9 PM UPSC Current Affairs Articles 26 April, 2024

Mains Oriented Articles

GS PAPER - 2

Supreme Court’s view on false advertisement

Source: The post Supreme Court’s view on false advertisement has been created, based on the article “Courting action: Courts should deal firmly with violators of existing food safety regulations” published in “The Hindu” on 26th April 2024.

UPSC Syllabus Topic: GS Paper 2-Polity-Judiciary

News: The article discusses a Supreme Court case in India where Patanjali Ayurved and other companies are being criticized for false advertising about their products’ health benefits. The court is also questioning why government agencies haven’t stopped these misleading ads.

What is the Supreme Court’s view on false advertisement?

The Supreme Court is critical of false advertising, especially by companies like Patanjali Ayurved, which claimed their products could cure diseases like COVID-19 and diabetes without scientific backing.

The court has expanded its scrutiny to include other companies, such as Nestlé, after finding disparities like higher sugar content in baby formulas sold in India compared to Europe.

It has demanded apologies from companies for misleading advertisements and expressed frustration over the lack of government action in regulating such ads.

The court emphasizes that enforcing advertisement regulations should not fall to the judiciary but to designated regulatory bodies and the government.

What are the broader issues related to false advertisements?

Government Inaction: Regulatory bodies like the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India and the Ministry of AYUSH have not effectively stopped misleading ads, even when flagged by entities like the Advertising Standards Council of India.

Public Health Concerns: Misleading ads contribute to non-communicable diseases by promoting products with unhealthy ingredients under the guise of health benefits.

Legal Challenges: Individuals and professionals who try to expose these false claims face legal threats, highlighting the lack of protection for whistleblowers against powerful corporate interests.

Question for practice:

Discuss the Supreme Court’s stance on false advertising in India.

The issue of Winning an Election with Contest

Source: The post the issue of Winning an Election with Contest has been created, based on the article “Questioning the polls ‘rain washes out play’ moments” published in “The Hindu” on 26th April 2024.

UPSC Syllabus Topic: GS Paper 2 – Indian Constitution, and Salient features of the Representation of People’s Act.

News: The article discusses how being elected unopposed, though legal, can be problematic for democracy. It compares election laws with financial rules and suggests that while laws allow this, it might not be entirely fair or democratic as it limits voter choice.

What does the law say about Uncontested elections?

Automatic Election: According to Rule 11 of the Conduct of Election Rules 1961, if the number of candidates is equal to or less than the number of seats available, the returning officer is required to declare these candidates elected automatically.

Legal Precedent: Section 53 of The Representation of the People Act, 1951 also supports this mechanism, mandating that if the number of candidates does not exceed the number of seats, no polling is needed, and candidates are declared elected.

Reissuing a call for candidates: The Representation of the People Act (RPA) provides for the possibility of reissuing a call for candidates if no one files for an election initially. However, the Act does not specify what should be done if no candidates come forward after a second call.

What Issues Arise from Uncontested Elections?

Limited Voter Choice: Uncontested elections mean voters only have one candidate to choose from, essentially depriving them of a meaningful choice. This situation occurred in the Surat Lok Sabha seat, where other candidates were disqualified or withdrew, leaving only one candidate.

Undermining Democracy: With no competition, the democratic process is undermined as the electorate does not truly ‘elect’ but merely ‘acknowledges’ the sole candidate. In Arunachal Pradesh, 10 Assembly seats were filled without any contest, illustrating this issue.

Effectiveness of NOTA: In uncontested elections, the None of the Above (NOTA) option becomes irrelevant since it does not influence the outcome, which questions the purpose of providing a NOTA option.

For more information on NOTA read here

What should be done?

Introduce Minimum Vote Requirements: Consider amendments to require a minimum percentage of votes for a candidate to win, ensuring they have substantial support from the electorate.

Question for practice:

Examine how uncontested elections affect voter choice and democracy and propose a potential solution to address this issue.

A week food chain

Source-This post on a week food chain has been created based on the article “A weak food chain:Recent controversy points to poor regulation” published in “Business Standard” on 26 April 2024.

UPSC Syllabus-GS Paper-2– Issues Relating to Development and Management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education

Context– Hong Kong and Singapore have recently banned MDH and Everest spice brands due to presence of carcinogenic pesticide ethylene oxide in some MDH and Everest spice mixes during routine checks.

It’s not the first time Indian food brands faced issues abroad. Last year, the US FDA recalled MDH products due to salmonella contamination. These bans highlight the poor standards of India’s food and drug regulation.

What are the issues with Indian food and medicine products?

Agencies in other countries sometimes find problems in Indian food and medicine products that were approved by Indian regulators. For ex-Public Eye revealed Nestle added extra sugar to baby foods in Asia, Africa, and Latin America; an influencer exposed Bournvita’s high sugar levels leading to FSSAI action etc.

 What is the impact of this failure of domestic regulation?

1) This situation raises public health concerns and negatively impacts India’s food processing industry because of issues like high sugar content and unhealthy ingredients.

2) The presence of carcinogens and other unhealthy ingredients in Indian food exports can hamper overseas sales prospects due to rise in increase in non-tariff barriers in key markets.

What actions have been taken by the Indian authorities to address this issue?

1) The commerce ministry has asked for further details from Singapore and Hong Kong about their investigation in Indian products.

2) The Spices Board has started to implement mandatory ethylene oxide residue testing for spice consignments to these countries.

Read more- Misleading Medical Advertising-Strong medicine

What should be the way forward?

1) India’s rising cases of juvenile diabetes should push FSSAI to make processed foods and snacks with less sugar.

2) There is a need for a strong standard and regulation in the processed food industry due to its tremendous growth since 2018.

3) The government should follow the Supreme Courts observation about taking strong action against consumer goods companies that indulge in misleading advertisements for products related to children and babies.

Question for practice

What is the impact of week regulatory systems on the prospects of Indias food and medicine export? Highlight the steps that can be taken to address this issue?

GS PAPER - 3

Changes in India’s job market before and after the COVID-19 pandemic

Source: The post changes in India’s job market before and after the COVID-19 pandemic has been created, based on the article “India’s employment paradox of the 21st century: An explanation” published in “Live mints” on 26th April 2024.

UPSC Syllabus Topic: GS Paper 3 – Indian Economy – Employment

News: The article discusses changes in India’s job market before and after the COVID-19 pandemic, based on a recent report. It mentions shifts in job types, where people worked, and overall employment numbers, showing how these trends reversed because of the pandemic.

For details information on India’s labor market and employment situation read Article 1, Article 2, Article 3

What were the employment trends in India before the pandemic?

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, employment trends in India from 2000 to 2019 included:

1. A shift from agricultural to non-agricultural jobs, although many new jobs were low-skilled and poorly paid in sectors like construction and services.
2. An increase in formal, regular employment in the organized sector, rising from 15% of total employment in 2000 to 24% in 2019.
3. Improvement in labor productivity across all sectors, with the highest annual gains in manufacturing at 6%, followed by services at 5%, agriculture at 4%, and construction at 1%.
4. Despite these positive trends, both the Labor Force Participation Rate and Worker Population Ratio fell from 62% to 50%, and the unemployment rate increased from 2% to 6%.

How did the pandemic change these trends?

The COVID-19 pandemic reversed several pre-pandemic employment trends in India:

1. The share of agricultural jobs increased again in 2021, a reversal from the previous trend of decline.
2. The increase in the share of regular wage employment in the formal sector was halted, with rates lower in 2023 than in 2019.
3. Labor Force Participation Rate (LFPR) and Worker Population Ratio (WPR) improved post-pandemic, despite their decline before 2020.
4. The unemployment rate, which had been rising pre-pandemic, fell after the pandemic hit.

Why did these reversals happen?

The reversals in employment trends in India due to the pandemic can be explained by several factors:

Economic Shock: The pandemic caused a significant disruption, leading to job losses in urban and non-agricultural sectors, forcing many to return to rural areas and rely on agricultural work as a fallback option.

Measurement of Employment: In the PLFS, any economic activity, including unpaid family work in agriculture, counts as employment, inflating employment figures during the crisis.

Market Conditions: During better economic times, individuals could leave low-paying or unsatisfactory jobs, but the pandemic reversed this, pushing more people into any available work, including less secure and informal jobs.

Education and Labor Withdrawal: The decrease in urban job opportunities led more people to focus on education or return to family farms, both counted as employed or out of the labor force under different metrics.

Question for practice:

Evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on India’s employment trends, considering shifts in job types, formal employment rates, labor force participation, and unemployment rates.

Claims that solar and wind energy are the cheapest forms of electricity are misleading

Source: The post claims that solar and wind energy are the cheapest forms of electricity are misleading has been created, based on the article “Why solar and wind energy are still far from winning” published in “Live mints” on 26th April 2024.

UPSC Syllabus Topic: GS Paper 3- Economy-Infrastructure (renewable energy)

News: The article discusses why claims that solar and wind energy are the cheapest forms of electricity are misleading. It highlights the hidden costs associated with their intermittent and the need for expensive backups like batteries, which significantly increase their overall costs.

For details information on the difficulty with renewables read Article 1, Article 2, Article 3

Why claims that solar and wind energy are the cheapest forms of electricity are misleading?

Subsidies and Financial Support: Developed countries spend large amounts on subsidies to support the transition to renewable energy. For instance, governments around the world needed to spend $1.8 trillion on green transitions last year. These subsidies artificially lower the cost of solar and wind energy, masking their true economic impact.

Intermittency Costs: Solar and wind energy depend on weather conditions; thus, they are not always available. This necessitates expensive backup systems, such as batteries or fossil fuel plants, to provide power during downtimes. The real cost of solar, when factoring in reliability, could increase by 11 to 42 times, making it much more expensive than traditional power sources.

Storage Challenges: Adequate battery storage is essential for dealing with periods when solar and wind cannot generate power. For example, a study indicated that the U.S. would need enough storage to cover almost three months’ worth of electricity to fully rely on renewable sources, currently, it only has seven minutes of battery storage.

Environmental and Recycling Costs: The disposal of wind turbine blades and solar panels poses environmental risks and adds to the total cost. A town in Texas struggles with non-recyclable turbine blades, and in Africa, discarded solar panels leak harmful chemicals.

What should be done?

1. Focus on research and development to improve battery storage capabilities and efficiency of renewable energy technologies.
2. Need for advancing technologies that can complement or enhance renewable energy solutions.
3. Enhance recycling technologies for wind turbine blades and solar panels to mitigate environmental impacts and reduce waste.

Question for practice:

Examine the factors contributing to the misleading perception that solar and wind energy are the cheapest forms of electricity.

Health on a hot planet

Source-This post on Health on a hot planet has been created based on the article “All the way a hotter planet makes us sicker” published in “The Indian Express” on 26 April 2024.

UPSC Syllabus-GS Paper 2- Issues Relating to Development and Management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education and GS Paper 3-Disaster Management

Context– A large analysis of 266 studies from around the world, published in 2022, found that heat waves are linked to a 11.7% increase in deaths. The risk was highest for stroke and heart disease.

In 2023, the Earth experienced its hottest year on record, with scientists agreeing that it’s likely to keep getting hotter throughout this century because of climate change.

 How are heat waves measured and what does it represent?

Heat waves are measured by both the actual high temperatures and relative rise in comparison to seasonal, “normal” values recorded in earlier years. However, it is not only the temperature that matters.
Apart from temperature, a heat wave represents a combination of heat and humidity. At any level of heat, its impact on the human body is amplified if humidity is high in the ambient air. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) says that such “moist heat” stress has increased by 30 % between 1980 and 2020.

What are the negative impacts of rising temperatures on humans?

1) Impact on health security-

A) Heat affects the body by causing dehydration, making it harder for the skin to cool through sweat, widening blood vessels, and thickening the blood, which raises the risk of blood clots.

B) Prolonged heat exposure can severely damage health through acute and chronic effects on non-communicable diseases. Right now, non-communicable diseases (NCDs) cause 65% of deaths in India, mostly affecting people in their productive mid-life years. Climate change’s heat effects will only make this problem worse.

C) It increases the risk of brain strokes, heart attacks, pulmonary embolism, kidney damage, congenital cataracts. It also delays healing of surgical wounds.

D) Wildfires, triggered by extreme heat, release harmful particles and chemicals like PM 2.5, ozone, carbon monoxide, and others. These can cause widespread inflammation, raising the chances of heart disease, respiratory issues, diabetes, and even cancer due to substances like benzene and formaldehyde.

2) Threaten nutritional security-

A) Climate change, through heat stress, water stress, and increased carbon dioxide levels, threatens nutrition security by reducing crop yields, nutrient quality (zinc, protein, iron), and availability of protective foods like fruits, vegetables, and fish. This can lead to widespread deficiencies and increased risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes.
For ex– by 2050 India could have 49 million more zinc-deficient people, 38.2 million more lacking protein, and 106.1 million children and 396 million women with iron deficiency.

3) Impact on health infrastructure– Healthcare systems will have to deal with rising number of vector-borne and water-borne infections; non-communicable diseases (strokes; heart attacks; diabetes; respiratory disease; cancers); mental health disorder .
Further, there will be a rise in the number of climate refugees which may put additional pressure on healthcare infrastructure, supply chains and personnel.

What should be the way forward?

There is a need for robust adaptation plans needed to address the health impacts of climate change and heat waves.

1) Heat Action Plans- There should be HAPs designed specifically for urban and rural areas.

Read more- Heat Action Plans

2) Smart Agriculture-There should be promotion of climate smart and climate resilient agriculture.

3) Sensitization of public– There is a need to educate the public and healthcare workers and plan to handle the increased healthcare needs during heatwaves.

4) Robust urban planning-Cities should include heat shelters, water stations, reflective roofs and paints for houses, well-ventilated homes, and more green spaces in their plans.

5) Personal Care– People should wear light, loose clothes, use umbrellas or hats, and drink plenty of water.

Question for practice

Highlight the negative impacts of rising temperatures on humans?

Green credits-Significance & Challenges

Source-This post on Green credits-Significance & Challenges has been created based on the article “Can green credits benefit India’s forests?” published in “The Hindu” on 26 April 2024.

UPSC Syllabus–GS Paper-3– Conservation, Environmental Pollution and Degradation, Environmental Impact Assessment.

Context-The article presents a critical analysis of Green Credit Programme.This is a is a market-based initiative started by Environment Ministry, where individuals and companies can earn incentives, termed as ‘green credits,’ for their contributions to environmental and ecological restoration efforts.

What is the significance of the Green Credit Programme?

1) Environmental Conservation– Green Credit Programme aims to incentivize sustainable actions and engage various stakeholders, including individuals and corporations, in environmental conservation efforts.

2) Incentivizes various sectors– This program offers incentives through markets and covers six or seven sectors, like forests and waste management. In policymaking, incentives play a crucial role. Green credits serve as incentives to encourage individuals and companies to participate in these activities.

What are the concerns regarding the Green Credit Programme?

1)Bypassing laws– It may be utilized to bypass existing environmental laws, particularly those related to forest conservation.

2)Ground level challenges-There is a lack of proper understanding of ground level challenges and expertise to address those challenges.

3) Threat to biodiversity– It may promote monocultures and planting vegetation unsuitable for certain ecosystems. This could adversely impact biodiversity and soil health.

4) Measurement Problems-There are challenges of measuring biodiversity impact accurately. For ex- How does one measure the impact on biodiversity when they are 200 meters apart?

5) Lack of Fungibility– Fungibility is the ability to exchange one unit of a commodity for another.However,this is lacking in green credits due to the diverse nature of environmental credits like biodiversity and water conservation. This poses a challenge in equating different types of credits on the same platform. For ex- How does one equate a credit of one unit of water conservation with one unit of ecosystem restoration on the same platform?

6) Clashes with Forest Conservation Act -The program’s rules imply that earning green credits can negatively influence mandatory compliances, such as forest clearances. For ex-it may bypass the whole forest clearance process just to help the industries get green credits.

Question for practice

Critically evaluate the significance of the Green Credit Programme?

Prelims Oriented Articles (Factly)

Global Report on Food Crises 2024 (GRFC)

Source- This post on Global Report on Food Crises 2024 (GRFC) is based on the article “Global Report on Food Crisis (GRFC) report” published in “Down to Earth” on 24th March 2024.

Why in the News?

According to the 2024 Global Report on Food Crisis (GRFC), nearly 282 million people faced high levels of acute food insecurity in 59 countries in 2023.

About Global Report on Food Crisis (GRFC)

 

1. About: The Global Report on Food Crises (GRFC) 2024 is published annually by the Food Security Information Network (FSIN).

2. Launched by: It is launched by the Global Network Against Food Crises which is a collaboration involving United Nations agencies, the European Union, the United States Agency for International Development, and non-governmental organizations working to address food crises.

3. Key findings from GRFC 2024: The report examined a population of 1.3 billion across 59 countries in 2023.

a) For the fifth consecutive year, the number of people experiencing acute food insecurity increased. This means they faced severe food shortages that threatened their lives or livelihoods, regardless of the causes or duration.

b) Nearly 282 million people in 59 countries suffered from high levels of acute food insecurity in 2023.

c) Conflicts, extreme weather events, and economic shocks were identified as the main drivers worsening food crises worldwide.

d) Conflict and insecurity were the primary causes in 20 countries which is directly impacting 135 million people, notably in places like the Gaza Strip and Sudan.

e) The Gaza Strip faced the most severe food crisis in the past eight years while Sudan also experienced a significant crisis, with almost a third of its population requiring emergency food assistance.

f) Extreme weather events affected 18 countries, with over 72 million people experiencing high levels of acute food insecurity.

g) The ten countries with the most severe food crises in 2023 were the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria, Sudan, Afghanistan, Ethiopia, Yemen, the Syrian Arab Republic, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Myanmar.

h) There were positive developments in 17 countries in 2023, including the Democratic Republic of Congo and Ukraine, where the food situation improved.

UPSC Syllabus: Reports 

Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee 

Source-This post on Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee is based on the article “Pivotal fourth session of negotiations on a global plastics treaty opens in Ottawa” published in “UNEP official website” on 24th March 2024.

Why in the News?

The fourth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution opened in Canada’s capital, Ottawa.

About Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee

1. About: a) In March 2022, during the fifth session of the UN Environment Assembly, a landmark resolution was adopted to establish an international legally binding instrument (ILBI) addressing plastic pollution, particularly in marine environments. 

b) The INC has been scheduled to convene five times by the end of 2024 to formulate the specific content of the ILBI.

2. Aim: This instrument aims to encompass the entire life cycle of plastic, covering aspects such as production, design, and disposal.

3. Goal of the global plastics treaty: The goal of the global plastics treaty is to establish a framework of global standards concerning accountability, responsibilities, financing, material/chemical standards, and import/export restrictions, along with setting targets.

4. Implementing Agency: Countries will be responsible for implementing policies aligned with these global standards to achieve the set targets.

5. Focus- Their focus is on reducing unnecessary plastic usage while still employing it for critical purposes such as renewable energy.

UPSC Syllabus: Environment (International treaties)

Ross Ice Shelf

Source-This post on Ross Ice Shelf  is based on the article “Antarctica’s France-Sized Ice Shelf Makes Daily Jumps, Raising Icequake Concerns “published in “NDTV” on 24th March 2024.

Why in the News?

Researchers have uncovered a surprising phenomenon in Antarctica where the massive Ross Ice Shelf which is roughly the size of France, lurches forward several centimetres once or twice a day.

About Ross Ice Shelf

1. About: a) The Ross Ice Shelf is Antarctica’s largest ice shelf, found in the Ross Sea extending from the continent’s coast into the ocean.

b)  It is like a giant sheet of floating ice covering about 487,000 square kilometers, about the size of France.

c)  Around 90%, is hidden beneath the surface, buried under hundreds of meters of ice. There is a lot of variation in their thickness. It’s thickness ranges from about 100 meters to several hundred meters.

2. How did it formed: Over time, snow compacts into ice, forming the shelf. It constantly receives new ice from glaciers draining from both the East and West Antarctic Ice Sheets. As new ice comes in, some of the existing ice melts from below and breaks off at the front.

3. Why it is important:

a) The Ross Ice Shelf helps stabilize the Antarctic ice sheet by supporting the constantly moving ice on the land surface. It acts like a buttress, holding back the flow of ice into the ocean.

b) Ice shelves function as barriers, slowing the movement of glaciers and ice streams into the ocean. If the Ross Ice Shelf weakens and disintegrates, it has the potential to hasten ice melt rates and contribute to rising sea levels.

UPSC Syllabus: Science & Technology

Kalesar Wildlife Sanctuary

Source-This post on Kalesar Wildlife Sanctuary is based on the article “SC stays construction of 4 dams inside Kalesar Wildlife Sanctuary“ published in “The Week” on 24th March 2024.

Why in the News?

The Supreme Court stayed the construction of four proposed dams inside Kalesar Wildlife Sanctuary in Haryana.

About Kalesar Wildlife Sanctuary

Aspect	Details
Location	1. It is situated within the Yamunanagar District of Haryana, nestled in the foothills of the Shiwalik ranges of the Himalayas. 2. Rajaji National Park, situated in Uttarakhand, is located to the northeast of this park. 3. Simbalbara National Park located in the Shivalik Hills, lies to the north, sharing a border with Himachal Pradesh. Morni Hills can be found to the west.
Unique features	1. The terrain ranges from plains to hills, reaching elevations of up to 700 meters, with narrow valleys known as “khols” scattered between the hills. 2. These valleys contain seasonal rivulets, referred to as “soats,” which typically remain dry for the majority of the year. 3. Within the sanctuary stands the Kalesar Fort, believed to have been constructed during the reign of the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb. 4. The park is renowned for its Dak bungalows, colonial-era administrative architectural structures.
Status	It was declared as a national Park in 2003.
River flowing through	River Yamuna lies to its east.
Flora	1. The majority of the forest is densely populated with tall sal trees. 2. Other trees that are found in the forest are Semul, Bahera, Amaltas, Shisham, Khair, Sain, Chhal and Jhingan.
Fauna	It is home to many threatened animals like leopards, Ghoral, Barking deer, Sambar, Chital, Python, King Cobra, Monitor lizard etc.

UPSC Syllabus: Environment

RBI draft rules for payment aggregators

Source- This post on RBI draft rules for payment aggregators  has been created based on the article “RBI’s draft rules for payment aggregators” published in “The Hindu” on 24 April 2024.

Why in the news?

The Reserve Bank of India is proposing new regulations for offline payment aggregators (PAs) to enhance safety.

About the payment aggregators:

1. About Payment Aggregators (PAs): PAs are entities responsible for enlisting merchants and streamlining the process of collecting payments from customers for the purchase of goods and services. These aggregators unburden the merchants from creating a payment integration system of their own.

2. Methods employed by PAs to collect payments- PAs utilize various payment channels like online QR codes or physical point-of-sale (POS) machines to collect payments on behalf of the merchants. Subsequently, PAs settle the accumulated funds with the respective merchants.

3. Types of PAs: Two major types of PAs are a part of the payments ecosystem in the country: This includes PA-Online Point of Sale (PA-O) and PA – Physical Point of Sale (PA-P).

4. Inclusion of PA – Physical Point of Sale (PA-P) in the revised definition of payment aggregators- The revised definition of payment aggregators has been modified to include physical point-of-sale payment providers such as Innoviti Payments, Pine Labs, and MSwipe. Thus they have been subjected to regulatory oversight.

About new RBI guidelines for payment aggregators

1. Non-bank PoS providers must notify RBI within 60 days and submit authorization applications by May 31, 2025.

2. Banks must close accounts for non-bank payment aggregators by October 31, 2025, unless authorized.

3. Net-worth requirements for PAs facilitating face-to-face transactions have been changed. PAs net worth requirements will be increased to Rs 25 crore by March 2028.

4. Medium merchants, defined as physical or online merchants with annual business turnover of less than ₹40 lakhs who are not registered under the GST, would also have to undergo contact point verification.

5. PAs have to bolster risk management with KYC norms, tailored for small and medium-sized merchants.

6. PAs can now use escrow accounts for both PA-O and PA-P activities, including goods delivery. All PAs must join the FIU to report suspicious transactions.

7. Starting August 1, 2025, only card issuers and networks can store card data for face-to-face transactions.

Syllabus: Indian Economy

Target to achieve $1 trillion goods exports by 2030

Source- This post on Target to achieve $1 trillion goods exports by 2030 has been created based on the article “Target is to achieve $1 trillion goods exports by 2030: Trade Ministry” published in “The Indain Express” on 24 April 2024.

Why in the news?

The Ministry of commerce has set a target to achieve $1 trillion goods exports by 2030.

Status of Indian Exports

1. Good and Services Export Data- In FY 21-22, India achieved notable milestones in both goods and services exports. The good/merchandise exports reaching US$ 422 billion and the service sector exports reached US$ 254 billion.

2. Increased contribution of Indian export sector to incremental GDP- The Indian export sector has been contributing significantly to the growth of Indian economy. The Indian export sector accounted for 50% of the incremental GDP in 2021-22.

Target set for Indian export Sector

Target for Indian Export sector by 2047- The commerce ministry has set the target for Indian export sector to contribute 25% of India’s GDP by 2047. The target for India’s GDP is to grow to 30 trillion dollar by 2047.

Challenges to Indian Exports

1. Rising cost of raw materials and Suppressed Demands- There has been rise in the cost of raw materials and there has been subduction of demand in certain key export markets amidst the global uncertainties and turmoil like the Israel-Gaza war, Russia-Ukraine war.

2. Stricter Environmental laws hindering Indian exports- The stricter environmental laws like EU’s Carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM), which penalize products with high carbon footprints, will dampen Indian exports. CABM can raise the costs of Indian exports by 20 to 35 per cent.

Read More- Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM)

UPSC Syllabus: Indian Economy