Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 3- Issues with export ban
Context
There are reports suggesting that the government is mulling a ban on rice exports to tame inflation.
Background
- This is surely not the first time an attempt is being made to ban wheat and rice exports.
- It was also done in 2007-08, in the wake of the global financial crisis.
- Perhaps government will also impose stocking limits on traders for a host of commodities, suspend futures trading in food items, and even conduct income tax raids on traders of food.
Issues in India’s rice export strategy
- Highest ever volume: India exported the highest-ever volume of 21 million metric tonnes (MMT) of rice in 2021-22 (FY22) in a global market of about 51.3 MMT, which amounts to about 41 per cent of global exports.
- Reduces price: Such large volumes of rice exports brought down global prices of rice by about 23 per cent in March (YoY), when all other cereal prices, be it wheat or maize, were going up substantially in global markets.
- In fact, in FY22, the unit value of exports of common rice was just $354/tonne, which was lower than the minimum support price (MSP) of rice.
- Below MSP buying or leakage from PMGKAY: This meant that rice exporters were either buying rice (paddy) from farmers and millers at below the MSP or that quite a substantial part of rice was given free under the PM Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana (PMGKAY) was being siphoned away for exports at prices below MSP.
- Artificial competitive advantage: Free electricity for irrigation in several states, most notably Punjab, and highly subsidised fertilisers, especially urea, create an artificial competitive advantage for Indian rice in global markets.
- Suggestion: This is a perfect case for “optimal export tax” — not a ban — on rice exports.
- If we can’t raise the domestic price of urea, which is long overdue, we should at least recover a part of the urea subsidy from rice exports by imposing an optimal export tax.
Why export ban on wheat and rice is not a solution
- Small contribution of cereals in inflation: In May, the consumer price index (CPI) inflation was 7.04 per cent (YoY). The cereals group as a whole contributed only 6.6 per cent to this inflation.
- Within that, wheat, other than through PDS, contributed just 3.11 per cent and non-PDS rice contributed 1.59 per cent.
- So, by imposing a ban on wheat and rice exports, India can’t tame its inflation as more than 95 per cent of CPI inflation is due to other items.
- Interestingly, inflation in vegetables contributed 14.4 per cent to CPI inflation, which is more than three times the contribution of rice and wheat combined. And within vegetables, tomatoes alone contributed 7.01 per cent.
- What all this indicates is that agri-trade policies need to be more stable and predictable, rather than a result of knee-jerk reactions.
- Irresponsible behaviour: Export bans on food items also show somewhat irresponsible behaviour at the global level, unless there is some major calamity in the country concerned.
- The recently concluded WTO ministerial meeting as well as the G-7 meet expressed concerns about food security in vulnerable nations.
Way forward
- Efficient value chain and processing facilities: In commodities like vegetables, most of which are largely perishable, we need to build efficient value chains and link these to processing facilities.
- The same would go for onions, which often bring tears to kitchen budgets when prices shoot up.
- A switch to dehydrated onion flakes and onion powder would be the answer.
- Our food processing industry, especially in perishable products, is way behind the curve compared to several Southeast Asian nations.
Conclusion
If India wants to be a globally responsible player, it should avoid sudden and abrupt bans and, if need be, filter them through transparent export taxes to recover its large subsidies on power and fertilisers.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2: Custodial deaths and technology
Context
The recent spate of custodial deaths in Tamil Nadu has yet again highlighted the methods used by the police during interrogation.
Custodial deaths in India
- It is not uncommon knowledge that the police, when they grow increasingly frustrated with the trajectory of their interrogation, sometimes resort to torture and violence which could lead to the death of the suspect.
- Custodial deaths are common despite enormous time and money being spent on training police personnel to embrace scientific methods of investigation.
- This is because police personnel are humans from different backgrounds and with different perspectives.
Use of technology by law enforcement agencies
- There is no doubt that technology can help avert police custodial deaths. For example, body cameras could hold officers liable.
- Deception detection tests (DDTs), which deploy technologies such as polygraph, narco-analysis and brain mapping, could be valuable in learning information that is known only to a criminal regarding a crime.
- Among the DDTs, the Brain Fingerprinting System (BFS) is an innovative technology that several police forces contemplate adding to their investigative tools.
- The technique helps investigative agencies uncover clues in complicated cases.
- With informed consent, however, any information or material discovered during the BFS tests can be part of the evidence.
- Police departments are increasingly using robots for surveillance and bomb detection.
- Many departments now want robotic interrogators for interrogating suspects.
- Use of robots: Police departments are increasingly using robots for surveillance and bomb detection.
- Use of robots for interrogation: Many departments now want robotic interrogators for interrogating suspects.
- Many experts today believe that robots can meet or exceed the capabilities of the human interrogator, partially because humans are inclined to respond to robots in ways that they do to humans.
- Robots equipped with AI and sensor technology can build a rapport with the suspects, utilise persuasive techniques like flattery, shame and coercion, and strategically use body language.
- Use of AI/ML: Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) are emerging as tool of interrogations. AI can detect human emotions and predict behaviour.
- Therefore, these are also options.
- ML can in real-time alert superiors when police are meting out inhumane treatment to suspects.
Issues with the use of technologies
- Informed consent: In 2010, the Supreme Court, in Selvi v. State of Karnataka, rendered the BFS evidence inadmissible.
- The court observed that the state could not perform narco analysis, polygraph, and brain-mapping tests on any individual without their consent.
- High cost of technology: As the BFS is high-end technology, it is expensive and unavailable in several States.
- There is a lot of concern about AI or robot interrogations, both legally and ethically.
- Risk of bias: There exists the risk of bias, the peril of automated interrogation tactics, the threat of ML algorithms targeting individuals and communities, and the hazard of its misuse for surveillance.
Way forward
- Multi-pronged strategy: What we need is the formulation of a multi-pronged strategy by the decision-makers encompassing legal enactments, technology, accountability, training and community relations.
- Onus of proof on police: The Law Commission of India’s proposition in 2003 to change the Evidence Act to place the onus of proof on the police for not having tortured suspects is important in this regard.
- Strict implementation of D.K. Basu case guidelines: Besides, stringent action must be taken against personnel who breach the commandments issued by the apex court in D.K. Basu v. State of West Bengal (1997).
- Law against custodial torture: The draft bill on the Prevention of Torture, 2017, which has not seen the day, needs to be revived.
Conclusion
While the technology available to the police and law-enforcement agencies is constantly improving, it is a restricted tool that can’t eradicate custodial deaths. While it might provide comfort and transparency, it can never address the underlying issues that lead to these situations.
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Back2Basics: Supreme Court judgement in DK Basu case
- The DK Basu judgment since 1987 is crucial in dealing with issue of custodial deaths.
- The judgement has origin from a letter complaint in 1986, which was converted into PIL.
- 4 crucial and comprehensive judgments — in 1996, twice in 2001 and in 2015 — lay down over 20 commandments, forming the complete structure of this judgement.
Details of judgment:
First 11 commandments in 1996, focused on vital processual safeguards:
- All officials must carry name tags and full identification, arrest memo must be prepared, containing all details regarding time and place of arrest, attested by one family member or respectable member of the locality.
- The location of arrest must be intimated to one family or next friend, details notified to the nearest legal aid organisation and arrestee must be made known of DK Basu judgement.
- All such compliances must be recorded in the police register, arrestee must get periodical medical examination, inspection memo must be signed by arrestee also and all such information must be centralised in a central police control room.
- Breach to be culpable with severe departmental action and additionally contempt also, and this would all be in addition to, not substitution of, any existing remedy.
- All of the above preventive and punitive measures could go with, and were not alternatives to, full civil monetary damage claims for constitutional tort.
8 other intermediate orders till 2015:
- Precise detailed compliance reports of above orders to be submitted by all states and UT and any delayed responses to be looked into by special sub-committees appointed by state human rights body.
- Also where no SHRC existed, the chief justice of the high courts to monitor it administratively.
- It emphasised that existing powers for magisterial inquiries under the CrPC were lackadaisical and must be completed in four months, unless sessions court judges recorded reasons for extension.
- It also directed SHRCs to be set up expeditiously in each part of India.
The third and last phase of judgment ended in 2015:
- Stern directions were given to set up SHRCs and also fill up large vacancies in existing bodies.
- The power of setting up human rights courts under Section 30 of the NHRC Act was directed to be operationalised.
- All prisons had to have CCTVs within one year.
- Non-official visitors would do surprise checks on prisons and police stations.
- Prosecutions and departmental action to be made unhesitatingly mandated.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 3- Energy security and challenge
Context
Our long-standing “friend“ (Russia) is now in the bad books of our other friends (the US and Europe) and in a deepening relationship with our adversary (China). The Gulf countries are crucial for our energy security but Russia has replaced them as our principal supplier
How Ukraine war is changing the energy policies
- Six months back before the start of the Ukrainian conflict, there was a deepening sense that fossil fuels and the industry built around them were in terminal decline.
- After the Ukraine war began, the petroleum market is tight and prices are ratcheting up.
- Oil prices are close to $120/bbl and gas prices have jumped 500 per cent year on year in Europe.
- The regulatory constraints on petroleum exploration and distribution infrastructure have been eased and several countries have removed the output limits on thermal power generation and reopened the coal mines that were closed.
- The share prices of the oil majors are trading at multi-year highs.
Three issues that influences India’s energy policy
1] Long term implications of buying oil from Russia
- India is now a major purchaser of Russian crude.
- Last month, it reportedly purchased an average of 1.2 mbd.
- If this figure is correct, Russia is now our largest provider of crude oil surpassing Saudi Arabia and Iraq.
- The reason for this ramp-up is the price discount offered by Russia.
- The decision is driven by good economics and energy security.
- The Western world does not, however, see it this way.
- The question does arise: What might be the medium to longer-term implications of our “support” to Russia on relations with Capitol Hill, the UK and the European Commission?
2] Increased economic and energy ties of Russia and China
- Russia and China have, for long, shared the view that the US is their biggest security threat.
- China also increased the purchase of Russian oil and gas.
- This tightened economic and energy embrace has implications for India.
- Several questions will need to be addressed.
- Russia’s role in India-China conflict: How might a post-Ukraine weakened Russia that is in hock to China respond to India in the event matters deteriorate on our border with China?
- Will they be reliable providers of crude oil, military equipment, minerals, and metals essential for our green transition?
- Will they be politically autonomous or client states?
3] Important role of the Gulf states
- The Ukrainian crisis has forced a presidential u-turn. Later this month, President Biden will visit Saudi Arabia.
- Several other European leaders will also beat a path to the Gulf, all in the hope of extracting a promise of higher production to lower oil prices and some to negotiate gas supply deals.
- India needs the Gulf producers for supply security. But it also wants oil prices to come down.
- The position of these producers in the reordered post-Ukraine energy landscape is, therefore, of relevance.
- Will they respond positively to the courtship of Russia/China, move back into the Western fold, or stay outside both orbits, neutral and opportunistic?
- The answer will bear on India’s energy security.
Way forward
- Integrated energy policy: What we need is a mechanism for the development and execution of an integrated energy policy.
- This is because currently there is no executive authority responsible for energy.
- There are ministries responsible for components of energy policy but no formal mechanism for aligning their separate approaches.
- The Ukraine war has disrupted the existing energy order.
- The new energy (dis) order has created fissures that impact our national security, economic growth, trade, clean energy supply lines, transfer of technology and international relations.
- We cannot, therefore, afford to continue with our existing siloed approach.
Conclusion
The Ukrainian crisis has radically altered the contours of the global energy landscape and created a tangle of relationships and issues for India. To smoothen this tangle and address the issues India should adopt “a whole of the system” approach to energy policy.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Liquidity corrridor
Mains level: Paper 3- RBI innovative approach during pandemic
Context
Recently, the RBI has been at the receiving end for mission the inflation target.
Understanding the RBI’s rationale
- Supply side shock: Inflation has been largely the result of supply side shocks from vegetable prices, caused by crop damages due to unseasonal rains (tomato, onion and potato) in late 2019 and widespread supply-side disruptions after the outbreak of the pandemic.
- A narrow-minded focus on inflation caused by supply shocks would have constrained the MPC from supporting growth amidst the unprecedented loss of life and livelihood.
- Focusing on recovery: Therefore, it was necessary to provide a lifeline to the economy at that juncture by focusing on the recovery.
- Moreover, the wide tolerance band of 200bps +/- in the inflation targeting framework was specifically designed to accommodate such supply shocks, which provided the flexibility in the flexible targeting (FIT) framework.
- Taking into account objective of growth: In contrast to a pure inflation targeting framework (inflation nutters), the amended mandate of the RBI under FIT reads as “price stability, taking into account the objective of growth”.
- Therefore, the MPC was justified in looking through the higher inflation print during the pandemic while trying to resurrect growth.
No contradiction between Governor’s statement and MPC resolution
- Recently, the MPC highlighted inflation concerns and voted to raise the policy repo rate.
- The governor’s statement of the same day noted that the RBI will ensure an orderly completion of the government’s borrowing programme.
- Contradictory objectives: It is said that the above two actions created confusion as lowering inflation and lowering government bond yields are contradictory objectives.
- This justification is redundant as an orderly completion of the borrowing programme does not imply lowering yields.
- It basically ensures that the borrowing programme is completed seamlessly at low costs (ensured through auctions).
- Moreover, from a theoretical perspective, this is not inconsistent because controlling inflation and lowering inflation expectations bodes well for the term premia of bond yields — which moderate once expectations are anchored.
- Therefore, if inflation is reined in, the government stands to gain in terms of lower interest costs.
- Was width of corridor lost during pandemic? It is argued that the MPC kept repo rates unchanged while the RBI changed the reverse repo rate during the pandemic, meaning that the fixed width of the corridor was lost and the MPC lost its role in setting interest rates and so, its credibility.
- This argument does not stand scrutiny.
- During the pandemic, the policy repo rate was cumulatively reduced by an unprecedented 115 bps and the interest rate on the overnight fixed-rate reverse repo was reduced cumulatively by 155 bps.
- Assymetric corridor justified in crises: This measure was not incongruous with contemporary wisdom as an asymmetric corridor has been justified, particularly during crisis times (Goodhart, 2010).
- Given that elevated inflation concerns precluded the possibility of any further repo rate cuts (cumulatively reduced by 250 basis points since February 2019), financial conditions were eased substantially by reducing the reverse repo rate, which lowered the floor rate of interest in the economy.
- Since the mandate of the MPC is to control inflation for which the policy instrument is the repo rate, the RBI had used the LAF through changes in the reverse repo rate to alter liquidity conditions.
Trade offs involved in inflation targeting for emerging economies
- Inflation-targeting countries, because of their sole focus on inflation, experience lower inflation volatility but higher output volatility.
- Higher output volatility entails a higher sacrifice ratio — the proportion of output foregone for lowering inflation.
- For an emerging economy, the costs of higher output foregone against the benefits of lower inflation must always be balanced as potential output keeps on changing given the shift of the production function.
- Developed countries, on the other hand, operate near full employment — therefore, sacrifice ratios are lower.
- As a result, smoothening inflation volatility is relatively costless for them.
Conclusion
The RBI has innovated admirably under its current stewards during the pandemic, keeping in mind the task of reinvigorating the economy. Despite the existing targeting framework, it did not get fixated on a one-point agenda, daring to look beyond the inflation print.
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Back2Basics: Liquidity corridor
- The Corridor in monetary policy of the RBI refers to the area between the reverse repo rate and the MSF rate.
- Reverse repo rate will be the lowest of the policy rates whereas Marginal Standing Facility is something like an upper ceiling with a higher rate than the repo rate.
- The MSF rate and reverse repo rate determine the corridor for the daily movement in the weighted average call money rate.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Schedules of the Constitution
Mains level: Paper 2- Strengthening anti-defection law
Context
The political developments in Maharashtra throw up troubling questions about how the political class is weakening the anti-defection law.
Background of the anti-defection law
- It was enacted as the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution of India, in 1985, under Rajiv Gandhi’s premiership.
- The law as it was enacted provided for the disqualification of a legislator belonging to a political party if he voluntarily gave up his membership of his party or if he defied the whip of his party by voting contrary to its directions in the legislative house.
- Two exceptions: Initially, there were two exceptions provided in the schedule which would exempt a legislator from disqualification.
- 1] Split: The first exception was a split in their original political party resulting in the formation of a group of legislators.
- If the group consisted of one third of such legislators of that party, they were exempted from disqualification.
- This exception was deleted from the schedule through a Constitution Amendment Act of 2003 because of frequent misuse.
- 2] Merger: The second exception was ‘merger’ which can be invoked when the original political party of a legislator merges with another party and not less than two thirds of its legislators agree to such a merger.
Interpretation of term ‘merger’ and issues with it
- It is this second exception contained in paragraph four of the schedule which has been taken recourse to by a large number of legislators across States and even in Parliament to defect to the ruling party.
- These legislators interpreted for themselves the term ‘merger’ to mean the merger of two thirds of legislators.
- Now, the same is being repeated in Maharashtra.
- But there is a little difference here.
- It appears that the dissidents of Shiv Sena believed that if they get the two third number they can form a separate group and topple the government and then form a government with the help of the Bharatiya Janata Party.
- The law imposes the condition of merger of the original political party.
- However, a recent judgment of the Goa Bench of the Bombay High Court ( Girish Chodankar vs The Speaker, Goa State Legislative) that held that the merger of two thirds of Members of the Legislative Assembly is deemed to be the merger of the original party seems to have given them a ray of hope.
- So, the legal position is if the dissidents do not merge with another party they will be disqualified now or later.
Question of disqualification
- Disqualification petitions have been filed by the Shiv Sena against 16 of the dissidents under paragraph 2(1)(a) on the ground that they have voluntarily given up the membership of the party.
- The question of whether they have voluntarily given up the membership of the party is decided on the basis of the conduct of a member.
- In Ravi S. Naik vs Union of India (1994), the Supreme Court had said “an inference can be drawn from the conduct of a member that he has voluntarily given up the membership of the party.
Weakening the anti-defection law
- Unprincipled defection: The ongoing developments in Maharashtra have once again brought before the country the reality of what the Supreme Court also described as the political evil of unprincipled defection.
- But the order of the Supreme Court, on June 27, on petitions from the dissidents in the Shiv Sena, gives undue advantage to the dissident legislators.
- The Court has granted them a longer time to submit replies than the rules mandate.
- This order is going to set in motion certain political developments which will resurrect in a big way what the Supreme Court characterised as political evil.
- The intervention by the Supreme Court too has thrown up some crucial question.
- Kihoto Hollohan case: The first question is whether the Court can intervene at a stage prior to the decision by the Deputy Speaker.
- A Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court had held in Kihoto Hollohan (1993) that judicial review cannot be available prior to the making of a decision by the Speaker nor at an interlocutory stage of the proceeding.
- The notice of no-confidence against the Deputy Speaker has added another piece to the jigsaw puzzle.
- Nabam Rebia case: The Supreme Court had held in Nabam Rebia (2016) that the Speaker shall not decide the disqualification cases till the no-confidence motion against him is disposed of.
- The House rules clearly say that the notice of no-confidence against the Speaker/Deputy Speaker needs to be admitted in the first place which is done only by the Speaker.
- But it is the House which takes the final decision on the motion. If the notice of no-confidence does not contain specific charges, it can be disallowed by the Speaker.
- Further, the notice can be given only if the House is summoned.
- When the notice was given, the Assembly was not convened. So, the notice against the Deputy Speaker can have no validity under the rules.
Conclusion
The law, though not perfect, is a serious attempt to strengthen the moral content of democracy. There will be shortcomings in this Bill but as we see and identify those shortcomings we should try to overcome them.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- Reproductive rights in India
Context
Contrary to the grandstanding since the overturning of the landmark Roe V. Wade judgment, the truth is that India is not ahead of the West in terms of reproductive rights.
Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act
- Abortion in India has been a legal right under various circumstances for the last 50 years with the introduction of Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act in 1971.
- The Act was amended in 2003 to enable women’s accessibility to safe and legal abortion services.
- Abortion is covered 100% by the government’s public national health insurance funds, Ayushman Bharat and Employees’ State Insurance with the package rate for surgical abortion.
The idea of terminating your pregnancy cannot originate by choice and is purely circumstantial. There are four situations under which a legal abortion is performed:
- If continuation of the pregnancy poses any risks to the life of the mother or mental health
- If the foetus has any severe abnormalities
- If pregnancy occurred as a result of failure of contraception (but this is only applicable to married women)
- If pregnancy is a result of sexual assault or rape
These are the key changes that the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (Amendment) Act, 2021, has brought in:
- The gestation limit for abortions has been raised from the earlier ceiling of 20 weeks to 24 weeks, but only for special categories of pregnant women such as rape or incest survivors. But this termination would need the approval of two registered doctors.
- All pregnancies up to 20 weeks require one doctor’s approval. The earlier law, the MTP Act 1971, required one doctor’s approval for pregnancies upto 12 weeks and two doctors’ for pregnancies between 12 and 20 weeks.
- Women can now terminate unwanted pregnancies caused by contraceptive failure, regardless of their marital status. Earlier the law specified that only a “married woman and her husband” could do this.
- There is also no upper gestation limit for abortion in case of foetal disability if so decided by a medical board of specialist doctors, which state governments and union territories’ administrations would set up.
Issues with legal provisions related to reproductive rights in India
- Lack of rights based approach: The Medical Termination of Pregnancy (Amendment) Act 2021 is far from ideal and has been criticised for not taking a rights-based approach.
- According to the Act, a pregnancy can be terminated on the following conditions: Grave danger to the physical/mental health of the pregnant woman; foetal abnormalities; rape/coercion; and contraceptive failure.
- A woman’s right to choose to end the pregnancy even in the first few weeks is still not recognised in India.
- Systemic barriers: It doesn’t give the pregnant person complete autonomy in ending the pregnancy, instead making them go through various systemic barriers.
- The final decision falls not on the pregnant person, but on registered medical practitioners (RMP).
- The constitution of a medical board, a requirement by the Act, is considered a barrier by the World Health Organisation.
- Excludes transgenders and non-binary persons: Additionally, it uses the word “woman”, thereby leaving out pregnant transgender and non-binary persons who are biologically capable of bearing children.
- It forces them to identify themselves in the gender-binary ignoring their gender identity.
Social factors and lack of medical facilities
- It is important to look through an intersectional lens, and factor in class and caste privilege.
- Abortion facilities in private medical centres are expensive, available only for those who have the resources.
- Lack of access: Not all public health centres, especially in rural India, provide abortion facilities.
- Most unmarried women end up resorting to unsafe abortions in illegal clinics or at home.
- According to the latest National Family Health Survey 2019-2021, 27 percent of the abortions were carried out by the woman herself at home.
- According to United Nations’ Population Fund’s (UNFPA) State of the World Population Report 2022, around 8 women die each day in India due to unsafe abortions.
- It also found that between 2007-2011, 67 percent of the abortions were classified as unsafe.
- Unsafe abortion was one of the top three causes of maternal deaths.
Discussion on reproductive rights in India are incomplete without mentioning surrogacy.
Issues in the Surrogacy (Regulation) Act 2021
- While well-intentioned, leaves much to be desired.
- The plethora of regulations one must undergo is antithetical to a dignified standard of living.
- Exclusionary in nature: Experts have pointed out that the Act is exclusionary in nature, disregards privacy, and also exploits women’s reproductive labour.
- Only a heterosexual married couple (with certain preconditions) can be the intending parents.
- It strips the reproductive autonomy of LGBTQ+ persons and single, divorced, and widowed intending parents. It can be seen as a violation to the fundamental right to equality.
- Experts also believe that regulations, rather than a complete ban on commercial surrogacy, should have been the way forward.
- Violates right to privacy: The Act requires the intending couple to declare their infertility and reveals the identity of the surrogate, both of which violate the right to privacy.
- The landmark Puttaswamy judgment discusses bodily privacy – the right over one’s body and “the freedom of being able to prevent others from violating one’s body.”
- The current reproductive rights regulatory framework falls short in guaranteeing bodily privacy.
Conclusion
The situation in India is far from perfect and we should take this moment to reflect and learn from progressive practices around the world. We should strive for inclusivity, complete bodily autonomy, and reproductive equity.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Anti-defection law
Mains level: Paper 2- Paragraph 4 of Tenth Schedule
Context
The ongoing political crisis in Maharashtra, and many others before it, are grim reminders of what the Tenth Schedule can and cannot do.
About 10th Schedule
- In 1985 the Tenth Schedule, popularly known as the anti-defection law, was added to the Constitution.
- But its enactment was catalyzed by the political instability after the general elections of 1967.
- This was the time when multiple state governments were toppled after MLAs changed their political loyalties.
- The purpose of the 1985 Constitution Amendment was to bring stability to governments by deterring MPs and MLAs from changing their political parties on whose ticket they were elected.
- The penalty for shifting political loyalties is the loss of parliamentary membership and a bar on becoming a minister.
Provisions of the 10th Schedule
- Instances of floor crossing have long gone unchecked and unpunished.
- In part, this can be attributed to the exemption given to mergers between political parties which facilitate bulk defections.
- Disqualification provision: The second paragraph of the Tenth Schedule allows for disqualification of an elected member of a House if such member belonging to any political party has voluntarily given up membership of their party, or if they vote in the House against such party’s whip.
- Exceptions: Paragraph 4 creates an exception for mergers between political parties by introducing three crucial concepts — that of the “original political party”, the “legislature party”, and “deemed merger”.
- What is the legislature party? It means the group consisting of all elected members of a House for the time being belonging to one political party.
- Original political party: An “original political party” means the political party to which a member belongs (this can refer to the party generally, outside of the House).
- Paragraph 4 does not clarify whether the original political party refers to the party at the national level or the regional level.
How Paragraph 4 of the 10th Schedule deals with mergers?
- Paragraph 4 is spread across two sub-paragraphs, a conjoint reading of which suggests that a merger can take place only when an original party merges with another political party, and at least two-thirds of the members of the legislature party have agreed to this merger.
- It is only when these two conditions are satisfied that a group of elected members can claim exemption from disqualification on grounds of merger.
- The second sub-paragraph (of Paragraph 4) says that a party shall be “deemed” to have merged with another party if, and only if, not less than two-thirds of the members of the legislature party concerned have agreed to such merger.
- However, in most cases there is no factual merger of original political parties at the national (or even regional) level.
- Creation of legal fiction: Paragraph 4 seems to be creating a “legal fiction” so as to indicate that a merger of two-third members of a legislature party can be deemed to be a merger of political parties, even if there is no actual merger of the original political party with another party.
- In statutory interpretation, “deemed” has an established understanding.
- The word “deemed” may be used in a law to create a legal fiction, and give an artificial construction to a word or a phrase used in a statute.
- In other cases, it may be used to include what is obvious or what is uncertain.
- In either of these cases, the intention of the legislature in creating a deeming provision is paramount.
Merger exception and issues with it
- The merger exception was created to save instances of the principled coming together of political groups from disqualification under the anti-defection law, and to strike a compromise between the right of dissent and party discipline.
- In the absence of mergers of original political parties, the deeming fiction could, presumably, be used as a means to allow mergers of legislature parties.
- Encouraging defection: Reading Paragraph 4 in this manner would empower legislature parties to solely merge with another party, and thus, practically ease defection.
What if sub-paragraphs are read conjunctively?
- For a valid merger then, an original political party has to first merge with another political party, and then two-thirds of the legislature party must support that merger.
- Given the politics of current times, stark differences in parties’ respective ideologies, and deep-seated historical rivalries, it is unimaginable how a merger between major national or regional parties would materialise.
Way forward
- Remove Paragraph 4: In a situation where either reading of Paragraph 4 in its current form yields undesirable results, its deletion from the Tenth Schedule is a possible way forward.
- The Law Commission in 1999 and the National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution (NCRWC) in 2002 made similar recommendations.
- Revisiting by Supreme Court: Till that happens, an academic revisiting of the Tenth Schedule by the Supreme Court, so as to guide future use of the anti-defection law, is timely and should happen soon.
Conclusion
Neither of these two interpretations of Paragraph 4complements the ‘mischief’ that the Tenth Schedule was expected to remedy — that of curbing unprincipled defections. Amending it is the need of the hour.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- India-UAE relations
Context
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the UAE on June 28 was his fourth, having visited the country earlier in August 2015, in February 2018 and again in August 2019.
Why do the Gulf and UAE matters to India?
- The UAE has given crucial support to India in the Islamic world, first by inviting our late External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj as a guest of honour at an OIC foreign ministers meeting in Abu Dhabi.
- The UAE stood with us on Jammu and Kashmir following the abrogation of Article 370.
- The Gulf is our third-largest trading partner.
- The Gulf region is our principal source of hydrocarbons.
- It is also a major source of foreign investment.
- The region is home to some 8 million Indians who send in over $50 billion annually in remittances.
Deepening bilateral ties
- CEPA: In a virtual summit with Sheikh Mohamed in February 2022, both sides signed a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).
- CEPA is a significant milestone that was negotiated and finalised in just 88 days and promises to increase bilateral trade from $60 billion to $ 100 billion in five years.
- It is expected to help Indian exports in areas ranging from gems and jewellery and textiles to footwear and pharmaceuticals, apart from enhanced access for Indian service providers to 11 specific sectors.
- Vision statement: An ambitious, forward-looking Joint Vision Statement titled, “Advancing the India and UAE Comprehensive Strategic Partnership: New Frontiers, New Milestones” was also issued.
- The Dubai-based DP World and India’s National Skills Development Council signed an agreement to set up a Skill India Centre in Varanasi to train local youth in logistics, port operations and allied areas so that they can pursue overseas employment.
New avenues for multilateral cooperation
- The rapid normalisation of ties between the UAE and Israel following the Abraham Accords of August 2020 has also opened new avenues of trilateral and multilateral cooperation.
- Technology, capital and scale: Some Israeli tech companies are already establishing a base in Dubai and seeking to marry niche technologies with Emirati capital and Indian scale.
- 2I2U: The US has announced that President Joe Biden’s forthcoming visit to West Asia will see a virtual summit of what it calls the 2I2U, a new grouping that brings together India, Israel, the US and UAE.
Conclusion
The UAE today is India’s closest partner in the Arab world. Both countries need to expand the areas of cooperation and deepen their engagement.
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Back2Basics: Abraham Accords
- The Israel–UAE normalization agreement is officially called the Abraham Accords Peace Agreement.
- It was initially agreed to in a joint statement by the United States, Israel and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on August 13, 2020.
- The UAE thus became the third Arab country, after Egypt in 1979 and Jordan in 1994, to agree to formally normalize its relationship with Israel as well as the first Persian Gulf country to do so.
- Concurrently, Israel agreed to suspend plans for annexing parts of the West Bank.
- The agreement normalized what had long been informal but robust foreign relations between the two countries.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- G-7 and India
Context
The meeting of G7 leaders that concluded in Bavaria was attended by India as an observer.
About G7
- The G-7 or ‘Group of Seven’ includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
- It is an intergovernmental organisation that was formed in 1975 by the top economies of the time as an informal forum to discuss pressing world issues.
- Initially, it was formed as an effort by the US and its allies to discuss economic issues.
- The G-7 forum now discusses several challenges such as oil prices and many pressing issues such as financial crises, terrorism, arms control, and drug trafficking.
- It does not have a formal constitution or a fixed headquarters. The decisions taken by leaders during annual summits are non-binding.
- Canada joined the group in 1976, and the European Union began attending in 1977.
- The G7 is trying hard not to be yesterday’s club.
- It is still a powerful grouping, with seven of its members in the top 10 economies of the world, three of them permanent members of the UNSC.
Important outcomes of the G7 meeting
- Statement on support for Ukraine: A standalone G7 Statement on Support for Ukraine was issued.
- There was an unconditional commitment that the grouping will provide financial, humanitarian, military and diplomatic support and stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes.
- Russia was also warned that any use of chemical, biological and nuclear weapons would be met with severe consequences.
- Further intensification of sanctions against Russia was contemplated.
- Tough language on China: Significantly, the G7 final communique has tough language on China as well.
- It says there is no legal basis for China’s expansive maritime claims in the South China Sea, it calls on China to press Russia to withdraw troops from Ukraine and expresses grave concern about the country’s human rights situation.
- It calls on China to respect universal human rights and fundamental freedoms in both Tibet and Xinjiang, highlighting the issue of forced labour in the latter.
Significance of India’s observer status
- The fact is that even the G7 knows its clout has declined compared to, say, 20 years ago.
- That explains the move to invite key G20 countries as observers to its summits.
- As for India, its importance lies in the undeniable truth that no global problem can be seriously tackled without New Delhi’s involvement.
- For India, G7 summits have always been an invaluable opportunity to exchange views not just in a plurilateral format but also in the bilateral meetings on the margins of the main meetings.
- 2 statements: India has lent its name to two statements issued by the G7. One is titled “Resilient Democracies Statement” and the other is “Joining Forces to Accelerate Clean and Just Transition towards Climate Neutrality”.
- The first statement talks of democracies as reliable partners seeking to promote a rules-based international order and supporting democracy worldwide including through electoral assistance.
- The other statement to which India is a signatory is the one on clean and just transition towards carbon neutrality.
Conclusion
India’s participation in this meeting as an observer serves to advance its foreign and security policy objectives and will keep it in good stead when it assumes the G20 presidency in December.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 3- Challenges ahead for tech startups
Context
The startup ecosystem which has been in overdrive for the past few years — propelled by a combination of factors, but largely, by the era of cheap money — is now showing signs of weakness.
Factors that helped fuel the tech startups
- With the combination of accelerated financial inclusion (bank accounts), ease of identification (Aadhaar) and connectivity (mobile phones) it was said that it is ultimately a bet on the Indian consumer, and the economy, not on government regulations/policies.
- Low-interest rates: In the era of cheap money and negative real interest rates, uncomfortable questions over the true market size and profitability were swept under the rug.
- Growth fuelled by cash burn: High cash burn rates were the norm as both startups and investors sought growth by subsidising the customer.
What is going wrong?
- Lack of profitability: Among the startups that have gone public in recent times, Paytm’s losses stood at Rs 2,396 crore in 2021-22, while for Zomato and PB Fintech (PolicyBazaar) losses were Rs 1,222 crore and Rs 832 crore respectively.
- Drying-up of investment: Sure, investors will continue to pour money.
- Some early age start-ups will continue to be funded, as will some of the more mature ones.
- But investors are likely to be more circumspect in their dealings.
- Impact on valuation: There are also reports of startups in diverse markets, ranging from Ola to OYO, planning to raise funds at lower valuations.
- Among those who have gone public in recent times, most are trading much below their listing price.
- Tighter financial conditions, a re-rating of the market, will impact both fundraising efforts and valuations.
Lack of discretionary spending capacity
- Many numbers were given as indicators of the size of the market or TAM (the total addressable market).
- Smartphone users: One such number thrown around is the smartphone users in the country — some have pegged this at 500 million.
- UPI transactions: The transactions routed through the UPI platform — in May there were almost six billion transactions worth Rs 10 trillion.
- Bank account holders: We have the near universality of bank accounts.
- But in reality, for most of these startups, the market or even the potential market is just a fraction of this.
- There aren’t that many consumers with significant discretionary spending capacity, and those with the capacity aren’t increasing their spending as these companies would hope.
- No increase in spending: What is equally worrying is the complete absence of any increase in spending by even these consumers who would have the capacity to spend more.
- While more consumers are on-board digital payment platforms — Paytm has about 70 million monthly transacting users — these numbers suggest that when it comes to consumers with considerable discretionary spending, the size of the market shrivels considerably.
Conclusion
Tech startups are about to witness a tough time ahead. Some startups will survive this period. Many may not. And changes in the dynamics of private markets will also have a bearing on public markets.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 3- E-commerce regulation issue
Context
The proliferation of a wide range of e-commerce platforms has created convenience and increased consumer choice. However, these platforms also have given rise to several concerns as well.
What is e-commerce ?
- Electronic commerce or e-commerce is a business model that lets firms and individuals buy and sell things over the Internet.
- Propelled by rising smartphone penetration, the launch of 4G networks and increasing consumer wealth, the Indian e-commerce market is expected to grow to US$ 200 billion by 2026 from US$ 38.5 billion in 2017.
- India’s e-commerce revenue is expected to jump from US$ 39 billion in 2017 to US$ 120 billion in 2020, growing at an annual rate of 51%, the highest in the world.
- The Indian e-commerce industry has been on an upward growth trajectory and is expected to surpass the US to become the second-largest e-commerce market in the world by 2034.
Advantages of e-Commerce
- The process of e-commerce enables sellers to come closer to customers that lead to increased productivity and perfect competition. The customer can also choose between different sellers and buy the most relevant products as per requirements, preferences, and budget. Moreover, customers now have access to virtual stores 24/7.
- e-Commerce also leads to significant transaction cost reduction for consumers.
- e-commerce has emerged as one of the fast-growing trade channels available for the cross-border trade of goods and services.
- It provides a wider reach and reception across the global market,with minimum investments. It enables sellers to sell to a global audience and also customers to make a global choice. Geographical boundaries and challenges are eradicated/drastically reduced.
- Through direct interaction with final customers, this e-commerce process cuts the product distribution chain to a significant extent. A direct and transparent channel between the producer or service provider and the final customer is made. This way products and services that are created to cater to the individual preferences of the target audience.
- Customers can easily locate products since e-commerce can be one store set up for all the customers’ business needs
- Ease of doing business: It makes starting, managing business easy and simple.
- The growth in the e-commerce sector can boost employment, increase revenues from export, increase tax collection by ex-chequers, and provide better products and services to customers in the long-term.
Issues created by the e-commerce sites
- Predatory pricing: These companies resort to predatory pricing to acquire customers even as they suffer persistent financial losses.
- SEBI is rightly revisiting the valuation norms of such companies looking to list on the stock exchange.
- Exclusionary practice: They take away choice from suppliers and consumers.
- This, in the long run, can be viewed as an exclusionary practice that eliminates other players from the market.
- Lack of level playing field: While neutrality is the fundamental basis of a marketplace and a level playing field is in the fitness of things, claims of outfits such as Flipkart or Amazon to be a marketplace for a wide variety of sellers can be questioned.
- A few select sellers, who are generally affiliated with the platform, reap the benefits of greater visibility and better terms of trade — reduced commissions and platform-funded discounts.
- Undue advantage to associated companies: The associate companies are prominent sellers on their platform.
- It is alleged that undue advantage is given while recommending or listing these products.
- Cartelisation: Online travel aggregators are often accused of cartelisation.
- Information asymmetry: The aggregators gather shopping habits, consumer preferences, and other personal data.
- The platforms are accused of using this data to create and improve their own products and services, taking away business from other sellers on their platform.
- They capitalise on this data and information about other brands to launch competing products on their marketplace.
- This information asymmetry is exploited by the aggregators to devour organisations they promise to support.
- Problems in dispute resolution mechanism: Another issue often noticed is the lack of a fair and transparent dispute resolution mechanism for sellers on these platforms.
- Delayed payments, unreasonable charges, and hidden fees are common occurrences.
- Unreasonable and one-sided contracts allow travel aggregators to have a disparity clause (in the rates) which allows them to offer rooms at a much cheaper rate but bars the hotels from doing so.
Impact of the e-commerce
- The online aggregator platforms have also damaged large segments of small and medium businesses through their dominant position and the malpractices this position allows them to indulge in.
- The ultimate loss bearer is the consumer who will have a reduced bargaining position.
Way forward
- Comprehensive rules: It is time that a set of comprehensive rules and regulations is put together.
- These regulations need to be inclusive, should eliminate the conflicts of interest inherent in current market practices, and prevent any anti-competitive practices.
- Model agreement: A model agreement that is fair and allows a level playing field between the aggregators and their business partners should be implemented.
- Learning from EU act: There is a lot to learn from the Digital Markets Act of the EU that seeks to address unfair practices by these gatekeepers.
- Need for dispute resolution mechanism: Strong and quick grievance redressal and dispute resolution mechanisms should be established.
- Punitive penalties: The rules should allow for punitive penalties for unfair practices.
- Fair competition rules: Market dominance and subsequent invoking of fair competition rules should be triggered at the level of micro-markets and for product segments.
Conclusion
The nature of our success in dealing with this change will lie in the ways in which we deal with the concerns of all players.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Di-ammonium fertilisers
Mains level: Paper 3- Reducing the cost of fertiliser imports
Context
The global prices of urea, DAP, MOP, phosphoric acid, ammonia and LNG have soared by two to two-and-a-half times in the last year
Resource richness of Indian agriculture
- No country has as much area under farming as India.
- Land under cultivation: At 169.3 million hectares (mh) in 2019, its land used for crop cultivation was higher than that of the US (160.4 mh), China (135.7 mh), Russia (123.4 mh) or Brazil (63.5 mh).
- Ample water: With its perennial Himalayan rivers and average annual rainfall of nearly 1,200 mm – against Russia’s 475 mm, China’s 650 mm and the US’s 750 mm – India has no dearth of land, water and sunshine to sustain vibrant agriculture.
- But there’s one resource in which the country is short and heavily import-dependent — mineral fertilisers.
India’s important dependence
- In 2021-22, India imported 10.16 million tonnes (mt) of urea, 5.86 mt of di-ammonium phosphate (DAP) and 2.91 mt of muriate of potash (MOP).
- Import value: In value terms, imports of all fertilisers touched an all-time high of $12.77 billion last fiscal.
- In 2021-22, India also produced 25.07 mt of urea, 4.22 mt of DAP, 8.33 mt of complex fertilisers (containing nitrogen-N, phosphorus-P, potassium-K and sulphur-S in different ratios) and 5.33 mt of single super phosphate (SSP).
- Import of raw material: The intermediates or raw materials for the manufacture of these fertilisers were substantially imported.
- Total value of fertiliser imports: The total value of fertiliser imports by India, inclusive of inputs used in domestic production, was a whopping $24.3 billion in 2021-22.
Two costs involved in import
- 1] Foreign exchange outgo for import: The first is foreign exchange outgo:
- Imports are mostly from the following countries:
- Urea: Imported from China, Oman, UAE and Egypt
- DAP: Imported from China, Saudi Arabia and Morocco.
- MOP: Imported from Belarus, Canada, Russia, Israel and Jordan.
- LNG: Imported from Qatar, US, UAE and Nigeria.
- Ammonia: Morocco, Jordan, Senegal and Tunisia (phosphoric acid); Saudi Arabia and Qatar.
- Rock phosphate: Jordan, Morocco, Egypt and Togo.
- 2] Fiscal cost: The second cost is fiscal.
- Fertilisers are not only imported but also sold at subsidised prices.
- The difference is paid as a subsidy by the government.
- That bill was Rs 1,53,658.11 crore or $20.6 billion in 2021-22 and projected at Rs 2,50,000 crore ($32 billion) this fiscal.
- Unsustainably high costs: Both costs are unsustainably high to bear for a mineral resource-poor country.
Suggestions
1] Reduce consumption of high-analysis fertilisers
- There is a need to cap or even reduce consumption of high-analysis fertilisers – particularly urea (46 per cent N content), DAP (18 per cent N and 46 per cent P) and MOP (60 per cent).
- Incorporate urease and inhibition compounds in urea: This can be done by incorporating urease and nitrification inhibition compounds in urea.
- These are basically chemicals that slow down the rate at which urea is hydrolysed and nitrified (which increases leaching).
- By reducing ammonia volatilisation and nitrate leaching, more nitrogen is made available to the crop, enabling farmers to harvest the same yields with a lesser number of urea bags.
- Liquid nano-urea: Together with products such as liquid “nano urea” –it is possible to achieve a 20 per cent or more drop in urea consumption from the present 34-35 mt levels.
- Liquid nano-urea with their ultra-small particle size is conducive to easier absorption by the plants than with bulk fertilisers, translating into higher nitrogen use efficiency.
2] Promote the sale of SSP and complex fertilisers
- A second route is by promoting sales of SSP (containing 16 per cent P and 11 per cent S) and complex fertilisers such as “20:20:0:13” and “10:26:26”.
- Restrict DAP use: DAP use should be restricted mainly to paddy and wheat; other crops don’t require fertilisers with 46 per cent P content.
- India can also import more rock phosphate to make SSP directly or it can be converted into “weak” phosphoric acid
- The latter, having only about 29 per cent P (compared to 52-54 per cent in normal “strong” merchant-grade phosphoric acid), is good enough for manufacturing “20:20:0:13”, “10:26:26” and other low-analysis complex fertilisers.
3] Incorporate MOP into complexes
- As regards MOP, roughly three-fourths of the imported material is now applied directly and only the balance is sold after incorporating into complexes.
- It should be the other way around.
- India, to re-emphasise, needs to wean its farmers away from all high-analysis fertilisers.
4] Use of NPKS complexes and indigenous sources
- The moment to use more NPKS complexes and SSP, is already happening.
- It requires a concerted push, alongside popularising high nutrient use-efficient water-soluble fertilisers (potassium nitrate, potassium sulphate, calcium nitrate, etc).
- Exploiting alternative indigenous sources needs to be considered (for example, potash derived from molasses-based distillery spent-wash and from seaweed extract).
5] Revise nutrient application recommendations
- Farmers need to know what is a suitable substitute for DAP and which NPK complex or organic manure can bring down their urea application from 2.5 to 1.5 bags per acre.
- It calls for agriculture departments and universities not just to revisit their existing crop-wise nutrient application recommendations, but disseminating this information to farmers on a campaign mode.
Conclusion
The costs associated with the use of fertilisers are unsustainably high to bear for a mineral resource-poor country such as India. We need to act on the measures to reduce our import dependence.
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Back2Basics: High-analysis fertilisers
- Fertilizers that have more than 30% total available nutrients are called high analysis fertilizers, whereas those with less than 30% total available nutrients are called low analysis fertilizers.
- A 15-15-15 is a high analysis fertilizer; a 5-10-10 is a low analysis fertilizer, and a 10-10-10 is right on the borderline.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: UNCLOS
Mains level: Paper 2- India-Vietnam defence ties
Context
The two countries recently deepened bilateral cooperation with the signing of the Joint Vision Statement on India-Vietnam Defence Partnership towards 2030 during the recent visit of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to Vietnam.
About the Joint Vision Statement
- India and Vietnam Wednesday signed a Joint Vision Statement on India-Vietnam Defence Partnership towards 2030, “which will significantly enhance the scope and scale of existing defence cooperation”.
- Boosting the scale and scope of defence cooperation: The Joint Vision Statement is aimed at boosting the scope and scale of the existing defence cooperation between the two nations.
- Mutual logistic support: The two sides also signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on mutual logistics support.
- Elevating CSP: This is the first agreement of its kind that Hanoi has entered into with any other country and elevates the standing of Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) which Hanoi shares with New Delhi since 2016 (along with only Russia and China).
Enhanced maritime cooperation
- Both countries find convergence in their approaches towards the maintenance of stability and security of the Indo-Pacific.
- This approach has translated into diplomatic and political support in the context of developments within the region and manifested in the form of tangible and functional cooperation instruments — the most vital being bilateral defence partnership.
- Because of the volume of maritime trade that passes through sea lanes of communication in the Indo-Pacific and potential as well as estimated energy reserves in these waters, maritime cooperation between countries in the region have expanded exponentially.
Emphasis on the cooperative mechanism
- The enhanced geostrategic prominence and attendant uncertainties vis-à-vis China’s expanding and often abrasive footprints in the Indo-Pacific have resulted in an overall increase in emphasis on cooperative mechanisms and frameworks across the region.
- Defence partnership between the two countries has been growing steadily following the signing of the Defence Protocol in 2000 and today covers extensive navy-to-navy cooperation.
Dealing with Chinese transgression
- Vietnam has and continues to be one of the most vocal countries with respect to China’s periodic transgressions in the South China Sea.
- Freedom of navigation: In India, Vietnam has found an equally uncompromising partner when it comes to the question of violations of freedom of navigation and threats to sovereign maritime territorial rights as enshrined under international maritime law.
- New Delhi has supported Vietnam’s position in the South China Sea with respect to Beijing’s destabilising actions and coercive tactics backing by reiterating the irrefutability of the UNCLOS.
- India has also not backed down from continuing ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL)’s oil exploration project in Block 128 (which is within Hanoi’s EEZ) despite China’s protests.
- Emphasis on naval diplomacy: It is also in the last few years that Vietnam has augmented its emphasis on naval diplomacy and strengthened its ties with the US alongside the extension of its engagement with India and other ASEAN members.
- Despite the fact that the China factor has provided impetus to the solidification of ties, it is also important to consider that mutual cooperation is not driven solely by it.
- Support in the rubric of Indo-Pacific: Both countries have expanded areas of collaboration and are supportive of each other’s individual and multilateral involvements within the rubric of the Indo-Pacific.
Conclusion
Convergences between New Delhi and Hanoi has naturally found expression in bilateral relations and the two countries are poised to develop their partnership further in the coming years.
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Back2Basics: About UNCLOS
- UNCLOS is sometimes referred to as the Law of the Sea Convention or the Law of the Sea treaty.
- It came into operation and became effective from 16th November 1982.
- It defines the rights and responsibilities of nations with respect to their use of the world’s oceans, establishing guidelines for businesses, the environment, and the management of marine natural resources.
- It has created three new institutions on the international scene :
-
- International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea,
- International Seabed Authority
- Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- Abortion rights in the US
Context
With the US Supreme Court’s overturning of abortion as a constitutionally guaranteed right, America has taken another step towards democratic backsliding.
Background of the Roe v Wade case
- Bodily autonomy: Roe, the 1973 outcome of an unmarried woman’s crusade for bodily autonomy, had declared overbroad, and consequently unconstitutional, a provision of the Texas Penal Code which permitted only those abortions that were “procured or attempted by medical advice to save the life of the mother”.
- Right to abortion: While locating the right of privacy within the guarantee of personal liberty enshrined in the fourteenth amendment of the American constitution, Roe embodies a supervening constitutional right to abortion emanating from this right of privacy.
- The right to abort was held to be a constitutionally protected right within the right of privacy.
- Recognition of states’ rights: The decision simultaneously recognised the state’s interest in protecting the life of the foetus as also the life of the mother.
- Roe is not only relevant as a progressive trailblazer for reproductive rights in the United States but is also fundamental to constitutional jurisprudence globally for the interpretative tools it employed.
Overturning of Roe Vs Wade case
- The US Supreme Court on June 24 overturned a half-century-old right to abortion, granted by a 1973 Supreme Court decision in the Roe vs Wade case.
- No nationwide right to abortion: With a 5-4 majority, the court has said that American women have no nationwide right to abortion.
- Rather, state legislatures should decide whether women can have that right in their respective states.
- Concerns about the life of the unbors: In the court’s opinion, the right to privacy stemming from the 14th Amendment is not relevant, for abortion concerns not only the pregnant woman but also the life of the unborn.
- Not mentioned in the 1787 constitution: Moreover, the court said, abortion is neither “enumerated” as a right in the original 1787 constitution nor is it consistent with American history and tradition.
- Taking away the right once granted: In a democracy, can a right once granted be taken away?
- As the world’s oldest surviving democracy, the United States has figured prominently in this debate.
- With the overturning of Roe vs Wade, this debate has now become wider.
Was the right to abortion constitutionally justified?
- Protection of liberty and privacy: The 1973 court decision allowing the right to abortion was based on the 14th Constitutional Amendment (1868).
- Even though abortion was not mentioned in the 1787 US Constitution, abortion’s defence was derived from the 1868 Amendment
- This Amendment, the court said, allowed protection of liberty and privacy, something the state could not impinge upon.
- Not absolute right: The 1973 court also argued that this right was not absolute, limited as it would be by considerations of “protecting potential life”.
Issues with the overturning of Roe Vs. Wade case
- 1] No constitution can anticipate the evolution of rights: Abortion was not mentioned in the 1787 constitution, nor explicitly in the 1868 amendment.
- That is because women were not autonomous political agents at that time.
- Until they were given the right to vote in 1920, they were not a constitutional category in the US, as was true virtually everywhere in the world.
- Women are autonomous agents today. Norms change; rights evolve.
- 2] Ignores rape and incest: As the court’s dissent note puts it, this majority decision ignore rape and incest.
- If abortion as a right is dissolved, women can be forced to give such unwanted births.
- The majority decision of the court is silent on this important matter.
- 3] Against the right to participate equally in economic and social life: Having a child is not simply a deeply moral obligation to the unborn.
- It is also a decision that affects “the ability of women to participate equally in (the nation’s) economic and social life”.
- These words are from a later decision, known as Casey (1992), when the US Supreme Court added the concept of “undue burdens” to support the idea of abortion.
- 4] Right over body ignored: Men don’t have to deal physically with pregnancy, whereas the foetus grows inside a woman’s body for nine months.
- If men have the right over their bodies, which can’t be taken away by the government,then women should also have autonomy over their bodies as well.
- Maternity must be a voluntary choice.
- There is no going back to the notion of rights as they were viewed in the 18th century — unequal, unneutral, unbalanced.
Conclusion
Typically, as they evolve and deepen, democracies allow the arc of rights to broaden further, not retreat. After this judgment in the US, the stakes have become much higher and the democratic challenges bigger.
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From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Article 89
Mains level: Paper 2- Role of Rajya Sabha
Context
This article seeks to re-articulate a question pertaining to the composition of the Council of States.
Historical background and CAD over the issue of second chamber
- Lokanath Misra led the charge against a federal second chamber in the Constituent Assembly stating that there was not need for the second chamber and also that it will not serve any useful purpose.
- Shibban Lal Saksena, was equally emphatic: He said that as per their experience, the Upper House acts as a clog in the wheel of progress.
- They were not the only ones who had concerns. Other members expressed them too in different contexts during the Constituent Assembly debate on draft Article 67.
Issues with the role of Rajya Sabha
- Unable to protect the interest of the States: Article 1(1) of the Indian Constitution states “India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States.”
- Therefore, the primary responsibility of a Council of States would be to protect the interests of the states vis a vis the Union.
- There is hardly any empirical evidence that substantiates that the Rajya Sabha has measured upto the task ever since it came into existence on April 3r 1952.
- No focus on states: From 1952 to 2003, at least there was a veneer of a state focus when it was mandatory that any citizen desirous of contesting a Rajya Sabha election had to be an elector from that particular state.
- By amending Section 3(1) of the Representation of People’s Act 1952 and doing away with the domicile requirement, the Government removed this fig leaf also in 2003.
- A five-judge bench did not uphold tha challenge to this judgement.
- This amendment and the subsequent judgment buried the earlier practice of individuals entering the Rajya Sabha from anywhere based upon rather dodgy but still some form of domicile credentials.
- All states do not have bicameral legislature: Twenty-four states have unicameral legislatures, that is, only one legislative body, and only six states are bicameral.
- If the bulk of the states can make do with one House why not the Centre?
- Rajya Sabha as continuous house argument: It is also argued that the Rajya Sabha is a continuous House as opposed to the Lok Sabha that gets mandatorily dissolved every five years if not sooner.
- That can be fixed with a simple amendment to Article 83 (2) that should state that “Lok Sabha would remain in existence till the time its successor body/house is not constituted.
- Article 83 (1) would stand deleted and consequential amendments can be carried out to other parts of the Constitution.
Conclusion
It would be instructive to keep in mind that the Basic Structure doctrine enunciated by the Supreme Court in Re: Kesvananda Bharti holds parliamentary democracy to be basic structure, not bicameralism.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- Purchasing Russian oil
Context
This week the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times both reported on India emerging as a major buyer of Russian oil.
Background of rising fuel prices due to Ukraine crisis
- A significant fallout of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has been the rising cost of petroleum.
- In response to the invasion, Western countries, including the United States and Europe, have imposed an array of sanctions against Russia.
- Reduced purchases from Russia: Europe and the United States have seen the price of oil steadily rise after they reduced their purchases from Russia.
- For now, Russia has been able to mitigate the impact of sanctions by selling crude, oil and coal at reasonable prices in greater volumes to newer bulk buyers like India, to combat Europe trying to wean itself off Russian crude.
Why India increased purchase of Russian oil
- India has chosen a different route.
- Cope with rising fuel prices: We are the third-largest importer and consumer of oil in the world and have increased our purchase of Russian oil to cope with rising oil prices elsewhere.
- We are also refining crude oil or turning it into products like jet fuel and diesel and selling it to Europe and other nations.
- Curb inflation: Importing Russian crude also helps us curb inflation that has been made worse by rising fuel prices.
- Halting the fall of the rupee: Procuring discounted Russian oil is an effort by the government to bring down prices and halt the decline in the value of the Indian rupee.
- India’s behaviour is governed by our best interest, which is the most important element of any astute foreign and economic policy.
Issues with purchasing oil from Russia
- The European Union has announced a ban against insuring ships carrying Russian oil, to commence this December.
- Insurance ban: Countries like India, China and Turkey that are increasing their oil purchases from Russia have six months to find a work-around to the insurance ban by using non-European insurance companies.
- European companies own most of the ships carrying Russian oil to India.
- These insurance sanctions will impact the companies that own these ships as well.
- Dependence for batteries: Apart from geopolitical changes in the world indicating the rise of China, there is a major change: Electric vehicles and electric batteries substituting for non-renewable resources like petroleum and diesel.
- India cannot afford to be dependent on an unhindered supply of electric batteries from China, given geopolitical considerations and border disputes between the two nations.
Way forward
- To weather the new electric era that will no doubt be dotted with territorial wars and national security concerns, India would do well to preempt shortages in the arena – by putting in place factories which will build the electric batteries that will power our futures.
- What the invasion of Ukraine has taught us is that we need to be more self-reliant and have in-house energy sources.
Conclusion
India needs to factor in the implications of comprehensive western sanctions as it increases its purchase of discounted Russian oil.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Paper 2- Use of NMMS app and issues
Context
The National Mobile Monitoring Software (NMMS) app seeks to improve citizen oversight and increase transparency in NREGA works. This causes significant difficulty for NREGA workers.
About NMMS app
- National Mobile Monitoring Software (NMMS) App was launched by the Minister of Rural Development on May, 21 2021.
- The National Mobile Monitoring App is applicable for the Mahatma Gandhi NREGA workers for all the States/ Union Territories.
- This app is aimed at bringing more transparency and ensure proper monitoring of the schemes.
- The main feature of the app is the real-time, photographed, geo-tagged attendance of every worker to be taken once in each half of the day.
- The app helps in increasing citizen oversight of the programme.
Issues with the use of the app
- While such an app may be useful in monitoring the attendance of workers who have fixed work timings, in most States, NREGA wages are calculated based on the amount of work done each day, and workers do not need to commit to fixed hours.
- Disproportionately affects women: NREGA has historically had a higher proportion of women workers (54.7% in FY 2021-22) and has been pivotal in changing working conditions for women in rural areas.
- Due to the traditional burden of household chores and care work on women, the app is likely to disproportionately affect women workers.
- Lack of stable network: There are challenges of implementation with the NMMS as well.
- A stable network is a must for real-time monitoring; unfortunately, it remains patchy in much of rural India.
- NREGA Mates impacted: The app has adversely impacted NREGA Mates as well.
- The role of a Mate was conceptualised as an opportunity to empower local women to manage attendance and work measurement in their panchayat.
- To be a Mate, one needs to have a smartphone.
- This new condition disqualifies thousands of women who do not own smartphones from becoming Mates.
- Erosion of transparency: The app claims to “increase citizen oversight” by “bringing more transparency and ensuring proper monitoring of the schemes, besides potentially enabling processing payments faster”.
- With no physical attendance records signed by workers anymore, workers have no proof of their attendance and work done.
- No clarity provided on corruption: While ostensibly the NMMS’s focus on real-time, geo-tagged attendance could be one way of addressing this corruption, the MoRD has not provided much clarity on either the magnitude of this corruption or the manner in which the NMMS addresses it.
- No parameters: There are no parameters established to assess the app’s performance, either on transparency, or on quicker processed payments.
Way forward
- Social audits: Social audits are citizen-centric institutions, where the citizens of the panchayat have a direct role and say in how NREGA functions in their panchayat.
- Audits have worked well in the past, allowing the local rights holders to be invested in decisions, and hold the administration accountable themselves.
Conclusion
The NMMS has very clear problems that will make it increasingly difficult for workers to continue working under NREGA, eroding the right to work that underwrites the NREGA Act.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Mains level: Paper 3- Transparency in RBI's policy making
Context
Modern inflation targeting central banks are often bound by explicit statutory mandates. Critics have argued that the RBI ignored its statutory inflation targeting duty.
Why transparency and predictability of the central bank is important?
- Prior to the 1990s, central banks preferred secrecy.
- Surprising market: The common wisdom was that the efficacy of monetary policy depended on taking markets by surprise.
- This belief started changing gradually with the adoption of inflation targeting.
- Influencing the inflation expectations: Targeting inflation required central banks to influence households’ and firms’ decisions.
- Thus emerged the need for central banks to be transparent and predictable.
Independence with accountability of the Central bank
- There was growing international recognition that central banks as monetary authorities should enjoy a relatively higher degree of independence from governments.
- In a democratic polity, this could only be expected in exchange for increased accountability.
- As a result, regulatory governance gradually emerged as a relevant consideration for independent central banks over the last three decades.
Regulatory governance at the RBI
- The regulatory governance discourse in India came into the focus with the report of the Financial Sector Legislative Reforms Commission in 2013.
- Like a state, regulators usually enjoy significant legislative, executive and judicial powers and should be subject to appropriate accountability mechanisms.
- These should include internal separation of powers; a well-structured regulation making process overseen by the board, through public consultation and cost-benefit analysis; duty to explain its actions to regulated entities and public at large; regular reporting requirements; and judicial review.
- Based on these recommendations, the Ministry of Finance released a handbook in 2013 for voluntary adoption of these enhanced governance standards by all financial sector regulators.
- These developments turned the spotlight on the RBI’s regulatory governance.
Reasons for the criticism of the RBI
- Targeting exchange rate: The central bank appears to have ventured into uncharted legal territory by possibly targeting the exchange rate instead of inflation.
- Regulatory governance issues: Separately, critics have also highlighted broader regulatory governance challenges at the RBI.
- For instance, its alleged use of informal nudges to restrict a foreign player’s access to the Indian payment ecosystem goes against an adverse Supreme Court ruling.
- Such criticisms underline an urgent need to improve the credibility of the central bank’s rule of law quotient.
- Least responsive in legislative function: A 2019 research paper found the central bank’s legislative functions to be the least responsive in comparison to three other regulators – SEBI, TRAI and AERA.
- RBI’ss consultation papers usually presented only one solution and did not offer merits and demerits of multiple possible solutions.
Implications of weak regulatory governance: Judicial scrutiny
- Weak regulatory governance resulted in weak regulations, inviting judicial scrutiny.
- Changes in master circular: In 2019, the Supreme Court effectively rewrote RBI’s master circular on wilful defaulters to provide additional procedural safeguards to borrowers.
- Striking down of crypto ban: In 2020, the court struck down an RBI circular that sought to ban its regulated entities from dealing or settling in virtual currencies.
- The court found that the RBI had neither adduced any cogent evidence of the likely harm, nor had it considered any less intrusive alternative before issuing the circular.
RRA 2.0 suggestions for the RBI
- The recent report of the Regulations Review Authority 2.0 (RRA) offers useful suggestions to improve the central bank’s regulation-making process.
- The RBI had set up the Review Authority 2.0 (RRA) in April 2021 to streamline its regulations.
- Skill improvement in regulatory drafting: RRA has advocated for skill development in regulatory drafting inside the RBI.
- Public consultation: To improve regulatory governance at the RBI, RRA suggested that its regulatory instructions should be issued only after public consultation, except if they are urgent or time sensitive.
- They must contain a brief statement of objects and reasons clearly explaining the rationale behind their issuance.
- Although much softer than the FSRLC standards, RRA nevertheless signal a progressive step forward.
Conclusion
The RBI should heed these recommendations. It should ideally hardcode the suggested principles into a secondary legislation that is binding on itself. That would be the best way to signal that the central bank takes regulatory governance and rule of law seriously.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Soil Health Card
Mains level: Paper 3- Soil degradation
Context
A key element of sustainable food production is healthy soil because nearly 95 per cent of global food production depends on soil. The current status of soil health is worrisome.
The threat posed by soil degradation
- The challenge to food security: Soil degradation on an unprecedented scale is a significant challenge to sustainable food production.
- About one-third of the earth’s soils is already degraded and alarmingly, about 90 per cent could be degraded by 2050 if no corrective action is taken.
- Soil degradation in India: While soil degradation is believed to be occurring in 145 million hectares in India, it is estimated that 96.40 million hectares — about 30 per cent of the total geographical area — is affected by land degradation.
- The FAO’s latest ‘State of the World’s Land and Water Resources for Food and Agriculture’ says: “…soil pollution is also an issue. It knows no borders and compromises the food we eat, the water we drink and the air we breathe.
- Globally, the biophysical status of 5,670 million hectares of land is declining, of which 1,660 million hectares (29 per cent) is attributed to human-induced land degradation, according to the Food and Agriculture Organisation’s ‘State of Land, Soil and Water’ report.
Cause of the problem
- Use of agrochemicals: The excessive or inappropriate use of agrochemicals is one cause of the problem.
- The global annual production of industrial chemicals has doubled since the beginning of the 21st century, to approximately 2.3 billion tonnes.
- Extensive use of fertilisers and pesticides led to the deterioration of soil health and contamination of water bodies and the food chain, which pose serious health risks to people and livestock.
- Salination: Another challenge comes from salinisation, which affects 160 million hectares of cropland worldwide.”
About Soil Health Card Scheme
- Soil Health Card (SHC) scheme is promoted by the Department of Agriculture & Co-operation under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare.
- An SHC is meant to give each farmer soil nutrient status of his/her holding and advice him/her on the dosage of fertilizers and also the needed soil amendments, that s/he should apply to maintain soil health in the long run.
- SHC is a printed report that a farmer will be handed over for each of his holdings.
- It will be made available once in a cycle of 2 years, which will indicate the status of soil health of a farmer’s holding for that particular period.
- The SHC given in the next cycle of 2 years will be able to record the changes in the soil health for that subsequent period.
- Under the programme as of date, soil health cards have been distributed to about 23 crore farmers.
- The scheme has not only helped in improving the health of the soil, but has also benefited innumerable farmers by increasing crop production and their incomes.
Progress made so far on soil restoration
- India is well on course to achieving the restoration of 26 million hectares of degraded land by 2030.
- A study conducted by the National Productivity Council in 2017 on this programme revealed that there has been a decrease in the use of chemical fertilisers in the range of 8-10 per cent as a result of the application of fertilisers and micro-nutrients as per the recommendations on the soil health cards.
- Overall, an increase in crop yields to the tune of 5-6 per cent was reported as a result.
- First organic state in the world: “A Healthy Planet for Healthy Children’’ published by the United Nations Institute for Training and Research and the World Future Council highlighted success stories from various countries — including Sikkim in India, which became the first organic state in the world.
Way forward
- Natural farming: Several studies have established that natural farming and organic farming are not only cost-effective but also lead to improvement in soil health and the farmland ecosystem.
- Agro-ecological practices: With the threat to food security looming large globally, the need of the hour is to adopt innovative policies and agro-ecological practices that create healthy and sustainable food production systems.
Conclusion
The time has come for collective global action involving governments and civil society to reverse the alarming trend of soil degradation.
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Note4Students
From UPSC perspective, the following things are important :
Prelims level: Contingency Reserve Arrangement (CRA)
Mains level: Paper 2- The Ukraine conflict and BRICS
Context
China is hosting the 14th BRICS summit in virtual mode. The focus of the summit will be centred on the conflict and the association’s future.
About BRICS
- BRICS is an acronym for the grouping of the world’s leading emerging economies, namely Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
- The BRICS Leaders’ Summit is convened annually.
- It does not exist in form of an organization, but it is an annual summit between the supreme leaders of five nations.
- The grouping was formalized during the first meeting of BRIC Foreign Ministers on the margins of the UNGA in New York in September 2006.
- The first BRIC Summit took place in 2009 in the Russian Federation and focused on issues such as reform of the global financial architecture.
- South Africa was invited to join BRIC in December 2010, after which the group adopted the acronym BRICS.
- South Africa subsequently attended the Third BRICS Summit in Sanya, China, in March 2011.
- The Chairmanship of the forum is rotated annually among the members, in accordance with the acronym B-R-I-C-S.
Significance of BRICS
- Economically, militarily, technologically, socially and culturally, BRICS nations represent a powerful bloc.
- 40 per cent of the world’s population: They have an estimated combined population of 3.23 billion people, which is over 40 per cent of the world’s population.
- 25 per cent of global GDP: They account for over more than a quarter of the world’s land area over three continents, and for more than 25 per cent of the global GDP.
- Two fastest growing large economies: The grouping comprises two of the fastest-growing nations, India and China.
- It has proved its mettle to an extent by establishing the BRICS New Development Bank (NDB) and the Contingency Reserve Arrangement (CRA).
How the Ukraine crisis creates challenges for the BRICS
- The leaders of BRICS countries — Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa — will navigate the crucial dilemma of evolving a common stance on the Russian-Ukraine conflict.
- The primary agenda of BRICS was rebalancing an international system dominated by the West.
- However, the Ukraine crisis could act as a distraction from that primary agenda.
- The geopolitical considerations of its members can come in the way of attaining the grouping’s original goal.
- Target of economic warfare: Some of the BRICS members could be potential targets of the kind of economic warfare deployed by the West against Russia.
- The West has so far not expected the BRICS countries to stringently adhere to its sanctions against Russia.
- But it will be naïve to expect that they will persist with this attitude.
Way forward
1] Create institutional arrangement
- Challenging the economic might of the West in the near future might be close to impossible.
- Despite the group comprising China, India and Russia, intra-BRICS trade accounts for less than 20 per cent of global trade.
- BRICS is far from having its own payment mechanisms, international messaging systems or cards.
- The Ukraine crisis should drive home the need to create institutional arrangements that can cushion against similar financial turbulence in the future.
2] Recalibrate structure and expand
- BRICS requires a recalibration of its structure and agenda.
- Creating financial mechanisms and technological institutions could turn BRICS into a G20 for developing nations.
- It’s time to revisit the idea of expanding the grouping by inviting new members.
- This could also impart new vigour to the BRICS’s developmental goals.
3] Economic cooperation between India and China
- Economic cooperation between India and China is vital for the success of any future BRICS endeavour.
- The border conflict has created a mistrust of China in India.
- In the current situation, New Delhi is unlikely to take an anti-West stance.
- India, unlike China, is neither a UN Security Council member nor does it have major sticking points with the West.
- At the same time, India is not a part of the Western camp.
- That does open up the possibility of New Delhi taking a more proactive position in BRICS.
- The two powers need to come together for the sake of global governance reform.
Conclusion
The Ukraine crisis could be an occasion for the leaders of BRICS nations to commit themselves to the original goal of the bloc. It’s an opportunity they shouldn’t let go of.
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