Weekly Current Affairs (15th to 21st December 2022) - 2 | Current Affairs & Hindu Analysis: Daily, Weekly & Monthly - UPSC PDF Download

Pradhan Mantri Virasat Ka Samvardhan Scheme

Context: Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Ko Kaam Karyakram (PMKKK) has been named as Pradhan Mantri Virasat Ka Samvardhan (PM VIKAS) Scheme by the Ministry of Minority Affairs.

What are the Key Points of the Scheme?

• About: It is a Central-Sector Scheme, which focuses on the skilling, entrepreneurship and leadership training requirements of the minority and artisan communities across the country. This is an integrated scheme that converges five erstwhile schemes of the Ministry of Minority Affairs viz,
  • Seekho aur Kamao: This is a placement linked skill development scheme for minorities aiming to upgrade the skills of minority youth in various modern/traditional skills depending upon their qualification, present economic trends and market potential
  • USTTAD (Upgrading the Skills & Training in Traditional Arts/Crafts for Development): It aims to promote and preserve the rich heritage of the traditional arts & crafts of the minority communities.
  • Hamari Dharohar: It has been formulated to preserve rich heritage of minority communities of India.
  • Nai Roshni: It is a Leadership Development Programme for women belonging to minority communities in the age group of 18 to 65 years. It was started in 2012-13.
  • Nai Manzil: The scheme aims to benefit the youth (both men & women) belonging to six notified minority communities of 17-35 years of age, who do not have formal school leaving certificate.
  • The scheme has been approved by the Cabinet for the period of 15th Finance Commission.
• Components:
  • Skill and Training
  • Leadership and Entrepreneurship
  • Education
  • Infrastructure Development
• Objectives:
  • PM VIKAS aims to improve the livelihoods of the minorities, particularly the artisan communities, using the components of skill development, education, women leadership & entrepreneurship.
  • These components complement each other in the ultimate objective of the scheme to increase the incomes of the beneficiaries and provide support by facilitating credit and market linkages.

What are the Other Schemes Related to the Minority?

• Pradhanmantri Jan Vikas Karykram: The programme aims to develop socio-economic and basic amenities assets like school, college, polytechnic, girls' hostel, ITI, skill development centre etc for the minority communities.
• Begum Hazrat Mahal Girls Scholarships: Scholarships for economically backward girls belonging to the six notified Minority communities.
• Gharib Nawaz Employment Scheme: It was launched so that short-term job-oriented skill development courses may be provided to minorities’ youth in order to enable them for skill based employment.
• Hunar Haat: Launched to provide market and employment and employment opportunities to master artisans, craftsmen and traditional culinary experts.

Recusal of Judges

Context: Recently, a Supreme Court (SC) judge recused herself from hearing a writ petition filed by Bilkis Bano against a Gujarat government decision to prematurely release 11 men sentenced to life imprisonment for gang-raping her during the 2002 riots.

What is Recusal?

• About: It is the act of abstaining from participation in an official action such as a legal proceeding due to a conflict of interest of the presiding court official or administrative officer.
• Rule for Recusal: There are no formal rules governing recusals, although several SC judgments have dealt with the issue. In Ranjit Thakur v Union of India (1987), the SC held that the test of the likelihood of bias is the reasonableness of the apprehension in the mind of the party. The judge needs to look at the mind of the party before him, and decide that he is biased or not.
• Reason for Recusal: When there is a conflict of interest, a judge can withdraw from hearing a case to prevent creating a perception that he carried a bias while deciding the case. 
• The conflict of interest can be in many ways such as:
  • Having a prior or personal association with a party involved in the case.
  • Appeared for one of the parties involved in a case.
  • Ex parte communications with lawyers or non-lawyers.
  • An appeal is filed in the SC against a judgement of a High Court (HC) that may have been delivered by the SC judge when he was in the HC.
  • In a matter of a company in which he holds shares unless he has disclosed his interest and there is no objection to it.
• The practice stems from the cardinal principle of due process of law that nobody can be a judge in her own case.
  • Any interest or conflict of interest would be a ground to withdraw from a case since a judge has a duty to act fair.

What is the Process of Recusal?

• The decision to recuse generally comes from the judge himself as it rests on the conscience and discretion of the judge to disclose any potential conflict of interest.
  • Some judges orally convey to the lawyers involved in the case their reasons for recusal, many do not. Some explain the reasons in their order.
• In some circumstances, lawyers or parties in the case bring it up before the judge. Once a request is made for recusal, the decision to recuse or not rests with the judge.
  • While there are some instances where judges have recused even if they do not see a conflict but only because such an apprehension was cast, there have also been several cases where judges have refused to withdraw from a case.
• If a judge recuses, the case is listed before the Chief Justice for allotment to a fresh Bench.

What are the Concerns related to Recusal?

• Undermining Judicial Independence: It allows litigants to cherry-pick a bench of their choice, which impairs judicial fairness. Also, the purpose of recusal in these cases undermines both independence and impartiality of the judges.
• Different Interpretations: As there are no rules to determine when the judges could recuse themselves in these cases, there are different interpretations of the same situation.
• Delays the Process: Some requests for recusal are made with the intent to intimidate the court or to get better of an 'inconvenient' judge or to obfuscate the issues or to cause obstruction and delay the proceedings or in any other way frustrate or obstruct the course of justice.

Way Forward

• Recusals should not be used as a tool to manoeuvre justice, as a means to pick benches of a party’s choice, and as an instrument to evade judicial work.
• Judicial officers must resist all manner of pressure, regardless of where it comes from and if they deviate, the independence of the judiciary would be undermined, and in turn, the Constitution itself.
• Therefore, a rule that determines the procedure for recusal on part of judges should be made at the earliest.

Kerala University Laws (Amendment) Bills

Context: Recently, Kerala Assembly passes University Laws (amendment) Bills to amend laws relating to the governance of State universities and remove the Governor as the Chancellor of State universities.

What is the Background?

• The Governor and the State Government of Kerala had been at loggerheads for months now.
• It got worse when the Governor denied assent to the controversial Lok Ayukta (Amendment) and University Laws (Amendment) Bills earlier passed by the State Assembly.
• The worsening relationship between the State Government and governor reached a tipping point with the Supreme Court order invalidating APJ Abdul Kalam Technological University (KTU) Vice-Chancellor’s (VC) appointment on the grounds that it violated University Grants Commission (UGC) regulations.
• Following this, the governor had sought the resignations of 11 other VCs on the ground that the government had appointed them through the same process deemed unlawful by the Supreme Court.

What are the University Laws (Amendment) Bills?

• The proposed legislation will amend the statutes of 14 universities established by legislative Acts in Kerala and remove the Governor as the Chancellor of those universities.
• The Bills will supplant the Governor and give the government power to appoint eminent academicians as Chancellors of various universities, thus ending the Governor’s watchdog role in university administration.
• The Bills also provide provision to limit the term of the appointed chancellor to five years. However, it also says that the serving chancellor can be reappointed for another term.

What stands in Favour and Against the Proposition?

• Favour: Earlier UGC Guidelines used to be mandatory for Central universities and “partially mandatory and partially directive” for State universities, had been made legally binding for all universities by way of recent rulings by the Supreme Court. Such precedence pointed towards a scenario in which the legislative powers of the Assembly on all subjects on the Concurrent List (of the Constitution) could be undermined through a subordinate legislation or an executive order issued by the Centre. It is said that the bill was brought in order to avoid legal tangles in future.
• Against: If Chancellors were appointed by the Government, they would be indebted to the ruling front, thus leading to the erosion of Universities’ autonomy. It may facilitate appointment of people close to the ruling front. This will lead to a scenario in which the governor can appoint only those who are close to the government.

What is the Procedure for Appointing a Vice-Chancellor under UGC rules?

• According to the UGC Regulations, 2018, the VC of a university, in general, is appointed by the Visitor/Chancellor, from a panel of three to five names recommended by the duly constituted Search cum Selection Committee.
• A visitor is empowered to call for a set of fresh names in case of dissatisfaction with the given panel.
• In Indian universities, the President of India is the ex-officio Visitor of all the Central Universities and the Governor of the respective states is the Chancellor of all the state universities.
• Necessarily this system is not uniform in all the universities. As far as the procedures adopted by different states are concerned, they vary.

What are the Governor’s and President’s Powers related Universities?

• State Universities: While as Governor he functions with the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers, as Chancellor he acts independently of the Council of Ministers and takes his own decisions on all University matters.
• Central Universities: Under the Central Universities Act, 2009, and other statutes, the President of India shall be the Visitor of a central university. With their role limited to presiding over convocations, Chancellors in central universities are titular heads, who are appointed by the President in his capacity as Visitor. The Vice Chancellor too are appointed by the Visitor from panels of names picked by search and selection committees formed by the Union government. The Act adds that the President, as Visitor, shall have the right to authorise inspections of academic and non-academic aspects of the universities and also to institute inquiries.

Way Forward

• M. Anandakrishnan Committee, set up by the Kerala State Higher Education Council in 2009, recommended that universities should have complete autonomy in academic and administrative matters.
• It is advisable to create statutory structures that would distance the Governor and Minister for Higher Education from the day-to-day administration of the universities.
• It is also recommended to immediately incorporate UGC Regulations, 2010 in the
• As recommended by the Punchhi Commission on Centre-State Relations, the Governor should not be burdened with positions and powers that are not specified in the Constitution and may cause controversy or public criticism.
• Governments should devise alternative means of protecting university autonomy so that ruling parties do not exercise undue influence on the functioning of universities.

Law on Acid Attacks in India

Context: Recently, a girl was attacked with an acid-like substance in Delhi by three assailants. The incident has brought back to focus the heinous crime of acid attacks and the easy availability of corrosive substances.

Acid Attacks in India: What’s the Scenario?

• According to the data of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), there were 150 such cases recorded in 2019, 105 in 2020 and 102 in 2021.
• West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh consistently record the highest number of such cases generally accounting for nearly 50% of all cases in the country year on year.
• The charge sheeting rate of acid attacks stood at 83% and the conviction rate at 54% in 2019.
  • In 2020, the figures stood at 86% and 72% respectively. In 2021, the figures were recorded to be 89% and 20% respectively.
• In 2015, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) issued an advisory to all states to ensure speedy justice in cases of acid attacks by expediting prosecution.

What is the Law on Acid Attacks in India?

• Indian Penal Code: Until 2013, acid attacks were not treated as separate crimes. However, following amendments carried out in the Indian Penal Code (IPC), acid attacks were put under a separate section (326A) of the IPC and made punishable with a minimum imprisonment of 10 years which is extendable to life along with a fine.
• Denial of Treatment: The law also has provisions for punishment for denial of treatment to victims or police officers refusing to register an FIR or record any piece of evidence.
  • Denial of treatment (by both public and private hospitals) can lead to imprisonment of up to one year and dereliction of duty by a police officer is punishable by imprisonment of up to two years.

What is the Law on the Regulation of Acid Sales?

• The Poisons Act, 1919: In 2013, the Supreme Court took cognizance of acid attacks and passed an order on the regulation of sales of corrosive substances.
  • Based on the order, the MHA issued an advisory to all states on how to regulate acid sales and framed the Model Poisons Possession and Sale Rules, 2013 under The Poisons Act, 1919.
  • As a result, states were asked to frame their own rules based on model rules, as the matter fell under the purview of states.
• Maintenance of the Data: Over-the-counter sale (without a valid prescription) of acid was not allowed unless the seller maintains a logbook/register recording the sale of acid.
  • This logbook was to also contain the details of the person to whom acid is sold, the quantity sold, the address of the person, and also specify the reason for procuring acid.
• Age Restriction & Documentation: The sale is also to be made only upon presentation of a photo ID containing his address issued by the government. The buyer must also prove he/she is above 18 years of age.
• Confiscation of Acid Stocks: Sellers are also required to declare all stocks of acid with the concerned Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) within 15 days and in case of undeclared stock of acid. The SDM can confiscate the stock and suitably impose a fine of up to Rs 50,000 for a breach of any of the directions.
• A Record-Keeping Requirement: As per the rules, educational institutions, research laboratories, hospitals, government departments and the departments of Public Sector Undertakings, which are required to keep and store acid, to maintain a register of usage of acid and file the same with the concerned SDM.
• Accountability: As per the rules, a person shall be made accountable for the possession and safe keeping of acid in their premises. The acid shall be stored under the supervision of this person and there shall be compulsory checking of the students/ personnel leaving the laboratories/place of storage where acid is used.

What is the Compensation and Care for the Acid-attack Victims?

• Compensation: Acid attack victims are paid compensation of at least Rs. 3 lakhs by the concerned State Government/Union Territory as the aftercare and rehabilitation cost.
• Free of Cost Treatment: States are supposed to ensure that treatment provided to acid attack victims in any hospital, public or private, is free of cost. The cost incurred on treatment is not to be included in the Rs 1 lakh compensation given to the victim.
• Reservation of Beds: Acid attack victims need to undergo a series of plastic surgeries and hence 1-2 beds at private hospitals could be reserved for the treatment of acid attack victims.
• Social Integration Programs: States should also extend social integration programs to the victims for which Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) could be funded to exclusively look after their rehabilitative requirements.

What can be the Way Forward?

• A Promise to Leave No One Behind: Violence against women continues to be an obstacle to achieving equality, development, peace as well as to the fulfillment of women and girls’ human rights.
  • All in all, the promise of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) - to leave no one behind - cannot be fulfilled without putting an end to violence against women and girls.
• Holistic Approach: Crime against women cannot be resolved in a court of law alone. A holistic approach & changing the entire ecosystem is what is required.
• Participation: All the stakeholders need to get their act together, including Law makers, police officers, forensic dept, prosecutors, judiciary, medical & health dept, NGOs, rehabilitation centers.

Carbon Markets

Context: The Parliament has passed the Energy Conservation (Amendment) Bill, 2022 in order to establish Carbon Markets in India and specify a Carbon Trading Scheme.

• The Bill amends the Energy Conservation Act, 2001.

What is the Energy Conservation (Amendment) Bill, 2022?

About:

• The Bill empowers the Centre to specify a carbon credits trading scheme.
• Under the Bill, the central government or an authorised agency will issue carbon credit certificates to companies or even individuals registered and compliant with the scheme.
• These carbon credit certificates will be tradeable in nature. Other persons would be able to buy carbon credit certificates on a voluntary basis.

Concerns:

• Bill does not provide clarity on the mechanism to be used for the trading of carbon credit certificates— whether it will be like the cap-and-trade schemes or use another method— and who will regulate such trading.
• It is not specified, which is the right ministry to bring in a scheme of this nature,
  • While carbon market schemes in other jurisdictions like the U.S., United Kingdom, and Switzerland are framed by their environment ministries, the Indian Bill was tabled by the power ministry instead of the Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change (MoEFCC).
• The Bill does not specify whether certificates under already existing schemes would also be interchangeable with carbon credit certificates and tradeable for reducing carbon emissions.
  • Two types of tradeable certificates are already issued in India— Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) and Energy Savings Certificates (ESCs).
  • These are issued when companies use renewable energy or save energy, which are also activities which reduce carbon emissions.

What are Carbon Markets?

About:

• Carbon markets are a tool for putting a price on carbon emissions. It allows the trade of carbon credits with the overall objective of bringing down emissions.
• These markets create incentives to reduce emissions or improve energy efficiency.
  • For example, an industrial unit which outperforms the emission standards stands to gain credits.
  • Another unit which is struggling to attain the prescribed standards can buy these credits and show compliance to these standards. The unit that did better on the standards earns money by selling credits, while the buying unit is able to fulfill its operating obligations.
• It establishes trading systems where carbon credits or allowances can be bought and sold.
  • A carbon credit is a kind of tradable permit that, per United Nations standards, equals one tonne of carbon dioxide removed, reduced, or sequestered from the atmosphere.
  • Carbon allowances or caps, meanwhile, are determined by countries or governments according to their emission reduction targets.
• Article 6 of the Paris Agreement provides for the use of international carbon markets by countries to fulfill their NDCs (Nationally Determined Contributions).
  • NDCs are climate commitments by countries setting targets to achieve net-zero emissions.

Types of Carbon Markets:

• Compliance Markets: Compliance markets are set up by policies at the national, regional, and/or international level and are officially regulated. Today, compliance markets mostly operate under a principle called ‘cap-and-trade”, most popular in the European Union (EU). Under the EU’s emissions trading system (ETS) launched in 2005, member countries set a cap or limit for emissions in different sectors, such as power, oil, manufacturing, agriculture, and waste management. This cap is determined as per the climate targets of countries and is lowered successively to reduce emissions. Entities in this sector are issued annual allowances or permits by governments equal to the emissions they can generate. If companies produce emissions beyond the capped amount, they have to purchase additional permits. This makes up the ‘trade’ part of cap-and-trade. The market price of carbon gets determined by market forces when purchasers and sellers trade in emissions allowances.
• Voluntary Markets: Voluntary markets are those in which emitters— corporations, private individuals, and others— buy carbon credits to offset the emission of one tonne of CO2 or equivalent greenhouse gases. Such carbon credits are created by activities which reduce CO2 from the air, such as afforestation. In this market, a corporation looking to compensate for its unavoidable GHG emissions purchases carbon credits from an entity engaged in projects that reduce, remove, capture, or avoid emissions. For Instance, in the aviation sector, airlines may purchase carbon credits to offset the carbon footprints of the flights they operate. In voluntary markets, credits are verified by private firms as per popular standards. There are also traders and online registries where climate projects are listed and certified credits can be bought.
• Status of Global Carbon Markets: In 2021, the value of global markets for tradeable carbon allowances or permits grew by 164% to a record 760 billion euros (USD 851 billion), according to an analysis by Refinitiv. The EU’s ETS contributed the most to this increase, accounting for 90% of the global value at 683 billion euros. As for voluntary carbon markets, their current global value is comparatively smaller at USD 2 billion. The World Bank estimates that trading in carbon credits could reduce the cost of implementing NDCs by more than half — by as much as USD 250 billion by 2030.

What are the Challenges to Carbon Markets?

• Poor Market Transparency: The UNDP (United Nations Development Programme) points out serious concerns pertaining to carbon markets- ranging from double counting of greenhouse gas reductions and quality and authenticity of climate projects that generate credits to poor market transparency.
• Greenwashing: Companies may buy credits, simply offsetting carbon footprints instead of reducing their overall emissions or investing in clean technologies.
• May Increase Net Emission through ETS: As for regulated or compliance markets, ETSs (Emissions Trading System) may not automatically reinforce climate mitigation instruments.
• The International Monetary Fund (IMF) points out that including high emission-generating sectors under trading schemes to offset their emissions by buying allowances may increase emissions on net and provide no automatic mechanism for prioritizing cost-effective projects in the offsetting sector.

What is the Related Indian Initiative?

• Clean Development Mechanism: In India, the clean development mechanism under the Kyoto Protocol provided a primary carbon market for the players. The secondary carbon market is covered by the perform-achieve-trade scheme (which falls under the energy efficiency category) and the renewable energy certificate.

Way Forward

• In order to keep global warming within 2°C, ideally no more than 1.5°C, global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions need to be reduced by 25 to 50% over this decade. Nearly 170 countries have submitted their nationally determined contributions (NDCs) so far as part of the 2015 Paris Agreement, which they have agreed to update every five years.
• The UNDP emphasises that for carbon markets to be successful, “emission reductions and removals must be real and aligned with the country’s NDCs”.
• There must be “transparency in the institutional and financial infrastructure for carbon market transactions”.

Global Minimum Tax

Context: Recently, EU members have agreed to implement a minimum tax rate of 15% on big businesses in accordance with Pillar 2 of the global tax agreement framed by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in 2021.

• In 2021, 136 countries including India had agreed on a plan to redistribute tax rights across jurisdictions and enforce a minimum tax rate of 15% on large multinational corporations.

What is Global Minimum Tax?

• A Global Minimum Tax (GMT) applies a standard minimum tax rate to a defined corporate income base worldwide.
• The OECD developed a proposal featuring a corporate minimum tax of 15% on foreign profits of large multinationals, which would give countries new annual tax revenues of USD 150 billion.
• The framework of GMT aims to discourage nations from tax competition through lower tax rates that result in corporate profit shifting and tax base erosion.

What are the Key Points of the Plan?

Two Pillar Plan:

Pillar 1:

• 25% of profits of the largest and most profitable Multinational Enterprise (MNEs) above a set profit margin would be reallocated to the market jurisdictions where the MNE’s users and customers are located.
• It also provides for a simplified and streamlined approach to the application of the arm’s length principle to in-country baseline marketing and distribution activities.
• It includes features to ensure dispute prevention and dispute resolution in order to address any risk of double taxation, but with an elective mechanism for some low-capacity countries.
• It also entails the removal and standstill of Digital Services Taxes (DST) and similar relevant measures, to prevent harmful trade disputes.

Pillar 2:

• It provides a minimum 15% tax on corporate profit, putting a floor on tax competition.
• This will apply to multinational groups with annual global revenues of over 750 million euros. Governments across the world will impose additional taxes on the foreign profits of MNEs headquartered in their jurisdiction at least to the agreed minimum rate.
• This means that if a company’s earnings go untaxed or lightly taxed in one of the tax havens, their home country would impose a top-up tax that would bring the effective rate to 15%.

Objectives:

• It aims to ensure that big businesses with global operations do not benefit by domiciling themselves in tax havens in order to save on taxes.
• The minimum tax and other provisions aim to put an end to decades of tax competition between governments to attract foreign investment.

What is the Significance of the Move?

• End of Race to the Bottom: It tries to put an end to the “race to the bottom” which has made it harder for governments to shore up the revenues required to fund their rising spending budgets. A race to the bottom refers to heightened competition between nations, states, or companies, where product quality or rational economic decisions are sacrificed in order to gain a competitive advantage or reduction in product manufacturing costs.
• Stopping Financial Diversion to Tax Havens: Increasingly, income from intangible sources such as drug patents, software and royalties on intellectual property has migrated to Tax Havens, allowing companies to avoid paying higher taxes in their traditional home countries.
• Mobilising Financial Resources: With budgets strained after the Covid-19 crisis, many governments want more than ever to discourage multinationals from shifting profits – and tax revenues – to low-tax countries regardless of where their sales are made.
• Global Tax Reforms: Since the inception of the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) programme, the proposal for GMT is another positive step towards global taxation reforms. BEPS refers to tax avoidance strategies that exploit gaps and mismatches in tax rules to artificially shift profits to low or no-tax locations. OECD has issued 15 Action Items to address this.
• Counters Global Inequality: The minimum tax proposal is particularly relevant at a time when the fiscal state of governments across the world has deteriorated as seen in the worsening of public debt metrics. It is believed that the plan will also help counter rising global inequality by making it tougher for large businesses to pay low taxes by availing the services of tax havens.

What are the Issues?

• Threat of tax Competition: It is considered the threat of tax competition that keeps a check on governments which would otherwise tax their citizens heavily to fund profligate spending programs.
• Impending Sovereignty: It impinges on the right of the sovereign to decide a nation’s tax policy. A global minimum rate would essentially take away a tool country use to push policies that suit them.
• Question of Efficacy: The deal has also been criticized for lacking teeth: Groups such as Oxfam said the deal would not put an end to tax havens.

What is the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development?

• The OECD is an intergovernmental economic organisation, founded to stimulate economic progress and world trade.
• Founded: 1961.
• Headquarters: Paris, France.
• Total Members: 36.
• India is not a member, but a key economic partner.

Way Forward

• Since the OECD’s plan essentially tries to form a global tax cartel, it will always face the risk of losing out to low-tax jurisdictions outside the cartel and cheating by members within the cartel.
• After all, countries both within and outside the cartel will have the incentive to boost investments and economic growth within their respective jurisdictions by offering lower tax rates to businesses.
• This is a structural problem that will persist as long as the global tax cartel continues to exist.