UPSC Daily Current Affairs- 7th March 2023 | Current Affairs & Hindu Analysis: Daily, Weekly & Monthly PDF Download

GS-I

Indian Tea Industry

Why in News?

India has taken several steps to boost the output, create a niche brand for Indian tea, and ensure the welfare of the families associated with the tea industry.

About Indian Tea Industry:

• India is the 2nd largest tea producer and largest black tea producer after China and 4th largest exporter of Tea in the world.
• India is also the largest consumer of black tea and accounts for 18% of the total World tea consumption.
• The main tea-growing regions are in the Northeast (including Assam) and in north Bengal (Darjeeling district and the Dooars region).
• Tea is also grown on a large scale in the Nilgiris in south India.

Ideal climate condition for tea cultivation:

• Originate in tropical and subtropical climates.
  • Major tea growing regions are mainly concentrated in Asia, Africa, South America.
• Tea requires cool to warm temperatures with at least 5 hours of sunlight per day.
  • The average annual temperature for tea plants to grow well is in the range of 15 – 23°C.
  • The rainfall needed is between 150-200 cm.

Market Size of Tea Industry in India:

• In 2020, nearly 10 million tons of tea was consumed in the country.
• The market in the country is projected to witness a further growth in the forecast period of 2022-2027, growing at a CAGR of 4.2%.
• In 2026, the tea industry in India is expected to attain 1.40 million tons.

Tag for Geographical Indication (GI)

• The first GI tag product was Darjeeling Tea, also known as the “Champagne of teas” due to its floral aroma.
• Green and white tea, the other two Darjeeling tea varieties, also have GI tags.
• The Indian tea industry is being developed and promoted by the Tea Board of India.

About Tea Board of India:

• The genesis of the Tea Board India dates back to 1903 when the Indian Tea Cess Bill was passed.
• The present Tea Board was set up under Section 4 of the Tea Act 1953.
• It is functioning as a statutory body of the Central Government under the Ministry of Commerce.
• The Board is constituted of 31 members (including Chairman) drawn from Members of Parliament, tea producers, tea traders, tea brokers, consumers, and representatives of Governments from the principal tea producing states, and trade unions .
• HQ: Kolkata
• The Board is reconstituted every three years.
  • Earlier, the Tea Board had offices in Cairo and Kuwait.
  • But these two offices were relocated to Dubai.

Issues associated with the Indian Tea sector:

• Stiff competition and improved standards in the world market – due to low product prices from Kenya and other countries – increasing demand for organic tea and quality assurance that entails environmental justice.
• Decline in productivity and quality – Tea bushes must be replanted every five years, but most Tea bushes older than 20 yrs.; uneven rainfall due to climate change – is affecting the productivity and quality of Indian Tea leading to lower prices at Tea auctions.
• Poor worker conditions and low wages – despite the provisions of the Plantation Labor Act, 1951 most workers and their families live in unsanitary conditions and receive low wages – this issue needs to be addressed given the fact that “starvation deaths” in North Bengal caught the international media attention.
• Small Tea Growers – the challenges faced by the Small Tea Growers’ sector is as follows
  • Not getting the right green leaf price
  • Unlike large estates, STG’s are not able to capitalize on scale and marketing of product as a collective is difficult – since it is unorganized
  • Issue of workers’ rights – since STG’s are not governed by the PLA, 1951
• Most of them are not recognized by the Tea Board of India due to landownership regulations and related procedural problems – this means lesser data available on the state of the STG’s making it difficult for policy coordination
• Some global factors like the decline in demand from European markets in the wake of the Russia-Ukraine war have compounded the problem.

Suggestive measures:

• The One District and One Product (ODOP) program can aid in promoting Indian Tea’s fame.
• The “AROMA” of tea needs to be improved in order for the industry to become profitable, viable, and sustainable.
• Support small farmers to raise production to satisfy domestic and international demand while improving quality and sustainability.
• Create infrastructure to boost exports and concentrate on high value markets like the EU, Canada, South America, and the Middle East to re-energize.
• Promote GI tea and organic tea using brand marketing and promotion.
• Modernization: To help local supply networks be strengthened and tea producers to become self-sufficient
• Adaptability: Focus on the importance of a risk proof ecosystem, that is, the need for sustainable solutions to make tea plantations meet the challenges of climate change.

India being the second largest producer of Tea has numerous opportunities to develop the Tea Industry as it is providing employment to a huge number of people in the north eastern states. A win-win for all and therefore a truly sustainable and transparent model — is the key requirement for a highly labour-centric industry like tea plantations.

Source: The Hindu

GS-II

Methane Global Tracker report

Why in News?

Recently, the International Energy Agency (IEA) released its annual Methane Global Tracker report.

About Methane Global Tracker report:

• It is an annual report published by the International Energy Agency (IEA).

Background :

• Methane is a greenhouse gas responsible for 30% of warming since preindustrial times, second only to carbon dioxide.
• Methane is 80 times more potent at warming than carbon dioxide.

Key Findings of the report :

• The report shows that 75% of methane emissions can be reduced with cheap and readily available technology.
• Global Methane Pledge – 150 countries have joined the Global Methane Pledge which aims to reduce methane emissions from human activity by 30% from 2020 levels by 2030.
• India has committed to reducing the emissions intensity of its GDP by 33-35% below 2005 levels by 2030.
• The energy sector accounts for around 40% of total average methane emissions.
• 80% of available options to curb methane emissions can be implemented at net zero cost.
• Implementing methane reduction measures would cost less than 3% of the net income received by the oil and gas industry in 2022.
• Reduction of 75% of natural gas wastage could lower global temperature rise by nearly 0.1 degree Celsius by mid-century.

About the International Energy Agency (IEA) :

• It is an intergovernmental organization established in 1974.
• Headquarters:  Paris
• The IEA is made up of 31 member countries.
• Objective:  to promote reliable, affordable, and clean energy for its member countries and the rest of the world.
• The Agreement on an International Energy Program (IEP Agreement) established the mandates and structure of the IEA under the umbrella of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

Eligibility Criteria for membership:

• A candidate country to the IEA must have crude oil and/or product reserves (Strategic Oil Reserves) equivalent to 90 days of the previous year’s net imports, to which the government has immediate access (even if it does not own them directly) and could be used to address disruptions to global oil supply.
• India became an Associate member of IEA in 2017.
• India inked a Strategic Partnership Agreement with the IEA to strengthen cooperation in global energy security, stability, and sustainability in 2021.
• India’s current strategic oil reserves equal 9.5 days of its requirement.
• India is not a member of the OECD but a key economic partner.
• IEA invited India to deepen its cooperation with IEA by becoming a full Member.

Key publications of IEA :

• World Energy Outlook (WEO)
• Net Zero by 2050: a roadmap for the global energy sector
• Energy Technology Perspectives (ETP)
• Global EV Outlook (GEVO)
• Oil Market Report
• World Energy Investment
• Clean Energy Transitions Programme

Source: THE INDIAN EXPRESS

ASEAN-India Business summit

Why in News?

Recently, the Minister of State for Electronics & Information Technology addressed the addresses 5th ASEAN-India Business summit.

About the ASEAN-India Business summit:

• It is being held as part of the ASEAN-India Year of Friendship to commemorate the more than three-decade-long engagement between India and the 10-member bloc in Kuala Lumpur.

Key facts about ASEAN

• It is a group of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, which was established in 1967 with the signing of the Bangkok declaration.
• Founding members: Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore and Thailand.
• Presently ASEAN comprises 10 member states namely Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Laos, Myanmar, Cambodia and Vietnam.
• It promotes intergovernmental cooperation and facilitates economic, political, security, military, educational, and sociocultural integration between its members and other countries in Asia.

Source: PIB

Why in News?

Recently, the National Commission for Minorities rescued stranded Indians from Libya.

About the National Commission for minorities :

• It was established by the Union Government in 1992 under the National Commission for Minorities Act.
• Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Zoroastrians (Parsis), and Jains are six religious communities that have been designated as minority communities by the Union Government in India’s Gazette.
• Sikhs, Buddhists, Parsis, Christians, and Muslims were notified in 1993
• Jains were added later in 2014.
• According to the 2001 Census, these six communist countries account for 18.8% of the country’s population.

Composition:

• NCM consists of a Chairperson, a Vice-Chairperson, and five members.
• All the members shall be from amongst the minority communities.
• A total of 7 persons to be nominated by the Central Government should be from amongst persons of eminence, ability, and integrity.
• Tenure: Each Member holds office for a period of three years from the date of assumption of office.
• The Chairperson or a member can resign from office by writing to the Central Government.

Removal of Office of Chairperson

• The Central Government shall remove a person from the office of Chairperson or the member if they:
• Become an undischarged insolvent.
• Are declared having an unsound mind by a competent court.
• He refused to act or become incapable of acting.
• Have been convicted and sentenced to imprisonment for an offense which in the opinion of the Central Government involves moral turpitude.
• Absent from three consecutive meetings without obtaining leave of absence.
• Abused the position of chairperson or member in the opinion of the Central Government.
• Detrimental to the interest of minorities or public interest.
• However, No person shall be removed under this clause until the person has been given a reasonable opportunity of being heard in the matter.

Functions:

• Recommending Union and State Government regarding Implementation of Safeguards for the minorities.
• Address the complaints regarding the deprivation of rights of minorities and take up such matters with the rightful authorities.
• The commission shall perform any of the functions mentioned above and have all powers of civil court.

Source: THE HINDU

GS-III

International Maritime Exercise/ Cutlass Express 2023 (IMX/CE-23) and INS Trikand

Why in News?

 INS Trikand will be participating in the International Maritime Exercise/ Cutlass Express 2023 (IMX/CE-23) which will be held in the Gulf region.

About International Maritime Exercise/ Cutlass Express 2023 (IMX/CE-23):

• IMX/CE-23 is one of the largest multinational maritime exercises in the world.
• This is Indian Navy’s maiden IMX participation.
• The International Maritime Exercise is coordinated by the US-led Combined Maritime Forces (CMF).
• Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) – a 34-nation naval group that seeks to promote security, stability, and prosperity.
• India became an associate member of CMF in 2022.
• It  marks the second occasion where an Indian Naval ship is participating in an exercise conducted by the CMF.
• Earlier, INS Trikand had participated in the CMF-led Operation Sea Sword 2 in 2022.

About INS Trikand:

• ‘INS Trikand’ is a Stealth Frigate.
• It was commissioned into the Indian Navy in 2013.
• It is the last of the three “Follow On Talwar Class” frigates built in the Russian Federation.
• The other ships of the class:  INS Teg and INS Tarkash
• INS Trikand carries a state-of-the-art combat suite which includes the supersonic BRAHMOS missile system, advanced Surface to Air missiles Shtil, upgraded A190 medium range gun, Electro-optical 30 mm Close-in Weapon System, Anti-Submarine weapons such as torpedoes and rockets and an advanced Electronic Warfare system.
• The weapons and sensors are integrated through a Combat Management System ‘Trebovanie-M’, which enables the ship to simultaneously neutralize multiple surfaces, sub-surface and air threats.
• The ship also incorporates innovative features to reduce radar, magnetic, and acoustic signatures, which have earned this class of ships the sobriquet of ‘Stealth’ frigates.
• The ship is powered by four gas turbines and is capable of speeds in excess of 30 knots.
• The ship can carry an integrated Kamov 31 helicopter which is best suited for airborne early warning roles.

Source: PIB

Hindu growth rate

Why in News?

 Recently, former RBI Governor ,Raghuram Rajan claimed that India is ‘dangerously close’ to the Hindu rate of growth.

About Hindu growth rate :

• Hindu rate of growth is a term describing low Indian economic growth rates from the 1950s to the 1980s, which averaged around 4%.
• The term ‘Hindu rate of growth’ was coined by Professor Rajkrishna, an Indian economist, in 1978 to characterize the slow growth and to explain it against the backdrop of socialistic economic policies.
• The term came into being to show India’s contentment with the low growth rate, post-independence.
• The word “Hindu” in the term was used by some early economists to imply that the Hindu outlook of fatalism and contentedness was responsible for the slow growth.
• Many economists believed that the so-called Hindu rate of growth was a result of socialist policies implemented by the then-staunch secular governments and had nothing to do with Hinduism.
• A small growth rate alone does not characterize the Hindu rate of growth.
• A prolonged low growth rate, albeit not an economic contraction, is not sufficient to be deemed as the Hindu rate of growth.
• In addition to growth being low and extending over a long period of time, the term also captures a low per-capita GDP, by factoring in the population growth.

Source: THE HINDU

Rupee appreciation and depreciation

Why in News?

Rupee gained 8 paise to close at 82.50 against the U.S. dollar recently.

About depreciation :

• Currency depreciation is a fall in the value of a currency in a floating exchange rate system.
• Rupee depreciation means that the rupee has become less valuable with respect to the dollar.
• It also means that the rupee is now weaker than what it used to be earlier.

Factors affecting depreciation :

• Wear and Tear due to Use or Passage of Time:
• It is the deterioration that is followed by a decrease in the value of an asset, resulting from its use in business operations to earn revenue.
• Some orders of means lose their value after the agreement directing their use in business comes to an end after the expiry of the predetermined period.
• Obsolescence
• It is another factor driving the depreciation of fixed assets.
• It means being “out-of-date”.
• An actual asset that is becoming outdated on account of the availability of a better type of asset is referred to as obsolescence.
• Abnormal factors that are responsible for the drop in the use of the asset like accidents due to the earthquake, fire, cataracts, etc., Accidental loss is endless but not continuing.

About appreciation :

• It is an increase in the value of one currency in relation to another currency  in a floating exchange rate system.
• Currencies appreciate against each other for a variety of reasons, including government policy, interest rates, trade balances and business cycles.
• Currency appreciation discourages a country’s export activity as its products and services become costlier to buy.

Factors affecting appreciation :

• Appreciation is directly linked to demand.
• If the value of the currency appreciates (or goes up), demand for the currency also rises.

Source: THE HINDU