• In a move that is expected to help India develop a manufacturing ecosystem for high-end drones, a top US drone manufacturer has announced a partnership with a leading Indian forging company to manufacture main landing gear components, subassemblies, and assemblies of remotely piloted aircraft in the country.
• San Diego-based General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI), a subsidiary of General Atomics, said its partnership with Bharat Forge Limited would result in significant capability-building for both companies and provide an impetus to the Indian large, unmanned aircraft industry.
• GA-ASI is eagerly looking forward to working with Bharat Forge in the critical field of aero-structure manufacturing,” said Vivek Lall, Chief Executive of General Atomics Global Corporation.
• With over five decades of experience in manufacturing a wide range of high-performance, critical safety components, Bharat Forge offers full-service supply capability from concept to product design, engineering, manufacturing, testing, and validation.
• Bharat Forge’s expertise in the field of forging is known globally, and their outstanding contributions in the aerospace sector has inspired us to work together for building the next generation of the world’s most advanced unmanned aerial vehicles,” Lall said.
• Baba Kalyani, Chairman and Managing Director of Bharat Forge Limited, said that aerospace is a high ‘technology intensive’ domain, which relies on product integrity, reliability, and zero defect.
• “This is a culture by itself and demands a strong focus on people and processes. As part of our Aerospace Growth Strategy, our collaboration with GA-ASI is a strong testimony of our culture in Bharat Forge Aerospace to assimilate and demonstrate the same, as partners to General Atomics, in making India Atmanirbhar,” Kalyani said.

Why in News?

• The National Commission for Indian System of Medicine (NCISM) and the Central Council for Research in Ayurvedic Sciences (CCRAS), the two prominent institutions under the Ministry of Ayush, Government of India for regulating medical education and conducting scientific research respectively, have launched ‘SMART’ (Scope for Mainstreaming Ayurveda Research in Teaching Professionals)

About ‘SMART’ (Scope for Mainstreaming Ayurveda Research in Teaching Professionals) Program:

• It is aimed to boost scientific research in priority healthcare research areas through Ayurveda colleges and hospitals.
• The proposed initiative is conceptualised with an objective to identify, support and promote innovative research ideas in healthcare research areas including Osteoarthritis, Iron Deficiency Anaemia, Chronic Bronchitis, Dyslipidemia, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Obesity, Diabetes Mellitus, Psoriasis, Generalised Anxiety Disorder, Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).
• The eligible Ayurveda academic institutions may apply by 10 January, 2023.
• All details regarding contact information, eligibility criteria and application process has been shared to all recognized academic institutions and hospitals through NCISM.
• The ‘SMART’ program will motivate teachers for taking up projects in designated areas of healthcare research and create a large database.

Why in News?

• Ministry of Coal converts suitable mine areas, after exhaustion of reserves, into eco-parks, sites for water sports, underground mine tourism, golf grounds, adventure, bird watching etc. These sites have good potential for recreation, revenue generation and employment for local people.

About Mudwani Dam Eco-park:

• Mudwani Dam Eco-park, developed by Northern Coalfields Limited in Singrauli and AnanyaVatika Eco-Restoration Park cum Pit Lake developed by South Eastern Coalfields Limited in Dola, both in Madhya Pradesh are unique examples for such initiatives.
• Mudwani Dam Eco-park in Singrauli, is spread over an area of 84,000m2and inaugurated during Vriksharopan Abhiyan 2021.
• Located in Jayant area, Mudwani Dam Eco-park is developed with beautiful water front, walking pathways, children sports area, restaurants and shops for local products will also be part of this eco-park.

AnanyaVatika Eco-Restoration Park:

• AnanyaVatika Eco-Restoration Park cum Pit Lake is developed after reclamation of abandoned OB dump of Sector “D” of Rajnagar Opencast Project of Hasedo Area located in Dola, Madhya Pradesh.
• It is one of the best examples of reclamation and sustainable development in Open Cast Mining Project.

About FAME India Phase II:

• Full name of scheme:Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles in India Phase II (FAME India Phase II).
• Implementing agency:Department of Heavy Industry.
• Objective:Promotion of Electric and hybrid vehicle in the country by offering upfront Incentive on purchase of Electric vehicles and by establishing charging Infrastructure for electric vehicles.
• Salient features of the scheme:
  • The scheme with total outlay of Rs 10,000 Crores over the period of three years (2019-20 to 2021-22) will be implemented with effect from 1st April 2019.
  • This scheme is the expanded version of the present scheme titled ‘FAME India1 which was launched on 1st April 2015, with total outlay of Rs. 895 crores.
  • Target is to support 10 Lakhs e-2Wheeler, 5 Lakhs e-3Wheelers, 55000 4Wheelers and 7000 Buses.
  • Under the scheme of FAME-II, the demand incentive for e-2W has been increased to Rs. 15,000/KWh from Rs. 10,000/KWh with an increase in cap from 20% to almost 40% of the cost of the vehicle to increase the adoption of e-2W.
  • The phase II of FAME-India Scheme has been extended for a period of two years after 31st March 2022.
• Benefits:The scheme will help in addressing the issue of environmental pollution and fuel security.

About:

• Distribution: The Indian rhinoceros (Rhinoceros unicornis) is found only in the Brahmaputra valley, parts of North Bengal, and parts of southern Nepal.
• Characteristics: It has a single black horn that can grow up to 60 cm, and a tough, grey-brown hide with skin folds, which gives the animal its characteristic armour-plated look.
• Conservation: The Indian rhino is listed as vulnerable (better than endangered, worse than near threatened) in the IUCN Red List; it was earlier placed in the endangered category.
• Population: According to the WWF, there are around 3,700 Indian rhinos in the wild today. Assam’s Kaziranga National Park (KNP) alone has 2,613 animals, according to a census carried out in March 2022. There are more than 250 other rhinos in the Orang, Pobitora, and Manas parks.

Rhino poaching:

• Rhinos have been poached for their horn, which is prized in some cultures.
• Ground rhino horn is used in traditional Chinese medicine to cure a range of ailments, from cancer to hangovers, and also as an aphrodisiac”; in Vietnam, a rhino horn is considered a status symbol.

Why in News?

• The Supreme Court ruled that a government cannot be held vicariously responsible for remarks made by its ministers even if the statement relates to affairs of the state.
• It said that a statement made by a minister cannot be attributed to the government by invoking the principle of collective responsibility.

What is the Principle of Collective Responsibility?

• This is the bedrock principle of parliamentary form of government.
• Article 75of the Constitution of India says that the Council of Ministers is collectively responsible to the Lok Sabha.
• This means that all the ministers own joint responsibility to the Lok Sabha for all their acts of omission and commission.
• When the Lok Sabha passes a no-confidence motion against the council of ministers, all the ministers have to resign including those ministers who are from the Rajya Sabha.
• The principle of collective responsibility also means that the Cabinet decisions bind all cabinet ministers (and other ministers) even if they differed in the cabinet meeting.
• It is the duty of every minister to stand by cabinet decisions and support them both within and outside the Parliament.
• If any minister disagrees with a cabinet decision and is not prepared to defend it, he must resign.
• Several ministers have resigned in the past owing to their differences with the cabinet.
  • For example, R. Ambedkar resigned because of his differences with his colleagues on the Hindu Code Bill in 1953.

Important Judgements of the Supreme Court w.r.t. Collective Responsibility:

• Common Cause v Union of India case –
  • The Supreme Court held that the principle of collective responsibility has two meanings.
    • Firstly, that all the members of a government are unanimous in support of policy.
    • Secondly, the ministers are responsible for the success and failures of the policies.
  • P. Anand v H.D. Deve Gowda case –
    • The court held that the principle of collective responsibility means all the ministers are collectively responsible for every decisiontaken whether their assent is present or not.
    • It means their decisions must have unanimity and confidentially.
    • This is great weapon in the hands of Prime Minister through which he maintains unity and discipline in his cabinet.

More about News:

• In a 4:1 majority judgement, the five-judge bench of the Supreme Court held that additional restrictions, not found in Article 19(2) of the Constitution, cannot be imposed on the exercise of right to free speech which is guaranteed under Article 19(1)(a).
• The Court ruled that the grounds mentioned in Article 19(2) for restricting free speech are exhaustive.
  • Article 19(2)of the Constitution guarantees freedom of speech and expression to all citizens of India.
  • This article is subjected to certain restrictions, namely, sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of the State, friendly relations with foreign States, public order, decency or morality or in relation to contempt of court, defamation or incitement to an offence.
  • Provisions in clauses (2) to (6) of Article 19 authorizes the State to restrict the exercise of the freedom guaranteed under the article.

Background on the case:

• The case emanates from a rape incident which took place in 2016.
• The then Minister of the State of Uttar Pradesh, Azam Khan, had trivialised the act by dismissing the incident as a ‘political conspiracy and nothing else’.
• The Court directed Azam Khan to submit an unconditional apology.
• While doing so, the court noted that this incident raises serious concerns regarding state obligation and freedom of speech and expression.
• The Court, in 2017, made a reference to a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court.

Constitution Bench’s Judgement:

• The majority of the five judges ruled that a statement made by a minister even if traceable to any affairs of the state or for protection of the government cannot be attributed vicariously to the government by invoking the principle of collective responsibility.
• The court held that the flow of stream in collective responsibility is from the Council of Ministers to the individual Ministers.
  • The flow is not on the reverse, namely, from the individual Ministers to the Council of Ministers.

Dissenting Judgement by one Judge:

• Justice B V Nagarathna, the fifth judge on the bench, said that while the government cannot be held vicariously responsible for personal remarks by a minister, such liability would exist if the statement also embodies the views of the government.
• All five judges, however, agreed that the right of free speech and expression guaranteed under Article 19 (1) (a) cannot be curbed by any additional grounds other than those already laid down in Article 19 (2).

Why in News?

• UIDAI enables ‘Head of Family’ based online address update in Aadhaar.
• The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has put in place a resident friendly facility to help people update their address online in Aadhaar with the consent of the Head of Family (HoF).
• This HoF based online address update in Aadhaar will be of great help to the relatives of a resident who don’t have supporting documents in their own name to update address in their Aadhaar.

How it can be done?

• It can be done by submitting Proof of Relationship document like Ration Card, Marksheet, Marriage Certificate, Passport mentioning the names and relationship of both the applicant and HOF.
• In case even Proof of Relationship document is not available, UIDAI provides the resident to submit a self-declaration by the HOF in the UIDAI prescribed format.

Who will be Beneficiaries?

• With people moving cities and towns due to various reasons within the country, such a facility will be beneficial for millions of people.
• This choice would be in addition to the existing address update facility using any valid Proof of Address document prescribed by UIDAI.
• Any resident above the age of 18 can be an HOF for this purpose and can share his or her address with his or her relatives through this process.

About UIDAI

• UIDAI was created with the objective to issue Unique Identification numbers (UID), named as “Aadhaar”, to all residents of India that is (a) robust enough to eliminate duplicate and fake identities, and (b) can be verified and authenticated in an easy, cost-effective way.
• UIDAI is a statutory authority established under the provisions of the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act, 2016.
• Prior to its establishment as a statutory authority, UIDAI was functioning as an attached office of the then Planning Commission (now NITI Aayog).
• Under the Aadhaar Act 2016, UIDAI is responsible for
  • Aadhaar enrolment and authentication, including operation and management of all stages of Aadhaar life cycle,
  • Developing the policy, procedure and system for issuing Aadhaar numbers to individuals and
  • Perform authentication and
  • To ensure the security of identity information and authentication records of individuals.
• It comes under the Electronics & IT ministry.

Why in News?

• India will take over the leadership of the Asian Pacific Postal Union (APPU) from January 2023.
• Vinaya Prakash Singh, erstwhile Member (Personnel), Postal Services Board will take over the charge of Secretary General of the Union for a tenure of four years.
• Secretary, Department of Posts, Vineet Pandey said, this is the first time an Indian is leading an international organization in the postal sector.

About Asian-Pacific Postal Union (APPU).

• The Asian-Pacific Postal Union(APPU) was formed (in its current form) by international treaty through an Asian-Pacific Postal Convention signed in Yogyakarta on 27 March 1981.
• The organisation has origins dating back to
• The APPU is an intergovernmental organization of 32-member countries of the Asian-Pacific region.
• Its Headquarters is located in Bangkok, Thailand.

Goal of Asian-Pacific Postal Union (APPU)

• The goal of APPU is to extend, facilitate and improve postal relations between member countries and to promote cooperation in the field of postal services.

• Mandi Additional Deputy Commissioner (ADC) Jatin Lal launched the Prospective Linked Credit Plan (PLP) for the year 2023-24 prepared by the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD).
• He said the PLP will meet the required credits for the priority sector of the district.
• He said a credit capacity of about Rs 3,681.62 crore has been assessed in the priority sector of the district for the year 2023-24 through
• Of these, Rs 1,956.46 crore has been estimated in agriculture, Rs 1,031.25 crore in micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) and Rs 693.91 crore in other priority sectors.

The ADC asked all banks and department heads to publicise government schemes to make their benefits accessible to the masses. He also appealed to the heads of banks to ensure banking services reach the needy.

• Crimes against women and Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) cases declined marginally in 2022, while the cases under IPC and other acts increased by 220 in the state.
• DGP Sanjay Kundu said that the crimes against women declined from 1,700 in 2021 to 1,606 in 2022 while the NDPS cases witnessed a marginal dip from 1,537 to 1,516 in the same period.
• A total of 19,053 cases were registered in 2022 in comparison to 18,833 cases registered in 2021, he said.
• The increase in cases is attributed to cases registered under the Excise Act which increased from 2,969 in 2021 to 3,119 in 2022 as a lot of these cases were registered during the Assembly polls, the DSP said.
• Various steps were taken to reduce crime against women and drug trafficking. A trial management system ensuring deposition by the witness and police to reduce the pendency of cases has led to expeditious trials in courts and improved convictions, he said.
• More than 10,000 people were deposed in 2022, Kundu said.
• A total of 543 cases of rape and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act were registered in the state in 2022 as compared to 612 in 2021 out of which 170 have been resolved by the court and 40 per cent led to the conviction, he said.
• The number of cases resolved has also increased from 67 to 170 due to a robust trial system, he said.
• Himachal Pradesh is the first state to start Register Number 26 to keep a tab on sexual offenders and 4,300 such offenders have been identified so far out of which 55 are repeat offenders, the DSP said.
• Similarly, Register number 29 was introduced to keep a record of drug peddlers under which 2,300 peddlers were identified in the state out of which 400 are repeat offenders, he said.