9 PM Daily Brief – 13th December 2015

A brief of newspaper articles for the day bearing
relevance to Civil Services preparation

National

[1]. Historic Paris climate pact puts world on green path 

The Paris Agreement on Climate Change is the system of voluntary pledges, or nationally determined contributions made by individual countries to peak their greenhouse gas emissions that are warming the atmosphere and changing the climate.

Paris Agreement on climate change: – 

1. Goal of “well below 2 degrees C (1.5° C)” for temperature rise
2. Instituting a regime of financing of developing economies to help make the transition

The agreement will come into effect in 2020 at the expiration of Kyoto Protocol.

Principle: need to achieve an equalisation between emission of Green House Gases (GHGs) and their removal by ‘sinks’ by the second half of the present century has been welcomed widely since it turns attention to renewable energy, and away from fossil fuels.

Some Facts:

1. Common But Differentiated Responsibilities ensuring equity is incorporated
2. The first global evaluation of the implementation of the Paris Agreement is to take place in 2023 and thereafter every five years
3. A facilitative dialogue of countries is to be held in 2018 to review the collective efforts, and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is to be asked for a special report in the same year, on the impacts of global warming of 1.5 degrees C above pre-industrial levels

[2]. Mullaperiyar: Kerala invokes ‘precautionary principle’

The basics of the Mullaperiyar dam has already been dealt with in previous articles.

Current Status:

 Citing extreme rainfall in arid region like Chennai, Kerala has invoked the “precautionary principle”.

This has been done to present Kerala’s case for the construction of a new dam in place of the centuries-old Mullaperiyar dam.

Kerala has also seek review of hydrological safety by panel of experts.

Kerala citing precautionary principle said that  principle warrants risk prevention through proactive measures against specific environment or safety risk.

The memorandum has quoted 1984 Bermen Ministerial Declaration.

Bermen Ministerial Declaration of the International Conference on the protection of the North Sea (1984) –  had declared that states must not wait for proof of harmful effects before taking action.

Economic Digest

[1]. Latest FDI reforms could hit Make in India/ Defining Make in India

FDI policy tweaks on November 24 define Manufacturing for the first time, in line with income tax law.

The Different Definitions:

1. Income Tax Act, 1961 defines it as ‘a change in a non-living physical object, resulting in transformation of the object into a new and distinct article having a different name, character and use, or bringing into existence of a new and distinct thing with a different chemical composition or integral structure”
2. But Central Excise Act, 1944, defines it as any process, incidental and ancillary to the completion of a manufactured product. Separately lists goods, whose packing, labelling or alterations also constitute manufacture
3. Proposed Amendments to the 1948 Factories Act define Manufacturing as any process or activity resulting in any alteration of original character, such as nature, state, shape, size, usefulness and/ or making value addition to the original material. Excludes all packaging processes

The Aftermath:

1. Defining manufacturing in the FDI policy could end up restricting foreign investments in some sectors, including the likes of electronics and hardware manufacturing.
2. At the same time, Indian firms are worried that this could open the door for competitors to make minor changes to imported goods and still call it ‘manufacture’.
3. Foreign companies will effect minor modifications to goods and re-label them as “Made in India”, which will make similar Indian goods less competitive

New conditions:

Indian manufacturers can now sell their own ‘branded products’ in any manner, including online, but the FDI policy places onerous conditions on them.

1. They must own the Indian brand and manufacture at least 70 per cent in value terms of its products in-house within India, and source a maximum of 30 per cent from other Indian manufacturers.
2. Further, the Indian brand must be owned and controlled by resident Indian citizens and/or companies that are owned and controlled by resident Indian citizens.

Conclusion: 

These additions are confusing and it is unclear whether it will apply only to Indian manufacturing companies or to foreign companies who also have established Indian manufacturing subsidiary or joint venture companies. These can lead to increased number of litigations and disputes in the sector.

Opinion & Editorials

[1]. Gene editing on a roll, but safe to clear the way? 

Context: Germline Editing

What is Germline Editing?

Deliberately changing the genes passed on to children and future generations – in other words, creating genetically modified people

The Problem:

It is unethical, also the problem is that the current state of technology is imprecise, and there will be unintended consequences.

The Reason for Debate:

Powerful gene-editing technology, CRISPR-Cas9, which is relatively inexpensive, accessible and effective. Above all, it is easy to use if you have the right training. It brings the idea of designing a perfect human who is healthy and intelligent many steps closer to becoming a reality.

India Scenario:

There is no law stopping research laboratories and private companies from using the technology to experiment on embryos.

International Summit on Human Gene Editing at Washington D.C – to discuss scientific, medical, ethical, and governance issues associated with recent advances in human gene-editing research and also the the implications of this technology.

The Verdict:

The summit announced that it would be irresponsible to proceed with any clinical use of germline editing until the relevant safety and efficiency issues were resolved.

[2]. Invest in our girls

Context: The Global Nutrition Report (GNR) and India Health Report on Nutrition (IHR), 2015

IHR – provides easy-to-understand, State-wise data dashboards that give a comprehensive view of nutrition and its determinants

GNR – assesses progress in reducing malnutrition for all 193 countries. It concludes that while India is on track to meeting only two of the eight global targets on nutrition, it has significantly improved its nutrition performance in the past 10 years

The Current Scenario:

They portray one of great progress in improving nutrition across India; stunting among children, a marker of the most persistent types of malnutrition, has declined rapidly in the last ten years.

The Reality (Devil is always in the detail):

1. Conditions of all children gender irrespective:
   1. There are diverse pictures about the life conditions of Indian children — positive stories about children’s lives and futures in Goa, Kerala, Manipur and Tamil Nadu, but dismal ones in Bihar, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh.
   2. The data point to tremendous variability across States in delivering what should be universal, rights-based and already mandated health and nutrition services.
   3. Examples: For example, sample this for intra-State disparity. Food provided by the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) reaches barely 1 in 5 children in Uttar Pradesh but over 90 per cent in Odisha. Less than 33 per cent of children in Nagaland are fully immunised; in Goa, it is more than 90 per cent. Close to 80 per cent defecate in the open in Odisha; barely 2 per cent do so in Kerala.
   4. There is a reality of deep, systemic inequality; of inequality in the circumstances that children are born into, that they live and grow in. Their poor nutrition stunts more than their bodies. It stunts their well-being, and, consequentially, that of their home States and their nation.
2. Condition of Women and girls: – there is no intra state variability in the data showing the negligence over women issues in all the states. 
   1. More than half of women are anaemic.
   2. Levels of attained education are low for most Indian women, with only a few States doing well enough to have more than 50 per cent of their women with 10 years of schooling. This is barely the level of education that would enable them to participate in meaningful employment and be a part of India’s growth story.
   3. In 2014, the proportion of young women (20-24 years) married before they were 18, is as high as 1 in 2 in some States and 1 in 3 in many other States, including parts of the South.

By: ForumIAS Editorial Team