UPSC Daily Current Affairs- 1 October 2022 | Current Affairs & Hindu Analysis: Daily, Weekly & Monthly PDF Download

GS-II

Context

• Recently, India was ranked 40th position out of 132 in the Global Innovation Index (GII) 2022 rankings released by World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO).
• India was ranked 46th position in 2021, and 81st rank in 2015.

What are the Highlights of the Report?

Ranking of the Countries:

• Most Innovative Economy:
  • Switzerland is the most innovative economy in the world in 2022 - for the 12th year in a row - followed by the United States, Sweden, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands.
  • China is nearing the top 10 while Türkiye and India enter the top 40 for the first time.
• Performance of India:
  • India is the innovation leader in the lower middle-income group.
  • It continues to lead the world in ICT services exports and holds top rankings in other indicators, including venture capital receipt value, finance for startups and scaleups, graduates in science and engineering, labor productivity growth and domestic industry diversification.

Increase in R & D Expenditure:

• The top global corporate R&D spenders increased their R&D expenditure by almost 10% to over USD 900 billion in 2021, higher than in 2019 before the pandemic.

Venture Capital (VC) Growth:

• It exploded by 46%in 2021, recording levels comparable to the internet boom years of the late 1990s. 
• Latin America and the Caribbean and Africa regions are witnessing the strongest VC growth.

What is the Global Innovation Index?

• About:
  • The Global Innovation Index, which is published annually, has been a leading reference for measuring an economy’s innovation performance.
  • A large number of countries use the GII to assess and improve their innovation ecosystems and use the GII as a reference in economic plans and/or policies.
  • The GII has also been recognized by the UN Economic and Social Council in its 2019 resolution on Science, Technology and Innovation for Development as an authoritative benchmark for measuring innovation in relation to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
• Indicators of the index:
  • Parameters for computing the index include 'institutions', 'human capital and research', 'infrastructure', 'market sophistication', 'business sophistication', 'knowledge and technology outputs' and 'create outputs'.
• Theme for 2022: “What is the future of innovation-driven growth?”.

What are the Related Initiatives by India?

• Digital India:
  • India embarked on the ‘Digital India’ journey in 2015 and have set up a goal of a trillion-dollar digital economy in the next few years.
  • Digital technologies are used in several areas, including mapping capital assets using GIS technology and revolutionizing payments through Unified Payments Interface (UPI).
  • In fact, 40% of global real-time digital transactions happened in India in 2021.
• National Education Policy 2020:
  • To further strengthen innovation, the National Education Policy was introduced which promoted the spirit of enquiry by setting up incubation & technology development centers.
• Atal Tinkering Labs:
  • Over 9000 Atal Tinkering Labs encourage youth to develop solutions to society's problems.
• Structural Reforms in IPR:
  • India has taken up structural reforms to strengthen its Intellectual property rights (IPR) regime including modernization of IP offices, reducing legal compliances and facilitating IP filing for start-ups, women entrepreneurs, the small industries and others.
  • Domestic filing of Patents registered a 46% growth in the last 5 years.

Context

• The United Nations marks the International Day for Older Persons(October 1), as part of the organisation’s efforts to draw attention to healthy ageing.

International Day for Older Persons

• On 14 December 1990, the United Nations General Assembly designated 1 October the International Day of Older Persons.

What are the Statistics?

• According to UNDESA: Recently, a report by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UNDESA), World Population Prospects 2022, has projected big shifts in global demographic patterns in the coming decades.
• Worldwide population: As global birth rates stabilise and shrink, 16%of the world population by 2050 is expected to be made up of people over 65 years. India will be home to the largest population in the world which would include a large elderly sub-population.
• Status in India: The report projects India’s population to be 1.7 billion by2050, having overtaken China to be the world’s most populous country. Eight countries India is among them will account for more than half o fthe world’s increasing population by 2050.

Why the elderly are vulnerable?

• Non-communicable diseases: India’s elderly population will double to be nearly 20% of the total population by 2050. The prevalence of non-communicable diseases such as diabetes, hypertension and heart disease, or disabilities related to vision, hearing or mobility is higher among the elderly.
• Crumbling public health system: The change in demographic structure will increase the pressure on public health systems that are not geared to deliver universal health care along with social security measures such as old-age and disability pensions.

What is the Eye care model for elderly?

• HOMES: The Hyderabad Ocular Morbidity in the Elderly Study (HOMES) by the L.V. Prasad Eye Institute has been producing a series of systematic reports on various aspects of health, quality of life, mental health, morbidity, and disability amongst the elderly living in homes for the aged in Hyderabad, Telangana.
• Eye care service: Delivery is uniquely placed to be the first point-of-contact with the elderly and to also help with health surveillance and planning.
• First detection: Using eye care as a point of entry, the study has been measuring a variety of health and social metrics in over 1,000participants (all aged over 60), spread across a range of socio-economic circumstances.
• Co-morbidities: Over30% of the elderly in the study had distance vision loss and over 50% had near vision impairment (they needed reading glasses). Nearly half the participants had at least one disability and a third of them had multiple morbidities. About 70% of them were using at least one assistive device, spectacles being the most common.
• Mental health: The study also explored the many links between vision impairment and an elderly person’s mental health and confidence. People with impaired vision had a greater fear, and risk of falling (a major cause of disability and hospitalisation among the elderly). This reduced their movement and independence, leading to depression. Addressing their vision impairment improved lives.

What should be the approach for treating the elderly?

• Multiple Diagnosis: The way forward can then be a package of interventions, including assistive devices for sight, hearing, and mobility, or referrals to psychiatric support for depression or the mental health issues.
• Template to replicate: In this way, eye care can catalyse a model of elderly care that will help us recalibrate our approach to this changing world. Most eye conditions typically affect those who are very young or the elderly age groups that are dependent on others for health access.
• Primary health care: The Indian eye care model has always prioritised primary care ‘vision’ centres, bringing care closer to those in need. Chronic conditions such as diabetes and hypertension lead to irreversible vision loss and so, the sector has been building referral networks connecting with other health specialities.
• Portable devices: Eye care has also been at the cutting edge of imaging technologies and tele-health, creating portable devices and apps that remove access issues for those who cannot travel far. Crucially, eye health in India has many cross-subsidy models to help alleviate the financial burden on individuals.
• Long the approach: This set of experiences and expertise has put eye care in a unique position to help us navigate the transition to an ageing society. The future of elderly care needs to be long term, comprehensive, and integrated, and must be oriented towards primary care to be accessible.

Conclusion

Whatever model we devise for elderly care, it must account for all kinds of socio-economic realities, working to ensure that no elderly person is denied care irrespective of their financial status.

GS-III

Context

• Recently, UNESCO released a list of 50 exclusive and iconic heritage textile crafts of the country.
• One of the major challenges to the safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage in South Asia is lack of proper inventory and documentation.

What are Some of the Important Textiles Crafts Listed?

• Toda embroidery and Sungudi from Tamil Nadu
• Himroo weaves from Hyderabad
• Bandha tie and dye weaving from Sambalpur in Odisha
• Kunbi weaves from Goa
• Mashru weaves and Patola from Gujarat
• Himroo from Maharashtra
• Garad-Korial from West Bengal
• Ilkal and Lambadi or Banjara embroidery from Karnataka
• Sikalnayakanpet Kalamkari from Tamil Nadu
• Khes from Haryana
• Chamba rumals from Himachal Pradesh
• Thigma or wool tie and dye from Ladakh
• Awadh Jamdani from Varanasi

What is the Status of the Textile Sector of India?

About:

• Textiles & garments industry is labour intensive sector that employs 45 millions people in India is second only to the agriculture sector in terms of employment.
• India’s textiles sector is one of the oldest industries in the Indian economy, and is a storehouse and carrier of traditional skills, heritage and culture.
• It can be divided into two segments:
  • The unorganised sector is small scale and uses traditional tools and methods. It consists of handloom, handicrafts and sericulture (Production of silk).
  • The organised sector uses modern machinery and techniques and consists of the spinning, apparel and garments segment.

Significance of the Textiles Sector:

• It contributes 2.3% to Indian Gross Domestic Product, 7% of Industrial Output, 12% to the export earnings of India and employs more than 21% of total employment.
• India is the 6th largest producer of Technical Textiles with 6% Global Share, largest producer of cotton & jute in the world.
• Technical textiles are functional fabrics that have applications across various industries including automobiles, civil engineering and construction, agriculture, healthcare, industrial safety, personal protection etc.
• India is also the second largest producer of silk in the world and 95% of the world’s hand-woven fabric comes from India.

What are the Initiatives related to the Textile Sector?

• Amended Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (ATUFS): In 2015, the government approved the scheme for technology upgradation of the textiles industry.
• Scheme for Integrated Textile Parks (SITP): To assist small and medium entrepreneurs in the textile industry to clusterize investments in textile parks by providing financial support for world class infrastructure in the parks.
• Power-Tex India: It comprises new research and development in power loom textiles, new markets, branding, subsidies and welfare schemes for the workers.
• Silk Samagra Scheme: It focuses on improving the quality and productivity of domestic silk thereby reducing the country’s dependence on imported silk.
• Jute ICARE: This pilot project launched in 2015 is aimed at addressing the difficulties faced by the jute cultivators by providing them certified seeds at subsidized rates, and by popularizing several newly developed retting technologies under water limiting conditions.
• National Technical Textile Mission: It aims to position the country as a global leader in technical textiles and increase the use of technical textiles in the domestic market. It aims to take the domestic market size to USD 40 billion to USD 50 billion by 2024.

Way Forward

• For centuries, Indian textile crafts have dazzled the world with their beauty.
• Despite the pressures of industrial mass production and competition from new countries, it is essential that these iconic heritage crafts are taken stock of and promoted as contemporary treasures.
• The Textile sector has great potential, and it should be realised by using innovations, latest technology and facilitations.

Context

• The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has extended the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) in parts of Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland for another six months.

AFSPA: A Backgrounder

• The AFSPA, 1958 came into force in the context of insurgency in the North-eastern States decades ago.
• It provides “special power” to the Armed Forces applies to the Army, the Air Force and the Central Paramilitary forces etc.
• It has been long contested debate whether the “special powers” granted under AFSPA gives total immunity to the armed forces for any action taken by them.

Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958

• Armed Forces Special Powers Act, to put it simply, gives armed forces the power to maintain public order in “disturbed areas.”
• AFSPA gives armed forces the authority use force or even open fire after giving due warning if they feel a person is in contravention of the law.
• The Act further provides that if “reasonable suspicion exists”, the armed forces can also arrest a person without warrant; enter or search premises without a warrant; and ban the possession of firearms.

What are the Special Powers?

The ‘special powers’ which are spelt out under Section 4 provide that:

• Power to use force, including opening fire, even to the extent of causing death if prohibitory orders banning assembly of five or more persons or carrying arms and weapons, etc are in force in the disturbed area;
• Power to destroy structures used as hide-outs, training camps, or as a place from which attacks are or likely to be launched, etc;
• Power to arrest without warrant and to use force for the purpose;
• Power to enter and search premises without a warrant to make arrest or recovery of hostages, arms and ammunition and stolen property etc.

What are the Disturbed Areas?

• A disturbed area is one that is declared by notification under Section 3 of the AFSPA.
• As per Section 3, it can be invoked in places where “the use of armed forces in aid of the civil power is necessary”.

Who can declare/notify such areas?

• The Central Government or the Governor of the State or administrator of the Union Territory can declare the whole or part of the State or Union Territory as a disturbed area.
• 9iA suitable notification would have to be made in the Official Gazette.

Presently active ‘Disturbed Areas’

• AFSPA is currently in force in Assam, Nagaland, Manipur, 3 districts of Arunachal Pradesh, and areas falling within the jurisdiction of 8 police stations in Arunachal Pradesh bordering Assam.
• In Jammu and Kashmir, a separate law Armed Forces (Jammu and Kashmir) Special Powers Act, 1990 has been in force.

AFSPA: Is it a License to Kill?

• While the operation of the Section has been controversial in itself, it has attracted much criticism when actions have resulted in the death of civilians.
• Power to kill: Section 4 of the Act granted officers the authority to “take any action” even to the extent to cause the death.
• Protection against prosecution: This power is further bolstered by Section 6 which provides that legal can be instituted against the officer, except with the previous sanction of the Central Government.

Supreme Court’s Observations over AFSPA

• These extra-judicial killings became the attention of the Supreme Court in 2016.
• It clarified that the bar under Section 6 would not grant “total immunity” to the officers against any probe into their alleged excesses.
• The judgment noted that if any death was unjustified, there is no blanket immunity available to the perpetrator(s) of the offense.
• The Court further noted that if an offense is committed even by Army personnel, there is no concept of absolute immunity from trial by the criminal court constituted under the CrPC.

Constitutionality of AFSPA

• Attempts have been made to examine the constitutionality of the Act on the grounds that it is contravention to the:
• Right to Life and Personal Liberty (Article 21) and
• Federal structure of the Constitution since law and order is a State subject

Recommendations to repeal AFSPA

• Justice B.P. Jeevan Reddy Commission
  • The 2004 Committee headed by Justice B.P. Jeevan Reddy, the content of which has never officially been revealed by the Government, recommended that AFSPA be repealed.
  • Additionally, it recommended that appropriate provisions be inserted in the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, 1967 (UAPA) instead.
  • It also recommended that the UAPA be modified to clearly specify the powers of the armed forces and paramilitary forces and grievance cells should be set up in each district where the armed forces are deployed.
• ARC II
  • The Administrative Reforms Commission in its 5th Report on ‘Public Order’ had also recommended that AFSPA be repealed.
  • It recommended adding a new chapter to be added to the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, 1967.
  • However, the recommendation was considered first and then rejected.

Other issues with AFSPA

• Sexual Misconduct by Armed Forces
  • The issue of violation of human rights by actions of armed forces came under the consideration of the Committee on Amendments to Criminal Law (popularly known as Justice Verma Committee) set up in 2012.
  • It observed that- in conflict zones, legal protection for women was neglected.
• Autocracy
  • The reality is that there is no evidence of any action being taken against any officer of the armed forces or paramilitary forces for their excesses.

Way forward: Caution given by the Supreme Court

A July 2016 judgment authored by Justice Madan B. Lokur in Extra Judicial Execution Victim Families Association quoted the “Ten Commandments” issued by the Chief of the Army Staff for operations in disturbed areas:

• Definite circumstances: The “power to cause death is relatable to maintenance of public order in a disturbed area and is to be exercised under definite circumstances”.
• Declaration preconditions: These preconditions include a declaration by a high-level authority that an area is “disturbed”.
• Due warning: The officer concerned decides to use deadly force on the opinion that it is “necessary” to maintain public order. But he has to give “due warning” first.
• No arbitrary action: The persons against whom the action was taken by the armed forces should have been “acting in contravention of any law or order for the time being in force in the disturbed area”.
• Minimal use of force: The armed forces must use only the “minimal force required for effective action against the person/persons acting in contravention of the prohibitory order.”
• Empathy with perpetrators: The court said that: the people you are dealing with are your own countrymen. All your conduct must be dictated by this one significant consideration.
• People friendliness: The court underscored how the Commandments insist that “operations must be people-friendly, using minimum force and avoiding collateral damage – restrain must be the key”.
• Good intelligence: It added that “good intelligence is the key to success”.
• Compassion: It exhorted personnel to “be compassionate, help the people and win their hearts and minds. Employ all resources under your command to improve their living conditions”.
• Upholding Dharma (Duty): The judgment ended with the final Commandment to “uphold Dharma and take pride in your country and the Army”.

Conclusion

Despite demands by civil society groups and human rights activities, none of the recommendations have not been implemented to date.

Context

• Global Methane, Climate and Clean Air (GMCCA) Forum 2022 is being held in Washington, DC, USA to discuss opportunities to protect the climate and improve air quality with a special focus on methane by adhering to the Global Methane Pledge.

What is the Agenda of the Forum?

• The Forum is a joint event sponsored by the Global Methane Initiative (GMI) and the UNEP-convened Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC).
• GMI is an international public-private partnership focused on reducing barriers to the recovery and use of methane as a clean energy source. It provides technical support to deploy methane-to-energy projects around the world that enable Partner Countries to launch methane recovery and use projects.
• India is a partner country of GMI.
• High-level plenary sessions will be held on global efforts to reduce methane and other short-lived climate pollutants.
• The forum will outline policy, political and scientific arguments for global ambition on methane action. They also aim to define a path forward.

What is the Global Methane Pledge?

• About:
  • The Global Methane Pledge was launched at COP (Conference of Parties) 26 in November 2021 to catalyse action to reduce methane emissions.
  • It was led by the United States and the European Union.
  • It has 111 country participants who together are responsible for 45% of global human-caused methane emissions.
  • India, which is not a part of the Global Methane Pledge, is among the top five methane emitters globally. Most emissions can be traced back to agriculture.
  • By joining the Pledge, countries commit to work together in order to collectively reduce methane emissions by at least 30% below 2020 levels by 2030.

Concern:

• Methane has contributed to about one-third of the current anthropogenic greenhouse gas-driven warming.
• Methane enters the atmosphere due to leaks in oil and gas industries, rearing livestock and the decomposition of waste in landfills.
• Currently, only 2 % of global climate finance goes to methane.
• If the Global Methane Pledge is not adhered to, Methane emissions will likely increase by 13 % by 2030.
• Top twelve emitters of methane with breakdown by sector, 2021:

What is Methane?

• About:
  • Methane is a gas that is found in small quantities in Earth's atmosphere. 
  • Methane is the simplest hydrocarbon, consisting of one carbon atom and four hydrogen atoms (CH4).
  •  Methane is powerful greenhouse gas. 
  • It is flammable, and is used as a fuel worldwide.
  • Methane is produced by the breakdown or decay of organic material and can be introduced into the atmosphere by either natural processes – such as the decay of plant material in wetlands, the seepage of gas from underground deposits or the digestion of food by cattle – or human activities – such as oil and gas production, rice farming or waste management.
• Impact:
  • Methane is 84 times more potent than carbon and doesn’t last as long in the atmosphere before it breaks down. This makes it a critical target for reducing global warming more quickly while simultaneously working to reduce other greenhouse gases.
  • It is responsible for creating ground-level ozone, a dangerous air pollutant.

What are the Indian Initiatives to Combat Air Pollution?

• Harit Dhara.
• India Greenhouse Gas Program.
• National Action Plan on Climate Change
• Bharat Stage-IV (BS-IV) to Bharat Stage-VI (BS-VI) emission norms.

Way Forward

• Mitigating methane and other short-lived climate pollutants is essential to achieving decarbonisation goals.
• Developing national action plans or strategies that identify specific actions to encourage emissions reduction, define timelines and assess needed resources;
• Proposing new policies or regulations aimed at methane emissions, including measures like leak detection and repair programmes, technology and equipment standards, limits on flaring and venting, and measurement and reporting requirements;
• Adopting national reduction targets, whether economy-wide or sectoral, to establish a political commitment, signal expectations and enable better planning.
• Participating in a super-emitter rapid response system based on satellite detections, which would establish communication channels to ensure large emissions events are addressed in a timely manner.
• Directing funding towards research and development on abatement and measurement technologies and support for verifiable mitigation projects through grants, targeted finance or other incentives.

Context

• The repo rate, the rate at which RBI lends money to commercial banks, has been hiked by 50 basis points again.

What is Repo Rate?

• Repo rate is the rate at which the central bank of a country (Reserve Bank of India in case of India) lends money to commercial banks in the event of any shortfall of funds.
• It is used by monetary authorities to control inflation.
• In the event of inflation, central banks increase repo rate as this acts as a disincentive for banks to borrow from the central bank.
• This ultimately reduces the money supply in the economy and thus helps in arresting inflation.

How does the repo dynamics work?

• When there is a shortage of funds, commercial banks borrow money from the central bank which is repaid according to the repo rate applicable.
• The central bank provides these short terms loans against securities such as treasury bills or government bonds.
• This monetary policy is used by the central bank to control inflation or increase the liquidity of banks.
• The government increases the repo rate when they need to control prices and restrict borrowings.
• An increase in repo rate means commercial banks have to pay more interest for the money lent to them and therefore, a change in repo rate eventually affects public borrowings such as home loan, EMIs, etc.
• From interest charged by commercial banks on loans to the returns from deposits, various financial and investment instruments are indirectly dependent on the repo rate.

Relationship between repo rate and interest rates

The relationship between the repo rate paid by the bank to RBI and the interest rates paid by the borrower to the bank is directly proportional.

The greater the repo rate, the higher will be the cost of borrowing. Let us understand this with two examples.

Scenario #1: RBI hikes repo rate

• As of December 2020, the repo rate was 4%. Suppose that RBI increases this to 6%.
• This means that now, the cost of borrowing from the RBI has increased by 2% or 200 basis points for commercial banks.
• To compensate for a high cost of borrowing, banks will, in turn, charge a higher interest rate from their borrowers.
• As a result, loans will become expensive for citizens.

Scenario #2: RBI slashes repo rate

• Alternatively, if the RBI slashes this rate from 4% to 3.75% (say), banks will be able to afford borrowing more easily than before.
• They will reduce the interest rates for loans and taking a loan from the bank will become cheaper for citizens.
• In addition to affecting the interest rates on loan, the repo rate also impacts the returns on direct deposits.
• If there is a repo rate cut, you will earn a lower interest rate and vice versa.

Back2Basics: Repo Rate vs Bank Rate

• Bank Rate is charged against loans offered by the central bank to commercial banks, whereas, Repo Rate is charged for repurchasing the securities sold by the commercial banks to the central bank.
• No collateral is involved while charging Bank Rate but securities, bonds, agreements and collateral is involved when Repo Rate is charged.
• Repo Rate is always lower than the Bank Rate.
• An increase in Bank Rate directly affects the lending rates offered to the customer, restricting people to avail of loans and damages the overall economic growth, whereas an increase in Repo Rate is usually handled by the banks and doesn’t affect customers directly.
• Comparatively, Bank Rate caters to long-term financial requirements of commercial banks whereas Repo Rate focuses on short-term financial needs.