9 PM Daily Current Affairs Brief – December 13th, 2022

Current Affairs Compilations for UPSC IAS Prelims 2022

Mains Oriented Articles

GS Paper 2

• Why Parliament must reexamine POCSO
• Curbing individualism in public health
• India-UK free trade deal will be good to businesses and consumers in both countries
• Politics of national renewal
• Weighing in on the efficacy of female leadership in government

GS Paper 3

• Why the central government should stop funding the power distribution sector
• We will need to find our own sources of climate finance
• Fixing India’s airports: It needs more world-class terminals
• Big Tech and the need in India for ex-ante regulation
• Ready for the worst – Governments and agencies have shown better preparedness for cyclones

Prelims Oriented Articles (Factly)

• Impact of Asia’s ageing: Labour quality can trump quantity
• HAKUTO-R Mission: Japanese startup launches historic moon mission
• Pradhan Mantri Adi Adarsh Gram Yojna(PMAAGY): Govt. to turn 36,428 villages as ‘model tribal villages’
• Kochi-Muziris Biennale to begin on December 12: What are Art Biennales and why are they significant?
• Private member Bill seeks PM-led panel for selecting Chief Election Commissioner
• RS passes ‘futuristic’ Energy Conservation Bill to further regulate carbon emissions
• Year-End- Review of Department of Food and Public Distribution– 2022
• World Malaria Report 2022: Malaria cases, deaths begin stabilizing after COVID disruption: WHO
• What ISRO is doing to boost the use of NavIC, India’s version of GPS

Mains Oriented Articles

GS Paper 2

Why Parliament must reexamine POCSO

News: The CJI asked lawmakers to address the “growing concern” on the criminalisation of adolescents engaging in consensual sexual activity under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

What is the POCSO Act?

The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) raised the age of consent from 16 to 18 in 2012. The Indian Penal Code and other laws were subsequently modified to ensure cohesion with POCSO.

Why the CJI is demanding a legislative reform on POCSO?

The POCSO Act criminalises all sexual activity for those under the age of 18, regardless of whether consent is factually present between the two minors in a particular case. Hence, the families of victims are hesitant to file police complaints owing to factors like the slow pace of the criminal justice system and the stigma associated with such cases.

This is highlighted by many high courts. But by invoking the “Romeo-Juliet exception,” many high courts acquit the accused in cases involving consensual sexual activity between minors aged between 16-18 years.

With 253 million adolescents in the country and a social culture that stigmatises independent decisions when it comes to choosing a partner, the CJI demanded a legislative reform on POCSO.

Why does India need a legislative reform on POCSO?

a) The National Family Health Survey-5, 2019-21 (NFHS-5) shows 39% of women had their first sexual intercourse before the age of 18 years, b) A study by Enfold Proactive Health Trust shows that 1 in four cases under the POCSO Act involve admission of romantic relationships. Another study on West Bengal, Maharashtra and Assam found that 25% of POCSO listings were romantic cases. c) A draft Bill specified that statutory rape would be triggered for minors between 16-18 years only in circumstances such as use of force. This was dropped under the Act, d) Research suggests that the increase in the threshold of consent to 18 has led to abuse of the legislation.

What should be done?

Stakeholder consultation and careful drafting are required to ensure the spirit of POCSO law is upheld. Hence, the Parliament must take notice and reexamine the law.

Curbing individualism in public health

News- The article explains the need to prioritise society oriented population-based approaches over individual-oriented interventions for public health.

What is the recent example related to it?

The Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) under Ayushman Bharat is the largest health insurance scheme in the country. It covers hospitalisation expenses for a family for ₹5 lakh a year. The entire scheme doesn’t talk about the need for hospitalisation services per year for any population.

Instead, every individual is given an assurance that if there is a need for hospitalisation expenses and the scheme will cover the expenses.

What are the facts associated with it?

Data from the National Sample Survey Organisation (75th round) show that on an average, only 3% of the total population in India had an episode of hospitalisation in a year.

The assurance of a service remains an unfulfilled promise when more than 90% of those who were given the promise do not need hospitalisation in the near future.

In case of COVID-19, It was also evident that around 20% of the total COVID-19 positive cases needed medical attention, with around 5% needing hospitalisation and around 1%-2% needing intensive care (ICU) or ventilator support.

Most of the deaths due to COVID-19 are a reflection of the failure to offer ventilator and ICU support services to the 1%-2% in desperate need of it. The morbidity profile of a population across age groups is an important criterion used to plan the curative care needs of a population.

What it means is that for population-level planning, the need of the population as a single unit needs to be considered.

What are the reasons for the dominance of individualism in public health?

The first is the dominance of biomedical knowledge and philosophy in the field of public health. It leads to the misconception that what is done at an individual level, when done at a population level, becomes public health.

The visibility of health impacts among the general public is a big reason. Health effects are more visible and appear convincing at the individual level.

the market’s role and the effect of consumerism in public health influence the choices of people. The beneficiaries for a programme become the maximum when 100% of the population is targeted.

What is the way forward?

All forms of individualistic approaches in public health need to be resisted to safeguard its original principles of practice, population, prevention, and social justice.

India-UK free trade deal will be good to businesses and consumers in both countries

News: India and the UK are the two largest economies of the world. A Free Trade Agreements (FTA) between the two would further benefit both the economies.

How will the free trade agreement benefit both the nations?

Lower Prices: It would help in providing multiple choice to Indian consumers along with providing lower prices of British manufactured products.

Environmental Benefits: PM Modi has asked the Indian Businesses to export products around the world with “zero-effect, zero-defect”. This means exporting high-quality goods with no environmental impact. An FTA would help in achieving this.

Providing Market: It would help Indian firms by providing a market in the UK where they can sell their goods and services.

Expertise: India’s economy is growing and the UK can provide its expertise in the different fields including SMEs to further give a boost to the economic growth of India.

Investments: It would also help to empower the India-UK investment boom and increase investment in each other’s economy.

What are the concerns?

There are concerns of slow global economic growth, impact of pandemic on the supply chain and volatile markets to the current trade agreement.

However, despite these concerns it is expected that FTA would help in boosting ties between the two nations.

Politics of national renewal

News- The article explains the issues related to Indian democracy and the need to renew the spirit of democracy.

What is the current situation of our evolving democracy?

A report by the Pew Research Center on social hostilities distressingly ranks India first. On several indices, our democratic deficit needs urgent introspection, even as we celebrate the resilience of our elective processes.

An economy in which the top 10% hold 77% of the nation’s wealth is not in sync with foundational principles of an egalitarian democracy.

Abandonment of civil conversation on the core challenges is a sign of flailing democracy.

A political culture which promotes unfettered abuse, ignorance, egotism and reflexive bigotry across parties has disabled the nation from reaping the full dividends of a constitutional state.

Politics that thrives on persecution of adversaries in an abuse of the state’s coercive processes negates the essence of justice.

Opposition’s compulsive disdain for every action of the government regardless of its intrinsic merit has weakened its credibility as a countervailing democratic force.

The concentration of power in executive hands has unsettled institutional power equations.

What are the solutions to renew our democracy?

We can rescue our democracy as long as the freedoms are valued in our hearts.

Search for leadership is critical who are driven by a big cause rather than being self-centered.

We must restore humility in democratic politics. Gandhian tradition of politics that emphasizes the importance of means to achieve political goals, is the need of the day.

Our democracy must address a flawed system that enables manufactured consent, manipulated majorities and perversion of the ends of democratic politics.

The decline of democratic institutions can be arrested through a politics of national renewal based on reasoned conversations and a collective political assertion in favour of freedom over fear, inclusion over exclusion and justice over injustice.

There is a need for politics of accommodation and conciliation inspired by political magnanimity and honesty of purpose.

Weighing in on the efficacy of female leadership in government

News– The article explains the issues of women in Indian politics. It also explains the effectiveness of women leadership.

What shows the effectiveness of women leadership?

Germany, Taiwan and New Zealand have women heading their governments. These three countries seem to have managed the pandemic much better than their neighbours.

A detailed recent study by researchers in the United States reports that States which have female governors had fewer COVID-19 related deaths.

However, it is not right to make generalisations based on these studies. The important takeaway from such studies is the necessity of getting rid of inherent biases and perceptions about female effectiveness in leadership roles.

What are the impacts of women reservation in panchayats?

They perform significantly better than men in implementing policies that promote the interests of women.

A study was conducted in 1993 to test the effectiveness of female leadership. It concluded that pradhans invested more in rural infrastructure that served better the needs of their own gender. For instance, women pradhans were more likely to invest in providing easy access to drinking water since the collection of drinking water is primarily the responsibility of women.

What are some successful initiatives in India for increasing women representation in politics?

Women were allowed to vote from 1950 onwards. This is in striking contrast to the experience in the so-called “mature democracies” of western Europe and the United States. We have had and have charismatic female leaders like Indira Gandhi, Jayalalitha, Mayawati, Sushma Swaraj and Mamata Banerjee among several others.

What are challenges to women representation in politics?

The female representation in central and state governments is still low. Female members make up only about 10% of the total ministerial strength.

The underrepresentation of women in Indian legislatures is even more striking. The 2019 election sent the largest number of women to the Lok Sabha. Despite this, women constitute just over 14% of the total strength of the Lok Sabha.

According to the Inter-Parliamentary Union, India has a dismal rank of 143 out of 192 countries on women representation in legislature.

Attempts have also been made to extend quotas for women in the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies through a Women’s Reservation Bill. Male members from several parties opposed the Bill on various pretexts. Both the NDA and United Progressive Alliance governments have reintroduced the Bill in successive Parliaments, but without any success.

What is the way forward to increase women’s representation in politics?

It is essential to create a level-playing field through appropriate legal measures. The establishment of quotas for women is an obvious answer. Such quotas have both a short-term and long-term impact.

GS Paper 3

Why the central government should stop funding the power distribution sector

News: The Power Finance Corporation has reported that the aggregate technical and commercial (AT&C) losses of discoms have gone up from 20.7% in 2019-20 to 22.3% in 2020-21.

What are aggregate technical and commercial (AT&C) losses?

The AT&C estimate gives an idea of the losses a distribution company (discom) faces in its line of business.  If a discom has received 100 units of power, the AT&C figure will tell how many units are not recovered in terms of revenue. For example, a figure of 25% would mean that for every 100 units of power fed into the discom, 25 units are not recovered.

Generally, commercial losses largely imply theft, faulty meters, meters being manipulated or bypassed, etc. Some technical losses are inevitable in a distribution system, but these can vary a lot across discoms (roughly between 4 to 12%) depending on the technology.

About India’s AT&C losses and schemes to reduce them

The Indian distribution system has always faced high AT&C losses in excess of 30% in the early 2000s. The AT&C figure was 26.6% in 2011-12. It has come down to 22.3% in 2020-21 (Only a little less than half a per cent a year). It ranges from 4.5% (Daman and Diu) to 60% (Nagaland power department).

The major states where the AT&C figures are higher than the national average include Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Odisha, Bihar, Jharkhand and Madhya Pradesh.

Due to this a) Discoms became financially weak and made it economically unviable, and b) To meet the revenue gap, discoms borrow money from banks leading to a very high-interest burden.

So, the government introduced

Accelerated power distribution scheme (APDP): Under this, the government, has been trying to lower AT&C losses by providing grants/cheap loans to discoms to improve their distribution infrastructure and also for the installation of smart meters.

Many versions of the scheme have been attempted. For instance, in 2022, a budgetary outlay of about Rs 3 trillion was earmarked for aiding the distribution sector.

Why are AT&C losses not coming down?

1) Work culture issue in public discoms, 2) Lack of consumer indexing: All end consumers get their supply from some identified distribution transformer (DT). Each DT is under the supervision of one person who is held accountable for losses (meaning theft) from his DT. In most public discoms, no one knows which consumer is attached to which DT (implying a lack of indexing).

What should be done to reduce AT&C losses?

If the AT&C losses come down to 15% (the target in several government policy documents) from 23%, additional revenue of about Rs 50,000 crore may be generated. For this,

India needs proper indexing: For example, the Delhi discoms have reduced AT&C losses from 50% (in 2002) to somewhere between 7 to 8% today.

Strict stand from the Centre: The central government provided the money, but the states fail to reduce AT&C losses so far. Hence, the centre should stop funding the distribution sector and leave it to the states to clear the issue.

This will force the state governments to enhance retail tariffs along with reducing losses.

We will need to find our own sources of climate finance

News: The agreement to create a loss and damage fund might largely trickle in through concessional loans instead of proper funding.

What is the present state of climate finance?

According to the OECD’s climate finance trends report 2022, of the targeted $100 billion aggregate climate funding, about $83 billion was mobilized from developed nations via global agencies through 2020. Among these, concessional and non-concessional loans stood at 71%, grants at 26% and equity at 2%.

Of these, private climate finance and export credit extended via agencies comprised just $15 billion.

Thematic split of $83 billion: a) Majority of the funds are invested in climate mitigation activities($49 billion) focused mainly on cleaner energy and transport, b) After that about $28 billion was spent in climate adaptation, mainly for agriculture, water supply, forestry restoration, coastal fishing and sanitation.

Regions: Asia (42% of the 2020 total), Africa (26%) and Latin America (17%).

Why does the world need to work on climate finance?

The adaption finance needs of developing countries will gallop to $340 billion annually by 2030. For instance, India alone will have to install around $250 billion worth of renewables by 2030.

Small and medium-sized enterprises and local communities are left out of major government plans such as India’s long-term Low Emissions Development Strategy (LEDS).

What should be done to improve climate finance in India?

Focus on sustainability: For that, India’s credit curve requires a different approach that rewards entities seeking to build resilience through sustainability.

Improve banking access: Indian banks should be nudged to lock in long-tenure, low-cost private climate capital from alternative sources, like overseas investor institutions, private philanthropy, CSR budgets, etc. They should be incentivized to lend cheaper loans to diverse businesses.

Encourage new climate technologies: This can be done by nurturing finance instruments and venture capitalists.

Bridge urban-rural divide in climate finance: This can be done by providing low coupon sustainability-linked bank loans or overdraft facilities at the entity level.

Delineated projects of larger companies or well-rated special-purpose vehicles should meet pre-set mitigation specifications and has to be encouraged to raise funds through domestic financial institutions (DFIs), project financiers and private and sovereign green bonds.

Fixing India’s airports: It needs more world-class terminals

News: Recent visit of the Union Civil Aviation Minister to Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) has resulted in few minor changes to processes at the airport. A large proportion of the plan consists of asking airlines to cancel or move flights. But this is not a sustainable solution.

What are the challenges faced by Indian Airports?

-Despite various attempts to increase airport capacity, the ability of India’s terminals to absorb passenger growth is lacking.

–Poor processes, customer-unfriendly approach, and additional red tape have reduced effective airport capacity in recent years.

-There is not enough manpower and checkpoints are poorly manned. So, additional checkpoints are being introduced. This resulted in long queues for passengers. For instance, the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) has not assigned enough manpower.

–Under-provision of infrastructure: For example, the newly built airport for north Goa at Mopa is supposed to be able to handle only 4.4 million passengers a year. This is less than the number of passengers passing through another airport at Dabolim currently.

–Low terminal count: Soon, Delhi and Mumbai will both be among the 10 busiest airports in the world. Their global peers have half a dozen terminals to aid passenger movements. On the other hand, Delhi has only one world-class terminal, Terminal 3, and that is now more than 10 years old.

What should be done to improve the smooth functioning of Indian Airports?

Improve manpower: This has to be done from immigration officials to the CISF to the airport authority to operators to ground-handling companies to airlines

Improve capacity: Like their global peers, all metropolitan cities in India should have at least two airports with at least six to seven terminals among them.

Further, India should create a long-term plan for airport sustainability.

Big Tech and the need in India for ex-ante regulation

News– The article explains the issue of market dominance by big tech companies in the digital space in context of the Competition (Amendment) Bill.

The Competition Commission of India recently imposed a penalty of 1,337.76 crore rupees on Google for abusing its dominant position in the android mobile device ecosystem.

What is the Competition Commission of India?

It was set up under the Indian Competition Act 2002. The objective was to protect and promote competition in markets, and prevent practices that hinder competition.

What are market dominance practices by big tech companies that need to be delta by regulators?

In any free economy, market dominance is natural. But it becomes problematic when it is abused to prevent competition. The intent of Google’s business was to make users on its platforms abide by its revenue-earning service. The network effects, along with a status quo bias, created significant entry barriers for competitors to enter or operate in the markets concerned. Competition laws are too slow to respond in complex technical sectors.

Predatory pricing is another issue. It is the lowering of prices that forces other firms to be out competed. Amazon and Flipkart were accused of deep discounting. It is essential to establish an ex-ante framework to ensure a level playing field for local sellers.

There are concerns related to bundling of services especially with pre-installed apps. The manufacturers eliminate competition without the consumer’s consent. Apple is facing heat in the U.S. and Europe over pre-installed apps. So, Indian competition laws need to be vigilant.

The regulation has not dealt effectively with the evolving data economy. There is sensitive data stored on these platforms. Big corporations have asserted ownership of the right to use or transfer this data without restriction. The storage and collection of women’s and children’s data need to be dealt with more cautiously to build a safe digital place.

Finally, market distortion can also lead to poorer quality of services, data monopoly, and stifle innovation.

What is the way forward for the new bill?

There is a need to establish harmony of the Competition law with the new Consumer Protection Act 2020 and e-commerce rules. The new law should include a mechanism to ensure fair compensation for consumers who face the brunt of the anti-competitive practices of the Big Techs.

India is now on the cusp of a digital transformation. The Competition Act of 2000, was largely constituted to deal with the physical marketplace. There is an urgent need to contextualize the law to the digital marketplace and devise new provisions with adequate ex-ante legislation.

It is equally important to contextualize India’s reality. Kirana stores competing with e-retailers such as Big Basket is an example of unfair competition between legacy businesses and their digital counterparts.

In such a setting, pushing for an EU-based approach to competition might not be the best way for Indian marketplace interests in protecting the local digital economy.

India needs a new ex-ante-based framework that promotes competition by ensuring a level-playing field for the big, the small, the old and the new.

Ready for the worst – Governments and agencies have shown better preparedness for cyclones

News: Cyclone Mandous did not cause much damage to the people of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh even though it led to heavy rainfall.

What were the reasons behind less damage by the cyclone?

It was the response of the government official that controlled and guided the disaster management that lessened the impact of the cyclone.

The Tamil Nadu government has been paying greater attention in improving the storm-water drain network and such other works. This was one of the reasons that many areas were not flooded.

The State government’s coordination with the Meteorological Department and its preparedness in tackling the post-landfall situation made a difference to the situation this time.

Technology also played a key role in forecasting and in the circulation of the information.

What is the way ahead?

There is a need for the State government and the Meteorological department to coordinate and work together by leveraging technology, resources and improving the functioning to lessen the impact of cyclones in the future.

Prelims Oriented Articles (Factly)

Impact of Asia’s ageing: Labour quality can trump quantity

Source: The post is based on the article “Labour quality can trump quantity” published in the Business Standard on 13^th November 2022.

What is the News?

According to a study, the impact of Asia’s ageing on the global supply of workers and savings, workforce quality is likely to trump quantity, at least for the next decade in Asia.

About the study

The study analysed the demographic shift in 10 major Asian economies (the A-10: China, India, Indonesia, Japan, the Philippines, Vietnam, Thailand, Korea, Malaysia, and Taiwan).

What are the Key findings of the study?

a) The A-10 countries dominate global trade in manufactured goods but will see the working-age population decline soon, b) The number of workers can grow by 0.9 to 1.6% annually in India, Indonesia, and the Philippines, but shrink by 0.2 to 1% in China, Japan, Thailand, and South Korea, c) Asian economies higher labour force participation ratios (LFPR) are declining and are expected to continue falling in the near future. But this is due to people spending more years in education, d) Around 28% of the A-10 workforce is still deployed in agriculture. Reskilling farm workers for industrial work is undoubtedly challenging.

e) Parents with fewer children have the time and resources to invest more in their development. This not only affects their average level of education but also their physical development, f) The prevalence of underweight children has fallen meaningfully across countries in Asia, g) Average years of schooling has risen substantially across the region, rising by three to five years, with the best improvement in Indonesia and Vietnam. This is again driven by government and parent’s efforts.

h) Except for Japan, Korea, and Taiwan, A-10 economies still have high informality in their labour force. Informal workers tend to have lower productivity, and i) There is strong evidence of a rise in robotisation in ageing societies. There are industries like electronics assembly, garments and toys where significant automation is still difficult.

What is the significance of the study?

–Improvement in human capital can offset some of the declines in fertility: On average, people may have fewer children, but those are more likely to grow into stronger and more capable workers.

-The A-10 industrial labour supply may even remain in surplus. This is due to the younger economies (India, Indonesia, Philippines) which successfully deploying their workers.

What are the major recommendations of the study?

The main lesson for countries with younger populations like India is to focus on improving human capital, closing gaps in early-childhood nutrition and educational outcomes, and accelerating the process of economic formalisation.

HAKUTO-R Mission: Japanese startup launches historic moon mission

Source: The post is based on the article “Japanese startup launches historic moon mission” published in Economic Times on 12th December 2022

What is the News?

The Japanese space startup Ispace Inc has launched its own private lander M1 to the Moon under its HAKUTO-R mission from the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

What is the HAKUTO-R Mission?

HAKUTO-R is Japan’s first-ever lunar mission and the first of its kind by a private company.

The name HAKUTO-R refers to the white rabbit that Japanese folklore suggests lives on the Moon.

The M1 lander will deploy two robotic rovers: 1) A two-wheeled, baseball-sized device from Japan’s JAXA space agency and 2) The four-wheeled Rashid explorer made by the United Arab Emirates.

The M1 lander is expected to soft land at Atlas Crater which is located on the south-eastern edge of the moon’s Mare Frigoris (“Sea of Cold”).

What is Rashid?

Rashid is UAE’s first moon rover and the Arab world’s first lunar mission. It will be landed on the moon through the HAKUTO-R mission.

The rover will study the properties of the lunar soil, the petrography and geology of the Moon, dust movement, surface plasma conditions, and the Moon’s photoelectron sheath.

What is the significance of the HAKUTO-R mission?

First, it would allow Japan and the UAE to join the United States, Russia and China as the only nations that have successfully landed a craft on the lunar surface.

Second, it would mark the first all-private Moon landing with everything from launch to the landing conducted with privately built vehicles.

Pradhan Mantri Adi Adarsh Gram Yojna(PMAAGY): Govt. to turn 36,428 villages as ‘model tribal villages’

Source: The post is based on the article “Govt. to turn 36,428 villages as model tribal villages” published in The Hindu on 13th December 2022

What is the News?

The Union Ministry of Tribal Affairs is now working to develop 36,428 villages with at least 50% tribal population and 500 STs across the country into ‘model tribal’ villages.

These efforts were part of the existing Special Central Assistance to Tribal Sub-Scheme (SCA to TSS) which has now been renamed to the Pradhan Mantri Adi Adarsh Gram Yojna (PMAAGY).

What is Pradhan Mantri Adi Adarsh Gram Yojna(PMAAGY)?

Nodal Ministry: Ministry of Tribal Affairs 

Aim: To mitigate gaps and provide basic infrastructure in villages with the significant tribal populations in convergence with funds available under different schemes in Central Scheduled Tribe Component.

Coverage: The scheme is envisaged to cover 36,428 villages having at least 50% ST population and 500 STs across States / UTs with notified STs during the period.

Components of the scheme: The objective of this scheme is to achieve integrated socio-economic development of selected villages through a convergence approach. It includes the following components:

– Preparing Village Development Plan based on the needs, potential, and aspirations;

– Maximizing the coverage of individual/family benefit schemes of the Central/State Governments;

– Improving the infrastructure in vital sectors like health, education, connectivity and livelihood.

Kochi-Muziris Biennale to begin on December 12: What are Art Biennales and why are they significant?

Source: The post is based on the article “Kochi-Muziris Biennale to begin on December 12: What are Art Biennales and why are they significant?” published in Indian Express on 13th December 2022

What is the News?

The fifth edition of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale opens on December 12 (founded in 2011). It will have on display the works of over 90 artists from across the globe in varied media. 

What is Kochi-Muziris Biennale?

The Kochi-Muziris Biennale is an international exhibition of contemporary art held in the city of Kochi in Kerala. It is the largest art exhibition in the country and the biggest contemporary art festival in Asia. It is an initiative of the Kochi Biennale Foundation with support from the Government of Kerala.

What are Art Biennales?

It is an international large-scale showcase of art that takes place every two years at a particular site.

It is usually non-commercial enterprises – unlike art fairs – that centre around a curatorial theme.

History of art biennales around the world: One of the most prestigious and oldest biennales in the world, the Venice Biennale was established through a resolution by the city council in 1893 to celebrate national artistic talent. 

– With its rising popularity, the 1900s saw the emergence of Biennales across the world, with Bienal de São Paulo (Brazil)  being instituted as the first non-European biennial in 1951.

– In 2009, a global Biennale Foundation was established with an “aim to create a platform for dialogue, networking, and knowledge sharing among contemporary art biennials around the world”.

Significance: Though most biennales do not allow for the direct purchase of art, an invitation and participation in the global showcase are often viewed as a validation of an artist’s work.

Additionally, Biennales, often named after the host city, become a reason for local pride, promoting cultural tourism and generating revenue through visitors.

Moreover, it creates a new language of cosmopolitanism and modernity rooted in Old traditions. For instance, Kochi is among the few cities in India where pre-colonial traditions of cultural pluralism continue to flourish.

Private member Bill seeks PM-led panel for selecting Chief Election Commissioner

Source: The post is based on the article “Private member Bill seeks PM-led panel for selecting Chief Election Commissioner” published in Indian Express on 13th December 2022

What is the News?

A private member’s Bill has been introduced in Lok Sabha as a response to the growing concern over the independence and autonomy of the Election Commission.

The bill comes at a time when the Supreme Court is hearing petitions on the need for reforms in the appointment of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and the Election Commissioners (ECs).

What are the key provisions of the private member bill on the Election Commission?

Appointment process: It seeks that the members of the EC, including the Chief Election Commissioners, to be appointed by a panel consisting of the Prime Minister, Union Home Minister, Leader of Opposition or floor leader in Lok Sabha, Leader of Opposition or floor leader in Rajya Sabha, the Chief Justice of India and two senior-most judges of the Supreme Court.

Tenure: The Bill envisages a fixed tenure of six years for the CEC and EC and three years from the date of appointment for the Regional Commissioners.

Removal Procedure: They should not be removed from office except in accordance with the procedure laid down for the removal of an SC Judge.

– Also, after retirement, they should not be eligible for any reappointment to any office under the Government of India, State Governments and the Constitution.

Monitoring Internal Functions of Political Parties: The Bill seeks to give more power to the Election Commission to ‘regulate, monitor and superintend’ the internal functioning of all political parties, including internal elections of all registered political parties.

– If any registered political party fails to comply with the advisories, duration and instructions issued by the ECI with regard to their internal functions, the recognition of such political party as a State or National may be withdrawn including any other action as the Election Commission deems fit under section 16A of the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order 1968.

RS passes ‘futuristic’ Energy Conservation Bill to further regulate carbon emissions

Source: The post is based on the article “RS passes ‘futuristic’ Energy Conservation Bill to further regulate carbon emissions” published in The Hindu on 13th December 2022

What is the News?

The Rajya Sabha has passed the Energy Conservation (Amendment) Bill,2022.

Note: Lok Sabha has already passed this Bill in August 2022.

What are the key highlights of the Energy Conservation (Amendment) Bill,2022?

The Bill amends the Energy Conservation Act, 2001 to empower the central government to specify a carbon credit trading scheme. 

Designated consumers may be required to meet a proportion of their energy needs from non-fossil sources.

The Energy Conservation Code for buildings will also apply to office and residential buildings with a connected load of 100 kilowatt or above.

Energy consumption standards may also be specified for vehicles and ships.

What are the key issues with the Bill?

Firstly, Carbon credit trading aims to reduce carbon emissions, and hence, address climate change. The question is whether the Ministry of Power is the appropriate Ministry to regulate this scheme or should it be the Ministry of Environment.

Secondly, the Bill does not give clarity on how carbon credit certificates will be traded, or who will regulate such trading.

Thirdly, the Same activity may be eligible for renewable energy, energy savings, and carbon credit certificates. The Bill does not specify whether these certificates will be interchangeable.

Fourthly, meeting non-fossil energy use obligations may adversely impact the competitiveness of the industry.

Fifthly, the bill proposes only five representatives of the States, and it means that a majority of the States would not be able to register their opinion in the Bureau of Energy Efficiency.

Year-End- Review of Department of Food and Public Distribution– 2022

Source: The post is based on the article “Year-End- Review of Department of Food and Public Distribution– 2022” published in PIB on 12th December 2022

What is the News?

The Department of Food and Public Distribution (DFPD) under the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution has released the achievements of the department during 2022.

What are the initiatives and achievements of the Department of Food and Public Distribution (DFPD) during 2022?

Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY)

Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS) reforms: 100% ration cards/beneficiaries data have been digitized under NFSA in all States/UTs. 

– About 99.8% Fair Price Shops (FPSs) in the country are automated using electronic Point of Sale (ePoS) devices for transparent and ensured distribution of subsidized foodgrains to beneficiaries.

Progress of One Nation One Ration Card plan: Starting with inter-State portability in just 4 States in August 2019, so far, the ONORC plan has been enabled in all 36 States/UTs (across the country) covering around 80 Crore NFSA beneficiaries, i.e almost 100% NFSA population in the country. 

Centrally Sponsored Pilot Scheme on “Fortification of Rice & its Distribution under Public Distribution System”

Sugar Sector: India is the largest producer as well as consumer of sugar in the world.Today, Indian sugar industry’s annual output is about Rs 1,40,000 crore approximately.

Ethanol Blending Petrol Programme: Ethanol is an agro-based product which is used for blending with petrol as fuel and for many other industrial uses including manufacturing hand sanitizers. It is produced from a by-product of the sugar industry, namely molasses as well as starchy food grains. 

– In years of surplus production of sugarcane, when prices are depressed, the sugar industry is unable to make timely payments of cane prices to farmers and to find a permanent solution to address the problem of excess sugar, the Government is encouraging sugar mills to divert excess sugarcane to ethanol.

— Government has fixed target of 10% blending of fuel grade ethanol with petrol by 2022 & 20% blending by 2025.

– Further, to meet the blending targets and to increase investment opportunities, the Government has introduced various Ethanol Interest Subvention Schemes from time to time, to encourage sugar mills and distilleries to enhance their ethanol production capacities.

– Moreover, keeping in view of molasses-based feed stocks constraints, the Government is also promoting ethanol production from various feedstocks such as maize, damaged food grains and rice available with FCI.

World Malaria Report 2022: Malaria cases, deaths begin stabilizing after COVID disruption: WHO

Source: The post is based on the article “Malaria cases, deaths begin stabilizing after COVID disruption: WHO” published in Down To Earth on 13th December 2022

What is the News?

The World Health Organization(WHO) has released the World Malaria Report 2022.

What are the key highlights from the report?

Deaths due to Malaria: Despite disruptions to prevention, diagnostic and treatment services during the pandemic, countries around the world have largely held the line against further setbacks to malaria control.

– There were an estimated 6.19 lakh malaria deaths globally in 2021 compared to 6.25 lakh in the first year of the pandemic in 2020. In 2019, before the pandemic struck, the number of deaths stood at 5.68 lakh. 

Malaria cases: Malaria cases continued to rise between 2020 and 2021, but at a slower rate than in the period 2019 to 2020. The global tally of malaria cases reached 247 million in 2021, compared to 245 million in 2020 and 232 million in 2019. 

High-Burden Malaria Countries: Among the 11 high-burden countries, five — the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, India, Niger and the United Republic of Tanzania — recorded a decline in deaths.

– But these countries continued to contribute heavily to the global disease burden.

Hurdles against malaria control: Funding to deploy new tools to help defeat malaria, impeding progress due to mutating parasites which can evade rapid diagnostic tests, increasing drug resistance and the invasion of an urban-adapted mosquito in Africa which is resistant to most insecticides used in this geography.

Progress on ending malaria: The WHO Global technical strategy for malaria 2016–2030 aims to reduce malaria case incidence and mortality rates by at least 40% by 2020, at least 75% by 2025 and at least 90% by 2030 against a 2015 baseline.

– In 2021, the case incidence was 48 per cent off track — at 59 cases per 1,000 population at risk, compared to a target of 31. Death incidence is also 48% off track — 14.8 in 2021 against a target of 7.8. If these trends continue, the world will be 88% off target in its fight against malaria.

What ISRO is doing to boost the use of NavIC, India’s version of GPS

Source: The post is based on the article “What ISRO is doing to boost the use of NavIC, India’s version of GPS” published in Indian Express on 13th December 2022

What is the News?

To promote the civilian use of ‘NAVigation with the Indian Constellation’ (NavIC), the Indian version of GPS, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will introduce the L1 frequency in all its future satellites.

What is NAVigation with the Indian Constellation(NavIC)?

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What are the changes ISRO is making in NavIC?

The seven satellites in the NavIC constellation currently use two frequencies for providing positioning data — the L5 and S bands. However, most mobile System on Chips(SoCs) and wearable devices support the L1 band.

To overcome this drawback, ISRO announced that new satellites from NVS-01 onwards which are meant to replace these satellites will also have L1 frequency. 

L1 frequency is one of the most commonly used frequencies in the Global Positioning System (GPS), which even the less sophisticated, civilian-use devices such as smartwatches are capable of receiving. 

Thus, with this band, the use of the NavIC in wearable devices and personal trackers that use low-power, single-frequency chips can go up.