UPSC Daily Current Affairs - September 28, 2022 | Current Affairs & Hindu Analysis: Daily, Weekly & Monthly PDF Download

GS-II

Context

• Recently, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has dismissed the case it took up suo motu on the grant of forest clearance for the 3000-MW Dibang hydel project without meeting the precondition of declaring a National Park.
• The Tribunal did so after it was informed by Arunachal Pradesh that the local people are not willing to part away their land for declaration of National Park.

What are the Key Points of Dibang Hydro Power Project?

• It is a flood control cum hydroelectric power project planned to be developed on the Dibang River, a tributary of Brahmaputra River, in Arunachal Pradesh.
• The Dam site is located about 1.5 km upstream of the confluence of Ashu Pani and Dibang rivers and about 43 km from Roing, District Headquarter.
• The project would moderate flooding in the areas downstream of the Dibang Dam during the entire monsoon period to the extent of 3000 cumecs.
• It will be developed with an estimated investment of USD 4 billion.
• The Dibang hydropower project is expected to generate up to 11,222 million units (MU) of electricity a year.

What is the National Green Tribunal (NGT)?

• It is a specialized body set up under the National Green Tribunal Act (2010) for effective and expeditious disposal of cases relating to environmental protection and conservation of forests and other natural resources.
• With the establishment of the NGT, India became the third country in the world to set up a specialised environmental tribunal, only after Australia and New Zealand, and the first developing country to do so.
• NGT is mandated to make disposal of applications or appeals finally within 6 months of filing of the same.
• The NGT has five places of sitting, New Delhi is the principal place of sitting and Bhopal, Pune, Kolkata and Chennai are the other four.

Context

The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (I&B) has asked YouTube to remove 45 videos from 10 channels. The order invokes the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021.

Indian Context

• India ranks quite high in the list of countries that make regular requests for removal of online content.
• Internet censorship in India is done by both central and state governments.
• In March 2012, Reporters Without Borders added India to its list of “countries under surveillance.
• Freedom House’s Freedom on the Net 2017 report gives India a Freedom on the Net status of “Partly Free”
• In 2020, environmental groups like Fridays for Future India leading the movement against the Indian Government’s new EIA 2020 Draft reported that their websites were made inaccessible to users in India or were taken down.
• In 2021, regarding Government’s handling of COVID-19 pandemic, an emergency order to Twitter was made to take down tweets from high-profile users that criticised its handling of the pandemic – Twitter has complied and withheld these tweets.
• In early 2021, Twitter refused to comply with orders from the Indian government to ban over a thousand accounts related to farmers’ protests.

What is an OTT platform:

• OTT or Over the Top Platforms are services that offer viewers access to movies, TV shows and other media directly through the Internet, bypassing cable or satellite systems.
• OTT services can be accessed through internet-connected devices like computers, smartphones, set-top boxes and smart TVs.
• In India’s regulatory parlance, OTT platforms are called ‘publishers of online curated content’. Online curated content is audio-visual content such as films, web-series, podcasts etc. made available to the viewers on demand, including but not limited through subscription by OTT platforms.
• “On demand” means a system where a user is enabled to access, at a time chosen by them, any content in electronic form, which is transmitted over a computer resource and is selected by the user.
• Popular video-on-demand services in India include Disney+ Hotstar, Amazon Prime Video, Sony LIV etc.

Information Technology Rules 2021

• Aim: to regulate OTT platforms
• The rules establish a soft-touch self-regulatory architecture
• They provide for self-classification of the content without any involvement of Central Board of Film Certification.
• The rules mandate a three-tier institutional mechanism for handling public grievances. Every publisher should appoint a Grievance Officer based in India for receiving and redressing grievances in 15 days. Also, every publisher needs to become a member of a self-regulating body. Such a body will have to register with the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and address grievances that have not been resolved by the publisher within 15 days.
• OTT platforms must display age-based content rating and content descriptor for each content. If applicable, they should also display an advisory on viewer discretion at the beginning of the programme.
• General principles require the platforms to not publish any content which is prohibited under any law and take into consideration the implications, and exercise due caution and discretion in respect of the content which affects the sovereignty & integrity of India and India’s multi-racial and multi-religious context.

Procedure in IT Rules:

• An inter-departmental committee considers complaints on content and makes recommendations.
• The Authorised Officer has to take the approval of the Secretary, I&B, before directing the publisher or intermediary to block the relevant content.
• There is an emergency provision under which the Secretary may order content blocking as an interim measure, and thereafter confirm it after getting the committee’s views.
• All such blocking orders are meant to be examined by a review committee, which ought to meet once in two months, but it is not known whether the panel meets regularly.
• The Government, which discloses how many videos it has got removed, must also reveal the outcome of such reviews, if any.

Concerns:

• Offensive content such as hate speech, incitement to violence and child pornography pose a challenge to the dignified use of online space.
• Propagation of hate and communally sensitive material over the free video sharing website
• Sensitivity of information: The content in these videos is based on intelligence inputs and may relate to sensitive issues such as references to Kashmir, the Agnipath scheme, false claims about the rights of religious minorities being taken away and dissemination of material portending civil war.
• Validity of claims: If these claims are true and if the content transgresses the boundaries of free speech or threatens public order and security, such take-down orders may be justified.
• Concern over process: However, the manner of their passing remains an unrevealed process, as it is not known if the originators of the content were given an opportunity to explain their stand before the blocking orders were issued. Section 69A of the IT Act, which empowers the Government to block content, was upheld by the Supreme Court only after it noted that the rules provided procedural safeguards, including the need to issue notice to the originators or the intermediary, before a blocking order.
• Requiring messaging services to enable the identification of the first originator of information on its platform may adversely affect the privacy of individuals.
• The procedure for emergency blocking of content of online publishers lacks certain safeguards – ground include national security and public order, without giving the publisher an opportunity of hearing.
• Oversight mechanism for digital news media lacks the independence accorded to print news.

Way forward

• OTT platforms must exercise due caution and discretion when featuring the activities, beliefs, practices, or views of any racial or religious group.
• The government must use the power to block online content sparingly and with sensitivity towards key freedoms and due process.

Context

• World Rabies Day is observed every year on 28th September to raise awareness about the world’s deadliest infectious disease and bring together partners to enhance prevention and control efforts worldwide.
• 2022 marks the 16th World Rabies Day.

What do we need to know about World Rabies Day?

About:

• 28th September marks the anniversary of Louis Pasteur's death, the French chemist and microbiologist, who developed the first rabies vaccine.
• In 2007, the first World Rabies Day (WRD) was organised by the two founding partners namely:
  • Alliance for Rabies Control (ARC)
  • Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta (CDC)

Theme 2022: 

• The theme of World Rabies Day 2022 is: “One Health, Zero Death”.
• The theme will highlight the connection of the environment with both people and animals.

What do we know about Rabies?

About:

• Rabies is a vaccine-preventable, zoonotic, viral disease.
• It is caused by a Ribonucleic Acid (RNA) virus that is present in the saliva of a rabid animal (dog, cat, monkey, etc).
• It is invariably transmitted following a bite of an infected animal that leads to deposition of the saliva and the virus in the wound.
• Once clinical symptoms appear, rabies is virtually 100% fatal. The death invariably occurs in four days to two weeks due to cardio-respiratory failure.
• In up to 99% of cases, domestic dogs are responsible for rabies virus transmission to humans.
• The incubation period varies from 2–3 months but may vary from 1 week to 1 year, or rarely even more.

Treatment:

• It is important to remove the virus from the wound as early as possible by immediately washing the wound with water and soap followed by application of antiseptics that reduce/eliminate chances of nerve infection.
• Rabies can be prevented by vaccinating pets, staying away from wildlife, and seeking medical care after potential exposures before symptoms start.

Symptoms:

• The first symptoms of rabies may be similar to flu and may last for a few days, which includes:
• Fever, Headache, Nausea, Vomiting, Anxiety, Confusion, Hyperactivity, Difficulty swallowing, Excessive salivation, Hallucinations, Insomnia.

India’s Initiatives for Cure Against Rabies:

• National Action Plan for Dog Mediated Rabies Elimination by 2030:
  • It is a multi-pronged strategy based on One Health Approach.
  • The concept of One Health recognizes that the health of people is closely related with the health of animals, plants and their shared environment.
  • In One Health approach, multiple sectors communicate and work together at the local, regional, national, and global levels with the goal of achieving optimal health outcomes.
• Mission: To achieve zero human deaths due to dog-mediated Rabies by 2030.
• Principles:
  • Prevention: Introduce cost-effective public health intervention techniques to improve accessibility, affordability, and availability of post-exposure prophylaxis to all people in need.
  • Promotion: Improve understanding of rabies through advocacy, awareness, education and operational research.
  • Partnership: Provide coordinated support for the anti-rabies drive with the involvement of community, urban and rural civil society, government, private sectors and international partners.

Context

•  Make in India’ recently completed 8 years since its inception

About the scheme: Make in India campaign was launched by the Prime Minister of India  in 2014.

Objectives of the scheme:

• To attract foreign investment for new industrialisation and develop the already existing industry base in India to surpass that of China.
• Target of an increase in manufacturing sector growth to 12-14% per annum over the medium term.
• To increase the share of manufacturing sector in the country’s Gross Domestic Product from 16% to 25% by 2022.
• To create 100 million additional jobs by 2022.
• To promote export-led growth.

Review of ‘Make in India’:

• Accomplishments:
  • Ministry of Commerce & Industry said that the program, which is aimed at self-sufficiency or being ‘aatmanirbhar’, has substantial accomplishments across 27 sectors, including strategic sectors such as manufacturing and services.
• Attracting record FDI Inflows:
  • In the first year of the ‘Make in India’ scheme, FDI inflows stood at $45.15 billion.
  • The year 2021-22 recorded the highest ever FDI at $83.6 billion and India is on track to attract $100 billion FDI in the current financial year.

Measures to strengthen the Make in India initiative

Labour reforms:

• Recent labour reforms have brought flexibility in hiring and retrenchment.

Promotion of manufacturing:

• Steps to promote manufacturing and investments also include reduction in corporate taxes, public procurement orders and Phased Manufacturing Programme.
• Quality control orders have been introduced to ensure quality in local manufacturing.

Production Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes:

• As a part of the ‘Make in India’ program, the government introduced Production Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes across 14 key manufacturing sectors in 2020-21 as a big boost to the ‘Make in India’ initiative. 
• This also included a $10-billion incentive scheme to build a semiconductor, display, design ecosystem in India.

The One-District-One-Product (ODOP) initiative:

• It is aimed at facilitating the promotion and production of indigenous products from each district of the country and providing a global platform to the artisans and manufacturers aiming to contribute to the socio-economic growth of various regions of the country

‘Gatishakti’ programme:

• The programme will ensure logistical efficiency in business operations through the creation of infrastructure that improves connectivity.
• This will enable faster movement of goods and people, enhancing access to markets, hubs, and opportunities, and reducing logistics cost.

State initiatives:

• In line with the Make in India, individual states too launched their own local initiatives, such as “Make in Odisha”, “Tamil Nadu Global Investors Meet”, “Vibrant Gujarat”, “Happening Haryana”, and “Magnetic Maharashtra”.

Issues Associated with the scheme:

• Investment from Shell Companies: Large part of the Indian FDI is neither foreign nor direct but comes from Mauritius-based shell companies which are suspected to be investing black money from India only, which is routed via Mauritius.
• Low Productivity: Productivity of Indian factories is low and workers have insufficient skills. McKinsey report states that Indian workers in the manufacturing sector are, on average, almost four and five times less productive than their counterparts in Thailand and China.
• Small Industrial Units: Size of the industrial units is small for attaining the desired economies of scale, investing in modern equipment, and developing supply chains.
• Infrastructure: Electricity costs are almost the same in India and China but power outages are much higher in India.
• Transportation: Average speeds in China are about 100 km per hour, while in India, they are about 60 km per hour. Indian railways have saturated and Indian ports have been outperformed by a lot of Asian countries.
• Red Tapism: Bureaucratic procedures and corruption make India less attractive for investors. India has made progress in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business (EDB) Index, but even then, is ranked 63 among 190 countries in 2022.
• Insufficient Rules and Regulations: Labour reforms and land acquisition laws were not completed before making attempts to attract foreign investors to Make in India.
• Capital Outflow: In future India will have to face another external challenge in the form of capital fleeing the country. The net outflow of capital has jumped as the rupee has dropped

Way Forward

• The Make in India initiative has been striving to ensure that the business ecosystem in the nation is conducive for investors doing business in India and contributing to growth and development of the Nation.
• This has been done through a range of reforms that has led to increased investment inflows as well as economic growth.
• With this initiative at the forefront, the businesses in India are aiming that the products that are ‘Made in India’ are also ‘Made for the World,’ adhering to global standards of quality.

GS-III

Context

• A Mediterranean medicinal plant considered a cure-all that mysteriously vanished 2,000 years ago may still be around, a recent study claimed.
• A researcher from Istanbul University found a plant species recently at three locations in Anatolia — modern-day Turkey, that resembled the ancient plant Silphion.
• There may be waterlogged remains of ancient Silphion on the Mediterranean seafloor, which could provide direct evidence of the nature of this elusive plant.

Ancient Usage of Silphion:

• The resin of the Silphion was extensively used as a spice, perfume, aphrodisiac, contraceptive and medicine.
• It occupied an important place in the export economy of ancient Cyrene, an old Greek and later Roman colony near north-eastern Libya.

Silphion was used to treat various health problems:

• goitre, sciatica (nerve pain), toothache, intestinal disorders, hormonal disorders, epilepsy, tetanus, polyps (abnormal growth of tissues) and malignant tumours.
• Its stalks were eaten as a vegetable, while the roots were consumed raw.
• The plant was also used to preserve lentils.

Causes of extinction of Silphion:

• Overharvesting
• Human-induced environmental changes
• Widespread deforestation and desertification

Environmental conditions:

• These plants may need cold and moist conditions for seed germination.
• This is because the plants related to Silphion, such as Ferula drudeana and Ferula asafoetida, also need similar environmental conditions for seeds to germinate
• An increase in temperature might have increased evaporation, leading to unfavourable conditions.

Context

• Recently, Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) conducted two successful test flight of Very Short Range Air Defence System (VSHORADS) missile from a ground based portable launcher at the Integrated Test Range, Chandipur, off the coast of Odisha.
• Both the flight tests have completely met the mission objectives.

What is VSHORADS?

About:

• Very Short-Range Air Defence System (VSHORADS) is a Man Portable Air Defence System (MANPAD) designed and developed indigenously by DRDO’s Research Centre Imarat (RCI), Hyderabad in collaboration with other DRDO laboratories and Indian Industry Partners.

Design:

• VSHORADS missile incorporates many novel technologies including miniaturized Reaction Control System (RCS) and integrated avionics, which have been successfully proven during the tests.
• The missile, meant for neutralizing low-altitude aerial threats at short ranges, is propelled by a dual thrust solid motor.
• The design of the missile including launcher has been highly optimized to ensure easy portability.

Significance:

• This new missile equipped with modern technologies will give further technological boost to the Armed Forces.

What is a Reaction Control System?

• A Reaction Control System (RCS) is responsible for attitude control and steering by the use of thrusters.
• The RCS system is capable of providing small amounts of thrust in any desired direction or combination of directions.
• An RCS is also capable of providing torque to allow control of rotation (pitch, yaw, and roll).

What are MANPADS?

• MANPADS are short-range, lightweight and portable surface-to-air missiles that can be fired by individuals or small groups to destroy aircraft or helicopters.
• They help shield troops from aerial attacks and are most effective in targeting low-flying aircraft.
• MANPATs or Man-Portable Anti-Tank Systems work in a similar manner but are used to destroy or incapacitate military tanks.
• MANPADS have a maximum range of 8 kilometers and can engage targets at altitudes of 4.5 km.
• The first MANPADS were introduced by the United States and Soviet Union in the 1960s.

Context

•  Govt commits Rs. 7,385 crores under Fund of Funds for Start-up India Investment scheme for 88 Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs) and 720 start-ups supported by AIFs.
• CAGR of over 21% since launch
• Valuation increases by more than 10 times
• Year on year surge of 100% in amount of drawdowns
• Investments into eligible start-ups is approximately 3.7 times of FFS disbursements; well above minimum stipulated 2 times under the Scheme

About:

• Fund of Funds for Start-ups (FFS) was launched under Start-up India initiative in 2016.
• Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) is responsible for operationalising the scheme. It has undertaken a series of reforms to expedite the drawdowns.
• Corpus of funds: FFS was announced with a corpus of Rs. 10,000 cr., to be built up through budgetary support by DPIIT, Ministry of Commerce & Industry
• Methodology: FFS supports SEBI registered AIFs, which in turn invest in start-ups.

Significance:

• FFS has been playing a monumental role in mobilizing domestic capital in Indian start-up ecosystem.
• It has also played a catalytic role in terms of reducing dependence on foreign capital and encouraging home grown and new venture capital funds.
• Innovation created will remain within the country and facilitate generation of employment and creation of wealth.
• Unicorn status (valuation of over USD 1 billion) has been achieved by start-ups funded through FFS like Dunzo, CureFit, FreshToHome, Jumbotail, Unacademy, Uniphore, Vogo, Zostel,Zetwerk etc.,

About Alternative Investment Fund (AIF):

• It means any fund established or incorporated in India which is a privately pooled investment vehicle which collects funds from sophisticated investors, whether Indian or foreign, for investing it in accordance with a defined investment policy for the benefit of its investors.
• Applicants can seek registration as an AIF in one of the following categories,
• Category I AIF: Venture capital funds (Including Angel Funds), SME Funds, Social Venture Funds, Infrastructure funds
• Category II AIF
• Category III AIF
• Fund of Funds is an investment strategy of holding a portfolio of other investment funds rather than investing directly in stocks, bonds or other securities. In the context of AIFs, a Fund of Fund is an AIF which invest in another AIF.

GS-IV

Context 

• Wars are always destructive, and thus the politics and morality of war are always in question.
• It is rare in recent times, however, that an invasion has proceeded with so little concern for justice and morality as the Russian attack on Ukraine.

What is Just War Theory?

Origin:

• The principles of a Just War originated with classical Greek and Roman philosophers like Plato and Cicero and were added to by Christian theologians like Augustine and Thomas Aquinas.

About:

• The just war theory is a largely Christian philosophy that attempts to reconcile three things:
  • taking human life is seriously wrong
  • states have a duty to defend their citizens, and defend justice
  • protecting innocent human life and defending important moral values sometimes requires willingness to use force and violence
• The theory specifies conditions for judging if it is just to go to war, and conditions for how the war should be fought.
• Although it was extensively developed by Christian theologians, it can be used by people of every faith and none.
• According to the Just War theory, war perhaps at times is morally right. 
• No war, however, is praiseworthy for being strategic, prudent, or bold. Occasionally, war represents an ethically appropriate use of mass political violence.
• World War II, on the Allied side, is often cited as the definitive example of a just and good war.

What are the Elements of Just War Theory?

• Just war theory is divided into three parts that have Latin names. These parts are:
  • Jus Ad Bellum: About the justice of resorting to war in the first place.
  • Jus in Bello: It is about justice of conduct within war.
  • Jus Post Bellum: This is about the justice of peace agreements and the termination phase of the war.

What is the Purpose of Just War Theory?

• The aim is to provide a guide to the right way for states to act in potential conflict situations.
• It only applies to states, and not to individuals (although an individual can use the theory to help them decide whether it is morally right to take part in a particular war).
• The theory provides a useful framework for individuals and political groups to use for their discussions of possible wars.
• The theory is not intended to justify wars but to prevent them, by showing that going to war except in certain limited circumstances is wrong and thus motivates states to find other ways of resolving conflicts.

What are the Arguments against Just War Theory?

No Place in Ethical Theory:

• All war is unjust and has no place in any ethical theory:
• Morality must always oppose deliberate violence.
• Rather than limiting violence,just war ideas encourage it.

Disrupts Normal Rules of Society:

• As a result of war, the normal rules of society are disrupted and morality goes out the window.

Unrealistic Theory:

• The just war theory is unrealistic and pointless
• In a conflict "the strong do what they will, and the weak do what they must".
• The decision to wage war is governed by realism and relative strength, not ethics.
• Morality thus has no use in war.

Way Forward

• The overriding aim of war should be to achieve victory as quickly and cheaply as possible.
• If the cause is just, then no restrictions should be placed on achieving it.
• The rules of conduct of war are mere camouflage because they are always over-ruled by 'military necessity'.
• Terrorists are inherently uninterested in morality, so following any ethical theory of war handicaps those whom terrorists attack - thus a different approach is needed.