Brief of newspaper articles for the day bearing
relevance to Civil Services preparation
- GS PAPER 2
- Entry-level jobs pay more in Central government {Governance}
- SC rues barriers for disabled in govt. Service {Judiciary}
- Why India needs a uniform civil code {Polity}
- GS PAPER 3
- NDRF trains one lakh people in one month for better reach {Disaster Management}
- Automation to hit textile sector jobs {Economy}
- New RBI Governor faces five priority areas {Economy}
- Nuclear plants insured {Infrastructure}
- Sunny times for solar {Infrastructure}
- From Plate to Plough: Twenty-five years of tinkering {Agriculture}
GS PAPER 2
[1]Entry-level jobs pay more in Central government
Context
- A study by IIM-Ahmedabad has revealed that the lower ranked employees get more salary in the Central govt. Jobs as compared to the private sector. But in case of higher ranked employees, the private sector pays more.
Analysis
- The above table makes it clear that the lower ranked employees, be it a driver or a qualified professional like an MBBS doctor, bot get more salary if they are employed by the govt rather than in the private sector.
But as the experience and the skills increase, the trend is reversed:
- On the skills front, one might see from the table that and entry level MD doctor gets more salary in the private sector than in the govt sector.
- On the experience front, and MD doctor with 15 years of experience draws more than double the salary in the private sector as compare to the govt. sector.
This fatter salary by the private sector is because the competition in pvt. Sector is so much that it is difficult to retain such experience and skilled doctors if the salaries are not increased.
[2]SC rues barriers for disabled in govt. Service
Issue
- Supreme Court has raised concerns for disabled citizens
Observations of Supreme Court
- Supreme Court has asked the government to investigate the “barriers” preventing disabled persons from entering government service, especially into the higher ranks.
- The apex court said the government must scrutinise the barriers to their entry by rigorous standards within the legal framework of the 1995 Act.
- It has observed that there is hardly any representation of disabled persons in higher governmental hierarchy despite certain posts having been identified as suitable for them.
Law regarding it:-
- The Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995 was enacted to fulfill India’s obligations under the ‘Proclamation on the Full Participation and Equality of the People with Disabilities in the Asia and Pacific Region’.
- Under the act, the state’s obligation is to provide them at least three per cent reservation in public sector jobs.
[3]Why India needs a uniform civil code
Issue
- Time to revisit the issue of Uniform Civil Code
What has brought back this issue in limelight?
- The brave fight put up by Muslim women against the practice of triple talaq has once again brought into focus the lack of a uniform civil code in India.
Why India needs a Uniform Civil Code?
- First, a secular republic needs a common law for all citizens rather than differentiated rules based on religious practices.
- Uniform civil code is needed for gender justice. The rights of women are usually limited under religious law, be it Hindu or Muslim. The practice of triple talaq is a classic example.
Why the enforcement of UCC has been uncertain?
- The problem for its enforcement remained uncertain due to the Article 37 of the Directive Principles that reads, “the provisions contained in this part (dealing with UCC) shall not be enforceable by any court but the principles therein laid down are nevertheless fundamental in the governance of the country and it shall be the duty of State to apply these Principles in making laws”.
- Some scholars view this Article in contrast to the Fundamental Rights of the Constitution which guarantees the judicial enforcement and therefore gives a long rope to the State to keep its implementation pending for any period of time they desire as the Constitution did not specify any time limit for its enforcement.
Contribution of Britishers
- As far as Muslim Personal Laws are concerned, the British played its divisive politics and allowed all the communities to follow their customary family laws like marriage, divorce, inheritance and adoption.
- Muslims in several parts of India were also following the local customs of Hindus but British on persuasion of the Muslim leaders imposed restrictions on those Muslims who were following non-Islamic practices by enacting the Shariat Act in 1937.
- This was a calculated move of the colonial power to keep the Muslims and Hindus communally divided for its self-centric political gain.
- With Shariat Act the British not only won the loyalty of a section of Muslims but also crystalised their movement for separatism which led to the partition of the sub-continent.
Is Sharia law non negotiable?
- Shariat covers all the criminal and civil matters of Muslim society.
- But its erosion started in India when the Muslim rulers lost their power to East India Company which was subsequently transferred to the British Empire.
- Superseding the Shariat the British Power codified the entire criminal laws under Indian Penal Code of 1860 and the Criminal Procedure Code.
- There was no opposition to this move of the British by the Muslims.
- Similarly, the Muslims had no objection for Transfer of Properties Act or Indian Evidence Act. These non-Shariat Acts are still continuing even after the end of British rule.
Taking everybody along
- The move towards a common civil code cannot be a hasty one.
- There is the obvious political challenge on assuaging the fears of the Muslim community.
- The government will have to work hard to build trust, but more importantly, make common cause with social reformers rather than religious conservatives, as has been the wont of previous governments.
Taking inspiration
- The Portuguese, another colonial power successfully introduced Common Civil Code in the matters of marriage, inheritance and so on in Goa.
- Even today the Goa Civil Code, also known as Goa Family Law which is a set of civil laws governs the entire population including Muslims of this Indian State.
Views of Dr. B.R.Ambedkar
- I personally do not understand why religion should be given this vast, expansive jurisdiction, so as to cover the whole of life and to prevent the legislature from encroaching upon that field. After all, what are we having this liberty for? We are having this liberty in order to reform our social system, which is so full of inequities, discriminations and other things, which conflict with our fundamental rights.
Conclusion
- One of the factors that have kept India back from advancing to nationhood has been the existence of personal laws based on religion which keep the nation divided into watertight compartments in many aspects of life.
- It may be tough to predict the future of this code but the time has come to revisit this important but long delayed issue now for the sake of national unity.
- One should not be surprised if there is an overwhelming support for a uniform code from the minority community and particularly from the women.
- The underlying principle should be that constitutional law will override religious law in a secular republic.
GS PAPER 3
[1]NDRF trains one lakh people in one month for better reach
Context
- In order to better prepare the people toward managing the disasters , National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) has trained more than 1 lakh people in the past month on how to handle the natural and man-made emergencies.
Analysis
- Between 1st June to 30th June, 2016, NDRF instructors reached out to 482 towns,cities and villages and sensitised them about the disasters especially those that occur in their areas.
- The aim of this drive by NDRF was to build awareness among the vulnerable section and develop the capacity of the community to deal with disasters (flood, earthquake etc.)
- NDRF not only spread awareness about the disasters but also trained certain groups such as school/college students on how to respond to a disaster.
Conclusion
- In India occurrence of disasters is a common phenomenon nowadays. We see floods and earthquakes striking every other day.
- In such a scenario it becomes necessary to train the people to deal with the disaster rather than wholly relying on the govt agencies to deal with it as they have limited capacity.
[2]Automation to hit textile sector jobs
Context
- The textile and automation sector, despite expectations of a good growth is likely to create less jobs than expected. This is because of the move towards automation.
Analysis
- It is now expected that the textile and apparel will only create 29 lakh jobs as compared to the expected figure of 1 crore jobs in the next 5 years.
- This is because more and more automation is coming up in this sector which would result in many jobs being done by machines, thus affecting the job market.
- Automation in spinning, autoconers and auto-splicer departments has lead to 20 workers being replaced by 2 workers (on an average).
- The shift from spun yarn to synthetic filament has also lowered job creation as the spun yarn is more labour intensive.
- Also, had the FTAs with EU, Canada and Australia been signed, a lot of export would have generated which would have created more jobs. But unfortunately these FTAs are still in limbo.
How to deal with the problem?
- Textile sector has a huge employment potential especially in rural areas but this need to be tapped by implementing models such as hub and spoke model.
- This hub and spoke model is a non migratory model which means that workers can work without leaving their villages.
- But govt has to actively promote such models if it needs to increase the job creation for rural people.
Demand Forecast
- Despite the global slowdown the demand of apparels from the top importers have remained stable which has resulted in good exports.
- The exports are bound to grown even more when income increases in countries like Brazil, China etc. This will help India’s export growth.
[3]New RBI Governor faces five priority areas
Context
- After the incumbent RBI Governor, Raghuram Rajan announced that he will not be carrying on as the Governor of the central bank when his first term ends, the Government is busy deciding the new Governor.
- The new Governor of the RBI when appointed will have to face 5 major challenges:
Challenges for the new RBI Governor
1. Redeeming of the FCNR(B) Deposits:
- In August, 2013 when the rupee was miserably weak against the dollar, RBI came up with schemes to attract FCNR deposits. This definitely improved the rupee condition.
- But now, the time has come when these deposits will be redeemed by the depositors.This means that a lot of foreign currency will be moving out of India. This problem is also coupled with the foreign inflows slowing down (due to Brexit etc.)
2. Working under the new Monetary Policy Committee (MPC):
- The newly appointed governor will have to work under the MPC. MPC is a kind of set-up where the monetary policy will be decided by the consensus of committee members rather than that of governor alone.
- This means that the onus of decision is shared. New Governor will have to ensure the smooth transitioning and working of MPC.
3. Expectations of steeper rate cuts:
- There is an expectation of deeper rate cuts in the economy. In the present scenario when the retail inflation has already increased , the new Governor will have to deal with this expectation and decide if deeper cuts are practical.
- Even the earlier RBI Governor had made cuts in the interest rates but the expectation is of more cuts.
4. Cleaning up the Banks
- Raghuram Rajan started the process of cleaning up the banks whereby, the banks are expected to make higher provisioning for those loans which the Asset Quality Review of the central bank considered stressed. This exercise will have to be continue by the new Governor.
- Also since the banks (especially PSBs) have huge NPAs, they have restricted their lending. This in the longer run would affect the growth of the country. The new Governor has to make sure that lending is kick-started again.
5. Autonomy of the RBI
- The new Governor no matter if he is an academician, an expert or even comes from the government ,has to ensure that RBI continues to be perceived as an autonomous institution.
- Raghuram Rajan, in India as well as globally was perceived as an autonomous, credible policy maker. This image boosted the image of the central bank as well. This must also be carried on by the new governor.
Conclusion
- Now any day the announcement of the new RBI Governor might come but it remains to be seen that how the new appointee deals with the challenges that face him in the near future.
[4]Nuclear plants insured
Key points:-
- India’s first insurance policy covering public liability to an atomic power plant operator has been issued to Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL) but the reinstatement of insurance value post a claim will be decided later.
- The policy complies with all the provisions of the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act.
- The Central government had announced in June 2015 the setting up of the Rs. 1,500-crore India Nuclear Insurance Pool to be managed by national reinsurer GIC Re.
- The insurance policy was issued by the country’s largest non-life insurer New India Assurance Company Ltd.
- The policy would cover the liability towards public as a consequence of any nuclear accident in the plants covered under the policy and also the right of recourse of NPCIL against equipment suppliers.
- The insurance coverage will be for all the NPCIL’s plants.
[5]Sunny times for solar
Issue
- World Bank’s agreement with the India-led International Solar Alliance (ISA) to support Indian initiatives for expanded solar generation.
- For background, refer to WB offers $1 billion aid for solar projects
Importance of this agreement
- The $625-million grid-connected rooftop solar fund could help strengthen State-level programmes for net metering.
- A transparent regime that enables individuals and communities to plug into the grid without bureaucratic hurdles would unlock small-scale private investment.
- The World Bank programme promises to provide the necessary linkage to solar-rich States for improving transmission lines.
Biggest obstacles to a scale-up in developing countries
- Despite decline in cost of solar power, high cost of finance for photovoltaic projects is a major challenge.
- But this agreement will help develop financing instruments, reduce hedging costs and currency risks, and enable technology transfer.
Other obstacles
- Cheap imports poses another challenge. To tackle this, strong policy support is necessary to improve domestic manufacture of solar cells and panels.
- India’s efforts have also suffered a setback, with the adverse WTO ruling against the stipulation of a prescribed level of domestic content for solar projects.
Areas that needs attention
- Making power grids intelligent to analyse and giving priority to use the output of renewables.
- Accurately forecasting the weather to plan next day generatio.
- Viability mechanisms for conventional coal-based plants .
Conclusion
- Developing a strong solar manufacturing industry is essential for sustained economic growth, and to connect those who never had the boon of electricity.
- Innovation in battery technology is a potential gold mine for the solar alliance and for India to exploit.
[6]From Plate to Plough: Twenty-five years of tinkering
Issue
- Impact of the economic reforms on agriculture and need for reforms in fertilizer sector
Fertiliser Policy in India
- For sustained agricultural growth and to promote balanced nutrient application, it is imperative that fertilizers are made available to farmers at affordable prices.
- With this objective, urea being the only controlled fertilizer, is sold at statutory notified uniform sale price, and decontrolled Phosphatic and Potassic fertilizes are sold at indicative maximum retail prices (MRPs).
- The problems faced by the manufactures in earning a reasonable return on their investment with reference to controlled prices, are mitigated by providing support under the New Pricing Scheme for Urea units and the concession Scheme for decontrolled Phosphatic and Potassic fertilizers.
- The statutorily notified sale price and indicative MRP is generally less than the cost of production of the irrespective manufacturing unit.
- The difference between the cost of production and the selling price/MRP is paid as subsidy/concession to manufacturers
- As the consumer prices of both indigenous and imported fertilizers are fixed uniformly, financial support is also given on imported urea and decontrolled Phosphatic and Potassic fertilizers.
Problems with Urea being retained as a controlled fertilizer
- Because of controlled price of urea, fertilizer sector suffers from large inefficiency, urea is diverted to non-agricultural uses and to neighbouring countries, while the subsidy burden continues to rise.
- The government is trying to increase fertiliser production by pumping in more resources in sick units. That is an inefficient strategy.
- In Bihar, it has been seen that much of the fertiliser is routed to Nepal, as figures of wheat and rice production are not commensurate with such of fertiliser consumption.
Impact of economic reforms on agriculture
- Two years after opening up of rice exports, India became the second largest exporter of grain in the world. This encouraged the government to open exports of wheat in 1995.
- But this caused domestic prices of wheat and rice to rise and led the government to ban wheat and rice export in 1997.
- But that did not stopped India from becoming the largest exporter of rice in the world. The industry today uses better technology, including sortex machines.
- However the biggest gain to agriculture came from the improvement in the terms of trade. The correction of the over-valued exchange rate of the rupee in 1991 and the slashing of industrial tariffs ended the “implicit taxation” of agriculture from these indirect policies.
- Terms of trade for agriculture improved. This resulted in higher private investments in agriculture and agri-GDP grew by 4.8 per cent per annum from FY1993 to FY1997.
- But once export controls were back and East Asia was hit by a crisis in 1997, agricultural growth suffered. It has not come back to the 4.8 per cent level
Need for reforms in agriculture, especially in the fertiliser sector
- It is time to transfer fertiliser subsidy to farmers’ bank accounts on per hectare basis, and decontrol the fertiliser sector completely.
- This will make the subsidy crop-neutral, help those who want to grow crops other than wheat and rice, and promote organic farming.
- The government surely needs to go beyond fertilisers and extend reforms to agricultural markets, boost investments and create institutions that research and promote agriculture.
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