UPSC CURRENT AFFAIRS – 31 May 2024

InstaLinks :  Insta Links help you think beyond the  current affairs issue and help you think multidimensionally to develop depth in your understanding of these issues. These linkages provided in this ‘hint’ format help you frame possible questions in your mind that might arise(or an examiner might imagine) from each current event. InstaLinks also connect every issue to their static or theoretical background.

Table of Contents:

GS Paper 2:

  1. Judicial Pendency in India

 

Facts for Prelims (FFP)

  1. Vivekananda Rock Memorial
  2. Alaska’s rivers are turning orange
  3. Colombo Process
  4. Initiatives Launched by RBI
  5. Kendu Leaves
  6. Daksha project
  7. LignoSat
  8. RudraM-II air-to-surface missile

 

Mapping

  1. Nameri Tiger Reserve

 


Judicial Pendency in India

GS Paper 2

 Syllabus: Indian Judiciary

 Source: IE

Context:  Blaming court vacations for pending cases overlooks deeper issues plaguing India’s judiciary, including unfilled vacancies and lack of infrastructure. The problem extends beyond judges’ schedules and requires comprehensive solutions.

 Status:

 As of September 2023, the Supreme Court of India has 80,344 pending cases, with 78% being civil matters and 22% criminal. In 2023, the court disposed of 36,164 out of 37,777 cases filed. Over 4,000 pending cases are more than a decade old.

Indian Judiciary
Total pending case

 

Causes for huge pendency of cases:

Causes for huge pendency of cases Details
Shifting role of SC Shifting the role of the Supreme Court from adjudicating cases of constitutional significance into a regular court of appeals or cases of violation of fundamental rights.
Shortage of judges Around 25% of posts are lying empty in the subordinate courts, which leads to a poor Judges to Population Ratio. Earlier, the Law Commission had recommended 50 judges per million population.
Low budgetary allocation leads to poor infrastructure The infrastructure status of lower courts is dismal due to which they fail to deliver quality judgements.
The burden of government cases Centre and the States were responsible for over 46% of the pending cases in Indian courts.
Special leave petition Frivolous PILs and government policies which are challenged by the people take up most of the judiciary’s time.
Lack of court management systems Only a few courts have court managers who help improve court operations and optimize case movement and judicial time.

 

Consequences of pendency:

  1. Denial of ‘timely justice’ amounts to a denial of ‘justice’ itself: Timely disposal of cases is essential to maintain the rule of law and provide access to justice.
  2. A weak judiciary has a negative effect on social development, which leads to:
    1. lower per capita income;
    2. higher poverty rates;
    3. poorer public infrastructure; and
    4. higher crime rates.
  3. Affects human rights: Overcrowding of the prisons results in “violation of human rights”.

 

Way forward: 

  1. Split the Supreme Court into Two Divisions: The 10th Law Commission proposed to divide the Supreme Court into a Constitutional Division and a Legal Division, focusing on specific areas of law to streamline cases.
  2. Establish a National Court of Appeal for SLPs: SC had previously suggested the creation of a specialized court to handle special leave petitions, allowing the Supreme Court to focus on constitutional and public law issues.
  3. Establish Regional Benches of Supreme Court: Recommendation (229th Law Commission Report, 2009) to set up regional benches in Delhi, Chennai/Hyderabad, Kolkata, and Mumbai to hear non-constitutional cases and reduce the backlog.
  4. Increase the number of Work Days: Proposals to extend the working days of the Supreme Court and reduce vacation periods to address the backlog of cases.
    • The 2009 Law Commission, in its 230th report,suggested that court vacations be cut down by 10-15 days at all levels of the judiciary to help cut the backlog of cases.
  5. Establish a Final Court of Appeal and a Permanent Constitution Bench: Suggestions to separate the Supreme Court’s functions into a Final Court of Appeal and a dedicated Constitution Bench for better efficiency and consistency.
  6. Establish a Dedicated Authority for Infrastructure: Proposal (by  Former CJI NV Ramanna) to create a National Judicial Infrastructure Authority of India (NJIAI) to improve judicial infrastructure across the country.
  7. Alternate dispute resolution (ADR):
    1. Lok Adalat should be organized regularly for settling civil and family matters.
    2. Gram Nyayalayas will help in decreasing the workload of the judicial institution.
    3. Village Legal Care & Support Centre can also be established by the High Courts to work at the grassroots level.

  

Conclusion 

The fundamental requirement of a good judicial administration is accessibility, affordability and speedy justice, which will not be realized until the justice delivery system is made within the reach of the individual in a time-bound manner and within a reasonable cost.

  

Insta Links 

  

Mains Links: 

Critically examine the Supreme Court’s judgement on the ‘National Judicial Appointments Commission Act, 2014’ with reference to the appointment of judges of higher judiciary in India. (USPC 2017)

 

 

Prelims Links:

With reference to the Indian judiciary, consider the following statements: (USPC 2021)

  1. Any retired judge of the Supreme Court of India can be called back to sit and act as a Supreme Court judge by the Chief Justice of India with the prior permission of the President of India.
  2. A High Court in India has the power to review its own judgement as the Supreme Court does.

 

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only
(b) 2 only
(c) Both 1 and 2
(d) Neither I nor 2

Ans: (c)

 


 Vivekananda Rock Memorial

Facts for Prelims (FFP)

Source: TH

Context: PM will meditate at Tamil Nadu’s Vivekananda Rock Memorial to mark the end of the Lok Sabha campaign.

 

About Vivekananda Rock Memorial:

  1. Located on a small island off Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu, 500 meters from Vavathurai.
  2. Surrounded by the Laccadive Sea where the Bay of Bengal, Indian Ocean, and Arabian Sea meet.
  3. Built in 1970 to honour Swami Vivekananda, who attained enlightenment on the rock.
  4. Includes the ‘Shripada Mandapam’ and ‘Vivekananda Mandapam’.
  5. Features a life-sized bronze statue of Swami Vivekananda.
  6. Funded by both State and Central Governments.

 

Who was Swami Vivekananda?

Swami Vivekananda (1863–1902), born Narendranath Datta, was a Hindu monk and a celebrated spiritual leader. A disciple of Sri Ramakrishna, he was known for his teachings on Vedanta, the four yogas, and the harmony of religions. He emphasized combining Indian spirituality with Western progress and believed in self-purification through helping others. He represented Hinduism at the 1893 World’s Parliament of Religions in Chicago and founded the Ramakrishna Order in 1897.

 


 

Alaska’s rivers are turning orange

Facts for Prelims (FFP)

Source: BBC

Context: Alaska’s rivers are turning orange due to toxic metals released from thawing permafrost, a study from the University of California, Davis reveals.

As the earth warms, permafrost melts, exposing minerals like iron, zinc, copper, nickel, and lead, which taint the water. This phenomenon, visible even from space, has been observed since 2018 and poses concerns for aquatic life and drinking water.

 

About Alaska:

It is a state of the USA, located in the extreme northwest of North America, bounded by the Beaufort Sea, Arctic Ocean, Gulf of Alaska, Pacific Ocean, Bering Sea, and Chukchi Sea. It shares a land boundary with Canada and a maritime boundary with Russia.

 


Colombo Process

Facts for Prelims (FFP)

Source: IE

Context: India has assumed the chair of the Colombo Process for 2024-26, the first time since the forum’s inception in 2003.

 

About Colombo Process

The Colombo Process is a Regional Consultative Process focused on managing overseas employment and contractual labour. It comprises 12 Asian member states, including Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, with India as a founding member. Priority areas include skills and qualification recognition and fostering ethical recruitment practices. The UN’s International Organization for Migration provides technical and administrative support.

 

About the IOM: Established in 1951 as part of the UN System, headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland. It comprises 175 member states and aims to address displacement issues and facilitate pathways for regular migration. It leads initiatives like the Global Compact For Migration.

 


Initiatives Launched by RBI

Facts for Prelims (FFP)

Source: IE

Context: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) launched three major initiatives.

 

  1. G-Sec Mobile App: Enables retail investors to transact in government securities (G-Secs) using smartphones.
  2. PRAVAAH Portal: A centralized web-based platform for individuals or entities to apply for authorizations, licenses, or regulatory approvals from the RBI, enhancing efficiency in processing applications.
  3. Fintech Repository: A data storehouse for Indian FinTech firms to help understand the sector better and design appropriate policies. Additionally, the EmTech Repository for RBI-regulated entities will track the adoption of emerging technologies like AI and blockchain.

These initiatives aim to improve accessibility, efficiency, and data management in financial and regulatory processes.

 


Kendu Leaves

Facts for Prelims (FFP)

Source: DTE

Context: In Koraput district, Odisha, 4,000 tribal farmers are facing a critical delay as they await approval from the forest department to sell kendu leaves worth Rs 34 lakh.

 

About Kendu Leaf:

Kendu leaf, known as the green gold of Odisha, is a nationalized product like bamboo and sal seed. It is a vital non-wood forest product, also referred to as tendu leaf, used for rolling bidis (local cigarettes). Major producing states include Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand, Gujarat, and Maharashtra, with Odisha being the third-largest producer.

Kendu Leaves
About Kendu Leaf

 


Daksha project

Facts for Prelims (FFP)

Source: Daksha

 Context: The Daksha project aims to build two high-energy space telescopes to study explosive astrophysical sources like gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) and electromagnetic counterparts to gravitational wave sources.

Each telescope will have sensors covering 1 keV to > 1 MeV. With two satellites orbiting opposite sides of Earth, Daksha offers significantly better coverage than existing missions and is expected to discover thousands of GRBs and dozens of high-energy counterparts to binary neutron star mergers over a five-year mission.

 

Other Gamma Ray Detection Missions:

  1. Astrosat: India’s multi-wavelength space observatory.
  2. Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope: NASA’s wide-range gamma-ray observatory.
  3. Swift Observatory: NASA’s mission to study gamma-ray bursts.

 


LignoSat

Facts for Prelims (FFP)

Source: Th

Context: Japanese researchers from Kyoto University and Sumitomo Forestry have developed the world’s first wooden satellite, LignoSat.

This tiny cuboid craft, made from magnolia wood, measures 10 centimetres on each side and will be launched on a SpaceX rocket in September. The wooden material is expected to burn up completely upon re-entry, avoiding the creation of harmful metal particles.

 

 


RudraM-II air-to-surface missile

Facts for Prelims (FFP)

Source: PIB

 Context: Recently, Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully flight-tested the RudraM-II air-to-surface missile from a Su-30 MK-I aircraft of the Indian Air Force off the Odisha coast.

 

About RudraM-II

RudraM-II is an indigenously developed solid-propelled air-launched missile designed for air-to-surface operations by the DRDO. Following the successful 2020 test of RudraM, a new-generation anti-radiation missile (NGARM) and the first indigenous ARM of the Indian Air Force, RudraM-II is equipped with an Inertial Navigation System (INS), Global Positioning System (GPS), and a Passive Homing Head (PHH). The PHH can detect, classify, and engage targets across a wide frequency band.

 

Types of Missiles Used by Indian Military

Missile Type Name(s) Description
Ballistic Missiles Agni Series, Prithvi Long-range missiles capable of delivering nuclear and conventional warheads.
Cruise Missiles BrahMos, Nirbhay Subsonic and supersonic missiles for precision strikes, BrahMos being the fastest supersonic cruise missile.
Anti-Tank Missiles Nag, HELINA, MPATGM Designed to destroy tanks and armoured vehicles.
Surface-to-Air Missiles Akash, Barak-8 Used for air defence to intercept and destroy enemy aircraft and missiles.
Air-to-Air Missiles Astra, Python-5 Fired from aircraft to target enemy aircraft.
Anti-Ship Missiles BrahMos, Dhanush Used to target and destroy enemy ships and naval vessels.
Anti-Radiation Missiles RudraM, NGARM Designed to detect and destroy enemy radar installations.
Surface-to-Surface Missiles Prahaar, Shaurya Short to medium-range missiles for targeting enemy installations and strategic points on the ground.
Submarine-launched ballistic Missiles (SLBMs) K-15 Sagarika, K-4 Launched from submarines for nuclear deterrence.
Man-Portable Air-Defense Systems (MANPADS) Igla-S, Starstreak Portable systems for targeting low-flying aircraft and helicopters.

 

 


Nameri Tiger Reserve

Mapping

Source: TOI

Context:  The Himalayan serow was recently spotted for the first time in the central region of Nameri National Park and Tiger Reserve.

 

About Himalayan Serow

  1. Species: Subspecies of the mainland serow (Capricornis sumatraensis)
  2. Appearance: Resembles a mix of goat, donkey, cow, and pig
  3. Habitat: Found at altitudes of 2,000-4,000 meters in the eastern, central, and western Himalayas
  4. Characteristics: Medium-sized, large head, thick neck, short limbs, long ears, dark coat
  5. Diet: Herbivorous
  6. Distribution: Restricted to the Himalayan region in Asia
  7. Conservation Status: Vulnerable (IUCN), CITES Appendix I, Wildlife Protection Act, 1972: Schedule I

 

About Nameri Tiger Reserve

Nameri Tiger Reserve, located in the northern Sonitpur district of Assam near the foothills of Arunachal Pradesh, shares its northern boundary with Pakke Tiger Reserve, creating a continuous habitat. The reserve comprises Nameri National Park, Sonai-Rupai Wildlife Sanctuary, and the Naduar and Balipara Reserve Forests, and is defined by the Jia-Bhoreli River to the west and the Bor-Dikorai River to the east. The vegetation includes tropical evergreen and semi-evergreen forests, moist deciduous forests, cane breaks, and grasslands. The reserve’s diverse fauna features the rare white-winged wood duck, leopard cat, common otter, black giant squirrel, and several other species.

Nameri Tiger Reserve

 

 

Daily Current Affairs + PIB Summary (31 May 2024)


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