9 PM Daily Current Affairs Brief – February 22nd, 2023

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Mains Oriented Articles

GS PAPER - 2

Badministrators -Nasty social media brawl between IAS & IPS officers points to a larger, worrying trend

Source: The post is based on the article “Badministrators -Nasty social media brawl between IAS & IPS officers points to a larger, worrying trend” published in The Times of India on 22nd February 2023.

Syllabus: GS 2 – Role of civil services in a democracy.

Relevance: About low efficiency in the public sector.

News: Recently, an IPS officer and an IAS officer from Karnataka has involved in a verbal debate on Social media. In effect, both officers were transferred. But the clash put focus on a larger, disturbing change that civil service ethos is undergoing through participation in social media.

Why the public sector is having low efficiency?

Less man power: The parliamentary standing committee last year said that there are 22% fewer IAS officers in the country than the sanctioned strength. The sanctioned strength is also not enough to begin with given the evolving needs of the Indian administration.

Not enough reforms and incentives: The government’s lack of reforms in incentives and penalties have helped incapacity, indifference and corruption creep in.

Lack of functional independence: The permanent executive suffers a lack of functional independence from the political executive.

Social media addictions: The self-aggrandisement stimulated by social media addictions is a new challenge to the All India Services (Conduct) Rules, 1968.

In social media, promoting work takes second place and promoting the self becomes the primary motto. Social media activities of some bureaucrats make short confessions of not just “political neutrality” but “courtesy and good behaviour”.

Not attractive private sector: The private sector still isn’t attractive and big enough for breaking the charm of government services such as prestige, power and job security. This is clearly visible by too much competition for government services.

What should be done?

Governments will have to recruit more to increase manpower. To reduce the reputational damage from the social media war, serving seniors and ministers must take note and tries to end them.

Discipline and discussion – on discussions in Parliament

Source: This post is created based on the article “Discipline and discussion – on discussions in Parliament”, published in Indian Express on 22nd Feb.

Syllabus Topic: GS Paper 2, Parliament and State legislatures—structure, functioning, conduct of business

Context: Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar directed the Privileges Committee to investigate the disorderly conduct by 12 Opposition Members of Parliament. The disruption led to multiple adjournments during the first leg of the Budget session.

What are the other such examples of penalising over the discussions in Parliament?

Opposition’s slogans during Prime Minister’s 85-minute address, were blacked out.

An MP was suspended by the Chairmen for recording the proceedings on her mobile phone.

Chairman interrupted the speech of Leader of the Opposition during the Motion of Thanks to the President’s Address, several times. He repeatedly directed to “authenticate” remarks.

6 parts of speech were expunged from the Rajya Sabha records. Similarly, the speech of another Congress leader got 18 cuts.

What are the issues associated with this penalisation?

It will be the mockery of parliamentary democracy if Opposition is penalised for seeking accountability from the government.

Government has availability of all the information, over which queries are raised in Parliament. It is duty of the government to validate the authenticity of the information or the lack of it provided by an MP.

Parliamentary discipline must ensure that discussions take place, and the government provides the answers and not the opposite of it.

Why Lok Sabha must have a Deputy Speaker

Source: This post is created based on the article “Why Lok Sabha must have a Deputy Speaker”, published in Indian Express on 22nd Feb.

Syllabus Topic: GS Paper 2, Parliament and State legislatures—structure, functioning, conduct of business.

News: The Deputy Speaker has not been elected even after more than 3 years of this term of Lok Sabha. This matter has now reached the Supreme Court, which has reportedly sent notice to the Union government.

Significance of Deputy Speaker in the Lak Sabha

The Speaker and the Deputy Speaker are described in the Constitution as officers of Parliament, which signifies their importance in the parliamentary system. As per article 93, Lok Sabha members elect the Speaker and Deputy Speaker, after the election.

The Deputy Speaker is equally significant as the House Speaker, based on history. The Deputy Speaker was designated Deputy President under the Government of India Act of 1919 since the Speaker was the president of the central legislative assembly.

Since the constitution has been enacted, every Lok Sabha had a Deputy Speaker who would be elected after a few days of the election of the Speaker.

Possible reason behind non-election of Deputy Speaker?

Constitutionally, as per Rule 8 of the Rules and Procedure of Lok Sabha, the Speaker fix the date of the election of the Deputy Speaker and government has no role in it. But in reality, government initiates the political process of the consultation with other parties and works out a consensus.

In the absence of speaker, Deputy Speaker has the same power as the Speaker. no appeal lies to the Speaker against a ruling given by the Deputy Speaker. He can also determine the petitions relating to disqualification under the 10th Schedule of the Constitution. Therefore, a person from the opposition on this post also comes with risks to ruling party.

Turn off the tap of urban bias in rural development

Source: The post is based on the article “Turn off the tap of urban bias in rural development” published in The Hindu on 22nd February 2023.

Syllabus: GS 2 – Governance

Relevance: reasons behind increasing urban rural disparity

News: The article discusses the increasing urban and rural disparity and the performance of Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) in Tamil Nadu.

What are the reasons behind increasing urban rural disparity?

Biased Policies: The disparity has increased due to bias policies made by government and institutions for urban areas.

Spill-over effect: It refers to the development of rural areas which is dependent on larger urban areas.

Hence, rural areas which are far away from the urban areas not only suffer from a lack of development but also keep falling behind rural areas which are closer to the urban areas.

Therefore, the Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM) was launched by the government to reduce the disparity amongst the rural urban areas in access to tap water.

What is JJM?

Click Here to Read

The safe drinking water under JJM will a) improve health and nutrition and b) reduce the workload of women and girl children while ensuring their safety.

Further, “availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all” is the sixth goal in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations to be achieved by 2030.

Moreover, the progress of JJM in ensuring safe tap water in rural areas of Tamil Nadu has also been influenced by urban factors.

What has been the performance of JJM in Tamil Nadu?

The data for 2022 reveal that there has been variation in the district wise coverage of tap water in Tamil Nadu.

For example, rural households in Kanchipuram, Ranipet, Vellore have better coverage of JJM, while rural households in Dharmapuri, Kallakurichi, Nagappatinam districts have not enough tap water connections.

It was found that the progress of JJM was better in those districts that have better percentage of urban population and districts with low urban population percentages were lagging in the implementation of the JJM.

Hence, it shows that urban rural bias exists even in accessing the basic facilities like tap water.

What can be the course of action?

The government must take additional measures to prioritise the implementation of the JJM scheme in districts with a high rural population in order to reach the goal of JJM.

This will not only help to correct urban bias but also meet the SDG goal with regard to tapping water connections by 2024.

A new chapter in defence and tech

Source: The post is based on the article “A new chapter in defence and tech” published in The Hindu on 22nd February 2023.

Syllabus: GS 2 – International Relations

Relevance: India-US bilateral relations

News: India and the US have recently inaugurated the Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technologies (ICET). The launch of ICET shows that the relations between the two nations are improving.

What is ICET?

Click Here to Read

How has the relations between India and the US transformed over the years?

The US has played a significant role in India’s development efforts since 1950. During the cold war, the US provided assistance to India in a range of areas.

The U.S. helped to build India’s first reactors for research and power. It also gave training to India’s nuclear scientists. However, the cooperation in nuclear areas came to an end after India’s first nuclear test in 1974.

The U.S. also aided to modernise Indian education, especially engineering and management in the 1960s to help India’s industrial growth. However, the Indian economy stalled in those times due to which growth wasn’t witnessed.

Agriculture was the area where India got long lasting benefits from the US technologies. American S&T helped trigger the Green Revolution and end an era of food shortages.

Moreover, the Bangladesh War of 1971 and the 1974 nuclear tests led to a decline in the relations between India and the US for almost three decades.

However, relations became better in 1984 when India-U.S. signed MoU on sensitive technologies, commodities and information.

In 1987, the U.S. agreed to assist India’s Light Combat Aircraft (Tejas) programme and allowed the sale of front-line GE 404 engines to India.

However, the non-proliferation treaty acted as hindrance between the relations of the two nations.

The US reimposed sanctions on India again in 1988 following the nuclear test conducted by India. However, by this time, China emerged as the threat to the US.

Therefore, the US decided to improve its relationship with India and the nuclear proliferation treaty was replaced by the India-U.S. nuclear deal of 2008. The relations between the two nations started to improve after this deal.

Till now, India has purchased U.S. weapons and systems worth billions of dollars. It is now deemed to be a Major Defence Partner and a Major Non-Nato Ally of the US.

However, India has also faced pressure under CAATSA and on account of its oil trade with Russia.

Hence, ICET will help both the countries to move ahead together in critical and emerging technologies. It has also set up a range of ambitious goals for India.

Rooftop Solar Photovoltaics (RTPV) for poverty alleviation

Source: This post is created based on the article “Rooftop solar for poverty alleviation”, published in Business Standard on 22nd Feb.

GS Paper 2 – New and renewable Energy

Context: A detailed paper prepared by Infravision Foundation highlights the potential of Rooftop Solar Photovoltaics (RTPV) as the income generating source for lower income level segment.

The report proposes a Central government-sponsored scheme in the field of RTPV. It could be called Sooraj Se Rozgaari.

One such example is from China. Where, RTPV is one of the identified 10 initiatives rolled out by the government to lift rural households out of poverty.

Low-income household with limited roof space may receive a benefit anything from Rs 3,500 to Rs 6,000 per annum from the “free” sunlight.

Currently, the rooftop-subsidy programmes run by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy require consumers to bear about 60 per cent of the costs.

What is the proposed scheme for RPTVs?

The proposed scheme assumes a customer mix as shown in the image below.

Source: Business Standard

Government involvement in this scheme will be through Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA).

IREDA empowered with government incentives, would be involved in the Bulk procurement of RTPV, through State Renewable Energy Development Agencies (SRDAs). It may reduce capital costs of RPTV due to bulk order.

SRDAs will secure state regulatory approvals on benchmark costs of RTPV, including state-specific grid-installation charges and a fair developer margin.

Local developers will market the scheme, attract the consumers, install the modules and give consumer maintenance for 15 years. Upon the consumer’s order, developers will request SRDAs for necessary modules and infrastructure.

Developers will receive a fixed installation fee and yearly maintenance fees from SRDAs for their services.

Consumers will have to bear a part of the benchmark costs depending upon the category.

  • Low-income households do not have to pay for any share of the costs for RTPV installation and maintenance.
  • Social/institutional/small businesses bear 80 per cent of the costs,
  • The households with regular incomes bear 60 per cent.

Consumer will have to agree on the share of electricity for self-use from the electricity generated from RTPV. Rest of the generated electricity will be considered as sold to SRDAs.

SRDAs will gather electricity from all participating consumers and sale this power to other discoms, large consumers, and power exchanges to maximise it’s revenue.

Net financial assistance from the Central government will be calculated based on the  difference between the compensation paid to participating consumers and the realised sale price for electricity sold to other parties.

The proposed centralised scheme is expected to add 20 Gw of residential RTPV capacity over a five-year period.

GS PAPER - 3

UPI promotion should not eclipse our e-rupee

Source: The post is based on the article “UPI promotion should not eclipse our e-rupee” published in Live Mint on 22nd February 2023.

Syllabus: GS 3 – Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources.

Relevance: About e-rupee and UPI.

News: Recently, India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) was linked to Singapore’s version PayNow.

What are the benefits of the recent linking?

The link will a) Ease bank-to-bank fund transfers between Singapore and India, b) Facilitate commerce, c) A special boon for people of Indian origin abroad in need of a quick way to send money to India or receive remittances, and d) The transaction cost will be less than other legal channels. 

About India’s digital rupee

Read here: RBI unveils features of digital rupee, plans to launch pilot soon

About India’s UPI

Read here: Unified Payments Interface (UPI)?

How UPI is linked to global payment systems?

UPI’s international subsidiary has been active in taking UPI mechanism global by forging foreign ties. It has pacts with European payment facilitator Worldline, the UK’s PayXpert, the UAE’s Neopay and France’s Lyra Network for UPI-compatible transfers. Some UPI payments can also be made in Nepal, Bhutan and Malaysia.

How successful is UPI in India?

UPI’s open architecture has got as many as 385 banks enrolled with more than 8 billion transactions logged this January worth nearly ₹13 trillion. This is up sharply from 4.6 billion worth ₹8.3 trillion in the first month of 2022.

Note: Only 2.4 crore of the retail digital rupee has been issued by RBI till 20 January. The wholesale CBDC has had only modest issuance of around ₹115.9 crore.

Must read: UPI and Digital Payments in India – Explained, pointwise

What should be done to promote e-rupee?

UPI is currently part of India’s G20 showcase, but CBDC must not get eclipsed in the promotion. To avoid such issues the government must provide public clarity on the e-rupee’s role.

Banks used to promote bank-mediated transfers. But, e-rupee has sovereign backing. Unlike money held in an account whose safety depends on the particular bank’s solvency. Hence, CBDC holdings are safer. So, the RBI should look to secure the retail spaces of the Indian economy from potential bank-crisis contagion by averting over-reliance on UPI.

Read more: Popularize the e-rupee even at the cost of UPI

Global Sea Level Rise: WMO Report – Explained, pointwise

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Introduction

The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has released a Fact Sheet, ‘Global Sea Level Rise and Implications’. The fact sheet has made some alarming observations. It notes that the sea level has risen at the rate of 4.5mm per year during 2013-22. The rise has been linked to climate change. Even in the low greenhouse gas emission scenario, the sea level rise of 0.6 metre is expected by 2100. A rise of this magnitude can have disastrous consequences for Island States as well as coastal cities. WMO has termed the sea-level rise a ‘major economic, social and humanitarian challenge‘.

What are the key highlights of WMO Report on Sea Level Rise?

First, Sea-level rise threatens several low-lying small islands and high-population coastal cities.

Second, The impacts of average sea-level rise is further exacerbated by storm surges and tidal variations.

Third, Human influence was very likely the main driver of these Sea-level increases since at least 1971.

Fourth, The global ocean has warmed faster over the past century than since the end of the last deglacial transition (around 11,000 years ago).

FifthThermal expansion explained 50% of sea-level rise during 1971–2018. Among other factors, Ice loss from glaciers contributed 22%, ice sheets 20% and changes in land-water storage 8%. The rate of ice-sheet loss increased by a factor of four between 1992–1999 and 2010–2019.

Sixth, Sea-level rise is not globally uniform and varies regionally.

Seventh, Over the next 2000 years, global mean sea-level will rise by about 2-3 m if warming is limited to 1.5°C, 2-6 m if limited to 2°C and 19-22 m with 5°C of warming.

Eighth, Continued sea-level rise will increase risks to food security in vulnerable regions between 1.5°C and 2°C Global warming level. Sea-level rise poses a distinctive and severe adaptation challenge as it implies dealing with slow onset changes. Increased frequency and magnitude of extreme sea-level events which will escalate in the coming decades. There are significant impacts and challenges to those populations faced with sea-level rise living in coastal urban areas in least developed and low-middle income countries.

Global Sea Level Rise Trend UPSC

Source: Sea Level Rise, WMO Fact Sheet. The trend indicates that the rate of sea-level rise is increasing. The rate was 2.1mm/year between 1993-2002, 2.9mm/year between 2003-2012, and 4.5mm/year between 2013-2023. The sea level has risen by ~100mm since 1993.

What are the reasons for Sea Level Rise?

Ocean Thermal Expansion: Instrumental records reveal that the world’s oceans have warmed since 1955, accounting for more than 80% changes in the energy content of the Earth’s climate system during this period. During the period 1961 to 2003, the 0-3000 m ocean layer has absorbed up to 14.1 × 10^22 Joules, equivalent to an average heating rate of 0.2 Watts/m2 (per unit area of the Earth’s surface). Warming of ocean water leads to expansion contributing to rising oceans. WMO estimates that thermal expansion contributed ~50% of the observed rise in water levels (i.e., contributing ~2.3mm/year rise between 2013-2023. It contributed to a rise of ~1.6mm/year between 1993-2002).

Glacial Melt from Greenland and Antarctica: According to the IPCC AR4 (Assessment Report), it is very likely (> 90% probability) that the Greenland Ice Sheet (GIS) shrunk from 1993 to 2003. An assessment of the data suggests shrinking of Greenland Ice Sheet (~50-100 Gigatons/year) contributing to rising global sea levels of 0.14 to 0.28 mm/yr from 1993 to 2003. There is a risk of a much higher sea-level rise due to potential intrusion of sea water under the Antarctic glaciers, as NASA has demonstrated in its recent published scientific studies.

Loss of Snow on Land: Snow cover has decreased in most regions, especially in spring as confirmed by Satellite observations. This means less water trapped in snow and more water in the oceans, leading to rise in water levels.

Permafrost: Permafrost and seasonally frozen ground in most regions have displayed large changes in recent decades. Temperature increases at the top of the permafrost layer of up to 3°C since the 1980s have been reported. Permafrost warming has also been observed with variable magnitudes in the Canadian Arctic, Siberia, the Tibetan Plateau and Europe.

All the above reasons are attributable to global warming caused by accumulation of Greenhouse Gases generated by anthropogenic activities.

Relative Sea Level Changes Due to Vertical Land Motions: At the local scale, vertical land motions such as uplift or subsidence of the ground due to tectonic and volcanic activity, sediment loading, groundwater pumping, and oil and gas extraction can produce sea level variations relative to the seafloor.

Rise in Sea Level UPSC

Source: Indian Express

What are the harmful impacts of Sea Level Rise?

Impact on Island States and Coastal Cities: (a) Large coastal urban centers located on low-lying coastal areas will become prone to flooding. Initially, the coast may suffer episodic inundation, but later this may become permanent; (b) High and low tide lines will advance landward, part of the present intertidal zone will become permanently submerged and, consequently, significant land loss is likely to occur; (c) It will cause extensive submergence of low-lying deltaic plains. Large coastal urban centres like Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, New York, London, Shanghai, Dhaka, Bangkok, Jakarta, Lagos, Cairo, Copenhagen, Los Angeles, Buenos Aires and Santiago etc. are vulnerable. This may lead to large scale displacement of population; (d) Storm Surges can become more destructive as was evident during landfall of hurricane Sandy in New York and Cyclone Idai in Mozambique; (e) Small Island States with low elevation like Kirbati, Maldives, Solomon Islands, Micronesia, Tuvalu, Palau etc. face threat of complete submergence with rise in sea levels. This will lead to large scale climate-induced migration.

Impact on Freshwater: Freshwater in coastal delta and estuaries will get contaminated by salt sea-water. Water and soil salinity along the coast will increase with the rise in sea levels, destroying normal characteristics of coastal soil and water. This is already happening in Sunderbans delta in West Bengal and Bangladesh.

Landward Movement of Water Salinity Boundary due to Sea Level Rise UPSC

Landward movement of Water Salinity Boundary in Sunderbans, Bangladesh

Impact on Coastal Ecosystems: The Sundarbans are the largest mangrove forest in the world, covering 6,500 sq. km. The Sundarbans will be completely lost with 1m rise in ocean levels (World Bank, 2000). This will be a great loss of heritage, biodiversity, fishery resources, life and livelihoods. Salinity intrusion has led to ‘top-dying’ disease in Sundari trees. A 2018 report has pointed out that in the last 30 years, 1.44 million cubic meters of Sundari trees,  have been lost to ‘top-dying’ disease.

Impact on Fisheries and Aquaculture: The rise in sea level will have a significant impact on fish habitat and their breeding ground. Rise in water levels will change the location of river estuaries. This will have significant impact on fisheries, aquaculture and consequently on the livelihoods of coastal population.

Coastal Erosion: Sea level rise will cause increased coastal erosion as water will wash out top soil of the coast. In addition to this, the backwater effect is accelerated by sea level rise that will also cause erosion. The forecasted land erosion will lead to displacement of coastal population.

Impact on Agriculture: The landward shift of water salinity boundary will cause salinity intrusion in land which will decrease agricultural production in coastal areas. It will also cause soil degradation. Salinity also diminishes the germination rate of some plants. A World Bank (2000) study suggested that increased salinity alone from a 0.3 metre sea level rise will cause a net reduction of 0.5 million metric tonnes of rice production. Salinity intrusion degrades soil quality which in turn inhibits rice production.

Impact on Health: Reduction of freshwater in coastal regions can cause water-related diseases like diarrhoea. Decrease in food production can contribute to malnutrition among coastal population. Flooding in coastal areas can increase outbreaks of water-borne diseases like cholera.

Extreme Events: Coastal countries will face extreme events. Cyclones are already intensifying rapidly due to more moisture and heat from warming of oceans. Cyclones are bringing more rain than earlier e.g., Super Cyclone Amphan (2020) caused large-scale flooding and inundated tens of kms inland with saline water.

Cascading and Compounding Impacts: Sea-level rise will bring cascading and compounding impacts. Losses of coastal ecosystems and ecosystem services, groundwater salinization, flooding and damage to coastal infrastructure will cascade into risks to livelihoods, settlements (causing displacement), health, well-being, food security, water security, and cultural values in the near to long-term.

What should be done going ahead?

Reduce Carbon Footprint: Greenhouse gases are a key cause of sea-level rise. It will be beneficial to minimise sea level rise by reducing the amount of greenhouse gases emitted each year and developing containment mechanisms. The transition to green energy must be expedited.

Climate Action Plan: Many cities and Nations do not have plans to address climate change. Hence, preparing a climate action plan from individual cities to international level will synchronize the efforts to tackle the sea level rise. There is also a need for an international alliance and agreement, similar to the Paris Climate Agreement, that is explicitly dedicated to looking into the issue of sea level rise. Developed countries must step-up climate finance and technology transfer to the developing counties to enhance their capacity for adaptation and mitigation.

Ecosystem-based Solutions: Coastal wetlands, marshes, and mangrove swamps can hold sediments and expand vertically at rates equal to or greater than the mean rate of sea level rise. These habitats can absorb carbon 40 times faster per hectare than tropical forests, making them extremely beneficial for reducing climate change. Wetlands provide natural buffers for coastal communities during rainstorms and hurricanes. They soak up rain and storm surge water.

Conclusion

WMO Fact sheet on Sea Level Rise has indicated that the rate of water-level rise in oceans is increasing rapidly. Major urban centres and island Nations are vulnerable to the rising water levels. This will have widespread economic, social and humanitarian impacts. There is a need for coordinated action at the global level to address the challenge. Else the consequences can be disastrous.

Syllabus: GS I, Changes in critical geographical features; GS III, Conservation, Environmental pollution and degradation.

Source: WMO, WMO, Indian Express, World Bank Environment Department, Institute for Social and Economic Change

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