UPSC Daily Current Affairs- 18th October 2022 | Current Affairs & Hindu Analysis: Daily, Weekly & Monthly PDF Download

GS-I

Context

According to Global Energy Monitor (GEM) Report, India’s Coal Mines are severely under-utilized amid push for new ones.

• GEM is a firm that tracks fuel-source utilization globally. It studies the evolving international energy landscape, creating databases, reports, and interactive tools that enhance understanding.

What is the Background?

• In 2021, India experienced severe coal crises with more than 100 of 285 thermal power plants seeing coal stocks fall below the critical mark of 25% of the required stock, leading to power shortages in several States, including Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand, Uttarakhand and Madhya Pradesh.
• The recently released Global Energy Monitor (GEM) report analyzed annual reports from Coal India, the world's largest coal producer, and its subsidiaries.

What are the Findings?

• New Coal Mines Increasing Risk of Displacement:
  • This coal shortage prompted the government to start developing new coal projects, where 99 new coal mines projects are under the pipeline. These projects have the capacity to produce 427 million tonnes of coal annually (mtpa).
  • This is despite India’s pledge to achieve net zero emissions by 2070.
  • These projects will put 165 villages and 87,630 families at risk of displacement. And 41,508 of these families belong to Scheduled Tribes.
• Coal Mines Under-utilized thus Unnecessary:
  • Since India’s coal mines use is severely underutilized so developing new projects to merely fulfill temporary coal shortage is unnecessary.
  • India's coal mines use only two-thirds of their capacity on average, with some large ones using only 1%.
• Delay in Clean Energy Future:
  • These new mines will increase India’s likelihood of stranded assets, delay a clean energy future—and in the process pose irreversible impacts on India’s rural communities and environments for the sake of economically precarious mining ventures.
• Exacerbate Water Shortage:
  • Water shortages would be exacerbated by the new coal projects, increasing demand by 1,68,041 kilolitres per day.
  • Of 427 MTPA in new capacity, 159 MTPA will be located in high-risk water zones, while 230 MTPA is planned for zones with extreme water risk.

Why is it Imperative to Move Away from Coal?

• The threat of global warming is looming large over the planet, and can bring about unprecedented natural calamities.
• An effective way to keep the danger at bay is to cut the use of fossil fuels — coal, natural gas and oil.
• About 80% of the world’s energy requirements are met by these three fuels.
• The worst culprit of them all is coal, which emits nearly twice as much carbon dioxide as natural gas and about 60% more than oil, on a kilogram-to-kilogram comparison.
• The consequence of these chemical reactions gains great significance because the power sector in India accounts for 49% of total carbon dioxide emissions, compared with the global average of 41%.

What is Coal?

• About:
  • It is a type of fossil fuel found in a form of sedimentary rocks and is often known as 'Black Gold'.
  • It is a conventional source of energy and is widely available.It is used as a domestic fuel, in industries such as iron and steel, steam engines and to generate electricity. Electricity from coal is called thermal power.
  • The leading coal producers of the world include China, US, Australia, Indonesia, India.
• Distribution of Coal in India:
  • Gondwana coal fields (250 million years old):
  • Gondwana coal makes up to 98 % of the total reserves and 99 % of the production of coal in India.
  • Gondwana coal forms India’s metallurgical grade as well as superior quality coal.
  • It is found in Damodar (Jharkand-West Bengal), Mahanadi (Chhattisgarh-Odisha), Godavari (Maharashtra), and Narmada valleys.
• Tertiary coal fields (15 – 60 million years old):
  • Carbon content is very low but is rich in moisture and sulphur.
  • Tertiary coalfields are mainly confined to extra-peninsular regions
  • Important areas include Assam, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Himalayan foothills of Darjeeling in West Bengal, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Kerala.
• Classification:
  • Anthracite (80 - 95% carbon content, found in small quantities in J&K).
  • Bituminous (60 - 80% of carbon content and is found in Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh).
  • Lignite (40 to 55% carbon content, high moisture content and is found in Rajasthan, Lakhimpur (Assam) and Tamil Nadu).
  • Peat (less than 40% carbon content and it is in the first stage of transformation from organic matter (wood) to coal).

Context

According to a recent study, cold ocean currents have sheltered the Galápagos Islands from global warming.

• Ocean currents are the continuous, predictable, directional movement of seawater driven by gravity, wind (Coriolis Effect), and water density. Ocean water moves in two directions: horizontally and vertically.
• Horizontal movements are referred to as currents, while vertical changes are called upwellings or down welling.
• This abiotic system is responsible for the transfer of heat, variations in biodiversity, and Earth’s climate system.

Overcoming Global Warming:

• The islands are protected from an otherwise warming Pacific Ocean by a cold, eastward equatorial ocean current and this current has been gaining strength for decades.
• The temperatures in waters along the west coast of the Galápagos have dropped by 0.5 degrees Celsius since the early 1990s.
• There’s a tug of war between global warming and the cold ocean current. Right now, the ocean current is winning — it’s getting cooler year after year.

Importance of Phenomenon:

• This phenomenon is a cause for cautious optimism for the Galápagos Islands.
• Flora and fauna of the Galápagos could assist reseed failing ecosystems and maintain the region’s fisheries.
• Corals do not bleach and die in these waters off the west coast of Ecuador. So, the marine food chain does not suffer, unlike in the warm waters nearby.
• As the Galápagos so far has been relatively unaffected by climate change, it’s worth looking at the Galápagos as a potential site to really try to put some climate change mitigation efforts into.

Significance of Ocean Current:

• Nutrient-rich Water: The equatorial undercurrent in the Pacific Ocean is bound to the equator by the force of the planet’s rotation.
  • Under the ocean’s surface, a swift circulation of cold, nutrient-rich water flows from west to east.
  • Some of this water is forced to the surface when it reaches the Galápagos Islands.
• The nutrient-rich water triggers photosynthesis and leads to an explosion of food for a wide variety of animals.
• Stability for Coral Reefs: The cold ocean current creates a cooler, more stable environment for coral reefs and marine life and birds that often live much closer to the poles.
• Position from Equator: From space, the Galápagos may appear to be a collection of minuscule specks in the eastern Pacific Ocean. However, it is their precise position on the equator that makes them significant.

Impact of Climate Change on Ocean Currents:

• Influx of Warm Freshwater: Climate change leading to increases in ocean temperatures, evaporation of seawater, and glacial and sea ice melting could create an influx of warm freshwater onto the ocean surface.
• Blocking Ice Formation: This would further block the formation of sea ice and disrupt the sinking of denser cold, salty water.
• Excess Heat in Atmosphere: The shallow, speedy currents could ultimately limit how much heat the ocean can absorb, causing more of that excess heat to remain in the atmosphere.
• Altering Global Temperatures: These events could slow or even stop the ocean conveyor belt, which would result in global climate changes that could include drastic decreases in Europe’s temperatures due to a disruption of the Gulf Stream.
• Affecting Marine Biodiversity: Marine microbes and wildlife could be subjected to shallower, hotter, and faster surface waters.

Challenges arising out of Ocean Currents:

• Future of Current: The worry is if in the future there are changes in this current, it could be really devastating for the ecosystem.
• Regulation of Overfishing: The island group is certainly in need of greater protection from overfishing as well as the pressures of growing eco-tourism.
• Human Pressures: The human pressures on this area and the mechanism that keeps it alive are at odds. It’s a major resource that should be protected.
• Adverse Impact of El Niño: El Niño poses a threat to the island group. It shuts down the cold current every couple of years, causing penguin populations to collapse. El Niño is a climate pattern that causes unusual warming of surface waters in the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean.

Way Forward:

• Ocean currents can regulate global climate, helping to counteract the uneven distribution of solar radiation reaching Earth’s surface.
• Without currents in the ocean, regional temperatures would be more extreme — super hot at the equator and frigid toward the poles — and much less of Earth’s land would be habitable.

About Galápagos Islands:

• An archipelago of volcanic islands.
• They are distributed on each side of the equator in the Pacific Ocean.
• The second-largest marine reserve in the world and contributed to the inception of Darwin’s theory of evolution.
• They designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and described as a “living museum and showcase of evolution.”
• The island is a biodiverse ecosystem — home to several endangered species.
• Galápagos is home to the critically endangered — Galápagos penguin, Galápagos fur seal and Galápagos sea lion.

GS-II

Impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on global poverty

Context

A recent World Bank report, titled “Correcting Course”, captures the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on global poverty. The economic mismanagement we were witness to in India resulted in 5.6 crore people slipping into extreme poverty in 2020.

Do You Know?

• 17 October is observed as International Day for the Eradication of Poverty
• The theme for International Day for the Eradication of Poverty 2022-2023 is “Dignity For All in Practice: The commitments we make together for social justice, peace, and the planet”

What is the Impact of COVID-19?

• Rapid rise in extreme poverty: The number of people living in extreme poverty rose by seven crores million in 2020, as the global poverty rate rose from 8.4% in 2019 to 9.3%in 2020.
• Increased Inequality: This is the first time in two decades that the poverty rate has gone up. Global inequalities have widened, evident in the relative impacts felt on incomes in the richest countries as opposed to the poorest; and, unsurprisingly, economic recovery has been similarly uneven.

What the World Bank report says on fiscal policy of developing Nations?

• The report focuses on fiscal policy as an instrument for governments in dealing with crises such as the pandemic.
• Poorer countries were unable to use fiscal policy as effectively and thus unable to offset the impact of the pandemic to a much lesser degree than richer countries.

What is the status of India’s Fiscal Policy and Poverty?

• Sluggish state of Indian Economy: India’s economy continues to be sluggish in 2022, and one should look back at the policy choices that were made back in 2020.
• Absence of official poverty data: The World Bank report relies on the Consumer Pyramids Household Survey (CPHS) by the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE), in the absence of official poverty data since 2011.
• Poverty and fall in GDP: By the estimate, 5.6 crore people are likely to have slipped into poverty as India’s GDP fell by7.5% in FY2020-21.
• India’s Population below poverty line: The population below poverty line in India stood at 10% in 2020.
• Marginal Incremental spending: Refusal to provide a fiscal stimulus to consumption the Government announced a fiscal stimulus worth Rs.2 lakh crore, or 1% of GDP. However, only a small fraction therein reflected incremental spending.
• Inadequate increase in MGNREGA wage: The minor increase to the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) wage by Rs.20 per day was a long-pending correction and quite inadequate to say the least.
• No money in the hands of households: The majority of India’s stimulus package took the form of credit lines and refinancing schemes to private enterprises, which are an inefficient mechanism to realise the goal of putting money in the hands of people to boost household-level consumption.

The relationship between India’s Tax policies and Poverty

• Reduced corporate tax: Through the pandemic and beyond, India persisted with the reduced corporate tax rate that had been announced in September 2019. The reduction of corporate tax from 30% to 22% cost the exchequer Rs.1.84 lakh crore over the last two fiscal years, according to the Parliamentary Committee on Estimates.
• Rise in corporate profit: India has refused to reintroduce wealth tax, or indeed, an inheritance tax. At the same time, corporate profits soared, as reported by the CMIE.
• Rise in inequality: Through all of this, and in spite of the World Inequality Report terming India as a ‘poor and very unequal country’.
• GST as regressive tax regime: India has repeatedly increased the rates on a wide range of products covered by the Goods and Services Tax as well as increased the prices of cooking and transport fuels. While indirect taxes may help prop up public finances, they place a disproportionate burden on the poor.

Food aid through PMGKAY and the problem associated with it

• Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana: The announcement of 80-crore people in India would get food aid through the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana (PMGKAY), a scheme that continues mainly because of the undeniable household-level distress. PMGKAY is currently estimated to cost about Rs.3.90 lakh crore. Started in April 2020, it has been extended till the upcoming Assembly elections are over.
• PMGKAY is not a long-term solution: food aid is not a long-term solution, and certainly does not solve the problem of chronic malnutrition.

World Bank Suggested priorities for Post pandemic recovery

The World Bank report identifies three priorities for fiscal policy for governments to aid with post-pandemic recovery:

• Targeted subsidies that benefit the poor
• Public investment to build resilience in the long term;
• Revenue mobilisation that should rely on progressive direct taxation rather than indirect taxes

Conclusion

India’s fiscally prudent policies had ensured the wealthy state but poor people. However, we must not see India’s story in isolation. Despite the good fiscal packages developed country like UK, USA are heading towards recession. Though sluggish, India has done well to maintain positive growth trajectory but this positive growth must include the growth of the poor as well.

Context

Launching a nationwide campaign against child marriage from Rajasthan, Nobel Peace Laureate Kailash Satyarthi has appealed to the nation to initiate collective action against child marriage to end the social evil.

• The Kailash Satyarthi Children’s Foundation (KSCF) will spearhead the campaign.
• As part of the campaign, 70,000 women and girls led people in lighting lamps, torchlight processions in around 10,000 villages (6,015 villages by KSCF and rest by government and other agencies) from over 500 districts in 26 states.
• The campaign was launched with another Nobel Peace Laureate, Leymah Gbowee.
• The ‘Child Marriage Free India’ campaign has three major objectives — to ensure the strict implementation of law; to enhance participation of children and women and ensure their empowerment through giving them free education till the age of 18; and to provide safety to children against sexual exploitation.
• Government agencies, including Railway Protection Force, Women and Child Development Department of 14 states, state child protection authorities, state legal services authorities, Anganwadis and district administration of several state governments joined the campaign.

Child marriage in India:

• Child marriage usually refers to a social phenomenon where a young child (usually a girl below the age of fifteen) is married to an adult man.
• The second form of practice of child marriage is that in which the parents of the two children (the girl and boy) arrange a future marriage.
• In this practice, the individuals (the boy and girl) do not meet one another until they reach the marriageable age, when the wedding ceremony is performed.
• Child marriage prevalence is generally defined as the percentage of women 20-24 years old who were married or in union before age 18.
• As per law, the marriageable age is 21 for males and 18 for females.
• Girl children in rural areas are more affected than their urban counterparts.
• India is estimated to have over 24 million child brides; 40% of the world’s 60 million child marriages take place in India according to the National Family Health Survey.
• India has the 14th highest rate of child marriage in the world, according to the International Center for Research on Women.
• Marriage systems and practices vary by region, caste and tribe.
• Rates of child marriage are higher in the North-West and lower in the South-East of the country.
• The states with the highest rates of child marriage (50% and above) are Bihar, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.
• Rajasthan had emerged as the State with the highest incidence of child marriage both among boys, which was 8.6%, and girls, which was 8.3%, in the 2011 Census.
• According to the National Family Health Survey-4 data collected in 2015-16, 16.2% of the girls aged 15 to 19 years were married before the age of 18 in Rajasthan, with variations across districts.
• In Bihar, nearly 70% of women in their early twenties reported having been married by the age of 18.
• According to DLHS data, around 48% of married women in the 20-24 year age group got married before 18 in rural areas, compared with 29% in urban areas.
• Over the past fifteen years, child marriage has declined by just 11 percent – less than one percent per year.

Causes of child marriage:

• Gender inequality such as declining sex-ratio, sex-selective abortions
• Economic considerations such as leeway to large dowry
• Social norms
• Perceived low status of girls
• Poverty
• Lack of education
• Safety concerns about girl children
• Control over sexuality and chastity of a young bride
• Honour killings

Challenges:

• Child marriage is a violation of human rights and dignity.
• It negatively influences children’s rights to education, health and protection. These consequences impact not just the girl directly, but also her family and community.
• This social evil propels an unending list of crimes against children, especially against our daughters. A child bride is more likely to experience domestic violence and become infected with HIV/AIDS.
• Child marriage negatively affects the Indian economy and can lead to an intergenerational cycle of poverty. Girls and boys married as children more likely lack the skills, knowledge and job prospects needed to lift their families out of poverty and contribute to their country’s social and economic growth.
• Lack of feminist lawmaking and policy-making, and two, the lack of implementation of extant legal provisions and policies.
• Rural poverty implies lack of economic benefits emanating from educating their girls since they will leave their house after marriage.
• Low levels of literacy implies people do not indulge in family planning for there is a notion that more children are more hands to work.
• Cultural practices perceive unmarried women as liabilities for family integrity and honour.

Legislative Framework:

• The Child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929 or Sarda Act fixed the age of marriage for girls at 14 years and boys at 18 years.
• Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act (1994) to prohibit prenatal diagnostic techniques for determination of the sex of the foetus leading to female feticide.
• The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006
• Legal age for marriage in India is eighteen for girls and twenty-one for boy
• Full-time “Child Marriage Prohibition Officers” are appointed in every state and are supposed to police instances of child marriage.
• These officers are vested with the authority to prevent child marriages, make documented reports of violations, charge offenders that can also include the child’s parents and even remove children from dangerous and potentially dangerous situations.
• The option of the child that has been married off – allowing her to declare her marriage void at any time up to two years after reaching adulthood.
• The only exception where a child marriage can be declared as void even before the child reaches the age of 18, is when the child has been abducted, kidnapped, trafficked or been compelled to marry under force, deceit, coercion or misrepresentation.
• The legislation also penalizes the arrangement, performance or participation in child marriages.
• Child marriage is punishable by imprisonment of up to two years, or may be charged with a fine of up to one lakh rupees, or both.
• By Section 10, these penalties are extended to anyone who performs, conducts, directs or abets a child marriage unless he can prove that he had reason to believe that the marriage was no child marriage.
• If the child herself contracts for a child marriage, under Section 11, any parent or guardian who actively supports the marriage or negligently fails to prevent it is punishable by way of imprisonment and or a fine.

Measures:

• In 2009, the MWCD introduces a pilot scheme called Dhanalakshmi, as a conditional cash transfer scheme providing cash to the family of the girl child.
• Beti Bachao Beti Padhao aims to curb sex-selective abortion or female foeticide.
• As per a UNICEF report, two of every three child marriages would be stopped in the world only if all girls could complete secondary school.
• Better quality of education and higher literacy rates among women is directly linked to lower cases of child marriage, as per the non-profit Child Rights and You (CRY) showed.
• National Population Policy 200043 and the National Youth Policy 2003,44 there were strategies to address the vulnerability of girls in the context of child marriages.
• The provision of non-formal education and vocational training, development of livelihood skills and education and awareness of sexual and reproductive health issues.

Way forward

• At the global level, child marriage is included in Goal 5 “Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls”.
• The Ministry of Women and Child Development supports a child help line service (Toll free number 1098) to reach out to children in distress.

GS-III

Context

On October 14, India joined a select group of nations when it announced the successful launch of an SLBM (submarine-launched ballistic missile). The other six nations that have demonstrated similar underwater capability include the five permanent members of the UN Security Council Russia, the UK, France and China. In August 2016, North Korea claimed a successful launch of an SLBM.

Features of K-15 SLBM

• The code names K-15 or B-05, is an Indian submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) with a range of 750 kilometres (466 mi) that was designed for retaliatory nuclear strikes. It belongs to the K Missile family and forms a part of India’s nuclear triad.
• The K-15 is a two-stage submarine-launched ballistic missile which uses a gas booster to eject out of its launch platform and rise up to the surface of water. A solid rocket motor is fired after the missile reaches a fixed altitude. The missile has a range of around 750 kilometres (466 mi).

About INS Arihant

• Launched in 2009 and Commissioned in 2016, INS Arihant is India’s first indigenous nuclear powered ballistic missile.
• It is capable submarine built under the secretive Advanced Technology Vessel (ATV) project, which was initiated in the 1990s.
• INS Arihant and its class of submarines are classified as ‘SSBN’, which is the hull classification symbol for nuclear powered ballistic missile carrying submarines.
• While the Navy operates the vessel, the operations of the SLBMs from the SSBN are under the purview of India’s Strategic Forces Command, which is part of India’s Nuclear Command Authority.

What is the Significance of SLBM for India?

• Making India’s strategic profile strong: This achievement is significant in the context of India’s strategic profile. The navy, DRDO and other agencies who have enabled this success should be commended.
• Enhancing Underwater deterrence: A credible underwater deterrent is perceived as being invulnerable to detection and hence nations with the capacity can deliver a retaliatory second strike this enhances their deterrence capabilities.
• Showcasing the precision and high accuracy: While the press release is sparse in providing technical details or confirming the range of the SLBM, its assertion that the missile impacted the target area “with very high accuracy” is, nevertheless, instructive.
• Familiarity and capability with SLMB : The crew of the INS Arihant and the entire HR (human resource) comprising the pyramid from the SFC (strategic forces command) going right up to the national command authority with the Prime Minister at the apex have acquired the necessary proficiency to launch an SLBM should the exigency arise.
• Demonstration of competence: India can be justifiably proud of having acquired and demonstrated this level of competence, but this achievement needs to be located objectively. An SSBN (a nuclear-propelled submarine armed with a nuclear-tipped ballistic missile) is deemed to be the ultimate deterrent and this profile of macro-lethality and zero error credibility is predicated on the robustness of the “boat” and the efficacy of the missile.
• Validates SSBN programme: The successful user training launch of the SLBM by INS Arihant is significant to prove crew competency and validate the SSBN programme, a key element of India’s nuclear deterrence capability. A robust, survivable and assured retaliatory capability is in keeping with India’s policy to have ‘Credible Minimum Deterrence that underpins its ‘No First Use’ commitment.

What is the deterrence?

• Deterrence, military strategy under which one power uses the threat of reprisal effectively to preclude an attack from an adversary power. With the advent of nuclear weapons, the term deterrence largely has been applied to the basic strategy of the nuclear powers and of the major alliance systems.

How the SLBM will secure deterrence against the enemy?

• Tackling to rising Chinese capability: It merits recall that China became nuclear weapon capable in 1964 and carried out its first SLBM test (the J-1 with a range of 1700 km) in 1982. Over the years, the PLA Navy had its own techno-strategic challenges with nuclear-propelled submarines and was able to test a 9,000 km missile only in 2018. It is understood that a fully armed Chinese SSBN that would be deemed to be operational to undertake a credible deterrence patrol is scheduled for mid-2025.
• Nuclear deterrence is necessary: Acquiring the optimum degree of nuclear deterrence is imperative for India, given its distinctive spectrum of security and strategic challenges. India has made slow but steady progress in its missile programme, nuclear weapon capability, the nuclear submarine and more recently the building of an aircraft carrier

Conclusion

India’s restraint in relation to announcements and claims about strategic capability burnishes deterrence in a quiet but effective manner. Walking softly, while wielding a big stick is desirable as a national trait.

Context

As the 21st century advances, a new danger the cyber threat is becoming a daily monster. It is hardly confined to any one domain though the military is the one most often touted. Rather, it is the civilian sphere where the cyber threat is becoming more all-pervading today and, in turn, a serious menace.

What is mean by Cyber threat?

• A cyber threat or cyber security threat is defined as a malicious act intended to steal or damage data or disrupt the digital wellbeing and stability of an enterprise.
• Cyber threats include a wide range of attacks ranging from data breaches, computer viruses, denial of service, and numerous other attack vectors.

How Cyber threat is ever increasing?

• Increasing Grey Zone Operations: Grey zone Operations which fall outside traditional concepts of conflicts have become the new battleground, especially in regard to cyber warfare. ‘Grey Zone Operations’ are already beginning to be employed to undermine the vital of a state’s functioning, a trend likely to grow. The convergence of emerging technologies alongside new hybrid usages, pose several challenges to nations and institutions.
• Attack on examination: The recent arrest in India, of a Russian for hacking into computers involved in the conduct of examinations for entry into the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), is a reflection of how cybercriminals are significantly amplifying their Grey Zone Warfare’ tactics
• Pervasive nature of cyber threat: What is most unfortunate is that not enough attention is being bestowed on the all-encompassing nature of the cyber threat. In the wake of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the world seems awash with papers on artificial intelligence (AI)-driven military innovations and potential crisis hot zones, along with stray references to new forms of hybrid warfare.
• Weaponization of everything: There is very little about the threat posed by cyber-attacks. Ignored also is the new reality of the weaponization of everything’ which has entered the vocabulary of threats. The latter clearly demands a ‘proto-revolutionary’ outlook on the part of policymakers, which is evidently lacking.
• Becoming a Multi-dimensional threat: Lost in translation is also the nature of today’s weapon of choice, viz., cyber. This lack of awareness is unfortunate at a time when states clearly lack the necessary resilience to face a variety of multi-vector threats.
• Cyber weapon as symbol of national Power: Cyber space has been described by Lt. Gen. Rajesh Pant (retired), India’s current national cyber security coordinator, as a “superset of interconnected information and communication technology, hardware, software processes, services, data and systems”. Viewed from this perspective, it constitutes a critical aspect of our national power.
• Simultaneous attacks in multiple dimensions: Cyber threats are not confined to merely one set of conflicts such as Ukraine, where no doubt cyber tools are being extensively employed extending well beyond this and other conflicts of a varied nature. The cyber threat is in this sense all-pervading, embracing many regions and operating on different planes.

Challenges to India’s cyber security infrastructure

Structural:

• Absence of any geographical constraints.
• Lack of uniformity in devices used for internet access.

Administrative:

• Lack of national-level architecture for cybersecurity
• Security audit does not occur periodically, nor does it adhere to the international standards.
• The appointment of the National Cyber Security Coordinator in 2014 has not been supplemented by creating liaison officers in states.

Procedural

• Lack of awareness in local police of various provisions of IT Act, 2000, and also of IPSC related to cybercrime.
• Lack of data protection regime.

Human Resource Related

• Inadequate awareness among people about the security of devices and online transactions.

What are the Steps taken by India to strengthen cyber security?

• Section 66F of ITA: Specific provision dealing with the issue of cyber terrorism that covers denial of access, unauthorized access, introduction of computer contaminant leading to harm to persons, property, critical infrastructure, disruption of supplies, ‘sensitive data’ thefts. Provides for punishment which may extend to life imprisonment.
• National Cyber Security Policy 2013: Policy document drafted by the Department of Electronics and Information Technology. Established National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre (NCIIPC) to improve the protection and resilience of the country’s critical infrastructure information; Create a workforce of 5 lakh professionals skilled in cybersecurity in the next 5 years.
• National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre (NCIIPC): It has been setup to enhance the protection and resilience of Nation’s Critical information infrastructure. It functions under the National Technical Research Organization (NTRO).
• Computer Security through CERT-IN: Organization under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology with an objective of securing Indian cyberspace. The purpose of CERT-In is to respond to computer security incidents, report on vulnerabilities and promote effective IT security practices throughout the country. According to the provisions of the Information Technology Amendment Act 2008, CERT-In is responsible for overseeing the administration of the Act.
• Cyber Surakshit Bharat Initiative: It was launched in 2018 with an aim to spread awareness about cybercrime and build capacity for safety measures for Chief Information Security Officers (CISOs) and frontline IT staff across all government departments.
• Cyber Crisis Management Plan (CCMP): It aims at countering cyber threats and cyber-terrorism.
• National Cyber Coordination Centre (NCCC): It seeks to generate necessary situational awareness of existing and potential cyber security threats and enable timely information sharing for proactive, preventive and protective actions by individual entities. National Cyber Security Coordinator (NCSC) under National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS) coordinates with different agencies at the national level for cyber security matters.
• Cyber Swachhta Kendra: This platform was introduced for internet users to clean their computers and devices by wiping out viruses and malware.
• Information Security Education and Awareness Project (ISEA): Training of personnel to raise awareness and to provide research, education, and training in the field of Information Security.

Conclusion

With several non-state actors engaging in hybrid warfare and distorting day-to-day practices, including examinations, these pose legal, ethical and real dilemmas. Left unchecked, the world may have to confront a new kind of Wild West, before states find a common denominator for regulating cyber space and lay down proper rules and practices to prevent anarchy and chaos.

Context

Recently, the Supreme Court (SC) directed that every protected forest, national park and wildlife sanctuary across the country should have a mandatory eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) of a minimum one km starting from their demarcated boundaries.

Eco Sensitive Zone (ESZ):

• The Eco-Sensitive Zone (ESZ) are areas in India notified by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC), Government of India around Protected Areas, National Park and Wildlife sanctuaries.
• To create some kind of “shock absorbers” to the protected areas by regulating and managing the activities around such areas.
• Therefore, these areas act as a buffer for protected areas and reduce developmental pressures around a wildlife sanctuary or national park.
• They also act as a transition zone from areas of high protection to areas involving lesser protection.

Range:

• All identified areas around Protected Areas and wildlife corridors to be declared as ecologically fragile under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 (National Wildlife Action Plan, 2002-2016).
• Eco-sensitive Zone could go upto 10 Kms around Protected Areas.
• In cases where sensitive corridors, connectivity and ecologically important patches, crucial for landscape linkage, are even beyond 10 Kms width.
• Further, Eco-sensitive zones may not be uniform all around and it could be variable width and extent.

Prohibited activities:

• Activities like industries which cause pollution Commercial mining, saw mills, establishment of major hydroelectric projects (HEP), commercial use of wood, Tourism, discharge of effluents or any solid waste or production of hazardous substances are all prohibited.

Regulated activities:

• Activities like felling of trees, establishment of hotels and resorts, commercial use of natural water, erection of electrical cables, drastic change of agriculture system, e.g., adoption of heavy technology, pesticides etc., widening of roads.

Permitted activities:

• Activities like ongoing agricultural or horticultural practices, rainwater harvesting, organic farming, use of renewable energy sources, adoption of green technology for all activities are permitted.

Significance of Eco Sensitive Zone (ESZ):

• ESZs help in in-situ conservation, which deals with conservation of an endangered species in its natural habitat. For example, the conservation of the One-horned Rhino of Kaziranga National Park, Assam.
• They minimize forest depletion and man-animal conflict.
• The protected areas are based on the core and buffer model of management, through which local area communities are also protected and benefitted.

Significance of Recent Judgement:

• It can lead to more sustainable development.
• Tribal rights will also be protected with the recent judgement i.e., their culture, diversity etc will be preserved.

Challenges Ahead:

• Developmental activities:
  • Activities such as construction of dams, roads, urban and rural infrastructures in the ESZ, create interference, negatively impact upon the environment and imbalance the ecological system.
• Blatant violations:
  • To cater to the increasing demand for eco-tourism, land around parks and sanctuaries is being cleared through deforestation, displacement of local people etc.
  • Failing to recognize the rights of forest communities and curbing poaching of animals, environmental legislations undermine the ESZs in favour of developmental activities.
• Climate Change:
  • Biodiversity and climate change are interconnected, for example, the rise in global temperature has generated land, water and ecological stress on the ESZs.
• Tourism related Pollution:
  • As the pressure of tourism is rising, the government is developing new sites and gateways to the ESZ. The tourists leave behind garbage such as plastic bags and bottles etc. which lead to environmental degradation.
• Local communities:
  • Slash and burn techniques used in agriculture, pressure of increasing population and the rising demand for firewood and forest produce, etc. exerts pressure on the protected areas.

Way Forward:

• The Centre needs to come up with a plan to incentivise farmers for sticking to green practices in Eco Sensitive Zones (ESZs).
• Communities living around Protected Areas in several states should promote conservation of Eco Sensitive Zones (ESZs).
• There is a need for rethinking on the impacts of the environmental policies at the local level and prospects of local participation.