A brief of newspaper articles for the day bearing
relevance to Civil Services preparation
National
[1]. Supreme court will ensure rule of law, says CJI Thakur
What has happened?
Chief Justice of India Tirath Singh Thakur while commenting on the whole issue of religious intolerance, said that India is an inclusive society where people of all faiths and religions flourish with mutual respect and the Supreme Court will ensure that the rule of law reigns supreme.
What is ‘Rule of Law’?
Rule of law is a concept propounded by A.V Dicey, a British Jurist. The concept has following three elements,
- Absence of arbitrary power: No man can be punished except for a breach of law
- Equality before law: Equal subjection of all citizens (rich or poor, high or low, official or non-official) to the ordinary law of the land administered by ordinary law courts
- The primacy of the rights of an individual: Constitution is not the source of the individual rights. Constitution is the result of the rights of the individual as defined and enforced by the courts of law.
Only first and second elements are applicable to Indian system. In India constitution is the source of the rights of the individual.
Supreme Court held that ‘Rule of Law’ as embodied in Article 14 is the ‘basic feature’ of the constitution. Hence, it can’t be destroyed even by an amendment.
Article 14: It says that the State shall not deny to any person equality before law or equal protection of the laws within the territory of India.
Equality before law – British origin
Equal protection of laws – American constitution
Why the highest judiciary did not use its extraordinary jurisdiction powers to take suo motu cognizance of murders of activists and writers like Dabholkar, Pansare and Kalburgi?
CJI replied that an order from SC won’t stop intolerant people from committing such crimes. Society as a whole should nurture spirit of tolerance, mutual respect for religions.
[2]. India may ratify WTO trade facilitation pact
What the article says?
The article is in context of the recent to be held Nairobi ministerial of the WTO where India is likely to ratify the TFA (Trade Facilitation Agreement)
What is TFA?
- Trade facilitation agreement (TFA) is a trade protocol aiming to give a spur and do away with the stumbling blocks in doing international trade between various countries.
- The deadline to sign the agreement is July 31 and the deal has to come into force fully by 2015.
- It is being believed, especially by the proponents of the agreement that deal could add $1 trillion to global GDP and also can generate 21 million jobs by slashing red tape and streamlining customs.
- The developing country especially India and South Africa wants that before pushing for this TFA thing why WTO don’t discuss and allay our concern on food subsidy which is a lifeline for lakhs of BPL people in these countries
India’s concern
- India has problems with two issues, food subsidies and stockpiling of food grains.
- India at present is running a massive food procurement programmes by providing minimum supporting price to the farmers and giving subsidised food to lakhs of BPL families through its public distribution system (PDS).
- The new WTO agreement limits the value of food subsidies at 10 percent of the total food grain production. India is flexing muscle on the issue because subsidies have been calculated by WTO taking 1986 as base year into account which will largely affect food procurement programme through MSP.
- India is raising its concerns by saying that while US is providing 120 billion as agriculture subsidy then why India can’t give even one tenth (USD 12 billion) to their farmers.
- India which is home to about 25 percent of the world’s hungry has a viewpoint that it is a Government’s responsibility and duty to ensure availability of proper food to its people.
- Moreover, India’s food programme is largely domestic so it doesn’t distort global food trade. The Indian sources say that once the TFA will be implemented it will be difficult to bargain on the food subsidy thing and that is why India has this brazen attitude.
TFA requires a 2/3rd majority
In November last year, WTO member countries had adopted a “protocol of amendment” to make the TFA a part of the overall WTO Agreement. However, the TFA will become operational only after two-thirds of the members ratify it. So far, only 53 of the 162 member countries have done so.
India’s stand now
India is planning to ratify TFA as part of its initiative to attract more investment by improving India’s ranking in the World Bank’s ease of doing business report.
Currently, India’s position is at 130 out of 189 countries.
What experts say
Experts believe that ratifying TFA would mean that India would lose another bargaining chip to secure its interests as there are issues which need to be resolved like public stockholding for food security
[3]. Indian cities are crying for better governance
Context: Author in this article points out towards the fact that Indian cities are facing loads of problems including traffic congestion, pollution, waste water treatment etc. He further points out that not enough is being done to help out our cities in terms of infrastructure and regulation
Flooding in Chennai – Author cites the example of Chennai floods where hundreds of lives have been lost as the city was not prepared to deal with the calamity of this magnitude. The development of urban infrastructure over marshes and river basins, with scant regard to regulatory norms, means that the accumulated water had hardly any escape route.
Deadly air-trap of Delhi – Author says that coastal cities have one advantage that the air is in constant circulation resulting in fresh sea breeze which neutralises problem of air pollution to some extent. On the other hand a land-locked capital city like Delhi creates a deadly air-trap for its residents. It has been termed as the most polluted city in the world. Delhi government has announced that private vehicles with odd and even registration numbers will be allowed on roads on alternate days starting from January 2016
Effluent waste in Bengaluru – Bengaluru has seen the rise of a different kind of pollution i.e. discharge of untreated industrial waste that has converted lakes into toxic froth. Winds carry this froth to the streets and into homes, greatly inconveniencing commuters and residents. With added inflow of combustible fuels, flames have been spotted in these lakes
Urbanization – It is a population shift from rural to urban areas, “the gradual increase in the proportion of people living in urban areas”, and the ways in which each society adapts to the change.
Urbanization is happening in India at a rapid pace but poor administrative design, utter lack of foresight by policymakers and acute deficiency of regulatory capacity has made sure that the process is toxic for us.
Must Read: http://www.insightsonindia.com/2014/10/29/urbanization-in-india-facts-and-issues/
Author says that cities are the engines of growth for India. They need following measures to be implemented,
- Better infrastructure,
- Intelligent regulation of city activities and transparent enforcement,
- A modern public transport system with much higher capacity,
- Capabilities to deal with borderless problems like terror and climate change,
- Better pricing strategies for energy use and amenities like roads and parking spaces,
- Greater devolution of fiscal, administrative and political capital.
[4]. Avoiding a cop out in Paris
Context: At the ongoing COP 21 meeting at Paris, a draft agreement has been finalised which has around 938 sections of bracketed text, on which there is no agreement so far. Except the draft agreement, 3 of the most exciting initiatives have emerged on the sidelines of the official deliberations, and Indians have played a prominent role in all of them.
3 initiatives are,
- Breakthrough Energy Coalition (BEC), spearheaded by Bill Gates, which includes Ratan Tata and Mukesh Ambani from India as well as four leading Chinese entrepreneurs. This coalition aims to provide venture capital to bring riskier and untested new technologies related to electricity generation and storage, transportation, industrial use, agriculture and energy system efficiency to the market
- Launch of Mission Innovation, a dramatic initiative to accelerate public and private partnership to “address global climate change, provide affordable clean energy to consumers, including in the developing world, and create additional commercial opportunities in clean energy”. The most interesting aspect of this initiative is its move to leverage public-private partnership—both in the global North and South—to promote joint ventures that can make clean energy economically viable.
- The Indo-French-led International Solar Energy Alliance, supported by more than 120 countries, hopes to raise $1 trillion to scale up solar energy development by 2030, particularly in the tropical sun-drenched countries.
Significance of these initiatives vis-a-vis Delhi’s role in addressing climate change
These initiatives underline New Delhi’s efforts to play a proactive role in shaping the norms, mechanisms and institutions to deal with climate change, both nationally and globally.
Author says that apart from above 3 initiatives, India can think to lead 2 other initiatives,
- Global Coalition – initiative to build a global coalition to enhance the resilience of mega cities to deal with the threats of extreme climate events. Against the backdrop of the devastating floods that have battered Chennai—partly on account of climate change factors—such an initiative would be both timely and popular. It would also strengthen the case for the government’s “smart cities” project.
- ITER – In a bid to enhance its clean energy options, India could also refocus attention on the ambitious ITER (International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor) megaproject, which seeks to produce clean energy from nuclear fusion.
The meeting is being held at a place called Le Bourget. Charles Lindbergh in 1927 landed at Le Bourget Field at the end of his epochal maiden solo, non-stop transatlantic flight between New York and Paris in 1927
Who is Charles Lindbergh?
Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, author, inventor, military officer, explorer, and social activist.
As a 25-year-old U.S. Air Mail pilot, Lindbergh emerged suddenly from virtual obscurity to instantaneous world fame as the result of his Orteig Prize-winning solo nonstop flight on May 20–21, 1927, made from the Roosevelt Field in Garden City on New York’s Long Island to Le Bourget Field in Paris, France
Author draws parallel between the spirit shown by Lindbergh in carrying out his journey by pushing the conventional norm and the gathering of world leaders at Paris who are engaged in such a pursuit only.
[5]. El-Nino may wither wheat crop
What has happened?
Rising temperatures due to greenhouse gases and El Nino are said to be taking a toll on the wheat crop as late planting in the hottest year on record is set to delay the harvest and severely hit farm yields, magnifying rural distress.
Why the late sowing?
The late onset of winter and exceptionally dry conditions after the weak monsoon has prompted late crop sowing by farmers. They have suffered crop damage due to two consecutive failed monsoons and unseasonal rain and hailstorms in February and March, which damaged the winter-sown crop just before harvest time.
Harmful impact of delayed sowing
Wheat planting is already 27% lower than last year. Even if weather conditions improve and farmers resume planting, the crop will mature by May, denying it the cool weather for better yields.
Delayed sowing will expose the crop to higher temperature at the time of maturity. Winter chill is crucial for grain formation as the high temperature reduces output. Sow ing of wheat has been affected in high-production zones in UP, Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Bihar and Rajasthan. Weather scientists said the effects of El Nino is exacerbating the situation
Hottest year
The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) said 2015 is likely to be the hottest on record, while 2011-2015 is the hottest-ever five-year period. This is due to a combination of a strong El Niño and human-induced global warming.
Business
[1]. Centre defends labour reforms drive
What has happened?
In the wake of centre’s drive to reform labour laws by amalgamating 44 labour laws into 4 codes, opposition has criticised government of trying to dilute the labour laws while government has defended its decision by saying that these reforms are necessary for creation of employment opportunities in the country so that almost 10 million people who are joining the workforce every year can be given an opportunity to live a dignified and self-respecting life.
The 4 codes
The four codes will pertain to
- Labour
- Industrial relations,
- Social security and welfare
- Safety and working conditions
Fact: Labour laws are on the concurrent list
Shram Suvidha Portal
It was launched in April 2015. Under this portal, companies now have to file only a single return instead of the earlier practice of filing separate returns under eight different Acts.
This portal was developed as a unified web platform for ensuring transparency and accountability in enforcement of labour laws while easing complexity of compliance.
[2]. Public sector banks’ impaired assets stymieing overall economic growth
Context: In the wake of increasing Non-Performing Assets (NPAs), author points our attention to Agricultural debt waiver scheme, which as per him, is the main reason for mounting bad loans and NPAs of the PSU banks.
Conventional reasons given for such a state of affairs
- Decline in the country’s growth rate in the aftermath of the Global Financial Crisis (2008-10)
- The policy paralysis during the second UPA regime, causing significant damage to new projects in infrastructure, power generation and civil aviation sectors.
Author says, above reasons are true but they do not present the whole picture as private sector banks have not been impacted that much.
Main reason as per author is the,
The agricultural debt waiver scheme was announced in budget 2008-09. The inspiration for debt restructuring programs were likely derived from the loan waiver scheme.
Suggestions to deal with the problem
- The government and RBI must recognize the scale of the problem.
- Following the lead provided by SBI in this regard in 2014-15, PSU banks should be ready to sell their NPAs to asset reconstruction companies for cash at deep discount, if necessary.
- Disclosure of full and comprehensive information on the financial health of banks does not happen in India. It will be a good idea for RBI to conduct annual ‘stress testing’ of banks, following the methodology in the EU and US, and share the conclusions publicly.
- Government must be prepared to lower its stake in PSU banks. The ‘Indradhanush’ reforms are just a good beginning. For achieving something real and durable, the government, the political class and the opinion-makers will have to jettison the long-held ideological belief that reduction of government’s equity stake below 50 per cent will be an act of sedition and sacrilege.
- All stakeholders must realize that commercial banking is undergoing a major transformation right now, driven largely by technology.
What are Indradhanush reforms?
It is seven pronged plan to improve the functioning of the public sector banks. The seven elements include
- Appointments,
- Board of bureau,
- Capitalisation,
- De-stressing,
- Empowerment,
- Framework of accountability
- Governance reforms.
Must Read:
- http://www.business-standard.com/article/finance/govt-launches-mission-indradhanush-to-revamp-psu-banks-115081401145_1.html
- http://www.sakshieducation.com/GK/Story.aspx?cid=20&sid=122&chid=1054&nid=107387
[3]. Startup policy in New year
Context: The government is gearing up to unveil a new policy for promoting startups in January 2016 with an eye on boosting innovation, entrepreneurship and creating new jobs.
This policy comes under the wake of Start-up India initiative announced by PM on Aug 15th 2015.
Start-up India policy
- Encourage entrepreneurship: It would be a set of significant measures to encourage entrepreneurship in the economy and we hope it would become a game-changer in making the ecosystem conducive for new ventures
- Compliment schemes – The policy would bolster and complement the other initiatives already launched to promote new enterprises such as the Mudra scheme, short for Micro Units Development and Refinance Agency.
MUDRA bank
Micro Units Development and Refinance Agency Bank (or MUDRA Bank) is a public sector financial institution in India. It provides loans at low rates to micro finance institutions and non-banking financial institutions which then provide credit to MSME’s. It was launched by PM on 8 April 2015.
The MUDRA banks will be set up under the Pradhan Mantri MUDRA Yojana scheme
India aspiration fund
It is a fund of funds under the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) in order to boost the start-up ecosystem in the country. An initial corpus of Rs 400 crore has been already allocated to various venture funds under it.
[4]. NITI Aayog Draws Road Map for Make in India Plan
What has happened?
NITI Aayog is preparing a road map to implement the Make in India programme in a manner that will give India an edge over its competing neighbours and prove sustainable over the long term.
The focus of the blueprint will be on a shift towards green manufacturing, digital manufacturing and additive manufacturing.
Green manufacturing
It involves
- Manufacturing of green products, particularly those used in renewable energy systems and clean technology equipment of all kinds,
- “Greening“of manufacturing, thereby reducing pollution and waste by minimising use of natural resources and recycling of waste. “It holds potential economic benefits including long-term cost savings, waste reduction and process efficiency improvements
Additive manufacturing
It is often referred to as beginning of a third industrial revolution, refers to various processes used to synthesise a three-dimensional object while in digital manufacturing or computer-integrated manufacturing functional areas such as design, analysis, planning, purchasing, cost accounting.
Conclusion
Moving on to higher technologies is a key to success of Make-in India programme.
Opinion & Editorial
[1]. Secularism in spirit and in letter
Context: On the constitution day on November 26, Union Home minister Rajnath singh said that “The framers of the Constitution did not include the words ‘secular’ and ‘socialist’ because these values were (already) part of Indian civilisation.” Voicing his opinion that secularism was alien to the constitution and only became a part of it due to emergency. Author argues against it.
Backdrop against which the framers of constitution worked
The framers of the Constitution worked against the backdrop of two great instances of human carnage —
- World War II
- The Partition of India
Both events were based on distinctive identities and there specific territorial demarcations. Makers of the constitution made sure that the document they produced had adequate safeguards and words of comfort for every religion.
What does secularism in the Indian Constitution mean?
The constitutional vision of secularism is one of principled equidistance from all religious matters, while at the same time regulating its practice in a manner consistent with the demands of a modern society.
It is fallacious to argue that the original Constitution as adopted, enacted and given to ourselves on November 26, 1949, was not a secular document. The inclusion in the Preamble of the words “socialist” and “secular” by the 42nd Amendment on January 3, 1977, only headlined what was already present in the original text of the Constitution. We must also remember that the Preamble itself was drafted only after the Constitution was approved by the Constituent Assembly. The Preamble thus became a one-page mission statement of the republic’s intent.
Constitutional provisions devoid of any religious preference
- Article 14: The guarantee of equality
- Article 15 and 16: the promise of non-discrimination
- Article 27 and 28: protection from religious taxes and religious instruction in state-funded institutions
- Article 29 and 30: The permission of educational institutions of choice to linguistic and religious minorities
- Article 325: The promise of equal ballots devoid of sectional preferences
Basic structure of constitution
On April 24, 1973, the Supreme Court, with its then full strength of 13 judges, ruled in the Kesavananda Bharati case that secularism was part of the basic structure of the Constitution. It also held that elements constituting the basic structure were beyond Parliament’s power to amend the Constitution. The court reiterated this principle in 1994 in the S.R. Bommai case when dealing with the challenge to the dismissal of four Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled State governments after the demolition of the Babri Masjid.
42nd Amendment – Insertion of word ‘secular’ – During the Emergency came the 42nd Amendment on January 3, 1977. Apart from many significant changes otherwise, it inserted the word “secular” in the Preamble.
44th Amendment – After the Emergency, the 44th Amendment by the Janata government undid most of the substantial damage achieved by the 42nd Amendment. But it, too, chose to preserve the addition of the words “socialist” and “secular” to the Preamble.
[2]. A leaf from MP book
What has happened?
The agri-GDP of MP grew at 9.7 per cent per annum during 2005-06 to 2014-15, surpassing even record-holder Gujarat’s 7.7 per cent. The last five years have been even more spectacular: The agri-GDP grew at 14.2 per cent per annum. No wonder MP has got the Krishi Karman Award from the president three times in the last five years.
What has led to such high Agri-GDP growth rate?
- Strong procurement system put in place for wheat. This incentivised farmers to increase production of wheat while improving the irrigation ratio.
- The leadership and its focus on agriculture. MP CM has sworn to make agriculture in the state a profitable business. His first mission was to fix roads, power and irrigation. Now, he is focusing on agri-markets and crop insurance. In perishables, he wants to have milk and horticulture corridors, and is trying to plug the gaps in value chains. He is reportedly ready to open up the land lease markets and rationalise mandi taxes and commissions — steps in the right direction
Conclusion
Would the prime minister take a leaf from Chouhan’s book and implement some of these lessons at an all-India level? Farmers are looking towards the national leadership with hope but, in the last 18 months, nothing tangible has resulted. Rural distress is deepening every day. This is a wake-up call. –
By: ForumIAS Editorial Team
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