[Mission 2023] INSIGHTS DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS + PIB SUMMARY 19 December 2022

GS Paper 3

Syllabus: Indian Economy/ Governance

Source: Live Mint

 Direction: It is a beautiful report with recommendations across various sectors. One can go through the summary of the report. The major point of the summary has been highlighted. However, be selective and take only a few recommendations that you may write in the Mains exam.

 Context: FICCI, along with McKinsey, launched ‘India’s Century – Achieving sustainable, inclusive growth’ initiative that outlines a roadmap to achieve ₹10 lakh per capita income by 2047

Aim: India’s Century initiative sets out an actionable roadmap for all stakeholders to unleash India’s potential in becoming an economic superpower much before India turns 100

• India is at an inflexion point in its journey of becoming the third largest and upper-middle income

Key Highlights of the report:

The Roadmap identifies 11 priority sectors for growth over the next 25 years, with a set of over 50 actions for companies and industry bodies (See Infographics)

Recommendations:

• Long-term:
  • Increasing India’s innovation quotient: India has made progress on innovation and has jumped from 81 to 41 in World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Global Innovation Index rankings
    • Sector-focused innovation clusters could enhance the environment for innovation. E.g. Smart mobility and water-adequacy clusters.
  • Scaling up India’s SMEs to grow 1,000 mid-sized and 10,000 small firms into global challengers: Currently, India has a “missing middle”: a dearth of mid-sized firms that typically grow into formidable competitors for large companies.
    • Easier access to low-cost capital
    • Simpler one-stop processes to start and run their businesses
    • Support for resources they cannot always afford to hire, such as in-house lawyers and company secretaries
  • Empowering India’s next generation of talent for a meaningful livelihood:
    • By bolstering foundational skills to match the requirements of high-potential sectors, such as banking, healthcare, IT services
    • Large-scale skilling and reskilling of the existing workforce:
    • Creating the future workforce would require modernised teaching methods, with a greater focus on practical apprenticeship
  • Shaping India into the preferred destination for global capital: Companies could attract international investors with a broader set of products and services, such as high-rated ESG securities

• Short-term measures:
  • Strengthen the digital landscape across high-potential sectors with pilot initiatives
    • Healthcare: establishing the “hospital of the future” with digital patient flow management systems and centralised medical resource management platforms
    • Agriculture: piloting Agri Stack projects
  • Catalyse innovation across India and accelerate entrepreneurship and breakthrough ideas by rolling out three innovation clusters across clean energy, smart mobility and water adequacy
  • Accelerate the adoption of existing digital capabilities by encouraging a 90 per cent adoption rate of the GeM portal
  • Roll out structured training programmes and ventures in collaboration with industry bodies and education technology (ed-tech) companies to provide an additional three to four million people with skills
  • Drive water sustainability with industry campaigns for net-zero consumption commitments and adoption of water-efficient practices such as ZLD technology, industrial water efficiency, water sustainability audits and certification programmes

Insta Links

Inclusive growth: Basics

Insta Mains:

Q. What do you understand by inclusive growth? What are the major impediments to inclusive growth and how can they be overcome in the current scenario? Explain. (15M)

GS Paper 3

Syllabus: Indian Economy and issues relating to Planning, Mobilization of Resources

Source: TH

 Direction: The article discusses provisions of the GST law that criminalises certain activities and the recommendations of the GST council to decriminalise such activities and their impact.

 Context: The Finance Minister chaired the 48th GST Council, which recommended decriminalising certain offences under Section 132 of the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Act, 2017

Background: The GST law is still in its early stages of development. Hence, it is vital to recognise that imposing penal provisions in an uncertain ecosystem impacts an enterprise’s ability to conduct business.

About Goods and Services Tax (GST):

• It is an indirect tax (a tax which is not directly paid by customers to the government) that came into effect on July 1, 2017, as a result of the 101st Amendment to the Indian Constitution.
• It has replaced several indirect taxes in the country, including service taxes, VAT, excise, etc.
• It is imposed on both manufacturers and sellers of goods, as well as suppliers of services.
• For tax collection, it is divided into five tax slabs – 0%, 5%, 12%, 18%, and 28%.

About GST Council:

• It is an apex committee to modify, reconcile or makes recommendations to the Union and the States on GST, like the goods and services that may be subjected to or exempted from GST, model GST laws, etc.
• Article 279A of the Indian Constitution empowers the President of India to constitute a joint forum of the Centre and States called the GST Council.

Offences under GST: 

Need:

• Despite technology leverage, instances of tax evasion have surged due to culprits remaining undetected.
• The GST law imposes severe penalties and guidelines in order to combat corruption and maintain an efficient tax collection system.

Penalties under GST law:

• The department authorities have the jurisdiction to impose monetary fines and the seizure of goods as penalties for violating statutory provisions.
• Criminal penalties include imprisonment and fines but can be awarded only in a criminal court following a prosecution.
  • The amount of tax evaded, the amount of Input Tax Credit (ITC) improperly claimed or used, etc, determines the length of the prison sentence.
• The Act also divides offences into – cognisable and bailable and non-cognisable and bailable. 

Measures recommended at the 48th GST Council meeting:

• Raising the minimum tax amount for commencing a GST prosecution from one to two crore.
• Reducing the compounding amount from 50 to 150% of the tax amount to 25 to 100% of the tax amount.
• Decriminalising certain offences under Section 132 of the CGST Act, 2017, such as preventing an officer from doing his duties, deliberate tampering with material evidence and failure to supply information.
• Other suggestions include refunding unregistered individuals and facilitating e-commerce for small businesses. 

What impact will the aforementioned measures have?

• Prosecution, arrest, and imprisonment in GST cases would occur only in the most exceptional cases.
• Ease of doing business will be made more effective.

Insta Links:

GST

Mains Links:

Q. Explain the rationale behind the Goods and Services Tax (Compensation to States) Act of 2017. How has COVID-19 impacted the GST compensation fund and created new federal tensions? (UPSC 2020)

Prelims Links: (UPSC 2017)

GS Paper 3

Syllabus: Disaster and Disaster Management

Source: DTE

Direction: The article highlights key lessons/issues learnt/faced by India during the COVID-19 pandemic and the way ahead.

 Context: According to a parliamentary committee report, a national policy to combat viral and other such diseases which have a pandemic potential is the need of the hour.

Highlights of the report:

• Title – Covid-19 Pandemic: Global Response, India’s Contributions and the Way Forward.
• It emphasised the necessity for mechanisms other than the Union Health Ministry’s Crisis Management Plan and the National Disaster Management Authority of India’s Guidelines on Management of Biological Disasters.

Key lessons learnt from the COVID-19 pandemic:

• The importance of regular surveillance measures, keeping in mind how quickly the SARS-CoV-2 virus mutates.
  • So far, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has conducted four sero surveys at the national level.
  • Sero surveys should continue on a regular basis, state-wise, with an increased sample size.
• The importance of keeping information/results of such surveys easily accessible is to spread awareness and modify behaviours to prevent community transmission of the virus.

Issues raised in the report:

• Poor implementation of the One Nation One Ration Card scheme among migrant workers.
• Poor implementation of the Aatmanirbhar Skilled Employee Employer Mapping (ASEEM) and the Skilled Workers Arrival Database for Employment Support.
  • The Ministries of skill development, external affairs and civil aviation launched the two schemes to create a database of the skilled workforce returning to the country under the Vande Bharat Mission.
  • Of the 7,16,662 workers who have returned from Gulf countries due to the COVID-19 pandemic, job connect has been established with only 7495 candidates.
• Lack of financial literacy and awareness about various schemes are creating hurdles.
• Digital divide exposed: With the education system shifting online during the pandemic, access to education became a challenge.

 Way ahead:

• A national policy to combat viral and other such diseases which have pandemic potential.
• The whole of government approach: This would ensure that health issues are accorded the desired priority towards prevention, containment and management of viral and other diseases.
• Creation of a national database of migrant workers.
• Implementation of One Nation One Ration Card and other such schemes as it is the lifesaver for migrant workers even in the post-Covid times.
• Review more comprehensive interventions in the outreach programme of ASEEM.
• Mechanisms should be chalked out to bridge the digital divide and disseminate online learning through private channels besides the DD channel.

Insta Links:

The COVID-19 pandemic, food and socialising

GS Paper 3

Syllabus: Science and Technology- Developments and their Applications and Effects in Everyday Life

Source: TH

 Direction: The article tries to explain quantum technology, its working, application, challenges and way ahead to make it more practical.

 Context: Several institutes and companies worldwide have invested in developing quantum computer (QC) systems.

Background:

• The QC use quantum physics to tackle problems that traditional computers cannot and given its wide-ranging applications and the scale of investments, understanding QCs are crucial.
• In 2021, the Indian government launched a National Mission on Quantum Technology to study quantum technologies with an allocation of ₹8,000 crores.
• The Indian army opened a quantum research facility in Madhya Pradesh and the Department of Science and Technology co-launched another facility in Pune.

Quantum technology: 

Background:

• Until the early 20th century, it was thought that classical physics – two objects cannot occupy the same space at the same moment.
• Upon scientific investigation, microscopic/sub-atomic particles such as atoms, electrons, and photons, the subject of quantum mechanics (physics of subatomic particles) were founded. 

About: Quantum technology works by using the principles of quantum mechanics and is based on the phenomena exhibited by microscopic particles (photons, electrons, atoms, etc) which are quite distinct from the way normal macroscopic objects behave. 

The principles behind quantum technology:

Working:

• A bit is the fundamental computational unit of a conventional computer, whose value is 1 if a corresponding transistor is on and 0 if the transistor is off. This means a bit can have one of two values at a time, either 0 or 1.
• The qubit is the fundamental unit of a QC and instead of being either 1 or 0, the information is encoded in the third kind of state (superimposition of 0 & 1).
• Thus, a qubit-based computer can access more computational pathways and offer solutions to more complex problems.

Applications:

• Quantum supremacy: a situation where quantum computers can do things that classical computers cannot.
• Quantum computers, which provide more powerful computing, help in a wide range of applications like –
  • More reliable navigation, timing systems and secure communications.
  • Quantum sensing (using quantum phenomenon to perform a measurement of a physical quantity).
  • Disaster management through better prediction, etc.
  • To understand biological phenomena such as the spread of pandemics like Covid-19, etc.

Challenges:

• A practical QC needs at least 1,000 qubits and the current biggest quantum processor has 433 qubits.
• Qubits exist in superposition in specific conditions, including very low temperatures (~0.01 K), with radiation ­shielding and protection against physical shock.
• Material or electromagnetic defects in the circuitry between qubits could also ‘corrupt’ their states.
• Researchers are yet to build QCs that completely eliminate these disturbances in systems.

Way ahead: To entangle each qubit with a group of physical qubits (a system that mimics a qubit) that correct errors.

Insta Links:

Quantum Computing

Mains Links:

Q. What is quantum computing? Explain its applications and steps taken by India to promote quantum technologies in the country. (250 words)

GS Paper 3

Source: DTE

Context: Scientists are experimenting with feed supplements that can reduce a potent greenhouse gas belched out by stock animals like cattle, goats and sheep.

Ruminants release methane, the second most abundant greenhouse gas after carbon dioxide (CO2), which is seen as the biggest concern as well as the best opportunity for tackling global warming.

Although the warming effect of methane is 30 times greater than CO2, it is shorter-lived and lasts in the atmosphere for about 12 years.

In 2021, over 100 countries signed the Global Methane Pledge, where signatories agreed to take voluntary steps to reduce global methane emissions by 30 per cent from 2020 levels by the end of the decade.

 The science behind high methane release in ruminants:

• Unlike other animals, ruminants have specialized digestive systems comprised of stomachs that have four compartments instead of one.
• Plant material is initially taken to the rumen, the largest compartment in the stomach that is inhabited by microorganisms such as fungi, bacteria, protozoa and archaea.
• These microorganisms break down the otherwise indigestible cellulose-rich plants to release protein and energy for their host animal in exchange for nutrition and shelter.
• But during this process, which scientists call enteric fermentation, one particular microbe, the archaea, combines CO2 and hydrogen made by the cellulose-digesting microbes to create methane. This means the archaeal population and a diet rich in roughage dictate the amount of methane released by a ruminant.

Feed Supplement:

• The feed supplement prepared by scientists targets the archaeal population while boosting the growth of bacteria that are good at digesting feed.
• The supplement is a concoction of ingredients such as Indian cherry and Indian elm leaves, garlic oil, mustard oil, cottonseed oil, sodium nitrate and magnesium sulphate.
• While tree leaves possess compounds like saponins and tannins that are known to reduce archaeal population and cut off hydrogen supply to them, sodium nitrate and magnesium sulphate stimulate the growth of beneficial bacteria.

Examples from around the world:

• In 2021, the EU approved a feed supplement, Bovaer, developed by the Dutch bioscience company Royal DSM, saying it consistently reduces methane emissions from dairy cows by 30-80 per cent.
• Bovaer is a fine granular powder containing 3-nitrooxypropanol, which inhibits an essential enzyme responsible for methane production.
• Some experts are placing their bets on seaweed, particularly Asparagopsis taxiformis, a red alga growing in tropical and subtropical waters.

Global Methane Initiative: (Not to be confused with Global Methane Pledge, of which India is not a part)

• The Global Methane Initiative (GMI) is an international public-private partnership focused on reducing barriers to the recovery and use of methane as a valuable energy source.
• In 2004, 14 countries launched the original initiative. As of 2015, 41 countries, including India and the European Commission,are part of the initiative.

Insta Links:
(Why did methane emissions spike in 2020?)

Insta Prelims Links:

GS1/GS4

Source: Indian Express

 Context: Three students, who were preparing for entrance tests in Kota Rajasthan, died allegedly by suicide in two separate incidents.

More students died by suicide than farmers, while farmers’ suicides are widely recognised as a crisis in India, students’ suicides are increasingly swept under the rug.

Data on Student Suicides:

• India’s adolescent and youth population – people below the age of 25 – account for 53.7% of the population. Yet, most of these youths are not employable as they lack the requisite skills.
• According to the National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB), in 2020, a student took their own life every 42 minutes; that is, every day, more than 34 students died by suicide.

Reasons for rising Students Suicide:

• Social Stigma: not enough discussion about depression and suicides
• Academic Pressure 
• Relationship breakdown.
• Lack of adequate support: the ‘Log Kya Kahenge’ attitude in Indian society is a permanent feature in the lives of competitive exam aspirants.
• High expectations from Students.
• Mental Issues: Anxiety disorder, depression, personality disorder.

Steps that can be taken:

• Mentorship programmes: There is no concept of mentors in Kota and every single student in the city is in a way a competitor despite being friends with each other.
• Social Awareness.
• Academic Support Groups by College administration.
• Helplines by NGO and Civil Society Groups.
• Social media groups: Groups can be formed where students can discuss the issues they face.

Ethics behind Suicides:

Suicide has been examined from various perspectives, most broadly categorized as moralist, libertarian, and relativist views.

• For moralists, protecting life and preventing suicide is a moral obligation. Philosophers, such as Kant, maintain that humanity is an end in itself, meaning that the individual should be considered an end, rather than a means to an end. Thus, a person contemplating suicide is seen as using the self as a means to an end (that is, with an expected consequence), rather than as an end itself, which is unacceptable to Kantians. Plato emphasized peoples’ obligations to society, with suicide being inconsistent with the greater good. The moral perspective is evident in countries such as Singapore and India, where attempted suicide is a punishable offence.
• From the libertarian perspective, suicide can be a carefully contemplated decision, often rationalized as a reasonable response to avoid pain or suffering. Libertarians value freedom of choice and the decision to die by suicide is a right. This attitude is reflected in countries where suicidal behaviour has been decriminalized or euthanasia has been legalized. Further to this philosophy, the right to suicide includes the right of non-interference from others, although this is not necessarily enforced in legal statutes.
• From the relativist perspective, the obligation to protect life varies, and the acceptability of suicide depends on a cost-benefit analysis of variables, including situational, cultural, and contemporary The acceptability of suicide will depend on the needs of the individual, the family, and society at that moment, meaning that the cost-benefit analysis is influenced by a desire to maximize the social utility of suicide or not suicide.

Insta Links:

Preventing Student Suicides

Mains Link:

Q. Discuss critically the causes behind rising suicides among the youth in India.