General Studies Paper 2

Context

• After a gap of four years, the  Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) report for 2022 was recently released in New Delhi. This nationwide household survey that covers all rural districts in the country generates estimates for schooling and basic learning for every State in India. Data from 2018 and 2022 can be compared with longer run trends over the last decade to see how the COVID-19 years have impacted India.

Annual Status of Education Report (ASER):

• The survey is facilitated by Pratham Education Foundation, and is the oldest survey of its kind in the country.
• It uses Census 2011 as the sampling frame and continues to be an important national source of information about children’s foundational skills across the country.
• ASER 2018 surveyed children in the age group of 3 to 16 years and included almost all rural districts in India and generated estimates of foundational reading and arithmetic abilities of children in the age group 5 to 16 years.
• ASER 2019 reported on the pre-schooling or schooling status of children in the age group 4 to 8 years in 26 rural districts, it focused on the “early years”.
  • It laid emphasis on “developing problem-solving faculties and building a memory of children, and not content knowledge”.
• ASER 2020is the first ever phone-based ASER survey and it was conducted in September 2020, the sixth month of national school closures.

Data:

In 2018: The all-India rural enrolment figure for the age group 6-14 years was 97.2(ninety seven point two)%.

• In ASER 2022 data, this is now 4(ninety eight point four)%.

Reason for increase in All-India rural enrolment figure:

• Shift away from private schools to government schools.
• Efforts of many State governments to provide services even when schools were closed such as mid-day meal rations
• Teaching-learning materials shared remotely, worksheet and textbook distribution.

ASER data:

• In 2018:
  • Less than a third of all children in standard five and less than half of those in standard eight could do division in pre-COVID-19 times.
• ASER evidence suggests that basic learning levels of middle schoolchildren have remained low and stagnant for over a decade.

Significance:

• Rising enrollment means that more students can benefit for longer, sustained periods of time from schooling.

Consequences of high enrolment and completion rates:

• More and more students are going through the middle school pipeline and attending secondary schools
  • There is increased competition for post-secondary opportunities.
• Acute examination stress
• Grade inflation in school-leaving examinations
• Difficulties of gaining admission into college
• Lack of appropriate jobs for many school leavers.

How is ASER measured?

• ASER has measured foundational skills in reading and arithmetic.
• The highest reading task on the ASER tool is reading a text at Grade II level of difficulty.
• The assessment is done one on one with each sampled child in the household.
• The child is marked at the highest level that she/he can comfortably reach.
  • The same tasks are used for all children aged 5 years to 16 years.

Constitutional Provisions related to education:

• Part IV of Indian Constitution, Article 45 and Article 39 (f)of Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSP), has a provision for state-funded as well as equitable and accessible education.
• The 42nd Amendment to the Constitution in 1976moved education from the State to the Concurrent List.
• Article 21A: It provides free and compulsory education of all children in the age group of six to fourteen years as a fundamental Right in such a manner as the State may, by law, determine. The 86th Amendment in 2002made education an enforceable right under Article 21-A.
• Article 39(f): It provides that children are given opportunities and facilities to develop in a healthy manner and in conditions of freedom and dignity and that childhood and youth are protected against exploitation and against moral and material abandonment.
• Article 45: The State shall endeavor to provide, within a period of ten years from the commencement of this Constitution, for free and compulsory education for all children until they complete the age of fourteen years.
• ARTICLE 46: The State shall promote with special care the educational and economic interests of the weaker sections of the people, and in particular, of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, and shall protect them from social injustice and all forms of exploitation.

Related Laws:
Right To Education (RTE) Act, 2009:

• It aims to provide primary education to all children aged 6 to 14 years and enforces education as a Fundamental Right.
• It also mandates 25% reservation for disadvantaged sections of the society.
• It states that sharing of financial and other responsibilities between the Central and State Governments.
• It lays down the norms and standards related to:

1. Pupil Teacher Ratios (PTRs)
2. Buildings and infrastructure
3. School-working days
4. Teacher-working hours.

Government Initiatives:

• National Education Policy 2020.
• Samagra Shiksha (SS) 2.0
• NIPUN Bharat Mission
• PM Poshan Scheme
• Unified District Information System for Education (UDISE).
• Performance Grading Index
• National Education Policy (NEP) 2020: It gives high priority to the acquisition of foundational literacy and numeracy skills especially for children in early grades.
• “NIPUN Bharat” (where NIPUN is National Initiative for Proficiency in Reading with Understanding and Numeracy) the government’s flagship programme designed to translate policy into practice, is beginning to have traction in many States.

Way Forward

• In the last 10 years: There have been changes such as new technologies, new knowledge domains, and new ways of operating.
  • But within our school systems, many children are reaching standard eight without being sufficiently equipped with foundational literacy and numeracy skills.
• Children must have strong foundational skills: They cannot acquire higher level skills or develop advanced content knowledge.
• ASER data shows that an “overambitious” curriculum and the linear age-grade organizational structure of Indian schools result in a vast majority of children getting “left behind” early in their school career.
• Need for in-school mechanisms for “catch up otherwise children fall further and further behind academically.
• Schools have stayed open for most of this school year: Most children are back in school, the urgency of dealing with “learning loss” is acknowledged, and we have a policy that speaks of “critical thinking” and “flexible pathways through school
• It is time to rethink and rework what happens with our children once they grow past the foundational stage of schooling.
• Much of the country’s efforts in school education are focused on ensuring strong foundations for children in the early years.
  • Middle school children also urgently need support for learning recovery and “catch up”.

General Studies Paper 2

Context:

Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is looking beyond his country’s alliance with the U.S. to deter China, bolstering security ties with democracies from Australia to Europe.

Eurasia 

• It is the largest continental area comprising more than 90 countries in Europe and Asia.
• Covering more than 30% of the world’s continental landmass.
• Many used it as a neutral term to describe the vast landmass that connected Europe and Asia.

Despite continental continuity, Europe and Asia emerged as separate political and cultural spheres over the millennia.

Russia’s Approach 

• Russia saw itself as both a European and Asian power but had trouble becoming a part of either.
• It developed “Eurasia” and “Greater Eurasia” as new geopolitical constructs. 
• The occupation of Crimea in 2014 and the invasion of Ukraine are a product of what Putin sees as his historic mission of reuniting the “Russkiy Mir” or the Russian world. He was determined to pursue it despite the massive costs associated with the strategy.

Various Developments Linked to New Eurasia

• Japan: It is determined to build strong military partnerships with Europe.
  • Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s message was simple: The security of Europe and the Indo-Pacific is indivisible.
  • Japan will also build a large missile arsenal to deter China (and North Korea, whose missile capabilities have grown).
• US: At the instance of the US, the NATO summit in Madrid in June invited key Asian partners to participate.
  • The prime ministers of Australia, Japan and New Zealand as well as the president of South Korea joined the summit.
  • This is the first time that Asian leaders joined NATO deliberations.
• NATO’s engagement with Indo-Pacific issues and East Asia’s engagement with European security will continue to be new features of Eurasian geopolitics.
  • In its National Security Strategy released in 2022, the Biden Administration articulated the desire to see its allies and partners in Europe and Asia collaborate more with each other.
    • It is eager to encourage its partners, including India, to build their capabilities and strengthen regional balances of power in Europe and Asia.
  • South Korea is also joining the party by raising its profile in Europe.
    • It is selling major weapons platforms in Poland.
  • Australia, which has joined the US and UK in the AUKUS arrangement, is equally eager to bring Europe into the Indo-Pacific.
  • China -Russia Cooperation: Before Japan and South Korea turned to Europe, it was china and Russia who altered the geopolitical dynamic in Eurasia.
    • Days before he ordered his armies into Ukraine, Putin travelled to Beijing in February 2022  to sign an agreement declaring an alliance “without limits” and no “forbidden areas”.
    • Together, Putin and Xi unveiled a Eurasian alliance that they might have hoped would deliver the long-awaited coup de grace to the global hegemony of the West.

Implications for India 

• For India, the rise of Eurasia is making it harder to ride on two boats at the same time.
• Until now, India could easily hunt with the maritime coalition — the Quad — in the Indo-Pacific and run at the same time with the continental coalitions led by Russia and China.
  • This was possible so long as the maritime and continental powers were not at each other’s throats.
• But the conflict between the US, Europe, and Japan on the one hand and China and Russia on the other is now acute and shows no signs of immediate amelioration.
• On the downside, then, India’s mounting security challenges from China on the Himalayan frontier and the tightening embrace between Moscow and Beijing will mean the shadow over India’s continental strategy will become darker in the days ahead.
• On the upside, the possibilities for strengthening India’s strategic capabilities in partnership with the US and Europe as well as Japan, South Korea and Australia have never been stronger.

Conclusion 

The new dynamic presents challenges as well as opportunities for India and it is up to Delhi now to seize the emerging possibilities.

• India needs to maintain a balance between the USA and China and to a greater extent between the Indo-Pacific region and Eurasia.
• India can act as a bridge between the Indo Pacific region and Eurasia power block. For this India needs to maintain linkage with China and especially with Russia.

General Studies Paper 2

Context:

• A meeting was held between the Chief Ministers of Punjab and Haryana in the presence of the union Jal Shakti minister. The agenda of the meeting was to resolve the Sutlej-Yamuna Link Canal dispute. The dispute between Punjab and Haryana has been festering since the 1960s, and various efforts to resolve the issue have failed.

Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) Dispute between Punjab and Haryana:

• 1955: The waters of the the Ravi and Beas rivers were calculated at 15.85-million-acre feet (MAF), and divided among Rajasthan (8 MAF), Undivided Punjab (7.2 MAF) and Jammu and Kashmir (0.65 MAF).
• 1966: The water dispute started in 1966, when the Punjab Reorganisation Act divided erstwhile Punjab into the states of Punjab and Haryana. The Sutlej Yamuna Link Canal, a 211-km-long proposed canal connecting Sutlej and Yamuna, was planned in 1966 after Haryana was carved out of Punjab. 121 km stretch of the canal was to be constructed in Punjab, and another 90 km in Haryana.
• 1980: Haryana completed the project in its territory by June 1980, the work in Punjab, though started in 1982, was shelved due to protests by the opposition led by Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD).
• 1982: The construction work for the SYL canal was launched by then Prime Minister in April 1982 near Kapoori village of Punjab’s Patiala district.
• 1985: In July 1985, amidst the insurgency in Punjab, the then Prime Minister signed an accord with SAD, agreeing to set up a new tribunal to assess the sharing of water. The Eradi Tribunalheaded by Supreme Court Judge V Balakrishna Eradi was set up to reassess availability and sharing of water.
• 1987: The tribunal recommended an increase in the shares of Punjab and Haryana to 5 MAF and 3.83 MAF, respectively.
• Militancy in Punjab: In August 1985, the chief of SAD was killed by militants, less than a month after signing the accord. In 1990, the Chief Engineer and a Superintending Engineer were killed by militants. The construction came to a halt.
• 1996: The Haryana government moved the Supreme Court over the issue.
• 2002-04: In 2002, the Supreme Court directed Punjab to continue work on the SYL and complete it within a year. The Punjab Government, however, moved a review against the SC order but the petition was rejected. In 2004, following orders by the SC, the Central Public Works Department (CPWD) was appointed to take over the canal work from the Punjab Government. The Punjab Assembly passed the Punjab Termination of Agreements Act(PTAA), which abrogated all its river water agreements with neighbouring States. The then President (Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam) referred this Act to the Supreme Court to decide on its legality in the same year.
• 2016: The Supreme Court says that as Punjab backed out of its promise to share river water and the PTAA is invalid.
• 2020: The SC asked the Chief Ministers of Punjab and Haryana to negotiate and the Union Government to mediate between the States.

What are the arguments of two States regarding the Sutlej-Yamuna Dispute?

• Punjab: Punjab was against sharing waters of the two rivers with neighbouring Haryana, citing riparian principles, which state that the owner of land adjacent to a water body has the right to use the water, besides arguing that it had no water to share.
• According to a study by the State Government, many areas in Punjab may run dry by 2029. The State has already over-utilized its groundwater for irrigation purposes, as it a major contributor of Wheat and Paddy to the food reserves (worth INR 70,000 crore each year). According to reports, 79% of the state’s water is over-exploited. There are 109 ‘over-exploited blocks out of 1382 critical blocks, 5 ‘semi-critical’ blocks, and only 22 ‘safe’ blocks. The Government claims that sharing water with any other state is impossible in such a situation.
• Haryana: Haryana has been staking claim to the Ravi-Beas waters through the SYL Canal on the plea that providing water for irrigation was a tough task for the State. In southern parts, where underground water had depleted up to 1700 feet, there is a problem of drinking water. Haryana has been citing its contribution to the central food pool and arguing that it is being denied its rightful share in the water as assessed by a tribunal.

What are the arrangements to settle Inter-State Water Disputes?

Constitutional Arrangements

• Schedule 7 of the Constitution: It distinguishes between the use of water within a State and the purpose of regulating interstate waters. Union List: Entry 56, It gives the Union Parliament the power to formulate laws and mechanisms for regulating Interstate rivers. State List: Entry 17, States retain autonomy regarding water utilisation for purposes such as water supply, irrigation and canals, drainage and embankments, water storage and water power subject to provisions of Entry 56 of List 1 (Union List).
• Article 262: In case of disputes relating to waters, Parliament may by law provide for the adjudication of any dispute or complaint with respect to the use, distribution or control of the waters of, or in, any inter-State rivers. Parliament may, by law also provide that neither the Supreme Court nor any other court shall exercise jurisdiction in respect of any such dispute or complaint as mentioned

Statutory Arrangements

• River Board Act, 1956: The river Boards are supposed to advise on the Inter-state basin to prepare development scheme and to prevent the emergence of conflicts. Till date, no River Board has been created.
• Inter-State Water Dispute Act, 1956: If a particular State or States approach the Union Government for the constitution of the tribunal: (a)Central Government should try to resolve the matter by consultation among the aggrieved States; (b) In case, consultation does not work, then the Union Government may constitute the tribunal.

What are the reasons for persistence of Inter-State Water Disputes?

• First, the legislative powers concerning water have been distributed between the Union and the State Governments. The idea has been to ensure optimum utilisation while balancing the interests of the States. However, this approach of imprecise distribution of power between the Union and the States, has created a Federal-Jurisdictional ambiguity.
• Second, a big limiting factor is the lack of effective authority for enforcing the orders of tribunals. The Tribunal can only make an award and cannot make it binding. The Tribunals also lack the ability to punish for ‘contempt’.
• Third, Article 262 provides that the Parliament may by law prevent the Supreme Court or any other Court from exercising jurisdiction in inter-State water disputes. However, under Article 136, the Supreme Court can hear appeals against the orders of Tribunals. Thus, the Supreme Court remains the adjudicatory body along with the tribunals, creating an institutional ambiguity regarding which body is the ultimate adjudicatory power on inter-State water disputes in India.
• Fourth, critics of the system argue that the members of tribunals created for adjudicating the inter-State water disputes have been predominantly from the Judiciary. This has lead to lack of a multi-disciplinary approach to dispute settlement. They say there is not much difference between the tribunal and the bench of the Supreme Court.
• Fifth, There have been excessive delays in establishing tribunals and making awards. The right to have a dispute referred to a tribunal under the IWSDA (Inter-State Water Dispute Act) is contingent on the Union Government’s determination that the matter cannot be resolved through negotiations. The provision of negotiations inevitably delays the constitution of a tribunal.
• Sixth, Given that agriculture constitutes the primary economic activity in many parts of the country, water is a contentious issue. Inter-State disputes are exploited for political mobilization and electoral benefits. State Governments have rejected the awards of Tribunals.
• Seventh, There is a lack of data regarding water flows, seasonal variations etc. which results in ambiguities regarding availability of water, surplus water for sharing etc. In addition, seasonal variations in monsoonal rainfall sometimes create shortage of water. State Governments than argue that there is no surplus water to be shared.

What should be the approach towards settling Inter-State Water Disputes?

• First, The Sarkaria Commission has suggested that the awards of the tribunals be given the same weight as a Supreme Court Judgment.
• Second, The Government’s inability to properly handle water-related disputes is reflected in the high number of appeals to the Supreme Court. Some experts suggest that the appeal to the Supreme Court should only on procedural aspects. The awards based on expert opinions shouldn’t be questioned in the Court.
• Third, there is a need to establish a time frame for constituting the Tribunal by the Union Government. Tribunals should also try to avoid unnecessary delays in giving the award.
• Fourth, the Inter-State Council can be rejuvenated to enable it to play a more active role in settlement of such disputes.
• Fifth, Some experts have suggested that mediation, (a third party acts as an intermediary between the parties in conflict), can also be explored as a possible option for successful resolution of disputes. Example of role of the World Bank as a mediator in the Indus Water Treaty between India and Pakistan is quoted as a success of this model.
• Sixth, infrastructure should be created for better collection of the data related to inter-State river basins. Better data will provide clear picture regarding availability of waters, seasonal variations and help in the equitable distribution of water among the States.

Conclusion

• The Inter-State Water Disputes have been allowed to linger on for a long time. The politics of electoral mobilization has been one of the major factors, along with institutional infirmities in the arrangements. The Union and State Governments should put national interest above narrow parochial interests. As the pressures of climate change become evident through water stress in various regions, it becomes imperative that such disputes are settled in order to ensure optimal use of nation’s water resources.

General Studies Paper 2

Context:

• A World Bank study on air pollution concludes that about two million people die prematurely in South Asia each year. Particulate measure concentrations put nine South Asian cities among the world’s top 10 worst affected by air pollution.

World Bank study on air pollution-Striving for Clean Air: Air Pollution and Public Health in South Asia:

• Nine out of the world’s 10 cities with the worst air pollution are in South Asia.
• Concentrations of fine particulate matter (PM 2.5) in region’s most densely populated and poor areas are up to 20 times higher than what WHO considers healthy (5 µg/mᶾ).
• Causes: An estimated 2 million premature deaths in the region each year and incurs significant economic costs.

What were the objectives of report:

• This report identifies six major airsheds in the region.
• West/Central Indo-Gangetic Plain: Punjab (Pakistan), Punjab (India), Haryana, part of Rajasthan, Chandigarh, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh
• Central/Eastern Indo-Gangetic Plain: Bihar, West Bengal, Jharkhand, Bangladesh
• Middle India: Odisha/Chhattisgarh
• Middle India: Eastern Gujarat/Western Maharashtra
• Northern/Central Indus River Plain: Pakistan, part of Afghanistan
• Southern Indus Plain and further west: South Pakistan, Western Afghanistan extending into Eastern Iran.
• It analyzes four scenarios to reduce air pollution with varying degrees of policy implementation and cooperation among countries:
• Ad-hoc selection of measures
• Maximum technically feasible emissions reductions
• Compliance with WHO Interim Target 1 everywhere in South Asia
• Toward the next lower WHO Interim Target.
• It offers a roadmap for airshed-wide air quality management.

PM2.5:

• It refers to particles that have a diameter less than 5 micrometers and remain suspended for longer.
• These particles are formed as a result of burning fuel and chemical reactions that take place in the atmosphere.
• Natural processes such as forest fires also contribute to PM2.5 in the air.
• They are the primary reason for the occurrence of smog.

Analysis of PM2.5:

• Bhutan: Average PM 2.5 concentration from 2018-2020 was three times WHO prescribed limits.
• Maldives Meteorological Service warned that visibility had been reduced by 60% due to smog.

Suggestions in report:

• Asking India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and all other South Asian countries to begin talks between scientists, officials and eventually ministers and leaders
• Create a mechanism for the cooperative management of the six air sheds the region is made up of.

Issues:

• South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) nations are members of the Group of 77 Developing countries: under the chairpersonship of Pakistan last year already negotiated a breakthrough at the COP27 Climate Change summit at Sharm el-Sheikh

Issues in South Asia:

• India and Pakistan: Continue to point to past disputes as the reason to:
• Hold up South Asian summits such as SAARC
• block trade
• connectivity
• other avenues for cooperation

Why should India and Pakistan cooperate?

• Geopolitical challenge is pushing the region to work more closely together like:
• Climate change
• Ukraine war
• Costs of procuring energy, grain, fertilizers all soaring
• Persistent global economic recession
• More variants of the COVID-19 virus
• Terrorism: especially arising from the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.

Solutions:

• Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” and “diplomacy and dialogue: Can be used to resolve the conflict sound hollow when compared to India and Pakistan’s act of holding up the SAARC Summit
• India can virtually hold a special meeting for the “Global South”, with the impact of the Ukraine war on the agenda
• Convene or participate in a regional dialogue to discuss the issue, or include the regional agenda in its G-20 narrative.
• Opportunities for regional cooperation in health security are being missed.
• India has worked bilaterally with most of its neighbors to provide vaccines and COVID-19 medicines.
• Unilaterally extend copyright waivers on medical products within South Asia of the sort India has proposed.
• Terrorism: the contradictions between can be discussed at broader multilaterals, but not in the region, are manifold:

Some previous steps:

• In 2022, India and Pakistan: exchanged teams as part of the SCO Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS)
• India was part of the Financial Action Task Force grouping that let Pakistan off its terror financing “greylist”.

South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation(SAARC):

• The SAARC was established with the signing of the SAARC Charter in Dhaka on 8 December 1985.
• Founding countries—Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.
• Afghanistan joined SAARC at the 13th annual summit in 2005.
• The Headquarters and Secretariat of the Association are at Kathmandu, Nepal.
• Cooperation within the framework of the SAARC is based on:
• Respect for the principles of sovereign equality
• Territorial integrity
• Political independence
• Non-interference in the internal affairs of other States
• Mutual benefit.
• Areas of Cooperation:

1. Human Resource Development and Tourism
2. Agriculture and Rural Development
3. Environment, Natural Disasters and Biotechnology
4. Economic, Trade and Finance
5. Social Affairs
6. Information and Poverty Alleviation
7. Energy, Transport, Science and Technology
8. Education, Security and Culture and Others

Way Forward

• Including Countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, European alpine nations and China: the solution to the problems of air pollution lies in a “whole of region” approach, and is not one that any one country in the “air sheds” can resolve on its own.
• The failure to build a regional defense to the issues arising from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and from NATO sanctions, trade ban and weapons stockpiling
• South Asia has missed the chance to position itself as an energy “cartel” commanding a better price for the region.
• Crude dependencies, Bangladesh, Pakistan and India buy more than 50% of their liquefied natural gas through the spot market.
• It indicates how vulnerable they are to global energy trends.
• In the process of rank lack of logical behavior: Any chance of coordinating or cooperating against the developing chaos in Afghanistan, and countering extra-regional terror threats are also lost for South Asia.
• Delink PM’s presence from the SAARC summit(next in Pakistan): instead have the President or the Vice-President to represent India.
• A quid pro quo could even see Pakistan send a replacement for its Prime Minister to the SCO Heads of State summit due to be held in India in June.
• It is necessary for the future to delink South Asian cooperation from the summit itself, and allow other parts of the agenda ( health, energy, women’s rights, security and terrorism) to be held even if a leadership event is not.
• Reviving SAARC by infusing political energy into it and updating its dated Charter will be an ideal way forward.

General Studies Paper 2

Context:

The Cabinet has announced that under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY), 810 million National Food Security Act (NFSA) beneficiaries will receive five kilos of free foodgrains every month in 2023.

Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKY):

• PMGKAY was part of the Centre’s initial COVID-19 relief
• Its nodal Ministry is the Ministry of Finance.
• Beneficiaries under National Food Security Act:
• It provides for 5 kg of rice or wheat per person per month to be distributed free of cost
• This is over and above the 5 kg already provided to ration card holders at a subsidized rate
• 35 kg per month per family for AAY(Antyodaya Anna Yojana) and 5 kg per month per person for Priority Households(PHH).
• The 80 crore cap on NFSA beneficiaries and state ration card quotas are based on 2011 census data.
• Initially: One kg of pulses was also provided under the scheme, which was later restricted to chana dal only, and then discontinued in later phases.

Issue related to it:

• A family of five can collect 25 kg for free: This is a reduction by half of the 50 kg of rice (25 kg free under the earlier PMGKAY and 25 kg at ₹3 under the NFSA).
• The repeated extensions, for 28 months, seemed to be with an eye on State elections.
• The latest readjustment: It seems politically motivated to appeal to voters in nine States that go to polls in 2023.

Flaws in the scheme:

• Ration records have not been updated since the 2011 Census — as per estimates
• More than 40% of India’s population is currently excluded from both the NFSA and PMGKAY.
• In many villages and slums, the most marginalized castes and communities, especially migrants, sex workers, the homeless and transgender persons are often without NFSA ration cards.

Steps taken:

• Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and West Bengal have either universalised or substantially expanded coverage with State cards.
• The Supreme Court of India: It directs the central government to expand NFSA coverage.

Were all poor people covered under the scheme?

• Ration card: The scheme only provided grain for those families who held ration cards.
• In May and June 2020, the Centre allocated foodgrains to be distributed by States under the Atma Nirbhar Bharat scheme for stranded migrants and others without ration cards.
• DBT: The PMGKAY covers even Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) beneficiaries.

Arguments for continuation of scheme:

• Pandemic still exists
• Unemployment remains at record levels
• Hunger: There is widespread hunger among vulnerable communities.

Way Forward

• Squeezing the 100 days of work guaranteed under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA): This employer of the last resort scheme is being systematically undermined by acute Budget cuts, delayed payments and technological hurdles.
• Study of scheme: The central authorities should commission a study and make its findings public. Just as it did in the initial months of the pandemic.
• It should be the basis for updating the database of foodgrain-drawing card holders, scrutinizing the data critically and zeroing in on the needy.
• Need to go beyond the mandate of the NFSA: as is being done under the PMGKAY, the government can supply the foodgrains at a reasonable price.
• Rules on quota: To keep the budgetary allocation under control, rules on quota for rice or wheat can be changed suitably.

Diversion from PDS: central and State authorities need to ponder over the scheme’s continuance, given the chronic problem of diversion from the Public Distribution System (PDS).

General Studies Paper 3

Context

• The supply of critical imports were disrupted by the Russia Ukraine war and the prices of such imports increased sharply, derailing many economies.

Fiscal policy:

• The fiscal policy is concerned with the raising of government revenue and Government Budget increasing expenditure.
• To generate revenue and to increase expenditures, the government finance or policy called Budgeting policy or fiscal policy
  

The major fiscal measures are:

• Public Expenditure
• Taxation
• Public Borrowing

India’s economic condition:

• India’s performance was relatively better than many other countries, the return to normalcy has been delayed.
• India’s GDP at the end of the present fiscal year will only be 57(eight point five seven)% higher than its level in 2019-20, giving an average of 2.86% for three years.

Growth performance:

• Real Gross Value Added (GVA)(2002-23):It is estimated to grow by 7(six point seven)%.
  • sectoral decomposition indicates that every output sector has turned positive as compared to the corresponding magnitudes in the pre-COVID-19 year of 2019-20.
• Nominal GDP(2023-24): It may be close to ₹300 lakh crore.
  • Real growth in the second half of 2022-23is only 5(five point five)% as per the advance estimates.
• The policy response to the COVID-19 shock: There was a sharp increase in the Centre’s fiscal deficit to 2(nine point two)%of the GDP.
  • More than three times the original Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act (FRBM) norm of 3%.
• Fiscal deficit: In the two succeeding years, the fiscal deficit could be reduced to 7(six point seven)% and 4(six point four)%, respectively.

Challenges to India’s growth prospects:

• The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development(OECD): It has projected a growth rate of 2(two point two)%for the global economy in 2023
  • India: 5.7(five point seven)% in 2023-24.
• The International Monetary Fund:
  • Global growth: 2.7(two point seven)%
  • India’s growth: 1(six point one)%.
• India may be able to achieve a growth in the range of 6-6.5(six point five)% in 2023-24, provided significant policy support is given to growth.

India’s Fiscal prospects:

• Growth in the Centre’s Gross Tax Revenues (GTR) in 2023-24would be less than that in 2022-23.
  • Because of an expected fall in both real GDP growth and deflator-based inflation.
• Together with non-tax revenues and non-debt capital receipts: total resources available to the Central government would be nearly ₹28.3(twenty eight point three)lakh crore.

Way Forward

• With 2023-24 being the first genuine post COVID-19 normal year: It would be best to spell out a convincing path towards the prescribed fiscal deficit ratio of 3%.
  • This calls for a total adjustment of 3.4(three point four) percentage points of GDP.
• The need for correction in the government’s fiscal deficit because of the relative profile of savings and investment as a proportion of GDP.
• Financial savings along with net inflow of foreign capital provide the extent of surplus available for the potential net deficit sectors in the economy.
• Target a reduction of 0.7(zero point seven)% point in fiscal deficit in 2023-24 compared to 2022-23
  • The resultant fiscal deficit of 7(five point seven)% of GDP would imply availability of investible resources of 1(one point one)% of GDP for both the private corporate sector and the non-government public sector.
• Finance by household sector financial savings of about 8% of GDP and net inflow of foreign capital of 3(two point three)% of the GDP.
  • It will not put any additional pressure on interest rates
  • It would be ideal for sustaining a robust medium-term growth with price stability.
• Bringing down fiscal deficit and charting out a glide path are essential for maintaining price stability.
  • The pressure on the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to expand reserve money will come down.
• A careful calibration would be required for limiting revenue expenditure growth in order to retain space for capital expenditure to grow adequately with a view to supporting growth.

General Studies Paper 2

Context

• 70 lakh pensioners are still waiting for higher pension under the Employees’ Pension Scheme (EPS), 1995.The Supreme Court reiterated, as a matter of principle, its approval of the idea of higher pension.

Elderly Population:

• The National Elderly Policy defines people in the 60+ age group as elderly.
• According to the Population Census 2011, there are nearly 104 million elderly persons in India.

Problems associated with old age:

• Social: The traditional values and institutions are in the process of erosion and adaptation.
• Financial: Retirement and dependence of elderly on their child for basic necessity.
• Health:
  • Multiple disabilities among the elders in old age.
  • Among persons aged 60 and above, 30% to 50% (depending on gender and age group) had symptoms that make them likely to be

Employees’ Pension Scheme (EPS):

• It is a social security scheme provided by the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO).
• The scheme was first launched in 1995.
• It makes provisions for pensions for the employees in the organized sector after the retirement at the age of 58 years.
• Employees who are members of EPF automatically become members of EPS.
• Both employer and employee contribute 12% of employee’s monthly salary (basic wages plus dearness allowance) to the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) scheme.
• EPF scheme is mandatory for employees who draw a basic wage of Rs. 15,000 per month.
• Of the employer’s share of 12 %, 8.33(eight point three three)% is diverted towards the EPS.
• Central Govt. also contributes 1.16(one point one six)%of employees’ monthly salary.

What is the current Issue?

• Circular by Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO): The circular covers only a segment of pensioners-subject to certain conditions.

Background:

• In 2005: Section of Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation staff demanded higher pension.
• The employer had made the 12% mandatory contributions on their actual pay, which exceeded the statutory ceiling
• entitled to the benefit of the deposit of 8.33(eight point three three)% of their actual salary in the Pension Fund.
• Employees along with their employer did not exercise their option within the cut-off date.
• In 2016: Court rejected the EPFO’s notion of a cutoff date.

• • It held that the cut-off date, as in the EPS rules, was meant to calculate the pensionable salary only.

Conditions imposed by circular of EPFO:

• Payment of contributions on higher or actual wages
• Exercise of joint option while in service
• Refusal by the EPFO to allow higher pension.

Reason for reluctance by PF authorities:

• Apprehension over the sustainability of the pension fund
• Those receiving lower pension have to cross-subsidise pension payouts for those getting or likely to get a higher pension.
• Factors such as:

• • rising actuarial shortfall, lower rate of returns and increasing longevity of pensioners may lead to the situation of pension payouts outstripping receipts.
  • According to the EPFO: It will go against social security.

Initiatives by government for elderly:

• PM Vaya Vandana Yojana
• Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension Scheme
• Rashtriya Vayoshri Yojana
• Vayoshreshta Samman
• Varishth Pension Bima Yojana
• Integrated Programmes for older persons

Way Forward

• Much of the confusion among pensioners could have been avoided had they been proactive in sharing information or explaining the position to those concerned.
• On the policy front: The Government and the EPFO should increase the minimum monthly pension of ₹3,000 against the existing ₹1,000.

• • It will address the grievances of pensioners who were in the lower wage bracket.

• EPFO can give a one-time opportunity to all those in the higher wage group who retired in Dec 2004 without exercising the option.
• Government should substantially increase its financial support.
• Code on Social Security, 2020: It can have a scheme for those youngsters who have got jobs after September 2014 who have been left out of the EPS on account of their higher wages.

General Studies Paper 4

Context

• India has set 2070 as the target year for achieving the Net Zero transition. The Government has also declared the Long-Term Low-Carbon Development Strategy (LT-LEDS) for the long-term decarbonization of the economy. Agriculture sector is also a significant contributor to the Green House Gas emissions. Although, the Government has not included Agriculture in the long-term decarbonisation strategy document and has opposed various aspects of the Koronivia Joint Work on Agriculture (KJWA), it has taken several steps for the decarbonization of the agriculture sector. Several agri start-ups are working in the field of carbon markets for agriculture. In the long term, Decarbonization of Agriculture sector can prove to be a vital level in achieving the Net Zero target.

Contribution of Agriculture Sector to Carbon Emission:

• According to the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), agriculture and related land use emissions accounted for 17% of all Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions from all sectors in 2018.
• The Agriculture, Forestry, and other Land Use (AFOLU) sector, as defined by the United Nations (UN) International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), accounts for 24% of global GHG emissions, with agriculture representing the majority of them.
• According to the Third Biennial Update Report submitted by the Government of India in early 2021 to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the agriculture sector contributes 14% of the total GHG emissions (Energy 75.01%; Industrial Process and Product Use 8%; and waste 2.7%, (2016 data)). Within the sector, 61.3% of GHG emissions are linked to the livestock sector, followed by 19.1% from fertiliser applied to agricultural soils, 17.5% from rice cultivation and 2.2% due to field burning of agricultural residues.

Methods for Decarbonization of the Agriculture Sector:

Decarbonization of Agriculture can be undertaken through:

• Agriculture Methods and Practices: Best practices, such as cover crops and regenerative farming, help to reduce synthetic nitrogen inputs. Precision farming, including the use of drones, can monitor soil and plant health, ensuring that the right amount of nitrogen fertilizer is applied at the right rate and right time. Fertile soil enhances farm yields and incomes apart from being a carbon sink. Healthy soil holds more moisture and soil conservation methods reduce erosion.
• Carbon Farming: It is a system of agricultural management that helps the land store more carbon and reduce the amount of Greenhouse Gases (GHGs) that it releases into the atmosphere. (also known as carbon sequestration).
• Decarbonizing Livestock Farming: It includes: (a)Capturing the methane and producing bioenergy; (b) Breeding low CH4( methane) producing breeds; (c) Plant‑based alternatives and lab grown meat  have the potential to significantly reduce missions associated with the meat industry.
• Alternate Cropping: This contributes to GHG mitigation and is an emerging area in climate-smart farming. For example, seaweed cultivation as additive to cattle feed reduces biogenic methane emissions, improves feed quality, and enhances milk production.
• Freshwater: Agriculture consumes over 80% of freshwater in India, making conservation critical. Micro-irrigation with automation and adoption of low water-intensive species and farming practices are critical for reducing water consumption and carbon footprint. Areas under water intensive crops must be reduced through crops diversification, examples being oil seeds, pulses, horticulture, and forage crops.
• Agro-forestry: Trees act as windbreaks, reduce soil erosion, enrich soil, and filter water. Studies suggest that 5% increase at 5 yearly intervals to the existing 16 million hectares area can help mitigate India’s projected emissions.
• Bio-energy from Farm Waste: It offers immense potential for mitigating emissions as well as growth in non-farm economic activity. Manure-based community biogas plants can support clean cooking and distributed power. IEA’s India Energy Outlook 2021 estimates the potential being of 30 million tonnes Bio-CNG. BECCS (Bio Energy with Carbon Capture and Storage) involves capturing CO2 from bioenergy plants and permanent storage. This will lead to carbon removal as well as negative emissions.
• Checking Food Wastage: About 30% of food produced each year is lost or wasted. Properly storing and more effectively distributing food in developing countries while educating retailers and consumers in developed countries could avoid 8% of global GHG emissions attributed to waste.
• Carbon Markets in Agriculture: Carbon markets tailored to farming and agricultural activities are emerging with increasing interest from farmers, private sector and governments. However, their size and scale is much smaller compared to carbon markets for industries.
• Other Measures: Greater consumer demand for sustainable alternatives; public-sector incentives for effective land management and R&D investment; expansion of carbon sinks can help in decarbonization. Gene editing holds promise to turn commodity crops into nitrogen-fixing plants, and indoor vertical farms are gaining in popularity for their ability to go soilless while ensuring food safety and meeting demand for local food.

Steps have been taken by the Government for Decarbonization of the Agriculture sector:

• The Government has launched multiple programmes like the National Mission on Sustainable Agriculture(NMSA) under the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC), National Initiative on Climate Resilient Agriculture (NICRA), and National Adaptation Fund for Climate Change (NAFCC) which are related to low carbon transition.
• The Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthaan Mahabhiyan (PM-KUSUM) scheme of the Government aims to improve irrigation access and raise farmers’ income through solar-powered irrigation. Setting up of solar power plants on farmlands, wherever possible, and solarising existing grid-connected pumps, could earn additional income to farmers, besides making them net energy producers. Reducing energy usage from fossil fuel sources and moving towards renewables, will reduce carbon footprints in the agriculture sector and enhance livelihoods of smallholders.
• The Soil Health Card Scheme aims to rationalize the use of fertilizers. Soil-testing of over 100 million samples and suitable advice to the farmers have promoted less-carbon-intensive agriculture by rebalancing the use of crop nutrients, such as nitrogenous fertilisers.
• In terms of Land Use, the key elements for decarbonization are halting deforestation, rejuvenating degraded forests, and accelerating afforestation. The Government has launched National Mission for Green India and aims to to create 2.5-3 billion tonnes of carbon sinks by 2030. The total forests carbon stock has been estimated to be 7204 million tonnes.
• The National Policy for Biofuels/ SATAT scheme set a medium-term target of 15 million tonnes of bio-CNG.

Challenges in Decarbonizing Agriculture:

• Poor and Marginal Farmers: A vast majority of farmers in India are poor and marginal. They lack the ability to invest in decarbonization measures.
• Competing Choices: Decarbonisation will require a balance between competing choices such as farmers’ livelihoods as well as food security and drawing down on carbon-heavy agricultural practices. Shift to low-carbon agriculture practices may impact food security in the short term.
• Size of Livestock: India has the world’s largest cattle population at 535.78 million livestock, according to the 20th Livestock Census, 2019. Contribution of livestock sector in total agriculture emissions exceeds 60%. Reducing emissions from such a grand scale is a challenging task.
• Uncertain Techniques: Low carbon options are full of uncertainties, high transaction costs with no clear modalities for payments in the near future. In addition, a technology such as organic farming can be counterproductive if practiced falsely e.g., a field flooded continuously after application of organic matter in organic rice production can emit huge amounts of GHGs.
• Awareness and Incentives: Lack of proper incentives for scaling up low carbon technologies, Inadequate knowledge amongst policy makers and farmers, financial complications for marginal and small farmers pose significant challenges in adoption and scaling-up of low carbon agriculture.
• Challenges to Carbon Markets: Climate mitigation projects in the agriculture sector, particularly those focused on storing carbon in soils, are increasingly being tied to carbon markets. But the impact of these initiatives is highly questionable: (a) Agricultural offsetting schemes can be damaging e.g., some markets incentivize specific practices and can transform agricultural land into tree plantations (mono-plantations). Such plantations (based on single plant) may end up doing greater damage; (b) Many of these offsetting initiatives also have very uncertain benefits for the climate, because their impacts are both extremely difficult to quantify, and highly vulnerable to changes over timeg., carbon stored in soil may get released due to extreme weather or a change in land management practices. In addition, some projects generate carbon credits while allowing for an overall increase in emissions, because they only measure the carbon intensity of an activity, rather than absolute emissions; (c) Such offsetting schemes tend to lock in agricultural models that are detrimental to climate goals. They have high implementation costs and distract from more sustainable, cheaper, and proven options, such as incentivizing agroecological practices. Also, nearly all projects aim to reduce emissions at the farm-level, even though half of agricultural emissions take place outside of the farm and are largely driven by agri-businesses, e.g. through the manufacturing of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides. This puts the blame on individual farmers instead of focusing on corporate and agribusiness-led emissions.

Steps should be taken for decarbonization of Agriculture Sector:

• First, Government policies must reorient to reduce agriculture’s power subsidy bills and divert the money towards sustainable farm sector investments like solar power that could address challenges arising from rising use of wasteful energy in agriculture.
• Second, Climate finance need to be enhanced for agriculture sector to address issues having longer gestation period, viz biogenic methane mitigation, agro-forestry etc.
• Third, There is need to generate high integrity, real-time data on status of forests. Suitable studies are needed on a dynamic basis. There is a need to undertake conservation, restoration, and regeneration under an integrated forest management framework.
• Fourth, the Government should develop a strategy totransition towards agroecology and enable the private sector to contribute to the transition without opening the door for greenwashing through offsetting mechanisms.
• Fifth, At the global level, countries should exclude the land sector from international carbon markets under Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, and should instead focus on contributing to climate finance transfers and ensuring existing tools are used as levers for the agroecological transition, e.g., through the Green Climate Fund.
• Sixth, Carbon sequestration currently offsets about 20% of global agriculture emissions. Increasing carbon sinks while working to mitigate agriculture emissions could lead to a significant reduction in global carbon footprint.

Conclusion

• Globally, many countries have set ambitious targets to achieve net zero by 2050. India has also set a target of 2070. The Governments are moving aggressively for decarbonizing sectors like energy and transportation. However Net Zero may not be possible without the decarbonzation of the agriculture sector. The onus is more on developed countries. Yet, the Government of India should also take possible steps for decarbonization of agriculture, without compromising food security and livelihoods and incomes of farmers. This will accelerate India’s transition to Net Zero.

General Studies Paper 2

Context

• The recent debate in the US on keeping the armed forces apolitical has resonance in India. Some recent decisions of the government like deviating from the “seniority-cum-merit” principle for promotion from the pool of C-in-Cs to the post of chief risk exposing the forces to political partisanship. The events of January 6, 2021, in Washington were the first occasion in the USA, when an orderly post-election transfer of political power faced a serious threat.

Chief of Defence Staff (CDS):

• CDS acts as the permanent Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee which will also have three service chiefs as members.
• Function: foster greater operational synergy between the three service branches of the Indian military and keep inter-service frictions to a minimum.
• Head: Department of Military Affairs (DMA)in the Ministry of Defence.
• Single-point military adviser to the Defence Minister on matters involving all three services
• Service chiefs will be obliged to confine their counsel to issues pertaining to their respective services.
• CDS is vested with the authority:

• • Prioritizing inter-service procurement decisions as Permanent Chairman-Chiefs of Staff Committee.
  • Provide directives to the three chiefs.
• CDS is first among equals: He enjoys the rank of Secretary within the DoD (Department of Defence) and his powers will be confined to only the revenue budget.
• He will perform an advisory role in the Nuclear Command Authority (NCA).

Military control in US:

• American ethos does not require the military to remain “apolitical”, but demands a commitment to being “non-partisan” in their professional conduct.
• Regardless of personal political inclinations: military officers, while upholding the constitution, must give the elected civilian leadership their best professional advice and execute their lawful orders.

Threat:

• The US President:

• • Commander-in-chief (C-in-C) and approving authority for general-rank promotions
  • He could manipulate the process to fill senior military leadership positions with party/personal loyalists.

Suggested rules and best practices of civil-military relations:

• Urgent need to counter forces that threaten the military’s nonpartisan ethos
• Veterans and the media to call out offenders who violate norms of non-partisanship.

Military control in India:

• Active-duty military personnel are prohibited from engaging in any kind of political activity by Acts of Parliament and service rules.
• Conduct is circumscribed by the solemn oath of allegiance to the Constitution that each serviceman swears on recruitment/commissioning.
• India’s armed forces: preserve with the “seniority-cum-merit” principle for promotion from the pool of C-in-Cs to the post of chief.

• • Promoting the “senior-most of equals” obviated the possibility of political interference or nepotism in military promotions.

Risks of politicization:

• A selectee who considers himself beholden or indebted to the political establishment, for his out-of-turn promotion, could become a political “echo chamber.
• Latest rules framed for selection of the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS). Apart from serving and retired chiefs, to serving and retired officers of 3-star (Lt. Gen/equivalent) rank which makes room for political interference.

Way Forward

• In most of the countries: CDS, as the highest-ranking military officer who presides over the chiefs of staff committee, is chosen from amongst the serving chiefs.
• If the government wanted to enlarge its choices, it could have included recently retired chiefs in the pool.

• • But the age limit of 62 years (at which chiefs retire), has eliminated this option. At the same time

• Placing serving/retired 3-star officers (some who possibly missed promotion to C-in-C rank) in the same candidate-pool as serving chiefs.

• • It not only ignores the inherent merit and vast experience — military as well as politico-strategic — of the chiefs, but also casts into doubt the credibility of our promotion system.

• With a mixed bag of serving and retired officers to choose from, and no methodology available for assessment of professional competence, selection will have to be based on spoken reputation, political loyalty and personal preference.

• • Such subjective and problematic criteria are an invitation to arbitrariness and politicization.

General Studies Paper 2

Context

• Union External Affairs Minister Jaishanker led the Foreign Ministers’ session of the Voice of Global South Summit where he said that India has emerged as an education and healthcare hub for the countries of Global South. Jaishankar highlighted India’s capacity-building programmes and its first responder activities in case of Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) situations which showed that the country has emerged as an education and healthcare hub for the Global South countries.

Outcomes of Summit 

• It has provided valuable inputs from the Global South that could facilitate India’s ambition to steer the G20 summit in Delhi to success later this year.
• It underlines the willingness across the Global South to support Indian leadership in addressing the global challenges that have had a massive impact on the condition of many developing countries.
• During the summit, India unveiled three initiatives to assist the Global South in areas ranging from technology to health, medical supplies will be provided to any developing country hit by natural disasters under the “Aarogya Maitri” project.
  • India will establish a Global South Centre of Excellence to undertake research on development solutions for developing countries and call for human-centric globalisation to address their concerns.
  • India will “launch a Global South Science and Technology initiative to share our expertise with other developing nations.”
  • India proposed a ‘Global South Young Diplomats Forum ’to “connect youthful officers to our Foreign Ministries” for synergising the group’s diplomatic voice.

What do you mean by the term Global South?

• The term Global South in common parlance is used for the countries which have low levels of economic and industrial development, which are mainly located in the southern part of the world and are located to the south of the industrialized, developed nations.
• Another way one can understand Global South is the regions of Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Oceania. 
• Additionally, the phrase ‘Global South’ paints a vision of the world with the historically neglected and minor geopolitical players at its center.

India’s Approach towards the global south

• India, with its enormous population and enormous economic capabilities, is working to unite the nations of the Global South into a powerful front so that an action-oriented approach can be adopted for the countries of the global south.
• India has a lot to offer to the world, especially to the countries of the global south.
• In addition, to India’s Vaccine Maitri, which provided medicines and vaccines to over 100 countries during the pandemic, the world has seen how the nation played a significant role in evacuating citizens from Afghanistan and Ukraine during the times of hostilities in those countries.
• India’s digital public assets like UPI, RuPay, and India stack, which are supporting such a large portion of the Indian population, can be a powerful instrument for the digital transformation of other developing and emerging countries.

What are the issues involved?

• The twin crises produced by the Covid-19 pandemic and the Russian war in Ukraine have had a devastating and disproportionate impact on the Global South.
• Multilateralism is now in dire straits thanks to the growing military tensions among the great powers — between Russia and China on one side and the US, Europe, and Japan on the other.
• Major power conflict has been reinforced by the breakdown of the world trading rules and the weaponization of global finance.
• India’s own past experience with the Non-Aligned Movement and the Group-77 developing nations points to the real difficulty of uniting the Global South in pursuit of common goals.

Way forward and Conclusion 

• The world is fully aware of the untapped potential that exists in the growing economies of the Global South.
• The countries of the Global South should unite and change the unequal “global political and financial governance” structures,
• the world should respond to the priorities of the Global South, recognise the principle of “common but differentiated responsibilities for global challenges, respect sovereignty of all nations, rule of law and reform international institutions like the United Nations.
• India certainly needs to contribute in more significant ways to modernising and democratising the global order.
• If the Global South and India worked together, they could make significant advancements in the fight against terrorism, maritime policy, and other fields.
• India looks forward to simple and sustainable solutions from all over the Global South for the betterment of the people.
• The Global South does not have adequate voice in the “eight decades old model of global governance” and it should shape the “emerging order”.

• • As India begins its G-20 Presidency this year, it is natural, our aim is to amplify the voice of the Global South.