UPSC Daily Current Affairs- July 02, 2022 PDF Download

GS-I

Context

Lakhs of devotees thronged the coastal town of Puri town to witness the annual Rath Yatra with three decorated chariots of sibling deities Lord Balabhadra, Lord Jagannath and Devi Subhadra towed in front of the 12th century Shree Jagannath Temple.

About Jagannath Rath Yatra

• Ratha Jatra, the Festival of Chariots of Lord Jagannatha is celebrated every year at Puri, the temple town in Orissa, on the east coast of India.
• It involves a public procession with a chariot with deities Jagannath (Vishnu avatar), BalaBhadra (his brother), Subhadra (his sister) and Sudarshana Chakra (his weapon) on a ratha, a wooden deula-shaped chariot.
• The huge, colourfully decorated chariots, are drawn by hundreds and thousands of devotees on the bada danda, the grand avenue to the Gundicha temple, some two miles away to the North.
• It attracts over a million Hindu pilgrims who join the procession each year.

GS-II

Context

Recently, the UN (United Nations) Ocean Conference 2022 was held to ensure global cooperation towards protection and sustenance of the Ocean ecosystem of the world.

• The conference was co-hosted by the Governments of Kenya and Portugal.
• Minister of Earth Sciences led the Indian delegation at UN Ocean Conference. India promised to provide science and innovation-based solutions for the implementation of Goal 14 through partnerships and environmentally friendly.
• The UN Ocean conference 2022 is aligned to SDG (Sustainable Develpment Goals) 14 'life below water' and stresses on the critical need for scientific knowledge and marine technology to build ocean resilience.

Key Agenda of the Conference

• Moratorium on Deep Sea Mining
  • Push for a moratorium on deep-sea mining of rare metals needed for a boom electric vehicle battery construction.
  • The digging and gauging of the ocean floor by machines can alter or destroy deep-sea habitats. 
• Carbon Sequestration
  • Focus on carbon sequestration to boost the ocean's capacity to soak up CO₂, by either enhancing natural sinks such as mangroves or through geoengineering schemes.
• Blue Deal
  • A “Blue Deal” was promoted to enable the sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth.
  • It includes global trade, investment and innovation to create a sustainable and resilient ocean economy.
  • Focus on blue food to ensure marine harvests from all sources are sustainable and socially responsible.
• High Seas are Unregulated
  • No comprehensive legal framework covers the high seas. Oceans cover some 70% of the earth’s surface and provide food and livelihoods for billions of people.
  • Some activists refer to them as the largest unregulated area on the planet.
• Threat to Ocean
  • Threats to the oceans include global warming, pollution (including plastic pollution), acidification, marine Heatwaves etc.

GS-III

Context

The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has successfully carried out the maiden test flight of a new Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), an autonomous Flying Wing Technology Demonstrator, from the Aeronautical Test Range, Chitradurga, Karnataka.

About the Indigenous Drone

• The Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) is powered by a small turbofan engine.
• It is developed under unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) programme.
• It is designed and developed by Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE), Bengaluru, a premier research laboratory of DRDO.
• The engine is Russian TRDD-50MT originally designed for cruise missiles.
• A small turbofan engine is being developed indigenously for meeting the requirement.

Various initiatives by DRDO

• DRDO is in the process of developing UAVs of different classes to met the requirements of the armed forces.
• Rustom-2, the indigenous Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) UAV under development, had crossed a milestone by reaching an altitude of 25,000 feet and an endurance of 10 hours.
• It is now being designed to reach an altitude of 30,000 feet and 18 hours endurance.
• An Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle is also on the drawing board.

Significance of the development

• Operating in a fully autonomous mode, the aircraft exhibited a perfect flight, including take-off, way point navigation and a smooth touchdown.
• This flight marks a major milestone in terms of proving critical technologies towards the development of future unmanned aircraft.
• This is a significant step towards self-reliance in strategic defence technologies.

Context

Recently, the government kept interest rates unchanged on Small Savings Schemes, including NSC (National Savings Certificate) and PPF (Public Provident Fund), for the second quarter of 2022-23 amid high inflation and rising interest rate.

• The interest rate on small savings schemes has not been revised since the first quarter of 2020-21.

About Small Saving Schemes/Instruments

• They consist of 12 instruments and are the main source of household savings in India.
• Depositors receive a guaranteed interest rate on their funds.
• They are popular as they provide returns higher than bank fixed deposits, sovereign guarantee and tax benefits.
• The National Small Savings Fund receives payments from all small savings instruments (NSSF).
• Small savings have become a crucial source of funding the government deficit, particularly when the Covid-19 outbreak caused the deficit to inflate and further borrowing became necessary.

Determination of Rates

• Interest rates on small savings schemes are reset on a quarterly basis, in line with the movement in benchmark government bonds of similar maturity. The rates are reviewed periodically by the Ministry of Finance.
• The Shyamala Gopinath panel (2010) constituted on the Small Saving Scheme had suggested a market-linked interest rate system for small savings schemes.

What are the different saving schemes?

Small savings instruments can be classified under three heads:

• Postal Deposits (comprising savings account, recurring deposits, time deposits of varying maturities and monthly income scheme).
• Savings Certificates: National Small Savings Certificate (NSC) and Kisan Vikas Patra (KVP).
• Social Security Schemes: Sukanya Samriddhi Scheme, Public Provident Fund (PPF) and Senior Citizens‘ Savings Scheme (SCSS).

Context

India recorded its second-highest monthly gross GST revenues in June at ₹1,44,616 crore, 56% more than a year earlier when the second COVID wave had hit economic activity.

About GST

• GST is an indirect tax that has replaced many indirect taxes in India such as excise duty, VAT, services tax, etc.
• The Goods and Service Tax Act was passed in Parliament on 29th March 2017 and came into effect on 1st July 2017. It is a single domestic indirect tax law for the entire country.
• It is a comprehensive, multi-stage, destination-based tax that is levied on every value addition.
• Under the GST regime, the tax is levied at every point of sale. In the case of intra-state sales, Central GST and State GST are charged. All the inter-state sales are chargeable to the Integrated GST.

What are the components of GST?

There are three taxes applicable under this system:

• CGST: It is the tax collected by the Central Government on an intra-state sale (e.g., a transaction happening within Maharashtra)
• SGST: It is the tax collected by the state government on an intra-state sale (e.g., a transaction happening within Maharashtra)
• IGST: It is a tax collected by the Central Government for an inter-state sale (e.g., Maharashtra to Tamil Nadu)

Issues with GST

• High operational cost.
• GST has given rise to complexity for many business owners across the nation.
• GST has received criticism for being called a ‘Disability Tax’ as it now taxes articles such as braille paper, wheelchairs, hearing aid etc.
• Petrol is not under GST, which goes against the ideals of the unification of commodities.

Context

Government Securities (G-Secs) yields are at an all-time high.

About G-Secs

• These are debt instruments issued by the government to borrow money.
• The two key categories are:
  • Treasury bills (T-Bills): short-term instruments which mature in 91 days, 182 days, or 364 days, and
  • Dated securities: long-term instruments, which mature anywhere between 5 years and 40 years

Why G-Secs?

• Like bank fixed deposits, g-secs are not tax-free.
• They are generally considered the safest form of investment because they are backed by the government. So, the risk of default is almost nil.
• However, they are not completely risk-free, since they are subject to fluctuations in interest rates.
• Bank fixed deposits, on the other hand, are guaranteed only to the extent of Rs 5 lakh by the Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (DICGC).

How are G-sec yields calculated?

• G-sec yields change over time; often several times during a single day.
• This happens because of the manner in which G-secs are structured.
• Every G-sec has a face value, a coupon payment and price.
• The price of the bond may or may not be equal to the face value of the bond.
• Here’s an example: Suppose the government floats a 10-year G-sec with a face value of Rs 100 and a coupon payment of Rs 5.
• If one were to buy this single G-sec from the government, it would mean that one will give Rs 100 to the government today and the government will promises to 1) return the sum of Rs 100 at the end of tenure (10 years), and 2) pay Rs 5 each year until the end of this tenure.
• At this point, the face value of this G-sec is equal to its price, and its yield (or the effective interest rate) is 5%.

What do G-sec yields show?

• If G-sec yields (say for a 10-year bond) are going up, it would imply that lenders are demanding even more from private sector firms or individuals; that’s because anyone else is riskier when compared to the government.
• It is also known that when it comes to lending, interest rates rise with the rise in risk profile.
• As such, if G-sec yields start going up, it means lending to the government is becoming riskier.
• If you read that the G-sec yields are going up, it suggests that the bond prices are falling. But the prices are falling because fewer people want to lend to the government.
• And that in turn happens when people are worried about the government’s finances (or its ability to pay back).
• The government’s finances may be in trouble because the economy is faltering and it is unlikely that the government will meet its expenses.
• By the reverse logic, if a government’s finances are sorted, more and more people want to lend money to such a G-sec.
• This in turn, leads to bond prices going up and yields coming down.

Context

Recently, Scientists have spotted fossils of a small mammal resembling squirrels called treeshrew (known as Sivatupaia ramnagarensis) belonging to a new genus and species from Jammu and Kashmir.

Key Points Related to Treeshrew

• About
  • This treeshrew currently represents the oldest record of fossil tupaiids in the Siwaliks, extending their time range by 2.5-4.0 Million Years in the region.
    • Tupaiids refers to several species of East Indian and Asiatic insectivores of the family Tupaiidæ, somewhat resembling squirrels in size and arboreal habits. The nose is long and pointed.
  • Treeshrews are very rare elements of the fossil record, with only a few species known throughout the entire Cenozoic era.
    • Cenozoic Era means 66 million years ago until today or 'recent life'.
    • During this era, plants and animals look most like those on Earth today.
    • Periods of the Cenozoic Era are split into even smaller parts known as Epochs.
  • Dietary analyses suggest that the new tupaiid was probably adapted for a less mechanically challenging or more fruit eating diet compared to other extant and fossil tupaiids.
    • A dietary analysis is a nutritional assessment that allows technicians to analyse the patterns, quantity, and nutritional quality of food consumed by an individual.
• Significance of the Discovery: The identification of time sensitive dental features and species in the current collection helps to provide a more precise age estimate for this Ramnagar locality as between 12.7-11.6 Million Years.

What are Siwalik sediments?

• The Siwalik is a thick sedimentary sequence forming the youngest mountain belt, extending throughout the East- West of the foothills of the Himalayas.
• Siwalik documents the evolution of many mammalian groups from the middle Miocene Epoch through Pleistocene including treeshrews, hedgehogs, and other small mammals.

Context

A Union Minister has said it was necessary to have certain laws like the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) so that action could be taken against terrorists and those who “behead other people”.

The Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), 1967

• The Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) of 1967 is an upgrade on the Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act TADA (which lapsed in 1995) and the Prevention of Terrorism Act – POTA (which was repealed in 2004).
• Its main objective was to make powers available for dealing with activities directed against the integrity and sovereignty of India.
• The National Integration Council appointed a Committee on National Integration and Regionalisation to look into, the aspect of putting reasonable restrictions in the interests of the sovereignty and integrity of India.
• The agenda of the NIC limited itself to communalism, casteism and regionalism and not terrorism.
• However, the provisions of the UAPA Act contravenes the requirements of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

Unlawful Activities Prevention Amendment Bill, 2019

• The original Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, 1967, dealt with “unlawful” acts related to secession; anti-terror provisions were introduced in 2004.
• It provides special procedures to deal with terrorist activities, among other things.

Some Concerning Points about the designation of someone as terrorist

• The government is NOT required to give an individual an opportunity to be heard before such a designation.
• At present, legally, a person is presumed to be innocent until proven guilty.
• In this line, an individual who is convicted in a terror case is legally referred to as a ‘terrorist’.
• And those suspected of being involved in terrorist activities are referred to as ‘terror accused’.
• The Bill does NOT clarify the standard of proof required to establish that an individual is involved or is likely to be involved in terrorist activities.
• The Bill also does not require the filing of cases or arresting individuals while designating them as terrorists.

Issues with UAPA

• UAPA gives the state authority vague powers to detain and arrest individuals who it believes to be indulged in terrorist activities. Thus, the state gives itself more powers vis-a-vis individual liberty guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution.
• UAPA empowers the ruling government, under the garb of curbing terrorism, to impose indirect restriction on right of dissent which is detrimental for a developing democratic society. The right of dissent is a part and parcel of fundamental right to free speech and expression and therefore, cannot be abridged in any circumstances except for mentioned in Article 19 (2).
• UAPA can also be thought of to go against the federal structure since it neglects the authority of state police in terrorism cases, given that ‘Police’ is a state subject under 7th schedule of Indian Constitution.

How can the names be removed?

• Application: The Bill seeks to give the central government the power to remove a name from the schedule when an individual makes an application.
• The procedure for such an application and the process of decision-making will also be decided by the central government.
• If an application filed is rejected by the government, the Bill gives the person the right to seek a review within one month of rejection.
• Review committee: Under the amendment Bill, the central government will set up a review committee.
• It will consist of a chairperson (a retired or sitting judge of a High Court) and 3 other members.
• It will be empowered to order the government to delete the name of an individual from the schedule that lists “terrorists”, if it considers the order to be flawed.
• Apart from these two avenues, the individual can also move the courts challenging the government’s order.