December 2021

1. Why is History important?

Moulds the outlook of the younger generation.
By turning the past into a narrative, history creates a public ethos and
influences culture
publicly shared past imparts a collective memory and identity.
Children introduced to a certain version of the past at school acquire a
disposition which can be politically mobilised in the future.
2. Paika Bidroha
1817-1825
set an example for the classes as well as the masses in India to follow later
on.
One of the beginnings of popular uprisings against the British in India.
3. Climate change and The earth
Statement
Our fragile planet is hanging by a thread - UN Secretary-General
Introduction: The agenda of ending world hunger and malnutrition in all
its forms by 2030 is facing formidable challenges as the climate crisis and
hunger are linked inextricably.
World Food Programme - a 2C rise in average global temperature from
pre-industrial levels will see a staggering 189 million additional people in
the grip of hunger.
world - up to 811 million people do not have enough food;
41 million people in 43 countries are at risk of sliding into famine.
IPCC - climate crisis threaten nutrition through multi-breadbasked failure
key areas or measures we should focus on:
creating resilient livelihoods and food security solutions by
protection and improving the livelihood of vulnerable communities
the adaptation of climate-resilient food crops, such as millets, for
nutritional security
enabling women's control and ownership of production processes and
assets and increased value addition and local solutions
promoting a resilient agriculture sector by creating sustainable
opportunities,access to finance, and innovation for small-holder
farmers, with climate information and preparedness.
 Building capacity and knowledge of civil society and governments for
vulnerability analysis to increase food security by addressing the link
between food security and climate risk
4. Smart India Mission
integrated data, use of technology platforms for service delivery to
citizens, and mainstreaming of urban development concepts to encourage
other cities to adopt best practice.
expanded to add emphasis on climate-friendly infrastructure + "streets for
people" - put pedestrians and non-motorised road users at the centre of
urban planning.
India's most urbanised state => TN
Key features of smart cities - liveability, economic ability and sustainability
incorporate access to clean water, safe streets and public spaces, good
public transport, facilities for health and education and places for
recreation.
seek to expand economic opportunity for all and address
environmental stressess - rising temperatures, extreme weather
events, bad air quality, flood and drought, and lost urban biodiversity.
climate smart assessment framework
5. National Monetisation pipeline
envisages an aggregate monetisation potential of 6 lakh crore rupees
through the leasing of core assets of the Central government in sectors
such as roads, railways, power etc over a four-period year.
NITI aayog - strategic objective - to unlock the value of investments in
public sector assets by tapping private sector capital and efficiencies.
policy advocated unlocking idle capital from non-strategic government
owned assets and reinvesting the funds, thus received, into new
infrastructure projects and augmentation of assets such as greenfield
infrastructure creation.
ES 2019-20 - India needs to invest about 1.5 trillion on infrastructure
development in order to aspire to become 5 trillion dollar economy by the
year 2021-25
reasons for PSU decline
cost overruns - delay in projects becoming unviable
reluctance to implement labour reforms
lack of inter-ministerial/departmental coordination
poor decision making
ineffective governance and excessive government control
 PM Gati Shakti - to synchronise the operations of 16 ministries for
seamless planning and coordinated execution of infrastructure projects in
a timely manner.
ES 2020-21: an important step for the government to take to strengthen
public sector business would be to completely revamp their corporate
governance structure.
6. Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA)
agreement
sought to cut Iran off a possible path to a nuclear bomb in return for
the lifting of economic sanctions.
at the time of deal - Iran had two nuclear enrichment plants - Natanz
and Fordow and had almost 20000 centrifuges
Iran agreed to cut its stockpile of enriched uranium by 98% to 300 kg
and keep them at a very low purity level of 3.67%.
to open all its facilities to the inspection of the IAEA.
uranium
less than 5% concentration of the fissile isotopes U-235 -nuclear
power plants
20% and more purity - research reactors
90% purity - used in bombs
7. India - Sri Lanka
1. infrastructure
trincomalee Oil tank farm is an important counterbalance to the
southern Hambantota port backed by china
8. Parliamentary committees
fact: PRS Legislative Research - the percentage of bills referred to
parliamentary committees has fallen from 60% and 71% in the 14th and
15th lok sabha to 27% in the 16th Lok Sabha and an even lower 12% in the
current Lok Sabha.
Intro: these committees of scrutiny and advice, both standing and ad hoc,
have been confined to the margins in the last few years. some of the most
momentous acts of parliament in recent years were not processed by any
House Committee.
Primary role of parliament - deliberation, discussion and reconsideration.
9. National Health Accounts report for 2017-18
total public spending on health as a percentage of GDP has increased to a
historic high of 1.35%.
out of pocket expenditure as share of total health expenditure - <50%
 caution: when purchasing power of the people declines and health
care becomes unaffordable, there is a possibility of people may forgo
care.
10. General consent - CBI
withdrawal of consent
renders CBI redundant with regard to investigation of corruption
charges against Central employees and undertakings working within
the territorial jurisdiction of various States.
SC
Kazi Lendhup Dorji vs CBI,1994 - withdrawal of general consent does
not affect pending investigation or cases registered in another State in
relation to which investigation leads into the territory of the State
which has withdrawn general consent; nor does the withdrawal
circumscribe the power of the jurisdictional High court to order CBI
investigation.
Position of law
Section 6 of Delhi special police establishment act of 1946 -the
State's consent is required to extend CBI investigation beyond the UT's.
UN Convention against Corruption - India is a signatory - requires firm
impartial steps to combat corruption at all levels.
11. Draft Mediation Bill 2021
positives
recognises that mediation has come of age and needs to be treated as
a profession
acknowledges the importance of institutions to train mediators and
service providers to provide structured mediation under their rules.
pre-litigation mediation
if any urgent interim order is needed, they can bypass mediation at
the first stage and return to it after resolving the interim relief issue
does away with the confusion emanating from using both expressions
"mediation" and "conciliation". defining mediation widely to include
conciliation
recognises online dispute resolution
enforcement of commercial settlements reached in international
mediation viz between parties from different countries as per the
Singapore Convention on Mediation
problems
 it treats international mediation when conducted in India as a
domestic mediation.
Singapore convention does not apply to settlements which
already have the status of a judgement or decree.
12. Inequality
GDP - do not tell us how growth is distributed across the popultion
In most democracies, the wealth can transform their economic power into
political power. Therefore, the higher the equality, the greater the
likelihood that an affluent minority could end up determining the fate of
the majority.
India - world inequality report
top 1% getting 21.7% of the national income
top 10% of Indians capture 57% of the national income, while the
share of the bottom 50% is only 13%.
Men in India capture 82% of labour income. In a country with perfect
equality between women and men, the female labour income share would
be 50%.
East europe highest - 41%
inequality and poverty are not inevitable but mainly the effect of policy
choices.
Recommended: wealth tax on the super-rich and a robust redistribution
regime.
13. Migrant crisis
conclusion: the migrant crisis is not confined to a few countries, has led to
wars like the one between India and Pakistan 50 years ago, and requires
corrective action at the transnational level
estimated 26 million refugees in the world.
14. Durga Puja - UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage
of Humanity
15. Key words related to maritime and over-flight connectivity
free, open and rules-based world order rooted in international law and
undaunted by coercion.
UNCLOS - established the international legal order of the seas and oceans.
strengthening security in the IOR to ensure a favourable and positive
maritime environment
freedom of navigation and over-flight
maritime cooperation with regional partners in consonance with the
Government's vision of Security and Growth for All in the Region (SAGAR)
 Mission based deployments - maritime domain awareness, promote
maritime security and address contingencies that may arise.
multilateral exercises, joint surveillance, coordinated patrols
inclusive and cooperative manner
16. GST
expected outcomes
improve tax-GDP ratio
end tax cascading
enhance efficiency
competitiveness
growth and
ensure lower prices
watershed in India's fiscal federalism
issues
assured revenue neutrality remains a mirage and many states have
experienced a declining tax-GDP ratio.
fake invoices
exemptions and subvertions complicated and worsened the situation.
case study: south Africa - zero rations and large exemptions have
defeated revenue goals
Canada - GST could be improved by limiting zero ration, tax
exemptions and harmonizing tax rates.
Brazil - transfers through social security or subsidies tend to be
more progressing than subventions or exemptions because
reduced rates or zero rationing do not usually get passes on to
target groups or industries as happening in India.
Malaysia - need for swift and transparent functioning of the input
tax credit system through a flawless IT infrastructure -failed to do
so ultimately abandoned GST.
17. Economy keywords
Monetary policy
macroeconomic fundamentals
resilient financial markets and institutions
credible and consistent policies
growth-inflation dynamics
cost push pressures
price stability remains the cardinal principle for monetary policy as it
fosters growth and stability.
 key drivers of demand in the economy - private investment and
private consumption.
growth supportive 'accommodative policy'.
durable and broad-based recovery.
18. India's Defence Exports
Govt ambitious target - 5 billion dollars in aerospace and defence goods
and services by 2025.
defence exports increased to 8500 crore rupees and have seen 8 fold
increase in last five years.
stockholm International Peace Research Institute - SIPRI - overall drop in
India's arms import between 2011-15 and 2016-20.
measure announced to boost exports since 2014
simplified defence industrial licensing policy
relaxation of export controls and grant of NOC
facilitating line of credit for countries to import defence product
draft Defence production and Export Promotion Policy 2020
issued two "positive indigenisation lists" consisting of 209 items that
cannot be imported and can only be procured from domestic industry.
a percentage of the capital outlay of the defence budget has been
reserved for procurement from domestic industry.
19. Winter in North India to be warmer than Normal - IMD
"normal to above normal" minimum temperatures for December-February.
Overall, winter temperatures have been on the rise.
The IMD which started issuing winter forecast in 2016, except for 2017,
had forecast warm winters for all years since then.
Cloud cover was one of the key factors influencing minimum temperatures
as they influenced how the ground heated up.
Winter rains over South Peninsular India - most likely to be above normal
(more than 132% of the Long Period Average)
"New forecasting system"
IMD no longer give the actual expected temperature deviations but
only colour code regions indicating if they were normal, above or
below normal.
because all regions had different normal temperatures, it would
not be feasible to provide individual temperature deviations.
Above normal - more than half the standard deviation of a region's
temperature
20. Cyclones in India
 The frequency of "very severe cyclonic storms" has increased in recent
years over the Arabian sea. However, this has not measurably increased
the threat to India's western coast, as most of these cyclones were making
landfall in Oman and Yemen - Ministry of Science
very sever cyclone - wind speed touching 220 kmph.
eastern coast remained far more vulnerable to "extremely sever cyclones"
than the western coast.
On an average, 60-80% of the cyclones developing over the North Indian
Ocean made landfall causing loss of life and property. Low-lying coastal
belts of West Bengal, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh and TN and Puducherry
were more prone to the impact of these systems.
The number of deaths due to cyclones has decreased significantly, as a
result of the improvement in
the early warning skill of the IMD, and
effective mitigation measures and response actions by the NDMA and
MHA.
21. Biodiversity
1. Lesser florican
birds of the bustard group
found in tall grasslands.
observed in Rajasthan, MP, Gujarat and some other reason during the
monsoon season
Critically Endangered bird - population has been 'decreasing'.
tracked for the first time from Rajasthan to Maharashtra.
2. Chocolate-bordered Flitter
North Sikkim
3. Highly invasive snail - Physella Acuta - Kerala
It plays host to worms that can cause food-borne diseases and skin
itches in humans.
rapid growth rate, air-breathing capability, and tolerance to pollution
makes it a potential competitor to native fauna.
22. SBM 2.0 guidelines
focus on solid waste management - goes beyond the efficient collection
and transportation of waste and brings focus on processing all types of
waste like plastic, construction and demolition waste, as well as providing
budgetary support for remediating old waste disposed in all dumpsites.
 source segregation; door-to-door collection of waste ;separate
transportation of different types of wastes processing of wet waste, dry
waste and construction and demolition waste.
Bioremediation
SBM 2.0 - total quantity of waste generated by urban areas in India is
about 1.32 lakh tonnes daily. 4.8 crore tonnes per annum. Of this only
about 25% is being processed
Total funding dedicated for implementation of SBM 2.0 is 1.41 lakh crore
rupees; out of which about 40 thousand crore is set aside for SWM
the transformation of waste disposal sites to processing sites is likely to
produce 72 lakh tonnes of organic compost per annum from 4.8 crore
tonnes of waste generated across all ULBs in the country.
Organic compost recovered from the wet waste, which is about 60% of the
total waste, can be used to enrich the soil quality and can meet about 10-
12% of the country's fertilizer demand. That will reduce the amount of
chemical fertilizer imported and save about 2,600 crore of subsidy paid by
the government.
23. Semi conductors
Cabinet approved 76,000 crore rupees scheme to boost semi-conductor
and display manufacturing in the country
globally competitive incentive package to companies
provide fiscal support of up to 50% of the project cost for setting up
semiconductor and display fabrication units.
long-term - 'India Semiconductor Mission'.
key to the security of critical information infrastructure.
24. Judicial Infrastructure
Of a total of 980 crore sanctioned in 2019-20 under the Centrally
Sponsored Schemes to the states and UTs for development of
infrastructure in the courts, only 85 crore was utilised.
CJI - National Judicial Infrastructure Authority of India
take control of the budgeting and infrastructure development of
subordinate courts in the Judiciary
26% of court complexes do not have separate ladies toilets
only 32% of the courtrooms have separate record rooms
only 27% of the courtrooms have a computer places on the judge's
dais with VC facility
need for "financial autonomy of the Judiciary"
 lack of one particular coordinating agency means each years the
funds get lapsed. It remains underutilised
authority - similar to NALSA model
CJI patron-in-chief
one at Central level and each state having one
Conclusion: Institutionalising the mechanism for augmenting and creating
state-of-the-art judicial infrastructure is the best gift that we can think of
giving to our people and our country in this 75th year of our
Independence
25. Ken- Betwa river interlinking project
Introduction: project is part of the national river linking project which
proposes to connect 14 himalayan and 16 peninsular rivers with 30 canals
and 3,000 reservoirs in order to irrigate 87 million hectares of land.
status of national project; 90% of cost by central government.
involves transferring of water from the Ken river to the Betwa river through
the construction of Daudhan dam and a canal linking two rivers, the Lower
Orr project, Kotha Barrage and the Bina Complex Multipurpose Project.
cost - 45 thousand crore approximately
provides drinking water supply to 62 lakh people and generate 103 MW of
hydropower and 27 MW of solar power.
benefit to the Bundelkhand region
"the project is expected to boost socio-economic prosperity in the
backward Bundelkhand region on account of increased agricultural
activities and employment generation. It would also help in arresting
distress migration from this region."
govt stated benefits
enhance the irrigation potential of the water-starved Bundelkhand
region in UP and MP
facilitate groundwater recharge, and
reduce the occurrence of floods
obstacles
partly submerge the Panna tiger reserve, MP and affect the habitat of
vultures and jackels
project may destroy about 7.2 lakh trees => impact on rainfall pattern;
may affect rainfall in the already parched region.
Ken flows 60-70 feet lower than the Betwa and at least 30% of the 103
MW power generated will be used for pumping the water up.
federal issue - Madhya pradesh and Uttar Pradesh
 way forward: alternatives such as water-conservation and water-
harvesting methods without building a dam - need to be considered.
26. Dam Safety Act
provides for the surveillance, inspection, operation and maintenance of all
specified dams across the country.
India - Third rank - 5,745 large dams in Operation.
~1000 dams during the first 70 years of the 20th Century.
Ministry data - Since 1979 there were 42 instances of dam failure. Latest -
Annamayya reservoir in Kadapa district of AP that led to the death of at
least 20 people in November 2021.
In 2007, AP and WB assemblies passed resolutions empowering Parliament
to come up with a law on dam safety, under Article 252.
Bill
covers dams having the height of over 15 metres and between 10 and
15 metres with certain stipulations.
NCDS - to evolve dam safety policies and recommend necessary
regulations.
NDSA - to implement policies and address unresolved issues between
two states.
+state Dam safety organisations; +state committees on Dam Safety
Dam owners will be held responsible for construction, operation,
maintenance and supervision of dams.
official view
establishment of the National Committee on Dam Safety (NCDS) and
the National Dam Safety Authority (NDSA)
NCDS - expert representations from both Central and State agencies,
will evolve unified dam safety policies and protocols for the entire
country
NDSA - act as a regulatory body for ensuring the implementation of
policy, guidelines and standards evolved by the NCDS
focus of the two national institutions will be thus mostly on such dam
safety issues that are generic in nature and of nation-wide relevance.
Dam safety issues that are specific to an individual state will be
essentially addressed by the concerned state Committee on Dam
Safety (SCDS)
SCDS - representations from both upstream and downstream
states, so as to provide amicable solutions.
 bringing in transparency in dam safety data and mitigation measures -
essential requirement for confidence building between the two States.
Supreme court
act comprehensively postulates for surveillance, operation and
maintenance of dams to prevent disasters.
contentious issues
encroached upon the sovereignty of States to manage their dams
constitutional validity - Water - State subject
silence of the payments of compensation to people affected by dam
projects
TN - fear of losing its hold over four of its dams which are located in
Kerala
Mullaperiyar, Parambikulam
PRS - it is unclear how parliament would have the jurisdiction to frame
a law for dams on rivers where the river and its valley are entirely
within a state
counter - Inter-state basins cover 92% of the country's area and
most of the dams => making the Centre competent to enact such
a law.
27. Public Accounts Committee
division of labour - allow houses to discuss and debate all issues while
select groups of the MPs can devote more focus on select matters.
Intro - one of the most powerful financial committees of Parliament
Conclusion: vice president - urged the PAC to reinvest itself to more
effectively ensure financial discipline in the context of the Union
Government's budgetary expenditure increasing from a mere 197 crore
rupees in the first budget to 35 lakh crore now, making its monitoring that
much more complex and challenging.
28. Parliamentary standing committee on Communication and IT - 'Ethical
standards in Media coverage'
social media platforms have placed journalism in the hands of citizens
ensure a code of ethics is followed in the digital media space while
preserving the right to freedom of expression.
unregulated content made available through online and OTT platforms -
hitherto escaped any architecture of regulation
acknowledged - OTT platforms offer freedom to the individual user to
decide what to watch, a freedom that should not be abridged by the
heavy hand of government
 'The Information Technology (Guidelines for Intermediaries and Digital
Medial Ethics code) Rules, 2021'
hoped that new rules and regulations would go a "long way in
ensuring transparency and accountability for social media platforms
with robust oversight mechanism by the government".
MIB + Miety - work in tandem to ensure that the code of ethics is followed
by digital media also.
'any regulation must have checks and balances to ensure that it is neither
misused nor violative of Articles 14, 19 and 21 of the constitution.
29. Parliamentary standing committee on Home affairs - crimes against
women
urged the state governments to follow the crime analytics model of Delhi
police in preventing street crimes against women through crime mapping
and identification of hotspots for reinforced action.
SOP on registration of FIRs should include guidelines to police to record
reasons for delay in reporting of crimes by the complaints to the police.
TN - all-woman police station.
chennai police have a woman officer in the rank of a Deputy
Commissioner of Police to exclusively deal with crimes against women
and children.
zero-tolerance policy
30. Parliamentary committee on Empowerment of women
Govt spend 80% of the funds under the 'Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao' (BBBP)
scheme on media campaigns and must now revisit the strategy and invest
in measurable outcomes in health and education for girls.
positive - able to capture the attention of political leadership and
national consciousness towards valuing the girl child.
scheme aim -
to address sex-selective abortion and the declining child sex ratio,
which was at 918:1000 boys in 2011.
capacity building, innovation or awareness generation; monitoring and
evaluation, sectoral interventions in health and education.
31. Statutory bail
default bail
right to bail the accrues when the police fail to complete investigation
within a specified period in respect of a person in judicial custody =>
indefeasible right
 Section 167(2) of CrPC - where it is not possbile for the police to complete
an investigation in 24 hours, the police produce the suspect in court and
seek orders for either police or judicial custody
concerns the total period up to which a person may be remanded in
custody prior filing of charge sheet.
For most offences, the police have 60 days to complete the investigation
and file a final report before the court. (In some cases 90 days, Narcotic
Drugs and Psychotrophic substances Act - 180 days; UAPA - 90 days). At
the end of this period, if the investigation is not complete, the court shall
release the person "if he is prepared to and does furnish bail".
32. Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic substances Act
umbrella legislation dealing with the control and regulation of narcotic
drugs and psychotropic substances.
If the law is amended to decriminalise small drug offences, it will depart
from the approach of regarding drug usage to be a criminal activity and
focus on tackling it as a public health concern.
suggestion
promote alternative strategies to reduce demand, such as de-
addiction and rehabilitation.
Ministry of social justice and empowerment - 2019 - 6 crore drug users in
India; of them 1.7 crore required professional help to reduce their
dependence on drugs.
criminalisation of drug abuse by the NDPS act has only enhanced
societal stigma, isolation, and hindered access to treatment.
tackle supply side of drugs
NCRB - over 60% of cases registered under the NDPS act between 2018
and 2020 were for possession of drugs for personal use or consumption.
case study - Portugal - faced one of the worst drug epidemics in 2001.
decriminalised, panel consisting of doctor, psychologist, a social worker;
punishment - fine to social service. caused ripple effect - persons who
were admitted for treatment for substance abuse increased by 63% in ten
years.
disadvantages of decriminalisation
33. democracy
criterion that in a democracy the people must be satisfied with their life is
given very little thought these days
UN's World Happiness report 2020; top-10 democracies of the
western Europe; 'US -top 20; India - 144
 Democracy is about people. Ultimately, the institutions that enable
persons to lead fulfilling lives are built by the people themeselves
ex - In the 1960s, US saw movements for black empowerment,
women's emancipation and sexual liberation. These movements were
remarkably successful in the outcomes they achieved, while receiving
no support from the US state.
laws must not constrian liberty when it is self-affirming and must change
when it is realised that they do.
endowment of individuals with capabilities - Amartya Sen.
measuring the capabilities of a population.
Democracy may be a form of government but surely the people have
come to adopt this particular form of government with a goal in mind.
people adopt democracy so that they can participate in their own
governance. liberty and capability are conjoined as the ultimate aspiration
in a democracy.
34. Coopearatives
1904 - Governar of Madras Presidency Lord Wenlock - seriously attempted
to replicate European cooperatives in India.
1919 - Montagu-Chelmsford reforms - places cooperation under the
provinces
issues and possible solutions
role of Registrar of Cooperative societies
need to transfer work from the RCS to cooperative federations -
as in Singapore
rural-urban dichotomy in the regulatory treatment of cooperatives -
outdated
regulations is to be based on the cooperative nature of
organisations
regulation and the supervision of cooperative banks should move to
an new body from the RBI for urban banks and the NABARD for rural
banks.
commercial bank-cooperative sector linkages at various levels could
alternatively provide better synergies
35. Zero Budget Natural Farming
critical to both organic and chemical fertliser based agriculture
soil has all the nutrients plants need. To make these nutrients available to
plants, we need the intermediation of microorganisms.
For this, Subhash Palekar recommends the four wheels of ZBNF - bijamrit,
Jivamrit, Mulching an Waaphasa.
Bijamrit - microbial coating of seeds with formulations of cow urine and
cow dung.
Jivamrit - enhancement of soil microbes using an inoculum of cow dung,
cow urine, and jaggery.
Mulching - covering the soil with crops and crop residues
waaphasa - building up of soil humus to increase soil aeration.
ZBNF - includes three methods of insect and pest management
Agniastra
Brahmastra
Neemastra
Unsubstantiated claims -
ZBNF is hardly zero budget. Many ingredients have to be purchased.
labour cost + imputed rent over owned land.
cost of maintaining cows
electricity cost and pump sets
no independent studies to validate the claims that ZBNF have a higher
yield than non-ZBNF plots.
soil composition of Indian soil
poor in organic matter content
about 59% of soils are low in available nitrogen
about 49% are low in available phosphorus
about 48% are low or medium in available potassium.
varyingly deficient in micronutrients.
disallow the full expression of other nutrients in the soil
leading to an overall decline in fertility.
saline soil in some areas
acidic soils due to nutrient deficiencies
toxic soils due to heavy metal pollution
Normal recommendation of soil scientist
location-specific solutions to nurture soil health
soil test-based balanced fertilisation and integrated nutrient
management methods
scientific approach needed
check wind and water erosion of soils
innovative technologies to minimise physical degradation of soils due
to water logging, flooding and crusting.
 improve the fertility of saline, acidic, alkaline and toxic soils by
reclaiming them.
location-specific interventions towards balanced fertilisation and
integrated nutrient management.
reduce the use of chemical fertilizers in some locations, and should be
open to increasing their use in other locations.
36. Lessons from Kerala
deepening its democracy
by investing in basic rights and empowering its citizens to be active in
political and civic life and by making democratic institutions, including
government at all levels, more accountable.
increased overall capacity of the State to deliver and effectively coordinate
at all levels
expanded basic capabilities - educational, associational, civic
Amartya sen - development as freedom
investments in democracy and social development have paid of
economically
Kerala's per capita growth has exceeded the national average in the
new century.
Challenges
persistent high levels of unemployment that disproportionately impact
educated women
high degree of global exposure and
very fragile environment
point to ponder
Governments and experts have at best very limited capacity to
respond to societal challenges, not only because their own
understanding and imagination is limited, but because they alone
can't mobilise the partners and coalitions needed to sustain real
change. This is precisely where democratic contentions comes into
play. Though often messy and conflictual, democratic demand-
making, under the right conditions, not only generates the necessary
momentum for change but forges the popular mandates and iterated
feedback mechanism that drive institutional change.
37. Artificial Intelligence
In 1997, Deep blue, IBM's chess-playing supercomputer, defeated the
reigning world champion Garry Kasparov in a six-match game in New York
City => brute force search
 AlphaGo programme defeated Lee Sedol, the Garry Kasparov of Go, in a
five-match game => concept of neural network to train itself; smart
algorithm + brute-force computing
AlphaFold 2 - predicted the 3D structure of proteins which is an important
problem in biology.
Applications
digital histopathology
38. Hypersonic weapons
manoeuvrable weapons that can fly at speeds in excess of Mach 5, five
times the speed of sound. Travel within the atmosphere.
detection and interception extremely difficult - speed, manoeuvre
Hypersonic glide vehicles - launched from a rocket before gliding to a
target
Hypersonic cruise missiles - powered by high-speed, air-breathing
engines, or scramjets, after acquiring their target.
Ballistic missiles, through much faster, follow a fixed trajectory and travel
outside atmosphere to re-enter only near impact.
India - DRDO - demonstrated scramjet engine technology
aerodynamic configuration for hypersonic manoeuvres
use of scramjet propulsion for ignition and sustained combustion at
hypersonic flow
thermo-structural characterisation of high temperature materials
39. Air pollution - NCR
Urban transformation is a social process (people, services, lifestyles) rather
than a physical problem (congestion, technology, regulation)
Lessons from Beijing (similar population size compared to Delhi)
Three stages in dealing with urban air pollution as long-term risk
end-of-pipe air pollution control gradually moving to integrated
measures targeting primary pollutants (SO2, NO2, PM10 and CO),
with the Government playing the main role.
Secondary pollutants, or PM leading to smog become the main
focus for control with a regional coordination mechanism
systematic planning, strong monitoring capacity, local standards,
specific environmental mechanism and public awareness.
 technical system - high-resolution satellite remote sensing and laser
radar,an integrated network combining 'air land' data for quality
monitoring with greater analytical capacity and over 1000 PM2.5
sensors througtout the city to accurately identify high-emission areas
and periods.
more space for public transport and mixed land use spatial planning
minimising travel.
Beijing already has more than 550 km of metro, more than one-and-
half times that of the Delhi metro; the plans are to have 1000 km of
metro rail
bus transport system - more than 8 times of Delhi
China - >72% of travel is completed by public transport; Japan- 37%;
Europe 17%.
Local regulation targeted controlling both the concentration and total
emission amount leading to transforming and upgrading the industrial
structure production process and equipment
economic incentives were tailored to the specific problem, with
attractive levels of subsidies to high-polluting enterprises to close
their production and differentiated fees charged according to the
concentration of waste gas emissions for those who chose to remain
in production.
enforcement at the municipal and state levels is coordinated with each
level having different responsibilities and mechanism for cooperation.
40. Hallmarking of gold jewellery
context: GoI has made hallmarking of gold jewellery mandatory in the
country
aim - to bring transparency in the jewellery trade and increase the trust
among consumers
Hallmarking provides 'third-party assurance' to consumers on the
purity of gold jewellery.
Hallmark Unique Identification Number
six-digit alphanumeric code
stamped at the Assaying & Hallmarking (A&H) centre
Three symbols
BIS logo
Purity and fineness symbol
HUID - mandatory for 14-, 18- and 22-carat gold jewllery and
artefacts.
 secure system an poses no risk to data privacy and security.
Trade body views
it's cumbersome to number each piece of jewellery and HUID cannot
be engraved in tiny pieces => increase cost for consumers
41. India revokes PepsiCo's potato patent
by the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers Rights' Authority
(PPV&FRA)
42. Population - pointers from NFHS-5
23% women were married before 18 years.
percentage of women ages 15-19 years who were already
mothers/pregnant - 6.8%
Education is the best contraceptive pill, and better education means
women will have fewer children
need more communication on behavioural change - context: female
sterilisation
The family planning budget is only 6% of the health budget. Within
that, we sped
Family planning should be converted into family welfare.
Issues that will pop-up in future
quality of life in old-age
migration
estimate - 600 million internal migrants in India
India - don't have any policy on migration
43. Anganwadis
ICDS covers about 88 million children aged 0-6 years in India.
Anganwadis - childcare, health and nutrition, education, supplementary
nutrition, immunisation, health check-up and referral services
National Education Policy 2020 - places anganwadis at the centre of the
push to universalise access to early childhood care and education.
NITI Aayog - only 59% of anganwadis had adequate seating for children
and workers, and more than half were unhygienic.
suggestions to improve ecosystem
improve career incentives and remuneration for anganwadi workers
TN - an additional worker devoted to pre-school education led to
cost effective gains in both learning and nutrition
linking anganwadis and primary schools to strengthen convergence,
as well as expanding the duration of daycare at anganwadis.
reaching out to women during pregnancy. - Tamil Nadu
 large scale enrollment drives - Gujarat
Conclusion: as the worlds's largest provider of early childhood services,
anganwadis perform a crucial role in contributing to life outcomes of
children across India. To improve these outcomes, we need to invest more
significantly in anganwadis, and roll our proven innovative interventions.
44. Science and Technology oneliners
1. Earth's dynamo - a wind-driven, electrical generator that spans the space
up to nearly a hundred kilometers above the earth's surface.
NASA - ICON mission - measured it; dynamo churns in the ionosphere
and it is powered by tidal winds faster than cyclones.
2. Thrombocytopenia syndrome - causes low platelet count - AstraZeneca
vaccine.
3. A special bunch of proteins called molecular chaperones assist in correctly
folding the protein; related to DNA
4. beads of glass inside the meteorites care called chondrules.
45. Volcano eruption - Indonesia
biggest mountain on the island of Java
Mount Semeru
risk of the rain causing ash sediment to form a new river of hot lava.
46. EU
Global Gateway - Plan to mobilize $340 billion in public and private
infrastructure investment around the world - move seen as a response to
china's BRI.
approach towards connectivity - bringing partners together without
creating unwanted dependencies.
India-EU: connectivity partnership - expanding cooperation across the
digital, energy, transport, and people-to-people sectors. Partnership is
centred on transparency, sustainability, equity and inclusivity for the
benefit of both regions.
green and digital Europe
General Data protection Regulation
47. BRI
China launched its global investment strategy - Belt and Road - a flagship
project in 2013
invested ~$140 billion by 2020; including $22.5 billion last year alone
aim - to develop land and sea infrastructure to connect China to Asia,
Europe and Africa for trade and development.
 West perception -tool for china to influence poorer countries. debt
trapping; allege the secretive tender process is prone to corruption.
Beijing's contractual terms ignore abuses of human, labour and
environmental rights.
48. India - Russia
'India-Russia Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership'.
India-Russia relations have withstood the test of time and the ever-shifting
nature of national interests.
"Declaration on the Indo-Russia Strategic partnership" in 2020 - unlocked
new opportunities in strategic, science and technology, space, energy,
nuclear ties, trade and commerce, culture and a people-to-people connect.
over 60% of weapons in the Indian armed forces - Russia
s-400 Triumf missile systems. Sukhoi su-30 fighter aircraft, T-90 tanks,
Talwar and Krivak class stealth frigates
India-Russia defence cooperation has evolved from a buyer-seller model
to new areas of military-technical collaboration.
BrahMos missile system was a successful collaboration of joint research,
development and production.
both countries looking to move from licence mfg to joint research and
co-development of defence equipment.
But changes in interests and capabilities being fuelled by geopolitical
differences are widening the divergence between India and Russia.
Russia-china Alignment
Bilateral trade - $10 billion
2+2 dialogue - provide new vitality to the special and priviliged strategic
partnership
people's power - youth exchanges and deeper links
Buddhism - peace and sustainability can act as a balm in this turbulant
world
Agreements
mfg of over 6 lakh AK-203 assault rifles in India
renewal of the agreement on military cooperation till 2031
Agreements which are at advanced stages of conclusion
bilaterial logistics support agreement
Reciprocal Exchange of Logistics Agreement (RELOS)
gives India access to Russian facilities in the Arctic region which is
seeing increased global activity as new shipping routes open up
and in the backdrop.
 Multilateral cooperation
India supported Russia to become an observer state at the Non-
Aligned Meet
Russia supported India at the SCO
Industry
nuclear power - Kudankulam nuclear power project
potential
supplementing bilateral exercises with trilateral and multilateral ones
cooperation in Central India.
49. Ukraine crisis
Donbas region - After the fall of the Russian empire, the region was
incorporated into the newly created Ukrainian People's Republic in 1918.
during the WWII, nazis took over the region and killed 3 lakh civilians.
Now Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts are two self-declared republics run by
rebels backed by Russia.
50. Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, or AFSPA
in place in Assam, Nagaland, Manipur, three districts of Arunachal Pradesh,
and areas falling within the jurisdiction of eight police stations of the State
bordering Assam
empowers the Governor of any State, or the Administrator of a UT, or the
Central government to notify parts of or the whole of a state or a UT as a
'disturbed area', if they consider that the condition in such areas is so
dangerous or disturbed that the use of the armed forces is necessary in aid
of civil power.
'disturbed areas' - notification - extended periodically, mostly for six
months at a time.
whole of Assam and Nagaland
whole of Manipur except Imphal Municipal area.
Arunachal Pradesh - districts of Tirap, Changlang, and Longding
Tripura - revoked in May 2015 after being in force since Feb 1997
Meghalaya - 27 years, revoked in Apr 1, 2018
Jammu and Kashmir - separate J&K Armed Forces (special powers) act,
1990
both the Centre and the State governments have concurrent powers to
issue notification under Section 3 of AFSPA
gives the armed forces the authority to use force or even open fire after
warning a person found to be in contravention of the law.
 arrest a person and enter or search premises without a warrant and ban
the possessions of firearms if "reasonable suspicion exists".
Context: defence forces fired on vehicle carrying the coal miners in Oting
village attributed to a case of mistaken identity.
No person can be prosecuted or subjected to any legal proceedings for
action taken under the act, without the Central Government's previous
consent.
SC - Naga people's movement for Human rights vs union of India -
"caution and use of minimum force against our own people"
Justice Verma commission - security persons who rape women should be
judged under the same act that applied to the civilians
Jeevan Reddy Commission - law should be repealed and the clauses that
are required should be integrated with other All India laws - not published
by the government
origin - enacted in 1958 on an experimental basis for six months as
measure against "terrorist" groups in the North east.
need confidence building measures in order to move towards peace with
justice
Irom Chanu Sharmila - struggle against AFSPA - she sat on an indefinite
fast in 2000.
51. SC Judgements
Timely delivery of justice is part of human rights and denial of speedy
justice is a threat to public confidence in the administration of justice.
Free speech:
1. S.rangarajan etc vs P.Jagjivan Ram (1989) - suppressing free speech in
response to a threat of demonstration or protest "would be
tantamount to negation of the rule of law and a surrender to
blackmail and intimidation".
sexual harassment at workplace - SC - The right against sexual harassment
at workplace is part of the fundamental right to a dignified life and it takes
a lot of courage to overcome the fear to speak up against a lwed superior;
courts should not be "hyper technical" while dealing with sexual
harassment cases;
key words: power dynamics,
52. key statements
Finance Minister - payment systems - Collective global action for effective
regulation of ever-changing technology and tech-driven payment systems.
 regulators are only 'catching-up' in regulating ever-evolving
technology.
brain drain - should enable a conducive ecosystem in India that create
world-beating companies and build institutions that can produce noble
Laureates.
An ecosystem of entrepreneurship and innovation with targeted policies
and interventions will contribute to enhancing productivity and generating
employment.
Data generated quickly can lead to mid-course corrections. Data-driven
planning and strategies lead to good governance with accountability
Dr. Ambedkar - whether the constitution is good or bad it will depend
upon the persons who are called to work on it.
Democracy - PM - Democracy is not only of the people, by the people, for
the people, but also with the people, within the people.
Nehru - goal of independence was to create institutions which will ensure
justice and fullness of life to every man and woman
what connects us can also be weaponised. Data flows, energy supplies,
rare earths, vaccines and semi-conductors are all instruments of power in
today's world.
John Rawls - public institutions could not appear legitimate in the eyes of
citizens unless everybody could reasonably expect to enjoy the fruits of
fair equality of opportunities
53. Initiatives
Government
Facial recognition at airports from 2022
part of the DigiYatra policy -seeks to promote paperless air travel
and a seamless journey from entering an airport till boarding a
plane.
Mumbai - setting up a carbon inventory
Culture mapping of 80 villages associated with notes personalities in
History in particular the freedom movement, unique crafts and
festivals - pilot project Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts
(IGNCA)
Sempore - Budgam district of Jammu and Kashmir - associated
with 14th Century mystic Lal Ded or Lalleshwari
Choglamsar and Wanla villages - Ladakh - wood carving
Khatkar Kalan village - Bhagat singh
Rani village - Uttarakhand - chipko movement
 kathputli colony - Delhi - migrant kathputli artists
Ettayapuram - TN - birth place of poet subramania Bharathi
Thiruchigadi - TN - women poters
Private Initiatives
Facebook - to ensure women's safety on the platform
StopNCIL.org - available globally, to combat the spread of non-
consensual intimate images
Women's Safety Hub in Hindi and 11 other Indian languages - to
enable more women users in India to access information about
tools and resources that can help them stay safe online.
54. Statistics
In 2017-18, 25 years after the constitutional amendments, the ULBs and
RLBs in India were contributing 1.3% and 1% of the annual total health
expenditure in India.
The average contribution of stubble burning to Delhi's PM2.5 level in
November was 14.6% - SAFAR
share of PhD students: state public universities (30%) > institutions of
national importance (23%) > deemed universities - private (14%) > Central
Universities (13.6%)
As many as 144 central infrastructure projects have reported delays in
completion in the current financial year and total cost overrun for these is
15 thousand crore.
steps govt taking: periodic review of projects under PRAGATI through
VC, rigourous project appraisal and online computerised monitoring
system
Public sector banks restructure MSME loans worth 58,500 crore due to the
impact of COVID-19
India Geospatial "artha" report - India's geospatial economy has potential
to touch 63 thousand crore by 2025 end.
Census 2011 - the differently abled population in India - 26.8 million (men
14.9 million and women 11.9 million)
world Inequality report - club of the richest 1% has taken more than a
third of all additional wealth accumulated since 1995, while the bottom
50% captured just 2%.
COVID-19 pandemic - steepest increase in the global billionaires'
share of the wealth on record
UNESCO - No Teacher No class report - India is facing a shortfall of at
least one million school teachers
 improve the terms of employment of teachers in both public and
private schools
professional autonomy, build career pathways, recruit more teachers -
suggestions
Indian Council for Research on International Economic Studies - paddy
farmers in Punjab need thrice the amount of irrigation water used by those
in Bihar to produce one kg of rice.
Punjab faces rapidly increasing groundwater depletion at a rate of up
to 120 cm a year.
Nationwide, paddy and sugarcane use up half the country's water
resources.
maize uses only a fifth of the irrigation water of rice
Between 2018 and 2020, about 2000 cases were registered for killing or
illegal trafficking of wild animals in India; save Kurma; Operation softgold -
to tackle illegal trade in shahtoosh shawls.
Statistics
1.

India had a total of 29,964 wild elephants

The southern region comprising Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka,
Andaman and Nicobar Islands, AP and MH accounted for the
highest population - 14,612
solutions
Installing handing solar-powered fences (planned in Tamil
Nadu and Kerala)
 planting citronella and lemon grass (Golaghat district,
Assam)
participation of local communities - crucial
To ensure this - critical role elephants play in
biodiversity conservation must be highlighted,
especially to those living in areas close to elephant
corridors
Environment ministry and Ministry of railways should also
expedite proposals for elevated wildlife crossings or eco-
bridges and under-passages
standardisation of track signage
Installation of animal detection system (transmitter
collars) and honey bee sound-emitting devices near all
identified elephant passages.
Combined Debt-to-GDP ratio of States is expected to remain at 31% by
end-March 2022
target: 20% to be achieved by 2022-23
Almost 26 thousand Indian websites have been hacked into in the 10-
month period ended October - Minister in Parliament
State governments and Union Territories utilised only 56% of the total
funds released under the Poshan Abhiyan.
estimates - from 2013-19 - 96% of tree cover loss occurred in natural
forests.
Odisha suffered more than 6 lakh ha of crop loss due to untimely rain
brought by Cyclone Jawad
55. Places in News
1. GIFT city - India's first and only International Financial Services Centre
(IFSC) where banks, stock exchanges and financial services firms have set
up their global operations
India's first greenfield city.
2. Saryu Nahar national project - aims at providing water for irrigation over
14 lakh ha of land and seeks to benefit 29 lakh farmers in nine districts of
eastern UP
3. Lalibela in Ethiopia - UNESCO WHS - Tigray rebels occupied it
56. Innovative solutions
 Local biomass and LPG use - households can be incetivised to supply
locally available biomass (including crop stubble or dung cakes) to
Compressed Bio Gas production plants being set up under the Sustainable
Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation (SATAT) scheme
57. Ethics case study
setting up an example - Nalanda Juvenile Justice board took just five
witnesses and a 25-minute for a court to try, convict and sentence a minor
accused of rape. Based on the merit of evidence
principles over purse - Women's Tennis Association - suspended
tournaments in China and Hong Kong due to ongoing concerns about one
of its own farmer stars, Peng Shuai.
brave administration
58. Frameworks for introductions
1. In a world of interdependence, where supply chains are showing their
fragility, connectivity is crucial.
59. Frameworks for conclusions
1. .........such efforts would go a long way in improving the health and well-
being of our citizens.
60. Possible essays
1. The stepping stones in the post-pandemic world - Dec 13 editorial
61. Essay Introductions
1. Cooperatives; top-down vs bottom-up approach
Large-scale farming using modern scientific methods was the
approach in the Soviet Union to improve agricultural outputs, as it is
in the US, and it achieved equally spectacular results. However, it
wiped out peasants in the Soviet Union and has swept off small
farmers in the US. Kurien told Premier of the USSR Aleksey Kosygin
who visited him in Anand that top-down ownership of enterprises,
whether by the State (in the soviet model), or by remote investors (in
the capitalist model) was the wrong solution. The essence of
democratic economic governance is that an enterprise must be of the
people, for the people, and governed by the people too.
2. Technology
Amazon's cloud service, amazon web services (AWS), suffered a
massive outage last week. The interruption affected a multitude of
services like Netflix and Disney's streaming platforms. The issue
related to an application programming interface (API), which is a set of
protocols for building an integrating application software, affected
amazon's own services like the Ring and Prime Video. > The hours-
long disruption even hampered access to slack, Trello and other
software as a Service (SaaS) tools hosted on AWS' public cloud. There
outages aren't confined to AWS. > In November, Google Workplace,
which is hosted on the search gaint's cloud infrastructure went offline
for a few hours, affecting access to Gmail, chat and other tools for
users in Europe. > Earlier this year, an issue at Microsoft's Azure Active
Directory caused authentication problems; affecting a subset of its
customers across many services, including office, Teams, Xbox live and
the Azure portal. > These outages cripple productivity and
communication, and raises the question of sustainability as too many
services are now hosted on the cloud, which exposes the vulnerability
of the Internet and its concentration in the hands of a few firms.