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Answer the following questions in 150 words:
General Studies – 1
Reference: Down to Earth
Introduction
Patriarchy is a complex and a mystifying institution of power and control in the society. Patriarchy signifies a male dominated structure which has a long history and has existed in every society in the world. It is essentially a system of male domination in diverse aspects of life such as moral authority, social privilege, decision making, control of property, political leadership et al. It has hampered the position of the middle-class working women in India in contemporary times owing to prolonged practices of the past and submissiveness of the females.
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Background
- The Supreme Court (SC) has once again called for a ban on the two-finger test in rape cases nearly a decade after it first did so. It has said those who conduct it would be held guilty of misconduct.
- A Bench made up of Justice DY Chandrachud and Justice Hima Kohli made the observations in an SC order overturning the acquittal of a rape accused in the Telangana High Court October 31, 2022.
- Chandrachud, who will soon take over as the Chief Justice of India November 9, called the practice ‘patriarchal’ and ‘sexist’. He also ordered the two-finger test to be removed from the syllabus of medical education.
Why Patriarchy still persists
Reasons for persistence of patriarchy in our society:
- The first lessons of patriarchy are learnt in the family where the head of the family is a man/ father. Man is considered the head of the family and controls women’s sexuality, labour or production, reproduction and mobility.
- In a patriarchal family the birth of male child is preferred to that of a female.
- Patriarchal societies propagate the ideology of motherhood which restricts women’s mobility and burdens them with the responsibilities to nurture and rear children.
- Family is therefore important for socializing the next generation in patriarchal values. The boys learn to be dominating and aggressive and girls learn to be caring, loving and submissive. These stereotypes of masculinity and femininity are not only social constructs but also have been internalized by both men and
- While the pressure to earn and look after the family is more on the man, the women are supposed to do the menial jobs and take care of their children and even other members of the family. It is because of these gender stereotypes that women are at a disadvantage and are vulnerable to violence and other kinds of discriminations and injustices.
- Systemic deprivation and violence against women: rape, sexual harassment, sexual abuse, female feticide, infanticide, sati, dowry deaths, wife-beating, high level of female illiteracy, malnutrition, undernourishment and continued sense of insecurity keeps women bound to home, economically exploited, socially suppressed and politically passive
- Patriarchal constructions of knowledge perpetuate patriarchal ideology and this is reflected in educational institutions, knowledge system and media which reinforce male dominance.
- Patriarchal constructions of social practices are legitimized by religion and religious institutions as most religious practices regard male authority as superior and the laws and norms regarding family, marriage, divorce and inheritance are linked to patriarchal control over property biased against women
- Male dominated institutions like church and state also lay down rules regarding women’s reproductive capacity
Need of the hour
- Behavioral Nudge:For instance, by using taxes to incentivize fairly sharing child-care responsibilities, or by encouraging women and girls to enter traditionally male-dominated sectors such as the armed forces and information technology. Eg Supreme Court in India declared that women could now hold commanding positions in Army.
- Paternity leaves for men, to share the responsibility of child rearing.
- Incentivizing companies to employ women, and reach 50% target.
- Gender Justice at Work
- Bridging the wage gap for equal work.
- Making work places safer through strong laws. India has enacted Sexual Harassment at workplaces act.
- Promote diversity and anti-bias courses for all employees.
- Comprehensive leadership training for women to excel in their fields.
- Gender sensitization:Breaking the social barriers by gender sensitization and education at families, schools and workplaces. Eg : In the NCERT Books, gender roles, bias and prejudice inducing writings were removed.
- Social security and financial literacy: Formalization of jobs should be pushed to avail benefits to many women. Until then, social security benefits should be provided to women in unorganized sector.Eg : Self Help Group-Bank Linkage Programme in India
- Embedding financial literacy in programmes where women have significant representation could be a good starting point.
- Strong laws and policies wrt equal pay for equal work, maternity benefits are needed to promote women’s representation in economy.
- Political Representation:India has provided 33% reservation for women in the Panchayats and Local Bodies. Capacity Building and training can increase their capabilities further.
Conclusion
Gender equality is a human right which entitles all persons irrespective of their gender to live with dignity and with freedom. Gender equality is also a precondition for development and reducing of poverty. Gender shouldn’t be an unreasonable determining factor curbing the potential of women.
General Studies – 2
Reference: The Hindu , Insights on India
Introduction
The MGNREGA was launched in 2006 in order to provide at least 100 days of guaranteed employment to rural households. It is the largest scheme run by the Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD).
An internal study commissioned by the Ministry of Rural Development has argued for decentralisation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), allowing for more “flexibility” at the ground level.
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How has MGNREGA fared so far?
- MGNREGA works have demonstrably strong multiplier effects are yet another reason to improve its implementation.
- It is a labour programme meant to strengthen participatory democracy through community works. It is a legislative mechanism to strengthen the constitutional principle of the right to life.
- It has helped in increasing rural household income.
- It has not only helped in increasing groundwater table in the last one decade, but also agriculture productivity, mainly cereals and vegetables and fodders.
- The water conservation measures, including farm ponds and dug wells, have made a difference to the lives of the poor.
- While the scheme was earlier focused on creation of community assets, in the last three years, individual assets have also been emphasised.
- It has provided goat, poultry and cattle shed as per the need of poor households.
- One national study found that MGNREGS has created valuable public goods which have augmented rural incomes.
- Another national study found that, even after deficiencies in implementation, MGNREGS may have improved nutrition outcomes.
- Even consumption has been shown to improve if MGNREGS is implemented well. A 2018 study of a better-implemented version of MGNREGS in Andhra Pradesh, where there was significantly less leakage or payment delays, estimated that MGNREGS increased income households’ earnings by 13% and decreased poverty by 17%
- MGNREGS can smoothen food consumption of rural poor by providing them with an alternate source of income during the agricultural lean season.
- According to a study conducted by New Delhi-based Institute of Economic Growth.
- there has been an 11 per cent increase in rural household income,
- 5 per cent increase in cereal productivity and
- 32 per cent increase in vegetable productivity,
Challenges to MGNREGA
- Low Wage Rate: These have resulted in a lack of interestamong workers making way for contractors and middlemen to take control. Currently, MGNREGA wage rates of 17 states are less than the corresponding state minimum wages. The above study also noted that the MGNREGS wages were far below the market rate in many States, defeating the purpose of acting as a safety net.
- Case study:At present, the minimum wage of a farm labourer in Gujarat is ₹324.20, but the MGNREGS wage is ₹229. The private contractors pay far more. In Nagaland, the wage is ₹212 per day, which does not take into account the difficult terrain conditions. Similarly, in Jammu and Kashmir, the rate is ₹214 per day. This, the study noted, “is lower than what is offered by private contractors which can go up to to ₹600-₹700 per day”.
- Insufficient Budget Allocation: The funds have dried up in many States due to lack of sanctions from the Central government which hampers the work in peak season.
- Payment Delays: Despite Supreme Court orders, various other initiatives and various government orders, no provisions have yet been worked out for calculation of full wage delays and payment of compensation for the same. The internal study also flagged the frequent delay in fund disbursal, and to deal with it suggested “revolving fund that can be utilised whenever there is a delay in the Central funds”.
- Case study: In Lower Subansiri district of Arunachal Pradesh, for example, the surveyors found that because of the delay in the material component the beneficiaries ended up buying the construction material themselves to complete the projects. In Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat, the delay in wages was by three or four months and the material component was delayed by six months.
- Corruption and Irregularities:Funds that reach the beneficiaries are very little compared to the actual funds allocated for the welfare schemes.
- Discrimination:Frequent cases of discrimination against the women and people from the backwards groups are reported from several regions of the country and a vast number goes unreported.
- Non-payment of Unemployment Allowance: There is a huge pendency in the number of unemployment allowances being shown in the Management Information System (MIS).
- Lack of Awareness: People, especially women, are not fully aware of this scheme and its provisions leading to uninformed choices or inability to get the benefits of the scheme.
- Poor Infrastructure Building: Improper surveillance and lack of timely resourcesresult in the poor quality assets.
- Non Purposive Spending: MGNREGA has increased the earning capacity of the rural people but the spending pattern of the workers assumes significance because there ishardly any saving out of the wages
- Workers penalised for administrative lapses: The ministry withholds wage payments for workers of states that do not meet administrative requirements within the stipulated time period.
- Too much centralisation weakening local governance: A real-time MIS-based implementation and a centralised payment system has further left the representatives of the Panchayati Raj Institutions with literally no role in implementation, monitoring and grievance redress of MGNREGA schemes.
Way forward
- It is evident that the jobs under MGNREGS can only be revived through:
- Adequate allocation of Budget funds
- Timely payment for workers
- Complete decentralisation of the implementation
- Improving entitlements (wages, compensations and worksite facilities)
- Allocation for a year should include pending liabilities of previous years.
- It should also respect the idea of the decentralised planning processes through Gram Sabhas across the country and allow adequate fund allotment as per labour budgets provided by each Gram Panchayats.
- The government should come up with only one delay-payment report that accounts for the entire time taken and delays during the closure of muster roll and wages credited to workers’ accounts.
- Also, the MGNREGA payment procedures should be simplified to ensure transparency and accountability.
- Better coordination must be ensured among various government departments involved.
- Better mechanism must be provided to allot and measure work.
- Gender gap in wages under this scheme must be addressed. In this scheme, women earn 22.24% less than their male counterparts.
- MGNREGA has been implemented for more than a decade now. It is necessary to understand its performance through output indicators like the number of workers, person days of work generated, quantum of assets completed etc.
- The data collected can be used to compare inter-state and inter-district differences in performance.
- In addition, MGNREGA must encompass provision for safe working conditions for the beneficiaries, like temperature checks, masks, hand washing facilities, proper hydration etc.
Conclusion
MGNREGA is playing a critical role in providing economic security for the rural population post the COVID-19 crisis. Therefore, the government must take steps to ensure that it is made use of to its fullest extent to address the current economic problems and bringing the economy back on track.
Value addition
Importance of MGNREGA
- MGNREGA is vital for addressing India’s current problems.
- It boosts rural demand and ensure economic development of the rural population
- It seeks to bridge the gap between the rich and the poor.
- This Act aims to improve the purchasing powerof the rural population by providing them primarily the semi-skilled or unskilled work, especially to those living below the poverty line.
- This can help solve rural poverty, farmer suicides, unemployment crisis in rural areas etc.
- Furthermore, it is a scheme that has the potential to undertake progressive measureslike infrastructure development in rural India, improving agricultural productivity through labour-intensive, supportive projects related to water conservation, drought relief measures, flood control etc.
- This Act is also highly significant because it allows for grass-root level developmentas it is implemented mainly by the Gram Panchayats. It does not allow the involvement of contractors so that the workers under this scheme are not exploited.
- It also stands out in its worker-centric legislationwith a high emphasis on transparency and accountability.
- If the government supports this Act, then it can become the solution to the present-day problems like water scarcity, climate change etc.
- It is demand-driven wage employment schemethat provides additional 50 days of unskilled wage employment during drought/natural calamities.
- Section 3(4) of the Act allows states/Centre to provide additional days beyond the guaranteed period from their own funds.
Reference: The Hindu
Introduction
In a move that allayed concerns about yet another disruption to global food supply chains, Russia re-joined the Black Sea Grain deal. The reversal came a day after Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that Moscow would suspend, but not end, its involvement in the deal.
The Black Sea Grain deal endeavours to tackle escalating food prices emanating from supply chain disruptions because of Russian actions in the world’s ‘breadbasket’.
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About the Black Sea Grain Initiative and its importance
- The deal, brokered by the United Nations (UN) and Turkey, was signed in Istanbul on July 27 this year.
- Initially stipulated for a period of 120 days, with an option to extend or terminate thereafter in November, the deal was to provide for asafe maritime humanitarian corridor for Ukrainian exports (particularly for food grains) from three of its key ports, namely, Chornomorsk, Odesa and Yuzhny/Pivdennyi.
- The central idea was tocalm markets by ensuring an adequate supply of grains, thereby limiting food price inflation.
- Ukraine is among the largest exporters of wheat, maize, rapeseed, sunflower seeds and sunflower oil, globally.
- Its access to the deep-sea ports in the Black Sea enables it to directly approach Russia and Europe along with grain importers from the Middle East and North Africa.
- Russia’s action in the East European country has now disturbed this route, earlier used to ship 75% of its agricultural exports – precisely what the initiative sought to address.
- The deal put in place a Joint Coordination Centre (JCC), comprising senior representatives from Russia, Turkey, Ukraine and the UN for oversight and coordination.
- All commercial ships are required to register directly with the JCC to ensure appropriate monitoring, inspection and safe passage.
- Inbound and outbound ships (to the designated corridor) transit as per a schedule accorded by the JCC post-inspection. This is done so as to ensure there is no unauthorised cargo or personnel onboard.Following this, they are allowed to sail onwards to Ukrainian ports for loading through the designated corridor.
- All ships, once inside the Ukrainian territorial waters, are subject to the nation’s authority and responsibility.
- Moreover, in order to avoid provocations and untoward incidents, it is mandated that monitoring be done remotely.
- No military ships or unmanned aerial vehicles can approach the corridor closer than a pre-decided distance agreed upon by the JCC. This too would require consultation with the parties and authorisation of the JCC.
Role in preventing escalation of prices
- As per the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, approximately 9.8 million tonnes of grains have been shipped since the initiative was commenced.
- The UN Food and Agricultural Organisation’s (FAO) Food Price Index, which assesses the monthly change in international prices of a basket of food commodities,fell for the sixth consecutive month in a row this October.
- Following thefifth consecutive month of decline, the supply situation in markets was seen to be easing, with the potential for further price drop
- People hoarding the grain in the hope of selling it for a sizeable profit owing to the supply crunch were now obligated to sell.
- The initiative has also been credited forhaving made a “huge difference” to the global cost of living crisis.
- About 44% of the shipments, which include corn, wheat, rapeseed, and sunflower oil among others, reached high-income countries (including Spain, Netherlands and Italy among others), 28% reached low and middle-income countries (Egypt, Iran, Sudan and Kenya among others) and 27% reached upper-middle income countries (Turkey, China and Bulgaria among others).
- It is important to note here that certain countries here may be re-exporters of a certain grain— thus, the indicator might only reflect the first point of export.
Conclusion
As Ukraine typically accounted for about 10% of global wheat exports before the war, the effect on global markets is akin to back-to-back droughts over three years in a major wheat-producing region, and it likely means that global stocks will not recover for at least another year. This initiative can be the solution to the current price volatility but then again, it alone cannot solve the escalating prices.
General Studies – 3
Reference: Insights on India
Introduction
India has around 5% of its geographical area as protected area with 566 existing wildlife sanctuaries and 104 existing national parks in India. Despite being party to CITES and enacting Wildlife protection Act in India, there are many conservation challenges faced by sanctuaries and national parks.
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Threats faced by wildlife sanctuaries and national parks
- Habitat loss: Due to flood and siltation, size of water bodies inside the park are shrinking. Siltation also affects the grazing areas of herbivorous animals.
- Invasive species such as water hyacinth and Mimosa are great threats to Kaziranga. Water hyacinth clog water bodies and depletes oxygen in the water.
- It threatens underwater life and shrinks the size of water bodies.
- Exotic leguminous species Mimosa was introduced in Tea gardens of Assam.The species have a poisonous amino acid (Mimosin). So, they are harmful for herbivorous
- Man-animal conflicts: No park exists in isolation, and that fact is becoming increasingly clear as the areas surrounding parks are developed for living space, agriculture, mining, forestry, and more.
- The iconic species protected inside the parks don’t recognize boundaries and must often move in and out of the parks to feed, mate, or migrate.
- Avani Tigress was killed due to public backlash.
- Roads through sanctuaries:Experts found as many as 85 roadkills in the past six months within the sanctuary limits.
- There is uncontrolled passage of heavy vehicles during night-time threatening biodiversity.
- Poor conservation infrastructure:The rangers and frontline staff deployed in many parks and sanctuaries lacks modern weapons, advanced communication systems and efficient means of transportation. There is also lack of proper camps and watch towers.
- Human interference:Illegal livestock grazing, illegal fishing, unplanned tourism infrastructure, highway traffic, tourism pressure, crop raiding, etc.
- Mining, petroleum prospecting,clear-cut lumbering, and other developments are generally prohibited inside parks—but they still pose serious threats to water quality, clean air, and other vital aspects of the park environment.
Need of the hour
- WWF-India Eco-development project aims to develop a model programme that can be used all over the country to help resolve this conflict.
- Involve local communities in decision making like Critical tiger habitats Gram Sabha is given importance similar to the forest rights act.
- Implementing the Gadgil committee and K Kasturirangan committee and not to water down the original recommendations.
- Patrolling and wildlife monitoring had to be taken up on a priority basis and scientific studies to ascertain the status of key species have been undertaken with the help of research organizations.
- Participation of local communities: The participation of local youth has been actively sought for the management of Manas and its buffer regions.
- These youth were employed as conservation volunteers on a monthly stipend and ration.
- They assisted the forest department in surveillance and patrolling activities.
- With the help of national and international nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), some of the youth were alsotrained to act as nature guides for small ecotourism enterprises.
Conclusion
The wildlife sanctuaries and national parks are established to provide protection to the endangered species. It is relatively hard to always relocate the animals from their natural territory, therefore, conserving them in their normal setting is advantageous. On of wildlife has major impact on entire human race and therefore must be taken up on war footing.
Measures and interest need to be channeled towards regrowing trees and increasing the land cover for forests. Reforestation and afforestation need to be promoted throughout the world. Proper forest management bodies need to be enforced to monitor wildlife actions and update on the latest. Care and habitation need to be provided to extinct species and efforts need to be taken to save them from becoming extinct.
Reference: Insights on India
Introduction
Climate Change is a periodic modification of Earth’s climate brought about due to the changes in the atmosphere as well as the interactions between the atmosphere and various other geological, chemical, biological and geographical factors within the Earth’s system.
Climate change is accelerating due to global warming driven by human-induced emissions of greenhouse gases and there is resulting large-scale shifts in weather patterns.
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Impact of Climate Change on India
- Coastal areas:7500 km long coastline is already vulnerable to various disasters like cyclone, coastal flooding, storm surges, heavy rainfall (as seen in Mumbai) etc.
- The rise in the sea temperature and level will only increase the frequency of such hazards endangering the life and livelihood of the coastal population.
- Also, India being close to the equator will experience much higher increase in sea level than higher latitudes
- Monsoon: Phenomenon such as El Nino will increase the variabilityof the monsoon worsening the agricultural crisiswith more than 50% area still being rain-fed and threatening the food security.
- Climate change has about 4-9 per cent impact on agriculture each year.
- As agriculture contributes 15 per cent to India’s GDP, climate change presumably causes about 1.5 per cent loss in GDP(1).
- Disasters:More weather aberrations as recently seen in Mumbai and Chennai and increase incidence of the disasters likeflood and drought will threaten both rural and urban economy
- Biodiversity: Loss of biodiversity put the livelihood of the forest dependent and hill communities at risk and disturb the biogeochemical cycles that help maintain the flow of nutrient, water and pure air.
- Increase in human-wildlife conflict as observed in State like Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand is another threat.
- Health: Increased disease outbreaks especially of the tropical diseases like Malaria and Dengue, heat waves aggravating the urban heat island effect andwater scarcity compelling people to consume polluted water will increase the burden of mortality and morbidity.
- Migration: Rising inequalities as poor will be most affected due to climate change will increase the burden of migration and cripple the urban economies.
- Illegal migration from the neighbour countries will also cause security threats.
India’s action for Climate Change
- National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC): outlines existing and future policies and programs addressing climate mitigation and adaptation. The Action Plan identifies eight core “national missions” running through to 2017: Solar Energy; Enhanced Energy Efficiency; Sustainable Habitat; Water; Sustaining the Himalayan Ecosystem; Green India; Sustainable Agriculture; and Strategic Knowledge for Climate Change. Most of these missions have strong adaptation imperatives.
- National Clean Energy Fund:The Government of India created the National Clean Energy Fund (NCEF) in 2010 for financing and promoting clean energy initiatives and funding research in the area of clean energy in the country. The corpus of the fund is built by levying a cess of INR 50 (subsequently increased to INR 100 in 2014) per tonne of coal produced domestically or imported.
- Paris Agreement:Under the Paris Agreement, India has made three commitments. India’s greenhouse gas emission intensity of its GDP will be reduced by 33-35% below 2005 levels by 2030. Alongside, 40% of India’s power capacity would be based on non-fossil fuel sources. At the same time, India will create an additional ‘carbon sink’ of 2.5 to 3 billion tonnes of Co2 equivalent through additional forest and tree cover by 2030.
- International Solar Alliance:ISA was launched at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris on 30 November 2015 by India and France, in the presence of Mr. Ban Ki Moon, former Secretary-General of the United Nations.
- Bharat Stage (BS) Emission Norms:Emissions from vehicles are one of the top contributors to air pollution, which led the government at the time to introduce the BS 2000 (Bharat Stage 1) vehicle emission norms from April 2000, followed by BS-II in 2005. BS-III was implemented nationwide in 2010. However, in 2016, the government decided to meet the global best practices and leapfrog to BS-VI norms by skipping BS V altogether.
Evaluation of India’s response to climate change
- Exceeding the NDC commitment:India is on track (as reports/documents show) to meet and exceed the NDC commitment to achieve 40% electric power installed capacity from non-fossil fuel-based sources by 2030.
- Reduction in emission intensity of GDP:Against the voluntary declaration for reducing the emission intensity of GDP by 20%-25% by 2020, India has reduced it by 24% between 2005-2016.
- More importantly, we achieved these targets with around 2% out of the $100 billion committed to developing nations in Copenhagen (2009),realised by 2015.
- Renewable energy expansion: India is implementing one of the most extensive renewable energy expansion programmesto achieve 175 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2022 and 450 GW by 2030.
- Investment in green measures:As part of the fiscal stimulus after the pandemic, the government announced several green measures, including:
- a $26.5-billion investment in biogas and cleaner fuels,
- $3.5 billion in incentivesfor producing efficient solar photovoltaic (PV) and advanced chemistry cell battery, and $780 million towards an afforestation programme.
- India’s contribution to global emissions is well below its equitable share of the worldwide carbon budget by any equity criterion.
Conclusion and way forward
- Any self-sacrificial declaration of carbon neutrality today in the current international scenario would be a wasted gesture reducing the burden of the developed world and transferring it to the backs of the Indian people.
- India’s twin burdenof low-carbon development and adaptation to climate impacts, is onerous and no doubt requires serious, concerted action.
- India’s approach to eventual net-zero emissions is contingent on deep first world emissions reductionsand an adequate and unambiguous global carbon budget.
- Meanwhile, India must reject any attempt to restrict its options and be led into a low-development trap, based on pseudo-scientific narratives.
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Answer the following questions in 250 words(15 marks each):
General Studies – 1
Reference: The Hindu , Insights on India
Introduction
SEWA is a national trade union registered in 1972 with a membership base of over 1.5 million (2018) poor, self-employed women workers from the informal economy across 16 states in India. SEWA was founded in 1972 by Gandhian and civil rights leader Ela Bhatt as a branch of Textile Labour Association (TLA), a labour union founded by Gandhi in 1918
It grew out of the Women’s Wing of the Textile Labour association, TLA, India’s oldest and largest union of textile workers founded in 1920 by Anasuya Sarabhai and Mahatma Gandhi. The original purpose of the Women’s Wing was to provide training in sewing, spinning, knitting, embroidery, and other welfare activities to the wives and daughters of mill workers.
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Goals and objectives
- Full Employment:Achieve work security, income security, food security and social security viz. healthcare, childcare, nutrition and shelter and
- Self Reliance: Autonomous and self-reliant at both individual and community levels in terms of economic as well as decision making abilities.
- Objectives:
- Organizing for collective strength
- Capacity building to stand firm in competitive market
- Capital formation for risk mitigation & fight poverty
- Social security to enhance well-being & productivity
Contributions of SEWA towards women empowerment
- SEWA’s successful efforts have mobilized large numbers of poor self-employed women for empowerment. From small beginnings in 1972, as a group of poor, illiterate women working as casual laborers in the wholesale textile markets, SEWA’s membershiphas grown to 535,000 in its home state of Gujarat, and to around 700,000 throughout India.
- The annual rate of membership growth hasaveraged between 25 percent and 35 percent in each of the past three five-year periods.
- Earlier, with the opening of the SEWA bank and later the union, the women who worked in the informal sector became the stakeholders and social security was also provided.
- There are 110 women’s collective enterprises in Gujarat, of which 65 continue to be active—more than six timesthe success rate of regular start-ups in India that have a 10 per cent success rate
- In rural areas,SEWA cooperatives have helped women improve the quality and design of the handicraft and woven items they produce for sale. In most cases, the women are already highly skilled at embroidery or weaving or other crafts, and the task is mainly to ensure consistency, timely delivery, and that the items produced are of a quality, size and style that can easily be sold.
- Cooperatives have also promoted new agricultural products, and techniques that add value to traditional products.
- SEWA has had a much broader impact through activities that involve it directly in marketing what members produce. A rural marketing organization, SEWA Gram Mahila Haat (Village Womens Market), was set up in 1999. Three years later, in 2002,it arranged sales of more than $3.5 million for 23,000 members organized into almost 1000 different producer groups.
- By far the largest shares in the sales total were for handicrafts and woven items (47 percent) and agricultural produce (43 percent) salt and gum accounted for around 5 percent each.
Conclusion
No account of SEWAs impact is complete without reference to the gains in self-confidence and dignity that members repeatedly mention and demonstrate in their everyday behavior. While these are extremely hard to measure, they are the very heart of SEWAs work, and their significance is enormous in bringing members to the point where they not only assert their rights, but also make effective use of the access they achieve
General Studies – 2
Reference: Indian Express , Insights on India
Introduction
A Uniform Civil Code is one that would provide for one law for the entire country, applicable to all religious communities in their personal matters such as marriage, divorce, inheritance, adoption etc. It proposes to replace the personal laws based on the scriptures and customs of each major religious community in the country with a common set of laws governing every citizen.
Article 44 of the Constitution lays down that the state shall endeavor to secure a Uniform Civil Code for the citizens throughout the territory of India.
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Background
- Recently, Gujarat Home Minister Harsh Sanghavi announced the formation of a committee to implement a uniform civil code (UCC) in the state.
- In May 2022, Uttarakhand announced a committee led by retired Supreme Court judge Justice Ranjana Desai to carry out a similar exercise. Assam and Himachal Pradesh, also ruled by the BJP, too have supported the idea of a UCC.
UCC helps in achieving the following
- Promotion of secularism:One set of laws to govern the personal matters of all citizens irrespective of religion is the cornerstone of true secularism. A secular republic needs a common law for all citizens rather than differentiated rules based on religious practices. It would help end gender discrimination on religious grounds and strengthens the secular fabric of the nation.
- Protection of Vulnerable & Women’s Rights:It will protect the vulnerable sections of society. Women have been denied via personal laws in the name of socio cultural-religious traditions. Therefore, UCC could bring all communities together to ensure Women the Right to a dignified life and control over their life as well as body.
- Gender justice:The rights of women are usually limited under religious law, be it Hindu or Muslim. Many practices governed by religious tradition are at odds with the fundamental rights guaranteed in the Indian Constitution. Courts have also often said in their judgements that the government should move towards a uniform civil code including the judgement in the Shah Bano case.
- Prevents religion-based discrimination:Personal laws differentiate between people on grounds of religion. A unified law having the same provisions regarding marital affairs would provide justice to those who feel discriminated against.
- Ending unjust customs and traditions:A rational common and unified personal law will help eradicate many evil, unjust and irrational customs and traditions prevalent across the communities. For example, Law against Manual scavenging. It might have been a custom in the past but in a mature democracy like India, this custom cannot be justified.
- Indian laws do follow a uniform code in most civil matters –Indian Contract Act, Civil Procedure Code, Sale of Goods Act, Transfer of Property Act, Partnership Act, Evidence Act etc. States, however, have made hundreds of amendments and therefore in certain matters, there is diversity even under these secular civil laws.
- Justice Prathiba M Singh of Delhi HC stated that the modern Indian society was gradually becoming homogenous, the traditional barriers of religion, community and caste are slowly dissipating and thus UCC ought not to remain a mere hope.
- Eases Administration:UCC would make it easy to administer the huge population base of India.
Challenges facing the passage of UCC:
- Violation of fundamental rights: Religious bodies oppose uniform civil code on the ground that it would be interference into religious affairs which would violate fundamental rights guaranteed under article 25 of the constitution.
- Reduces diversity: It would reduce the diversity of the nation by painting everyone in one colour. Tribals have their unique customs and traditions as per their culture. Replacing their customs and traditions with a unified law may lead to the identity crisis of the tribals. This may further lead to social tension.
- Communal politics: It would be a tyranny to the minority and when implemented could bring a lot of unrest in the country.
- Threat to Multiculturalism: Indian society has a unique identity in the form of its being multiculturalism, and unified law might do away with these unique characteristics of this nation.
- Affects Majority as well: For example, even Hindus themselves have separate Hindu laws for themselves. Thus, it is not merely a question for minorities but it also affects the majority.
- Lacking Political Will: Bigger issues have been resolved by the BJP Government like Ayodhya Dispute, repeal of Article 370, so with adequate will from the political community, UCC could also be implemented
- Sensitive and tough task: Such a code, in its true spirit, must be brought about by borrowing freely from different personal laws, making gradual changes in each, issuing judicial pronouncements assuring gender equality, and adopting expansive interpretations on marriage, maintenance, adoption, and succession by acknowledging the benefits that one community secures from the others. This task will be very demanding time and human resource wise. The government should be sensitive and unbiased at each step while dealing with the majority and minority communities. Otherwise, it might turn out to be more disastrous in a form of communal violence.
- Time is not yet suitable for this reform: Considering a major opposition from Muslim community in India over this issue overlapping with controversies over beef, saffronization of school and college curriculum, love jihad, and the silence emanating from the top leadership on these controversies, there needs to be given sufficient time for instilling confidence in the community. Otherwise, these efforts towards common will be counterproductive leaving minority class particularly Muslims more insecure and vulnerable to get attracted towards fundamentalist and extremist ideologies.
Way forward
- Major sensitization efforts are needed to reform current personal law reforms which should first be initiated by the communities themselves.
- Current institutions need to be modernized, democratized and strengthened for this change. Sincere efforts towards women empowerment have to be taken for all women of all religions.
- UCC can only emerge through an evolutionary process, which preserves India’s rich legal heritage, of which all the personal laws are equal constituents.
- The social transformation from diverse civil code to uniformity shall be gradual and cannot happen in a day. Therefore, the government must adopt a piecemeal approach and no knee-jerk decisions.
- There is need for deliberations and discussions among members of various communities to reach a common ground.
Conclusion
The guiding principles of the Constitution itself visualize diversity and have tried to promote uniformity among peoples of different denominations. A uniform law, although highly desirable but may be counterproductive to the unity and integrity of the nation. Hence, only those elements of customs and traditions should be brought into a unified law that causes injustice to individuals. In a democracy and rule of law, a gradual progressive change and order must be brought about.
Reference: Indian Express , Insights on India
Introduction
The draft Indian Telecommunication Bill reimagines and reshapes the digital architecture while creating possibilities for the start-up ecosystem. The proposed draft Bill brings together telecom operators (providers of physical infrastructure), Over-the-Top service providers (OTTs) and internet-based communication systems under one roof.
The draft Bill consolidates three separate acts which currently govern the telecommunication sector — the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885, Indian Wireless Telegraphy Act, 1933, and The Telegraph Wires (Unlawful Protection) Act, 1950.
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Draft Telecommunications 2022 bill: Features
- OTT regulation: The government has included internet-based and OTT communication servicessuch as WhatsApp calls, Facetime, Google Meet etc under telecom services.
- It was the long-standing demand by telecom operators for creating a level playing field. At present, whiletelecom companies need a licence to offer services, OTT platforms do not.
- Further, bringing OTTs under the ambit of telecom services means that OTT and internet-based communications would require a licence to offer services.
- Consumer protection: To curtail the ever-increasing incidence of spam calls and frauds, the draft Bill proposes that the identity of the person communicating using any form of telecommunication services shall be available to the user receiving such communication.
- Role of TRAI:The current draft considerably dilutes TRAI’s position in a number of ways reducing it from a regulatory to a recommendatory body.
- First, the government would no longer be required to seek recommendations from the TRAI before issuing licences.
- Second, it also removes the power of the TRAI to requisition from the government information or documents that are necessary to make such recommendations.
- Moreover, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) will no longer be required to refer back to TRAI the recommendations for reconsideration — those recommendations that it does not agree with, as it was required to do previously.
- Internet shutdown: For the first time in the Indian legal framework, a specific provision enabling the government to order suspension of internet power has been introduced through the draft Bill.
Challenges being addressed
- Declining Average Revenue Per User (ARPU):ARPU decline now is sharp and steady, which, combined with falling profits and in some cases serious losses, is prompting the Indian telecom industry to look at consolidation as the only way to boost revenues.
- In 2019, the Supreme Court allowed the government’s plea to recover adjusted gross revenue of about Rs 92,000 crore from telcos, that further adds to their stress.
- Limited Spectrum Availability: Available spectrum is less than 40% as compared to European nations and 50% as compared to China.
- Low Broadband Penetration:Low broadband penetration in the country is a matter of concern. As per white paper presented on broadband at the last International Telecommunication Union (ITU), broadband penetration in India is only 7%.
- Over the Top (OTT) applications such as WhatsApp, OLA and so on do not need permission or a pact with a telecommunications company. This hampers the revenue of telecommunication service providers.
- Huge fluctuations in the duties on Telecom Equipmentwhich contribute to connecting the whole system from the central server to the consumer.
Limitations and concerns with the draft bill
- Regulatory overlaps:The broad of the definition of ‘telecommunication services’ include OTT communication platforms such as WhatsApp, Telegram, Signal among others, may potentially lead to regulatory or jurisdictional overlaps.
- Unchecked use of State powers:The Bill gives broad powers to the central government in prescribed situations without any accompanying checks and balances. The Bill empowers the central and state government to intercept messages in the interest of public safety and emergency without the providing clearly defined guardrails for it.
- Undefined National security: The term, national security is left undefined and does not match constitutional precedent or text which instead uses the phrase,in the interests of the security of state
- Users Less choice in the privacy and security of their digital footprint:
- Power to prescribe standards under Clause 23, which may result in regulations as recently issued by the Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) that have resulted in the closure of servers or services by leading, global VPN providers such as Proton and TunnelBear.
- All of this practically means that users will have less choice in the privacy and security of their digital footprint, as these powers will lead to requirements to locally register and host data, and comply with requirements to identify users (KYC requirements).
Conclusion
There should be some reasonable basis or some tangible evidence to initiate or seek approval for interception by State authorities. Any digression from the ethical and legal parameters set by law would be tantamount to a deliberate invasion of citizens.
Value addition
India’s telecom industry
- The Telecom industry in India is the second largest in the worldwith a subscriber base of 1.17 billion as of 2022. India has an overall teledensity of 85.11%.
- The industry’s exponential growth over the last few years is primarily driven by affordable tariffs, wider availability, the roll-out of Mobile Number Portability (MNP), expanding 3G and 4G coverage,and evolving consumption patterns of subscribers.
- The Telecom sector is the3rd largest sector in terms of FDI inflows, contributing 6.44% of total FDI inflow, and contributes directly to 2.2 million employment and indirectly to 1.8 million jobs.
- Between 2014 and 2021, the FDI inflows in the Telecom sector rose by 150%to USD 20.72 billion from USD 8.32 billion during 2002-2014.
- 100% Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) has now been allowed in the Telecom sector under the automatic route.
- India is on its way to becoming the second-largest smartphone market globally by 2025 with around 1 billion installed devicesand is expected to have 920 million unique mobile subscribers by 2025 which will include 88 million 5G connections.
General Studies – 3
Reference: Indian Express
Introduction
Genetic engineering aims to transcend the genus barrier by introducing an alien gene in the seeds to get the desired effects. The alien gene could be from a plant, an animal or even a soil bacterium. In most cases, the aim is to introduce a new trait to the plant which does not occur naturally in the species.
The recent clearance by the government for the release of GM Mustard Hybrid DMH 11 — based on the recommendations of GEAC under the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change — is a bold decision in the best interest of our farmers and the nation.
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Need for the GM Crops other than pest resistance:
- Food Security: Given the increased growth of global population and increased urbanisation, GM crops offer one of the promising solutions to meet the world’s food security needs.
- Improved Stress Tolerance: Genes that give greater tolerance of stress, such as drought, low temperatures or salt in the soil, can also be inserted into crops. This can extend their range and open up new areas for food production.
- Faster Growth: Crops can be altered to make them grow faster, so that they can be cultivated and harvested in areas with shorter growing seasons. This again can extend the range of a food crop into new areas or perhaps allow two harvests in areas where only one is currently practical.
- More Nutritious Crops: Plants and animals can be engineered to produce larger amounts of essential vitamins and minerals, such as iron, helping to solve nutrition problems in some parts of the world. They can also be altered to change the amounts of protein, carbohydrates, and saturated and unsaturated fats that they contain. This could lead to the production of foods designed specifically for a healthy diet for all consumers.
- Production of Medicines and Vaccines by Crops: It may be possible to have plants and animals produce useful medicines and even vaccines, so that prevention and treatment of human diseases in some places can be achieved cheaply and efficiently through the diet.
- Resistance to Herbicides: Crops can be modified to be resistant to specific herbicides, making it much easier to control troublesome weeds. Farmers can simply apply the weed killer to a crop field, killing the unwanted plants and leaving the food crop unaffected. For example, GM oilseed rapeseed – the source of canola oil – is resistant to one chemical that’s widely used to control weeds.
- Better Tasting Foods: Foods can be engineered to taste better, which could encourage people to eat healthier foods that are currently not popular because of their taste, such as broccoli and spinach. It may be possible to insert genes that produce more or different flavours as well.
- Economic benefits: GM crops can increase yield and thus income. Genetically modified foods have a longer shelf life. This improves how long they last and stay fresh during transportation and storage.
Positive aspect of the lifting the ban on G-Mustard and its impact on the farmers as well as scientific community in the country
- It helps to meet our current challenges — over-exploitation of natural resources (soil, water, biodiversity), declining factor productivity, urgency to achieve sustainable development goals, especially ending poverty and hunger, and addressing timely the adverse effects of climate change
- A major concern of our farmers is that yields of mustard are low and have stagnated for a long time at around 1,260 kg/ha, much lower than the global average of 2,000 kg/ha.
- Mustard is a very important oilseed crop, grown in 6.0 -7.0 million hectares, mostly in Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab and Madhya Pradesh. Thus, the government’s decision to allow the production of GM Mustard hybrids will go a long way in increasing our yields, while reducing the use of pesticides.
- Allowing the production of GM Soybean and GM Maize going forward will also be a positive step, increasing both the productivity and profitability of these crops and doubling farmers’ income — a goal envisioned by the Prime Minister.
Concerns/Challenges associated with GM Crops:
- Human Health Risks:
- Potential impact on human health including allergens and transfer of antibiotic resistance markers.
- The impact of growing GM crops poses risks to human health as their resistance to antibiotics can turn medicines ineffective and may result in the formation of new toxins and allergens.
- Toxins produced by GM crops can not only affect non-target organisms but also pose the danger of unintentionally introducing allergens and other anti-nutrition factors in foods.
- Bio safety concerns:
- They can reduce species diversity.
- For example, Insect-resistant plants might harm insects that are not their intended target and thus result in destruction of that particular species.
- Cross-pollination in GM crops paves the way for herbicide-resistant super weeds that can further threaten the sustenance of other crops and pests because of its uncontrolled growth
- GM technology could also allow the transfer of genes from one crop to another, creating “super weeds”, which will be immune to common control methods.
- Viral genes added to crops to confer resistance might be transferred to other viral pathogens, which can lead to new and more virulent virus strains.
- Implications on Farmers and Consumers:
- Critics claim that patent laws give developersof the GM crops a dangerous degree of control over the food supply. The concern is over domination of world food production by a few companies
- National Institute of Agricultural Economics and Policy Research’santicipation that Bt brinjal’s high yield and increased shelf life will benefit consumers and farmers owing to cut in retail price of brinjals ignores the scenario that companies might charge premium prices for Bt brinjal seeds, in which case farmers may not benefit at all.
- Economic Concerns:
- Introduction of a GM crop to market is a lengthy and costly process. It has not resulted in high yields as promised.
- For instance, the highest yields in mustard are from the five countries which do not grow GM mustard — U.K., France, Poland, Germany and Czech Republic — and not from the GM-growing U.S. or Canada.
- Inefficient Regulatory system:
- Seeing the lapses in the regulatory system and irregularities in the assessment of Bt brinjal (in terms of labelling and unapproved and illegal sowing of GM crops) Parliamentary Standing Committee on Agriculture and the Committee on Science & Technology, Environment and Forests recommended:
- A thorough probe by a team of eminent independent scientists and environmentalists for commercialization of GM crops.
- Endorsed labelling GM foods to protect a consumer’s right to know.
- Ethical Concerns:
- Violation of natural organisms’ intrinsic values by mixing among species.
- There have also been objections to consuming animal genes in plants
Way Forward:
- The government must take decisions on GM technologies on the basis of scientific evidence.
- Need to start cultivating an environment of openness and transparency to allay genuine fears
- The government should adopt a participatory approach to bring together all stakeholders to develop regulatory protocols that restore trust in the process.
- There is a significant uncertainty over their safety, so precautionary principle is that country shall wait till a broader scientific consensus is achieved.
- Need for better policy, pricing and to rationalize the input costs
- GEAC needs to be a transparent body. it should put it in the public domain that on what grounds it has approved GM mustard
- There has to be strong liability laws if there are any environmental hazards or if something goes wrong in future
- Agriculture is a state subject; therefore, it is important for the Centre to take into consideration the views of State Governments as well.
- The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has rightly pointed out in 2004, “Science cannot declare any technology completely risk free. Genetically engineered crops can reduce some environmental risks associated with conventional agriculture, but will also introduce new challenges that must be addressed”.
Conclusion:
Clearly, there can be no credible argument against scientific experiments in agriculture that advance the goal of developing plant varieties that can withstand drought, resist pests and raise yields to feed the growing world population. But this should be done through a transparent regulatory process that is free of ethical conflicts. All this underscores the need for a cautious approach — one that fosters scientific inquiry, allows for scrutiny and is underpinned by regulation. Enacting a comprehensive law that covers all aspects of GM crops should be a priority.
Reference: The Hindu , Insights on India
Introduction
Crime and terrorism are critical issues for security officials and investigators all around the world. Earlier, the problems of organized crime and terrorism were considered as separate phenomena but after horrified incident of September 11th attacks, researchers have started linking these two as terrorized occurrences.
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Link between Organized crime and terrorism:
Though mostly both the phenomena are studied differently. Both have different ends. While the organize crime engages in various criminal activities for financial gains, terrorism engages in its violent activities for political gains. But recently, Scholars have stated that there is a strong link between the two. Terrorists are increasingly supporting them through terrorist activities.
- Terrorism and Drug Trafficking: According to UNDOC (2017), annual trade of illicit drugs is estimated in the range of $426-652 billion, and the proceeds of which generate 1/5thto 1/3rdof the global revenues of organized crime. Approximately 86% of the world’s Opium cultivation takes place in Afghanistan in the regions controlled by the Taliban. The Taliban’s association with the opium economy also indicates a correlation between the trade-in illicit drugs as a criminal activity and terrorism.
- Terrorism and Arms Trafficking: Terrorists are increasingly using automatic weapons to perpetrate attacks and there is a growing concern about arms trafficking groups supporting terrorism with the provision of advanced arms. The use of weapons by terrorists is evident in several recent attacks and attempted attacks across Europe. For example, in the ISIL inspired terrorist attacks carried out in Paris in November 2015, extremists opened fire with Kalashnikov and other types of assault rifles, which ended up in the criminal market as a result of cross-border trafficking
- Terrorism and smuggling: Terrorist groups seem to have increasingly taken up trafficking in illicit antiquities and cultural property to fund their operations, support recruits, and acquire weapons. Antiquities are not only a source of revenue generation for terrorists, but they also have symbolic value. By destroying and/or removing symbolic representations of culture, terrorist groups effectively undermine the State/nationalism and attack the morale of local populations/peoples through a type of “cultural cleansing”
- Terrorism and human trafficking: Trafficking in persons is a lucrative business for armed groups around the world (UNCTED, 2019). Recent actions by the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS), or Islamic State in the Levant (ISIL), also known as Daesh, and Boko Haram (Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati Wal-Jahad) in Nigeria have drawn attention to a growing nexus between terrorism and trafficking in persons
- Terrorism and kidnapping for ransom: From 1970-2010, kidnapping incidents represented a small portion of all terrorist attacks (6.9%), however, through 2016 the percentage of kidnappings has jumped significantly to 15.8% of all terrorist attacks (Global Terrorism Database, 2018)
Reasons for the increasing nexus between Terrorism and organized crime
- Both are realizing the complementary nature of each other in achieving their goals.
- They have a common enemy in national governments and the rule of law.
- Historically, the end of the cold war ended financial support to many terrorist organizations that led terrorist organizations to link themselves with organized crime for financial support.
- Increased sophistication in money laundering as corporates engage in tax evasion that helps in the continuous money supply.
- Issues of mis-governance and lack of governance.
- The inequalities existing in society are manipulated by these organizations to grow their base.
- Globalization has its side effects through the communication revolution and its anonymity. The cyberspace and dark web are increasingly being used to coordinate.
- The outstanding geopolitical issues that are sought to be solved by governments through immoral activities like terrorism and crime penetration.
Difficulties in tackling the nexus
- The legal complexities create duplicity of efforts and jurisdictional issues. These delays investigation and often gives unnecessary cooling-off period for groups to regather themselves.
- The higher echelons of organized crime are insulated from its foot soldiers. Hence it is difficult to dent the structure significantly. There is difficulty in obtaining proof.
- The main link between these two is network of financial transactions. The rising sophistication in money laundering and corporate greed resulting in tax evasion, unfortunately, helps the network of money laundering.
- There is a lack of coordination between police departments of different states that makes organized crime and terrorist nexus easy to operate.
- The criminal-political-bureaucratic nexus helps crime syndicates which indirectly helps in the spread of terrorism.
- The state support for terrorism and unorganized crime makes it difficult for any international cooperation and consensus-building.
- Dual criminality and the spread of nexus across the world make it difficult to track due to lack of international and bilateral coordination and cooperation.
Way forward
- The nexus that is thriving due to complementary nature must be broken down so that it will be easier to tackle them separately.
- There is a need for fine-tuning of the criminal investigation so as to find and establish links of a crime syndicate with terrorism.
- Improving coordination and establishing specialized units to investigate. The specialized unit must have competent human resources, finances, technical expertise and appropriate legal backing to work in an unhindered manner.
- The necessity of legal backing stems from the existence of numerous stakeholders such as state police, border security, financial sector, special units such as narcotics departments.
- The interstate coordination is necessary and an organization in the lines of the National Counter Terrorism Center to tackle the nexus. It will help in national and international coordination.
- India must continue to engage the international space for better policy, concerted actions against state-sponsored terrorism, and terrorist financing.
- The international cooperation can stem from UNSC resolutions and other institutional mechanisms such as FATF.
Conclusion
In many parts of the world, terrorists are exploiting local grievances and poor governance to regroup and assert their control. “Collective action and international cooperation are needed now more than ever.”
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