UPSC Daily Current Affairs- 3rd November 2022 | Current Affairs & Hindu Analysis: Daily, Weekly & Monthly PDF Download

GS-I

Context

• According to the UNESCO’s recently released Global Education Monitoring Report 2022, South Asia has undergone tremendous education expansion in the last 30 years, surpassing the rest of the globe.
• While India is driving these regional averages, 7 of every 10 new schools built in the last eight years in India have been private independent institutions.

United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO):

• It is a specialised agency of the United Nations (UN), headquartered at the World Heritage Centre in Paris, France.
• It was founded in 1945 as the successor to the League of Nation's International Committee on Intellectual Cooperation, aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in five key program areas -
  • Education; Natural sciences; Social or human sciences; Culture; Communication/information.
• It has 193 member states and 12 associate members, as well as partners in the non-governmental, intergovernmental and private sector.
  • UNESCO is governed by the General Conference, composed of member states and associate members, which meets biannually to set the agency's programmes and the budget.
• UNESCO is a member of the United Nations Sustainable Development Group.
  • Thus, UNESCO's programmes contribute to the achievement of the SDGs defined in the 2030 Agenda, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2015.

Functions

• UNESCO funds projects that promote literacy, technical training and education, science, independent media and press freedom, regional and cultural history preservation and cultural diversity.
• UNESCO's activities have expanded over the years. g., it aids in the translation and dissemination of world literature, assists in the establishment and protection of World Heritage Sites of cultural and natural importance, works to bridge the global digital divide, etc.
• To accomplish its basic aims, UNESCO has created a number of initiatives and worldwide movements, such as Education for All.
• It also publishes the Global Education Monitoring Report.

 The Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report:

• Launched in 2016, GEM Report is an annual editorially independent report, hosted and published by UNESCO.
• Previously titled the Education for All Global Monitoring Report (to keep the global community accountable for their pledges to educational progress), it published 12 Reports from 2002 until 2015.
• It was then renamed and relaunched under a new UN mandate to monitor progress towards the education targets in the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda and have tracked country progress, highlighted critical challenges and become an invaluable part of the international education architecture.
• The year 2022 marks the 20th anniversary of the GEM Report.

Highlights of the GEM 2022 with focus on India:

• Roughly a third of students in India are in private schools that receive no state help, highlighting the fact that non-state actors are heavily involved in all aspects of education systems in South Asia
  • 67,000 of the 97,000 schools established since 2014 have been private and unaided.
  • Approximately 29,600 unrecognised schools educating 3.8 million children in 2020.
  • Over 500,000 students are educated at an estimated 4,139 unrecognised madrasas in India.
• Only 46% of adults thought that the government bore primary responsibility for delivering school education, the lowest number among 35 middle- and high-income countries.
• Furthermore, there has been a significant increase in the rates of private tutoring in India, with 61% of secondary school students reporting that they sought tutoring owing to low schooling quality.
  • While regulations prohibit teachers from instructing their own students, no licensing or registration is currently required to establish a private tutoring business.
• The main choice criteria of a school by parents included English-medium instruction, schools’ ability to provide classes beyond pre-primary, proximity to home and education quality proxies such as school reputation.
• Inadequate supply and quality of public education, combined with parental aspirations, have driven private education growth in India.
• According to the report, expanding access to education through non-state provision is inequitable.

Source: Indian Express

GS-II

Context

On October 31, a two-judge bench of the Supreme Court noted that the two-finger test is a sexist medical practice that re-victimizes and re-traumatizes rape survivors. The Court also issued directions to the Union and state governments to implement the 2014 guidelines of the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare for health providers in sexual violence cases.

What is two finger tests?

• The two-finger test involves the medical examiner inserting their two fingers into the vagina of a survivor to note the presence or absence of the hymen and the so-called laxity of the vagina.

What is the expert doctor’s opinion?

• Misogynistic belief: While a hymen can be torn and its orifice may vary in size for many reasons unrelated to sex, the origin of the two-finger test lies in the misogynistic belief that a torn hymen is an indication that the survivor is habituated to sex and therefore, cannot be raped or is more likely to make false claims about being raped.

What is the law against such infringement of bodily privacy?

• SC prohibited test in Rajesh v. State of Haryana 2013 case: “Medicalization of consent” where women’s bodies are given precedence over their voices. Recognizing this as an invasion of privacy and a violation of a survivor’s dignity, the Supreme Court prohibited the test in Lillu at Rajesh v. State of Haryana (2013).
• Guidelines for medico-legal care for survivors of sexual violence: Shortly after, in March 2014, taking forward the recommendations of the Justice J S Verma Committee Report, the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare issued guidelines for medico-legal care for survivors of sexual violence. These guidelines explicitly prohibited the two-finger test and discussed the need for training medical examiners to respond to the needs of the survivors in a sensitive and non-discriminatory manner.

Why the practice of two finger tests still persists?

• Lack of political will: Nearly eight years since the guidelines were issued, the two-finger test still remains a reality. Its prevalence is a reflection of the complete lack of political will to address the issue.
• No pan-India comprehensive review: While fragmented pieces of narratives and research indicate that the two-finger test continues in rape cases to date, it is incumbent upon the executive to undertake a comprehensive pan-India review to assess the nature and extent of the problem.
• Change in format and unclarity: The changed format (introduced after the passing of the Criminal Law Amendment Act, 2013) of the medico-legal certificate used by doctors in rape cases did not require them to make a note of the finding of the two-finger test. However, according to the lawyers, this did not mean that the test was not happening anymore. Some says they it was no longer being recorded as such but was still being conducted.
• Poor medical infrastructure: The continued existence of the two-finger test is a result of the overall poor state of forensic medicine infrastructure in India.
• Lack of awareness: Lack of awareness amongst the medical community about the unscientific nature of the two-finger test.

What is the opinion of the court?

• Government must enforce the protocol: The Court commenting on the sorry state of affairs and issuing directions to the government on enforcement of the protocol including the emphasis on workshops and the medical school curriculum is significant.
• Holding a person, a guilty of misconduct: The Court took a step further by holding a person conducting the two-finger test on a rape survivor guilty of misconduct. It is unclear if the Court was making a reference to professional misconduct on part of the medical examiner.

What should be the way forward?

• Caregiving to victim: Medical practitioners must see themselves as caregivers when handling sexual violence cases.
• Awareness about legal system: Medical practitioners should be made to understand as their role in the criminal legal system, specifically towards rape survivors.
• Training of medical examiners: The training in medical school must prepare medical examiners for their role in the justice system.
• Police should play an active role: The institution of police should be sensitized on the continued use of the two-finger test in rape cases.
• Modules on sexuality: Training and workshops designed for doctors needs to include modules on sexuality and discrimination.

Conclusion

Two finger test is further traumatizing the victim of rape. Despite the directives of courts years ago and unscientific nature, two finger test continues. Women empowerment is not only about the earnings and livelihood its also about the right to privacy and dignity of life.

Source: Indian Express

Context

The recent outrage over the unauthorized video of cricketing superstar Virat Kohli’s hotel room in Perth including glimpses of his private spaces and objects is best viewed through an understanding of the changed landscape of the “private” and the “public” in our times. It is a topography shaped through our engagements with social media of different kinds.

What does the Constitution say?

• Fundamental right under Article.21: Article 21 is also known as the heart of the constitution; this right is granted to citizens of India as well as the non-citizens. This fundamental right not only talks about life and liberty but it also covers wide variety of rights.
• Interpretation of Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India and Anr (1978): The interpretation of the term Personal Liberty has been discussed in many cases and finally had a wider interpretation in the case of Maneka Gandhi v. Union of India and Anr (1978) here the Delhi Regional officer ordered the petitioner Maneka Gandhi to surrender her passport within 7 days without giving her proper reason for the same.
• Supreme court on Personal liberty: The Supreme Court held that ‘Personal Liberty’ covered variety of rights and that such right could only be taken away according to the procedure established by law which had to be just, fair and reasonable and not arbitrary in nature. Personal liberty means various rights that provide for personal liberty of a person.
• Right to privacy: In Article 21 the term Right to Life includes right to participate in activities, right to tradition, heritage, culture, livelihood and so on. One of the most important right to live also includes Right to Privacy. Each and every human being would want some privacy in their life. No one would want others to intrude in their private space and disturb the happiness and peace.

What is the Fight for right to Privacy?

• Not in the original constitution: This right of privacy was not granted to the citizens for a long time and there had been a lot of debate going on about the same, there is no explicit provision in the constitution which emphasizes about the right to privacy.
• Data is fundamental to the privacy: Even the data we save in our mobile phones and laptops are also our private data which needs to be protected, if the data is stolen our right to privacy is lost and fundamental right is infringed. Unprotected data causes a disturbance in the right to privacy.

Some of the Important cases related to right to privacy

• Kharak Singh V. The State of U.P.(1962): The discussion about the right to privacy first came up in the case of Kharak Singh V. The State of U.P.(1962) Kharak Singh’s house was visited by the police at strange hours, frequently waking him up from his sleep, it was held by the court that this infringed his ‘right to life’ but however court dismissed the petitioner’s allegation that the shadowing of chronic criminals infringed on his right to privacy as at that time the right to privacy was not recognised as the Fundamental Right.
• Rajagopal v. State of Tamil Nadu (1994): With the case of R. Rajagopal v. State of Tamil Nadu (1994) where this case prepared the way for subsequent decisions on the Right to Privacy, paving the way for it to be included in the Fundamental Rights given under Part III of the Constitution.
• X v. Hospital Z case (1998): There are reasonable restrictions for this right about which it was held by the Supreme Court in the case of Mr. X v. Hospital Z (1998) here the appellant Mr. X was tested positive for HIV about which the doctors informed someone else without his consent because of which marriage of Mr. X was called off, the appellant approached the court stating that his right to privacy was violated. The court here held that this fact has to been known to the person whom he marries as this fact would affect her life as well as it being a communicable disease and that there is no violation to the ‘Right of Privacy’ of Mr. X.

The landmark case of K.S. Puttaswamy v/s Union Of India 2017.

• Right to privacy is fundamental right: In the landmark case K.S. Puttaswamy V. Union of India which was passed in the year 2017, Right to Privacy was recognised as Fundamental Right and was then enshrined in Article 21 as a Right to life and personal liberty.
• Social media endangered the privacy: Judges held that because there is enormous technical advancement both state and non-state factors may be at risk of loss of privacy, also it was held that an Individual is very concerned with his / her personal Data, they control their data and what to be posted on social media what to be displayed to the public and what to hide from outsiders, so unauthorized use of such information by anyone else except to whom that information belongs to may lead to violation of individuals privacy.
• Privacy is integral to fundamental rights: On 24th August 2017 the nine-judge bench of India passed a unanimous historic Judgement with concurring opinions. Part III of the Indian constitution lays down different articles for the protection of one’s Fundamental Rights. The judgement stated privacy to be an integral component of Part III.
• Overturning the previous judgements: The bench recognized that the right to privacy should also be a key element of Fundamental Rights and should be included in Article 21 of right to life and personal liberty. In this judgement the decisions given in the case of Kharak Singh V. The State of U.P. (1962) and MP Sharma V. Satish Chandra (1954) were overruled.

Conclusion

The great deal of hand wringing over the invasion of Virat Kohli’s privacy has been accompanied by seemingly endless circulation of the video clip. The line between outrage and enjoyment is as unclear as that between the alternating desire for publicity that ethereal frisson of celebrity-ness and revulsion over too much of it.

Source: The Hindu

Context

The National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) has now cleared the way for the inclusion of the ‘Pahari ethnic group’ on the Scheduled Tribes list of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

Who are the Scheduled Tribes?

• The term ‘Scheduled Tribes’ first appeared in the Constitution of India.
• Article 366 (25) defined scheduled tribes as “such tribes or tribal communities or parts of or groups within such tribes or tribal communities as are deemed under Article 342 to be Scheduled Tribes for the purposes of this constitution”.
• Article 342 prescribes procedure to be followed in the matter of specification of scheduled tribes.
• Among the tribal groups, several have adapted to modern life but there are tribal groups who are more vulnerable.
• The Dhebar Commission (1973) created a separate category “Primitive Tribal Groups (PTGs)” which was renamed in 2006 as “Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs)”.

How are STs notified?

• The first specification of Scheduled Tribes in relation to a particular State/ Union Territory is by a notified order of the President, after consultation with the State governments concerned.
• These orders can be modified subsequently only through an Act of Parliament.

Status of STs in India

• The Census 2011 has revealed that there are said to be 705 ethnic groups notified as Scheduled Tribes (STs).
• Over 10 crore Indians are notified as STs, of which 1.04 crore live in urban areas.
• The STs constitute 8.6% of the population and 11.3% of the rural population.

Who are the Paharis referred to in this article?

• The proposal called for the inclusion of the “Paddari tribe”, “Koli” and “Gadda Brahman” communities to be included on the ST list of J&K.
• The suggestion for the inclusion had come from the commission set up for socially and educationally backward classes in the UT.
• The J&K delimitation commission has reserved six of the nine Assembly segments in the Pir Panjal Valley for STs.

Source: The Hindu

GS-III

Context

• The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has proposed a single income tax return (ITR) form for all taxpayers.
• A draft form has been released, to which all stakeholders can provide inputs up to December 15.

About Central Board of Direct Taxation:

• The Central Board of Direct Taxes is a statutory authority functioning under the Central Board of Revenue Act, 1963.
• It is responsible for the administration of direct taxation in India.
• It is administered by the Department of Revenue under the Ministry of Finance.

How many kinds of ITR Forms are there now?

• Currently, there are seven kinds of Income Tax Return (ITR) forms which are used by different categories of taxpayers. They are as follows –

How many ITR forms were filed in AY 2022-23?

• The total ITR forms filed for AY 22-23 is about 83 crore.
• Out of 5.83 crore ITRs filed, 50% of these are ITR-1 (2.93 crore), 11.5% are ITR-2 (67 lakh), 10.9% are ITR-3 (63.35 lakh), 26% are ITR-4 (1.54 crore), ITR-5 to 7 (5.5 lakh)

Proposal made by CBDT:

• According to the proposal, all taxpayers, barring trusts and non-profit organisations, will be able to use a common ITR form.
• This common ITR form will include a separate head for disclosure of income from virtual digital assets.

What is the need for a common ITR Form?

• The proposal of having a common ITR Form is aimed at making it easier for citizens for file returns, and also to considerably reduce the time taken for the job by individuals and non-business-type taxpayers.
• With a common ITR form, the taxpayers will not be required to see the schedules that do not apply to them.
• It intends the smart design of schedules in a user-friendly manner with a better arrangement, logical flow, and increased scope of pre-filling.
• It will also facilitate the proper reconciliation of third-party data available with the Income-Tax department vis-à-vis the data to be reported in the ITR to reduce the compliance burden on the taxpayers.

Source: Indian Express

Context

The horns of rhinoceroses may have become smaller over time from the impact of hunting, according to a recent study spanning more than five centuries.

About Indian Rhino

• The Indian rhinoceros also called the greater one-horned rhinoceros and great Indian rhinoceros is a rhinoceros native to the Indian subcontinent.
• It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List and Schedule I animal in the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972.
• It once ranged across the entire northern part of the Indian Subcontinent, along the Indus, Ganges and Brahmaputra River basins, from Pakistan to the Indian-Myanmar border.
• Poaching for rhinoceros horn became the single most important reason for the decline of the Indian rhino.

Why are Rhinos poached for horns?

• Ground rhino horn is used in traditional Chinese medicine to cure a range of ailments, from cancer to hangovers, and also as an aphrodisiac.
• In Vietnam, possessing a rhino horn is considered a status symbol.
• Due to demand in these countries, poaching pressure on rhinos is ever persistent against which one cannot let the guard down.

Source: The Hindu

Context

According to the Emissions Gap Report 2022, current pledges by countries for reducing greenhouse gas emissions would still leave the world warmer by 2.4-2.6 degrees celsius by the end of the century.

About:

• The report was released by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
• It is managed by the UNEP Copenhagen Climate Centre.
• It serves as a “scientifically authoritative source of timely and policy-relevant information to key decision-makers,” guiding the UNFCCC process and implementing the Paris Agreement.
• The Paris Agreement, adopted by 196 countries in 2015 at COP 21, was aimed at limiting global warming and maintaining the average global temperature rise, ideally, to below 1.5°C.

Highlights:

• The report found that the updated pledges by countries, also known as nationally determined contributions (NDC) under the Paris Agreement, only reduce the projected greenhouse emissions by 1 per cent by 2030.
• It is roughly equivalent to 0.5 gigatonnes of CO2.
• This is when a 45 per cent reduction is required for the world to limit global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels.
• The pre-industrial period is generally considered to be between 1850 and 1900. 

Source: Indian Express

Context

Zojila Day was commemorated at Zojila War Memorial near Drass on November 1.

About:

• It aims to celebrate the gallant action by Indian troops in 'Operation Bison' in 1948 which was launched on the icy heights of Zojila pass, the gateway to Ladakh.
• This day marked the Indian Army's historic win over the Pakistani regulars and infiltrators, and helped recapture the strategic Zojila Pass
• This battle was also historic for the reason that tanks were used for the first time at such heights.

Zojila Pass:

• Zojila is a pass connecting the Kashmir Valley with the cold Indus valley desert in Ladakh region through the 434-km strategic Srinagar-Leh National Highway. 
• It runs at an elevation of approximately 3,528 metres (11,575 ft), and is the second highest pass on the Srinagar-Leh National Highway after Fotu La. 
• It is often closed during winter. The Beacon Force unit of the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) is responsible for its clearing and maintenance during Winter. 

Source: The Print