Syllabus: General Studies Paper 3

A group of environmentalists, lawyers, and activists have come together to identify and ‘defuse carbon bombs’– coal, oil and gas projects that have the potential to contribute significantly to global warming.

• The usage of the term ‘carbon bombs’ picked up after an investigative project of The Guardian
• The project reported the plans of countries and private companies all over the world to engage in 195 ‘carbon bomb’ projects.
• Each such project, will release huge amounts of CO2 emissions into the atmosphere.

What are carbon bombs?

• It is an oil or gas project that will result in at least a billion tonnes of CO2 emissions over its lifetime.
• Whenever coal, oil, or gas is extracted it results in pollution and environmental degradation.
• In total, around 195 such projects have been identified world over, including in the US, Russia, West Asia, Australia and India.
• These projects will collectively overshoot the limit of emissions that had been agreed to in the Paris Agreement of 2015.

What does the investigation say?

• More than 60% of these carbon bomb projects are already underway
• Apart from coal, oil, and gas operations, the report highlighted the threat of methane, which routinely leaks from gas operations and is a powerful greenhouse gas, trapping 86 times more heat than CO2 over 20 years
• The report criticized reliance on fuel from conventional sources and not making use of emerging, green sources of energy.

What is the plan for ‘defusing’ carbon bombs?

• The network working towards this goal is called Leave It In the Ground Initiative (LINGO).
• Its mission is to leave fossil fuels in the ground and learn to live without them.
• It believes the root of climate change is the burning of fossil fuels, and the 100% use of renewable energy sources is the solution.
• LINGO aims to organise ground support for protesting such projects, challenge them through litigation, and conduct analysis and studies for the same.

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 1

The atmosphere of religious intolerance which has seen a sharp rise in the last several years has been a serious cause for concern in the country.

• India is the beloved home for practitioners of all major religions in the world. Indian culture accepts diversity of faiths and beliefs.
• Religious harmony and social cohesion are two core elements for progress and development.
• As per Pew Research Survey 2021, Indians of diverse religious backgrounds overwhelmingly say they are very free to practice their faiths
• But there is growing intolerance towards diverse religions leading to communal violence and ripples in social harmony.

Instances of intolerance

• Recent incident of ruling party spokesperson commenting on Islam and the Prophet
• Haridwar Hate speech incident
• Frequent use of National Security Act (NSA) for ‘cow slaughter’ by some state governments
• As per pew research on the question of inter-religious marriage, most Hindus (67%), Muslims (80%), Sikhs (59%), and Jains (66%) felt it was ‘very important’ to stop the women in their community from marrying outside their religion

Why is there raise in intolerance?

• Political parties polarize naive voters in the name of religion
• Various cultural organisations are misinterpreting and propagating truths to affirm revivalist predispositions
• Irresponsible Reporting by Media: Many a times media broadcasts unconfirmed, sensitive and often biased reports on national television
• For instance: Tablighi Jamaat case during first Covid lockdown
• State’s support: India has many hostile neighbors, who wish to make it weak through a communal divide.
• Struggle for identity

Consequences

• Threat to minority: Rise in intolerance and communal disharmony lead to majoritarianism
• Mob-violence: Rise in disharmony has led to targeting of religious minorities and led to a rise in mob-violence
• Threat to Rule of law: With rise in incidence of mob lynchings, there is a threat to rule of law – Lynching on cow smuggling, lynching of youth in golden temple
• Freedom of speech: It has also impacted freedom of speech-shows of comedians being banned by vigilante groups
• Regionalism: The anti-national elements get adequate opportunity to fan regional feelings and work on creating an atmosphere to break the cohesiveness of our society.
• Damage social fabric: The social fabric of the society gets irreparably damaged and the conditions of mistrust serve as a catalyst for future conflicts
• Degrading International image where countries are losing faith in India’s diverse credentials

Way forward

• Political and moral support to the minorities
• Effective administration – fair probe, media guidelines
• Implementation of constitutional and legal safeguards

We, the people of India, must strive hard to generate compassion, strength, sincerity and commitment to ensure the safety and security of the people of India. And uphold the values which are synonym with the word “INDIA” – tolerance, compassion and peace.

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 2

A Chinese base in Cambodia could become a choke-point in the Gulf of Thailand close to the strategically important Malacca Strait that has prompted global concern that it will be used by Beijing as a naval outpost on the Gulf of Thailand.

• Cambodia’s official described the expansion of the Ream Naval Base as “cooperation between China and Cambodia”

Background

• China and Cambodia have reportedly signed a secret pact allowing China exclusive use of a naval base on the Gulf of Thailand, although officials from both countries have denied such a deal exists.

Ream Naval Base

• Location: Ream Naval Base is a facility operated by the Royal Cambodian Navy on the coast of the Gulf of Thailand in the province of Sihanoukville, Cambodia.
• Ream faces the Gulf of Thailand, adjacent to the South China Sea

Significance

• This would be china’s second overseas naval foothold, after a base in Djibouti opened in 2017.
• A Chinese base in Cambodia could become a choke-point in the Gulf of Thailand close to the strategically important Malacca Strait.
• China’s strategic military footprint in Southeast Asia would help it bolster its territorial claims in the disputed South China Sea.

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 2

The Assemblies of 4 states will elect 16 MPs to Rajya Sabha

• Rajya Sabha, or the Council of States, has 245 seats
• No ruling party has ever touched the 100 mark in the last three-and-a-half decades
• Every Rajya Sabha seat counts as any Bill, barring Money Bills, needs the assent of the second chamber to become law.

How often are Rajya Sabha elections held?

• Rajya Sabha is a permanent House and cannot be dissolved.
• To ensure continuity, one-third of its members retire after every second year, under Article 83(1) of the Constitution, and “biennial elections” are held to fill these vacancies.
• The term of a member is six years.
• Out of the 245 members, 12 are nominated by the President and 233 are representatives of the States and Union territories of Delhi and Puducherry.

Rajya Sabha polls: Who votes, and how?

• Rajya Sabha MPs are elected by MLAs through an indirect election.
• Article 80(4) provides that members shall be elected by the elected members of state Assemblies through a system of proportional representation by means of a single transferable vote.
• The Fourth Schedule to the Constitution provides for allocation of Rajya Sabha seats to the states and Union Territories, on the basis of the population of each state.

How are the votes counted?

• The number of votes a candidate requires depends on the number of vacancies and the strength of the House.
• If there is only one vacancy, the required quota is calculated by taking the number of votes polled, divided it by 2, and adding 1.
• If there is more than one vacancy, the equation is based on an assigned value of 100 for every first-preference vote. The values of the votes credited to all candidates are total. The total is divided by 1 more than the number of vacancies, and 1 is added to this quotient.
• If for any seat, candidates fail to get the specified number, the second-preference votes will be taken into account, but with a lower value.

Beyond passing Bills, why do Rajya Sabha numbers matter?

Rajya Sabha enjoys some special powers

• It can pass resolution to enact laws on state subject
• Recommend creation of one or more All India Services common to the Union and the states
• Rajya Sabha has a role to play if the President proclamations national emergency, in the event of failure of constitutional machinery in a State, or in the case of financial emergency. Every such proclamation has to be approved by both Houses of Parliament within a stipulated period
• If a proclamation is issued at a time when Lok Sabha has been dissolved or the dissolution of Lok Sabha takes place within the period allowed for its approval, then the proclamation remains effective, if the resolution approving it is passed by Rajya Sabha within the period specified under Articles 352, 356 and 360 of the Constitution.

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 2

The Union Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) announced the country’s first National Air Sports Policy (NASP 2022).

• It has been launched to improve the state of aero sports in India, with a vision to make India a hub for air sports in the world by 2030.
• It aims to provide a safe, affordable, accessible, and sustainable air sports ecosystem in India.

Highlights of the Policy

• Four-tier governance structure: The air sports in India will be under a four-tier governance structure. This includes: 1) Air Sports Federation of India (ASFI) as the apex governing body, 2) National associations for individual air sports or a set of air sports, 3) Regional or state and union territory level units of the national air sports associations and 4) District-level air sports associations.
• About ASFI: The ASFI will be an autonomous body under the Ministry of Civil Aviation and will represent India at the Lausanne-headquartered Fédération Aéronaautique Internationale (FAI) and other global platforms related to air sports. It will be chaired by the Secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation.
• Functions: It will provide governance over various aspects of air sports, including regulation, certification, competitions, awards and penalties, etc.
• Rules and Functions of Each air sports association: Lay down its safety standards for equipment, infrastructure, personnel and training, and specify the disciplinary actions to be taken in case of non-compliance. Inability to do so may lead to penal action by the ASFI.
• Coverage: It will cover 13 air sports activities like aerobatics, aero-modelling, amateur-built and experimental aircraft, ballooning, drones, gliding, hang gliding, paragliding, microlighting, paramotoring, skydiving, and vintage aircraft.

 Significance of the Policy:

• Besides the revenue from air sports activities, multiplier benefits in terms of growth in travel, tourism, infrastructure and local employment, especially in hilly areas of the country, are much greater.
• Creating air sports hubs across the country will bring in air sports professionals and tourists from across the world.

Need for:

The aerosports industry has expressed its displeasure that the government was not doing enough to encourage aero sports in the country despite the fact that there is a tremendous potential in the country keeping in view the diverse scenic locales.

• Aerosports create significant opportunities for growth of tourism, employment generation and interest in aviation activities.
• A growth-oriented NASP may help attract investments in latest aerosports technology, infrastructure and best practices.

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 2

Petitioners in the Delhi High Court questioned why marital status, age, or gender were the criteria for being allowed to commission or not commission surrogacy in India.

Surrogacy Act, 2021

• The Act sought to regulate the surrogacy in India
• The Act defines ‘surrogacy’ as a practice where a woman undertakes to give birth to a child for another couple and agrees to hand over the child to them after birth

Why is there a need for a Surrogacy Act in India?

• India has emerged as a hub for infertility treatment, attracting people from the world due to prevailing socio-economic inequities, underprivileged women found an option to ‘rent their wombs’ and thereby make money to take care of their expenses
• By 2012, India had become the ‘surrogacy capital’ of the world with surrogacy tourism valued at approximately $500 million annually.
• Thus, it has become more than imperative to regulate surrogacy in the country.
• To curb unethical practices: Lack of specific legislation had led to unregulated growth of Commercial Surrogacy services. Hence, to curb unethical practices related to issues of sex selection and exploitation of the surrogate, specific legislation was required.
• To curb the exploitation of women: Due to the absence of legal regulations and lack of implementation, surrogate mothers faced multiple challenges – there had been many cases of death related to surrogacy which neither commissioning parents nor the doctors were ready to take responsibility of.
• Legal Issues: Sometimes, Indian adoption laws or citizenship laws of some other countries also create problems. For example, Germany gives citizenship by mother; this creates issues in determining the nationality of child.
• In 2008, a Japanese couple began the process with a surrogate mother in Gujarat, but before the child was born they split and there were no takers for the child.
• In 2012, an Australian couple commissioned a surrogate mother, and arbitrarily chose one of the twins that were born.
• Ethical Issues: Surrogacy leads to commoditization of the child. Renting of the womb breaks the bond between a mother and the child, interferes with nature

Key Provisions of the Act

• The Act prohibits commercial surrogacy, but allows altruistic surrogacy.
• Eligibility Criteria for Intending Couple: Any couple that has ‘proven infertility’ are candidates. The ‘intending couple’ as the Act calls them, will be eligible if they have a ‘certificate of essentiality’ and a ‘certificate of eligibility’ issued by the appropriate authority.
• Eligibility Criteria for Surrogate Mother: Only a close relative of the couple can be a surrogate mother, one who is able to provide a medical fitness certificate. She should have been married, with a child of her own, and must be between 25 and 35 years, but can be a surrogate mother only once.
• Appropriate Authority: The central and state governments shall appoint one or more appropriate authorities. The functions of the appropriate authority include;

• Granting, suspending or cancelling registration of surrogacy clinics;
• Enforcing standards for surrogacy clinics;

• National and State Surrogacy Boards: The central and the state governments shall constitute the National Surrogacy Board (NSB) and the State Surrogacy Boards (SSB), respectively.
• Parentage and Abortion of Surrogate Child: An abortion of the surrogate child requires the written consent of the surrogate mother and the authorization of the appropriate authority. This authorisation must be compliant with the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act, 1971.
• The surrogate mother will have an option to withdraw from surrogacy before the embryo is implanted in her womb.

What are the controversies behind the Act?

• Exclusion: The eligibility criteria for legally availing surrogacy excludes a chunk of society like unmarried females, LGBTQ+ persons, live-in couples, and single parents who wish to have surrogate child.
• Paternalistic: The altruistic model expects a woman to go through the physical and emotional tolls of surrogacy free of cost and only out of compassion.
• Autonomy of Woman: The banning of commercial surrogacy moves from the rights-based approach to a needs-based approach, thus removing the women’s autonomy to make their own reproductive decisions and right to parenthood.
• Limitations of Altruistic Surrogacy: Having a relative as a surrogate mother may lead to emotional complications. Altruistic surrogacy also limits the option of the intending couple in choosing a surrogate mother as very limited relatives
• Children with Disability: The Act considers having children with physical and special needs as childless. It further encourages considering surrogacy if the couple has a child with a life-threatening disorder. This clause directly violates the right of the children with the disability, thus denying them treatment with dignity.

As India is one of the major hubs of these practices, the Act is certainly a step in the right direction. More reforms are still needed recognize the rights of all stakeholders involved. The law needs to keep up with rapidly evolving demands of morality and societal changes.

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 1

President of India inaugurated the Sant Kabir Academy and Research Centre Swadesh Darshan Yojana and paid tribute to the Bhakti saint, Kabir at Maghar (Uttar Pradesh)

• According to legends, Kabir is said to have departed from the mortal world in Maghar.

Sant Kabir Das

• Sant Kabir Das was born in the city of Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. He was a 15th century mystic poet, saint and social reformer and a proponent of the Bhakti Movement.
• Teacher: His early life was in a Muslim family, but he was strongly influenced by his teacher, the Hindu Bhakti leader Ramananda.
• He belonged to Nirguni tradition, in this tradition, God was understood to be a universal and formless being.
• Kabir’s compositions can be classified into three literary forms – Dohas (short two liners), Ramanas (rhymed 4 liners), sung compositions of varying length, known as Padas (verses) and Sabdas (words).
• Kabir Das’ writings had a great influence on the Bhakti movement and includes titles like Kabir Granthawali, Anurag Sagar, Bijak, and Sakhi Granth.
• His verses are found in Sikhism’s scripture Guru Granth Sahib.
• The major part of his work was collected by the fifth Sikh guru, Guru Arjan Dev.
• He was best known for his two-line couplets, known as ‘Kabir Ke Dohe’.
• Language: Kabir’s works were written in the Hindi language which was easy to comprehend. He used to write in couplets to enlighten people.

Kabir’s critique of religion and caste:

• Kabir synthesized Islam and Hinduism
• While he did borrow elements from different traditions, he proclaimed his independence from them
• He did not only target the rituals and practices of both Hinduism and Islam, but also dismissed the sacred authority of their religious books
• Instead of God being an external entity that resided in temples or mosques, Kabir argued that God existed inside everyone.
• Kabir’s revolt against the caste system also sought to do away with the complex rituals and ceremonies performed by the Brahmins.
• He argued that it was only through bhakti, intense love or devotion to God could one attain salvation.
• He sought to eradicate caste distinctions and attempted to create an egalitarian society, by stressing the notion that a Bhakt (devotee) was neither a Brahmin nor an ‘untouchable’ but just a Bhakt.

Kabir’s legacy

• Kabir’s legacy is still going on through a sect known as Panth of Kabir, a religious community that considers him as the founder.
• A sect in northern and central India, many of their members are from the Dalit community
• Today, the sect exists as a large and distinct community, with various sects under different spiritual leaders.
• However, all regard Kabir as their guru and treat the Bijak as their holy scripture. The Bijak contains works attributed to Kabir

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 3

The National Asset Reconstruction Company Ltd. (NARCL), set up to take over large bad loans of more than ₹500 crore from banks, will pick up the first set of such non-performing assets (NPAs) in July.

What is NARCL?

• Setting up of NARCL, the proposed bad bank for taking over stressed assets of lenders, was announced in the Budget for 2021-22.
• The plan is to create a bad bank to house bad loans of ₹500 crore and above, in a structure that will contain an asset reconstruction company (ARC) and an asset management company (AMC) to manage and recover dud assets.
• The new entity is being created in collaboration with both public and private sector banks.

• Majority-owned by state-owned banks, the NARCL will be assisted by the India Debt Resolution Company Ltd (IDRCL), in turn majority-owned by private banks, in resolution process in the form of a Principal-Agent basis.

How is NARCL different from existing ARCs? How can it operate differently?

1. The proposed bad bank will have a public sector character since the idea is mooted by the government and majority ownership is likely to rest with state-owned banks.
2. At present, ARCs typically seek a steep discount on loans. With the proposed bad bank being set up, the valuation issue is unlikely to come up since this is a government initiative.
3. The government-backed ARC will have deep pockets to buy out big accounts and thus free up banks from carrying these accounts on their books.

What is an Asset Reconstruction Company (ARC)?

It is a specialized financial institution that buys the Non-Performing Assets (NPAs) from banks and financial institutions so that they can clean up their balance sheets. This helps banks to concentrate on normal banking activities.

• The asset reconstruction companies or ARCs are registered under the RBI.

Legal Basis: 

The Securitization and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest (SARFAESI) Act, 2002 provides the legal basis for the setting up of ARCs in India.

Capital Needs for ARCs:

• As per amendment made in the SARFAESI Act in 2016, an ARC should have a minimum net owned fund of Rs. 2 crores. The RBI raised this amount to Rs. 100 crores in 2017.
• The ARCs also have to maintain a capital adequacy ratio of 15% of its risk weighted assets.

Need

The total stress in the banking system would be in excess of Rs 15 lakh crore. The banks burdened with stressed assets and limited capital will find it difficult to manage the NPAs. There is also limited capital that the government can provide. This is where the bad bank model would step in and help both the government and banks.

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 2

Recently, the ruling party of India suspended its national spokesperson and expelled its Delhi spokesperson, following comments they had made about Islam and the Prophet

• The move came after three countries in the Gulf region had summoned the Indian ambassadors to their nations to register their protest
• The ruling party’s action underlines the significance of the Gulf region for India
• Barring the Jewish state of Israel, the 10 other countries of the Gulf region — Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Iran, Iraq, Bahrain, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Oman, Jordan and Yemen — together account for one-fifth of the world’s Muslim population, and are among the strongest voices of the Muslim world.

Why is the region important for India?

• The two most important reasons for the relationship are oil and gas, and trade.
• Two additional reasons are the huge number of Indians who work in the Gulf countries, and the remittance they send back home.

Syllabus: General Studies Paper 2

June 6 marked the completion of 25 years since the 1997 Bangkok Declaration launched a grouping BIMSTEC

BIMSTEC

• The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) is a regional organisation comprising seven Member States: five deriving from South Asia, including Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka and two from Southeast Asia, including Myanmar and Thailand.
• This sub-regional organisation came into being on 6 June 1997 through the Bangkok Declaration. Nepal, Bhutan and Myanmar joined the grouping later
• The BIMSTEC Secretariat is in Dhaka.

Institutional Mechanisms:

• BIMSTEC Summit
• Ministerial Meeting
• Senior Officials’ Meeting
• BIMSTEC Working Group
• Business Forum & Economic Forum

Key achievements

• It has crafted a new Charter for itself, spelling out the grouping’s vision, functions and has secured a legal personality.
• It has prioritized the sectors of cooperation with each member-state serving as the lead country for the assigned sector
• Survival through the turns and twists of internal tensions: influx of over a million Rohingya refugees, Military coup in Myanmar and political and economic crisis afflicting Sri Lanka
• Unlike SAARC and IORA, BIMSTEC has continued to hold its summits and meetings of Foreign Ministers and it has now resolved to hold regular summits once in two years
• The grouping has also registered progress in combating terrorism, forging security cooperation, and creating mechanisms and practices for the better management of humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.
• Institutions such as an Energy Centre and the Centre on Weather and Climate are in place to push sectoral cooperation forward.

The Fault Lines

• A major failure relates to the continuing inability to produce a comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (FTA) 18 years after the signing of the Framework Agreement.
• Connectivity: Only limited progress has been achieved so far, despite the adoption of the Master Plan for Connectivity supported by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
• Access to financial resources: For greater regional connectivity, more financial resources are needed. The movement towards establishing the BIMSTEC Development Fund is minimal.
• The grouping has talked about the Blue Economy but is yet to begin any work on it.

Way Ahead

In this Indo-Pacific century, BIMSTEC has the potential to play a pivotal role, deepening linkages between South Asia and Southeast Asia. It should accelerate the region’s economic development by collaborating with the newly minted Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF). New synergy should be created between BIMSTEC and the IPEF.