the pandemic have exacerbated the situation.
Analysing the trends in municipal finances
Recently, the Indian Institute for Human Settlements (IIHS) analysed data from 80 ULBs across 24 States between 2012-13 and 2016-17 to understand ULB finance and spending, and found some key trends.
1] Own sources of revenue less than half of total revenue
- Key sources of revenue: The ULBs’ key revenue sources are taxes, fees, fines and charges, and transfers from Central and State governments, which are known as inter-governmental transfers (IGTs).
- Important indicator of financial health: The share of own revenue (including revenue from taxes on property and advertisements, and non-tax revenue from user charges and fees from building permissions and trade licencing) to total revenue is an important indicator of ULBs’ fiscal health and autonomy.
- The study found that the ULBs’s own revenue was 47% of their total revenue.
- Of this, tax revenue was the largest component: around 29% of the total.
- Property tax, the single largest contributor to ULBs’ own revenue, accounted for only about 0.15% of the GDP.
- Figures for developing countries: The corresponding figures for developing and developed countries were significantly higher (about 0.6% and 1%, respectively) indicating that this is not being harnessed to potential in India.
2] High dependence on IGTs
- Most ULBs were highly dependent on external grants — between 2012-13 and 2016-17, IGTs accounted for about 40% of the ULBs’ total revenue.
- Transfers from the Central government are as stipulated by the Central Finance Commissions and through grants towards specific reforms, while State government transfers are as grants-in-aid and devolution of State’s collection of local taxes.
3] Tax revenue is largest revenue for larger cities, while smaller cities are more dependent on grants
- here are considerable differences in the composition of revenue sources across cities of different sizes.
- Class I-A cities (population of over 50 lakh) primarily depend on their own tax revenue, while Class I-B cities and Class I-C cities (population of 10 lakh-50 lakh and 1 lakh-10 lakh, respectively) rely more on IGTs.
- Own revenue mobilisation in Class I-A cities increased substantially.
- It was primarily driven by increases in non-tax revenue
4] Increasing operations and maintenance (O&M) expenses
- Operations and maintenance (O&M) expenses are on the increase but still inadequate.
- While the expenses were on the rise, studies (such as ICRIER, 2019 and Bandyopadhyay, 2014) indicate that they remained inadequate.
- For instance, O&M expenses incurred in 2016-17 covered only around a fifth of the requirement forecast by the High-Powered Expert Committee for estimating the investment requirements for urban infrastructure services.
- O&M expenses should ideally be covered through user charges, but total non-tax revenues, of which user charges are a part, are insufficient to meet current O&M expenses.
- The non-tax revenues were short of the O&M expenditure by around 20%, and this shortfall contributed to the increasing revenue deficit in ULBs.
Way forward
- Improving own revenue: It is essential that ULBs leverage their own revenue-raising powers to be fiscally sustainable and empowered and have better amenities and quality of service delivery.
- Stability in IGT: Stable and predictable IGTs are particularly important since ULBs’ own revenue collection is inadequate.
- O&M expenses: Increasing cost recovery levels through improved user charge regimes would not only improve services but also contribute to the financial vitality of ULBs.
- Measures need to be made to also cover O&M expenses of a ULB for better infrastructure and service.
- Tapping into property taxes, other land-based resources and user charges are all ways to improve the revenue of a ULB.
Conclusion
The health of municipal finances is a critical element of municipal governance which will determine whether India realises her economic and developmental promise.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: National Coal Index
Mains level: Paper 3- Need for increasing the domestic production of coal
Context
With inflation at unprecedented levels in many countries, concerns over energy security have gained centre stage.
National Coal Index to factor in the increased price of imported coal
- This index was created to provide a benchmark for revenue-sharing contracts being executed after the auctions for commercial mining of coal.
- The NCI had to be introduced as the wholesale price index (WPI) for coal has no component of imported coal.
- For the last six months, the WPI for Coal has been stable at around 131.
- Over the same period, the NCI has jumped from about 165 to about 238 reflecting the sharp increase in international coal prices.
Needs to increase domestic coal production
- High prices of coal and coal-based generation will only encourage imported coal and expose the country to price risks from international energy prices.
- The domestic coal industry has responded to increasing internation prices with an increase of over 30 per cent in coal production from April to June this year.
- Anticipating these problems, a big effort toward permitting commercial mining has been made to get the private sector to produce more coal.
- Gradual transition: Looking at coal from a singular focus on GHG emissions will give a myopic view of energy requirements for a growing economy like India.
- The path to achieving 500 GW of renewables needs to be gradual, ensuring an orderly transition as coal is unavoidable in the near future.
- Reducing coal imports and increasing domestic production of coal needs focused attention
Suggestions to increase domestic production of coal
1] Sensitising the financial community
- The financial community has to be sensitised to the need of increasing domestic coal production to meet the growing energy demand.
- The draft National Electricity Policy released in May 2021, recognised the need to increase coal-based generation.
- This policy has not yet been finalised.
- It should clearly articulate the importance of domestic coal-based generation.
- Holistic approach in ESG criteria: Apart from the government, the industry should also take up this issue with the financial community in adopting a more holistic approach toward environmental, social, and governance (ESG) criteria.
2] The regulator needs to facilitate greater role of private sector
- There is the need for a regulator to address the issues arising from a greater role of the private sector.
- The current arrangements were put in place at a time when the public sector dominated.
- There are several issues where new private commercial miners would need help.
- Single point of contact: A single point of contact for the industry in the form of a dedicated regulator would give great comfort to private players and would help to overcome problems that could arise in due course.
3] Diversifying the production base
- Increasing domestic production of coal and diversifying the production base are both needed.
- This must be complemented with efforts to improve the quality of the coal produced.
4] Remove financial burden due to cross subsidies
- The undue financial burden on the coal sector due to various cross subsidies needs attention.
- The regime needs to be reformed.
Conclusion
Action on the issues discussed above will only help to deepen and strengthen these reforms which are needed to overcome the challenges that have resurfaced over the past few months.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Article 21
Mains level: Paper 2- Consolidation of multiple FIRs
Context
The Supreme Court’s (SC) refused to consolidate multiple FIRs filed in several states against former BJP spokesperson.
When are multiple FIRs clubbed?
- In 2001, the SC, in TT Antony vs. State of Kerala, made it clear that only the earliest information in regard to the commission of an offence could be investigated and tried.
- In Babubhai vs. State of Gujarat (2010), the Court explained that the test to determine the sameness of the offence is to identify whether “the subject matter of the FIRs is the same incident, same occurrence or are in regard to incidents which are two or more parts of the same transaction”.
- the SC extensively relied upon TT Antony while granting similar relief to two journalists.
Reasons given by the SCs for refusal to club the FIRs
- The bench said that party spokespersons and journalists cannot be treated identically.
- The Constitution creates no hierarchical difference between journalists and ordinary citizens when it comes to the enforcement of fundamental rights.
- The right to approach the SC under Article 32 is in itself a fundamental right.
- Nor did the SC craft any distinction on the basis of the status or affiliation of the accused in TT Antony.
- Second, the bench said that she has not unconditionally apologised for her remarks and her political clout is apparent from the fact that she has not been arrested despite an FIR being filed against her.
- This view is again misplaced. Whether or not the person has tendered an apology is not germane to the issue at hand.
- Seeking or tendering an apology may be a mitigating factor while deciding punishment but only after the guilt is proved.
Why the multiple FIRs should be consolidated
- Abuse of statutory power of investigation: Filing of successive FIRs amounts to an abuse of statutory power of investigation and is a fit case for the SC to exercise its writ powers under Article 32 because high courts cannot transfer cases from one state to another.
- Wastage of state resources and judicial time: Prudence demands that state resources and judicial time are not spent on a multiplicity of proceedings.
- The multiplicity of proceedings would result in violation of fundamental rights under Article 21 as parallel investigations would result in her being forced to join investigations in different police stations in different states.
- This serves no practical purpose because ultimately it is only one of the police reports that would be tried by a court of law.
Conclusion
In the absence of strict guidelines, some degree of caution is necessary on the part of judges to work within the confines of judicial propriety.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- Return of Euro-centrism
Context
The Russian aggression against Ukraine has led to an unmissable feeling of insecurity in Europe, particularly in Germany.
Euro-centric world order and new security consciousness
- For centuries, Europe imagined itself to be the centre of the world — its order, politics and culture.
- What contributed to its decline? Decolonisation, the emergence of the United States as the western world’s sole superpower, and the rise of the rest dramatically diminished the centuries old domination of the European states and their ability to shape the world in their own image.
- The political and military aftermath of Russia’s war on Ukraine could potentially tilt the current global balance and take us back to a Euro-centric world order.
- US dominance: For sure, the U.S. continues to dominate the trans-Atlantic security landscape and this is likely to remain so.
- And yet, the new security consciousness in Europe will reduce Washington’s ability to continue as the fulcrum of the trans-Atlantic strategic imagination.
- If wars have the potential to shape international orders, it is Europe’s turn to shape the world, once again.
- The United States, fatigued from the Iraq and Afghan wars, does not appear to be keen on another round of wars and military engagements.
- A pervasive sense of what some described as “existential insecurity” has brought about a renewed enthusiasm about the future of the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).
- The European Union (EU) Commission has backed Kyiv’s bid for EU candidature.
- This new military unity is not just words, but is backed with political commitment and financial resources from the world’s richest economies.
- Berlin, for instance, has decided to spend an additional €100 billion for defence over and above its €50 billion annual expenditure on defence.
Implications
1] Weakened faith in the institutions and globalisation
- Germany, the engine of this new security thinking in Europe, is coming out of its self-image of being a pacifist nation.
- There appears little faith in the United Nations or the UN Security Council anymore in Berlin, they have decided to put their faith in a revitalised EU and NATO.
- European states are deeply worried about globalisation-induced vulnerability and this has set in a rethink about the inherent problems of indiscriminate globalisation.
- The combined effect of European re-militarisation (however modest it may be for now), its loss of faith in multilateral institutions, and the increased salience of the EU and NATO will be the unchecked emergence of Europe as an even stronger regulatory, norm/standard-setting superpower backed with military power.
2] Unilateral and Euro-centric decision making
- The EU already has a worryingly disproportionate ability to set standards for the rest of the world.
- Instruments such as the Digital Services Act and the Digital Assets Act or its human rights standards will be unilaterally adopted, and will be unavoidable by other parts of the world.
- While these instruments and standards may in themselves be progressive and unobjectionable for the most part, the problem is with the process which is unilateral and Euro-centric.
3] Euro-centric worldview
- A euro-centric worldview of ‘friends and enemies’ will define its engagement with the rest of the world.
- India is a friend, but its take on the Ukraine war is not friendly enough for Europe.
- The EU will lead the way in setting standards for the rest of us and we will have little option but to follow that.
- For sure, Europe will seek partners around the world: to create a Euro-centric world order, not a truly global world order.
4] Dilemma for India
- This unilateral attempt to ‘shape the world’ in its image will also be portrayed as an attempt to counter Chinese attempts at global domination.
- To oppose or not? When presented as such, countries such as India will face a clear dilemma: to politically and normatively oppose the setting of the global agenda by Europeans or to be practical about it and jump on the European bandwagon.
Conclusion
The key message from the European narratives about the Ukraine war is that European states would want to see their wars and conflicts as threatening international stability and the ‘rules-based’ global order.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Incheon commitment
Mains level: Paper 2- Political inclusion of persons with disability
Context
The Department of Empowerment of Person with Disabilities (DoEPwD) recently released the draft of the national policy for persons with disabilities.
Why new policy?
- Signing of UN convention: The necessity for a new policy which replaces the 2006 policy was felt because of multiple factors such as India’s signing of the United Nations Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
- Increased number of disabilities: Enactment of Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act 2016, which increased the number of disabilities from seven conditions to 21 necessitated the change.
- Incheon Strategy: Being a party to the Incheon Strategy for Asian and Pacific Decade of Persons with Disabilities, 2013-2022 (“Incheon commitment”).
- Changed discourse from medical model to human right: These commitments have changed the discourse around disability by shifting the focus from the individual to society, i.e., from a medical model of disability to a social or human rights model of disability.
- The principle of the draft policy is to showcase the Government’s commitment to the inclusion and empowerment of persons with disabilities by providing a mechanism that ensures their full participation in society.
Absence of commitment to political uplift
- Article 29 of the Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities mandates that state parties should “ensure that persons with disabilities can effectively and fully participate in political and public life on an equal basis with others, directly or through freely chosen representatives….”
- The Incheon goals also promote participation in political processes and in decision making.
- The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act 2016 embodies these principles within its fold.
- India does not have any policy commitment that is aimed at enhancing the political participation of disabled people.
- The exclusion of disabled people from the political space happens at all levels of the political process in the country, and in different ways.
- Section 11 of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act prescribes that “The Election Commission of India and the State Election Commissions shall ensure that all polling stations are accessible to persons with disabilities and all materials related to the electoral process are easily understandable by and accessible to them”.
- Although this mandate has been in existence for a few years, the disabled people still report accessibility issues before and on election day.
- There is often a lack of accessible polling booths in many locations.
- Lack of aggregate data: The lack of live aggregate data on the exact number of the disabled people in every constituency only furthers their marginalisation.
Lack of representation
- Representation plays an imperative role in furthering the interests of the marginalised community.
- Disabled people are not represented enough at all three levels of governance.
- However, few States have begun the initiative at local levels to increase participation.
- For instance, Chhattisgarh started the initiative of nominating at least one disabled person in each panchayat.
- If a disabled person is not elected then they are nominated as a panchayat member as per changes in the law concerned.
- This is a step that has increased the participation of the disabled in the political space at local level.
- The goal of the policy document — of inclusiveness and empowerment — cannot be achieved without political inclusion.
Suggestions: Follow four pronged approach
- The policy can follow a four-pronged approach:
- 1] Capacity building: Building the capacity of disabled people’s organisations and ‘empowering their members through training in the electoral system, government structure, and basic organisational and advocacy skills’;
- 2] Legal and regulatory framework: The creation, amendment or removal of legal and regulatory frameworks by lawmakers and election bodies to encourage the political participation of the disabled;
- 3] Participation of civil society: Inclusion of civil societies to ‘conduct domestic election observation or voter education campaigns’;
- 4] Framework for outreach by political parties: A framework for political parties to ‘conduct a meaningful outreach to persons with disabilities when creating election campaign strategies and developing policy positions’.
Conclusion
The document lays emphasis on the point that central and State governments must work together with other stakeholders to “make the right real”. This right can be made real only when it includes political rights/political participation within it.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- Language in legislature
Context
Language not only changes across region but also profession. Similarly, Parliament, too, has its own list of absurd and archaic phrases.
Debate over expunged words
- Today there is much debate on language again after the Lok Sabha Secretariat compiled a list of 151 words, which have been expunged in 2021 and 2020 in Parliaments across the Commonwealth countries and State Assemblies in India.
- Many of these words may look harmless, but in a heated exchange between parliamentarians, they may not exactly be virtuous.
- The current compilation has especially caused consternation among Opposition parties which see this as an attempt to restrict their vocabulary.
- The government argues that this list is at best only “instructive” and not “definitive”.
- The preface of the document states that the context in which these words were used is far more important than the words themselves.
- Ultimately, the final call of whether a word is “unparliamentary” or not lies with the presiding officer of the House.
- In the first two decades of the Indian Parliament, English was the primary language used for parliamentary work.
- This changed as the social composition of Parliament changed from the 1970s onwards.
- At present, as many as 30 languages are used by parliamentarians during speeches, with many insisting on speaking their mother tongue during crucial debates.
- Perhaps, the next such compilation will also have words expunged from different regional languages.
Challenges in digital age
- The proceedings of both Houses of Parliament are relayed in real time on TV channels and YouTube.
- There have been instances where live transmission has been halted on the Chair’s orders.
- To circumvent this, many members have recorded the proceedings on their mobile phone cameras.
- There are many instances of the Chair intervening and expunging words or phrases that it finds “objectionable”.
- Herein lies the problem. The order of the Chair is often relayed by late evening to reporters, but by then, the video clip would have already been circulated many times over.
- Print reporters are careful and abide by the orders, but in a digital ecosystem, this is not easy.
Conclusion
The problems posed to the Parliament in terms of language and words should be dealt with keeping in focus the freedom of speech of the members.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: CEPA
Mains level: Paper 2- India-South Korea ties
Context
- During the past five years, India and South Korea have experienced considerable divergence in their respective national objectives.
Background
- Bilateral relations between India and South Korea, officially known as the Republic of Korea, were established in 1962 and upgraded to Ambassador-level in 1973.
- South Korea’s open market policies found resonance with India’s economic liberalization, and its ‘look east policy’ and ‘act east policy’.
- The relations has become truly multidimensional, spurred by a significant convergence of interests, mutual goodwill and high level exchanges.
- During PM Modi’s visit to ROK in May 2015, the sides elevated the ties to ‘Special Strategic Partnership’.
- President Moon’s India visit marked the 45th anniversary of bilateral diplomatic ties.
Why India is important for South-Korea?
- One of the points that the Koreans have been making to India is that they see India as a country that is now strategically important to them
- South Korea also finds in India a very acceptable partner.
- India doesn’t have edges which can create problems for them. They are aware of one factor which they have grown up with, which is the Pakistan factor.
- With new issues cropping up in ties with China and America, export-driven South Korea must find new markets.
- South Korea’s economic growth has slowed, presenting it with important challenges.
- South Korea is targeting economies with the greatest growth potential like India.
- South Korea is too heavily dependent on China’s market. So diversification is essential for South Korea..
- Need cooperation for development in third countries, like capacity building programmes in Africa
India – South Korea Relations
- Political:
- In May 2015, the bilateral relationship was upgraded to ‘special strategic partnership’.
- India has a major role to play in South Korea’s Southern Policy under which Korea is looking at expanding relations beyond its immediate region.
- Similarly, South Korea is a major player in India’s Act East Policy under which India aims to promote economic cooperation, cultural ties and develop strategic relationships with countries in the Asia-Pacific.
- Regional Stability:
- The regional tensions in South Asia especially between India and China create a common interest for India and South Korea.
- This could be a collaborative approach for regional stability.
- Nuclear:
- South Korea’s key interest in managing their nuclear neighbour (North Korea) is similar to India’s considerations toward Pakistan.
- The US alliance system, established with South Korea and Japan, puts pressure on North Korea to cap its nuclear programme.
- Containing North Korea is beneficial to India’s economic and regional ambit in East Asia.
- It also adds to its approach to the nuclear non-proliferation regime as a responsible nuclear state.
- Economic:
- The current bilateral trade between India and South Korea is at USD 21 billion and the target that has been set is USD 50 billion by the year 2030.
- India and South Korea have signed the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), 2010 which has facilitated the growth of trade relations.
- To facilitate investment from Korea, India has launched a “Korea Plus”facilitation cell under ‘Invest India’ to guide, assist and handhold investors.
- Diplomatic:
- There is a long-lasting regional security dilemma with the continued verbal provocations and a conventional arms race.
- Thus, despite the alliance system, Seoul appears to be searching for a stronger diplomatic stand on imminent regional issues beyond the alliance system.
- South Korea’s approach to India comes with strategic optimism for expanding ties to ensure a convergence of interest in planning global and regional strategic frameworks.
- Cultural:
- Korean Buddhist Monk Hyecho or Hong Jiao visited India from 723 to 729 AD and wrote the travelogue “Pilgrimage to the five kingdoms of India” which gives a vivid account of Indian culture, politics & society.
- Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore had composed a short but evocative poem – ‘Lamp of the East’ – in 1929 about Korea’s glorious past and its promising bright future.
Challenges
- Stagnation in Economic relationship:
- The economic partnership is struck at $22 billion annually.
- Also, the defence partnership appears to have receded from great all-round promise to the mere sale and purchase of weapon systems.
- Trade between the two countries was sluggish and there was no major inflow of South Korean investment into India.
- No upgrade in CEPA: India and South Korea were also trying to upgrade their Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) agreement, but to no avail.
- Cultural Prejudices on both sides preventing people-to-people ties
- Cold War Era perception: There may be a widespread perception among South Koreans of India as a third world country, rife with poverty and hunger.?
- Indian Diaspora: Within South Korea, the integration of Indians in the local population is far from complete, with some instances of racial prejudice or discrimination toward Indians
- Inadequate acknowledgment of Korean Culture: To a certain extent Indians are unable to distinguish between the cultural and social characteristics of South Koreans from that of Japanese/Chinese.
- Unfulfilled potential of Cultural Centres
- Indian Culture Centre (ICC) was established in Seoul 10 years ago?to promote people-to-people contacts.
- However, ICC has to reach an exponentially wider audience and its focus has to expand beyond the urban, English-speaking elite of Seoul.
- The same may be applicable to South Korean culture centres in India.
- Divergence in objectives
- During the past five years, India and South Korea have experienced considerable divergence in their respective national objectives.
- There was a clear drift by South Korea away from multilateral security initiatives led by the United States, such as the Quad (the U.S., Australia, India and Japan); meanwhile, India has been actively participating in them.
Change in Korean foreign and security policies and opportunities for India
- The newly elected Korean President, Yoon Suk Yeol, has brought about a paradigm shift in South Korean foreign and security policies.
- He has proposed that South Korea should step up to become a “global pivotal state, anchored in liberal values and a rules-based order”.
- Opportunities for India: South Korea’s new willingness to become a global pivotal state and play an active role in regional affairs is bound to create multiple opportunities for a multi-dimensional India- Korea partnership.
- South Korea’s strategic policy shift to correct its heavy tilt towards China is bound to bring new economic opportunities for both countries.
- The trade target of $50 billion by 2030, which looked all but impossible a few months ago, now seems within reach.
- Convergence of capabilities: The emerging strategic alignment is creating a new convergence of capabilities and closer synergy in new areas of economic cooperation such as public health, green growth, digital connectivity, and trade, among others.
- With the strategic shift in South Korea’s defence orientation, new doors of cooperation for defence and security have emerged.
- Defence cooperation: Advanced defence technologies and modern combat systems are the new domains for the next level of defence cooperation between the two countries.
- A Roadmap for Defence Industries Cooperation between the Republic of India and the Republic of Korea (ROK) was signed in 2020.
- Maritime security: South Korea’s participation in additional maritime security activities in the Indian Ocean, such as the annual Malabar and other exercises with Quad countries, will further strengthen India’s naval footprint in the Indo-Pacific region.
- Defence policy coordination: The shift in South Korean policies will enable a strong India, South Korea and Japan defence policy coordination that could effectively forge new joint regional security policies.
Challenges
- Chinese pressure: The Chinese leadership is adversely impacted by policy changes brought in by the Yoon administration.
- The real challenge for global geopolitics is this: can South Korea withstand the inevitable Chinese pressure and stick to its new alignment?
- Tension with North Korea: South Korea’s peace process with North Korea has completely collapsed.
- In the coming days, as North Korea conducts more missile and nuclear tests, it may lead to regional tension.
- Any breakout of hostilities on the Korean Peninsula can derail South Korea’s Indo-Pacific project.
Way forward
- Strategic partnership: India has evolved excellent strategic partnerships with Japan, Vietnam and Australia.
- South Korea could be the fourth pillar in India’s Indo-Pacific strategy along with Japan, Australia, and Vietnam.
- This can bring about a paradigm shift in India’s position and influence in the region.
- The time has come for the Indian and South Korean bilateral partnership to be strategically scaled up at the political, diplomatic and security domain levels.
- With South Korea’s emergence as a leader in critical technologies, cybersecurity and cyber-capacity building, outer space and space situational awareness capabilities, South Korea can contribute immensely to enhance India’s foundational strengths in the Indo-Pacific.
- India can help South Korea withstand Chinese pressure and North Korean threats.
- This new partnership can have a long-term positive impact for both countries and the Indo-Pacific region.
- It is an opportunity that neither country can afford to miss.
Conclusion
An independent, strong, and democratic South Korea can be a long-term partner with India, that will add significant value to India’s Indo-Pacific strategy.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Article 53
Mains level: Paper 2- Role of the President as envisage by the Indian Constitution
Context
India is going to elect its new President on July 18. The new President will be sworn in on July 25. Choosing the presidential candidate is an intensely political exercise.
Election of the President
- Direct or indirect election: The main question debated therein was whether India should have a directly elected President or an indirectly elected one.
- The Assembly opted for an indirectly elected President.
- Dr. B.R. Ambedkar said: “Our President is merely a nominal figurehead. He has no discretion; he has no powers of administration at all.”
- Article 53 of the Constitution says that “the executive power of the Union shall be vested in the President and shall be exercised by him either directly or through officers subordinate to him in accordance with this Constitution.”
- It means the President exercises these powers only on the aid and the advice of the Council of Ministers.
People’s presence in the election of the President
- It is an indirect election in the sense that the people do not directly elect the President.
- Under Article 54, the President is elected by an electoral college consisting of only the elected members of both Houses of Parliament and the elected members of the State and Union Territory Assemblies.
- A matter of importance in this context is the vote value of Members of the Legislative Assemblies (MLAs) and the formula for its computation.
- The vote of an MLA, though one, is assigned a certain higher value.
- This value is calculated by first dividing the total population of the State (as per the 1971 Census) by the total strength of the Assembly, and then the quotient is divided by one thousand.
- In the computation of the value, the population of the State figures in a significant way.
- In other words, the population of the country is a crucial factor in the election of the President, which means the people’s presence in the process of electing the President is very much visible.
Moral authority of the President
- Wider base: The people’s presence in the election of the President gives a wider base to the President than a mere vote by the legislators on the basis of one member, one vote.
- This also gives the President a greater moral authority.
- So, the Indian President is not and cannot be a mere rubber stamp.
- Reconsideration of decision: He does not directly exercise the executive authority of the Union, but he can disagree with the decision of the Council of Ministers, caution them, counsel them, and so on.
- The President can ask the Cabinet to reconsider its decisions.
- However, the Cabinet, after such reconsideration, sends the same proposal back without any change, the President will have to sign it.
Role of the President as envisage by the Constitution
- Broader view of the things: The Constitution of India wants the President to be vigilant and responsive, and gives the freedom to him or her to take a broader view of things uninfluenced by the narrow political view of the executive.
- Preserve, protect and defend the Constitution: The above point becomes clearer when we take a look at the oath the President takes before entering office.
- The oath contains two solemn promises.
- First, the President shall preserve, protect and defend the Constitution.
- Second, the President shall devote himself or herself to the service and the well-being of the people of India.
- Thus, it is possible for a President to disagree with the government or intervene on behalf of the citizenry against the tyranny of the executive and persuade it to give up its ways.
Conclusion
The method adopted for the election of the President and the promises made in the oath makes it clear that the President cannot act as a gramophone of the Prime Minister as mentioned by professor K.T. Shah.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: CAROTAR
Mains level: Paper 3- Addressing the issues in FTAs
Context
In recent months, India has signed trade agreements with Australia and UAE. n the last week of June, New Delhi began talks for a similar agreement with the EU.
How FTA with EU could help India
- India’s successful sectors like textiles, pharmaceuticals and leather could benefit from these deliberations, which would also be keenly watched by representatives of the services and renewable energy sectors.
- A successful free trade agreement (FTA) with the EU could help India to expand its footfall in markets such as Poland, Portugal, Greece, the Czech Republic and Romania, where the country’s exports registered double-digit annual growth rates in the last decade.
So, what are the factors India need to consider while signing FTA
1] Impact of tariff on domestic industry:
- It has been observed that when India is an importer, the preferential tariffs that accrue as a result of trade agreements are significantly lower than the rates charged from countries given Most Favoured Nation (MFN) status by India.
- But when the partner country is the importer, preferential tariffs on Indian goods, in most cases, are closer to the MFN tariffs.
- As a result, Indian exporters do not get the same returns as their counterparts in the partner countries.
- India’s trade with South Korea is a case in point.
- Before entering into a trade agreement care should, therefore, be taken to ensure that the domestic industry is not made to compete on unequal terms with the partner countries.
2] Adherence to the rules of origin
- The India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement sets a good example.
- It includes a strong clause on the rules of origin.
- Forty per cent value addition or substantial processing of up to 40 per cent in the exporting country is required to qualify for lower tariffs.
- Rules of origin have been a bone of contention in most Indian trade agreements.
- (CAROTAR, 2020): In 2020, the country notified the Customs (Administration of Rules of Origin under Trade Agreements) Rules (CAROTAR, 2020), which require a basic level of due diligence from the importer.
3] Including the offset clauses
- “Offset clauses” — where the exporter is obliged to undertake activities that directly benefit the importing country’s economy — should be built into trade agreements, especially for technology intensive sectors.
4] Emergency action plan
- In February 2020, the US made India ineligible for claims under GSP, America’s oldest preferential trade scheme.
- The US Trade Representative’s Office deemed India as a developed country and suspended beneficial treatment under the GSP.
- A contingency plan should be in place to tackle such situations.
5] Inclusion of sunset clause
- India should also take a cue from the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement, to incorporate a “sunset” clause in trade agreements.
- The pact between the three North American nations provides for periodic reviews and the agreement is slated to end automatically in 16 years unless the countries renegotiate it.
6] Parity between services and merchandise
- India should negotiate for parity between services and merchandise.
- Low trade in services: India’s trade in services is low, and its overall score in the OECD’s Services Trade Restrictiveness Index (STRI) exceeds the world average.
- It is especially high in legal and accounting services due to the licencing requirements in both these segments.
- Expansion in banking and financial services: There is also significant room for expansion of trade in the banking and financial services industry.
Conclusion
A well-crafted trade agreement could help India enhance its share in global trade and help attain the government’s target of making the country a $5-trillion economy.
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Back2Basics: CAROTAR Rules
- Importers will have to do their due diligence to ensure that imported goods meet the prescribed ‘rules of origin’ provisions.
- This is the essential availing concessional rate of customs duty under free trade agreements (FTAs).
- A list of minimum information, which the importer is required to possess, has also been provided in the rules along with general guidance.
- Also, an importer would now have to enter certain origin related information in the Bill of Entry, as available in the Certificate of Origin.
Why need CAROTAR?
- CAROTAR 2020 supplements the existing operational certification procedures prescribed under different trade agreements.
- India has inked FTAs with several countries, including Japan, South Korea and ASEAN members.
- Under such agreements, two trading partners significantly reduce or eliminate import/customs duties on the maximum number of goods traded between them.
- The new rules will assist customs authorities in the smooth clearance of legitimate imports under FTAs.
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