Current Affairs Compilations for UPSC IAS Prelims 2022

Mains Oriented Articles

GS Paper 2

• What’s The Missing Block In Building Institutes Of Excellence?
• Making sense of the disqualification of a Lok Sabha MP
• Understanding IMF bailouts
• AUKUS focus is on submarine tech., there is no room for a fourth nation: sources
• The cost of insurance-based funding
• Express View: SC order on UAPA lowers the bar for state when restricting freedoms
• The Supreme Court puts the spotlight on the mode of execution in death penalty cases

GS Paper 3

• Banking turmoil in the West has placed India at a fork in the road
• Go, Afspa, Go – Every N-E district freed of this draconian law represents an advance. But it’s time to consider full repeal

Prelims Oriented Articles (Factly)

• Marburg virus disease outbreak kills five in Tanzania: What is this virus?
• Trains to ply on ‘world’s highest rail bridge’ in 2024: Railway Minister
• Explained | What is Biotransformation technology
• IGNCA launches Vedic Heritage Portal with 550 hours of audio-visual content
• Four more states found to be water-stressed amid groundwater crisis
• Here is the science behind unseasonal rains and hailstorms that flattened crops in India
• DNA profiling of 270 captive elephants completed: Govt
• Union Minister launches Aravalli Green Wall Project, a major initiative to green 5 km buffer area around the Aravalli Hill Range in four states
• ISRO puts 36 OneWeb satellites in orbit
• UK to provide weapons containing depleted uranium to Ukraine: What are these?

Mains Oriented Articles

GS Paper 2

What’s The Missing Block In Building Institutes Of Excellence?

News: The article discusses the problems with regulating higher educational institutes in India and measures that address the issue.

What are issues with regulating higher education in India?

There are numerous higher education regulators in India with University Grants Commission (UGC) being the largest regulator.

The problem with multiple regulators is that educational institutes cannot promote holistic and multi-disciplinary education.

However, in order to become self-reliant, a country needs a knowledgeable and skilled workforce with the regulators focusing on providing learning outcomes-based education and individualised learning on a mass scale.

This can only happen by building higher education institutes of excellence and by investing in academic and research excellence.

However, building excellence institutions is difficult if several regulators work in silos with no consultation processes and with overlapping roles.

Hence, the concern of multiple regulators has been addressed by National Educational Policy (NEP) 2020 through Higher Education Commission of India (HECI).

About Higher Education Commission of India (HECI)

HECI will be established through an act of Parliament. It will have four verticals – 1) a regulatory vertical, 2) an accreditation vertical, 3) a funding vertical, and 4) a standard-setting vertical.

Each of them will function in an autonomous mode but in a coordinated manner.

HECI will holistically integrate multiple higher education disciplines in all degree providing colleges.

Further, the use of the Academic Bank of Credits by all educational institutions will provide mobility for students to move from one institution to another or migrate from one discipline to another.

Read More: Higher Education Commission of India (HECI)

How can HECI function as an effective regulator?

HECI should refrain from bringing out regulations in areas requiring no regulation. It should assess the impact of regulations on functioning of higher education institutes and changes that can be brought through such regulations.

HECI can take input from stakeholders such as students, faculty members, non-teaching staff, institutional heads, etc. for formulating the regulations.

On the whole, the function of HECI must be transparent, open to take suggestions and feedback, practise regulatory self-restraint and intervene only when there is necessity for intervention.

There is also a need to create an interconnected web of regulatory functions under the different verticals of HECI. This will ensure that the regulations brought by one regulatory body gets considered in the jurisdiction of another regulatory body.

Must Read: Inclusive Development in Education – Explained

What is the way ahead?

As a consolidated regulator, HECI can play a revolutionary role in making India’s higher education suitable for innovative ideas while boosting India’s ambitions to develop institutes of excellence.

Making sense of the disqualification of a Lok Sabha MP

News: An opposition party leader recently disqualified after the verdict in a criminal defamation case.

Section 8 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 (RP Act) specifies the offences that disqualifies a member of the legislature.

Clause (3) of this section specifies that the member can also be disqualified for the conviction under any offence other than the ones mentioned in the other two clauses, for which he/she is sentenced to not less than two years.

Since, Lily Thomas vs Union of India, 2013 case judgment, the bar on instant disqualification upon conviction has been lifted.

However, if the Court stays the conviction and sentence, the disqualification will be lifted, and the membership will be restored to the legislature.

Read More – Criminal defamation in India – Explained, pointwise

What is another view regarding instant disqualification upon conviction?

It is a general view that the seat of the legislature shall fall vacant as soon as conviction and sentence are announced by the trial court. However, a closer look reveals that the words, use in Section 8(3) of RP Act, “shall be disqualified”, cannot mean instant disqualification. If there were words, “shall stand disqualified”, it would have meant instant disqualification, without any act from any authority.

At present, the interpretation suggests that that the person shall be disqualified by some authority. As per the article 103, President is authorised to take such decisions.

There are some expert’s opinion that article 103 can be invoked only when a dispute arises on the fact of disqualification. However, this article covers the disqualifications arising due to offences under Section 8 of the RP Act 1951. SC, uphold this positions in Consumer Education and Research Society vs Union of India (2009) case. In this case, President performs adjudicatory and declaratory functions.

In cases where adjudication is not required, the President can simply declare that the sitting Member has become subject to disqualification. But the intervention of the President is essential under Article 103 even in cases where a sitting member has been convicted and the disqualification takes effect from the date of conviction.

Therefore, the notification issued by Lok Sabha Secretariat disqualifying Rahul Gandhi was not correct. Section 8 (3) does not specify which authority is empowered to disqualify an MP; therefore, President must have been referred in this case.

What are other issues associated, as per Former CEC S Y Quraishi?

First, in another such case, in October 2013, Rasheed Masood became 1^st legislature to lose his membership. After that, over 20 other legislators, including Lalu Prasad, have been disqualified.

However, the case of Lakshadweep MP Mohammed Faisal is unique. He was awarded a 10-year sentence in a criminal case. 2 days later, Lok Sabha Secretariat issued a notification to disqualify him.

In January, the Kerala High Court stayed Faisal’s conviction and stayed the by-poll. However, he is not yet reinstated on his position. Here the question arises, why the suspension of conviction by Court did not came into immediate effect, like the disqualification. In Lok Prahari v Election Commission of India (2018), the Supreme Court held that once a conviction has been stayed during the pendency of an appeal, the disqualification which operates as a consequence of the conviction cannot remain in effect.

Second, what was the reason for treating the Rahul Gandhi’s remarks as criminal defamation instead of civil defamation. Furthermore, why was the sentence of the maximum possible prison-term of two years was awarded.

Third, how many of our politicians can truly survive the test of Section 153 (a) and Section 505 (Acts deal with promoting enmity based on religious and linguistic grounds.)

What are the issues with Lily Thomas judgements?

As per P.D.T. Achary (Author of the article), there are many flaws with the Lily Thomas judgment:

1) Article 103 provides that the disqualification of sitting Members shall be decided by the President. So, constitution distinguishes between candidates and sitting Members. SC ignored this fact and struck down the time window of 3 months.

2) A temporary exemption in favour of a sitting member is a reasonable requirement. Because a sudden disqualification will lead to constituency losing its representative. Section 8(4) was enacted to deal with precisely such a situation.

Why Criminal Defamation law needs a relook?

Many countries including U.K., U.S. and Sri Lanka have scrapped the criminal defamation law.

In Kultar Singh vs Mukhtiar Singh (1965), the Supreme Court advocated for allowance to the politicians for the rhetorical, hyperbolic or metaphoric words in the atmosphere, which is usually surcharged with partisan feelings and emotions.

People of mature democracies must be able to enjoy humour without any fear.

Understanding IMF bailouts

News: IMF recently approved a bailout plan for Sri Lanka. It is also in a negotiation with Pakistan for bailout plan.

What are the situations in which nations seek IMF bailout?

When nations face major macroeconomic risk, mostly in the form of a currency crisis. In the case of both Pakistan and Sri Lanka, their currency value has dropped steeply against the U.S. dollar.

Currency depreciation often results into government forcing central banks to create fresh money without any basis. It results in a rapid rise of the overall money supply. It leads to price rise due to demand and further reducing currency value.

The rapid decline in the currency value makes people hesitant to accept the currency in exchange for goods and services.

It also discourages foreign investment into country.

Many times, domestic policies of government adversely impacts the currency’s exchange rate and foreign exchange reserves. For example, in the case of Sri Lanka, a decrease in foreign tourists visiting the country led to a steep fall in the flow of U.S. dollars into the nation.

It results into shortage of money to meet their external debt and other obligations, to purchase essential imports, and also to prop up the exchange value of their currencies.

In this case, countries seek IMF’s help.

How IMF helps countries in distress?

The IMF lends money, often in the form of special drawing rights (SDRs),

IMF provides assistance to countries through a number of lending programs such as the extended credit facility, the flexible credit line, the stand-by agreement, etc.

What are the conditions of IMF’s bailout and are these justified?

IMF imposes certain conditions, before it lends any money to countries. The country will have to agree to implement certain structural reforms as a condition to receive IMF loans.

As per some critics, these reforms are too tough on the public of country. Some accuses IMF’s conditions to be influenced by international politics.

However, IMF argues that countries that seek an IMF bailout are usually in a crisis due to certain policies adopted by their governments. Thus, it will not be fruitful for IMF to waste the resources on country, where same policies continue. For instance, the IMF may demand a country affected by high price inflation to ensure the independence of its central bank. Handling corruption is usually one of the demands, like in case of Sri Lanka.

AUKUS focus is on submarine tech., there is no room for a fourth nation: sources

News: As per the sources, submarine technology development is the primary focus of the AUKUS arrangement. In this segment, there is no scope of potential collaboration between AUKUS and India.

However, cooperation with India is possible in the second pillar for broader technology cooperation.

Pillar-2 of the group is useful for cooperation in technologies like electronic warfare, cyberspace and quantum.

Under AUKUS arrangement, Australia will receive at least three second-hand SSNs from the U.S. in the 2030s as an interim measure. While U.K. will design and develop five new SSNs from the early 2040s to the late 2050s.

Official sources also confirms that cooperation between India and the U.S. on such a sensitive technology as the SSN is unlikely. It is because of the U.S. regulatory frameworks and India’s strategic autonomy.

India has its own indigenous programme for the design and development of SSNs. However, India is still looking to procure six advanced conventional submarines to arrest its depleting submarine strength, and also speeding up its SSN programme.

The cost of insurance-based funding

Context: The article discusses the features of Tamil Nadu public health model that made it successful.

In comparison to all India average, Tamil Nadu has achieved significant improvements in maternal and infant mortality and universal immunisation coverage, and a low total fertility rate.

Its health infrastructure is far better compared to all India average.

Therefore, there is a need to analyse the TN health model, its pros and cons.

How is TN health infrastructure financed?

The funding for the health infra comes from the National Health Mission to the Chief Minister’s Comprehensive Health Insurance Scheme (CMCHIS).

The union government and state governments are bearing the health burden of the state in a 60:40 ratio. The State government bears the insurance premium of the remaining 60 lakh families out of total. The indirect funding through the insurance companies have made it possible for the state government, but it also has its own implications:

First, it led to decentralisation of medical and healthcare administration. Now, heads of the department are empowered to purchase drugs. Now, individual departments can prioritise their needs and hasten decisions in patient care.

Second, as every department in the medical college has become an individual establishment, they compete with one another to maximise profit and minimise losses. Now, the secondary and tertiary healthcare systems look at the patient’s ailment from the view of indemnity.

Insurance companies are delaying the payments due to administrative reasons. So, the overworked hospital staff also need to focus on the negotiations with the insurance companies.

Cost cutting has led to hiring of high number of contractual staff.

Third, Doctors in the primary health centres are functioning like managers rather than clinicians. They focus has been shifted to implementation of Union government schemes using available finances.

Fourth, creation of district health societies is making the system complicated. These societies recruit doctors on a 11-month contract with a consolidated monthly emolument of ₹60,000, nurses for ₹15,000 and health workers for ₹8,500. These contractual employment for doctors is discouraging for 10,725 MBBS passing out every year.

Fifth, between 2012 and 2021, ₹7,783 crore was allotted in the CMCHIS to insurance companies in Tamil Nadu. Of this amount, majority has been claimed by private sector. It will lead to shrinking space for public hospitals.

Sixth, India has achieved good health results by ensuring doctors came from different socio-economic strata and by empowering them with good pay and providing opportunities for post-graduation and super specialisation.

Therefore, the profit-loss calculation and treatment of public health as a health industry will lead to loss of empathy for patients among health professionals.

Express View: SC order on UAPA lowers the bar for state when restricting freedoms

News: Recently, the Supreme Court has held that mere membership of a banned association is sufficient to constitute an offence under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act 1967.

About the recent SC ruling

What are the previous rulings of the court on membership of a banned association?

Section 10(a)(i) of the UAPA states that where an association is declared unlawful by a notification, “a person, who is and continues to be a member of such association shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years, and shall also be liable to fine”.

In 2011, the court discussed the line between advocacy and incitement to violence. The court also discussed how a passive membership or intellectual sympathy to a cause can spill over to a real call to violence. The ruling distinguished between active and passive members. In the same year, the court applied the same principle in two other cases and granted bail.

Both the centre and state of Assam had sought a review of this reading. The present ruling has overruled three older cases.

What are the reasons for overruling the decision?

Firstly, the court accepted the state’s argument that 1) there are sufficient safeguards in the stringent UAPA framework, 2) State is taking “every effort to ensure that every member of the association is made aware of the fact that such association is declared as unlawful”, 3) The government declare an organisation as unlawful only after a robust adversarial process wherein ample opportunity is given to the organisation to appeal before judiciary to justify its aims, objectives and activities being legal and not ‘unlawful’. This is done within the constitutional setup.

Secondly, the “court ought not to have relied upon the US Supreme Court judgments” since the US law is “in contradistinction to the scenario in question in India”. The court also explained that in the landmark Maneka Gandhi v Union of India case the court expanded on personal liberty. On the other hand, free speech in the US is unrestricted.

The Supreme Court puts the spotlight on the mode of execution in death penalty cases

News: Recent Supreme Court debates have spotlighted the mode of execution in death penalty cases.

What was the case about and What is the Centre’s stand on death by hanging?

What are the observations of the SC on death sentences?

What are the issues associated with the execution by hanging in death penalty?

Immense suffering while executing: A documentary on “instantaneous death” by dislocating the cervical vertebrae in the US and the UK exposes that the persons undergo immense suffering due to asphyxiation before dying.

Chances of errors: Researchers have found that death by hanging has many instances of snapped ropes, necks that slipped out of nooses, partial or total decapitations, and slow death due to strangulation (instead of having the neck broken).

So, the immediate and painless nature of death attributed to hanging is an exception rather than the rule.

Global shift: Various courts including the Privy Council, the Supreme Court of Uganda and the High Court of Tanzania have relied on the suffering caused by hangings to reject it as a humane method of execution.

Issues in implementation: Ever since the constitutional validity of the death penalty was upheld, significant constitutional concerns have emerged over every aspect of its administration.

What are the challenges in changing the mode of execution in death penalty cases?

Meeting constitutional requirements: Just because the death penalty is currently permissible it is not open to the state to use any method of execution. Any mode of execution that the state adopts must be capable of meeting constitutional requirements and that is a burden for the state to discharge.

Issues with lethal injections: Execution in death penalty using lethal injections have the following issues. a) Irrefutable evidence from the US that lethal injections have been mishandled and leading to immense suffering. For example, a private study that examined 9,000 executions in the US between 1900 to 2010 found that executions using lethal injection had a higher rate of being botched than any other method, b) The procedure of lethal injections has not been scientifically or medically studied on human beings.

Note: Most states rely on a three-drug combination of sodium thiopental, pancuronium bromide and potassium chloride for lethal injections. While sodium thiopental puts the prisoner to sleep, pancuronium bromide renders the prisoner paralytic and unable to show any pain before potassium chloride causes cardiac arrest. 

What should be done?

Instead of searching for the mode of execution in the death penalty, India should revisit the very administration of the death penalty in India.

GS Paper 3

Banking turmoil in the West has placed India at a fork in the road

News: The failure of three US banks have shaken the global economic crisis and has reminded the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) of 2008. However, the GFC of 2008 is different from the current crisis.

How is the current crisis different from the Global Financial Crisis (GFC) of 2008?

The problem during the GFC was with the credit risk caused by a surge in banks’ bad mortgage loans.

However, the current crisis in US regional banks is due to liquidity risk driven by deposit outflows, and Silicon Valley Bank’s issues.

What are different scenarios emerging from the failure of the bank in the US?

Good scenario: In this, the US Federal Reserve manages to address banks’ liquidity needs via its new bank term-funding programme and its regular discount window.

This would prevent other smaller US banks from selling their assets at a loss. This restores confidence, deposit outflows stabilize and bank runs are avoided.

Bad scenario: It would cause a financial crisis leading to a wave of financial shocks. As seen from last year, there have been instances such as tremors in the cryptocurrency market, the UK pension liability-driven investing crisis and now in US and European banks.

However, in either of the scenarios, there will likely be weaker global growth and recession in both the US and Europe.

Why are recessions likely to happen in the US and Europe?

This is because – a) monetary policy takes time to be effective and the impact of the last year’s tightening policy is yet to fully emerge, b) the banking turmoil will further weaken growth through due to tighter lending standards for the banks and c) these shocks can have ripple effect leading to high cost of capital which in turn delay the capex by the firms along with increase in the saving.

What will be the potential impact of the crisis on India?

The crisis in the West for India means – a) weaker growth and lower inflation, b) slowdown in India’s exports and delay in private capital expenditure, c) moderate consumer demand due to higher interest rates and increased uncertainty.

It is also expected that India’s GDP growth will be moderate at 5-5.5% in 2023-24.

However, the overall impact on India will be limited because both financial and corporate sector balance sheets are stronger. India also has enough foreign exchange reserves to manage any capital account outflows.

Read More: SVB, Signature Bank collapse: What are ‘Too-Big-To-Fail’ banks, and what makes Indian banks safe

What lies ahead?

The worst inflation is yet to come and therefore, it is necessary for India to create buffers through monetary and fiscal policies.

For monetary policy, a forward-looking approach is needed by assessing the impact of past tightening domestic policy and global spillovers along with increasing scrutiny of macro-economic financial risks.

For fiscal policy, there is a need to prepare for a potential slowdown in growth and tax revenues by curbing non-essential spending so that countercyclical public capital expenditure is maintained.

Go, Afspa, Go – Every N-E district freed of this draconian law represents an advance. But it’s time to consider full repeal

News: After 2022, the Union home ministry has considerably reduced the number of “disturbed areas” in Assam, Manipur and Nagaland. In its recent review, the “disturbed area” tag has been removed from one more district in Nagaland.

About Armed Forces Special Powers Act or AFSPA

About AFSPA in North East

At present, eight of Nagaland’s 16 districts have AFSPA in full force while in five others, AFSPA is imposed in parts. AFSPA was removed from Tripura in 2015, Meghalaya removed it in 2018 after 27 years. The Centre removed AFSPA from 23 districts – plus partially from another district – of Assam’s 36 districts last year.

What will be the way forward?

The government has successfully brought militants to surrender, join peace talks and abandon arms. For example, the 2020 Bodo Accord and the 2021 Karbi-Anglong pact have addressed the root causes of insurgencies. With this, the climate is more amenable to the total removal of AFSPA.

Prelims Oriented Articles (Factly)

Marburg virus disease outbreak kills five in Tanzania: What is this virus?

Source: The post is based on the article “Marburg virus disease outbreak kills five in Tanzania: What is this virus?” published in the Indian Express on 27th March 2023.

What is the News?

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), around 161 people in Tanzania have been infected with highly infectious Marburg virus disease.

What is the Marburg virus disease?

According to the WHO, marburg virus disease (MVD), earlier known as Marburg hemorrhagic fever, is a severe, often fatal hemorrhagic fever.

Symptoms: MVD can manifest itself in the form of high fever, muscle aches and severe headache. Around the third day, patients report abdominal pain, vomiting, severe watery diarrhoea and cramping. In this phase, the WHO says, the appearance of patients has been often described as “ghost-like” with deep-set eyes, expressionless faces, and extreme lethargy.

Between days five and seven, patients report bleeding from the nose, and gums and blood appearing in vomit and faeces. Severe blood loss leads to death, often between eight to nine days after symptoms begin.

Challenges in treatment: It is difficult to clinically distinguish MVD from diseases such as malaria, typhoid fever and other viral haemorrhagic fevers.

Fatality rate: The disease has an average fatality rate of around 50%. However, it can be as low as 24% or as high as 88% depending on virus strain and case management.

Trains to ply on ‘world’s highest rail bridge’ in 2024: Railway Minister

Source: The post is based on the article “Trains to ply on ‘world’s highest rail bridge’ in 2024: Railway Minister” published in The Hindu on 27th March 2023.

What is the News?

Chenab bridge is expected to have trains plying on it by January-February 2024.

What is Chenab Bridge?

Chenab Bridge is the world’s highest railway bridge and is part of the Udhampur -Srinagar- Baramulla rail link project(USBRL).

The bridge is being constructed over the Chenab River. It is 1315 m long and at a height of 359 m over the river bed level.

What are the unique features of Chenab Bridge?

– Bridge designed to withstand high wind speed up to 266 Km/Hour.

– Bridge designed for blast load in consultation with DRDO for the first time in India.

– Bridge designed to bear earthquake forces of highest intensity zone-V in India.

– For the first time on Indian Railways, Phased Array Ultrasonic Testing machine was used for testing of welds.

– First time on Indian Railways, National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL) accredited lab established at site for weld testing.

Concerns: The construction of Chenab bridge raised several questions on the environmental impact of the project along the course of Chenab river. 

What is Chenab River?

Chenab River is a major river that flows in India and Pakistan.

It is formed by the union of two headwaters, Chandra and Bhaga, which rise in the upper Himalayas in the Lahaul region of Himachal Pradesh, India. 

The Chenab flows through the Jammu region of Jammu and Kashmir into the plains of Punjab, Pakistan, before ultimately flowing into the Indus River.

The waters of the Chenab were allocated to Pakistan under the terms of the Indus Waters Treaty. India is allowed non-consumptive uses such as power generation.

Explained | What is Biotransformation technology

Source: The post is based on the article “Explained | What is Biotransformation technology” published in The Hindu on 26th March 2023.

What is the News?

A UK-based startup claims to have developed a technology that could alter the state of plastics and make them biodegradable. The company calls the process “biotransformation”.

What is Biotransformation Technology?

Biotransformation technology is a novel technology that would digest plastic waste naturally with the help of microbes and biodegrade the waste without leaving behind any microplastics. 

This technology ensures plastics that escape refuse streams are processed efficiently and broken down. 

Why does India need this technology?

As per the government, India is generating 3.5 billion kgs of plastic waste annually. The per capita plastic waste generation in India has also doubled in the past five years. Of this, a third comes from packaging waste.

Also, as per one estimate, E-commerce giant Amazon generated an estimated 321 million kilograms (709 million pounds) of plastic from packaging waste in 2021 alone. These plastic packaging often ends up in the world’s freshwater and marine ecosystems as pollution.

Application: Food packaging and healthcare industries are the two prime sectors that could use this technology to reduce waste.

What are the steps taken by the Indian government to address the issue of plastic waste?

Indian government has launched multiple initiatives to move the country towards sustainability. Some of those initiatives are:

Introduced a plastic waste management gazette to help tackle the ever-growing plastic pollution caused by single-use plastics.

It imposed a ban on single-use plastics in the country.

The National Dashboard on Elimination of Single-Use Plastic and Plastic Waste Management brings all stakeholders together to track the progress made in eliminating single-use plastic and effectively managing such waste.

An Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) portal helps in improving accountability, traceability, and facilitating ease of compliance reporting in relation to EPR obligations of the producers, importers and brand-owners.

Developed a mobile app to report single-use plastics grievances to check sale, usage or manufacturing of single-use plastics in their area.

What are the other alternatives to reducing plastic waste?

A switch to jute or paper-based packaging could potentially cut down plastic waste. This could also build sustainability within the paper industry, and save on the import bill for ethylene solutions. Wooden packaging is yet another alternative, but that will make the packaging bulkier and increase the cost.

IGNCA launches Vedic Heritage Portal with 550 hours of audio-visual content

Source: The post is based on the article “IGNCA launches Vedic Heritage Portal with 550 hours of audio-visual content” published in Indian Express on 27th March 2023.

What is the News?

Union Home Minister has launched the Vedic Heritage portal in New Delhi,

What is Vedic Heritage Portal?

Developed by: Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) 

Purpose: The portal is an effort to map the vedic heritage of the country.It is a one-stop solution for researchers and others who would like to search any information regarding the Vedic heritage.

– The portal gives detailed information about oral traditions, textual tradition in the form of published books/manuscripts, or implements (yajna-related objects).

Features: The portal is available in a mix of English and Hindi, besides audio content in Sanskrit.

– Research articles and lectures on scientific subjects explaining the relevance of ‘Vedic knowledge’ in the perspective of modern science are also documented on the portal. 

Four more states found to be water-stressed amid groundwater crisis

Source: The post is based on the article “Four more states found to be water-stressed amid groundwater crisis” published in The Hindu on 27th March 2023.

What is the News?

Four more states – Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh have been found to be water-stressed. These states have more than 3% of their ‘assessment areas’ falling in the over-exploited category.

These states will now be brought under the Atal Bhujal Yojana (Atal Jal) along with seven other states which are already under the scheme.

What is Atal Bhujal Yojana?

Click Here to read

About the Groundwater Crisis in India

Groundwater plays an important role in increasing food and agricultural production, providing safe drinking water and facilitating industrial development in India. 

It contributes fresh water to meet the requirements of nearly 65% of irrigated area, which caters to nearly 85% of rural drinking water and 50% of urban drinking water needs.

According to the Dynamic Ground Water Resources Assessment Report by the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB), the groundwater extracted in 1,186 blocks, mandals and taluks is more than what is replenished annually through rainfall and other sources.

Nearly 61% of the observation wells in the country show a long-term declining trend in groundwater levels.

Experts say poor land use policies in India have resulted in the loss of smaller wetlands and the degradation of most wetlands that ultimately pushed groundwater levels very low. Most of the wetlands are treated as wastelands by local administrations and encroached on for other land-use purposes that need to be immediately stopped.

Here is the science behind unseasonal rains and hailstorms that flattened crops in India

Source: The post is based on the article “Here is the science behind unseasonal rains and hailstorms that flattened crops in India” published in Down To Earth on 27th March 2023.

What is the News?

Large parts of the country experienced hailstorms which were also accompanied by torrents of rain. The hail and rains have led to extensive damage to standing crops in many states, such as Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Punjab.

What are the reasons for these unseasonal rains and hailstorms?

Firstly, the rainfall and the storms were caused by multiple western disturbances (WD) and many troughs, which are extended low-pressure areas, formed due to the interaction of the WDs and associated systems with winds blowing in from the east, mainly the Bay of Bengal.

Secondly, a warming Arabian Sea could also be responsible for the intense storm activity and rain.

Thirdly, India Meteorological Department(IMD) also cited a strong subtropical westerly jet stream, a band of winds that circles the subtropical regions of the planet in the upper layers of the troposphere, as a reason for the storm activity.

– This was aided by the incursion of moisture-laden winds from the Bay of Bengal and the lowering of the freezing level in the atmosphere, which helped in the formation of hail.

What is Western Disturbance(WD)?

A Western Disturbance(WD) is an extratropical storm originating in the Mediterranean region that brings sudden winter rain to the northern parts of the Indian subcontinent, which extends as east as up to northern parts of Bangladesh and Southeastern Nepal.

The meaning of WD lies in its name: The disturbance travels from the “western” to the eastern direction.

– Disturbance means an area of “disturbed” or reduced air pressure.In the term “extra-tropical storm”, storm refers to low pressure.“Extra-tropical” means outside the tropics.

Impact of WD: A WD is associated with rainfall, snowfall and fog in northern India.Upon its arrival in Pakistan and northern India, clouds along with rain and snow also arrive.The moisture which WDs carry with them comes from the Mediterranean Sea and/or from the Atlantic Ocean.

DNA profiling of 270 captive elephants completed: Govt

Source: The post is based on the article “DNA profiling of 270 captive elephants completed: Govt” published in Indian Express on 27th March 2023.

What is the News?

The DNA profiling of 270 of the 2,675 captive elephants in the country has been completed.

Note: India is home to 20% of the global captive Asian elephant population.

What is DNA profiling?

DNA profiling is a method to differentiate between individuals of the same species using samples of their Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA).

DNA profiling of elephants was started in August 2022 for Gaj Soochna App. This will act as the ‘Adhaar card of captive elephants’.

– Note: Gaj Soochna is a mobile application developed to record the details of captive elephants across India. The centralized database will include physical and genetic information of every captive elephant individual of the country.

The DNA profiling process is being carried out in collaboration with the Wildlife Institute of India.

What are the benefits of DNA Profiling of elephants?

Firstly, forest officers can identify each elephant and track it and therefore its transfer, which often happens in the case of captive elephants, can be recorded.

Secondly, more focus can be put on elephant care – with unique information about elephants.

Note: Unlike Project Tiger, Project Elephant looks at the welfare and health of captive elephants as well.

What is Project Elephant?

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About Elephant Population in India

India has the largest and the most stable population of Asian elephants, where more than 60% of wild Asian elephants are in India.

The population of 29,964 elephants as recorded in the last elephant census conducted in 2017 speaks volumes of the passion for wildlife conservation ingrained in Indian culture.

As per the Elephant Census (2017), Karnataka has the highest number of elephants (6,049), followed by Assam (5,719) and Kerala (3,054).

Union Minister launches Aravalli Green Wall Project, a major initiative to green 5 km buffer area around the Aravalli Hill Range in four states

Source: The post is based on the article “Union Minister launches Aravalli Green Wall Project, a major initiative to green 5 km buffer area around the Aravalli Hill Range in four states” published in PIB on 26th March 2023.

What is the News?

The Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change has launched the Aravalli Green Wall Project.

What is the Aravalli Green Wall Project?

The Aravalli Green Wall Project is part of the Union Environment Ministry’s vision to create green corridors across the country to combat land degradation and desertification. 

The project covers the states of Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Delhi – where the Aravalli hills landscape span over 6 million hectares of land.

Objectives of the project:

– Improve the ecological health of the Aravalli range

– To prevent the eastward expansion of the Thar Desert and to reduce land degradation by creating green barriers that will prevent soil erosion, desertification and dust storms

Features of the project: The project will involve planting native species of trees and shrubs on scrubland, wasteland and degraded forest land, along with rejuvenating and restoring surface water bodies such as ponds, lakes and streams. 

– The project will also focus on agroforestry and pasture development to enhance the livelihoods of local communities.

Significance of the project: The project will help in:

– Promoting sustainable development and livelihood opportunities by involving local communities in afforestation, agro-forestry and water conservation activities that will generate income, employment, food security and social benefits. 

– Contributing to India’s commitments under various international conventions such as UNCCD (United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification), CBD (Convention on Biological Diversity) and UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change).

ISRO puts 36 OneWeb satellites in orbit

Source: The post is based on the article “ISRO puts 36 OneWeb satellites in orbit” published in The Hindu on 27th March 2023.

What is the News?

The Indian Space Research Organisation(ISRO)’s GSLV-Mk3/LVM3 has successfully launched the second batch of 36 Oneweb satellites into Low Earth Orbit.

About OneWeb satellites

OneWeb is a global communication network powered from space, enabling connectivity for governments and businesses.

Bharti Enterprises is a major investor in OneWeb group, which is engaged in the implementation of the constellation of low earth satellites.

OneWeb Group has signed an agreement with ISRO’s commercial arm NewSpace India Ltd to launch 72 satellites into Low-Earth orbits(LEO).

The first set of 36 satellites for OneWeb was launched in 2022. This is the second launch.

This was the eighteenth launch of OneWeb satellites bringing the constellation’s total number of satellites to 618. 

OneWeb intends to use 588 active satellites in its first-generation constellation to provide global connectivity at high speed and low latency.

Significance: This was the sixth launch for India’s heaviest rocket LVM-3 – which includes the launch of Chandrayaan-2 in 2019 – and the second one where it demonstrated the capability of launching multiple satellites in low earth orbit (LEO).

About India’s share in the commercial space market

India has been concentrating on increasing its share of the global commercial space market ever since the country decided to open the space sector to private players in 2020. 

It is one of the world’s major space-faring nations, but it only has 2% of the commercial market at the moment.

Till date, ISRO has launched 384 foreign satellites from at least 36 countries, with at least 10 dedicated commercial missions and several other Indian missions where they were carried as co-passenger satellites. The highest number of these commercial launches have been by companies from the United States.

India plans to increase its 2% share in the commercial market to 10% by 2030 through commercial launches by ISRO and launches offered by private companies like Skyroot and Agnikul, which are in the process of developing their own launch vehicles.

Keeping this in mind, ISRO has also developed the Small Satellite Launch Vehicle (SSLV), which is meant to provide on-demand launch services commercially.

UK to provide weapons containing depleted uranium to Ukraine: What are these?

Source: The post is based on the article “UK to provide weapons containing depleted uranium to Ukraine: What are these?” published in Indian Express on 27th March 2023.

What is the News?

The British government has announced that it would provide Ukraine with armour-piercing rounds containing Depleted Uranium.

What is Depleted Uranium?

Depleted uranium is a byproduct of the process of creating enriched uranium, which is used in nuclear reactors and nuclear weapons. 

In comparison to enriched uranium, depleted uranium is much less radioactive and is incapable of generating a nuclear reaction. 

However, due to its high density — it’s more dense than lead — depleted uranium is widely used in weapons as it can easily penetrate armour plating.

Which countries have depleted uranium munitions?

As per the International Coalition to Ban Uranium Weapons. US, Britain, Russia, China, France and Pakistan are known to produce uranium weapons which are not classified as nuclear weapons. Another 14 states are known to store them.

Where have depleted uranium munitions been used?

Depleted uranium munitions were used in the 1991 Gulf War to destroy T-72 tanks in Iraq. These weapons were again used in the 1999 NATO bombing of Yugoslavia and then during the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

What are the risks of using such weapons?

Even though depleted uranium munitions aren’t considered nuclear weapons, experts suggest that such weapons must be used with caution because they emit low levels of radiation and can cause severe diseases.

Ingesting or inhaling quantities of uranium – even depleted uranium – is dangerous. It depresses renal function and raises the risk of developing a range of cancers.

Moreover, depleted uranium munitions which miss their target can poison groundwater and soil.