Vajiram April CA 2017

1.
SOCIAL ISSUES
1.1. Ten New Names For 'Swachh Iconic Places' Initiative

The Union government has announced the name of 10 new iconic places under the Phase II of
Swachh Iconic Places initiative.
The new iconic places under Phase II are - Somnath Temple in Gujarat; Gangotri, Yamunotri
and Char Minar in Hyderabad; Mahakaleshwar Temple in Ujjain; Church and Convent of St
Francis of Assissi in Goa; Adi Shankaracharyas abode Kaladi in Ernakulam; Gomateshwar in
Shravanbelgola; Baijnath Dham in Devghar; and Gaya Tirth in Bihar.
Swachh Iconic Places (SIP) is an initiative of Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation under
Swachh Bharat Mission. The Swachh Bharat Mission covers all rural and urban areas. The
urban component of the mission will be implemented by the Ministry of Urban Development, and
the rural component by the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation.
The aim of Swachch Iconic Places is to make 100 places model Swachch Tourist Destinations
that will enhance the experience of visitors.
The ten Iconic places that are already under implementation in Phase I are: Ajmer Sharif
Dargah, CST Mumbai, Golden Temple (Amritsar), Kamakhya Temple (Assam), Maikarnika Ghat
(Varanasi), Meenakshi Temple (Madurai) Shri Mata Vaishno Devi (Katra, J&K), Shree
Jagannath Temple (Puri), The Taj Mahal (Agra), Tirupati Temple (Tirumala).
For details on Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, Plz refer Sec 1.3 in Part 7 (Nov 2016) of CA Magazine.
1.2. Conference on Dara Shikoh Held in New Delhi

The international conference on "Dara Shikoh: Reclaiming Spiritual Legacy of India" has been
organised by Indian Council Of Cultural Relations (ICCR).
The objective of the conference is to present Dara Shikoh's contribution and initiatives in
bringing about spiritual homogenisation of Hinduism and Islam, and thereby building a
cohesive social and cultural edifice of India.
The conference saw the participation of eminent scholars, academics and historians from the
US, Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan and India.
Dara Shikoh
Dara Shikoh was the eldest son of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan. He was also the heir-
apparent of the Mughal Emperor. However, Dara Shikoh was defeated and killed by his
younger brother Aurangzeb in a struggle for the imperial throne.
Through his research and study of Vedas and Upanishads, Dara Shikoh concluded that a
common spiritual basis existed between Hinduism and Islam which should be comprehended
and celebrated.
In his foreword to the monumental work, "Siri-Akbar" (The Great Secret), Dara Shikoh
wrote that a great deal of Quranic wisdom existed in Upanishads.
Dara Shikoh documented the Quranic terms and their Sanskrit equivalents from Upanishads.
He aspired to build a cultural model for India which, if it prevailed, would have saved South
Asia from many tragedies which it faced in the future.
The study of India begins with the translation of the Upanishads and Dara Shikoh had them
translated into Persian. The Europeans at that time did not read Sanskrit and so they read
the Upanishads in Persian which were later translated into Latin.
Current Affairs For 2017- Part 12 (April 2017) Page 1

1.3. Panel Moots UID Numbers For Cows
Why In News
A unique identification number for animals has been suggested by an expert panel to evolve a
mechanism to stop trafficking of cattle across the Indo-Bangla border. The committee was set up in
pursuance of the court order.
Recommendations Of The Committee
Each animal should be tagged with proper records of identification details, including age, breed,
sex, lactation, height, colour, horn type, tail switch and special marks.
The Chief Secretary of respective States should regularly monitor the performance of various
departments of the State governments, including RTO, state police and animal husbandry
department and ensure prevention of cattle smuggling /illegal transportation of cattle by way of
periodic reports.
At the central level, monitoring could be done by Ministry of Environment and Forest and
Climate Change (MoEF&CC)/Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries (DADF).
Union Ministry of Agriculture has devised a method for tamper proof identification of cattle using
polyurethane tags with a unique identification number sequence.
The panel recommended strict enforcement of the Export Import Policy by the relevant customs
authorities, transport department, police and border guarding forces as per the law.
The panel said even where animals are travelling with a licence across the border, care may be
taken to check the manner in which they are being transported to prevent cruelty to them.
Need For Tagging
The Foreign Trade (Development and Regulation) Act read with Export Import Policy (Exim
policy) of India mandates that cattle can only be exported from the country with a valid licence
from the regional licensing authority.
However, in absence of proper data base and identification methods, the implementing authority
finds difficulties in preventing smuggling.
Cattle smuggling has become a by-product of the dairy industry. Stray, retired and
abandoned cattle face high risk of falling into smugglers hand. So, cattle smuggling should be
stopped at the source, instead of on the India-Bangladesh border at the cost of the lives of BSF
jawans.
According to the government, four BSF jawans were killed and 302 injured in skirmishes with
cattle smugglers over the past three years.
The issue also includes concern over smuggling of cattle to Nepal for being sacrificed at the
Gadhimai festival, held once in five years.
1.4. Child Artists Can Work Only For 5 Hours A Day

Why In News
The Labour Ministry has proposed the draft Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation)
Amendment Rules, 2017 to fix the working conditions for child artists and for employing children in
family enterprises.
Key Provisions
While a child artist will not be allowed to work for more than five hours a day, a child assisting
in a family business can only work for three hours a day. The permission of the district
magistrate would be mandatory for engaging a child artist. Children will be allowed to assist
their family in running family enterprises without affecting their school education. The family
would include parents, real siblings, and real brother and sister of the parents.

Such children will not be allowed to engage in any production, supply or retail chain which is
remunerative for the family and hazardous activities. At least 20% of the income earned by the
child artist will be required to be deposited in a fixed deposit account in a nationalised bank.
The money would be credited to the child after she turns 18.
The production unit must nominate a person, who would be held responsible for the safety and
security of the child artiste. A child cannot take part in a street performance for monetary gain.
Background
The government had brought recently Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment
Act, 2016, which put a blanket ban on employment of children below 14 years of age.
However, it had made two exceptions in favour of child labour: children could work as child
artistes (in the entertainment sector), and could help in their family enterprises.
This act was criticized for tweaking the law in such a way that children are in some form or
other available for employment.
There were no clarity on different issues such as definition of family, number of hours that a
child can actually work. It created problems in implementation of act.
In this context, the draft rule is laudable and a positive step towards regulating the child labour
in India.
For details on child labour, plz refer Sec 4.3 in Part 4(Aug 2016) of CA Magazine.
1.5. Kerala Hosts Countrys First-Ever Athletics Meet For Transgender Persons
Why In News
Kerala government had organized first-ever athletics meet for transgender persons at
Thiruvananthapurams Central Stadium. The first-of-its-kind tournament saw them taking part in
popular track and field events such as sprint, relay race, shot put and long jump.
Each district council in Kerala appointed a coach and allotted a ground for the participants to
train for three days before the tournament. The event was jointly organised by Kerala Sports
Council and Sexual Gender Minority Federation of Kerala.
Transgender In India
Transgender is often used as an umbrella term to signify individuals who defy rigid, binary
gender constructions, and who express or present a breaking and/or blurring of culturally
prevalent stereotypical gender roles.
Transgender people may live full- or part-time in the gender role 'opposite' to their biological
sex. In contemporary usage, transgender has become an umbrella term that is used to
describe a wide range of identities and experiences.
Statistics of Transgender in India
According to census 2011, total population of transgender is around 4.88 Lakh. The census
data also revealed the low literacy level in the community, just 46%, compared to 74% literacy in
the general population.
Over 66% of the population identified as third gender lived in rural areas, very close to the 69%
of the overall population that lives in villages. The proportion of those working in the transgender
community is also low (38%) compared to 46% in the general population.
Constitutional Rights Of Transgender People
Preamble talks about Justice - social, economic, and political equality of status.
Right to equality has been given under Article 14. Article 15 speaks about prohibition of
discrimination on the ground of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth.
Article 21 ensures right to privacy and personal dignity to all the citizens.

Article 23 prohibits trafficking in human beings as beggars and other similar forms of forced
labour and any contravention of these provisions shall be an offence punishable in accordance
with law
Various Supreme Court Directives On Transgender Rights
Legal Recognition for Third Gender
Legal Recognition for people transitioning within male/female binary - s for how the actual
procedure of recognition will happen, the Court merely states that they prefer to follow the
psyche of the person and use the Psychological Test as opposed to the Biological Test. They
also declare that insisting on Sex Reassignment Surgery (SRS) as a condition for changing
one's gender is illegal.
Socio-Economic Rights: Centre and State Governments have been asked to provide the
community various social welfare schemes and to treat the community as socially and
economically backward classes. They have also been asked to extend reservation in
educational institutions and for public appointments.
Centre and State Governments are asked to take steps to create public awareness so that
transgender people will not be stigmatized.
In pursuant to court directives, the Central Government has brought Transgender Right Bill
2016 (For details, plz refer Sept 2016 of CA Magazine), which provides various rights to
these communities.
Problems Faced By Transgender
Health Related Issues
HIV and Sexually Transmitted Infections- HIV and STI prevalence among transgender
populations in India is very high. Limited but available data indicate high vulnerability of
such population.
Mental Health - Some of the mental health issues reported in different community forums
include depression and suicidal tendencies, possibly secondary to societal stigma, lack of
social support, HIV status, and violence-related stress.
Most transgender people, especially youth, face great challenges in coming to terms with
one's own gender identity and/or gender expression, which are opposite to that of the
gender identity and gender role imposed on them on the basis of their biological sex. They
face several issues
such as: shame,
fear, and
internalized
transphobia;
disclosure and
coming out;
adjusting, adapting,
or not adapting to
social pressure to
conform; fear of
relationships or
loss of
relationships; and
self-imposed
limitations on
expression or
aspirations.

Alcohol and substance use
Social Exclusion
Way Forward
Address the gaps in National AIDS Control Programme-III to provide holistic health care
services to transgender community.
There is need to address the structural determinants of risks and mitigate the impact of risks.
For example, mental health counselling, crisis intervention (crisis in relation to suicidal
tendencies, police harassment and arrests, support following sexual and physical violence),
addressing alcohol and drug abuse, and connecting to livelihood programs all need to be part of
the HIV interventions.
Implement stigma and discrimination reduction measures at various settings through a variety of
ways: mass media awareness for the public to focused training and sensitization for police and
health care providers.
Ensure greater involvement of vulnerable communities including Hijras/TG women in policy
formulation and program development.
There is urgent need for a legal reform as it will ensure hassle free implementation of rights
awarded to these communities.
1.6. Cabinet Approves Ratification Of Two ILO Convention on Prohibition Of Child Labour
The Cabinet approves ratification of two fundamental conventions of ILO.
Minimum Age Convention (No 138) concerns minimum age for admission to employment and;
Worst Form of Child Labour Convention (No 182) concerns prohibition and immediate action
for elimination of the worst form of Child labour.
Need For Ratification
The government has taken up a multi-pronged strategy including both stringent legislative and
project-based approach to address the concerns related to child labour.
However, there is a need to further accentuate its initiatives to ensure a safe and fulfilled future
for the children by ensuring proper implementation of the provisions of the Child and Adolescent
Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986 which now completely prohibits employment or
work of children below 14 years in any occupation or process.
It will help in eradication of child labour in the country as India would be legally binding to
comply with the provision of the two conventions.
It will also help India to improve its global image as India would join majority of countries who
have adopted the legislation to prohibit and place severe restrictions on the employment and
work of children. The momentum of the recent initiatives taken to eradicate child labour has to
be maintained as elimination of child labour is also crucial for the attainment of Sustainable
Development Goals by 2030.
Minimum Age Convention
The Convention concerning Minimum Age for Admission to Employment is a Convention
adopted in 1973 by the International Labour Organization.
It requires ratifying states to pursue a national policy designed to ensure the effective
abolition of child labour and to raise progressively the minimum age for admission to
employment or work.
Countries are free to specify a minimum age for labour, with a minimum of 15 years. A
declaration of 14 years is also possible when for a specified period of time.
Laws may also permit light work for children aged 1315 (not harming their health or school

work). The minimum age of 18 years is specified for work which is likely to jeopardise the
health, safety or morals of young persons.
Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention
The Convention concerning the Prohibition and Immediate Action for the Elimination of the
Worst Forms of Child Labour, is also known as the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention.
By ratifying this Convention, a country commits itself to taking immediate action to prohibit
and eliminate the worst forms of child labour.
The ILOs International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC) is responsible
for assisting countries in this regard as well as monitoring compliance.
1.7. India Rankings 2017 Released

Why In News
Ministry of Human Resource Development released the India Rankings 2017 for the
Educational Institutions with the inclusion of two new categories: Common Overall Rank and the
General Degree. This was the second edition of India Rankings.
According to the India Rankings 2017, the Indian Institute of Technology(IIT) Madras tops the
list in the Engineering category while IISC, Bangalore sits at the top of the Common Overall
Rankings. In the list of the best Management institutes in the country, the Indian Institute of
Management (IIM) Ahmedabad gets the numero Uno spot.
IISc Bangalore tops the list of the best universities in the country. In the list of top colleges in the
country, Miranda House, Delhi leads the way with Loyola College, Chennai & Shri Ram College
of Commerce, Delhi following it respectively. The National Institutional Ranking Framework
(NIRF), working under MoHRD, has charted out the ranking.
NIRF:
The National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) was launched in September 2015.
This framework outlines a methodology to rank institutions across the country. The
parameters broadly cover Teaching, Learning and Resources, Research and Professional
Practices, Graduation Outcomes, Outreach and Inclusivity, and Perception.
It covers six categories of institutions including universities, engineering, management,
pharmacy, architecture and colleges.
For India Rankings 2017, the main ranking parameters remain the same. However, there
are a few significant changes in a few sub-parameters. Also, this year every large institution
will be given a common overall rank as well as a discipline specific rank as applicable.
1.8. World Health Day

The World Health Day (WHD) is observed every year on 7 April to mark the anniversary of the
founding of the World Health Organization (WHO). Each year, WHO selects a theme
highlighting a particular priority area of public health. The theme for this year's global health
awareness day is 'Depression: Let's Talk'. It seeks to encourage people to come forward for
treatment. Under it, WHO will be leading a one-year global campaign on depression which is the
leading cause of ill health and disability worldwide.
According to WHO, depression is "persistent sadness and a loss of interest in activities that
people normally enjoy, accompanied by an inability to carry out daily activities for two weeks or
more." More than 300 million people around the world are now living with depression, an
increase of more than 18% between 2005 and 2015. At worst, depression can lead to suicide,
which is now the second leading cause of death among 15-29-year olds.

Some Facts About India
1 out of 4 children, in the age group of 13-15 years, suffer from depression.
In the age group of 15-29 years, the suicide rate per 1 lakh people is as high as 35.5.
In the last decade, cases of depression have surged by nearly 20%.
Suggestions From WHO To Overcome Depression
Government needs to increase investment for people with mental health disorder.
Introduce improved support system and scale up programmes with mental health disorders.
Better funding for research to facilitate better services.
Trained human resources for better mental healthcare.
1.9. Government Launches New Test And Treat Policy For HIV
The government has launched a new policy for HIV under which anyone who is tested and
found positive will get the necessary treatment, irrespective of his CD count or clinical stage.
This will be for all men, women, adolescents and children who have been diagnosed as a HIV+
case. This will improve longevity, improve quality of life of those infected and will save them
from many opportunistic infections, especially TB.
HIV destroys the CD4 T cells in the body that strengthen immunity. People with HIV, who have
a CD4 cell count below 200, are at significant risk of developing serious illnesses, and the
government currently provides free treatment to people with a count of 400 and below.
Out of 21 lakh estimated with HIV, Government has record of only 14 lakh. To detect remaining
national HIV testing guidelines have been revised and are aiming to reach out to people in
community and test them where they are, with proper counselling and consent.
The new policy would help contribute towards the goal of ending AIDS in India by 2030. The
government is also developing a National Strategic Plan for HIV control for the next seven years
with the aim of ending AIDS in India.
1.10. Centre May Remove Cap On Parent Maintenance

Why In News
The government is mulling bringing legislative changes to remove the monthly ceiling of Rs.
10,000 on the maintenance paid by children to parents and introduce a rating mechanism for
organisations providing home care services to the elderly.
If the proposed amendments to the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens
(MWPSC) Act come through, the maintenance amount to be decided by senior citizen tribunals
for the neglected parents will depend on their need and the economic condition of their children.
Need For Such Amendment
At present, the maintenance for parent or senior citizen that can be ordered by the tribunal as
payable by the children or relative cant be more than Rs. 10,000 a month.
There have been complaints from many senior citizens associations that the maintenance
amount was inadequate and not in keeping with the time in view of the rising costs of living.
Hence, it was decided that the maintenance amount be kept open-ended and the quantum of
maintenance be left to the discretion of the tribunal. It should depend on the facts and
circumstances of each case.
With the increase in the number of elderly people staying alone at home, the government has
realised the urgent need to ensure quality home care services to such people. Therefore, it is
proposed that a rating mechanism is developed for such organisations and uniform regulations
are developed for monitoring such services.

Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act 2007
The Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act was passed to provide
maintenance support to elderly parents and senior citizens. The Act establishes the
Maintenance Tribunal to provide speedy and effective relief to elderly persons. The act also
mandates the establishment of an old age home in every district and provides for the
protection of life and property of the elderly.
What is Maintenance?
Maintenance is defined in the Act as including provision for food, clothing, residence and medical
attendance and treatment.
Who Can Claim Maintenance?
Parents, Grandparents, Senior Citizens. The only condition for claiming maintenance under
this Act is that the persons must be unable to maintain themselves from their own earnings
and property.
Who is Legally Obligated to Pay Maintenance?
Adult Children and adult grandchildren, both male and female, are responsible for paying
maintenance to parents and grandparents. An application can be filed against any one or
more of them. Senior citizens who do not have children or grandchildren can claim
maintenance from a relative who is either possessing their property or who will inherit their
property of the senior citizen after their death.
How much Maintenance Must be Paid?
The Act mandates that the maximum maintenance paid will be Rs 10,000 per month.
The maintenance amount is determined by the needs of the claimant and the aim is to
provide maintenance for the person to lead a normal life.
1.11. Miscellaneous
Paika Rebellion of 1817
o Prime Minister honoured, in Bhubaneswar, descendants of 16 families associated with what
is known as the Paika rebellion of 1817. When the British started tinkering with the revenue
system in 1803, the farming community of Odisha rose in rebellion.
o At that critical juncture, Bakshi Jagabandhu Bidyadhar the military chief of the King of
Khurda led his motley army of Paikas forcing the British East India Company forces to
retreat. The rebellion came to be known as Paika Bidroh (Paika rebellion).
o It took place when the British East India company wrested the rent-free land that had been
given to the Paiks for their military service to the Kingdom of Khurda. The rebellion, by the
landed militia of Khurda called Paiks, predates the first war of independence in 1857 but did
not get similar recognition.
Padayani Dance
o Padayani also known as Padeni is a traditional folk dance of Kerala India. It is an ancient
ritual performed in Bhagavati temples. Padayani is an art form that blends music, dance,
theater, satire, facial masks, and paintings.
o It is part of worship of Bhadrakali and is staged in temples dedicated to the goddess from
mid-December to mid-May.KalanKolam is the major attraction in padayani.
o This is about a child who is begging his life to lord siva while death comes in his 16th
birthday.

2. POLITY AND GOVERNANCE
2.1. Legal Aid and Empowerment Initiatives Launched
Why In News
The Government has launched three key legal aid and empowerment initiatives of the
Department of Justice Pro bono legal services, Tele law service and Nyaya Mitra scheme.
These initiatives are aimed at enhancing access to justice for the poor and vulnerable
communities, including making accessible quality and effective legal aid for them.
Pro Bono Legal Services
The Pro bono legal services initiative is a web based platform, through which interested
lawyers can register themselves to volunteer pro bono services for the underprivileged litigants,
who are unable to afford it.
The Department of Justice has launched the online application for this initiative on its website
doj.gov.in. Through this online portal, litigants from marginalised communities (including
members of scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, women, children, senior citizens, persons
with low income and persons with disabilities) can apply for legal aid and advice from the pro
bono lawyers.
It will help in institutionalization of the concept pro bono legal aid and ensure that those who
volunteer their valuable time and service towards this public service are duly recognized.
Tele Law: Mainstreaming Legal Aid through Common Service Centre
The Department of Justice and NALSA are partnering with CSC- E- Governance Service
Limited for mainstreaming legal aid to the marginalized communities through the Common
Service Centres (CSCs).
This initiative, called Tele Law, is aimed at facilitating delivery of legal advice through an expert
panel of lawyers stationed at the State Legal Services Authorities (SLSA).
The project would connect lawyers with clients through video conferencing facilities at CSCs,
operated by para legal volunteers. For this purpose, this initiative would also play a pivotal role
in empowering 1000 women para legal volunteers.
Using CSCs for mainstreaming legal aid services for the marginalized at the panchayat levels
would ensure that legal aid reaches populations which remained untouched due to geographical
challenges and/or lack of infrastructure.
District Facilitation Centre To Reduce Pendency: Engagement Of Nyaya Mitra
In order to address the issue of heavy pendency of cases in courts across the country, collective
action and efforts are required. At present, more than 2.4 crore cases are pending in the district
and lower judiciary, of which nearly 10% are more than 10 years old.
In this context, the Nyaya Mitra scheme was inaugurated, which is aimed at reducing pendency
of cases across selected districts, with special focus on those pending for more than 10 years.
Functionalized through a retired judicial or executive officer (with legal experience) designated
as the Nyaya Mitra, the project would be operated out of District Facilitation Centres, housed in
CSCs.
Nyaya Mitras responsibilities would include among others assistance to litigants who are
suffering due to delay in investigations or trial, by actively identifying such cases through the
National Judicial Data Grid, providing legal advice and connecting litigants to DLSA, CSC Tele
Law, other government agencies and civil society organisations.
He/she shall also refer the marginalized applicants to Lok Adalats for dispute resolution and
render assistance towards prison reforms within the district, in coordination with the district
judiciary and other stakeholders.
2.2. IDEAS: Innovations for Development of Efficient and Affordable Systems
Why In News
The Government is planning to launch a scheme for students from higher educational
institutions to volunteer to offer innovative, original and practical solutions to problems facing the
country and get rewarded for their efforts.
Students finding best solutions to problems will be offered a prize of Rs 1 crore.
About The Scheme
It is an initiative to challenge young minds with problems of society in general, to come up with
innovative, original, practical and economical solutions.
The Human Resource Development Ministry has identified a handful of areas pertaining to
which the problem-solving skills of students will be tested.
These are affordable healthcare, computer science and ICT, energy (making solar/renewable
resources cheaper, energy efficiency, etc.), affordable housing, agriculture, education, water
resources and river systems, affordable infrastructure, defence, cyber security and information
security, and environment and climate change.
The scheme will invite students to find solutions to problems in these fields and offer a prize
of Rs 1 crore to the best solution in each field.
Under each of the above areas or themes, 10 problem statements will be prepared and widely
publicised. All higher educational institutions will be eligible and encouraged to participate, but
participation of IITs, NITs and CFTIs will be mandatory.
2.3. Hindi Controversy

Why In News
Recently, the Central Government has been criticized for unfairly imposing Hindi on non-Hindi-
speaking States. Faced with criticism the government clarified that it was only promoting the
language as per an Act of Parliament.
Controversy
In March 2017, the Department of Official Language of the Home Ministry pulled out a 2011
report of a Committee of Parliament on Official Language and sent it to the President for
approval.
This Committee reviews the progressive use of Hindi in the Central government offices every
10 years under the Official Languages Act, 1963 and the Rules framed under it.
The President accepted as many as 110 out of the 117 recommendations in this report. The
Home Ministry has issued an advisory to all States and government departments to implement
the recommendations.
In February 2015, it had constituted a Hindi Advisory Committee in various ministries and
departments to ensure the progressive use of Hindi. Also, in May 2015, the government had
issued an order that as per the Official Languages Act, 1963, all government files would have to
be issued bilingually, in Hindi and English.
Few Recommendations Made By The Committee
Giving students the option of writing their exams in Hindi.
Making minimum knowledge of Hindi compulsory for government jobs.
Ensuring that government spends more on Hindi advertisements than English ones.
Railway Ministry should buy equipment with lettering in Devnagri script.
Railway tickets should be bilingual, with Hindi being one of the two languages.
Hindi should be an option for UPSC aspirants.
Cabinet ministers should deliver their speeches in Hindi as much as possible.
Making it mandatory at railway stations in C category (non-Hindi speaking) states such as
Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Kerala to have announcements in
Hindi.
Official Language
Part XVII of constitution deals with the official language in Article 343 to 351.
Article 351 deals with Directives for development of the Hindi Language. It reads as:
It shall be the duty of the Union to promote the spread of the Hindi language, to develop it so that it may
serve as a medium of expression for all the elements of the composite culture of India and to secure its
enrichment by assimilating without interfering with its genius, the forms, style and expressions used in
Hindustani and in the other languages of India specified in the Eighth Schedule, and by drawing, wherever
necessary or desirable, for its vocabulary, primarily on Sanskrit and secondarily on other languages.
2.4. Photo Exhibition: The Path We Walk

Why In News
Minister for Social Justice & Empowerment inaugurated a Documentary Photo exhibition The
Paths We Walk here today.
The exhibition has been organized by The National Trust under Ministry of Social Justice and
Empowerment in collaboration with Society for Child Development.
The Divyangjan artists presented their creative art works to the guests on the occasion.
The Documentary photo exhibition is intended to tackle negative myths of disability and
employment of persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Intellectual Disability and Multiple
Disabilities.
The photo exhibition is just a glimpse of the vast capabilities of persons with Disabilities. It has
been a joint collaborative effort of NGOs working for the welfare of persons with disabilities.
The month of April is celebrated across the World as the World Autism Awareness Month. The
National Trust has been organizing conferences and events during the months to create
awareness and celebrate diversity.
National Trust
The National Trust is a statutory body of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment,
Government of India, set up under the National Trust for the Welfare of Persons with Autism,
Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities Act (Act 44 of 1999).
It aims to create an inclusive society which values human diversity and enables and
empowers full participation of Persons with Disability to live independently with dignity, equal
rights and opportunities.
The objectives of the National Trust in particular are :-
o to enable and empower persons with disability to live as independently and as fully as
possible within and as close to their community as possible;
o to facilitate the realisation of equal opportunities, protection of rights and full participation
of persons with disability;
o to extend support to its registered organisations to provide need based services; and
o to evolve procedures for appointments of guardians and trustees for persons with
disabilities.

2.5. Online Statement Of Transaction (e-SOT) and the e-PRAN card launched for Atal
Pension Yojana (APY) subscribers
Why In News
The Government has launched the facility of online viewing of the statement of transaction (e-
SOT) and the e-PRAN card.
It has been launched with a view to digitally empower the Atal Pension Yojana (APY)
subscribers and improve the quality of service.
Key Facts
By providing the APY/PRAN account details and Savings Bank Account number details, the
APY subscriber can view one's APY Account Statement. Even for the APY subscriber who does
not have his APY PRAN number readily available can also avail these facilities by providing
one's Date of Birth and Savings Bank Account number details.
This online tool enables the Subscribers to view his complete details of APY account like
transaction details, pension amount, pension commencement date, nominee name, associated
bank name etc.
Even though the feature is a self-servicing tool but the service providers can also access the
feature on behalf of their customer to improve the quality of customer service.
Atal Pension Yojana
The Atal Pension Yojana (APY) was launched in May, 2015. APY is available for all citizens
of India in the age group of 18-40 years.
Under APY, the subscribers would receive a minimum guaranteed pension of Rs. 1000 to Rs.
5000 per month from the age of 60 years, depending on their contributions, which depends on
age of subscriber at the time of joining the APY.
The Same amount of pension is paid to the spouse in case of subscribers demise. After the
demise of both i.e. Subscriber & Spouse, the nominee would be paid with the pension corpus.
There is option for Spouse to continue to contribute for balance period on premature death of
subscriber before 60 years, so as to avail pension by Spouse.
There are tax benefits at entry, accumulation and pension payment phases. If the actual
returns on the pension contributions during the accumulation phase are higher than the
assumed returns for the minimum guaranteed pension, such excess returns are passed on to
the subscriber, resulting in enhanced scheme benefits.
2.6. Judicial Performance Index Mooted

Why In News
In its draft three-year action agenda (for 2017-18 to 2019-20), the NITI Aayog has suggested
several judicial reforms, including increasing the use of information and communication
technology, and streamlining judicial appointments.
The Niti Aayog has suggested introduction of a judicial performance index to check delay in
trial and address the issue of pendency of cases. Asserting that corruption cases get held up in
the judicial system inordinately, the policy think-tank has also recommended putting a time-limit
for processing them.
Proposed Measures
Judicial Performance Index
o It should be introduced to reduce delays.
o Such an index could be established to help High Courts keep a track of performance and
process improvement at the district courts and subordinate levels for reducing delay.

o The performance index for courts will entail fixing of non-mandatory time frames for different
types of cases to benchmark when a case has been delayed.
o The index can also include certain progress on process steps already approved by High
Courts and such an annual evaluation should give judges in High Courts a sense of where
they are failing and what they need to fix.
o Since the subordinate judiciary is largely within the domain of the High Courts, this could
also spur competitive reform of the judiciary in those States.
Repeal all irrelevant legislation by March 2019 and reform land ownership laws which
account for 67% of litigants in civil suits.
The think tank has also called for streamlining judicial appointments on the basis of online
real-time statistics on the workload of pending cases. Such data will help enable priority
appointment of judges at the lower judiciary levels keeping in mind a scientific approach to
assess the number of judges needed to tackle pendency.
Improve Policing
o To improve the quality of policing, the think tank has asked the Home Ministry to create a
task force to identify non-core functions that can be outsourced to private agents or
government departments in order to reduce the workload of the police.
o Indias police to population ratio should reach UN norms of 222 per lakh population, over the
next seven years, from the current level of 137.
o Red-flagging the adverse implications of crimes against women beyond the obvious horror
for affected individuals, the Aayog has asked the Home Ministry to push for greater hiring of
women in the police force, with a target of 30% of all new recruits.
Need For Such Proposals
Need to address delays It takes eight years to finalise a major vigilance case from the date of
occurrence of irregularity and underlined the need to speed up decision-making process in
corruption cases. Delays in obtaining justice encourage the corrupt and discourage those who
are honest.
Beyond the larger reforms in the justice system to reduce pendency, there is need to strengthen
special courts set up to try corruption cases and time limits to process corruption cases needs to
be introduced.
2.7. Legislation Against Doping

Why In News
In order to strengthen the Zero Tolerance Policy for doping, Minister of State (Independent
Charge) for Youth Affairs and Sports has asked the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) to
consider the possibility of making it a criminal offence.
According to the Minister, there is a need to discuss the necessary preventive and curative
measures to be put in place for necessary deterrence, to get rid of the menace of doping.
Background
NADA has an ambitious plan to significantly increase the number of tests during the current
year. The quality of tests has shown an increase in the detection rate from 2.25 per cent to 3.50
per cent.
India had featured in top-3 for the third successive year in a report published by World Anti-
Doping Agency (WADA) for 2015. A total of 117 athletes from the country were punished after
testing positive for banned substances. India followed Russia (176) and Italy (129), the same
position as in the reports of 2013 and 2014.

In recent years, NADA has taken a number of steps to increase education and awareness
against doping, not only in Sports Authority of India (SAI) training centres, but also at various
university games and events conducted above state-level by various federations.
In all national competitions, an undertaking is being taken from the athletes that they know the
ill-effects of doping and will not indulge in doping.
NADA
National Anti Doping Agency (NADA) was set up as registered society under the Societies
Registration Act of 1890 with a mandate for Dope free sports in India.
The primary objectives are to implement anti-doping rules as per WADA code, regulate dope
control programme, to promote education and research, and to create awareness about
doping and its ill effects.
WADA
It is a foundation initiated by the International Olympic Committee (Canada) to promote,
coordinate and monitor the fight against drugs in sports.
The agencys key activities include scientific research, education, development of anti-doping
capacities, and monitoring of the World Anti-Doping Code, whose provisions are enforced by
the UNESCOs International Convention against Doping in Sport.
Government of India is one of the Foundation Members of WADA.
Note
UNESCO International Convention against Doping in Sport is the first global international
treaty against doping in sport.
The UNESCO Convention is a practical and legally binding tool enabling governments to align
domestic policy with the World Anti-Doping Code, thus harmonizing the rules governing anti-
doping in sport.
2.8. Anti Defection Law Issue Referred To Larger Bench

The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a plea of former Samajwadi Party leader seeking its
direction that anti-defection law is not applicable to an elected member of a House, who had been
expelled by his party.
Issue At Hand
At the centre of the controversy is the Supreme Courts interpretation of the Tenth Schedule in
the Viswanathan judgment of 1996.
The court held that even if a member was thrown out or expelled from the party, for the
purposes of the Tenth Schedule, he would not cease to be a member of the political party that
had set him up as a candidate for the election.
He would continue to belong to that political party even if he was treated as unattached.
The court had held that the act of voluntarily giving up the membership of the political party may
be either express or implied.
According to Court, when a person who has been thrown out or expelled from the party which
set him up as a candidate and got elected, joins another [new] party, it will certainly amount to
his voluntarily giving up the membership of the political party which had set him up as a
candidate for election as such member.
Under the Viswanathan judgment, the expelled legislator would still be susceptible to the whims
and fancies of the leaders of the party which threw him out despite the fact that subsequently,
after his expulsion, he had gone ahead and formed his own political party.

Anti-Defection Law
The 10th Schedule to the Constitution, popularly referred to as the Anti-Defection Law,
was inserted by the 52nd Amendment in 1985.
The grounds for disqualification are mentioned under Articles 102 (2) and 191 (2). A
Member of Parliament or state legislature is deemed to have defected:
o When the elected member voluntarily gives up his membership of a political party.
o If he votes or abstains from voting in such House contrary to any direction issued by his
political party or anyone authorised to do so, without obtaining prior permission.
o Independent members would be disqualified if they joined a political party.
o Nominated members who were not members of a party could choose to join a party
within six months; after that period, they were treated as a party member or independent
member.
However, the law provides few exceptions. These are:
o Any person elected as speaker or chairman could resign from his party, and rejoin the
party if he demitted that post.
o A party could be merged into another if at least two-thirds of its party legislators voted for
the merger.
Any question regarding disqualification arising out of defection is to be decided by the
presiding officer of the House. Originally, the act provided that the decision of the presiding
officer is final and cannot be questioned in court.
However, in Kihoto Hollohan case, the Supreme Court declared the speakers actions are
subject to judicial review on the grounds of mala fides, perversity etc.
2.9. Regulatory Body Issues New Ad Norms For Celebrities

Why In News
Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI), the ad industry's self-regulatory body, has
released a set of guidelines for celebrity endorsements that bring personalities, including
doctors, authors, activists and educationists, into the celebrity category.
Main objective is to fix accountability as celebrities have a strong influence on consumers and
are guided by the choices they make or endorse.
The issue of making celebrities accountable, for the products they promote, has gained
currency after the Maggie controversy. A court notice was issued against celebrities like
Ambitabh Bachchan and Madhuri Dixit seeking an explanation from them regarding the
promotion of maggie noodles.
Key Guidelines
Celebrities must exercise due diligence to make sure that all description, claims, and
comparisons made in the advertisements that they endorse are not misleading and deceptive.
It will be the duty of the advertiser and the advertising agency to make sure that celebrities are
aware about the ASCI guidelines.
ASCI have barred celebrities to endorse product/treatment/remedy that is prohibited under The
Drugs & Magic Remedies Act (Objectionable Advertisements) and the Drugs & Cosmetic Act.
Celebrities should not endorse those products which by law require a health warning on its
packaging or advertisement.
Celebrities seeking the advice of ASCI to ascertain whether the advertisement potentially
violates any provision of the ASCI code or not would be considered of having completed due
diligence. Also, the advertising advice of ASCI cannot be construed as pre-clearance for an
advertisement.

About ASCI
Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) is a self-regulatory voluntary organization of the
advertising industry in India. It is a non-Government body.
It was established in 1985 to promote Self-Regulation in Advertising, ensuring the protection
of the interests of consumers.
ASCI was formed with the support of all four sectors connected with Advertising
Advertisers, Advertising Agencies, Media (including Broadcasters and the Press) and others
like PR Agencies and Market Research Companies.
It stands for the protection of the legitimate interests of consumers and all concerned with
Advertising - Advertisers, Media, Advertising Agencies and others who help in the creation or
placement of advertisements.
2.10. Citizens Have Right To Internet Access: Supreme Court

According to SC, Citizens have the right to access the Internet to gain information, wisdom and
knowledge and their right cannot be curtailed unless it encroaches into the boundary of illegality.
The Judgement
Calling the Internet a virtual world and a world which is invisible in a way, the Supreme Court
observed that the fundamental right of expression includes the right to be informed and the
right to know and the feeling of protection of expansive connectivity the Internet offers on the
click of a button.
The court clarified that a general prohibition on all online content about pre-natal sex
determination will curtail the fundamental right to know of a genuine information-seeker.
However, the court held that the prohibition should kick in only if the content found online is
violative of Section 22 (prohibition of advertisement relating to pre-natal determination of sex)
under the Pre-conception and Pre-natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection)
(PCPNDT) Act of 1994.
Section 22 :
Section 22 of the 1994 Act pertains to prohibition of advertisements relating to pre-natal
determination of sex and punishment for its contravention.
In order to implement this section, Nodal officers have already been appointed at State levels
to monitor the Net for offensive material contravening this section.
In case the nodal officers detect illegal online content, they would communicate with the
search engines experts, which would take it off within the next 36 hours of receiving the
information. These experts would then follow it up by providing the nodal officers concerned
with an action taken report.
2.11. HIV/AIDS Bill Passed in Parliament

The Lok Sabha has passed the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immune
Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) (Prevention and Control) Bill, 2017. Rajya Sabha has already
passed the Bill.
For detailed analysis, refer section 2.2 in Oct 2016 (Part- 6) issue of CA magazine
2.12. Motor Vehicle Amendment Bill Passed

The Lok Sabha passed the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2016. The Bill was introduced in
the Lok Sabha in August 2016, aiming to amend the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, and address
issues around third party insurance, regulation of taxi aggregators, and road safety.

The Bill will now go to the Rajya Sabha for its nod, and then the President of India for his
assent.
For detailed analysis, refer section 3.3 in Aug (Part 4) 2016 edition of CA magazine
2.13. Government Launches Bharat Ke Veer Web Portal And Application

Why In News
The Union Ministry of Home Affairs has launched web portal and mobile application named
Bharat ke Veer. It will enable people to contribute towards family of martyrs from central
paramilitary forces.
It was launched on Valour Day of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), observed on 9 April.
Facts
The portal and application is an IT based platform to enable willing donors to contribute towards
the family of a brave heart who have sacrificed their life in line of duty or towards the Bharat Ke
Veer corpus.
This online donation platform is technically supported by National Informatics Centre (NIC) and
powered by State Bank of India (SBI).
The amount so donated through it will be credited to the account of Next of Kin of those Central
Armed Police Force or Central Para Military Force soldiers.
To ensure maximum coverage, a cap of Rs. 15 lakh is imposed on donation and donors will be
alerted if amount exceeds, so they can choose to divert part of the donation to another account
or the corpus.
Bharat Ke Veer corpus will be managed by a committee made up of eminent persons of repute
and senior Government officials. The committee will decide to disbursement of fund equitably to
brave hearts family on need basis.
2.14. Inter-State Council Standing Committee Meeting Held After 11 Years

Why In News
The 11th Standing Committee meeting of the Inter-State Council was held in New Delhi. This
meeting of standing committee was held after a gap of 11 years. This meeting was in pursuance
of the decisions of the Inter-State Council meeting held in July 2016.
Key Outcomes
The Standing Committee examined in detail various recommendations of the Punchhi
Commission contained in Volume II & III.
The Volume II of the report is related to provisions of the Constitution that are concerned with
important aspects of Constitutional governance such as role of Governors, deployment of
Central forces, federal balance of power, ensuring better coordination between Centre and
States and other important issues of Centre-State relations.
The recommendations in Volume III of the Punchhi Commission report are related to Centre-
State financial relations and cover the subjects of (a) fiscal transfers to states (b) Goods and
Services Tax and (c) the Centre-State fiscal relations.
The remaining volumes of the Punchhi Commission recommendations will be taken up in
subsequent meetings of the Standing Committee along with the implications of the recent
developments in terms of the GST Act, the 14th Finance Commission Report and formation of
NITI AAYOG, rationalisation of Centrally sponsored schemes etc.
Inter State Council

Inter State council is a constitutional body set up in pursuance of provisions in Article 263 of
the Constitution of India.
It was set by a Presidential Order in May, 1990 on recommendation of Sarkaria Commission.
The Council is a recommendatory body on issues relating to inter-state, Centre-State and
Centre Union Territories relation.
Composition of Inter-state Council
Prime Minister is the Chairman of the Inter-state Council.
Chief Ministers of all the States and Union Territories having Legislative Assemblies,
Administrators of Union Territories not having Legislative Assemblies,
Governors of States under Presidents rule and
six Ministers of Cabinet rank in the Union Council of Ministers, nominated by the Chairman of
the Council,
Five Ministers of Cabinet rank nominated by the Chairman of the Council are permanent
invitees to the Council.
2.15. Cabinet Approves Closure of Mahatma Gandhi Pravasi Suraksha Yojana

Why In News
The Union Cabinet has approved closure of the Mahatma Gandhi Pravasi Suraksha Yojana
(MGPSY), which was set up in 2012 to address the social security-related issues of the
Emigration Check Required (ECR)-category workers going abroad for employment to ECR
countries.
The subscription under the MGPSY was very low and no new subscription was received for
more than a year. Closure of the scheme will, therefore, obviate the avoidable recurring
administrative and record-keeping expenditure.
Mahatma Gandhi Pravasi Suraksha Yojana (MGPSY)
The Ministry Of Overseas Indian Affairs had introduced a Pension and Life Insurance fund
scheme called Mahatma Gandhi Pravasi Suraksha Yojana (MGPSY) for the Overseas Indian
workers having Emigration Check Required (ECR) passports.
The objective of MGPSY is to encourage and enable the overseas Indian workers by giving
government contribution to:
o Save for their Return and Resettlement (R&R)
o Save for their old age,
o Obtain a Life Insurance cover against natural death during the period of coverage.
The scheme envisaged a co-contribution of Rs. 1000 by Government to overseas Indian
workers who save Rs. 4000 per annum so that on return to India, a MGPSY subscriber could
utilize these savings for return and resettlement purposes.

3. ECONOMY AND INFRASTRUCTURE
3.1. Growing Inequalities Among And Within States
Context
Economic disparity among and within regions is on the rise. Economic development has
enhanced divergence rather than fostering convergence.
The OECD Economic Survey of India, IMF and the Economic Survey, all conclude that spatial
income inequality in India is not only large but increasing. This growing divergence needs
policy intervention.
Factors like distance to the closest urban agglomeration, differences in urbanisation, electricity
provisions and state-specific characteristics play a crucial role in explaining divergence across
districts.
Fig: The increasing income divergence amongst states is reflected in the chart which captures the
trend of average per capita Net State Domestic Product (NSDP) for the top three and bottom three
states and Gross Fixed Capital Formation (GFCF) from 1993-94 to 2013-14
Past And Current Mechanism To Reduce Regional Inequalities
The mechanism of appointing a Finance Commission every five years. The Gadgil Formula
implemented in the fourth Five Year Plan took due cognisance of the need for balanced regional
development by assigning weights to crucial parameters of states like population, per capita
income, special problems etc, for determining horizontal devolution. The concept of Special
Category States was introduced in 1969 (5th Finance Commission) for providing special

assistance to disadvantaged states with a low resource base, difficult terrain, low population
density, inadequate infrastructure and non-viable state finances.
The Planning Commission also adopted an area-specific approach in its planning strategy
and introduced multiple centrally sponsored programmes.
o The Tribal Development Programme, the Hill Area Development Programme, the Western
Ghat Development Programme were initiated, catering to geographically homogeneous and
backward regions.
o Regrettably, such area-specific approaches for growing divergences in development
patterns have not been successful.
Bridging The Gap
Reducing regional inequalities remains a daunting politico-administrative challenge. A credible and
holistic strategy could include the following ingredients.
1. Persisting with the belief that smaller states improve governance quality. Asher and Novosad
(2015) research conclude that increased autonomy and political representation lead to
accountable governance and help promote development.
a) We should consider reorganisation of unwieldy, unmanageable states having distinctly
identifiable regions. The abysmal state of the economic and social development of eastern
UP necessitates a radical solution.
b) Similarly, the Marathwada and Vidarbha regions are drastically behind western Maharashtra
in terms of growth and development. The total MSMEs, large industries and SEZs in
Marathwada has only 7 per cent, 11 per cent and 10 per cent, respectively compared to
Maharashtra.
c) Economic viability and administrative efficacy, while maintaining the Unions integrity, must
become the overarching principle for reorganisation of states.
2. Re-inventing the role of Inter-State Council and Zonal Councils for bringing greater regional
convergence
3. Export sector can become an engine of growth for the more laggard states. Export sectors
attract capital, technology and improved managerial practices which could greatly improve their
competitive efficiency.
a) Backward states, especially in eastern India, have comparative factor advantage for
labour-intensive industries like textiles and leather. Harnessing their comparative advantage
for low-skill labour-intensive activity can create a viable export sector.
b) While creating SEZs in coastal India has obvious logistic advantages, mobilising the
abundant labour supply coupled with skill inculcation makes the export-led approach an
attractive policy for many laggard states.
c) Food processing industries in horticulture, dairy and meat sector holds huge export
potential.
4. Inter-state competition in improving governance and the ease of doing business should be
fostered.
a) According to the DIPP, during 2000-2016, Maharashtra and NCR alone accounted for 52 %
of the total FDI equity inflows. Similarly, during 1990-2013, Maharashtra and Gujarat alone
accounted for more than 30 % of Gross Fixed Capital Formation (GFCF), a proxy for
investments in the country.
b) Establishing end to end value chains for the 4th Industrial Revolution in backward states.
The coming up of Internet of Things, Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, Machine Learning, Big
Data, Cloud computing etc requires both material development as well as skill development.
The youth can be trained for hardware as well as software developments in these areas.

Conclusion
Enticing private investment will need action on simplifying regulatory architecture, reducing the
complexities of litigation and bringing alternative dispute settlement mechanisms, and easing
factors of production, particularly land and labour.
The mandate and role of the Niti Aayog should be redefined and enhanced to evolve models
aimed at balanced regional development. Special infrastructure programmes designed for the
more backward states will have multiplier benefits.
Seeking greater investments from multilateral agencies like the World Bank, the Asian
Development Bank, the New Development Bank as well as the Asian Infrastructure Investment
Bank would be helpful.
3.2. FRBM Panel Report

Background
The FRBM law, 2003 was enacted to limit the governments borrowing authority under Article
268 of the Constitution.
It had originally envisaged attaining a fiscal deficit of 3% of GDP by 2008-09, but amendments
over the years had revised the year for achieving the same target to 2017-18.
Recommendations Of N.K Singh Panel
The panel to review Indias fiscal discipline rules has recommended a debt-to-GDP ratio of
60% for the general government (Centre + State) by 2022-23 - 40% (38.74%) for the central
government and 20% for state governments. The present debt/GDP ratio is 68%.
A fiscal deficit of 2.5% of GDP by financial year 2022-23.
The committee has prescribed a so-called glide path to these targetssteady progress
towards themand also suggested that there be some flexibility in the deficit targets on both
sides, downwards when growth is good and upwards when it isnt.
The panel has recommended that the existing FRBM Act and rules be scrapped and a new
Debt and Fiscal Responsibility Act be adopted and proposed the creation of a Fiscal Council
that the government must consult before
invoking escape clauses.
The proposed three-member fiscal
council will prepare multi-year fiscal
forecasts for the general government
and provide an independent
assessment of the central governments
fiscal performance and compliance with
targets set under the new law.
FRBM panel suggests higher capital
infusion for PSBs.
o It suggested Centre to infuse much
higher capital than Rs 70,000 crore
committed under the Indradhanush
plan over a four-year period ending March-2019.
o Higher capital infusion at a faster pace is required for the state-owned banks dealing with
rising stressed assets, which erode the capital base.
Citing rising losses of state power distribution companies or discoms as a main contributing
factor to stress in bank balance sheets, the Committee has suggested key changes in the
UDAY to deal with the issue effectively. It said the States should take over 100 % of the debt of
their respective discoms, instead of the earlier provision 75 %.

Infrequent revisions in electricity tariffs and their implementation by the State Electricity
Regulatory Commissions, as well as the high aggregate technical and commercial (AT&C)
losses mean that discoms will continue to incur losses. The committee, therefore, suggested the
state government taking over entire debt of discoms.
It also recommended that the food credit to centralised procurement states to be routed only
through the FCI, guaranteed by the central government.
Escape clause: The panel has introduced an escape clause that allows the government to skip
the fiscal deficit target for a particular year, in situations that include national security concerns,
acts of war, national calamities, a collapse of the agriculture sector and far reaching structural
reforms with unanticipated fiscal implications.
o It recommended that deviations from the stipulated fiscal targets should not be more than
0.5%. The RBI Governor was not in favour of such a large deviation. Mr.Urjit Patel, who was
also a member of the panel along with Chief Economic Adviser Arvind Subramanian, was
inclined to only permit a 0.3% deviation.
o The escape clause can also be triggered if the economys real output growth slips by three
percentage points from the average of the previous four quarters.
o A similar buoyancy clause has been proposed, so that fiscal deficit must fall at least 0.5%
below the target if real output grows 3% faster than that average.
What Could Be The Impact
Fiscal consolidation is important to ensure that India reaches its 8 % growth target.
Improved credit rating: The lower fiscal deficit trajectory is positive from the point of view of
Indias sovereign credit rating and the external value of the rupee and would also have a
salutary effect on foreign portfolio investment flows into India.
Institutional changes: Earlier the administration of the FRBM Act was entirely in the domain of
the government and did not have the analytical inputs of a robust independent organisation, like
in many countries. It also firewalls the decisions by bringing in greater analytical rigour whether
conditions are appropriate for triggering of the escape clause.
The food credit system would streamline the process, improve the efficiency, and minimise
disputes between the procuring States and the FCI that lead to persisting irregularity in the food
credit account of the concerned states.
This could check the worsening of State's finances from fiscal indiscipline that incur through
populist measures (as the clamour for Uttar Pradesh-style loan waivers grows).
Challenges Faced By States
The challenge of the States in achieving a debt ceiling of 20% by 2023 threatens overall fiscal
responsibility targets.
1. The combined debt dynamics necessitate States to run successively lower primary and fiscal
deficits just to maintain their combined debt to GDP ratio.
2. The recent spate of farm loan waivers is episodic and symptomatic of deteriorating State
finances.
3. UDAY scheme is also putting pressure on State finances.
Way forward
1. Incentivising prudent fiscal management. There must be symmetry between the cost of
borrowing and the quality of financial governance.
a) Article 293 makes it mandatory for a State to take the Central governments consent for
raising any loan if the former owes any outstanding liabilities to the latter. Recently, the
Union Cabinet has permitted State government entities to directly borrow from bilateral
partners for vital infrastructure projects.
b) Fiscally healthy States should be enabled to attract higher investments at lower costs.

2. Ushering in transparent accounting practices.
a) Off-budget expenditures through State PSUs borrowings and explicit guarantees offered
by the States do not form a part of State government liabilities.
b) There is growing trend of off-budget public spending and mis-categorisation of budget
data. The CAG has repeatedly censured such practices.
c) The Fourteenth Finance Commissions (FFC) recommendation of adopting a template
for collating, analysing and annually reporting the total extended public debt in their
respective budgets as a supplement to the budget document must be implemented.
3. Emphasising quality of expenditure. The share of States revenue expenditure in total
expenditure has remained around 80% and States non-developmental expenditure has risen
by over 50% during 2013-2016.
a) The RBI raises the concerns about dominance of revenue expenditure in the States.
b) While the quantum of untied funds from the Centre to the States has increased owing
to the recommendations of the FFC, expenditure on physical and social infrastructure by
the States has remained stagnant.
4. Fiscal discipline as a criterion for tax devolution was used by Eleventh, Twelfth and
Thirteenth Finance Commissions for incentivising the States in prudent management of its
finances. However, the FFC dropped this indicator and accommodated Population (2011)
and Forest Cover in its devolution formula. Given the deteriorating condition of State
finances, the Fifteenth Finance Commission could consider restoring fiscal discipline as a
determinant for horizontal devolution of funds.
Conclusion
Excessive and unsustainable borrowing by the government is obviously perverse as it entails a
cost on future generations while crowding out private investment.
In the past, fiscal irresponsibility has cost jobs, spiked inflation, put the currency in a tailspin and
even brought the country to the brink of a default. The possibility of default may have resulted in
the liberalisation of the economy in 1991, but the key trigger was irrational public spending on
borrowed money in the late-1980s.
A clear fiscal policy framework in tandem with the monetary policy framework already adopted
could act as a powerful signal of commitment to macroeconomic stability.
3.3. Sharpen The Focus On Growth

Context
The persistence of relatively low growth over a five-year period calls for a critical examination. The
policymakers are required to turn their attention to the major task of accelerating economic growth.
The decline in the growth rate is not a recent phenomenon. It started in 2011-12.
Determinants of Growth
The Harrod-Domar equation says that the growth rate is determined by two factors the
investment rate and the efficiency in the use of capital.
o The growth rate is equal to the investment rate divided by the incremental capital-output
ratio.
o The incremental capital-output ratio (ICOR) is the amount of capital required to produce one
unit of output. The higher the ICOR, the less efficient we are in the use of capital.
The Indian performance in the last five years shows that there is a decline in the investment rate
and a rise in ICOR; both of which can only lead to a lower growth rate.
ICOR is determined by a variety of factors including technology, skill of manpower, managerial
competence and also macroeconomic policies. Thus delays in the completion of projects, lack
of complementary investments in related sectors and the non-availability of critical inputs can all
lead to a rise in ICOR.
Indias investment rate reached a peak in 2007-08 at 38.0% of GDP. There is a steady decline
in the investment rate since then. According to the latest estimates, the gross fixed capital
formation rate fell to as low as 26.9% in 2016-17. With this investment rate, it is simply
impossible to achieve a growth rate in range of 8 to 9%.
Reason Behind Declining Investment Rate
During 2011-2012 - policy paralysis, pointing to the inability of the government to take policy
decisions because of coalition compulsions.
The external environment was also not encouraging. The growth rate of the advanced
economies remained low and the recovery from the crisis of 2008 was tepid which had an
adverse impact on exports. However, India benefited by large capital inflows except in 2013.
For almost three years beginning 2010, India had to cope with a high level of inflation which
also had an adverse impact on investment sentiment.
Solutions
Once the growth rate starts to decline, it sets in motion a vicious cycle of decline in investment and
lower growth. We need to break this chain in order to move on to a higher growth path.
1. The standard prescription, whenever private investment is weak, is to raise public investment
which can take a longer term view. Public sector undertakings should indicate the extent of
investment they intend to make during the current fiscal. This will inspire confidence among
prospective private investors. However, it is also necessary to enhance private investment, and
that too private corporate investment.
2. Reforms to simplify procedures, speed up the delivery system, and enlarge competition must be
pursued vigorously. Some significant steps have been taken in this regard in recent years such
as moving forward on the GST Bill, passing of the Bankruptcy Act, and enlarging the scope of
foreign direct investment.
3. All viable stalled projects must be brought to completion.
4. Financial bottlenecks need to be cleared. The banking system is under stress. The non-
performing loans of the system have risen and are rising. Asset restructuring companies are
part of the solution.
5. Long-term lending
a) Investment, as they say, is an act of faith in the future. If there has to be investment
resurgence, it is necessary to create the climate which promotes this faith.
b) The animal spirits are also influenced by what happens in the polity and society.
Avoidance of divisive issues is paramount in this context. Undiluted attention to
development is the need of the hour.
3.4. Rail Development Authority (RDA): A Paradigmatic Shift

Why In News
The Cabinet has approved the formation of an independent rail regulatory authority through an
executive order.
The railways cater to some 23 million passengers a day in a network of about 8,000 stations.
The RDA is meant to improve the services offered to passengers, provide comfort to investors
and enhance transparency and accountability.
Why It Was Required
The need of having a rail regulator has been emphasised by various committees like the
National Transport Development Policy Committee (NTDPC), 2014 and Bibek Debroys
Committee, 2015.

o The NTDPC noted that the centralisation of all functions in the Railway Board has proved
detrimental to the organisations growth, particularly at a time when there is a need for
massive investment in infrastructure for 7%-plus GDP growth.
o One of the big challenges before Centre is to facilitate higher non-budgetary investment in
the railways. The Bibek Committee found the private sector is discouraged from participating
more effectively due to a monopolistic framework.
o In the Railway Budget 2015-16, Railways had announced that for the purpose of orderly
development of infrastructure enabling competition and protection of customer interest, it is
important to have a regulation mechanism independent of the service provider.
The declining rates of growth in railway freight revenues and volumes since 2011-12 is required
to be reversed.
There is popular aspiration for a modern system that offers high-quality travel with low risk of
accidents and smooth freight transfer.
Functions of RDA
The RDA will act within the parameters of the Railway Act, 1989 and its major functions will be
o tariff determination - pricing of services commensurate with costs.
o recommending principles for classification of commodities.
o framing principles for social service obligation.
o suggest measures for enhancement of non-fare revenue.
o promote competition, encourage market development and create positive environment for
investment.
It will make suggestions regarding policies for private investment to ensure reasonable
safeguards to PPP investors and to resolve disputes over future concession agreements.
It will also suggest measures for absorption of new technologies and human resource
development and provide framework for non-discriminatory open access to the Dedicated
Freight Corridor infrastructure.
It will also be responsible for setting efficiency and performance standards besides global best
practices and benchmarking.
Challenges Ahead
The robust economic expansion raises the demand for railway services. To reconcile this, the
regulator has to identify sectors that can support higher tariffs and also produce greater volumes
of traffic.
Coming up with a system that de-risks private investment and creates a level playing field.
RDA will have to ensure that the resources of the system are optimally utilised, overcoming
existing inefficiencies that arise from the fact that policy, regulatory and management functions
of the railways are intertwined.
Way Forward
Technology upgrades are essential to raise carrying capacity, service frequency and speeds.
More use of IT will bring higher levels of efficiency and lower costs, besides adding jobs.
Inducting faster, more comfortable trains on 500 km-plus inter-city routes would attract new
traffic, and help operate cheaper passenger trains to interior areas.
Lacking autonomy: The authority should be set up through a statutory support by amending
the Railway Act so that its recommendations become binding on the government. The
regulators like TRAI, AERAI, IRDA, CERC, TAMP and PFRDA have the sanction of Parliament
and have been accorded a statutory status.
Rail reform is complex and what was undertaken in Europe during the 1990s, separating
infrastructure from operations, is an interesting model: sequential measures achieved
sustainable results, rather than a package of changes introduced at once.

3.5. Nuclear Safety Regulatory Authority Bill: Statutory Backing Key To Better Safety
Why In News
The NSRA Bill, 2011, could not be taken up for consideration due to dissolution of 15th Lok
Sabha.
The new NSRA Bill signals Indias decision to accord a statutory status to the Atomic Energy
Regulatory Board (AERB), which was set up through an executive order, and make it
completely independent of the Department of Atomic Energy.
It will strengthen the functional independence of the countrys atomic regulator and give it the
necessary statutory backing.
Present Nuclear Regulatory Mechanism
The AERB, established in 1983 through a gazette notification, is entrusted with the task of
regulating the safety aspects of the countrys civilian nuclear facilities and overseeing the
opening up of a civil nuclear market that has an estimated business potential of $60-100
billion.
The head of the AERB reports to the Atomic Energy Commission, which incidentally is headed
by the Secretary of the Department of Atomic Energy.
Rationale For New Mechanism
The legislative frameworks under which nuclear regulators in advanced countries works offer
near complete functional and operational autonomy for the regulator.
o These include the guarantee of their independent statutory status, their mandate to keep the
public fully informed on matters of nuclear safety, sharing of joint responsibility to ensure
physical security of installations.
o The authority to penalise offenders who violate the provisions of the act, and the submission
of annual reports of their activities to their respective legislatures.
o In India, the way things stand currently, the AERB lacks that sort of autonomy.
Spread of nuclear projects and the importance of the role of regulator for promotion of safe
use of nuclear and radiation technology.
In 1997, the Raja Ramanna Committee report had recommended that the Atomic Energy Act
(1962) should be amended to bolster the effectiveness of the nuclear regulatory mechanism.
The lack of functional autonomy of the Indian nuclear regulator has been flagged as a concern,
both by global nuclear vendors and the international atomic sector watchdog. It will smoothen
India entry to the NSG.
3.6. Wholesale And Long-Term Finance Banks(WLTFB)

Background
The RBI has proposed setting up WLTF banks to finance industrial and infrastructure projects
with higher capital and non-reliance on savings deposits.
The 12th Five Year Plan had projected the infrastructure financing requirement for the country
at $ 1 trillion during the plan period and the funding gap is estimated to be above Rs 500,000
crore.
Outside of budgetary support, which accounts for about 45 % of the total infrastructure
spending, commercial banks are the second largest source of finance for infrastructure (about
24 %). However, banks have since been saddled with non-performing and restructured assets
in the infrastructure sector.
o Till December 2015, loans to the infrastructure sector accounted for 13 % of NPAs in the
banking sector.

o About 34 % of restructured standard advances were in infrastructure sector, of which, three
sectors viz., power, transport, and telecom constituted nearly 90 per cent.
The RBIs Financial Stability Report had stated that the bank's current processes and business
models may not yet be adequately prepared to make, monitor and manage long-term project
loans.
Features Of WLTF Banks As Per RBIs Discussion Paper
These banks are expected to be very large institutions from the beginning to take on large
exposure to industrial, commercial and infrastructure sector.
WLTF banks are not expected to have significant retail exposure. WLTF banks are not expected
to accept savings deposits. Current account and term deposits of higher threshold (say above
Rs 10 crore) may be mobilized by these banks.
Sources of funding
o Primary sources of funds for WLTF banks could be a combination of term deposits, debt /
equity capital raised from primary market issues or private placement, and term borrowings
from banks and other financial institutions.
o WLTF banks can issue bonds locally or abroad in rupee-denomination. Other funding
sources such as commercial bank borrowing, certificate of deposits, securitization of assets
etc. will be available for WLTF banks.
Functions: It will focus primarily on lending to infrastructure sector and small, medium and
corporate businesses. They will also mobilize liquidity for banks and financial institutions.
Some Facts
WLTF banks will have a higher level of initial minimum paid-up equity capital, say Rs 1,000
crore or more. The initial minimum paid-up voting equity capital for a universal bank is fixed at
Rs 500 crore.
In the case of differentiated banks such as payments banks (PBs) and small finance banks
(SFBs), the initial minimum paid-up equity capital is Rs 100 crore.
These banks would be exempt from opening branches in rural and semi-urban areas and
not be forced to lend to agriculture and weaker sections of the society under the so-called
priority sector norms. Also, unlike commercial banks WLTFBs may not be required to
maintain statutory liquidity ratio (SLR).
However, WLTFBs will have to maintain cash reserve ratio (CRR) like other commercial
banks but not for funds raised through infrastructure bonds. Eligibility of promoters for these
Banks will be the same as for the 'on tap' universal banking licence, which means large
industrial houses cannot take more than 10 per cent stake in these banks.
Way forward
WLTF banks will be required to devise sophisticated financial products as per the diverse
infrastructural needs of India.
Risk mitigation: Their risk perception may be higher than that of universal banks. So, they
have to heavily invest in information technology and skill building to mitigate the risks.
3.7. NITI Aayog Governing Council Meet

Key Takeaway
The Five Year Plans the last one ended on March 31, 2017 were relegated to history, to
be replaced by a 3-year action plan. This was to be part of a 7-year strategy that would in turn
help realise a 15-year long-term vision.
The India 2031-32: Vision, Strategy and Action Agenda visualises a New India which will
ensure housing for all with toilets, LPG, power and digital connections; access to a personal
vehicle, air conditioner and white goods for nearly all; and a fully literate population with
universal health care.
Niti Aayogs three-year draft action agenda details sector-wise expenditure allocation for three
years, proposes shifting additional revenues to high priority sectors such as health, education,
defence, roads among others, doubling farmers income by 2022, creating jobs, bringing down
land prices, transport and digital connectivity and building an inclusive society.
The work on the Fifteen Year Vision and Seven Year Strategy document spanning 2017-18 to
2031-32 is in progress.
a) It states that the country's gross domestic product or the economy would rise to Rs 469 lakh
crore in 2031-32 from Rs 137 lakh crore level in 2015-16.
b) It envisioned that per capita income would increase three-fold to Rs 3.14 lakh in 2031-32
from Rs 1.06 lakh in 2015-16.
c) It also calls for having a much larger and modern network of roads, railways, waterways and
air connectivity and a clean India where citizens would have access to quality air and water
PM has asked the States to take the initiative on switching Indias financial year to match the
calendar year (Jan-Dec).
Niti Aayogs 3-Year Draft Action Agenda Suggestions
The draft agenda underlined the need for recalibrating the role of the government by limiting
its involvement in activities that do not serve a public purpose. It includes the closure of loss-
making CPSEs and strategic disinvestment in 20 state-owned companies.
Creation of an institutional mechanism to promote competition through comprehensive
review and reform of government regulations across all sectors, besides strengthening of the
public procurement system. The PM urges states to use the GeM platform - Government e-
Marketplace, to reduce corruption and increase transparency in government procurement.
Taxation Reforms: Steps to check tax evasion, expand tax base and simplify taxation system
through reforms. It suggested the government could consider consolidating existing custom duty
rates to a unified rate.
Housing Reforms: Stressing the need to bring down land prices to make housing affordable
through increased supply of urban land, it suggested the need of reform in the Rent Control Act
along the lines of the Model Tenancy Act.
o More flexible conversion rules from one use to another, release of land held by sick units,
release of other urban land potentially available and more generous floor space index.
o It also recommended setting up of dormitory housing for migrants.
Reorient Social Sector Subsidies
o Indias social sector subsidies should be reoriented so that beneficiaries dont become
dependent on them.
o Within revenue expenditures, subsidies have tended to crowd out the socially more
productive expenditures such as those on education and health.
o Better targeting through the use of the socio-economic caste survey and DBT.
o It mooted a reduction in food subsidies as a proportion of GDP by 2019-20 through better
targeting and rationalisation measures.
Agriculture Reforms: The draft action agenda on the agriculture sector, which seeks to double
the income of farmers by 2022, include reform of the Agriculture Produce Marketing to ensure
that farmers receive remunerative prices.
o Raising productivity through enhanced irrigation, faster seed replacement and precision
agriculture. The farmers should be encouraged to shift to high-value commodities like
horticulture, animal husbandry and fisheries.
With regard to Energy Sector, it pitched for adopting consumer friendly measures such as
provision of electricity to all households by 2022, LPG connection to all BPL households,
elimination of black carbon by 2022 and extension of the city gas distribution programme to 100
smart cities.
o To reduce the cross-subsidy in the power sector to ensure competitive supply of electricity to
the industry.
o Reforming the coal sector by setting up a regulator, encouraging commercial mining and
improving labour productivity.
Transport and Digital Connectivity
o Strengthening infrastructure in roadways, railways, shipping and ports, inland waterways
and civil aviation.
o Ensuring last-mile digital connectivity, particularly for e-governance and financial inclusion,
through developing infrastructure, simplifying the payments structure and improving literacy.
o Facilitate PPP by reorienting the role of the India Infrastructure Finance Company Ltd
(IIFCL). There is a need to "introduce low cost debt instruments and operationalise the
National Investment Infrastructure Fund (NIIF)".
Job Creation
o creation of coastal employment zones to boost exports and generating high-productivity
jobs.
o enhancing labour-market flexibility through reforms of key laws
Addressing the high and rising share of NPAs in India's bank through supporting action of larger
assets to private reconstruction companies (ARCs) and strengthening the State Bank of India-
led by ARC.
Science and Technology
o Creating a 'National Science, Technology & Innovation Foundation' to identify and deliberate
national issues, recommend priority interventions in S&T and prepare frameworks for their
implementation.
o Developing guidelines for PPPs in S&T to improve education and industry-academia
linkages for demand-driven research.
o Streamlining the administration of the patent regime.
Enhanced focus on public health through significantly increasing government expenditure on it
and suggested establishing a focal point and setting up a dedicated cadre.
o Generate and disseminate periodic, district-level data as per uniform protocols.
o Launching the National Nutrition Mission and developing a comprehensive Nutrition
Information System.
Criticism
It outlined a vision, but has failed to reveal the path. Without the larger strategy and vision in
place, the three-year action plan is likely to be more of an abstract wish list that Chief Ministers
will now evaluate and revert on. Effectively, till it is ratified by the Council, there is a vacuum in
Indias policy framework similar to the delayed starts of past Five Year Plans.
It is not yet apparent if the 12th Plans innovation of painting alternative scenarios (of actions
and outcomes) a more useful tool for longer-term planning has been adopted.
To make cooperative federalism truly effective, the Council or Team India, must meet more
often a nearly two-year gap in doing so is a recipe for communication breakdown.
3.8. Aadhaar-Based Payments Via BHIM Launched For Merchants

Background
Prime Minister launched the BHIM-Aadhaar (a digital payment platform that uses the Aadhaar
number) in Nagpur on the occasion of the 126th birth anniversary of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar. The
government is working towards making India a digital economy and Digidhan is an important

part of it. The PM said that very soon, the Digidhan will be synonymous with Nijidhan [private
property]. The Digidhan is a big campaign against corruption and black money.
What is BHIM-Aadhaar App
Developed by National Payments Corporation of India, the Aadhaar-linked BHIM mobile app is
based on the Unified Payment Interface. The app is available on google play store and iOS for
merchants.
The new service will allow customers to make purchases using their Aadhaar number linked
with their bank account. It will allow every Indian citizen to transact digitally using their thumb
imprint on a merchants biometric-enabled device.
This platform doesnt require to have a mobile phone for digital transactions.
This will directly cater to about 40 crore bank account customers spread across the country
whose account is linked with Aadhaar. It is a huge opportunity for enabling digital transactions
as about 99 per cent of adult population is now Aadhaar enabled.
3.9. SEBI Board Clears Big Ticket Market Reforms

Integration of stock brokers SEBI decided to grant a unified licence to brokers and clearing
members to operate in commodity derivative as well as equity markets.
o The integration of stock brokers in equity and commodity derivative markets while having
many synergies in terms of trading and settlement mechanism, risk management, redressal
of investor grievances etc would benefit investors, brokers, stock exchanges and SEBI.
o Besides, it will increase economic efficiency in terms of meeting operational and compliance
obligations at the member level, potentially resulting in ease of doing business.
o Also, the integration will help in widening market penetration and facilitate effective
regulatory oversight by stock exchanges and SEBI.
Stricter P-Note norms to curb black money
o To curb any flow of illicit funds in markets, SEBI decided to bar resident and non-resident
Indians (NRIs) from making investments through P-notes.
o To strengthen the regulatory framework for offshore derivative instruments (ODIs),
commonly known as participatory notes (P-Notes), which have been long seen as being
possibly misused for routing of black money from abroad.
o There are fears that the P-Note investments may start coming from other jurisdictions like
the U.S., France and the Netherlands after tightening of rules for inflows from Mauritius,
Singapore and Cyprus
It replaced the two-decade-old insider-trading rules with the new prohibition of insider trading
(PIT) regulations, and amending the existing delisting regulations.
o The rules around insider trading have been strengthened by clearing new definitions of
unpublished price-sensitive information (USPI), insider and connected persons.
o An insider would now mean a person who is in possession of or has access to price-
sensitive information. A connected person definition would include immediate relatives.
o The regulator said any price-sensitive information could not be communicated to anyone
without legitimate purposes.
Other Reforms
o Green signal for options contracts in commodity derivatives.
o Non-banking finance companies with a net worth of at least Rs 500 crore will be classified
as QIB (qualified institutional buyers).
o MFs allowed to launch schemes - Income will increase for mutual funds which havent met
net worth requirements. Regime change for fundraising through electronic IPOs: E-IPOs
to cut down listing time from around two weeks, to four days.

3.10. RBIs Nod To Bank Investment In REITs And InvITs
Context
In its first monetary policy review of this financial year, the RBI permitted banks to invest in Real
Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) and Infrastructure Investment Trusts (InvITs).
Banks can invest up to 10 % of the unit capital of an REITs or InvITs. It will help revive the cash-
starved infrastructure sector and bring down the cost of capital for developers.
Impact
It will allow greater institutional participation in the real estate sector. Banks will now have route
to investment into real estate, in turn helping the liquidity within the sector.
As a key take away, RBI and SEBI have shown faith in real estate investment foreseeing
positive and secured return in mid to long term on account of steady economic growth.
The SEBI has put in place regulations for REITs and InvITs and had requested the RBI to allow
banks to participate in these schemes.
About REITs
REITs are similar to mutual funds. While mutual funds provide for an opportunity to invest in
equity stocks, REITs allow one to invest in income-generating real estate assets (which
could be offices, residential apartments, shopping centres, hotels and warehouses).
REITs was introduced to provide a platform to investors for a safe investments in the real
estate market.
The trusts are listed in stock exchanges so that investors can buy units in the trust. REITs
are structured as trusts. The trustee has duties as laid out in the trust deed for the REIT.
These typically include ensuring compliance with applicable laws and protecting the rights of
unit holders as well.
Retail investors in REITs - The minimum amount required to be put into an REIT is Rs.2
lakh. Since 90 per cent of the profit generated needs to be distributed as dividend in REIT, it
could provide a stable income for unit holders.
Tax - Short-term capital gain tax is applicable for unit holders at the rate of 15 %. While
interest is tax-exempt for REITs, it is taxable for unit holders.
About InvITs
An InvITs is like a mutual fund, which enables direct investment of small amounts of money
from possible individual/institutional investors in infrastructure to earn a small portion of the
income as return.
InvITs work like mutual funds or REITs in features. InvITs can be treated as the modified
version of REITs designed to suit the specific circumstances of the infrastructure sector.
Differences
The objectives are different. REITs will address the issue of lack of housing facilities. On the
other hand, InvITs will help to channelize long-term funds for infrastructure development. But,
both are going to help reduce the burden on traditional banking sector for credit requirement
related to both.
The minimum subscription size for REIT units will INR 2,00,000. For InvIT is INR 10,00,000.
3.11. PM Reviews Performances Of Key Infrastructure Sectors

The PM reviewed the working in sectors including roads, railways, airports, ports, digital, and
coal. It was noted that remarkable progress has been made in several areas and infrastructure
sectors but there is still a lot of rooms for innovation and improvements.
The roads and railways sectors - a consolidated approach to existing projects, and working
towards their completion within strict timelines was stressed.

o The highest ever average daily construction rate of 130 km has been achieved for rural
roads under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana.
o This has led to an addition of 47,400 kms of PMGSY roads in 2016-17. 11,641 additional
habitations have been connected with roads in the same period.
o Over 4000 km of rural roads have been constructed using green technology in the Financial
Year 2016-17.
o The use of non-conventional materials such as waste plastic, cold mix, geo-textiles, fly ash,
iron and copper slag is being pushed aggressively.
o The PM has directed efficient and stringent monitoring of rural roads, construction and their
quality. For this, he emphasized on use of space technology in addition to the technologies
already being used, such as the Meri Sadak App.
o He called for expeditious completion of vital links which will connect the remaining
unconnected habitations at the earliest.
o He directed NITI Aayog to examine global standards in the application of technology for
infrastructure creation, and their feasibility in India.
o In the Highways Sector, over 26,000 km of four or six lane national highways have been
built in FY17, and the pace is improving.
o In the railways sector, 953 km of new lines were laid in 2016-17, as against the target of 400
km.
o Track electrification of over 2000 km and gauge conversion of over 1000 km was achieved
in the same period. More than 1500 unmanned level crossings have been eliminated in
2016-17.
o Among measures to enhance customer experience, Wi-Fi access was enabled in 115
railway stations, and 34,000 bio-toilets added.
o He called for speeding up of work related to redevelopment of railway stations, and greater
creativity in the generation of non-fare revenue.
o Progress of important projects in the roads and railways sectors, such as the Eastern
Peripheral Expressway, Char Dham Project, the Quazigund-Banihal Tunnel, the Chenab
railway bridge, and the Jiribam-Imphal project was also reviewed.
In the Aviation Sector, the Regional Connectivity Scheme will connect 43 destinations,
including 31 unserved destinations. The passenger capacity in the aviation sector has reached
282 million passengers per annum.
In the Ports sector, under the Sagarmala project, 415 projects have been identified with
investment of Rs. 8 lakh crore, and projects worth 1.37 lakh crore rupees have been taken up
for implementation.
o He stressed on better outcomes for turnaround time of ships and clearance for Exim cargo.
o The highest ever capacity addition of 100.4 MTPA in major ports has been recorded in
2016-17. All 193 lighthouses are now powered by solar energy.
o Digitization of land records has been completed in all major ports.
In the Digital Infrastructure Sector, 2187 mobile towers have been installed in districts
affected by Left Wing Extremists, in 2016-17. Progress of the National Optical Fibre Network
was reviewed. He emphasized that the emerging digital connectivity network, which will connect
thousands of Gram Panchayats within the next few months, should be backed up by appropriate
governance steps, so that it can lead to better quality of life, and greater empowerment of
people in rural areas.
In Coal Sector, rationalization of coal linkages and movement yielded an annual saving of over
Rs. 2500 crore in 2016-17. Noting the decline in coal imports in the last year, the PM asked for
even more vigorous efforts towards coal import substitution, and application of new coal
technologies including gasification technology.

3.12. Centre Allows States To Get Direct Funding For Infra Projects
The existing rules do not allow state government entities to borrow directly from external
agencies. Currently, the Central government receives external development assistance on
behalf of the state governments for state sector projects/ programmes.
The government has approved the policy guidelines to allow financially sound state
government entities to borrow directly from bilateral ODA (Official Development Assistance)
partners for implementation of vital infrastructure projects.
o While state governments will furnish guarantee for such loans, the Centre will provide
counter guarantee.
o Such direct borrowings by state entities would not be counted in the calculation of their
respective fiscal deficits, under the states FRBM laws.
The decision will benefit important projects like the Mumbai Trans-Harbour Link (MTHL). The
estimated project cost is Rs 17,854 crore, out of which the loan from JICA is expected to be Rs
15,109 crore.
The approval of these guidelines reiterates Governments commitment to promote inclusive
growth and strengthen the economy.
3.13. Loan Waivers Can Cripple Farmers

Context
The UP government waived the loans of about 94 lakh small and marginal farmers in the state.
The Madras High Court directed the Tamil Nadu government to extend farm loan waiver
scheme benefit, originally meant for small and marginal farmers, to all agriculturists in the state.
While the UP order will apply to both commercial and cooperative banks in the state, the
Madras High Court directive pertains to only cooperative banks.
The UP governments measure will entail a fiscal cost of Rs 36,359 crore while the TN govt will
have to fork out nearly Rs 2,000 crore to compensate cooperative banks in the state.
There is no denying that the agrarian distress in different parts of the country calls for urgent
and immediate relief to farmers. But governments have been resorting to measures such as
loan waivers without paying serious attention to the underlying crisis they seek to mitigate.
Issues With Loan Waivers
The failure of past farm loan waivers in ameliorating farm distress. Short term populism will
not solve the inherent and systematic fault lines in agriculture.
Loan waiver schemes are not good for the health of banks. It does not address the
fundamental causes of agrarian distress. Such measures disincentive individuals from
becoming self-reliant.
It will have a cascading effect. Already, the Shiv Sena has demanded that the Maharashtra
government must emulate UP. Others, from Punjab to Karnataka, are also bound to follow. And
long-term solutions to farmers problems will get further delayed.
Credit Culture - It disrupt credit discipline among borrowers and also disrupt the credit market.
Challenge to fiscal consolidation - It is a key risk to the new fiscal deficit roadmap proposed by
the N K Singh committee. The CEA said that it could cost 2% of GDP.
o Nabard spoke against omnibus waivers and described farm loan waivers as a moral
hazard.
o The RBI Governor also came out against loan waivers saying that they undermine honest
credit culture and also impact the balance sheet of the government
A number of studies have pointed to the real problems that the loan waiver will not address:

o Most farmers do not earn enough from agriculture to meet even their essential consumption
expenditures, leave alone those on education, health care, marriage and other social
obligations for which they are often forced to borrow from private moneylenders.
o Investment is required that help boost productivity and incomes in the long term.
Way Forward
Loan waivers, at best, provide temporary relief and liquidity to farmers. But that liquidity is
better provided through an efficient crop insurance system.
The Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana is a good start, even though it has been riddled with
implementation glitches. The government should use modern technology into service
satellite imagery, GPS devices, drones to assess farmers damages and settle insurance
claims speedily.
NITI Aayog said that focus must be on those in distress in a targeted manner.
3.14. Time To Deepen The Structural Reforms In The Economy

1. Continued fiscal consolidation, a modest current account deficit, subdued inflation, enhancing
public and private consumption.
2. The downside risks of exogenous shocks from sharp increases in commodity prices,
particularly oil, a sudden global slowdown impacting remittances and exports or
unpredictability relating to the Chinese economy now look modest.
3. Macro policies
a) The OECDs survey raises concerns about Indias large interest payments due to the
high levels of public debt as compared to other emerging economies.
b) FRBM Review Committee - projects a declining debt-to-GDP ratio to approximately 60%
by 2023.
c) Improving the quality of public expenditure, particularly in infrastructure, health and
education.
d) The health of the banking and financial sector. The twin balance sheet problem of both
corporates and banks, highlighted in the Economic Survey, has a relationship but would
need differentiated actions.
4. Rule-based management of the economy
a) The constitution of the Monetary Policy Committee, GST Council, Banks Board
Bureau, are robust examples.
b) In this endeavour, seeking consensus on a forward banking reform path would be the
principal mandate of the Banking and Finance Council.
c) The problem is somewhat complicated, by the RBI acting as the principal banking
ombudsman with inherent conflict of interest. In the long run, we need an alternative
mechanism for the banking sector.
5. Digitisation dividend - reducing dependence on cash transactions will accelerate the pace of
financial inclusion and formalisation of the informal economy.
6. The GST transformation - the GST (Goods and Services Tax) regime and decisive move
towards formalisation of the economy using technology would reduce disparities.
7. Local government entities need greater empowerment.
a) These go beyond the enhanced devolution of resources based on the recommendation of
the Thirteenth Finance Commission, more importantly of the Fourteenth Finance
Commission. Making grants available in two parts a basic grant and performance
grant will make a difference.
b) Enabling local bodies to impose and realise property taxes and other levies would
strengthen their financial viability.

c) In fact, the Fifteenth Finance Commission, yet to be constituted, while reviewing the
implementation of past recommendations can consider incentivising States on
empowerment and delegation of powers to local bodies.
8. Seeking to replicate best governance practices in labour and product markets among the
States could also prove beneficial in mitigating inter-State growth divergence.
3.15. Project Saksham

Introduction of GST will result in a several-fold increase in the number of taxpayers and
resultant document load on the system.
CBEC's current IT system was set up in 2008. It cannot cater to the increased load under GST
without an immediate upgrade of its IT Infrastructure.
CBEC's IT systems need to integrate with the Goods & Services Tax Network (GSTN) for
processing of registration, payment and returns data sent by GSTN systems to CBEC, as well
as act as a front-end for other modules like Audit, Appeal, Investigation.
Thus, Project Saksham was launched. It is a new indirect tax network (Systems Integration) of
the Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC).
There is no overlap in the GST-related systems of CBEC and GSTN.
It will help in:
o Implementation of Goods and Services Tax (GST),
o Extension of the Indian Customs Single Window Interface for Facilitating Trade (SWIFT)
and
o Other taxpayer-friendly initiatives under Digital India and Ease of Doing Business of Central
Board of Excise and Customs.

4. INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS
4.1. Chemical Attack In Syria
In the suspected chemical attack by Syrian authority, more than 70 people have been killed in
northern Syria after being exposed to a toxic gas that was dropped from warplanes.
Global Response
In the aftermath of the chemical attack, a UN team supervised the surrender of Syrias sarin
(toxic chemical) supplies, the removal of which was supposed to have been completed early in
2014. However suspicions have remained that a portion of the stockpile was not declared to
inspectors.
The attack will refocus attention on the failure of the international community to prevent the
worst abuses in Syrias war and casts doubt on a signature achievement of Obamas
government which negotiated the presumed destruction of Assads chemical arsenal in 2013. It
is to be noted that Assad has also earlier used chemical weapons against its own civilians in
Sept 2013.
US Missile Attack
In the response of a suspected chemical weapons attack by the Assad regime on civilians in the
rebel-held town of Khan Sheikhoun, the US launched 59 Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles. The
Turkish Health Ministry confirmed that the chemical was the banned nerve agent sarin.
Following up on a limited U.S. military strike against Syria, the U.S. administration also
announced new sanctions on the Syrian government.
About Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW)
The OPCW is the implementing body of the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), which
entered into force in 1997. It has 192 Member States. Of those, seven Albania, India, Iraq,
Libya, Russia and the United States, along with a country identified by the OPCW only as "a
State Party" but widely believed to be South Korea have declared stockpiles of chemical
weapons.
Albania, India and "a third country" believed to be South Korea have completed
destruction of their declared stockpiles. The OPCW Member States share the collective goal
of preventing chemistry from ever again being used for warfare, thereby strengthening
international security. To this end, the Convention contains four key provisions:
o Destroying all existing chemical weapons under international verification by the OPCW;
o Monitoring chemical industry to prevent new weapons from re-emerging;
o Providing assistance and protection to States Parties against chemical threats; and
o Fostering international cooperation to strengthen implementation of the Convention and
promote the peaceful use of chemistry.
4.2. Terrorist Attack In Russia

Why In News
In the recent terrorist explosion on Metro train in
Russian city of St Petersburg, more than
14 people were killed and several injured
by briefcase bomb. The investigators confirmed
that the suspect in the deadly blast is a Kyrgyz-
born Russian citizen.

Who Is Responsible For The Attack
Though it is not confirmed but the suspicions of the Russian officials were on two possible
suspects: An IS-inspired group enraged by recent Russian airstrikes in Syria and Chechen
nationalists (or even a combination of both).
Chechen militants and international jihadists do have a track record of plotting to attack Russia's
transport hubs, notably in Moscow. ISIS is also trying to destabilize Russia. An estimated 7,000
Russians have travelled to Syria to join extremist groups, out of which some have returned.
Chechen Terrorism in Russia
Chechens are largely Muslim ethnic minority living primarily in Russia's North Caucasus region.
For the past two hundred years, they have generally been governed by Moscow, though they
have had varying degrees of de facto autonomy.
During World War II, Soviet leader Joseph Stalin accused the Chechens of cooperating with the
Nazis and forcibly deported the entire population to Kazakhstan and Siberia.
After the fall of the Soviet Union, Chechen separatists launched a coordinated campaign for
independence, which resulted in two devastating wars and an ongoing insurgency in Russia's
republic of Chechnya.
Militants in and around Chechnya continue to agitate for independence, violence in the North
Caucasus has escalated since 2008 and Moscow experienced its most serious attack in six
years with the bombing of a metro station in March 2010.
Experts say there are several ties between the Al-Qaeda network and Chechen groups. The
Taliban regime in Afghanistan was one of the only governments to recognize Chechen
independence.
4.3. U.S. North Korea Nuclear Issue

United States administration has geared its efforts to resolve the North Korean nuclear crisis and
asked for global cooperation for a preemptive strike against North Korea.
Nuclear Weapons and North Korea
North Korea has an active nuclear weapons program and tested nuclear explosive devices in
2006, 2009, 2013 and twice in 2016. The UN Security Council has issued a series of sanctions
against North Korea's nuclear program. The Six-Party Talks between North Korea, South
Korea, Japan, China, Russia, and the United States began in 2003 with the goal of
denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula. However, these talks have been suspended since April
2009. Tensions have continued to rise since North Korea torpedoed the South Korean naval
ship and shelled the island of Yeonpyeong in 2010.
North Korea possesses full nuclear fuel cycle capabilities including a presumed basic capability
to enrich uranium, although the functionality of its centrifuges has not yet been substantiated to
the outside world. North Korea is building a small light water reactor (LWR) at Yongbyon, which
will be fueled by the enriched uranium after it is completed. After the long efforts of global
community North Korea signed an IAEA safeguards agreement on January 30, 1992 and
ratified the agreement on April 9, 1992. Under the terms of the agreement, North Korea
provided an initial declaration of its nuclear facilities and materials and provided access for IAEA
inspectors to verify the completeness and correctness of its initial declaration.
However, IAEA analysis indicated that Korean technicians had reprocessed plutonium on three
occasionsin 1989, 1990, and 1991. When the Agency requested access to two suspect
nuclear waste sites, North Korea declared them to be military sites and therefore off-limits.
After the IAEA was denied access to North Korea's suspect waste sites in early 1993, it asked
the UNSC to authorize special ad hoc inspections. In reaction, North Korea announced its
intention to withdraw from the NPT on March 12, 1993.

On May 14, 1994, Korean technicians began removing the reactor's spent fuel rods without the
supervision of IAEA inspectors. This action worsened the emerging crisis because the random
placement of the spent fuel rods in a temporary storage pond compromised the IAEA's capacity
to reconstruct the operational history of the reactor, which could have been used in efforts to
account for the discrepancies in Pyongyang's reported plutonium reprocessing.
U.S.- North Korea Nuclear Issue
North Korea has periodically asserted its need for a nuclear deterrent since the Korean War,
when the United States threatened to use nuclear weapons against it.
The United States has pursued a variety of policy responses to the proliferation challenges
posed by North Korea including military cooperation with U.S. allies in the region, wide-ranging
sanctions and non-proliferation mechanisms such as export controls. The United States also
engaged in two major diplomatic initiatives aiming for North Korea to abandon its nuclear
weapons efforts in return for aid.
In 1994, faced with North Koreas announced intent to withdraw from the nuclear Non
Proliferation Treaty (NPT), the United States and North Korea signed the Agreed Framework
(first diplomatic initiative). Under this agreement, Pyongyang committed to freezing its illicit
plutonium weapons program in exchange for aid.
The second major diplomatic effort was the Six-Party Talks initiated in August of 2003 which
involved China, Japan, North Korea, Russia, South Korea, and the United States. In between
periods of stalemate and crisis, these talks arrived at critical breakthroughs first in 2005, when
North Korea pledged to abandon all nuclear weapons and existing nuclear programs and return
to the NPT and second in 2007 when the parties agreed on a series of steps to implement that
2005 agreement.
Those talks however broke down in 2009 following disagreements over verification and an
internationally condemned North Korea rocket launch. Pyongyang has since stated that it would
never return to the talks and is no longer bound by their agreements. The other five parties state
that they remain committed to the talks and have called for Pyongyang to recommit to its 2005
denuclearization pledge.
Current Situation
The U.S. administration has specifically talked about a preemptive strike against North Korea
and has a large US Navy carrier strike group steaming toward the region. And a US submarine
docked in South Korea recently as part of an explicit show of force. In response North Korea
has threatened to sink a US aircraft carrier and destroy American military bases in Japan.
It test-fired huge numbers of its artillery pieces (which are basically large guns capable of hitting
distant targets), including many of the ones capable of striking South Korea and conducted a
nuclear test. The U.S. has so far taken only the relatively modest steps of beginning the
deployment of anti-ballistic missile defense system to South Korea while pressuring China,
North Koreas most important ally, to do more to rein in Pyongyang.
North Korea, meanwhile issue threats fairly regularly and has for the moment limited its actions
to missile tests and high-profile military parades through the heart of Pyongyang. A new nuclear
test would send alarming signals to other nations.
4.4. Former Egyptian President Released

Why In News
Egypt's ex-President Hosni Mubarak has been released from detention after being cleared of
inciting the killings of hundreds of protesters in 2011 uprising. He had been sentenced to life in
2012 but an appeals court dismissed the charges two years later.
About 2011 Egyptian Uprising (Arab Spring)

The uprising began in December 2010 with unprecedented mass demonstrations against
poverty and corruption. Thus the political repression that broke out in several Arab countries
was known as Arab Spring. It challenged the authority of some of the most entrenched regimes
in the Middle East and North Africa.
The first demonstrations occurred in Tunisia in December 2010, which was triggered by the self-
immolation of a young man frustrated by Tunisias high unemployment rate and
rampant police corruption. The apparent success of the popular uprising in Tunisia inspired
similar movements in other countries including Egypt, Yemen and Libya
Such was the case in Egypt, where in 2011 a popular uprising began in the rule of one of the
regions longest-serving and most influential leaders President Hosni Mubarak.
In January 2011, activists in Egypt call for an uprising in their own country to protest against
poverty, unemployment, government corruption, police abuses and the rule of President Hosni
Mubarak who has been in power for three decades.
Demonstrators were gathered peacefully in central Cairo at Tahrir square on Jan. 25 to demand
an end to Mubarak's nearly 30 years in power and protest economic woes in the North African
nation. The protests came days after Tunisian leader Zine El Abidine Ben Ali was forced into
exile by demonstrations in his home country.
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak resigned and handed over power to the military, ousted by a
historic 18-day wave of anti-government demonstrations. Hundreds of thousands of Egyptians
took part in the protests aimed at forcing the longtime leader out of office. The unprecedented
protests on the streets of Cairo caught the world's attention.
Rule in Egypt post Hosni Mubarak
After Hosni Mubarak, democratically elected Mohamed Morsi became his successor. His ruling
years didnt succeed to bring in democracy and to redress the grievances of high
unemployment, corruption and poverty. This led to the overthrow of Mohamed Morsi in a
popularly backed military coup in 2013.
After two and a half years of confusion and disturbance, the military removed the countrys first
elected president, the Muslim Brotherhoodaffiliated Mohamed Morsi, from power on July 3,
2013. The former general Abdel Fatah al-Sisi became the leader of Egypt who is currently ruling
in Egypt.
4.5. MOAB - Massive Ordnance Air Blast Bomb

Why In News
The United States dropped its largest non nuclear bomb, MOAB- Massive Ordnance Air Blast
Bomb which was never deployed in combat on an Islamic State tunnel complex in Afghanistan.
The target was ISIS hideouts in the Achin district of Nangarhar province. In the bomb attack,
more than 36 suspected Islamic State militants were killed in Afghanistan.
About MOAB
The MOAB, colloquially called as mother of all bombs, is the most powerful non-nuclear weapon
in America's arsenal. It is designed for destroying underground targets but not itself a deep-
earth penetrator weapon; the bomb has the explosive yield of more than 11 tons of TNT.
The massive bomb is dropped from air force planes and detonates before reaching the ground,
resulting in an enormous blast radius. MOAB is a GPS-guided ammunition with fins and inertial
gyro for pitch and roll control.
Response of Afghan Government
The attack was against the Islamic State in Syria who declared Afghanistan as part of its
Caliphate and announced the formation of the Islamic State of Khorasan (ISK) in Afghainstan.
The sudden strike was applauded by the Kabul government.

The Afghan president, Ashraf Ghani, said it was a joint operation by Afghan and international
troops. But some officials voiced concern. Such as the mayor of Achin, where the attack took
place, questioned the necessity of such a large-scale strike against a relatively small militant
group.
Impacts of US strike
The response gave an indication that the new administration will no longer tolerate safe havens
for terrorists. Since the biggest safe havens are in Pakistan thus this strike is a warning to
Islamabad. The attack on ISK cadres will impact the terrorist groups that are already present
in the area such as LeT or TTP. Also shifting and process of rebranding can be expected.
The biggest beneficiary of the ISK in Nangarhar was the Taliban. Russia, apparently worried by
the ISK, is virtually in support of the Taliban. Other actors like China and Iran have also drifted
to the Taliban as a panacea for Afghan instability.
The US fears that fleeing IS fighters from Syria may resettle in Afghanistan. The attack was
against ISIS in Afghanistan. The U.S. strategy is that if ISK disappears completely in
Afghanistan, the Talibans value as an alternative force may reduce, particularly if it continues
with its bombing and killings.
This issue has significant geopolitical repercussions because the MOAB bombing is a
watershed moment for US military action against the terrorist group outside Iraq and Syria.
Strikes like this always affect the sovereign authority of the host state and do nothing to
enhance their counter-terrorism capabilities, while weakening the goal of collective self-
defence under the UN charter. Also, the bombing will do little to reduce instability in the region.
The Taliban and its affiliate, the Haqqani Network continues with their depredations.
Legitimacy of U.S. Actions Against ISIS in Afghanistan
US actions against ISIS, whether in Afghanistan, Syria or Iraq have their genesis in UN
Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1373, which declared terrorism to be a threat to
international peace and security. UNSCR 1373 empowers States to combat terrorism by all
means.
The US through its bilateral Enduring Strategic Partnership Agreement, 2012 and
the Security and Defence Cooperation Agreement (SDCA), 2014 with Afghanistan can
lawfully pursue military operations against terrorist safe havens in that country.
Though the Security Council resolutions against ISIS has not sanctioned the use of force
against ISIS but determined the group to be a threat to international peace, a concrete step is
required to be taken against ISIS.
Given the sanctions regime against ISIS, its recognition by the Security Council as a global
threat and the USs legal authority in Afghanistan to conduct military operations, its use of force
was arguably permissible under international law.
Concerns for India
The MOAB bombing is as much a strategic issue as it is about international law. This dramatic
event is likely to pose several concerns for India.
India also has projects in the province and if Indian assets have been damaged, the Ministry of
External Affairs should issue a nuanced statement on the bombing itself. In general, however,
the government would be ill-advised to allow a precedent for the unchecked use of military force
when Indian citizens may be caught in the crosshairs of anti-terror raids.
More importantly, the steady escalation of forceful measures against terrorist networks by the
US poses a political dilemma for India. On the one hand, New Delhi views US presence in
Afghanistan as necessary to lend stability to the region. On the other, the 16-year war on terror
has done nothing but concentrate decision-making, firepower and counter-terrorism capacity in
the hands of the US.

If a region-led solution to Afghanistans problems is what India seeks, that goal is now further
away and more dependent than ever on changing priorities in Washington, D.C. By controlling
the method and means of targeting terrorist networks in West and South Asia, major powers like
the US and Russia have destroyed any realistic chance for a multilateral convention on
combating terrorism.
Regional allies or partners today see the big powers as indispensable to tackling terrorism and
their support to India-led initiatives like the Comprehensive Convention on International
Terrorism will be conditioned by their bilateral relationship with Russia or the US.
By creating a hub and spoke model to counter international terrorism, the major powers today
have a veto on its legal regime, its proscribed actors and use of military force. The US decision
to drop a MOAB on Afghan territory is a spectacular visualisation of this reality.
4.6. Turkey Referendum

About The Referendum
Conducted on 16 April, the referendum was to decide whether to shift Turkey from a
parliamentary democracy to a presidential republic by the citizens of the country.
Turkey's President has argued the reforms would streamline policy implementation and bypass
the unnecessarily arduous parliamentary processes that have historically restricted progress.
A No vote would have rejected the chance for Turkey to become a presidential republic and
block Erdogan's attempt to wield greater powers.
Under the new system, the President will be able to stand in two more election cycles, which
means if the current president wins the 2019 and 2024 polls he could potentially stay on as a
powerful head of state until 2029.
Changes Proposed In Referendum
The role of Prime Minister will be scrapped. The new post of Vice President, possibly two or
three, will be created. The President becomes the head of the executive as well as the head of
state and retains ties to a political party. He or she will be given sweeping new powers to
appoint ministers, prepare the budget, choose the majority of senior judges and enact certain
laws by decree.
The President alone will be able to announce a state of emergency and dismiss parliament.
Parliament will lose its right to scrutinize ministers or propose an enquiry. However it will be able
to begin impeachment proceedings or investigate the President with a majority vote (2/3rd) by
MPs. Presidential and Parliamentary elections will be held on the same day every 5 years. The
president will be limited to two terms.
Outcome
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan narrowly won a historic referendum that will increase
his power but the knife-edge result left the country divided.
The "yes" campaign won by 51.4 percent of the vote against 48.6 percent for "no," in a count
based on 99.5 percent of the ballot boxes. Turnout was a high 85 percent.
The sweeping constitutional changes approved in the vote creates a presidential system that
will grant President Erdogan more power than any leader since modern Turkey's founder
Mustafa Kemal Ataturk and his successor Ismet Inonu.
Oppositions Response
The opposition supporters in anti-Erdogan districts of Istanbul showed their dissatisfaction and
Turkey's two main opposition parties said they would challenge the results over alleged
violations. The pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) said it would challenge two-thirds
of the votes, saying that there is an indication of a 3-4 % manipulation of the vote.
The opposition had complained that the referendum was conducted on unfair terms.

4.7. Pakistan Leases Gwadar Port To A State-Run Chinese Firm For 40 Years
Why In News
Pakistan has leased the operations of its strategic Gwadar port to a State-run Chinese firm, the
China Overseas Port Holding Company (COPHC) for a period of 40 years which is scheduled to
carry out all the developmental work on the port situated in the Balochistan province of
Pakistan.
About Gwadar Port
Gwadar Port is a warm-water, deep-sea
port situated on the Arabian Sea at Gwadar
in Balochistan province of Pakistan.
It is located at the mouth of the Persian
Gulf just outside the strategically important
Strait of Hormuz.
It features as the southern Pakistan hub of
the $57 billion China-Pakistan Economic
Corridor (CPEC) plan.
It is considered as a vital link between the
Chinese One Belt, One Road initiative and
the Maritime Silk Road project.
Significance of Gwadar Port
The port holds great strategic and economic significance for Pakistan. It is third important deep
sea port of Pakistan after Karachi and Qasim ports. It will provide strategic leverage to
Pakistan vis--vis India, as the port is far from Indian reach as compared to other two Pakistani
ports.
It is located at cross junction of international sea shipping and oil trade routes. Gwadar can act
as an international trade hub for Pakistan. Gwadar port would connect three regions, i.e.
Central Asia, South Asia and Middle East.
Economic Prosperity:
o It would open new job opportunities and help in the development of Baluchistan.
o It would help to increase Pakistans trade and commercial activities particularly in
Baluchistan province, so provincial grievances will be addressed. It would provide for free
trade zones and special economic zones (SEZ) that would help in the economic prosperity
of Baluchistan and Pakistan.
o Pakistan would be able to explore minerals, hydrocarbons, oil and gas resources of Central
Asian Regions.
o Gwadar will boost up co-operation of Pakistan with other countries in oil and energy sector.
Tourism, trade, hotel industry and state revenue will increase which will strengthened
countrys economy.
Gwadar will help Pakistan to monitor the Sea Lines of Communications (SLOCs) originating
from the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz. Gwadar will able to control the oil sea routes
and trade links among regions such as South Asia, Africa, Central Asia, Gulf and Middle East.
Through China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), China would benefit from the nearest
Gwadar port. Kashgar is 4500 Km while Gwadar is 2800 km from the Port of Shangai. The port
would provide China an access to Afghanistan and Central Asian Republics (CARs). The Strait
of Malacca can be blocked by India but Gwadar would provide an alternate sea route.
Challenges Faced
The port for the time being is facing many challenges such as lack of connectivity, under
developed infrastructure and associated facilities.

There are security concerns which need to be addressed.
Presently, India is using all tactics to counter the development of Gwadar port. It is heavily
investing in Iranian port Chahbahar, with the investment of US $85 million. After lifting of
economic sanctions on Iran, India is keener to work on Chahbahar as it considers Gwadar port
as part of Strings of Pearl strategy aimed to encircle India.
India wants to reduce Chinese influence in the region. India is attempting to reduce economic
importance of Gwadar. It has built roads from Afghanistan to connect with Chahbahar. For
instance, Zaranj-Delaram road.
India has already raised serious security concerns on the construction of CPEC which could be
proved detrimental of the development of Gwadar port.
Implications for India
Gwadar port offers serious strategic implications for India. Gwadar provides China a key
listening post to observe the Indian naval activities around the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Aden.
The Gwadar port, if fully operationalised, will wean Pakistan away from near-total dependence
on Karachi, which is much closer to India and hence within the Indian militarys strike range.
Lease of Gwadar port also helps China to encircle India (String of Pearls) and gain strategic
advantage in the region. India has apprehensions that these ports could be used for military
purpose as well.

5. INDIA AND WORLD
5.1. India-Bangladesh
Recently, the Prime Minister of Bangladesh Honble Sheikh Hasina visited India.
Key Highlights Of The Visit
During the visit, the two Prime Ministers affirmed that the relationship between India and
Bangladesh was anchored in history, culture, language and shared values of secularism,
democracy and countless other commonalities between the two countries.
The two Prime Ministers presided over a ceremony at the Manekshaw Centre in New Delhi in
honour of the Indian martyrs who fought alongside the Bangladeshi Muktijoddha (freedom
fighter) in the Great Liberation War of Bangladesh in 1971.
The two Prime Ministers welcomed the growing people-to-people contacts and agreed to further
increase exchanges between the two peoples. Hence it was decided to mark the year 2018 as
the Year of India in Bangladesh and 2019 as the Year of Bangladesh in India
The Indian Govt. announced a special medical scheme under which 100 Muktijoddhas of
Bangladesh will be provided medical treatment in Indian hospitals every year. The Muktijoddha
Scholarship Scheme for 10,000 heirs of Muktijhoddhas was extended for another 5 years.
There is an existing CBMP (Coordinated Border Management Plan) between India and
Bangladesh for effective border management and enhanced cooperation.
Security
o Recognizing that terrorism remains one of the biggest threats to stability in the region, the
two PMs called on the international community to end selective or partial approaches to
combating terrorism. They jointly called for the early adoption of a Comprehensive
Convention on International Terrorism by the UNGA.
o Need for effective operationalization of the bilateral Extradition Treaty was decided upon.
o Cooperation on checking the smuggling and circulation of fake currency notes and narcotics
was also discussed.
o The visit marked the signing of Standard Operating Procedures between the Indian
Border Security Force and the Border Guard Bangladesh to allow use of Indian border roads
for construction and maintenance of Border Posts of Border Guard Bangladesh as well as
use of medical facilities in remote border stretches.
Energy
o They welcomed the fact that a Trilateral Memorandum of Understanding between
Bangladesh, Bhutan and India for Cooperation in the field of Hydroelectric Power had been
worked out.
o MOU between Petrobangla and Petronet for the setting up of a Joint Venture Re-
gasification LNG Terminal at Kutubdia Island was signed. It was decided to set up Indian
Special Economic Zones (SEZ) quickly on the identified locations. These SEZs will
encourage Indian businessmen to bring in more investment to Bangladesh.
Connectivity
o Trial run of passenger train between Khulna and Kolkata took place and the fact that the
full-fledged service in this sector will be operational by July 2017 was welcomed. Decision
was taken to improve passenger facilities on the Kolkata-Dhaka Maitree Express.
o The new bus service between Kolkata -Khulna-Dhaka was launched to facilitate people-
to-people contacts. The cargo trial runs between Dhaka and Delhi were also started in the
previous year in October 2016.

Revision of the MoU on Border Haats - between the two countries that will ease up the
existing conditions for operation of Border Haats and enable opening up of more Border Haats-
was decided (based on the positive experience of the four operational Border Haats).
Prime Minister Hasina requested Prime Minister Modi for conclusion of the Interim Agreement
on Sharing of the Water of Teesta as agreed upon by both governments in January 2011.
The two Prime Ministers also directed concerned officials to conclude meanwhile discussions on
various aspects relating to sharing of waters of the Feni, Manu, Muhuri, Khowai, Gumti, Dharla
and Dudhkumar rivers.
India Bangladesh relations
India was the first country to recognize Bangladesh as a separate and independent state and
established diplomatic relations with the country immediately after its independence in
December 1971.
Indias links with Bangladesh are civilisational, cultural, social and economic. There is much that
unites the two countries - a shared history and common heritage, linguistic and cultural ties,
passion for music, literature and the arts. This commonality is reflected in our multi-dimensional
and expanding relations.
Security & Border Management
India and Bangladesh share 4096.7 km. of border which is the longest land boundary that India
shares with any of its neighbours.
Security and border management is the main concerning issue between India and Bangladesh.
In this regards Coordinated Border Management Plan (CBMP) has been signed in 2011 to
synergize the efforts of both Border Guarding Forces for more effective control over cross
border illegal activities and crimes as well as for the maintenance of peace and tranquility along
the India-Bangladesh border.
The India-Bangladesh Land Boundary Agreement (LBA) came into force following the
exchange of instruments of ratification during Indian PMs visit to Bangladesh in June 2015. The
enclaves of India and Bangladesh in each others countries were exchanged and strip maps
were signed. Residents of these erstwhile enclaves who opted to retain their Indian citizenship
made a final movement to India by 30 November 2015.
The settlement of the maritime boundary arbitration between India and Bangladesh was done
as per UNCLOS award in July 2014. It paved the way for the economic development of this part
of the Bay of Bengal.
Sharing of River Waters
India and Bangladesh share 54 common rivers. A bilateral Joint Rivers Commission (JRC)
has been functioning since June 1972 to maintain liaison between the two countries to
maximize benefits from common river systems.
Though there are disputes between the two nations regarding water sharing issues but they are
working in collaboration to resolve the grievances. In this context the Ganges Waters Treaty
signed in 1996 for the sharing of waters of the River Ganges during the lean season (January 1-
May 31) has worked satisfactorily.
Bilateral Trade
India-Bangladesh trade has grown steadily over the last few years. In the five years (from FY
2011-12 to FY 2015-16), total trade between the two countries has grown by more than 17%.
Substantial duty concessions have been extended to Bangladesh under SAFTA, SAPTA and
APTA (Free Trade Agreements). Furthermore with a view to address the existing trade
imbalance, all tariff lines except 25 items, have also been removed from the negative list by
India since 2011.

Four Border Haats, two each in Tripura and Meghalaya have been established for the benefit of
bordering communities.
Power and Energy Sector Cooperation
The MoU on power sector cooperation between India and Bangladesh was signed in 2010.
Currently 500 MW of power is transferred through the Bherampur-Bheramara inter-connection
and another 100 MW through the Surajmani Nagar (Agartala) - Comila interconnection.
In March 2016, the two Prime Ministers inaugurated export of Internet bandwidth to Tripura from
Bangladesh and the export of power from Tripura to Comilla.
The Maitree thermal power plant (a 50:50 Joint Venture between NTPC of India and
Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB)) is being developed at Rampal.
Many Indian public sector units such as Indian Oil Corporation, Numaligarh Refinery Limited,
Gas Authority of India Limited, Petronet LNG Ltd are working with their Bangladeshi
counterparts in the oil and gas sector of Bangladesh.
ONGC Videsh Ltd has acquired two shallow water blocks in Bangladesh namely SS-04 and SS-
09 in 50-50 consortium with Oil India Limited and is currently involved in exploration activities in
these blocks.
Cultural Exchanges
The Indira Gandhi Cultural Centre (IGCC) in Dhaka has been regularly organizing cultural
activities since 2010. The IGCC also holds regular training courses in Yoga, Hindi, Hindustani
Classical Music, Manipuri Dance and Painting.
ICCR has instituted a Tagore Chair in Dhaka University since 2011. Scholarships are being
granted by ICCR every year to students from Bangladesh for pursuing general courses in arts,
sciences, engineering and also specialized courses for culture, drama, music, fine arts and
sports, etc.
Indian Diaspora
About 10,000 Indian citizens are estimated to be living in Bangladesh. Most are engaged in the
Ready Made Garments (RMG) sector or as professionals in MNCs, Indian or Bangladeshi
companies.
The culture of India and Bangladesh are intertwined so intricately that the communities of the
nations share same kind of life and culture.
Contentious Issues
The skewed trade relationship between India and Bangladesh has had a detrimental effect on
bilateral relationship.
The geographical proximity of India to Bangladesh has made it one of Indias biggest trading
partners. There are pressing concerns in Bangladesh regarding the large bilateral trade deficit
with India and the large volume of informal imports from India across the border, which avoid
Bangladeshi import duties.
The Farakka Barrage issue:
o The origin of the dispute can be traced back to the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and
Peace signed in 1972 between India and Bangladesh.
o According to the treaty the two nations established a Joint River Commission to work
towards the common interests and sharing of water resources, irrigation, floods and cyclone
control.
o The issue started to arise with increase in water demands in Kolkata for industrial and
domestic use and or irrigation in other parts of West Bengal.
o The objective behind the construction of the Farakka
Barrage was to increase the lean period flow of the Bhagirathi

Hooghly river branch of the Ganges to increase the water depth at the Kolkata port whi
ch was threatened by siltation.
o In November 1977 the two countries proposed a five year agreement on water shari
ng.
o However the basic issue remained unaddressed which led to the comprehensive bilateral
treaty to establish a water sharing arrangement with guaranteed minimum quantities of
water supply for Bangladesh as a lower riparian state.
The Teesta River water issue: India and Bangladesh exchanged draft agreement over Teesta
river water sharing issue in 2010 after the ministerial meeting of the Joint water Commission.
The Bangladesh presented a draft on water sharing during the dry season. It would provide key
support to the agricultural production in the North west region of Bangladesh.
Illegal immigration is a perennial problem between the nations, which led several challenges
such as xenophobic incidents, and resource conflicts.
Drug trafficking is one of the major concerns for both the nations. Drug dealers from Burma
and other countries are increasingly using Bangladesh as a transit point.
Chinese Influences:
o Chinas rising prominence in the region is concerning for the relations between India and
Bangladesh.
o Bangladesh sought Chinese assistance in constructing a highway passing through My
anmar to Yunan province in China.
o A rail network passing through the same area has been proposed.
o Bangladesh was also reportedly engaged in persuading China to further develop and
use the Chittagong port and develop a deep sea port at Sonadia Island. This becom
es problematic for India who fears Chinas access to the Myanmar naval base in Ha
nggyi Islands and the monitoring station
established at Coco Island in the north of Indias Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
5.2. India-Australia
In News
The Prime Minister of Australia Malcolm Turnbull visited India in April 2017. This visit was the
Prime Minister Turnbull's first visit to India. Earlier the former Prime Minister Tony Abbott had
visited India in September 2014.
The two Prime Ministers reaffirmed their commitment to a peaceful and prosperous Indo-
Pacific region based on mutual respect and cooperation. The strategic and economic interests
of both countries are converging which opens up opportunities for working together in a rapidly
changing region. Both the leaders welcomed progress in the flourishing knowledge
partnership between Australia and India building on the strong links in higher education, skills
development and science, technology and innovation.
The two Prime Ministers emphasized deepening the bilateral defence and security partnership.
They welcomed the significant progress achieved through the bilateral Framework for Security
Cooperation agreed in 2014. It was agreed that the bilateral maritime exercise first held in the
Bay of Bengal in 2015 (AUSINDEX) will be repeated off Western Australia in the first half of
2018.
MoU on Cooperation in Combating International Terrorism and Transnational Organized
Crime was signed.

They reaffirmed their strong commitment to IORA and noted with appreciation that Australia
and India had co-sponsored the IORA Declaration on Gender Equality and Womens Economic
Empowerment in October 2016.
Prime Minister of India welcomed the passage of the Civil Nuclear Transfers to India Act
through the Australian Parliament and both Prime Ministers anticipated that commercial exports
of Australian uranium could begin soon, opening up a new avenue for Australia to support
Indian electricity generation.
Recognising the need for innovation in reaching shared aspirations in productivity and
efficiency, the two nations agreed to continue fostering collaboration between entrepreneurs
developing innovative products for commercial application. It was decided to deepen bilateral
collaboration to address water management challenges including sustainable water use.
Significance Of The Visit
This visit was important because it was the first visit of the Australian Prime Minister to India
which will help in deepening of ties between the nations.
Australia holds almost 40 percent of the worlds known uranium reserves and New Delhi needs
uranium for its nuclear power requirements. India is looking at a massive increase in nuclear
power generation as it struggles to meet the requirements of its booming economy and a
growing population.
There are almost 500,000 people of Indian descent in Australia who have made an immense
economic contribution in the country. Moreover, Australia is the second most-popular
destination for Indian students abroad, with close to 60,000 students from India pursuing their
post-secondary education in Australian educational institutions last year. The Indian government
is aiming to train around 400 million people in various skills by 2022 and Canberra can be a key
partner in this initiative.
There is growing synergy between New Delhi and Canberra on a host of issues. In the
aftermath of the horrific 2004 tsunami, India, Australia, Japan and the United States came
together to provide relief and rescue efforts to the affected areas along the Indian Ocean rim.
The four countries together are also part of many regional initiatives like the East Asia Summit,
the G20 and the Indian Ocean Rim Association (formerly known as the Indian Ocean Rim
Association for Regional Cooperation). New Delhi also requires Australian support in its bid to
become a permanent member of the UNSC and the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG).
India-Australia Bilateral Relations
Australia and India share a commitment to democratic values, rule of law, international peace
and security and shared prosperity.
Both are strong, vibrant, secular and multicultural democracies. They both have a free press
and an independent judicial system; the English language is an important link, Cricket and now
the large numbers of Indian students coming to Australia for education are significant elements
in awareness at the popular level.
The relationship has grown in strength and importance since Indias economic reforms in the
nineties and has made rapid strides in all areas - trade, energy and mining, science &
technology, information technology, education and defence.
Trade Relations
India is Australias tenth largest two-way trading partner, with a total volume of AUD$ 11.9 billion
in 2013. India is Australias fifth largest export market with coal, gold, copper ore and
concentrates and agricultural products among Australias major exports.
Indias main service exports to Australia are computer and information services and tourism.
Main Australian service exports to India are education, education-related travel and tourism.

Security Cooperation
Australia and India have a growing number of shared security concerns in the Indo-Pacific
region. In light of this, relations between Australia and India were upgraded to the level of a
strategic partnership in 2009. Australia and India issued a Joint Declaration on Security
Cooperation with the aim of enhancing relations in this area.
Following successful humanitarian assistance and disaster relief cooperation in response to the
2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, Australia and India briefly took part in joint naval exercises through
the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue in 2007 before the grouping was discontinued following
Chinese discomfort and political second thoughts.
In addition, there is significant potential for enhanced cooperation through multilateral
organisations such as the Indian Ocean Rim Association and the Indian Ocean Naval
Symposium.
People-To-People Links
There is an Indian community of nearly 295,000 (persons born in India) in Australia which is
contributing to the Australian economy in their role as teachers, doctors, accountants, engineers
and researchers.
India is the third largest source of immigrants for Australia. The Pravasi Bharatiya Divas
Conference was organised under the aegis of the High Commission in Sydney from 10-12
November 2013. There are currently about 60,000 Indian students studying in Australian
Universities.
The decline in number of students since 2009 is a consequence of tightening visa regulations,
changes in general skilled migration rules, the negative impact of the attacks on students in
2009-10 and the rising value of the Australian dollar.
The number of attacks has declined sharply in the recent period owing to the remedial
measures taken by the Australian authorities and the police.
Recent Setbacks: Student Attacks And Uranium
Australias previous reluctance to export uranium to India acted as an impediment to closer
India-Australia relations.
In 2007, the government of then PM John Howard stated its intention to sell uranium to India for
civilian purposes; however, this policy was immediately overturned following the election of
Kevin Rudds Labor government in the same year.
One of the most significant setbacks in India-Australia relations was the student crisis of 2009
and 2010. Following a number of assaults upon international students of Indian origin in Victoria
and New South Wales in 2009, concerns were raised by the Indian media and government
regarding the safety of Indian students in Australia.
5.3. Visit Of Prime Minister Of Malaysia

The Prime Minister of Malaysia Mohd Najib
Abdul Razak, undertook a State Visit to India.
This was the Prime Minister Najibs third visit to
India since assuming office as Prime Minister in
2009.
The two countries commemorated 60th
anniversary of India-Malaysia diplomatic
relations and hailed the strong bonds of
friendship forged through shared historical,

cultural and social ties between the two countries and their peoples.
The two leaders underlined their strong commitment to multiculturalism, democracy and
pluralism as they promote economic growth and development for the benefit of their peoples.
With a view to providing a further fillip to the strong bilateral relations in the context of the 60th
anniversary of diplomatic relations and to further enhance the strategic partnership of the two
countries, both PMs agreed to continue to hold regular Summits including on the margins of
multilateral events, to hold regular meetings of the Joint Commission headed by the Ministers of
Foreign Affairs of the two countries, and to arrange regular exchanges at the Cabinet level
between the Ministers in charge of Trade & Industry, Transport, Public Works and Infrastructure,
Tourism & Culture to take further advantage of the investment, trade and other opportunities
opening up in each others country;
Both the leaders welcomed the strong cooperation in the areas of defence and security as well
as in socio-economic sectors, particularly health and education. They agreed to continue the
focus on tourism and cultural links to enhance the already vibrant people-to-people links.
It was decided that under the initiative of ASEAN-India Business Council (AIBC), the ASEAN-
India Biz Tech Conference and Expo will be held in Kuala Lumpur in May 2017 where prominent
members of the business community of India and ASEAN are expected to participate.
Government of Malaysia decided to expand the visa-free programme to the Indian nationals
visiting Malaysia effective from 1 April 2017 until 31 March 2018 under the Electronic Travel
Registration and Information (eNTRI).
The following Memoranda of Understanding/ Agreement were signed during the visit:
a) Air Services Agreement between India and Malaysia.
b) MoU on Cooperation in the proposed development of a Urea and Ammonia Manufacturing
Plant in Malaysia and off take of existing surplus urea from Malaysia to India.
c) MoU between Association of Indian Universities (AIU), India and Malaysian Qualifications
Agency (MQA), Malaysia on Mutual Recognition of the Educational Qualifications.
d) MoU between Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII) and the Malaysian
Human Resource Fund (HRDF) cooperation in training.
e) MoU between Institute of Chemical Technology (ICT) and Malaysian Palm Oil Board
(MPOB).
f) MoU between MIGHT Technology Malaysia and Andhra Pradesh Economic Development
Board on implementation of 4th Generation Technology Park in Andhra Pradesh.
India Malaysia Relations
India established diplomatic relations with the Federation of Malaya (predecessor state of
Malaysia) in 1957.
India is represented in Malaysia through the High Commission of India based in Kuala Lumpur.
Malaysia is represented in India through their High Commission in New Delhi and Consulates
General in Mumbai and Chennai.
Defence & Security Cooperation
India-Malaysia defence relations have steadily grown over the years. Malaysia-India Defence
Cooperation meetings at the level of Defence Secretary are held regularly.
Staff talks between the three services have been operationalized and are held regularly on
annual basis. Service Chiefs from both countries regularly exchange visits.
Joint exercises Harimau Shakti are held annually between the two countries and there is
scope for its upgradation.
Indian Air Force Training Team was deployed in Malaysia to train Malaysian pilots on the SU-
30SKM aircraft from 2008 to 2010. And Indian naval ships also make regular port calls in
Malaysia.
Economic and Commercial Cooperation
Economic and commercial relations are the mainstay of the bilateral relationship. India and
Malaysia signed Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) on 1 July 2010,
which came into force from 1 July 2011.
India has signed the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) in services and investments with the 10-
member ASEAN in September 2014.
Bilateral Trade is significantly biased in favour of Malaysia. As per official figures (DIPP),
Malaysia is currently the 25th largest investor in India with FDI inflows of US$ 827.88 million
from April 2000 to September 2016.
There has been a surge in Malaysian private sector initiatives in India, particularly in the
infrastructure sector.
Connectivity and Tourism
Air links have improved significantly following a bilateral agreement in 2007 to increase the seat
capacity to six major destinations in India and a provision for multiple destinations and
designating any number of airlines to operate on the IndiaMalaysia routes.
The two sides have finalized a revised Air Services Agreement in October 2011 and internal
approvals are being sought.
India is the sixth largest source country for inbound tourism to Malaysia with around 7 lakhs
Indian tourists visited Malaysia in 2015 against 9 Lakhs in 2014.
Malaysia is the tenth largest source country for foreign tourists visiting India with an estimated
1.6 lakhs Malaysian tourists visited India in 2015 against 2 lakhs in 2014.
Cultural Links
Indian Cultural Centre, Kuala Lumpur, under ICCR was established in February 2010 and
conducts classes in Carnatic Vocal, Kathak dance, Yoga, Hindi language and Tabla by trained
teachers from India and Malaysia.
ICC collaborates with various cultural institutions in Malaysia to promote Indian culture in
various parts of Malaysia.
ICC also hosts a Library and an AYUSH (Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani and Homeopathy)
Information Cell to disseminate authentic information on AYUSH systems of medicines.
Indian Community and Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs)
Malaysia has one of the largest communities of Persons of Indian Origin in the world, numbering
close of 2 million (about 7 to 8% of Malaysias population). The overwhelming numbers of PIOs
are Tamil speaking with significant people speaking Telugu, Malayalam and Punjabi as well.
The Malaysian Indian Congress is the dominant political organization of the PIOs since pre-
independence and is a member of the ruling coalition since independence. Malaysia has been
sending the largest contingent to the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas. There are over 1,30,000 Indian
expats legally employed in Malaysia in skilled and semi-skilled category. A bilateral MoU on
Employment and Welfare of Workers signed in January 2009 establishes an institutional
framework to deal with issues concerning Indian workers.
Illegal immigration and human trafficking from India into Malaysia is a matter of concern to both
Governments.
5.4. Kulbhushan Jadhav Issue

In News
Recently Pakistans military court has sentenced to death Indian national Kulbhushan Jadhav
for allegedly spying and stoking violence in Balochistan.

The verdict drew an angry response from New Delhi and other nations as well.
Indian govt. has stated that the action of Pakistan will be a premeditated murder if carried out.
India went to International Court of Justice against the verdict awarded by Pakistani military
court. ICJ, in turn, has stayed the execution of Jadhav citing procedural irregularities.
What Is The Issue
A former Indian Navy officer Kulbhushan Jadav was arrested in a raid near the border town of
Chaman in Balochistan on the charges of espionage.
According to the Pakistan government, Jadav had admitted that he had been directing various
activities in Karachi and Balochistan at the behest of RAW (Indian intelligence agency-
Research and Analysis Wing) since 2013.
Pakistan government officials released a six-minute video in which Kulbhushan Jadav claimed
that he is working for India's top intelligence agency RAW and that he is still with the Indian
Navy. It is to be noted that video has several apparent editing cuts and even without forensic
investigation its prima facie clear that the video has been doctored.
Also the video has been shot on various days and has contradictory remarks made by
Kulbhushan Jadav which raises the suspicion of it being an attempt to tarnish Indias image.
Indias Response
India has maintained that Kulbhushan Jadhav was retired from the Navy in 2002 and has had
nothing to do with the Indian government when he was arrested from Balochistan.
Official sources in New Delhi refused the purported confession and said it was Pakistan's
propagandist action to deflect the attention from its own problem of home-grown terrorism.
Indian demand to get consular access to Jhadav that has been refused by Pakistan repeatedly.
Not giving consular access to Jadhav amounted to violation of human rights as well as the
violation of international norms as the two countries have a bilateral agreement on consular
access and both the nations are parties to Vienna Convention on consular relations.
Vienna Convention On Consular Relations
The United Nations Conference on Consular Relations was held in Vienna, Austria, in April
1963.
The Vienna Convention consists of 79 articles most of which provide for the operation of
consulates; outline the functions of consular agents and address the privileges and
immunities granted to consular officials when posted to a foreign country.
The right of individuals is protected under article 36, which is providing for certain obligations
for competent authorities in the case of an arrest or detention of a foreign national, in order to
guarantee the inalienable right to counsel and due process through consular notification and
effective access to consular protection.
In recent years, the right to consular notification and access provided for in the Vienna
Convention has increasingly been raised in proceedings not only at the domestic and
regional levels, but also in international courts.
5.5. President Of Nepal Visited India

The President of Nepal Bidya Devi Bhandari visited India in April 2017. This was the first State visit
of the President of Nepal after assuming office in October 2015.
Both sides noted that India-Nepal relations derive their strength and salience from shared
history, common cultural ethos and long years of close and intense people-to-people contacts
facilitated by open borders.
During the visit, an interaction with the business community was jointly hosted by the CII, FICCI
and ASSOCHAM.
The Indian leadership reiterated the importance of its neighbourhood first policy and the high
priority India attaches to strengthening relations with Nepal in every sphere.
The Indian leadership expressed support to Nepals endeavours to achieve socio-economic
transformation for the well being of its people.
The Indian leadership reiterated its support to ongoing efforts of the Government of Nepal in
moving constitution implementation process forward through dialogue and taking all sections of
its society on board.
Both the sides expressed satisfaction at the intensive bilateral exchanges at all levels between
the two countries to deepen ongoing cooperation in sectors such as trade, economic,
investments, water resources, energy cooperation, security, post-earthquake reconstruction
efforts, culture, education and people to people ties. During her visit she lauded and observed
women empowerment initiatives of the State Government of Odisha.
For Indo-Nepal bilateral relations, plz refer Sec 5.5 of Sept CA (Part 5) as well as Sec 5.4 of
Nov CA (Part 7) for 2016-17.
India- Nepal Fuel Pact
India and Nepal in March 2017, signed an agreement to renew the supply of petroleum to
Nepal for five years to further deepen the energy cooperation. The renewed MoU was signed
between Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOCL) and Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC).
With this renewal, the state-owned Indian Oil Corp (IOC) will supply about 1.3 million tonnes
of fuel annually to Nepal with a promise to double the volume by 2020.
India also agreed to extend the Raxaul- Amlekhganj a cross-border petro pipeline project,
from Raxaul of India to Amlekhganj of Nepal to Chitwan (Nepal). It had promised to start work
on the project in 2017-18. At present, the work on the pipeline was hanging since 2006.
India has announced to constitute a high-level official committee to look into Nepals demand
for an LPG pipeline between Amblekhhanj and Motihari. It will also look after the extension
plan of the natural gas pipeline from Gorakhpur into Nepal.
Renewal of the petroleum supply agreement between the two companies was needed
because the existing pact was supposed to expire on 31 March 2017.
The agreement is an umbrella document between the two parties, which apart from detailing
the supply of petroleum, oil and lubricant products also puts in place an institutional
mechanism for cooperation in the areas of additional services and technical assistance
between the two.
At present, the two nations are working towards deepening engagement in the oil and gas
sector including construction of Motihari-Amlekhgunj Pipeline. Once completed the pipeline
will help in uninterrupted supply of petroleum products to Nepal.
5.6. Attacks On African Students

Recently four Africans were brutally assaulted after a protest march by local residents of Noida,
Uttar Pradesh over the death of a 16-year-old local boy, allegedly from a drug overdose. The
Nigerian envoys summoned the Indian ambassador following violent mob attacks on Nigerian
students.
Indias Response
Though Indian official severely criticised the violent attack but refused to acknowledge the
racism and projecting such incidents as cases of urban violence.
In the wake of the recent attacks against Nigerians in Greater Noida, the booking of the
perpetrators was left to the jurisdiction of the government of Uttar Pradesh.
The Minister of State for External Affairs met with members of African communities and assured
strong police action against the culprits.
Additionally, the External Affairs Ministry and Home Affairs Ministry launched a series of racism
sensitisation programmes in neighbourhoods that had a large African population.
While this was a step in the right direction, clearly more needs to be done. A neighbourhood
tainted with racist violence is likely to instigate an exodus of African students, act as deterrent to
new arrivals or both. It is also important to realise that racism is not limited to Indians who live in
close proximity with Africans.
Effects on India-Africa Ties
The historic relations between India and Africa have been founded on the tenets of anti-
colonialism and anti-racism. Such racial attacks on the African students have potential to affect
the historical ties between these countries.
Moreover, the governments stand risks jeopardising Indias growing ties with Africa in trade,
technology and human resource development. Trade between the two has grown from $1 billion
in 1990-1991 to $71 billion in 2014-2015.
The Indian government has been announcing scholarships, grants and credit lines for Africans
in the backdrop of the India-Africa forum summits. Such generous activities would lose its
credibility if these attacks keep on continuing.
These incidents are ruining Indias Global Image. Today India is considered one of future
economic power in world, countries in different continents are eager to do business with India
seeing its future potential.
Racist portrait of India worldwide can damage its diplomatic ties with such nations when India is
trying to build people-people contacts with number of Asian and African countries hence careful
and swift action is required to handle this delicate situation.
Reasons For Such Attacks
Stereotyping Africa and Africans is common in India. These stereotypes are constructs of an
economic hierarchy coloured in racist hues.
African countries are often insidiously used as a metaphor for under-development and Africans
in India are associated with debased livelihood means such as drug-peddling and prostitution.
Due to suspicion, which stems from the portrayal of Africans as drug-traffickers and criminals,
there is a trust deficit among Indian masses.
The governments efforts to enhance relations between India and the African continent have not
been met with a complementary effort to educate people on co-existence and multiculturalism.
There are various basis for racism - perception of an out-group, diversity in identity (north-
south), lack of tolerance, colour bias etc. Indian society keep perceptions about people on basis
of their race, black are associated with bad and inferior.
What Needs To Be Done
Indias External Affairs Ministry and Home Ministry need to make concerted efforts to sensitise
the police and the public at large about how racism contradicts the nations past and present
ideals.
Awareness must be raised about how Indians and people of Indian origin are able to live
peacefully and prosper in African countries and other parts of the world.
In addition, the External Affairs Ministry should have a department dedicated to addressing
human rights violations against foreigners in the country. The government should pass and
enforce appropriate and corrective laws to tackle racism in India.
The civil societies and human rights organisations along with NGOs need to speak out
against discrimination and racist violence and provide positive action and legal support to the
victims. They could also lead community awareness programmes against racism and push for
adequate legislation, drawing on the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action (2001).

As most Africans in India are students, the HRD Ministry needs to hold anti-racism campaigns
on university campuses. Educational institutions in India should be told about the importance
of scholarship programmes for Africans. Efforts should also be made to educate Indian students
about African countries.
Students from Africa should be given appropriate lodging and boarding facilities in and
around the campus or in the vicinity of other students residences instead of being confined to a
few African neighbourhoods. Such geographical demarcations increase the risk of alienation
and stigmatisation.
Durban Declaration and Programme of Action (2001)
Adopted at the 2001 World Conference against Racism (WCAR) in Durban, the DDPA is a
comprehensive, action-oriented document that proposes concrete measures to combat racism,
racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance.
Although the DDPA is not legally binding, it has a strong moral value and serves as a basis for
advocacy efforts worldwide.
The DDPA calls for the universal ratification of the International Convention on the Elimination
of All Forms of Racial Discrimination and its effective implementation by State Parties to the
Convention.
The DDPA adopts a victim-oriented approach to problems of racism, racial discrimination,
xenophobia and related intolerance.
Specific recommendations are formulated to combat discrimination against Africans and
persons of African descent, Asians and persons of Asian descent, indigenous peoples,
migrants, refugees, minorities, the Roma and other groups.

6. SUMMITS AND ORGANISATION
6.1. International Congress On Ethics And Tourism: UNWTO
The United Nations World Tourism Organisation has organized the 3rd International congress on
Ethics and Tourism.
Background
Having recently adopted the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) within its 2030 agenda
agreed last year, the United Nations declared 2017 the International Year of Sustainable
Tourism for Development.
Coinciding with this important landmark, the holding of the 3rd International Congress on Ethics
and Tourism comes at a challenging time where tourism keeps booming although the protection
of human rights, the natural resources and social cohesion need to be taken more seriously into
account in all spheres of development.
About the 3rd International Congress
It aimed to explore ways in which the tourism sector can harness the principles of
sustainability, shared responsibility, and accountability of all stakeholders in developing
tourism infrastructure, products and services.
It further showcased good practices of private-public cooperation through policies and
strategies based on human rights, transparency and good governance which also took into
account the voice of civil society.
The Congress was aiming to gather an international audience comprised of different
stakeholders including policy makers, officials of national tourism administrations etc.
The Congress drew particular attention to the following aspects:
o Inclusive tourism and universal accessibility for the benefit of all groups of population and
the industrys competitiveness;
o Management of natural and cultural heritage amidst the growing tourist numbers and
conservation concerns;
o Corporate social responsibility which not only fosters the implementation of the SDGs across
the tourism supply chain but also contributes to innovation and the overall service quality.
About United Nations World Tourism Organisation
It is the United Nations agency responsible for the promotion of responsible, sustainable and
universally accessible tourism.
As the leading international organization in the field of tourism, UNWTO promotes tourism as a
driver of economic growth, inclusive development and environmental sustainability and
offers leadership and support to the sector in advancing knowledge and tourism policies
worldwide.
UNWTO encourages the implementation of the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism, to
maximize tourisms socio-economic contribution while minimizing its possible negative impacts
and is committed to promoting tourism as an instrument in achieving the Sustainable
Development Goals (SDGs), geared towards reducing poverty and fostering sustainable
development worldwide.
UNWTOs membership includes 157 countries, 6 Associate Members and 500 Affiliate
Members representing the private sector, educational institutions, tourism associations and
local tourism authorities.
UNWTO works in six main areas - competitiveness, sustainability, poverty reduction, capacity
building, partnerships and mainstreaming - to achieve responsible, sustainable and universally
accessible tourism.
Global Code of Ethics

The Global Code of Ethics for Tourism (GCET) is a comprehensive set of principles
designed to guide key-players in tourism development.
Addressed to governments, travel industries, communities and tourists alike, it aims to help
maximise the sectors benefits while minimising its potentially negative impact on the
environment, cultural heritage and societies across the globe.
Adopted in 1999 by the General Assembly of the World Tourism Organization, its
acknowledgement by the United Nations two years later expressly encouraged UNWTO to
promote the effective follow-up of its provisions.
Although not legally binding, the Code features a voluntary implementation
mechanism through its recognition of the role of the World Committee on Tourism
Ethics (WCTE), to which stakeholders may refer matters concerning the application and
interpretation of the document.
6.2. India Becomes Member Of International Energy Agency

In News
India has become an associate member of IEA Association (International Energy Agency) that
will allow the country to play a more visible and influential role in the global energy landscape.
With India (worlds 3rd largest energy consumer) as an associate member, IEA now formally
covers 70% of the worlds energy consumption, thus increasing its relevance.
Significance
India can pursue its key development objectives of energy access, energy security and
environmental sustainability more effectively after becoming member of IEA.
India has a vision of ensuring 247 affordable and environment friendly Power for All and
deeper engagement with IEA is a component of achieving this vision. Indias participation will
enrich energy efficiency and renewable sectors of IEA members and other countries.
India will gain from IEAs data gathering processes and survey methodologies which will
enable India in the near future to set up its own robust integrated database agency.
It also gives an opportunity to India to be the voice of the developing world and represent the
interests of the emerging markets. It will enable India to be involved in the key committees and
dialogues of the IEA.
India was already a partner of the International Energy Agency. The co-operation was first
formalised as early as 1998 with the signing of the Declaration of Cooperation covering
important issues related to energy security and statistics. Since then the relationship has
developed further through the endorsement of many Joint Statements and MoUs.
But the upgradation of the status will enhance its status in its dialogue with major oil suppliers
and consumers.
About International Energy Agency
The IEA is a Paris based autonomous intergovernmental organization established in the
framework of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in 1974 in
the wake of the 1973 oil crisis.
The IEA was initially dedicated to responding to physical disruptions in the supply of oil, as well
as serving as an information source on statistics about the international oil market and
other energy sectors.
Mission
The IEA examines the full spectrum of energy issues including oil, gas and coal supply and
demand, renewable energy technologies, electricity markets, energy efficiency, access to
energy, demand side management and much more.

Through its work, the IEA advocates policies that will enhance the reliability, affordability and
sustainability of energy in its 29 member countries and beyond.
Four main areas of IEA focus are: Energy Security, Economic Development, Environmental
Awareness, and Engagement Worldwide.
Today, the IEA is at the heart of global dialogue on energy, providing authoritative analysis
through a wide range of publications, including the flagship World Energy Outlook and the IEA
Market Reports; data and statistics such as Key World Energy Statistics and the Monthly Oil
Data Service and a series of training and capacity building workshops, presentations and
resources.
6.3. Commonwealth Human Rights Initiatives (CHRI)

The Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative has demanded that the National Human Rights
Commission (NHRC) should monitor the ongoing police investigation regarding the murder of a
prominent RTI activist from Pune.
About The Issue
In a horrific incident, Suhas Haldankar(An RTI activist) was battered to death with cement
blocks allegedly by a group of 11 persons including a former corporator in Pune.
This tragic killing highlights civil society concerns about a proposed amendment in the RTI
Rules which authorizes the Central Information Commission to close a case upon the death of
the applicant.
With 16 such incidents reported since 2010 (including the latest case), Maharashtra tops the list
of States with the highest number of citizens murdered for using RTI to demand transparency
and accountability in governance.
On International Human Rights Day, CHRI had launched its online Hall of Shame, which
documents attacks on RTI activists.
About Commonwealth Human Rights Initiatives
The Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative is an international NGO formed to support Human
Rights and particularly to support the implementation of the Harare Declaration in the countries
of the Commonwealth of Nations.
CHRI has its Headquarters in New Delhi and offices in London and Accra; it is accredited to the
Commonwealth; attained special consultative status at the Economic and Social Council of the
UN in 2005.
To promote awareness of and adherence to the Harare Commonwealth Declaration, the
Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other internationally recognised human rights
instruments is the main function of this organisation.
Its work is split into two core themes:
o Access to Information, and
o Access to Justice which includes Prison and Police Reform.
About Harare Declaration
The OAU (Organisation of African Unity) sub-committee on Southern Africa in its summit in
Harare, Zimbabwe adopted the Harare Declaration in 1989.
The Declaration urged the regime to take measures to create a climate for negotiations to put
an end to apartheid, and define a new constitutional order based on a set of democratic
principles.
This landmark agreement set the Commonwealth on a new course: that of promoting
democracy and good governance, human rights and the rule of law, gender equality and
sustainable economic and social development.

6.4. International Organisation Of Migration (IOM) Pledge For Peace in Yemen
Why In News
The International Organisation for Migration, the governments of Switzerland and Sweden
hosted a High-level Pledging Event in Geneva, Switzerland for the Humanitarian Crisis in
Yemen.
Yemen has become the centre stage of worlds largest humanitarian crisis. Years of poverty,
underdevelopment, environmental decline, intermittent conflict, and weak rule of law including
widespread violations of human rights have contributed to crisis.
In total, 18.8 million people need humanitarian or protection assistance. Since 2015, of the 3.3
million people who have been forced to flee their homes to seek safety, two million remain
displaced and nearly 1.3 million have returned to the governorates they originated from. With no
end in sight for the conflict, displacement is set to continue to increase.
The conflict and its economic consequences are also driving a food crisis. Over 17 million
people are currently food insecure, of whom 6.8 million require immediate food assistance.
IOM has, since the escalation of violence in 2015, scaled up its response in Yemen to assist
displaced populations and host communities.
About International Organisation of Migration
Established in 195, IOM is the leading inter-governmental organization in the field of migration
and works closely with governmental, intergovernmental and non-governmental partners.
With 166 member states, 8 observer states and offices in over 100 countries, IOM is dedicated
to promoting humane and orderly migration for the benefit of all. It does so by providing services
and advice to governments and migrants.
The IOM Constitution recognizes the link between migration and economic, social and cultural
development as well as to the right of freedom of movement.
IOM defines a migrant as any person who is moving or has moved across an international
border or within a State away from his/her habitual place of residence, regardless of
o The persons legal status;
o Whether the movement is voluntary or involuntary;
o What the causes for the movement are;
o What the length of the stay is.

7. DEFENCE AND SECURITY
7.1. Samjhauta Blast Case
Recently the special NIA (National Investigation Agency) court summoned 13 Pakistani nationals to
depose before it in connection with the Samjhauta express blast case.
All About Samjhauta Blast Case
The 2007 Samjhauta Express blast case was a terrorist attack that occurred around midnight on
18 February 2007 on the Samjhauta Express, a twice-weekly train service connecting Delhi to
Lahore.
More than 68 people were killed in the ensuing fire and dozens more were injured. Among the
68 fatalities, most were Pakistani civilians. The victims also included some Indian civilians and
three railway policemen.
Both the Indian and Pakistani governments speculated that the perpetrators intended to disrupt
improving relations between the two nations, since the attack came just a day before
Pakistani Foreign Minister Khurshid Mahmud Kasuri was to arrive in New Delhi to resume
peace talks with Indian leaders.
It has been allegedly linked to Abhinav Bharat, a Hindu fundamentalist group in India. The
investigation conducted by the NIA over a period of almost one year established that the entire
conspiracy was hatched between 2005 and 2007 by Hindu extremists.
The NIA has alleged that the Hindu extremists bombed the train that runs between Delhi and
Atari at India-Pakistan border to ferry Indians and Pakistanis, in retaliation for jihadi terror strikes
in India.
Current Status
India not only arrested those responsible for the train blasts of February 2007 but the trial is also
in its last stage. The prosecution evidence will close soon in the case if Pakistan cooperates by
sending 13 of its nationals who have been made a witness in the case by the NIA.
The NIA is preparing to request the court to record statements of these witnesses at Wagah
border if they are unwilling to come to Panchkula where the trial is going on.
The agency is eagerly waiting to see whether Pakistan really wants to see justice served in the
Samjhauta case by sending witnesses.
About National Investigation Agency (NIA)
It is a central agency established by the Indian Government to combat terror in India. It acts
as the Central Counter Terrorism Law Enforcement Agency.
The Agency came into existence with the enactment of the National Investigation Agency Act
2008 after the 2008 Mumbai terror attacks as need for a central agency to combat terrorism
was realised. The agency is empowered to deal with terror related crimes across States
without special permission from the States.
The Agency has been empowered to conduct investigation and prosecution of offences
under the Acts specified in the Schedule of the NIA Act.
A State Government may request the Central Government to hand over the investigation
of a case to the NIA, provided the case has been registered for the offenses as contained in
the schedule to the NIA Act.
Central Government can also order NIA to take over investigation of any scheduled offense
anywhere in the India. Various Special Courts have been notified by the Central
Government of India for trial of the cases registered at various police stations of NIA under
Section 11 and 22 of the NIA Act 2008.
Any question regarding the jurisdiction of these courts is decided by the Central Government.

These are presided over by a judge appointed by the Centre on the recommendation of the
Chief Justice of the High Court with jurisdiction in that region.
The Supreme Court has been empowered to transfer the cases from one special court to
any other special court within or outside the State if the same is in the interest of justice in
light of the prevailing circumstances in any particular State.
The NIA Special Courts are empowered with all powers of the court of sessions under
Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 for trial of any offense.
An appeal from any judgement, sentence or order, not being an interlocutory order, of a
Special Court lies to the High Court both on facts and on law. Such an appeal can be heard
by a division bench of two Judges of the High Court. State Governments have also been
empowered to appoint one or more such special courts in their states
Success Stories
NIA with the assistance of Interpol and Saudi Intelligence agencies has successfully arrested
terrorists namely: Abu Jundal alias Abu Hamza (Pakistani national), Fasih Mohammad, and
Yaseen Bhatkal (Indian Mujahideen). NIA is investigating highly sensitive cases of terror
attacks including the Samjahuta Blast case.
Criticism
NIA is poorly equipped to fulfil its role of investigating the most serious terrorism cases,
cutting off funding to militants and putting suspects on trial.
The NIA has no officers specialising in cyber surveillance, explosives or tracing chemicals
and has been forced to ask companies to decrypt computers recovered at crime scenes.
Like many countries, India has several intelligence and investigation agencies. Infighting
continues to hinder India's ability to prevent attacks and agencies are often reluctant to share
information.
The NIA was supposed to be complemented by a National Counter Terrorism Centre that
would sit above other agencies and sift through what they provided, as well as a national
intelligence database accessible by other agencies. Inability to reach consensus on NCTC,
the working of NIA is affected.
Conclusion
NIA is the premier investigating agency of India and countrys internal security very much
depends on this agency.
Hence, the government must take steps such as increasing the budget allocation, providing
training to its staff in cyber security and modern technology.
Also, finding a common ground on NCTC will help NIA in gaining access to different
databases which in turn will help NIA in its investigation.
Q. Critically analyse the role of National Investigation Agency (NIA) keeping in mind the
Samjhauta blast case.
7.2. Equal Pay For Paramilitary Forces

In News
The Supreme Court has asked Centre to effectively deliberate upon the issue whether
paramilitary forces can be given monetary benefits like the "organised services" (Central civil
services). The apex court was hearing a batch of appeals including one filed by the Centre
against the Delhi High Court's September 2015 verdict asking the government to consider all
paramilitary forces as "organised services".

Issues Regarding Paramilitary Forces
The high attrition rate in Paramilitary forces is the cause of concern for the security of the
nation. Though Ministry of Home Affairs has stated that it is normal and acceptable but the
statistics such as 16,523 officers quiting their jobs from 2009 to 2012 in the CRPF alone exhibit
the severity of the issue.
There is sharp rise in suicides and fratricide i.e. soldiers killing their colleagues and seniors
in frustration. According to the statistics, more than 400 personnel died in last 5 years due to
suicides. The forces face infrastructural deficiencies, poor personnel management, lack of
medical facilities and inadequate promotional opportunities which affects the morale of
officers and leads to high attrition rate.
The real reason behind quitting the job is their trouble regarding the uncertain career
progression- they believe that no due credit was given for risking their lives in conflict zones.
Poor salary also caused a lot of dissatisfaction and the facilities that are available to the
constabulary for their professional and personal well-being are insufficient. These officers do not
get same pay and perks like others in Organized Group-A central services. They dont even
get sufficient transfer allowances when transferred at the critical places.
There is a high shortage of man power due to which the officers have heavy workload. They
have to do 15-18 hours continuous duty and sometimes not even allowed to sit down (e.g. CISF
Jawans on airport).
There is also an issue of delay in compensation to the family of deceased personnel.
Often there is no proper facility of family accommodation at posting areas. Even education,
healthcare, water and electricity is erratic in their government quarters.
There is no concept of peace posting. No break in duty. 80% of the personnel never get to live
with their family during entire posting.
Reforms Needed
There is a dire need to upgrade and modernise the paramilitary forces in the country to meet the
challenges of internal security.
Former Union Home Secretary G K Pillai stated that the forces are in need of upgrading its
equipment, technology, policies and most critical sector is forensic.
In the recent years, economic crimes have risen and cyber crime was also gaining momentum.
The forces must be ready to face the contemporary challenges along with rising extremism.
While crime and terrorism are increasingly getting hi-tech, there is a need for enforcement
agencies like police and paramilitary forces to look at new methods of training and capacity
building.
Security agencies need to have synergised Centre-State strategies to deal with different
aspects of internal security threats.
About Paramilitary Forces
Paramilitary Forces refers to three organisations; Assam Rifles, Special Frontier Force, Coast
Guard which assist the Indian Armed Forces particularly closely and are led by officers of the
Indian Army or Indian Navy.
However, they have not been defined by any law or rules of the Government. Earlier, the term
paramilitary forces was used for eight forces viz. Assam Rifles, Special Frontier Force, Indian
Coast Guard, CRPF, BSF, ITBP, CISF, SSB.
They are directly under the jurisdiction of the Centre through the Ministry Of Home Affairs
(MHA).

7.3. India To Buy Barak Missile
In News
The Defence Acquisition council has initiated the process for procurement of Barak surface-to-
air missiles for naval warships to enhance Indias maritime capability in view of the changing
security dynamics in the Indian Ocean region.
The new missiles are urgently needed to replace the current ones, which have completed their
shelf life. A Ministry source confirmed that the procurement of Barak missiles was approved with
a categorisation of Buy Global under the option clause from Rafael Advanced Defense
Systems Ltd.
About Barak Missile
Barak-8 (Lightning 8 in Hebrew) is a long-range missile, developed jointly by Israel and India. It
has a speed of Mach 2. It has the capacity to identify and neutralize various forms of aerial
threats such as rockets, UAVs, planes, helicopters in a single flight.
Barak-8 missiles most technologically advanced aspect is its ability to intercept missiles aimed
at sea-bound vessels. The missile has an impressive range compared to its weight, this is
mainly due to the dual-pulse motor designed and developed in India.
Previously ships in the Indian navy had two types of missiles for air defence: 1) For medium and
long range aircraft type targets. 2) Point defence against anti ship missiles. Now it will be taken
care by a single system. It will help the ship designers by freeing up valuable real-estate on the
ships. The Kolkata class destroyers were the first class of ships built with the Barak-8 included
in the design.
The single shot kill probability of this missile is supposedly unmatched. Probably one of the
reasons why Kolkata class frigates has only 32 Barak-8 missiles. Israelis have built a legendary
reputation for themselves when it comes to precision guided missiles (Like the Arrow, Python-5,
Iron dome etc). This one seems no different.
Defence Acquisition Council
The DAC is Defence Ministrys highest decision making body for capital acquisition
proposals forwarded by the Indian armed forces. It was set up in 2001 as part of the post-
Kargil reforms in defence sector.
It approves the long-term integrated perspective plan for the forces, accords acceptance of
necessity (AON) to begin acquisition proposals, and grants its approval to all major deals
through all their important phases.
It also has the power to approve any deviations in an acquisition and recommends all big
capital defence purchases for approval of the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) headed
by Prime Minister.
Defence Procurement Procedure

Defence acquisition is not a standard open market commercial form of procurement and
has certain unique features such as supplier constraints, technological complexity, foreign
Government regulations, denial of technology, non-availability of material held by foreign
suppliers, high cost, foreign exchange implications and geo-political ramifications.
Also, finer details of the equipment being procured cannot be put in public domain due to
security reasons.
While maintaining highest standards of transparency, probity and public accountability, a
balance between competing requirements such as expeditious procurement, high quality
standards and appropriate costs needs to be established. As a result, decision making
pertaining to defence procurement remains unique and complex.

The streamlining of Defence Procurement Procedure has evolved to Defence Procurement
Policy (DPP) 2013 through an iterative process since the first DPP in 2002. DPP focuses on
institutionalizing, streamlining, and simplifying defence procurement procedure to give a
boost to Make in India initiative of the Government of India, by promoting indigenous
design, development and manufacturing of defence equipment, platforms, systems and sub-
systems.
It encapsulates the experience gained in implementing the procurement process over the
years, feedback from the stakeholders, i.e. User Services, Quality Control and Maintenance
Agencies, Defence Finance, Administrative Wing and Industry
In DPP-2013, the acquisition of Weapon Systems and equipment for the Armed Forces flows
from the Long Term Integrated Perspective Plan (LTIPP).
It spells out the capability desired to be achieved by the Armed Forces over 15 years
duration (2012-27)
The Categorization Committees while considering categorization of all capital acquisition
under the Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP), follow a preferred order of categorization,
in decreasing order of preference, as indicated below:
1) Buy(Indian)
2) Buy & Make (Indian)
3) Make
4) Buy & Make
5) Buy (Global)
This hierarchy of Categorization clearly marked a shift towards indigenous
equipment. Department of Defence Production with its Ordnance Factories and Defence
PSUs has been a major instrument to foster Indigenization.
However, over the last few decades, provisions such as Make and BUY+ Make(Indian)
categories have been introduced to facilitate the participation of the private sector in defence
production.
DPP 2016 lays the road map on how India, the worlds largest arms importer, will acquire
equipment in the future.
It splits the existing Make category of projects into Make I and Make II, the first to be mostly
funded by govt. and the latter by industry. Make procedure has also been refined to ensure
increased participation of the Indian industry.
The government will finance 90% of the cost of producing defence equipment by the private
sector under a new sub-category. DPP 2016 introduces top priority category called Indian
Designed Developed and Manufacture (IDDM).
7.4. Military Exercises

In News
The 20th edition of Indo-Mongolian Joint Military Exercise Nomadic Elephant 2017 begun in
Mizoram.
The Indian Navy also began a joint maritime exercise Varuna with the French Navy at the
Mediterranean Sea.
Nomadic Elephant 2017
The first joint Nomadic Elephant was held in 2004 and since then it is annually held. It seeks to
promote military associations between India and Mongolia.
The two week exercise was aimed at training the troops in Counter Insurgency & Counter
Terrorism Operations (CICT Ops) under the United Nations mandate.

It encompassed important aspects like convoy protection, room intervention drills,
ambush/counter-ambush drills while jointly conducting counter-terrorist operations under the UN
mandate.
About Varuna
The Indian Navy and the French Navy have been conducting naval exercises since 1983.
Following the establishment of a strategic partnership in 1998, these exercises were named as
Varuna in 2001.
The joint maritime exercise aimed at deepening combat coordination between the two navies.
Guided missile destroyer INS Mumbai, stealth frigate INS Trishul, and fleet tanker INS Aditya
took part in the Varuna exercise.
The ships are part of the Indian Navy's overseas deployment to the Mediterranean Sea and
West Coast of Africa and they arrived at Toulon port on southern France's Mediterranean coast.
7.5. Kupwara Terror Attack

In News
In the recent terrorist attack on an army camp in Panzgam area near LoC in Kupwara district of
north Kashmir, three army men and two militants were killed. The attack was a predawn
Fidayeen attack
The Kupwara attack was the first major militant attack of LeT in Kashmir after the group was
blamed for the deadly attacks in Mumbai in November 2008.
Rising Trust Deficit Among Citizens And Armymen
The Kashmir valley is facing a challenge of rising trust deficit among the masses and the army
personnel. The incidents of stone pelting on army during their operation against militants
highlighted the resentment in the masses.
Driven by separatist, a large section of the people residing in the Valley resorted to protests
against the army after popular Hizbul Mujahideen commander Burhan Wani was encountered
last year.
This led to a sharp escalation of tension in the region, fuelled by stone-pelting by the residents.
When the army retaliated with pellets, several innocents suffered permanent injuries and a large
number of people succumbed to injuries.
The awareness should be generated among the masses that the stone-pelting would not help
Jammu and Kashmir and the youth of the state should channelise their energy towards
constructive pursuits.
What Should Be Done
The security agencies should undertake youth counselling and ensure that no collateral damage
takes place while dealing with the day-to-day law and order situations.
Holding of counselling sessions for youth would not only help the youth ally apprehensions and
misgivings about the system but would also give the security agencies a chance to reach out to
people through community policing.
The parents of youths should be taken into confidence as and when there is some complaint
about any youth and in no way should the family be held accountable for the deeds of the said
youth.
The security agencies should exercise restraint while dealing with the provocative situations. It
is proved that wherever restraint was exercised, it showed positive results on the ground for the
government and helped in maintaining peace and order.
The culprits be brought to justice if found involved in harassing a community or section of
society in the name of a social cause.
The security agencies need to improve the Public-Security Force interface and make it a regular
affair. The security agencies must ensure that inter community harmony and amity among
various sections of society is maintained at all costs.
7.6. India To Boost Defence Exports

In News
As part of efforts to enhance defence cooperation and boost exports with friendly countries,
India has discussed with Sri Lanka and several Southeast Asian nations for the supply of Dhruv,
the indigenously developed advanced light helicopter (ALH).
Supplying defence equipment and providing assistance in setting up domestic manufacturing
capability have become the new normal in Indias defence cooperation with regional countries.
About Dhruv Helicopter
Dhruv, designed and developed by the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, is powered by the Shakti
engine jointly developed by it and Turbomeca of France. Over 200 helicopters are in service
with the Indian military.
The Dhruv helicopter is capable for deployment to the Siachen sector in the Himalayas. The
helicopter was deployed to the high-altitude airbase at Manasbal (Srinagar) and, in October
2007, a Dhruv helicopter flew at a record altitude of 27,500 ft in Siachen.
Hindustan Aeronautics Limited and Israel Aircraft Industries have an agreement to market the
Dhruv helicopter worldwide.
HAL has developed an integrated helicopter avionics suite for the Dhruv, which includes day-
and-night observation, electronic warfare suite, observation and targeting, and a flexible
weapons carrying system.
Challenges In Exporting Dhruv
Ecuador, which operates the biggest fleet of Dhruvs outside India, has reportedly been facing
persistent problems. In 2015, Ecuador has ordered "restricted operations" of the choppers
acquired from India after accidents.
Ecuadorian operators have complained of recurring problems including higher than expected
maintenance costs, India's high fees demands for spares, and HAL raising prices of the last two
helicopters of the seven it was contracted to deliver.

8. SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
8.1. Space X Rocket
SpaceX successfully launched and then retrieved its first recycled rocket.
Space Exploration Technologies Corporation, better known as Space X, is an American
aerospace manufacturer and space transport services company. It is the first privately funded
company to successfully launch, orbit, and recover a spacecraft and the first private company
to send a spacecraft to the International Space Station.
Current mission was a critical milestone for SpaceX, which has been working to make its
rockets partially reusable since as early as 2011. Up until now, practically all orbital rockets
have been expendable, so theyre basically thrown away once they launch into space. Space
Xs strategy has been to land its rockets after launch in an effort to fly them again and again.
8.2. Eclipses Of Binary Star Shed Light On Orbiting Exoplanet

A team of scientists have seen for the first-time indications of a massive planet orbiting a low
mass X-ray binary star system. Technique that has been used, namely, X-ray observations, is a
new way of detecting exoplanets.
Star system in Question: Star: MXB 1658-298. It is an X-ray binary and a part of the
constellation Ophiuchus (serpent bearer).
What are X Ray Binaries: X-ray binaries consist of a pair of stars orbiting each other of which
one is compact one such as a black hole or a neutron star (in this case, a neutron star). The
neutron star draws matter from its less-massive companion. The mass when drawn generates
X-rays which are detected by detectors placed in satellites in space.
8.3. Aspergillus Tubingensis

A soil fungus which uses enzymes to rapidly break down plastic materials, an advance that
could help deal with waste problem that threatens our environment.
Fungus uses the physical strength of its mycelia - the network of root-like filaments grown by
fungi - to help break apart the polymers.
8.4. Geotagging
Under Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana, States have been utilising substantial amount of funds for
creation of infrastructure/assets in agriculture and allied sectors such as soil testing labs,
pesticide testing labs, godowns, cold storage, shade nets, pandals for vegetable cultivation etc.
Monitoring of such wide spread activities is of paramount importance to States and Government
of India to understand flow of funds, inventorying of assets, bringing in transparency, planning of
assets for future, and finally informing the farmers about the facilities available.
In this respect it was decided to use geotagging under RKVY to monitor the assets created
under the scheme by Geotagging.
It is the process of adding geographical identification like latitude and longitude to various media
such as a photo or video. Geotagging can help users find a wide variety of location-specific
information from a device. It provides users the location of the content of a given picture.
8.5. Tu-142M
It is long-range maritime patrol aircraft of Indian Navy. It played a key role in operations
including the IPKF mission in Sri Lanka. Recently it was de-inducted after 29 years of accident-
free service.

This fleet is being replaced by 12 P-8I maritime surveillance aircraft of Boeing which are
equipped with harpoon anti-ship missiles, lightweight torpedoes, rockets and new generation
sensors and radars.
8.6. BELLE II
It is an electronpositron collider in Japan that is designed to create large numbers of B-
mesons. This experiment is designed to study violations of the Standard Model and dark matter.
Belle-II has better sensitivity, some 50 times higher, than its predecessor. A grand collaboration
of 700 scientists from 23 countries, Belle-II has a significant Indian participation both on
experimental and theoretical sides.
The fourth layer of the six-layer, highly sensitive particle detector, which is at the heart of Belle-
II, has been built by Indian scientists drawn from various premier institutes, led by Tariq Aziz
and Gagan Mohanty, who are with the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), Mumbai.
8.7. Robot Brabo

It an industrial robot, designed and manufactured by TAL, a Tata Motors subsidiary. It is touted
as Indias first indigenously made industrial articulated robot for micro, small and medium
enterprises.
Brabo can handle payloads of up to 10 kg, mapping it to human lifting potential. Its arm length
was also chosen to compare well with that of a human. It can manage raw material as well as
product packaging in the final stage. The manufacturer has released two variants for payloads
of 2 kg and 10 kg.
The robots will ensure that product quality is maintained and this will improve competitiveness.
TALs Brabo can be used in the automotive and auto components sectors, as well as in other
industries like casting, light engineering, aerospace and logistics.
The introduction of Indias home-made robots will take Make in India to a new level.
8.8. Glyoxalase 1
Researchers have found that inhibiting an enzyme called Glyoxalase 1 (GLO1) relieves
depression faster than existing medicines.
When they tested their research on mice, they found that those inhibiting the GLO1
enzyme reduced depression-like symptoms in five days, whereas it took 14 days for
Prozac to have the same effect. The medicines are yet to be tested on humans
8.9. New Potent Molecules By IISC To Fight TB

Scientists at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bengaluru have developed two new, potent
molecules that can severely impact the survival of mycobacteria, including Mycobacterium
tuberculosis that causes TB.
New synthesised Component: Acetylated compound (AC compound) and Acetylated
benzoylated compound (AB compound). These are formed by bringing about a modification in
the base of the Relacin molecule.
How these molecules fight TB Bacteria:
o Unlike most antibiotics that target the bacterial metabolism by aiming at the cellular
components, the novel molecules inhibit the stress response pathway of mycobacteria. The
stress response pathway is crucial for bacteria to survive during hostile conditions such as
lack of nutrients and the presence of antibiotics, to name a few. So any inhibition of this
pathway will lead to its death.

o The master regulator of stress pathway in the case of mycobacteria is (p)ppGpp (Guanosine
pentaphospahte or Guanosine tetraphosphate). Though a molecule that inhibits the
(p)ppGpp formation has already been synthesised, the efficacy is not much. Both the
molecules to be very good inhibitors of stress response.
o Under hostile conditions, bacteria tend to form biofilms, which protect the bacteria from
stress and induce tolerance to antibiotics. Both the molecules were able to inhibit biofilm
formation by M. tuberculosis and M. smegmatis and also disrupt the already formed biofilm
Since there are very few antibiotics that target the stress response pathway of the bacteria, the
two molecules offer great promise.
8.10. Hydrogen Peroxide

India may impose anti-dumping duty of up to $118 per tonne on import of hydrogen Peroxide.
The move is aimed at guarding domestic players from cheap imports of hydrogen
peroxide from Bangladesh, Taiwan, Korea, Indonesia, Pakistan and Thailand.
Hydrogen peroxide is a chemical compound with the formula H2O2. In its pure form it is a
colourless liquid, slightly more viscous than water.
It is used as an oxidizer, bleaching agent and disinfectant.
This compound is unstable and slowly decomposes in the presence of base or a catalyst.
Because of its instability, hydrogen peroxide is typically stored with a stabilizer in a weakly
acidic solution.
Hydrogen peroxide is found in biological systems including the human body.
8.11. K9 Vajra-T Artillery guns

Indian engineering conglomerate Larsen & Toubro (L&T) and Hanwa Techwin (earlier Samsung
Techwin) of South Korea signed a contract to manufacture the K9 Vajra-T tracked, self-
propelled artillery guns for the Indian Army.
They are characterised by best-in-class firepower and superior manoeuvrability. The K9
Thunder is a South Korean self-propelled 155 mm howitzer, and can hit targets at a distance of
40km. The K9 Vajra is an indigenised version of a Samsung mobile howitzer.
The gun is mounted on a tracked platform, making it manoeuvrable over tough terrain.
The first of the guns is expected to be delivered within this financial year
8.12. STRAND LB
It is a test offered by Strand Life Sciences that claims to be able to detect traces of a tumour
from a simple blood draw. This test can detect tumour DNA traces in as many as 35% of
patients with early-stage cancer, going up to 70-90% in patients with locally advanced or
metastatic cancer.
This test involves being able to catch free-floating pieces of a tumour or particular pieces of
tumour DNA in the blood. These are then analysed to see if the DNA contains mutations that
are known to be linked to particular kinds of cancer.
8.13. 3D-Print Objects Using Glass

German scientists have developed a novel way to 3D-print objects using glass.
This advance could be used to make very small optical components for complex computers.
They mixed nano particles of high-purity quartz glass and a small quantity of liquid polymer and
allowed the mixture to be cured by light at specific points by means of stereolithography.
Applications:
o The 3D-printed glass can be used for many applications, including data technology.
o The next plus one generation of computers will use light, which requires complicated
processor structures.
o 3D technology could be used, for instance, to make small, complex structures out of a large
number of very small optical components of different orientations.
8.14. Artificial Womb Experiment

In News
The artificial womb is being developed, which mimics life in the uterus and, if approved for
human use, could help extremely premature babies avoid death or life-long disability. The
artificial womb is designed to continue what naturally occurs in the womb.
Researchers in the US have developed an artificial womb filled with clear liquid that was
successfully tested on pre-natal lambs. Sheep have long been used in experiments for prenatal
treatment, especially because their lung development is highly similar. The human trials could
start within three years.
Technology
The foetus breathing liquid,
as it would in the womb lies
in a clear-plastic sack filled
with a synthetic amniotic fluid.
A fluid environment is critical
for foetal development.
The umbilical cord is attached
via tubes to a machine outside
the bag, which removes CO2
and adds oxygen to blood
passing through it. There are
no mechanical pumps it is
the foetus heart that keeps
things moving.
One of the major advantages
of this system is the avoidance
of heart failure, which comes
from the imbalance of blood
flows created with pump
circuits used in the current
treatment methods.
8.15. A Safer Alternative To Lithium-Ion Batteries

Researchers at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) developed the nickel-zinc (Ni-Zn)
batteries in which a three-dimensional Zn sponge that replaces the powdered zinc anode, or
positively charged electrode, traditionally used.
Problem with Zinc Batteries
Zinc-based rechargeable suffer from a major drawback: Repeated cycles of charging and
discharging cause zinc atoms to pile up on one of the electrodes.
That causes the growth of dendrites, tiny zinc spears that can pierce other parts of the battery,
causing it to short-circuit and fail.

Benefit of Nickel-Zinc (Ni-Zn) Natteries
With 3D Zn, the battery provides an energy content and rechargeability as good as lithium-ion
batteries while avoiding the safety issues that continue to plague lithium.
Zinc batteries are safe because they contain a nonflammable, water-based electrolyte that helps
ferry charges through the battery. Lithium cells instead require a flammable organic electrolyte
to prevent side reactions that can kill the batteries.
With the benefits of rechargeability, the 3D Zn sponge is ready to be deployed within the entire
family of Zn-based alkaline batteries across the civilian and military sectors.

9. ECOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENT
9.1. Reversal of US Climate Policy
In News
Donald Trump has signed an executive order doing away with earlier climate change
regulations. The Clean Power Plan, floated in 2014, required States to slash carbon emissions
from power plants. It was a critical element to help the United States meet its commitments to a
global climate change accord reached by nearly 200 countries in Paris in 2015.
The Clean Power Plan required states to collectively cut carbon emissions from power plants by
32% below 2005 levels by 2030. The new order named as Energy Independence order
reverses a ban on coal leasing on federal lands. It also asks federal agencies to discount the
cost of carbon in policy decisions.
It undoes rules to curb methane emissions from oil and gas production. It reduces the weight of
climate change and carbon emissions in policy and infrastructure permitting decisions.
Why Reversal
Official reason for the reversal of the order mentions negative impact on oil drillers and coal
miners. Cutting environmental regulation aims to revive the drilling and mining industries under
the guise of job creation on large scale.
Also US wants to reduce its dependence on foreign oil since the Arab oil embargo of the 1970s,
which triggered soaring prices.
Criticism Of Decision
The decision goes against the broader global trend toward cleaner energy technologies.
According to scientific evidence, human use of oil and coal for energy is a main driver of climate
change, causing a damaging rise in sea levels, droughts, and more frequent violent storms.
It is against the flow of economics as it tries to make fossil fuels remain competitive even though
clean renewable power sector not only provides the clean air but also generates plentiful jobs.
It also goes against the American values as it endangers the health, safety and prosperity
of people at large.
9.2. Algal Bloom May Spare Indian Waters

In News
A bloom of the size of Mexico, which originated in the Gulf of Oman, had reached the Arabian
Sea and it was feared that it could reach Indian shores.
However, Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services, (INCOIS), Hyderabad,
confirmed that the coastal States of India will not be affected from the massive algal bloom.
About Algal Bloom
Offshore bloom initiates in the Oman waters by January and subsequently intensifies and
spreads over almost half of the Arabian Sea till March end.
Subsequently, it becomes weak and disappears as the waters start warming by April.
The presence of the green algae gives deep green colour to the ocean in the areas of spread.
Reason for The Bloom
The bloom develops in the Arabian Sea as a result of a continuous process of winter cooling
and convective mixing.
Cool dry continental air from the northeast causes an increase in surface density of the sea
water due to evaporative cooling and increased salinity.

The vertical mixing of the water mass causes recharge of water column with nutrients from the
deep. The nutrient enrichment increases the biological production of the water leading to bloom.
Impact of Bloom
With the degradation of algae cells, associated detritus in the form of particulate organic carbon
sinks to deeper waters. During this process, decomposition occurs by the microbes and oxygen
that is dissolved in water is consumed for their oxidation. This causes adverse effect on fish.
Similarly degrading green algae cells release ammonia in the water increasing toxic level and it
causes fish mortality.
9.3. Government Launches BS-IV Grade Fuels

In News
Recently government has launched Bharat Stage-IV (BS-IV) grade transportation fuel across
the country to keep carbon emission in check. It complies with the Supreme Court order
banning the sale and registration of BS-III vehicles from 1 April, 2017.
It is in line of target of ushering in BS-VI fuel by April 2020 by skipping BS-V fuel. All state-run oil
marketing companies will provide BS-IV-compliant fuel throughout the country.
Why BS-IV Fuels
BS-IV fuels contain far less sulphur than BS-III fuel. Sulphur in fuel makes it dirtier and lowers
the efficiency of catalytic converters, which control emissions.
The BS-IV complaint vehicles release lesser pollutants like Carbon monoxide (CO),
Hydrocarbons (HC), Oxides of Nitrogen (NOx), Sulphur (SOx) and particulate matter (PM) that
threaten the environment and cause global warming compared to BS III complaint vehicles.
What Are BS Emission Standards
BS emission standards are emission standards framed by the Union Government to regulate
output of air pollutants from internal combustion engines and spark ignition engines equipment,
including motor vehicles.
The standards and the timeline for implementation are set by the Central Pollution Control
Board under the Union Ministry of Environment & Forests and Climate Change
(MoEF&CC).
The standards, based on European regulations, were first introduced in 2000. Since then,
various stages Bharat Stage compatible fuel and ungraded and modified vehicles have been
introduced throughout the country.
Each stage specifies a certain limit on the pollutants released. Higher the Bharat Stage lesser is
the emission pollutant.
BS-I, BS-II and BS-III stages were launched in 2000, 2005 and 2010 respectively.
The harmful emissions that are identified for regulations in different Bharat Stages (BS) are
carbon monoxide (CO), unburnt hydrocarbons (HC), Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) and
Particulate matter (PM).
9.4. NTPC Installs IndiaS Largest Floating Solar PV Plant In Kerala

In News
Indias largest floating solar generation plant with capacity of 100 kWp (Kilowatt Peak) has been
developed by NTPC.
It was developed indigenously as a part of Make In India initiative at Rajiv Gandhi Combined
Cycle Power Plant (RGCCPP) at Kayamkulam, Kerala.
Kerala was chosen due to abundant availability of water bodies and lack of enough land.
Significance
Solar panels mounted on floating boards that hold them in place saves land usage. They are
more efficient than those installed on land.
Floating panels are fast emerging as an alternative to conventional ground mounted photo-
voltaic systems which are land intensive. Such panels can be installed on saline water
environments.
Benefits Include
Helps in water conservation through reduction of evaporation.
Increases power generation due to cooling effect on the panels.
Needs less installation time than conventional land mounted panels.
9.5. Heat Waves

In News
According to India Meteorological Department (IMD), temperatures in India are on an average
0.6 degree Celsius hotter than a century ago. 2016 was the warmest year since 1901. Until
2015, 13 of Indias 15 warmest years ever were after 2000.
As per IMD, 4.5 degree C (or greater) rise in temperature than the historical temperature of the
place is considered to be heat wave; while 6.5C and more, a severe heat wave. Impact on
human health includes dehydration, stroke and even death in case of prolonged exposure.
Reasons For These Unusual Heat WaveS
Apart from Global warming, heat waves have been linked to increase in El Nino events which
are marked by an anomalous heating in the Central Pacific Ocean, linked to a weakening of
Indian monsoon.
Particularly, years succeeding an El Nino event are said to be linked to heat waves and
mortality. The Indian Ocean temperatures are also rising faster than the other oceans. This
leads to reduction of moisture over the Indian mainland and resultant heat waves.
Other reasons include deforestation, the heat-island effect, and industrial pollution.
Geographical Spread
Traditional Areas: North and northwest of India, coastal Andhra Pradesh, north Odisha and
parts of West Bengal.
New Areas: Parts of the Himalayan plains, regions north of Andhra Pradesh and Central India.
In 2017, the maximum spikes in temperatures, in March, were recorded in unconventional
places such as Shimla, Kullu and tourist spots in Uttarakhand.
Measures
Early-warnings and improved public access to drinking water
First Aid booths and Mobile clinics/Ambulance.
Staying Indoors is best option.
9.6. Conservation Through App

In News
A team of researchers in Thiruananthapuram, Kerala have developed BIOTA, a biodiversity
app, which is aimed at gathering information on geographical distribution of species for
conservation and educational purposes.
The app aims at building up a database on different plant and animal species, along with their
geographical distribution.

Benefits
Over time, large distribution map of each species can be created. It can be viewed using the
app itself.
These maps can also be used for developing different conservation models. It can be accessed
by National Biodiversity Database and Global Biodiversity Information Facility.
The major focus of the app is on invasive plant species. The app lists ten common invasive
species and one endemic species.
App can help in other fields like public health, in which large-scale collection of data from large
areas is involved.
It can help in generating quick alerts regarding epidemics or establishing disease patterns and
predict its spread, just like in the case of invasive species.
About Global Biodiversity Information Facility
The Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) is an international open data infrastructure,
funded by governments.
It allows anyone, anywhere to access data about all types of life on earth, shared across
national boundaries via the Internet.
By encouraging and helping institutions to publish data according to common standards, GBIF
enables top class research and suggests better decisions to conserve and sustainably use the
biological resources of the planet.
9.7. Mexico To Put Endangered Vaquita Porpoises In Refuge

Mexican government plans to place some of porpoisespecies (considered to be worlds
smallest) in a temporary refuge.
This is being done in order to save them from extinction. The plan would be carried out with the
help of international organisations.
Under the plan, some animals will be transferred to a refuge, where they will be able to
reproduce without risk of being caught in gillnets.
The government has allocated $3 million for the plan, to be matched by funds from international
conservation groups.
The decision has raised controversy because according to conservationists, the vaquita is not
an animal that can thrive in captivity.
Concern
Scientists had
warned in
February that
there are only
30 vaquita
remaining,
saying the
species faced
extinction by
2022.
The most
common cause
of death for the
vaquita is
getting caught

in illegal gillnets meant to catch another endangered species, a large fish called the totoaba.
Vaquita Marina Porpoise
The vaquita (Phocoena sinus) is the worlds smallest cetacean. It means little cow in
Spanish. It is classified as critically endangered by the IUCN.
The vaquita is unique among the porpoises as it is the only species of that family found in warm
waters, and the size of the dorsal fin is believed to be an adaptation to that, allowing for extra
body heat to dissipate.
Vaquita only live in the northern Gulf of California, the Sea of Cortez, Mexico.
Porpoises are among the smallest members of the cetacean family (whales, porpoises and
dolphins).They are only distant relatives of dolphins.
9.8. Day Cruise, Forest Trails Planned At Chilika Lagoon

In News
The Odisha government has planned for massive infrastructure improvement around
the Chilika lagoon. IPE Global has been asked to prepare a tourism master plan for the Chilika
Lake and its catchment area.
Apart from the promotion of tourism, plan focuses on the preservation of the ecosystem and
natural habitat.
About Chilika Lagoon
It is the largest coastal lagoon in India and the second largest lagoon in the world after The New
Caledonian barrier reef in New Caledonia. It is Asias largest brackish water lake.
It is the largest wintering ground for migratory waterfowl throughout the whole the Indian sub-
continent.
It is one of the hotspot of biodiversity in the country, and some rare, vulnerable and endangered
species listed in the IUCN Red List of threatened Animals inhabit in the lagoon for at least part
of their life cycle.
Chilika was designated as the 1st Ramsar Site of India in 1981 on account of its rich bio-
diversity and ecological significance. The Nalaban Island within the lagoon is notified as a Bird
Sanctuary under Wildlife (Protection) Act.
National Wetlands, Mangroves and Coral reefs Committee of Ministry of Environment &
Forests, Government of India, has marked the lagoon as a priority site for conservation and
management. Satpada Island on Chilika is famous for Irrawaddy dolphins.
Concerns
o Prawn farming has reduced the number of migratory birds.
o Problems of silting and reduced salinity have alarmed conservationists.
9.9. North India to Get DNA Bank for Wildlife

Scientists at the Indian Veterinary Research Institute (IVRI) in Bareilly are in the process of
collecting DNA samples of all wild animals to set up the First DNA bank for wildlife in North India.
Significance of The Move
At present, the Laboratory for the Conservation of Endangered Species (LaCONES) in
Hyderabad is the only such facility in the country.
The bank has positive sample meaning known sample which will have DNA sequencing.
In future, getting some unknown sample like hair or skin will help it to determine animal it
belongs to.
Benefits

With the help of the DNA bank, it will be possible to mention the name and schedule of the
species even if only a part of the meat, hair, blood, skin or bone of any animal is available.
Besides, the collection of serum of animals will help clamp down on wildlife poaching and
smuggling, and also aid in research on wildlife species.
Samples of serum will help in detecting retrospectively whether the animal was suffering from a
disease. The schedule of the species will help in knowing that whether animal falls in
endangered category or not.
It will be possible to detect the antibodies produced by the animals. Infections caused by both
virus and bacteria generate specific anti-bodies.
9.10. Coral Bleaching on Great Barrier Reef

In News
A cyclone Debbie has damaged one of the few healthy sections of the Great Barrier Reef that
escaped large scale bleaching. This is in addition to the human and economic damage caused
by Cyclone.
A report released by Australian Climate Council looks at the economic impact of massive coral
bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef in 2016 and 2017.
What The Report Says
The World Heritage site has suffered a second bleaching event in 12 months, triggered by
unseasonably warm waters. The bleaching was caused by a rise in water temperatures due to
climate change and was exacerbated by the effects of El Nino cycle in 2016.
Higher temperatures force coral to expel living algae and turn white as it calcifies. Mildly
bleached coral can recover if the temperature drops. This was visible in southern parts of the
reef, where coral mortality was much lower. It takes at least a decade for a full recovery of even
the fastest-growing corals.
Concerns
Repeated damage could prompt UNESCOs World Heritage Committee to reconsider a 2015
decision not to put the Great Barrier Reef on its in danger list.
Severe coral bleaching on Australias Great Barrier Reef may result in a loss of some $750
million for the economy and tourism industry in the state of Queensland.
If severe bleaching on the Great Barrier Reef continues, this could result in the loss of more
than one million visitors to the region annually, as well as 10,000 jobs.
Significance of GBR
The Great Barrier Reef, declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, contributes about $5.24
billion annually to the Australian economy and supports the livelihoods of around 70,000 people.
Apart from being environmental asset, the Great Barrier Reef is one of Australias greatest
economic assets. There is a need on the part of government to reconsider its energy and
climate policies to mitigate the effects of climate change.
9.11. Environment Ministry Seeks Suggestions On Global Meets On Hazardous Waste,

Pollutants
About The Meet
The environment ministry has sought comments and suggestions from stakeholders on three
important international meetings where subjects like transboundary movement of hazardous
waste, international trade of hazardous waste, and long period pollutants will be discussed.

The meetings will cover the three international Conventions - Conferences of the Parties (CoP)
to the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm. The theme of the meetings and the high-level segment
this year is A future detoxified: sound management of chemicals and waste.
Basel Convention
The Basel Convention on the control of transboundary movements of hazardous wastes and
their disposal was adopted on 22 March 1989. Its main objective is to protect human health
and the environment against the adverse effects of hazardous wastes that are explosive,
flammable, poisonous, infectious, corrosive, toxic, or eco-toxic. India ratified it in June 1992 and
since then it has been taking measures for the effective management of hazardous wastes.
India was one of the key countries that supported adoption of a UN treaty to combat the export
of toxic waste from technology and other products from industrialized societies to developing
countries.
Concerns
Over the years countries like US and Japan that were against the Basel Convention have
succeeded in entering into bilateral agreements with developing countries. Bilateral agreements
define waste as non-new good or recyclable material to outwit the UN treaty. This promotes free
trade in hazardous waste, unmindful of human and environmental cost.
Rotterdam Convention
The Rotterdam Convention is a multilateral environment agreement that provides obligations on
the import and export of certain hazardous chemicals. India ratified it in 24 May 2005. At
Rotterdam convention, the critical issue is of including the White Chrysotile Asbestos in prior
informed consent list of hazardous substances.
Stockholm Convention
The Stockholm Convention deals with persistent organic pollutants (POPs). India ratified the
convention in January 2006. Till date, 26 chemicals are listed as POPs under the Stockholm
Convention but India, as of now, has only ratified only the 12 initially listed POPs. India has now
prepared a national implementation plan and is also in the process for ratification of selected
newly listed POPs.
9.12. Civil Society Moves NGT Over Pollution In Lawsohtun Area

In News
The Greater Laban Community Development Society has approached the National Green
Tribunal over encroachment and pollution in the Critical Catchment Area in Lawsohtunby
defence authorities. It has cited rampant felling of trees and illegal construction of boundary
walls in the catchment area in Lawsohtun forest despite the prohibitory order of the Guwahati
High Court, Shillong Bench.
The Guwahati High Court, in 2005, had directed the advisory body constituted under the
Meghalaya Protection of Catchment Area Act, 1990, to notify and declare the Lawsohtun
forest and adjoining places as catchment areas within two months but nothing has been
done so far. Deforestation and construction work are adversely affecting the ecosystem and
the community as a whole.
Lawsohtun Forest
The Lawsohtun area located within Shillong district has dense forest cover which has many
precious plant species and several streams and rivulets coming from the Shillong Peak.
There are several water sources originating from Shillong Peak and these are sources of
drinking water for the inhabitants of the city and its adjoining areas.
The forest is jointly maintained and controlled by the various Village Councils (Autonomous
District Councils) under 6th schedule of the constitution. Hence Lawsohtun forest area is a
community land.
It is one of the wettest eco regions in the world. It is a part of Meghalaya broadleaf subtropical
montane forests.
Catchment Area: It is an area from where the streams, rivulets and water sources originate
and serve as a potential source of perennial flow of the water.
Critical Catchment Area: Catchment area which potentially serves as the water supply
system of any village or town and its preservation is vital for the health and life of the
community.
9.13. Blue Forests: Finding Coastal and Marine Solutions to Meet the Paris Agreement
About Blue Forest Project
The Blue Forest Project is a global partnership that improves the management of coastal carbon
and ecosystem services to build climate resilient and sustainable communities. The four-year
project is an initiative of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), funded by the
Global Environment Facility (GEF).
The project aims to improve the knowledge and capacity of carbon sequestration in blue
forest ecosystems through on-the-ground demonstrations, identifying scientific knowledge
gaps, and providing best practices and tools for global application. Given their effective role in
sequestering carbon, blue forests will play a key role in helping countries meet their climate
goals. By demonstrating multiple benefits of coastal ecosystems, the Blue Forests Project is
providing countries with nature-based solutions to meet their climate commitments.
Blue Forests and Their Importance
"Blue forests" are coastal and marine ecosystems, including mangrove forests, sea grass
meadows and tidal salt marshes. They play an important role in protecting marine biodiversity
and supporting the livelihoods of coastal and island communities.
They provide habitats for fisheries, filtering water, guarding shorelines and creating
opportunities for tourism and recreation.
Blue forests also play a vital role in addressing the impacts of climate change. Such ecosystems
are highly efficient in storing and sequestering atmospheric carbon in biomass and sediments,
storing up to ten times as much carbon per unit area than terrestrial forests. The ability of
coastal vegetation to sequester carbon is called blue carbon.
9.14. Reclamation of Vembanad Lake: Potential Ecological Damage

About The Issue
Cochin Port Trust (CPT) has been accused of Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) violations in
Vembanad by a committee constituted by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate
Change. It has been alleged that the CPT has reclaimed stretches of Vembanad backwaters
leading to violation of the CRZ notification. Vembanad was classified as a Critically Vulnerable
Coastal Area in the CRZ 2011 notification.
Concerns
Reclamation can cause large-scale damages to the site. Already the extent of the backwaters
has reduced significantly due to illegal reclamations and encroachments.

Also, activities in violation of CRZ provisions will definitely affect the ecological health of a very
sensitive ecosystem like Vembanad, which is a declared Ramsar site, a Critically Vulnerable
Coastal Area, and a protected wetland system.
About Vembanad
Vembanad is the longest lake in India, and the largest lake in the state of Kerala. Spanning
several districts in the state of Kerala, it is known as Punnamada Lake in Kuttanadand Kochi
Lake in Kochi. The Nehru Trophy Boat Race is conducted in a portion of the lake.
Government of India has identified the Vembanad wetland under National Wetlands
Conservation Programme. It is the largest of the three Ramsar Sites in the state of Kerala.
9.15. NGT Directs MoEF and MoWR to State the E-flow Level of Ganga
The National Green Tribunal today asked the Centre to clarify about the minimum
environmental flow (E-flow) in the Ganga, which has to be maintained in order to ensure
uninterrupted water supply in the river.
E-Flows describe the temporal and spatial variations in quantity and quality of water required for
freshwater and estuarine systems to perform their natural ecological functions (including
material transport) and supports the spiritual, cultural and livelihood activities that depend on
them. The Environment Ministry, Ministry of Water Resources and the Central Pollution Control
Board will have to provide complete information on e-flow to be maintained in the river.
Rationale Behind E-flow
The excessive extraction of water and discharge of high pollutants has led to the extreme
pollution in Ganga. Without controlling these pollutants, it would be difficult to restore Ganga to
its original pristine condition.
According to CPCB, leather units and tanneries along the banks of Ganga act as a major
polluting factor as they release toxic waste, heavy metals and pesticides into river.
Also excessive extraction of water and diversion of water into canals has affected the free flow
of water and has made it difficult to maintain the minimum level of water needed for sustaining
the freshwater and estuarine ecosystems besides human livelihood.
9.16. Indian Wolf in Sundarbans

In News
An Indian wolf has reportedly been sighted for the first time in the Sundarbans. Indian wolves
are not found in the Sundarbans region at all. This region is where primarily large cats are
found. Wolves in Bengal are mostly found in the western parts bordering Chhattisgarh and
Jharkhand. This is the first record of an Indian wolf from a mangrove terrain.
About Indian Wolf
The Indian wolf is a Schedule I animal in the Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972 of India.
It prefers to live in scrub lands, grasslands and semi-arid pastoral/ agricultural landscape.
It is categorised as endangered by the IUCN.
Less than 2,000 wolves are there in the Indian forests.
The Himalayan wolf was only recently distinguished as the oldest lineage of wolf.
In Ladakh and Himachal Pradesh, the wolf population was last estimated in 1995 at 350
individuals.
Threats
Due to human-induced pressures, this incredibly unique wolf lineage faces a variety of threats.

Additionally, feral dogs have been known to endanger wild canid populations through disease
transmission, hybridization, and competition.
Hybridization with domestic or feral dogs is a very grave threat to the genetic integrity of
Himalayan wolves. Wolf-Dog hybridization has been observed from other parts of the world,
including Italy and Canada.
9.17. Activists Flay Proposed Coastal Zone Notification
In News
The government has proposed Marine Coastal Regulation Zone (MCRZ) notification.
However, environmental activists claim that it would distort the already skewed compromise
between urban planning and coastal protection.
Proposed Changes in MCRZ Notification Affecting the CRZ 2011
Lifting the ban on land reclamation for commercial and entertainment purposes;
Allowing tourism in classified ecologically sensitive areas;
Allowing the development of new coastal roads and allowing land reclamation.
Impact of The Move
Apart from dilution of the Coastal Regulation Zone 2011, it will affect the coastal governance
and open up Indias coastline to further commercialisation. Communities will be displaced or left
with heavily altered/restricted access to precious livelihood spaces.
These changes will endanger the integrity of coastal ecosystems and reduce the resilience of
coastal ecosystems to cushion disastrous effects of natural calamities and climate change
impacts. Additionally, these proposed changes also would regularise a host of existing
violations, without penalising offenders.
What is Needed
According to environmentalists there is need to set aside the proposed MCRZ notification and
instead conduct several public consultations across all maritime states to strengthen, improve and
effectively implement the provisions of the CRZ 2011.
Coastal Regulation Zone 2011
CRZ area includes the water area up to 12 nautical miles in the sea and the entire water area of
a tidal water body such as creek, river, estuary, etc.
Objective
o Protection of livelihoods of traditional fisher folk communities
o Preservation of coastal ecology
o Promotion of economic activity that have necessarily to be located in coastal regions
What is allowed and what is not allowed in Coastal Zones?
o Mining of limestone and other similar minerals is prohibited in Coastal Regulation Zone
(CRZ) area.
o It also prohibits the mining of sand, rocks and other substrata material including limestone
except rare minerals like, monazite, rutile etc., and exploitation of oil and natural gas.
o All permissible activities under these Notifications are required to obtain clearance under
these Notifications.
9.18. Karnataka Rejects Kasturirangan Report On Western Ghats

In News

The Karnataka Cabinet has rejected the recommendations of the Kasturirangan report on the
Western Ghats. The decision was taken based on feedback from 1,592 villages in the Western
Ghats range which have been classified as EcologicalSensitive Areas (ESAs).
The villages did not want the recommendations to be implemented as they will hamper
livelihood and development in the region. Public representatives and local residents have been
opposing the implementation of the report.
Background
In February, Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF)sought objections from the state
government on declaration of 20,668 sq km spread across 11 districts in the Western Ghats
range in the state as ESA.
Once the final notification is issued by the MoEF, the earmarked zone will be no-go area for
activities like mining, quarrying, big constructions and setting up industries.
About Eco Sensitive Areas/Zones
Eco-Sensitive Zones (ESZs) or Ecologically Fragile Areas (EFAs) are areas notified by
the Environment Ministry as Protected Areas , National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries.
Objective
o The purpose of declaring ESZs is to create some kind of shock absorbers to the
protected areas by regulating and managing the activities around such areas.
o They also act as a transition zone from areas of high protection to areas involving lesser
protection.
Prohibition
o Activities, including commercial mining, setting of saw mills and industries causing pollution,
commercial use of firewood and major hydro-power projects, are prohibited in such areas.
o It also prohibits tourism activities and discharge of effluents and solid waste in natural water
bodies or terrestrial areas.
Regulation: Felling of trees, drastic change in agriculture systems and commercial use of
natural water resources, including groundwater harvesting and setting up of hotels and resorts,
are the activities regulated in the areas.
Permissible Activities: Activities permitted in the areas include ongoing agriculture and
horticulture practices by local communities, rainwater harvesting, and organic farming, adoption
of green technology and use of renewable energy sources.
9.19. Europe's Pollution Caused Drought In India

In News
A new research has blamed the pollution in Europe for a drought in India leading to one of its
worst ever natural disasters, affecting more than 13 crore people. It highlights the effect of
emissions of sulphur dioxide on rainfall in India in 2000.
Primary Reason: Emissions from the northern hemisphere changed the relative rate of
warming in the south, causing the tropical rain-band to shift leading to potentially devastating
results.
Secondary reason
o Sulphate aerosols also have a cooling effect on the atmosphere because it reflects sunlight
back into space.

o This off-sets global warming to an extent. However but also increase air pollution levels and
cause drought.
Impact
The north-west of India experienced a staggering drop of about 40% because of emissions from
the northern hemisphere's main industrial areas. Europe's emissions alone caused reductions of
up to 10% in the north-west and southwest regions.
Despite a fall in European sulphur dioxide emissions by around 74% between 1990 and 2011,
India's droughts have continued as the world has got warmer. Sulphur dioxide -produced mainly
by coal-fired power plants causes a number of harmful effects, like acid rain, heart and lung
diseases, and damage to plant growth.
9.20. Conservationists Cry Over Gujarat Tourism Ad On Endangered Ass
A latest Gujarat tourism ad on many endangered animals including unique wild ass has invited
criticism from the environmentalist.
Why Criticism
The Ad asks the tourists to race with or chase these wild asses among other animals.
As per the provisions of the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, disturbing the wildlife is punishable
with a penalty of Rs 5,000 to 10,000 and imprisonment of two to six months.
About Wild Ass
The Indian Wild Ass or Khur is a subspecies of the Asiatic Wild Ass, the Onager.
The wild ass, or ghudkhar, was classified as 'nearly threatened' animal in 2015 by the
International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).
Protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972, India.
It is included on Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species
(CITES), making international trade in this species illegal.
Threats
Changing land use patterns caused by the Narmada Dam Project and the Sardar Sarovar
canals. Illegal salt panning in the Little Rann of Kutch, which greatly disturbs the hydrological
regime of the Rann.
Overgrazing and proliferation of the invasive grasses has greatly reduced the amount of forage
available. Man-animal conflict is on the rise, due to crop raiding by Khurs.
Many highways pass through Khur habitat, increasing risk of traffic-induced mortality.
9.21. Anger In Andhra After Centre Clears Uranium Project In Nallamala Forest
Whats News
Recently the National Board for Wildlife cleared a proposal from the Atomic Minerals Directorate
for Exploration and Research to explore the uranium in the Nallamala forest. This has led to
angry protests by the local villagers.
It is feared that the uranium exploration will result in the forests destruction and uprooting of its
indigenous inhabitants. Exploration and mining will threaten Nallamalas rich bio-diversity.
Mineral waste will pollute the Krishna River flowing through the forest. It will be a serious health
hazard.
Significance of Uranium Reserves
Uranium-based nuclear plants are key to Indias future energy plans, where a quarter of the 1.2
billion people have little or no access to electricity.

The country imports uranium from France, Russia and Kazakhstan, and operates 20 mostly
small reactors. The government hopes to mine uranium, and shift gradually from its dependency
to coal-fired power stations.
About Nallamala Forests
Nallamala has the Rajiv Gandhi Nagarjuna Sagar-Srisailam tiger reserve project, declared one
of the oldest in the country in 1993.
It is a reserved zone for Chenchus, since the Nizam and British ruled the region.
The Chenchus depend solely on the jungle, hunting game and gathering forest produce for a
living.
Hidden within its belly, Nallamala forest straddling the twin states of Telangana and Andhra
Pradesh apparently has the best quality uranium; unique and superior.
9.22. Niyamgiris Hero Gets Goldman Prize

In News
Activist Prafulla Samantara has won the Goldman Environmental Prize for 2017.
He has been honoured for his 12-year legal battle to protect and enforce the land rights of
indigenous Dongria Kondhs tribes. He has also protected the Niyamgiri Hills from a massive,
open-pit aluminium ore mine.
About Goldman Environmental Prize
The annual prize awarded by the Goldman Environmental Foundation. It honours the grassroots
environmentalists, who risk their lives to protect the environment.
It also awards those who empower people who have the most to lose from industrial projects
that threaten their traditional livelihoods.
The Goldman Environmental Prize recipients are selected by an international jury from
confidential nominations submitted by a worldwide group of environmental organizations and
individuals. The winners are announced every April to coincide with Earth Day.
Since 1990 when the awards were first instituted, six Indians Medha Patkar, M.C. Mehta,
Rasheeda Bi, Champaran Shukla, Ramesh Aggarwal and Prafulla Samantara have won the
prize.
About Dongria Kondhs
The Dongria Kondhs are the indigenous tribal groups of Orissa. They are considered to be one
of Indias particularly vulnerable tribal groups.
The Kondhs are considered to be from the Proto-Australoid ethnic group. Their native language
is Kui, a Dravidian language written with the Odia script.
The Dongria Kondhs call themselves Jharnia meaning those who live by the Jharana (streams).
They have a subsistence economy based on foraging, hunting & gathering. They follow shifting
cultivation called Podu.
The most striking feature of the Dongria Kondhs is that they have adapted to horticulture
and are excellent fruit farmers.

Vajiram April CA 2017

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1.

1.1. Ten New Names For 'Swachh Iconic Places' Initiative

1.2. Conference on Dara Shikoh Held in New Delhi

Current Affairs For 2017- Part 12 (April 2017) Page 1

1.4. Child Artists Can Work Only For 5 Hours A Day

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Current Affairs For 2017- Part 12 (April 2017) Page 3

Current Affairs For 2017- Part 12 (April 2017) Page 4

Current Affairs For 2017- Part 12 (April 2017) Page 5

1.7. India Rankings 2017 Released

1.8. World Health Day

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1.10. Centre May Remove Cap On Parent Maintenance

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2.3. Hindi Controversy

2.4. Photo Exhibition: The Path We Walk

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2.6. Judicial Performance Index Mooted

Current Affairs For 2017- Part 12 (April 2017) Page 12

2.7. Legislation Against Doping

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2.8. Anti Defection Law Issue Referred To Larger Bench

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2.9. Regulatory Body Issues New Ad Norms For Celebrities

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2.10. Citizens Have Right To Internet Access: Supreme Court

2.11. HIV/AIDS Bill Passed in Parliament

2.12. Motor Vehicle Amendment Bill Passed

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2.13. Government Launches Bharat Ke Veer Web Portal And Application

2.14. Inter-State Council Standing Committee Meeting Held After 11 Years

Current Affairs For 2017- Part 12 (April 2017) Page 17

2.15. Cabinet Approves Closure of Mahatma Gandhi Pravasi Suraksha Yojana

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Current Affairs For 2017- Part 12 (April 2017) Page 19

Current Affairs For 2017- Part 12 (April 2017) Page 20

3.2. FRBM Panel Report

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Current Affairs For 2017- Part 12 (April 2017) Page 22

3.3. Sharpen The Focus On Growth

3.4. Rail Development Authority (RDA): A Paradigmatic Shift

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Current Affairs For 2017- Part 12 (April 2017) Page 25

3.6. Wholesale And Long-Term Finance Banks(WLTFB)

Current Affairs For 2017- Part 12 (April 2017) Page 26

3.7. NITI Aayog Governing Council Meet

3.8. Aadhaar-Based Payments Via BHIM Launched For Merchants

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3.9. SEBI Board Clears Big Ticket Market Reforms

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3.11. PM Reviews Performances Of Key Infrastructure Sectors

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Current Affairs For 2017- Part 12 (April 2017) Page 32

3.13. Loan Waivers Can Cripple Farmers

Current Affairs For 2017- Part 12 (April 2017) Page 33

3.14. Time To Deepen The Structural Reforms In The Economy

Current Affairs For 2017- Part 12 (April 2017) Page 34

3.15. Project Saksham

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4.2. Terrorist Attack In Russia

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4.3. U.S. North Korea Nuclear Issue

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