UPSC Daily Current Affairs- January 21, 2022 | Current Affairs: Daily, Weekly & Monthly - CLAT PDF Download

GS-I

Context

• Medaram, a tiny village in Telangana’s tribal heartland of Mulugu district, is getting ready to host the Sammakka-Sarakka jatara, billed as the country’s biggest tribal fair.

About Sammakka-Sarakka Jatara

• The mega four-day jatara, scheduled to begin on February 16 in Medaram. It takes place once in two years.
• It is perhaps the only tribal fair devoted to pay tribute to tribal warriors who made supreme sacrifices defending the rights of aboriginal tribal people. 
• It symbolises the traditions and heritage of the Koya tribal people. 
• The sacred site in Medaram and its surrounding Jampanna vagu, named after tribal martyr Jampanna, son of Sammakka, comes alive with lakhs of devotees during the four-day jatara.

Why do tribals come to Medaram?

• This festival commemorates a tribal revolt led by Sammakka and Saralamma, a mother-daughter duo, against levy of taxes on tribal people during drought conditions by the then Kakatiya rulers in the 12th century. 
• Tribals (and others) flock to Medaram during the jatara not just from Telangana and Andhra Pradesh but also from as far as Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra. 
• Sammakka and Saralamma are revered by devotees as tribal goddesses, and devotees make offerings to propitiate them to bestow health and wealth. 
• All the rituals at the jatara site are held in tune with tribal traditions under the aegis of tribal priests.

Features of the celebrations

• One of the striking features of the tribal fair is the offering of jaggery to the tribal goddess at the altars (bamboo poles). 
• It encompasses common features of tribal fairs – die-hard devotees going into a trance, the sacrifice of fowls and goats, besides pulsating traditional drum beats accompanying folk songs.

Context

• A reconnaissance survey in the sea off the coast of Korkai in Thoothukudi district where Tamiraparani River joins the sea, which finds mention in Sangam literature, will be undertaken by the Tamil Nadu Archaeology Department.

About Tamiraparani River

• The Thamirabarani or Tamraparni or Porunai is a perennial river that originates from the Agastyarkoodam peak of the Pothigai hills of the Western Ghats. 
• It flows through the Tirunelveli and Thoothukudi districts of the Tamil Nadu state of southern India into the Gulf of Mannar. 
• It was called the Tamraparni River in the pre-classical period, a name it lent to the island of Sri Lanka. 
• The old Tamil name of the river is Porunai.

About its history

• Its many name derivations of Tan Porunai include Tampraparani, Tamirabarni, Tamiravaruni. 
• Tan Porunai nathi finds mentioned by classical Tamil poets in ancient Sangam Tamil literature Purananuru. 
• Recognised as a holy river in Sanskrit literature Puranas, Mahabharata and Ramayana, the river was famed in the Early Pandyan Kingdom for its pearl and conch fisheries and trade. 
• The movement of people, including the faithful, trade merchants and toddy tapers from Tamraparni river to northwestern Sri Lanka led to the shared appellation of the name for the closely connected region. 
• One important historical document on the river is the treatise Tamraparni Mahatmyam. 
• It has many ancient temples along its banks. A hamlet known as Appankoil is located on the northern side of the river.

GS-II

Context

• Recently, the Union Cabinet approved the infusion of Rs 1,500 crore in the Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA). 
  • This will enable IREDA to lend Rs 12,000 crore to the renewable energy sector. 
  • Earlier, the IREDA had launched a ‘whistle-blower Portal’, as a part of ‘Vigilance Awareness Week 2021’.

Significance of the Funds

• This equity infusion will help in employment generation of approximately 10200 jobs-year and CO₂ equivalent emission reduction of approximately 7.49 Million Tonnes CO₂/year. 
• Additional equity infusion of Rs.1500 crore by Government of India will enable IREDA: 
  • To lend Rs.12000 crore approximately to the Renewable Energy (RE) sector, thus facilitating the debt requirement of RE of additional capacity of approximately 3500-4000 MW. 
  • To enhance its networth which will help it in additional RE financing, thus contributing better to the Government of India targets for RE. 
  • To improve the Capital-to-Risk weighted Assets Ratio (CRAR) to facilitate its lending and borrowing operations. 
    • CRAR, also known as CAR (Capital Adequacy Ratio) is critical to ensure that financial organisations have enough cushion to absorb a reasonable amount of losses before they become insolvent.

About IREDA

• IREDA is a mini ratna company under the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE). 
• It was set up in 1987 as a specialized non-banking finance agency for the renewable energy sector. 
• IREDA plays a key role in the renewable energy project financing which gives confidence to the financial institutions/banks to lend in the sector.

Context

• The 19^ṭh tranche of electoral bonds, which have been pitched as an alternative to cash donations, were on sale, ahead of the upcoming Assembly elections in five States. 
  • In the past, the Supreme Court has raised the possibility of misuse of money received by political parties through electoral bonds. 
  • This may defeat the original idea of the introduction of these bonds to bring transparency in electoral funding and keep a check on the criminalization of politics.

About Electoral Bonds

• These bonds are issued in multiples of Rs. 1,000, Rs. 10,000, Rs. 1 lakh, Rs. 10 lakh and Rs. 1 crore without any maximum limit. 
• State Bank of India is authorised to issue and encash these bonds, which are valid for fifteen days from the date of issuance. 
• These bonds are only redeemable in the designated account of a registered political party. 
• The bonds are available for purchase by any citizen of India for a period of ten days each in the months of January, April, July and October as may be specified by the Central Government. 
• A person being an individual can buy bonds, either singly or jointly with other individuals. 
• The donor’s name is not mentioned on the bond.

About Associated Issues

• A Blow to Democracy: Through an amendment to the Finance Act 2017, the Union government has exempted political parties from disclosing donations received through electoral bonds. 
  • This means the voters will not know which individual, company, or organization has funded which party, and to what extent. 
  • However, in a representative democracy, citizens cast their votes for the people who will represent them in Parliament. 
• Compromising Right To Know: The Indian Supreme Court has long held that the “right to know”, especially in the context of elections, is an integral part of the right to freedom of expression (Article 19) under the Indian Constitution. 
• Against Free & Fair Elections: While electoral bonds provide no details to the citizens. 
  • The said anonymity does not apply to the government of the day, which can always access the donor details by demanding the data from the State Bank of India (SBI). 
  • This implies that the government in power can leverage this information and disrupt free and fair elections. 
• Crony Capitalism: The electoral bonds scheme removes all pre-existing limits on political donations and effectively allows well-resourced corporations to fund elections subsequently paving the way for crony capitalism.

Context

• Conscious recognition of the federal character of our polity is essential to protect our national character.

About Federal spirit and ideas in Indian Constitution

• Conscious of the differential needs of the populations of different states, the drafters of the Constitution made provisions for an equitable share of powers and responsibilities among different levels of governments. 
• The lists in the 7th Schedule of the Constitution — Union, state and concurrent — are an example of this division, wherein each level of government has its own sphere, enabling context-sensitive decision-making. 
• Local self-government: Later, institutions for local self government were added through the 73rd and 74th amendments, which strengthened grass roots democracy. 
• Division of responsibility: Article 246 and Article 243 G provide for this division of responsibilities. Finance Commission: Article 280 provided for the constitution of Finance Commission to define the financial relationship and terms between the Union and states. 
• Inter-State Council: Article 263 provided for the establishment of an Inter-State Council for smooth transition of business between the Union and states and resolution of disputes. 
• The inter-state tribunals, the National Development Council and other informal bodies have served as vehicles of consultations between the Union, states and UTs. 
• Rajya Sabha: Apart from these institutions and the Rajya Sabha, the Constitution makers also left much scope for consultative and deliberative bodies so as to strengthen the spirit of cooperation and federalism.

Steps against the spirit of federalism

• The Planning Commission has been scrapped. 
• The Inter-State Council has met only once in the last seven years while the National Development Council has not met at all. 
• The tenure of the 15th Finance Commission was mired in controversy and many states expressed apprehensions about devolution. 
• The GST has already taken away much of the autonomy available to states and has made the country’s indirect tax regime unitary in nature. 
• Article 370 was removed without consulting the state legislature. 
• Parliament legislated on “agriculture”, entry no. 14 in the state list, to enact the three contentious farm laws, overstepping its jurisdiction and imposing a law on the states. 
• The New Education Policy has been flagged as encroaching on the federal nature of the polity. 
• The BSF’s jurisdiction was extended in Assam, West Bengal and Punjab without any consultation with the concerned states. 
• The constitutional office of governor has come under scrutiny several times for encroaching on the powers of state executive and legislature.

Conclusion

• It should be underlined that Article 1 of our Constitution declares that “India that is Bharat is a union of states”, and that devolution of powers is necessary in such a setting.

Context

• The Supreme Court has pronounced its decision upholding the constitutional validity of providing 27% quota to Other Backward Classes (OBC) in NEET All India Quota (AIQ) seats for UG and PG medical courses.

About Issues

• The petitioners, several NEET aspirants, had argued that since the top court had limited reservation to 50% in the Indira Sawhney judgment, the government should have first applied to the court before tinkering with the quota calculations. 
• The court further confirmed that there was no need for the Centre to have got the prior consent of the Supreme Court before introducing OBC quota in the AIQ seats under NEET. 
• The court reasoned that material affluence of certain individual members of a socially backward group or ‘creamy layer’ could not be used against the entire group to deny it the benefits of reservation.

Key observations of the Apex Court

• The SC has held that reservation is not at odds with merit. 
• It observed that ‘merit’ could not be narrowed to the limit of success in open competitive exams. 
• Merit of a person is a sum total of “lived experiences” and his or her struggle to overcome cultural and social setbacks, observed the SC.

Why is this a landmark judgment?

• Merit cannot be reduced to narrow definitions of performance in an open competitive examination, which only provides formal equality of opportunities , said the SC. 
• Current competencies are assessed by competent examinations but are not reflective of excellence, capability and potential of an individual.

Major justifications for Reservations

• Exams did not reflect how social, economic and cultural advantages that accrued to certain classes contributed to their success in them, the court noted. 
• Examinations are not a proxy for merit. Merit should be socially contextualized and re-conceptualized. 
• Reservation is not at odds with merit but furthers its distributive impact, Justice Chandrachud observed.

Implications: Victory for States

• In a significant victory for States such as Tamil Nadu, the court confirmed their power to make “special provisions” and provide reservations in educational admissions, whether in aided or unaided institutions. 
• TN provides government jobs for the advancement of “any socially and educationally backward classes of citizens or for the SCs and STs”.

Constitutionality of the decision

• The court held that the power of the State governments to provide reservations under Article 15 (4) and (5) of the Constitution was not an “exception” to Article 15 (1). 
• It enshrines the mandate that “the State shall not discriminate against any citizen on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, and place of birth or any of them”. 
• The court held that the power of the State government to craft reservations for the OBC amplified the principle of “substantive equality” manifested through Article 15 (1).

GS-III

Context

• The Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change has decided to rank states, specifically State Environment Impact Assessment Authorities (SEIAAs), on the speed with which they accord Environmental Clearances (EC) to development projects. 
  • The issue of action taken to enable “ease of doing business’’, especially in the context of “ranking of states based on the time taken in accordance with clearances’’ was raised in November 2021. 
  • The average time to grant environmental clearances in all sectors has reduced significantly from over 150 days in 2019 to less than 90 days in 2021.

About Ranking of States on Faster Green Nods

• It has been decided to incentivise the states through a star-rating system, based on efficiency and timeliness in grant of EC. 
• This is intended as a mode of recognition and encouragement as well as for promoting improvements where needed. 
• The SEIAA, which clears projects in the shortest period of time, has a high rate of clearance, and seeks fewer “essential details”, will be ranked the highest.

Parameters for the Rating System

• SEIAAs will be graded between 0 and 1 on five parameters, and 0 and 2 on one 
• (for granting EC). 
• The parameters are
  • The average number of days taken by an SEIAA to accept proposals seeking either EC or Terms of Reference (ToR) for projects. 
  • The number of complaints addressed by the Authority. 
  • The percentage of cases for which site visits are carried out by either SEIAAs or State Expert Appraisal Committees (SEACs). 
  • The percentage of cases in which the Authority seeks additional information from project proponents more than once. 
  • The disposal percentage of proposals seeking fresh or amended ToRs that are older than 30 days. 
  • The disposal percentage of proposals seeking fresh or amended EC that are older than 120 days.

Environmental Clearance In India

• In India Environmental clearance of a project has to be obtained either from the State Government and /or from the Central Government. 
• The basic objective behind the environmental clearance is to ensure the least damage to the natural resources and incorporate suitable remedial measures right at the stage of project formulation. 
• The Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) notification issued by the Ministry of Environment & Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) includes the details of the procedure for obtaining Environmental Clearance and public hearing for decision making. 
• This EIA notification is valid for both Government as well as the Public sector/Private sector for mega projects undertaken by them. 
• The potential impacts of proposed projects, plan programs, or legislative actions relative to the physical-chemical, biological, cultural, and socio-economic components of the total environment.

Criticism of the Move

• Reduce the SEIAA to a ‘Rubber Stamps Authority’
  • Such a rating system stands to reduce the SEIAA to a ‘rubber stamps authority’ where their performance will be judged by the speed with which they facilitate environmental degradation and jeopardising of community livelihoods. 
• Against Article 21
  • The rating system is also against the environmental rule of law, violates article 21 of the Constitution (Protection of Life and Personal Liberty) and is an arbitrary exercise of power to benefit only business at the cost of the environment and people. 
• Constrain the Mandate of the SEIAAs
  • The move will severely constrain the mandate of the SEIAAs under the Environment Protection Act, 1986 and the Environment Impact Assessment notification. 
  • This ratings system could lead to a further dilution in the quality of environment impact assessments and it only demonises the regulatory process, whereas it is the state of the economy at large which has arrested the growth of business. 
  • To assess the performance of SEIAAs, the criteria for the same should step from this environmental protection mandate, which is drawn from Section 3(3) of the Environment Protection Act. 
  • The Act empowers the Central Government to establish authorities (under section 3(3)) charged with the mandate of preventing environmental pollution in all its forms and to tackle specific environmental problems that are peculiar to different parts of the country.

Context

• Air India said Boeing had cleared its B777 aircraft for flights to the US following concerns that the 5G roll-out there could interfere with critical aircraft functions.

What is 5G Technology?

• 5G or fifth generation is the latest upgrade in the long-term evolution (LTE) mobile broadband networks. 
• It’s a unified platform which is much more capable than previous mobile services with more capacity, lower latency, faster data delivery rate and better utilization of spectrum.

What happens to Air India’s operations?

• While scheduled international flights, to and from India, remain suspended due to the pandemic, Air India operates flights to the US under an air bubble agreement. 
• These routes are served by the airline’s wide-body fleet of Boeing 777 and Boeing 787 planes. 
• The roll out of 5G is expected to primarily impact the operations of Boeing 777 and 747.

How can 5G affect flight safety?

• Airlines take off and land using auto-pilot systems, which use data from radar altimeters to determine the altitude of the aircraft. 
• Altimeters emit radio waves at 4.2-4.3 Gigahertz (GHz) frequency, which could interfere with a 5G band called C-Band, which lies between 3.7-4.4 GHz. 
• This interference can mess up the data. That’s the safety concern. Radio altimeters are used at airports and other low-altitude locations. 
• A different kind of altimeter, called pressure altimeter, is used for high altitude areas. 
• Not using auto-pilot would lead to more fuel consumption and higher costs for airlines.

Can this impact India’s 5G roll-out?

• India’s 5G auctions are expected to include spectrum bands of 3.3GHz -3.6GHz, which means the C-Band may not be operational, at least in the near future. 
• Plus, aircraft equipment is manufactured globally, with certain standards. 
• The FAA tests will likely lead to standards for altimeters and applied internationally. 
• For aircraft makers, altimeters are key equipment. But they’re bought off-the-rack instead being designed in-house. 
• Once a standard is known, it can be implemented in all aircraft.