WhatsApp No. 88986-30000 · 2020. 7. 2. · The Rajya Sabha is losing its sheen as an exalted forum...

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Table of Contents

Polity & Governance ................................................ 1

1. Insurance regulator steps in for standard Covid-19 product .................................................................... 1

2. What is Inner Line Permit, what is its CAA context? ....................................................................................... 2

3. Jessica Lall murder case: takeaways from acquittal, conviction and release .................................... 3

4. Faridkot ruler property dispute: how HC upheld share of daughters ................................................... 7

5. Unsettling of a govt. by engineering defections during a pandemic should not be allowed ..... 9

6. The Rajya Sabha is losing its sheen as an exalted forum for scholarly debate .............................. 10

7. Process to merge Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha TVs into Sansad TV in final stages ..................... 11

8. Signalling intent: On Government e-Marketplace ........................................................................................... 12

9. New domicile rules in J&K ............................................................................................................................................ 13

International Organizations and Relations .......

......................................................................................... 14

1. George Floyd protests: All you need to know .........................................................................................14

2. Trump’s executive order targeting social media platforms ...................................................................... 14

3. Line of Actual Control: where it is located, and where India and China differ............................... 17

4. G7 very outdated, want India, South Korea, Australia in grouping: Trump .................................... 20

5. Seven to eleven: On India and G-7 ............................................................................................................................ 21

6. George Floyd’s America in black & white ............................................................................................................ 22

7. India demands restoration of April status along LAC ................................................................................... 26

8. India, China agree to ease standoff .......................................................................................................................... 27

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9. In the reporting on the LAC stand-off, the Darbuk-Shyok-Daulat Beg Oldie (DSDBO) road

has often appeared. What is this all-weather road built by India over nearly 20 years, and

why does it matter? .......................................................................................................................................................... 29

10. Nepal passes amendment on new map ................................................................................................................. 32

11. India, China expanded nuclear stockpile in last one year .......................................................................... 33

12. Indian Army says 20 soldiers killed in clash with Chinese troops in the Galwan area ............. 35

13. Is China’s ‘peaceful rise’ over? ................................................................................................................................... 36

14. India-China Galwan faceoff: How serious is the situation, what happens next? ......................... 38

15. India secures non-permanent member seat in U.N. Security Council polls ..................................... 41

16. Who does Galwan Valley belong to? ...................................................................................................................... 42

17. Why China trade ban will hurt India more ......................................................................................................... 45

18. If soldiers on LAC were carrying arms, why did they not open fire? .................................................. 48

19. Modi's statement on China’s role in LAC .............................................................................................................. 50

20. What changed in India-Nepal ties? ......................................................................................................................... 52

21. Why high-altitude warfare is challenging, and how soldiers are trained ......................................... 55

22. Why Russia has emerged as a key player amid India, China tensions ................................................ 57

23. Victory Day: Why Russia celebrates WWII triumph on a different date ........................................... 60

24. First time after 2001, India cuts Pakistan High Commission strength by half ............................... 62

25. How will the U.S. visa ban impact India? ............................................................................................................. 63

26. Amid pandemic, SE Asian nations warn of 'alarming' South China Sea incidents ....................... 66

27. Pakistan has bought time, but it cannot back away from its commitments to the FATF ......... 67

Geography .................................................................. 69

1. Cyclone Nisarga Explained: How big is the threat on west coast? ...................................................69

2. Assam gas leak: why it’s tough to plug, and what threat it poses to the area ................................. 70

3. Why Delhi earthquakes aren’t a signal .................................................................................................................. 73









Economics ................................................................. 75

1. Forex reserves hit all-time high on FDI, FPI inflows, fall in import expenditure ......................75

2. What RBI discontinuing 7.75% saving bonds means to investors ........................................................ 75

3. Why Moody’s downgraded India’s rating, what the implications may be ........................................ 77

4. Union Cabinet nod for agricultural marketing reforms ............................................................................... 80

5. Despite Govt’s big MSME push, entrepreneurs are guarded in their optimism. Four reasons why ............................................................................................................................................................................................. 81

6. Investments continue to rain in on Jio, raises further 13K crores in a day in twin

transactions ........................................................................................................................................................................... 83

7. How many migrant workers displaced? A range of estimates ................................................................ 84

8. The importance of India’s rising forex reserves amid Covid economic crisis ................................ 85

9. Why companies are going for rights issue amidst Covid-19 pandemic ............................................. 87

10. How Covid-19 could affect aviation in the long run ...................................................................................... 89

11. How fuel price decontrol works — or why consumers always lose out ........................................... 90

12. Unemployment figures fell rapidly in June but experts warn to read the fine print too! ....... 93

13. Indian economy to contract by 4% in 2020-21, forecasts ADB .............................................................. 94

14. Mukesh Ambani fulfils ‘his promise’, makes Reliance net debt-free, nine months ahead of

target ......................................................................................................................................................................................... 94

15. Why has the US accused Air India of unfair practices? ............................................................................... 95

16. How US pause on H1-B visas will hit Indian companies ............................................................................. 97

17. India GDP to contract 4.5% on COVID-19: IMF ................................................................................................ 99

18. Why diesel has become more expensive than petrol in Delhi .............................................................. 100

19. Hinduja brothers: what property dispute is about, how much is at stake .................................... 101

20. Why shipments from China are stuck at Indian ports ............................................................................... 104

21. Why India is producing less and less oil ............................................................................................................ 106









Environment .......................................................... 108

1. Killing of an elephant in Kerala ............................................................................................................................... 108

2. How Gujarat estimated its lion population without holding a census ............................................. 109

3. The pangolin: can the protection upgrade by China curb its trafficking? ..................................... 110

Science & Technology ......................................... 113

1. Why is the locust surge posing a threat to agriculture in India? ................................................... 113

2. SpaceX Crew Dragon: A new era in space exploration .............................................................................. 115

3. Restarting international air travel; the concept of ‘air bridges’ and ‘bubbles’............................ 118

4. Can a handheld device kill virus with UV light? ........................................................................................... 120

5. Debate over a homoeo drug – Arsenicum album 30 .................................................................................. 121

6. Study finds link between high blood pressure and Covid-19 death risk ........................................ 123

7. Has Google been misrepresenting data practices? ..................................................................................... 124

8. What are some of the key terms being used to describe the novel coronavirus outbreak?

.................................................................................................................................................................................................... 126

9. The Lancet’s HCQ study: Why it was retracted, and the status now ................................................. 129

10. The drugs India is fighting Covid-19 with ........................................................................................................ 129

11. Selling space: On SpaceX's mission to space ................................................................................................... 132

12. Population-wide mask use can bring R number below 1: study ......................................................... 133

13. GM seeds: the debate, and a sowing agitation ................................................................................................ 134

14. Asymptomatic transmission of Covid-19: Why it matters, where evidence stands ................ 135

15. What role do people without symptoms play in spreading COVID-19? ........................................ 137

16. BrainPort-Now see with your Tongue ................................................................................................................ 138

17. How India tests for Covid-19 .................................................................................................................................... 139









18. How rapid antigen test detects coronavirus, where it will be used .................................................. 142

19. As sports events resume, a look at the new protocols in place ............................................................ 144

20. A badminton legend, a football star, latest Covid-19 drug: what’s common? ............................ 147

21. How railway coaches were redesigned for Covid-19 patients, where they will be deployed

.................................................................................................................................................................................................... 148

22. Govt ends monopoly over coal, opens mining sector to private players ........................................ 151

23. How TrueNat test works ............................................................................................................................................. 152

24. Dexamethasone: its use, action, and what a Recovery Trial found .................................................... 154

25. Has Google failed to protect its Chrome browser? ..................................................................................... 156

26. A look at India’s evolving strategy on testing for Covid-19.................................................................... 158

27. IN-SPACe: what it means to the future of space exploration ................................................................. 160

28. What due process must be followed in the appraisal of any drug, especially those for

COVID-19? .......................................................................................................................................................................... 162

29. What Apple-Google Covid feature does, why it doesn’t work in India ............................................ 163

Social Issues ............................................................ 165

1. Introspection on the migrant labour crisis ........................................................................................... 165

2. How the Oscar Awards are going to be different once again, and why ........................................... 166

3. Nod for Puri Rath Yatra with conditions ........................................................................................................... 169

Disaster Management ......................................... 170

1. Mumbai’s new flood warning system: iFlows-Mumbai ................................................................... 170

Miscellaneous ........................................................ 172









1. Jessica Lal murder convict Manu Sharma walks out of jail ............................................................. 172

2. Central Vista project ...................................................................................................................................................... 173

3. Adani wins world’s ‘largest’ solar project; to invest $6 billion ............................................................ 174

4. Four-year ban on Gomathi Marimuthu .............................................................................................................. 175

5. China’s Great Wall Motor commits to $1 billion investment in Maharashtra ............................. 175

6. Took a long time coming, Unilever renames Fair & Lovely skin cream after years of

backlash ................................................................................................................................................................................ 176

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Polity and Governance

1. Insurance regulator steps in for standard Covid-19 product Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; Polity & Governance

WITH COVID-19 patients running up high bills in private hospitals, the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has asked the General Insurance Council — the apex body of general insurers — to arrive at a ‘standardised cost structure’ for treatment of the pandemic. This will set the ball rolling for a standard Covid-19 insurance product with details of costs covered, including those for PPE kits and other consumables, which are currently unavailable under a normal health insurance policy. With the Council sending its feedback by May 31, the regulator is expected to take a decision on the product over the next couple of weeks. In a communication to insurers, the General Insurance Council said the proposal under discussion entailed arriving at a negotiated rate for all elements associated with Covid treatment in a hospital.

Charges by private hospitals

As of now, private hospitals which have Covid-19 wards charge high rates with treatment costs ranging from Rs 3-8 lakh. “While government hospitals do not have adequate bed capacity to deal with patient load, the common man is unable to bear the expenses of a private hospital and especially a super speciality for Covid-19 treatment. A super specialty hospital, for instance, currently charges (without ventilator) in the following manner: Bed Rs 20,000–Rs 30,000 a day, bed plus PPE and medical staff, cost per day Rs 50,000. The approximate cost for 15 days would be around Rs 3.5 lakhs – Rs 9.5 lakhs depending on the grade of the hospital and city,” the proposal said. There have been instances when patients received bills of even upto Rs 16 lakh bill for Covid treatment in private hospitals. What can government do? “The government of India must cap the maximum rates hospitals can charge for Covid-19 using their power under Epidemic Act and if possible IRDAI could issue an advisory for the same,” said the CEO of a private insurance firm. For government hospitals, it has proposed a rate of Rs 3,000 for isolation ward, Rs 4,000 for isolation room, Rs 5,000 for ICU and Rs 7,500 for ICU with ventilator. These rates would include accommodation and food, ventilator charges, doctor’s visit, investigations, medicines and PPE kit.








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Categorization of hospitals

GIPSA (General Insurance Public Sector Association) norms can, however, be followed for categorisation of private hospitals for defining reasonable treatment rates, the proposal before IRDAI and GI Council said. The proposal has suggested three zones depending on the size of the city. For an “A+” grade hospital (top grade) in Zone 1, it has proposed Rs 11,000 for isolation ward, Rs 16,000 for isolation room, Rs 20,000 for ICU and Rs 25,000 for ICU with ventilator. For Zone 2, the rates would be Rs 8,000, Rs 10,000, Rs 15,000 and Rs 20,000, respectively. The rates will drop further for Zone 3 hospitals. For “A” grade hospitals, charges would be 15 per cent less compared with “A+” categories. For “B” grade hospitals, the charges would be limited to 65 per cent of the cost of “A+” categories. The cost will include accommodation charge, doctor visits, PPE kit cost, investigation cost, medicine, and consumable cost and diet for patients. Going by this proposal, the hospitalisation charges for a patient for 10 days will work out to Rs 2.5 lakh in a top grade “A+” hospital in Mumbai or Delhi. At present, different insurers have different products to cover the illness. Hospitals also charge different rates. IRDAI has not capped the cost in the current guidelines. Source: The Indian Express

2. What is Inner Line Permit, what is its CAA context? Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; Polity & Governance

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court declined to stay the operation of a Presidential order which petitioners claimed deprived Assam of the powers to implement the Inner Line system in its districts and limit the applicability of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act. What is Inner Line?

A concept drawn by colonial rulers, the Inner Line separated the tribal-populated hill areas in the Northeast from the plains. To enter and stay for any period in these areas, Indian citizens from other areas need an Inner Line Permit (ILP). Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland and Mizoram are protected by the Inner Line, and lately Manipur was added. The concept originates from the Bengal Eastern Frontier Regulation Act (BEFR), 1873. The policy of exclusion first came about as a response to the reckless expansion of British entrepreneurs into new lands which threatened British political relations with the hill tribes.








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The BEFR prohibits an outsider’s — “British subject or foreign citizen” — entry into the are beyond the Inner Line without a pass and his purchase of land there. On the other hand, the Inner Line also protects the commercial interests of the British from the tribal communities. After Independence, the Indian government replaced “British subjects” with “Citizen of India”. In 2013, the Home Ministry told Rajya Saha, “The main aim of ILP system is to prevent settlement of other Indian nationals in the States where ILP regime is prevalent, in order to protect the indigenous/tribal population.” How is it connected to the Citizenship Amendment Act?

The CAA, which relaxes eligibility criteria for certain categories of migrants from three countries seeking Indian citizenship, exempts certain categories of areas, including those protected by the Inner Line system. Amid protests against the Act, the Adaptation of Laws (Amendment) Order, 2019, issued by the President, amended the BEFR, 1873, extending it to Manipur and parts of Nagaland that were not earlier protected by ILP. What is the petition? The influential Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuba Chatra Parishad (AJYCP) and All Tai Ahom Students’ Union (ATASU) petitioned the Supreme Court against the Presidential order. Noting that the original BEFR included the then Assam districts of Kamrup, Darrang, Nowgong (now Nagaon), Sibsagar, Lakhimpur, and Cachar, the petition said the order took away the Assam government’s permissive power to implement the ILP. This could have made the CAA inapplicable in these areas, the petition said. Groups such as the AJYCP have long been campaigning for long for implementation of the ILP in Assam. The CAA has given fresh legs to the demand. Lurinjyoti Gogoi, general secretary of the All Assam Students’ Union, says protests against the CAA in Assam will continue. What does the SC order imply?

The petition had sought a stay on the Presidential order, which the Supreme Court did not grant. The court said it will have to hear what the other side (government) has to say on the matter. It will hear the matter again in two weeks. Source: The Indian Express

3. Jessica Lall murder case: takeaways from acquittal, conviction and

release Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; Polity & Governance

On Monday, Manu Sharma, now 43, who was serving a life sentence for the 1999 murder of model Jessica Lall, walked out of jail following the Delhi Lieutenant Governor’s approval for








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his premature release, as per recommendations by the Sentence Review Board. A look back at the murder, and the twists and turns during a trial that caught the public imagination: Murder & arrests

Jessica Lall was murdered on April 29, 1999, at a party at Once Upon a Time Restaurant, owned by socialite Bina Ramani, in Delhi’s Qutub Colonnade. Lall and Shayan Munshi, an actor, were serving liquor. Manu Sharma, son of former Union Minister and Haryana Congress leader Venod Sharma, who was attending the party with friends, asked for two drinks at 2 am. As the party was over, he was refused. Following an argument, he took out his pistol and fired one shot at the roof and another at Lall, which hit her near the left eye, and fled. Lall was declared dead in hospital in the early hours of April 30. Mehrauli police station had registered an FIR at 4 am, after recording Munshi's statement. The police seized two empty cartridges and found that a black Tata Safari was missing from the party. The Tata Safari was seized from UP police on May 2. Three days later, the police arrested Amardeep Singh aka Tony Gill and Alok Khanna. Following their statements, police reached out to Sharma's lawyer; on June 6, Sharma surrendered. The police arrested 10 others including a UP politician’s son, Vikas Yadav. Trial & acquittal

The chargesheet was filed August 3. On November 23, the additional sessions judge framed charges against Sharma under IPC sections 302 (murder), 201 (causing disappearance of evidence of offence, or giving false information to screen offender) and 120-B (punishment for criminal conspiracy), and Arms Act section 27. The trial began in May 2001, against nine accused. The prosecution examined 101 witnesses and two court witnesses. During the trial, Sharma was enlarged on bail on several occasions until November 11, 2003, when the Delhi High Court dismissed his bail application, following which the Supreme Court too dismissed his special leave petition. On February 21, 2006, Sharma and the other accused were acquitted by the trial court. The trial court concluded that links in the chain of evidence were either missing or broken. The court held that the prosecution had miserably failed to bring home the guilt of the accused. The defence had brought a two-weapon theory, arguing that Munshi had said two people fired with two different weapons and his statement was never read to him as it was in Hindi, a language he did not know. The court held that three prosecution witnesses including Munshi were not eyewitnesses.








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The trial court agreed the prosecution was able to prove that Sharma was holding a .22 bore Berretta pistol and had bought 25 rounds of cartridges from Haryana Gun House, but observed that the pistol was not recovered from him. The Tata Safari was registered in the name of M/s Piccadilly Agro Industries Private Limited and Sharma was one of its directors. The court did not agree that the accused used it to travel to Qutub Colonnade; it observed that its mere presence at the party was of no consequence. The court also held that use of telephones by the accused to contact one another before and after the incident was of no consequence as the conversation was not placed on record. The court also disagreed with the public prosecutor that Sharma had absconded immediately after the crime. Outrage & conviction

The acquittal led to widespread public outrage, following which police submitted a status report to the Delhi High Court, which accepted it and took up a fast-track case. Sharma was represented by Ram Jethmalani (now deceased) in the Delhi High Court and later in the Supreme Court. On December 18, 2006, the High Court convicted Sharma observing that the trial court judgment was “an immature assessment of material on record which is self-contradictory, based on misreading of material and unsustainable”. The court sentenced Sharma to life, awarded lesser sentences to Vikas Yadav and Amardeep Gill, and acquitted six others. The High Court rejected the two-weapon theory as a “concoction to the defence and a manipulation of evidence particularly that of Shyam Munshi who, for the first time in court, introduced such a story”. Sharma appealed twice to the Supreme Court. In April 2010, the Supreme Court upheld his conviction and life term. The Supreme Court held that the evidence regarding the incident, the testimonies of witnesses, evidence connecting the vehicles and cartridges to Sharma, as well as his conduct after the incident, proved his guilt beyond reasonable doubt.








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On Munshi's statement about “another gentleman” who fired the shot, the Supreme Court said that although he turned hostile, his evidence showed that Sharma was at the scene and this was rightly accepted by the High Court. Munshi stands accused of lying under oath before the sessions court. Takeaways from the case

The case brought into focus the influence of media coverage. This was highlighted by the Delhi High Court as well as the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court observed that various articles in the print media gave rise to unnecessary controversy and “apparently, had an effect of interfering with the administration of criminal justice”. The Supreme Court held that “presumption of innocence of an accused is a legal presumption and should not be destroyed at the very threshold through the process of media trial and that too when the investigation is pending”. While overturning the acquittal of Sharma, the Delhi High court made observations about the functioning of courts and appreciation of evidence. This led to public criticism of bias in prosecuting powerful people. The Supreme Court said every possible effort should be made and precautions taken which will help in preservation of public faith. Following the conviction by the High Court, a different Bench directed the government to create a witness-protection policy.








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Source: msn.com

4. Faridkot ruler property dispute: how HC upheld share of daughters Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; Polity & Governance

Last week, the Punjab and Haryana High Court passed a 547-page judgment in a three-decade-old case upholding the property rights of women in the family of Harinder Singh Brar, the last Maharaja of Faridkot. Who was Maharaja Harinder Brar? Born in 1915, Harinder Brar was Faridkot’s last ruler and died in October 1989. His only son Harmohinder Singh, and his wife Rani Narinder Kaur had died earlier. At the time of his death, he was survived by his mother Mohinder Kaur, three daughters — Amrit Kaur, Deepinder Kaur and Mahipinder Kaur — and a brother, Kanwar Manjit Inder Singh. Of the three daughters, only Amrit Kaur survives, and is now 87. The court ruling upholds her property rights and the rights of the heirs of the other women in the family, too. What happened to the property?

When the Faridkot state surrendered sovereignty and joined the Patiala and East Punjab States Union in 1948, the Maharaja was allowed to retain certain personal properties, spread over Faridkot, Chandigarh, Shimla and Delhi. When he died, his daughters had no inheritance rights as was the norm under the feudal system. On the basis of a purported will dated June 1, 1982, Maharwal Khewaji Trust took over the property, estimated to be worth Rs 25,000 crore. Another London-based Trust — Grindlays Bank is its sole trustee — created by Brar was meant to provide for the three daughters. Two of them, Deepinder Kaur and Mahipinder Kaur, held offices in the Maharwal Khewaji Trust as chairperson and vice-chairperson, in accordance with the 1982 will. The eldest, Amrit Kaur was not part of the Trust and was disinherited, allegedly for the reason that she had married against her father’s wishes at the age of 18 in 1952. Her husband later retired as a DIG from BSF. What is the dispute about?

In 1992, Amrit Kaur challenged the 1982 will in a Chandigarh court, seeking one-third of the share in her father’s property —with consequential benefit to her sisters — under the Hindu Succession Act, 1956. Later, she claimed the whole property citing certain clauses in the Raja of Faridkot’s Estate Act, 1948. Kanwar Manjit Inder Singh, Brar’s brother, also filed a suit that claimed the property, citing the Rule of Primogeniture. Deepinder Kaur died in 2018 and her family continued the litigation against Amrit Kaur’s claim. Mahipinder Kaur, who at one stage had questioned the will, died in 2001.








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In 2013, the Chandigarh court divided the property among the then two surviving daughters and declared the 1982 will as invalid. The matter then went to the lower appellate court, which upheld the decision in 2018, after which the case reached Punjab and Haryana High Court.

How did the High Court rule on the property?

Justice Raj Mohan Singh of the High Court not only upheld the rights of the daughters but also gave Brar’s mother, who was alive when her son died, her share in the property. Amrit Kaur had laid claim to the whole property on the basis of Section 4(3) of the 1948 Act, which states that in absence of the male descendant or his legitimate descendants, the property would go to the nearest agnate (descendant from a male ancestor). The HC held that the 1948 Act was not an existing enactment at the time the Constitution came in force, and the matter would not be covered under Section 5 (ii) of The Hindu Succession Act, 1956, which says the Act will not apply to any estate which descends to a single heir by the terms of any agreement entered into by the Ruler of any Indian State with the Government of India or by terms of any law passed before commencement of the 1956 law. Kanwar Manjit Singh’s argument regarding the applicability of the Rule of Primogeniture was also rejected by the High Court. Under the rule, the eldest male child gets the inheritance on the death of the father. Since Brar had no surviving son, Manjit Singh argued the property must be given to him as he is the sole surviving male descendant from the line of his and Brar’s father. The HC held that the rule ceased to exist on account of merger of Faridkot state with India. And how did the court rule on the will? Amrit Kaur’s argument was that her father was depressed on account of his son’s death in 1981 and others influenced him, resulting in a fraud and misrepresentation in the form of the will. Forensic expert Dr Jassi Anand, who examined the will on her behalf, told The Indian Express she compared handwriting and ink used to write the documents, which were in both Gurmukhi and English, and proved the will had “crude symptoms of forgery” as not only signatures but also the entire document was forged. The High Court agreed with the lower court finding and held Anand has proved the forgery. What are the other key aspects of the verdict?

The HC verdict added a new twist— it validated a will made by Brar’s mother Maharani Mohinder Kaur, who in 1992 had bequeathed certain property to her other son Kanwar Manjit Singh’s kin. The HC said she was alive at the time of death of her son and was his class-I heir, making her entitled to a share in her son’s property in accordance with the Hindu Succession Act. The question of her share hadn’t been directly raised or framed in the case before. The will stated that her personal property, including a house in Chandigarh, would go to her granddaughter Devinder Kaur and certain property would go to grandson Bharat Inder Singh. Her will also states other than the mentioned property and estates, any other property or estate coming her way would be equally divided among








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Kanwar Manjit Singh, his son and daughter. The HC said her inheritance cannot remain in abeyance and her lawful share is subject matter of her 1990 will. Source: The Indian Express

5. Unsettling of a govt. by engineering defections during a pandemic

should not be allowed Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; Polity & Governance

A political upheaval appears to be in the making in Rajasthan. The ruling Congress has accused the opposition BJP of trying to unsettle the Ashok Gehlot government. The BJP State President has denied the allegations, and said the accusation was an outcome of an internal tussle in the Congress and an attempt by Mr. Gehlot to spruce himself up as a battle hero. What is the position?

The Congress has 107 MLAs in the 200-strong State Assembly, and the support of at least a dozen independent MLAs. The BJP has 76. The Congress and the BJP both are snarled up in internal tussles. State Congress chief and Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot always believed that the top post was unfairly denied to him when the party won the State in 2018; Mr. Gehlot has the support of more party MLAs and wants Mr. Pilot to wait for his turn. In the BJP, the current central leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah do not share much common ground with Vasundhara Raje, the former CM. The BJP has turned up the heat in the State by fielding a second candidate for elections to three Rajya Sabha seats on June 19 of which it can win only one with its current strength. The BJP has used Rajya Sabha elections to engineer defections from other parties in other States, and its second candidate is more than just political signalling. Other examples The recent history of the BJP’s behaviour in comparable situations does not inspire confidence in its claim that it has no plans to usurp power in Rajasthan through engineered defections. Within the last year the BJP wrested power in Karnataka and Madhya Pradesh, States that it did not win in elections, through a now familiar pattern of engineering resignations of MLAs. The only reasonable explanation for such mass resignations of legislators is that they were either lured or threatened. Earlier, the BJP gate-crashed its way to power in Goa and Manipur, through questionable means. Source: The Hindu








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6. The Rajya Sabha is losing its sheen as an exalted forum for scholarly

debate Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; Polity & Governance

The ruling BJP now has 86 members in the Rajya Sabha after elections to 19 seats across several States on Friday. This is the highest number for the party in the Upper House, though it is still short of the halfway mark. Of a total of 61 vacancies, 42 were filled unopposed earlier and of the 19 contests, the BJP won eight while the Congress won four. Of the 61 outgoing members, 17 were from the Congress and 15 from the BJP. With this round of elections, the BJP’s tally increased by 11, from 75. The Congress now has 41. The Opposition benches will now have veterans such as H.D. Deve Gowda, Mallikarjun Kharge (both from Karnataka) Digvijaya Singh (from Madhya Pradesh) and Shibu Soren (from Jharkhand) and K.C. Venugopal (from Rajasthan). Poaching over Congress MLAs

A noticeable addition to the treasury benches is Jyotiraditya Scindia, whose defection from the Congress in March brought down the Kamal Nath government in Madhya Pradesh, and brought the BJP back to power there. Bhubaneswar Kalita, the Congress’s chief whip in the Rajya Sabha until August last year, is now returning as a BJP member from Assam. All this point to a pattern of the BJP’s frenzied approach to increasing its Rajya Sabha strength. After the elections were announced, eight Congress MLAs left the party in Gujarat, and enabled the victory of an extra BJP candidate to the Rajya Sabha. In Rajasthan, the party fielded two candidates though it had the strength to elect only one, leading to speculation that plans were underway to poach Congress MLAs. The sight of political parties hauling in MLAs to luxury confinements ahead of the Rajya Sabha polls has become common. Falling role of Rajya Sabha

The Council of States institutionalises the sharing of power between the Centre and the State under India’s federal structure. The House of the elders is also considered an exalted forum of scholarship and statesmanship. But this majesty has taken a beating due to factors, including but not limited to machinations that go into its making. The steady ingress of celebrities and business tycoons has not made a serious contribution to the Rajya Sabha’s working. The BJP, under its current leadership, has demonstrated an aversion to deliberations of all types, and the Rajya Sabha has been a particular target. In a country as vast and diverse as India, deliberations are critical. The government has arbitrarily labelled bills as money bills to bypass scrutiny and passing by the Rajya Sabha. And some pieces of legislation with far-reaching effect on the country — to change the status of Jammu and Kashmir, for instance








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— have been pushed through both Houses. In such a scenario, it is imperative that members work across party lines to uphold Parliament’s constitutional role. Source: The Hindu

7. Process to merge Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha TVs into Sansad TV in

final stages Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; Polity & Governance

The process of the merger of the Rajya Sabha TV and the Lok Sabha TV into Sansad TV with two variants is in the final stages. The live proceedings of the Parliament sessions will continue to be telecast. The manpower and technical resources will also be integrated. Sources said the launch could be by the end of the year, though the deadline has not been finalised. Merger proceedings

The LS Television was launched in 2006 and the RS TV in 2011. They have been functioning independently since then. In November last year, after discussions between Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and Rajya Sabha Chairman Venkaiah Naidu, a committee headed by former Prasar Bharati Chairman Surya Prakash was set up. The committee submitted it’s report in February. Three different sub-committees are examining the report to finalise the integration of technical and manpower resources. The Surya Prakash committee had also held a meeting with the MPs from various political parties who strongly recommended that the live telecast should be continued. Under the banner of the Sansad TV, sources said, the two will continue to telecast live proceedings of the respective Houses. The attempt is to go beyond the proceedings of the two Houses and show the functioning of Parliament and parliamentarians when the Houses are not in session. How the management will change?

Sources said the new channel will work under an integrated management. The Rajya Sabha TV now comes under the control of the Chairman and the Lok Sabha TV under the Speaker. “The details are still being worked out who will the integrated channel comes under. But it is not a sticking point. Once the technical issues are sorted this too will be clear,” an official said.








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Source: The Hindu

8. Signalling intent: On Government e-Marketplace Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; Polity & Governance

Details required from vendors The Centre’s decision to make it mandatory for vendors on the Government e-Marketplace (GeM) procurement platform to specify the country of origin of new products listed by them is on the face of it unexceptionable, aimed as it is at promoting India-made goods. Apart from the place of manufacture, the platform’s administrators have also sought details on the extent of local content and set guidelines on the percentage of localisation for enabling procurement in the case of bids of a specified value. What are the issues?

However, the timing and thrust of the announcement — set in the backdrop of the government’s new-found push for self-reliance in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and its devastating impact on the global economy, coupled with the recent heightened border tensions with China — raises several questions. The government’s attempts to raise the share of manufacturing in the economy through the ‘Make in India’ programme have so far failed to significantly boost investment in new, cutting-edge technology-driven or export-oriented industries and instead only taken the country back to import substitution plants making goods predominantly for domestic consumption. To that extent, the drive for self-reliance and greater localisation risks once again eroding Indian industry’s global competitiveness by placing a premium on ‘Indianness’ over quality or cost. Implications on India The Centre’s move with its GeM portal has also predictably kindled and amplified a gathering clamour for the identification and subsequent boycott of Chinese products including on private e-commerce platforms. The weaponisation of trade ties, especially one where India’s reliance on imports from China now extend̥s beyond smartphones and low-cost electronics to heavy machinery and active pharmaceutical ingredients, is a double-edged sword and fraught with risks for the Indian economy as well. India’s drug makers, who are seeking to entrench themselves as a pharmacy to the world amid the pandemic and accompanying rush for affordable generic treatments, depend on the northern neighbour for about 70% of their requirements of bulk drugs and intermediates. What is required?

For India to wean itself off these dependencies will take time. The fact is that enhancing manufacturing capacities with improved efficiency and reduced cost would require an








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overhaul of bureaucratic processes. Attaining genuine self-reliance is a long and capital intensive process that would require far greater investment in education, skill-building and infrastructure. The GeM move on country of origin is at best symbolic. For now, policymakers ought to tone down any trade-linked rhetoric and give diplomats and military negotiators the room to smoothe ties. Source: The Hindu

9. New domicile rules in J&K Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; Polity & Governance

New domicile rules that followed the termination of the special constitutional status of Jammu and Kashmir, which was reorganised into two Union Territories, have brought succour and hope for a segment of its population that had to contend with fragmented citizenship rights for long. This group, of two to three lakh people, is made up of refugees from Pakistan, sanitary workers resettled from other parts of India and Gorkhas who arrived as soldiers before Independence. Position earlier The erstwhile State of J&K gained special powers to define its ‘permanent residents’ and restrict land, educational and employment rights only to them. This cohort was not classified as permanent residents, leading to a denial of opportunities to them in education, employment and politics — a situation not merely unjust but also untenable. Need domicile rights

Subsequent to changes to Articles 370 and 35A in August 2019, in March 2020, the concept of “permanent resident of the State” was discontinued in J&K. As per the new domicile rules, those persons and their children who have resided for 15 years in J&K, or have studied for seven years and appeared in the Class X or XII exam in an educational institution in the UT, are eligible for grant of domicile. Besides mitigating the historical deprivation of one segment, the changes will enable many others currently living in J&K to get domicile and associated rights. Possible implications

Not everyone is rejoicing, though. There are concerns that the changes in domicile rules will lead to a huge influx into the region; a more uncharitable interpretation is that a deliberate scheme to change the demographic character of the region is unfolding. The National Conference and the People’s Democratic Party, both Valley-based parties, have reiterated their opposition to the changes. In the Jammu region also, there are concerns that there could be dispossession of land and a shrinking of economic opportunities for local people. Movement of people across political and natural borders has been a constant feature of progress, and arguments over who are the original inhabitants of a place serve little purpose other than to accentuate political polarisation. Economic growth and vitality








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of a society often positively correlate with its openness towards the outside world. Communities that are not equipped to negotiate with unfamiliar market and cultural forces need some insulation. It is arguable that with relatively high rates of literacy, education and material standards, J&K is not susceptible to any demographic or economic takeover by immigrants. Movement into the region will be largely driven by economic reasons. A state-driven reengineering of the demography of any place is not desirable or democratic, but the fear of such a scenario is no good reason to retreat into a cocoon of nativism. Source: The Hindu

International Organizations & Relations

1. George Floyd protests: All you need to know Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; IOBR

Floyd's death in Minneapolis police custody is the latest reminder of the disparities between black and white communities in the U.S. and comes as African Americans grapple with higher death rates from the coronavirus and higher unemployment from trying to stem its spread. Former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin is in jail under $500,000 bail on charges of third-degree murder and manslaughter after a video emerged of him kneeling on Floyd's neck for more than eight minutes. Extent of protests

Clashes erupted between law enforcement and protesters in several major U.S. cities Saturday night as demonstrations over the death of George Floyd and other police-related killings of black men spread across the country. California Gov. Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency late Saturday, as the state became the latest to activate the National Guard over the unrest. Major U.S. cities have implemented curfews. Source: Axios

2. Trump’s executive order targeting social media platforms Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; IOBR

On Thursday, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order aimed at removing certain protections for social media platforms that aim to safeguard them from any








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liabilities arising out of the content that is posted on their websites. The order gives federal regulators the agency to take action against online platforms that are seen as censoring free speech. What is an executive order?

An executive order is a written directive issued by the President and is one of the most common presidential documents. Such orders are not legislations and don’t require the approval of the Congress, which also means that the Congress cannot overturn them. According to the American Bar Association, Congress may pass legislation that makes it difficult or impossible to carry out an executive order, such as removing funding. However, ultimately, only a sitting US president can overturn an executive order by issuing another one to that effect. What does it say?

The executive order says that online platforms are engaging in “selective censorship” and that Twitter’s labelling of Trump’s Tweets shows “political bias”. “At the same time online platforms are invoking inconsistent, irrational, and groundless justifications to censor or otherwise restrict Americans’ speech here at home, several online platforms are profiting from and promoting the aggression and disinformation spread by foreign governments like China,” the order mentions. What triggered the move?

The move comes after Twitter labelled two posts made by Trump about California’s vote-by-mail plans as fact-checked. As part of its new policy undertaken amid the coronavirus pandemic, the platform has introduced labels and warning messages that aim to provide “additional context and information” on Tweets containing disputed, misleading or unverified claims related to the pandemic. However, the labels can also be used in situations where the risk of harm associated with a Tweet is less severe and people may be confused or misled by the content. On Tuesday Trump tweeted, “There is NO WAY (ZERO!) that Mail-In Ballots will be anything less than substantially fraudulent. Mail boxes will be robbed, ballots will be forged & even illegally printed out & fraudulently signed. The Governor of California is sending Ballots to millions of people, anyone…..”, followed by another Tweet that said, “…living in the state, no matter who they are or how they got there, will get one. That will be followed up with professionals telling all of these people, many of whom have never even thought of voting before, how, and for whom, to vote. This will be a Rigged Election. No way!”. Both the tweets were labelled by Twitter and the platform maintained the posts could “confuse” voters about what they need to do to receive a ballot and participate in the election process.








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What changes with the order?

Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act (CDA) provides immunity to online platforms and protects them from being liable for the content billions of people post on their platform every day. Further, under this section, providers of “interactive computer services” are free from being treated as the publisher or speaker of any information posted by the users, rendering these platforms “unfettered by Federal or State regulation”. Significantly, the Act also protects online platforms from civil liability, which means that they may not be liable for restricting access to certain content that platforms may consider being, “obscene, lewd, lascivious, filthy, excessively violent, harassing or otherwise objectionable” and when such content is removed in “good faith”. However, Thursday’s executive order says that when online platforms remove or restrict access to content, which are not based on the aforementioned criteria, or is in bad taste, it engages in editorial conduct and thereby becomes the “publisher” of all the content posted on its website. Based on this, the order seeks to revoke the liability shield offered to platforms and exposes them to liability “like any traditional editor and publisher that is not an online provider.” Further, the order directs the Secretary of Commerce (Secretary) to file a petition for making rules with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) along with the Attorney General to clarify the conditions under which an action taken by an online platform to restrict access or availability of certain content is not “taken in good faith” and therefore such action is excluded from being protected under Section 230. What are the implications of this order?

Legally, the order may not make much of a difference. According to a report in The New York Times, the order does not make it clear as to why FCC, an independent agency outside of Trump’s control, would have any agency in interpreting the relevant sections of the CDA. Further, the report mentions that an agency such as FCC cannot override a statute enacted by Congress. Even so, the order can certainly give rise to a policy debate about the liabilities and responsibilities of social media platforms. Twitter has said that the order is a “reactionary” and “politicised” approach to a landmark law. It says that Section 230 protects American innovation and freedom of expression. “Attempts to unilaterally erode it threaten the future of online speech and Internet freedoms,” Twitter said. On the other hand, Facebook’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg in an interview he gave to Fox News on Wednesday criticised Twitter for fact-checking the US president and said, “I just believe strongly that Facebook shouldn’t be the arbiter of truth of everything that people say








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online. In general, private companies probably shouldn’t be – especially these platform companies – shouldn’t be in the position of doing that.” Source: The Indian Express

3. Line of Actual Control: where it is located, and where India and China

differ Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; IOBR

As tensions continue between India and China along the Line of Actual Control (LAC), a look at what the line means on the ground and the disagreements over it: What is the Line of Actual Control?

The LAC is the demarcation that separates Indian-controlled territory from Chinese-controlled territory. India considers the LAC to be 3,488 km long, while the Chinese consider it to be only around 2,000 km. It is divided into three sectors: the eastern sector which spans Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim, the middle sector in Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, and the western sector in Ladakh. What is the disagreement?

The alignment of the LAC in the eastern sector is along the 1914 McMahon Line, and there are minor disputes about the positions on the ground as per the principle of the high Himalayan watershed. This pertains to India’s international boundary as well, but for certain areas such as Longju and Asaphila. The line in the middle sector is the least controversial but for the precise alignment to be followed in the Barahoti plains. The major disagreements are in the western sector where the LAC emerged from two letters written by Chinese Prime Minister Zhou Enlai to PM Jawaharlal Nehru in 1959, after he had first mentioned such a ‘line’ in 1956. In his letter, Zhou said the LAC consisted of “the so-called McMahon Line in the east and the line up to which each side exercises actual control in the west”. Shivshankar Menon has explained in his book Choices: Inside the Making of India’s Foreign Policy that the LAC was “described only in general terms on maps not to scale” by the Chinese. After the 1962 War, the Chinese claimed they had withdrawn to 20 km behind the LAC of November 1959. Zhou clarified the LAC again after the war in another letter to Nehru: “To put it concretely, in the eastern sector it coincides in the main with the so-called McMahon Line, and in the western and middle sectors it coincides in the main with the traditional customary line which has consistently been pointed out by China”. During the Doklam crisis in 2017, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson urged India to abide by the “1959 LAC”.








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What was India’s response to China’s designation of the LAC?

India rejected the concept of LAC in both 1959 and 1962. Even during the war, Nehru was unequivocal: “There is no sense or meaning in the Chinese offer to withdraw twenty kilometres from what they call ‘line of actual control’. What is this ‘line of control’? Is this the line they have created by aggression since the beginning of September?” India’s objection, as described by Menon, was that the Chinese line “was a disconnected series of points on a map that could be joined up in many ways; the line should omit gains from aggression in 1962 and therefore should be based on the actual position on September 8, 1962 before the Chinese attack; and the vagueness of the Chinese definition left it open for China to continue its creeping attempt to change facts on the ground by military force”. When did India accept the LAC?

Shyam Saran has disclosed in his book How India Sees the World that the LAC was discussed during Chinese Premier Li Peng’s 1991 visit to India, where PM P V Narasimha Rao and Li reached an understanding to maintain peace and tranquillity at the LAC. India formally accepted the concept of the LAC when Rao paid a return visit to Beijing in 1993 and the two sides signed the Agreement to Maintain Peace and Tranquillity at the LAC. The reference to the LAC was unqualified to make it clear that it was not referring to the LAC of 1959 or 1962 but to the LAC at the time when the agreement was signed. To reconcile the differences about some areas, the two countries agreed that the Joint Working Group on the border issue would take up the task of clarifying the alignment of the LAC.

Why did India change its stance on the Line of Actual Control?

As per Menon, it was needed because Indian and Chinese patrols were coming in more frequent contact during the mid-1980s, after the government formed a China Study Group in 1976 which revised the patrolling limits, rules of engagement and pattern of Indian presence along the border. In the backdrop of the Sumdorongchu standoff, when PM Rajiv Gandhi visited Beijing in 1988, Menon notes that the two sides agreed to negotiate a border settlement, and pending that, they would maintain peace and tranquillity along the border. Have India and China exchanged their maps of the LAC? Only for the middle sector. Maps were “shared” for the western sector but never formally exchanged, and the process of clarifying the LAC has effectively stalled since 2002. As an aside, there is no publicly available map depicting India’s version of the LAC. During his visit to China in May 2015, PM Narendra Modi’s proposal to clarify the LAC was rejected by the Chinese. Deputy Director General of the Asian Affairs at the Foreign Ministry, Huang Xilian later told Indian journalists that “We tried to clarify some years ago but it encountered some difficulties, which led to even complex situation. That is why








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whatever we do we should make it more conducive to peace and tranquillity for making things easier and not to make them complicated.” Is the LAC also the claim line for both countries? Not for India. India’s claim line is the line seen in the official boundary marked on the maps as released by the Survey of India, including both Aksai Chin and Gilgit-Baltistan. In China’s case, it corresponds mostly to its claim line, but in the eastern sector, it claims entire Arunachal Pradesh as South Tibet. However, the claim lines come into question when a discussion on the final international boundaries takes place, and not when the conversation is about a working border, say the LAC. But why are these claim lines controversial in Ladakh?

Independent India was transferred the treaties from the British, and while the Shimla Agreement on the McMahon Line was signed by British India, Aksai Chin in Ladakh province of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir was not part of British India, although it was a part of the British Empire. Thus, the eastern boundary was well defined in 1914 but in the west in Ladakh, it was not. A G Noorani writes in India-China Boundary Problem 1846-1947 that Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’s Ministry of States published two White Papers on Indian states. The first, in July 1948, had two maps: one had no boundary shown in the western sector, only a partial colour wash; the second one extended the colour wash in yellow to the entire state of J&K, but mentioned “boundary undefined”. The second White Paper was published in February 1950 after India became a Republic, where the map again had boundaries which were undefined. In July 1954, Nehru issued a directive that “all our old maps dealing with this frontier should be carefully examined and, where necessary, withdrawn. New maps should be printed showing our Northern and North Eastern frontier without any reference to any ‘line’. The new maps should also be sent to our embassies abroad and should be introduced to the public generally and be used in our schools, colleges, etc”. This map, as is officially used till date, formed the basis of dealings with China, eventually leading to the 1962 War. How is the LAC different from the Line of Control with Pakistan?

The LoC emerged from the 1948 ceasefire line negotiated by the UN after the Kashmir War. It was designated as the LoC in 1972, following the Shimla Agreement between the two countries. It is delineated on a map signed by DGMOs of both armies and has the international sanctity of a legal agreement. The LAC, in contrast, is only a concept – it is not agreed upon by the two countries, neither delineated on a map or demarcated on the ground. Source: The Indian Express








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4. G7 very outdated, want India, South Korea, Australia in grouping:

Trump Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; IOBR

Calling the G7 a “very outdated group”, US President Donald Trump said Sunday he would like to include India, Australia, South Korea and Russia in the grouping of the largest advanced economies. Trump suggested that the Group of 7 be called “G10 or G11”, and proposed that the grouping meet in September or November this year. Composition of G7

The G7 comprises the US, UK, France, Germany, Italy, Canada and Japan. Against China The inclusion of four more countries into the G7, which has the world’s largest economies, is a signal to China. This comes at a time when the US and China are in a bruising war of words over a range of issues — from Hong Kong’s autonomy to Taiwan, the origins of Covid-19 to the South China Sea tensions and trade issues. An aide to the US President said the plan is to bring together all traditional allies to discuss how to deal with the future of China. India’s role in the past During Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s UPA rule, India attended the G8 five times – Russia was indefinitely suspended in March 2014 after the annexation of Crimea, reducing the count of the G8. India attended the summit in 2019 when Prime Minister Modi visited France. India, which is likely to be elected for the non-permanent member’s seat at the UN Security Council in New York, will be at the global high table next month. And expansion of G7 appears in line with New Delhi’s thinking that India deserves a place at the global decision-making bodies.

Status of Russia

While there has been some talk of re-admitting Russia — Trump had raised this issue in Biarritz – the suggestion to expand it and include India is a new proposal. The proposal to re-admit Russia is expected to elicit strong reactions from other G7 member countries.








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It is not clear when the rescheduled summit will take place although Trump suggested that it could be held around the UN General Assembly in September or even after the US Presidential elections in November this year. Source: The Indian Express

5. Seven to eleven: On India and G-7

Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; IOBR

Dismissing the current configuration of the “Group of Seven” or G-7 of the world’s most developed nations as “outdated”, U.S. President Donald Trump announced over the weekend that he would like to expand it to a G-11, by adding India, Russia, South Korea and Australia. He followed that up with invitations to their leaders, including Prime Minister Modi, to attend the G-7 summit in the U.S. later this year. The news was welcomed by Mr. Modi, who commended Mr. Trump for his “creative and far-sighted” decision to expand the format of the grouping to keep up with the new realities of the “post-COVID world”. Australia and South Korea have also welcomed the invitation, while Russia, that lost its membership of the grouping in 2014 over its annexation of Crimea, said President Putin would attend “if treated as an equal”. China excluded

Notable by its absence in the proposed grouping is China, which had earlier, along with India, Brazil, Mexico and South Africa, been invited regularly to G-8 summits as an outreach by the developed world to the five emerging economies (called the G-8+5). U.S.-China tensions, particularly over coronavirus issues, clearly played a part in Mr. Trump’s decision to leave Chinese President Xi Jinping off his summit guest list. A White House spokesperson even explained that the G-11 would be a way for the U.S. to bring together its “traditional allies to talk about how to deal with the future of China”. Predictably, Beijing has lashed out at the G-11 idea, as one that would be “doomed to fail”. Who has power to expand the grouping?

The proposed G-11 grouping would recognise India’s place amongst the world’s richest nations, and acknowledge its global voice. However, the government must weigh the benefits proposed along with some of the factors that are still unclear. As host, Mr. Trump can invite any country as a G-7 special invitee, but changing its composition will require the approval of the other members. Already, there are some concerns over Russia, which could derail the entire G-11 plan, making any concrete decision by New Delhi on the issue premature.








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Uncertain future of the grouping

It is unclear when the summit will actually be held, given the November polls in the U.S., although Mr. Trump has indicated that he could hold it close to the UN General Assembly session in September. Despite its border tensions with Beijing, India must also consider its objectives in attending a grouping that appears aimed at fuelling a new Cold War between the U.S. and China. Finally, an evaluation of the G-7’s effectiveness as a multilateral forum thus far is needed, given deep member differences on issues including climate change, security contributions, Iran, etc. In France, last year, the grouping was unable to issue a joint communiqué due to these differences — a first in its 45-year-old history. Source: The Hindu

6. George Floyd’s America in black & white Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; IOBR

On March 7, 1965, civil rights activists, in response to the police killing of fellow-activist Jimmie Lee Jackson the previous month, were marching from Selma in Alabama to state capital Montgomery when they were attacked by state troopers. The crackdown came to be famously known as Bloody Sunday in US civil rights annals. Undeterred, two days later, Martin Luther King Jr led another march along the same path. This time, when they encountered state troopers, the marchers took a knee. They knelt and prayed before turning back. Fifty-five years later, as a new set of American marchers — common people, students, occasional policemen even — take a knee following the killing of George Floyd by a white police officer that was caught on camera, could this mark the beginning of something new? In the days that followed Bloody Sunday, King spoke stirringly of their aim to “achieve a society that can live with its conscience” because, he believed, “the arc of the moral universe is long but it bends towards justice.” Today, as protestors across American cities march in protest over Floyd’s death, they are willing the arc to bend towards justice. The road to Floyd’s murder has been littered by incidences of violence against African Americans, many becoming catalysts in the country’s civil rights movement and turning points in its knotted history. “Martin Luther King’s memorable observation that ‘a riot is the language of the unheard’ applies as much today as it did back then,” said Daniel Letwin, associate professor of history at the Penn State College of the Liberal Arts, and author of The Challenge of Interracial Unionism.








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“This is certainly a historic moment,” he adds, “Not since the 1960s have we seen black street protests of such scope and magnitude, across the country. In essential ways, the dynamics are familiar… Now, as then, black unrest also drew upon a variety of underlying causes – from a persisting culture of white racism, to the disproportionate experience of run-down urban conditions, inadequate schools, poor healthcare, low pay, unemployment, unresponsive government, mass incarceration, and the like.”

Racism in policing

Data by statista.com reveals a skewed pattern of African American killings by police. Of 1,000 fatal shootings by police in 2019, more than 23 per cent of the victims were blacks, a high proportion given that they made up less than 14 per cent of the population. Connie Hasset-Walker, assistant professor of Justice Studies and Sociology at Norwich University, believes that the roots of racism in American policing, planted centuries ago, still stand strong. “I personally see the US history of slavery (about 250 years long) and then Jim Crow laws (about 80 years long) as very connected to what’s happening now. To my knowledge, there has never been a reckoning for policing’s slave-patrol origins. When an institution starts off with systematic racism and violence as part of its core mission, how far can it evolve from that if there is never a reckoning/commitment to change?” she said. At the time of the American Civil War (1861-1865), said Hasset-Walker, of the 34 states then, 15 were slave states, which created patrols to nip slave revolts and escapes. “The state of South Carolina was the first to create slave patrols in 1704. By the end of the 1700s, every American slave state had slave patrols. They lasted for about 150 years, ending with the South’s loss in the Civil War and the passage of the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which outlawed slavery. After that, the former southern slave patrols morphed into police departments that technically were different from slave patrols, but were basically still charged with controlling the freed former slaves,” she said. Civil rights movement

About 20 years after the end of the Civil War, America saw the passage of the Jim Crow laws, which dictated a policy of segregation, enforced by police, and which persisted as recently as 1964. It was during this period of segregation that in 1955, 14-year-old Emmett Till from Chicago, visiting relatives in Mississippi, was accused of making a flirtatious remark to a white woman at a grocery store. Three days later, Till was kidnapped and killed, his body thrown in the river. The accused — the woman’s husband and his half-brother— were later acquitted by an all-white jury. The civil rights movement gathered steam after this. Montgomery saw a city-wide bus boycott when, on December 1, an African American woman, Rosa Parks, refused to give up her seat for a white man and was arrested for it. The Montgomery Improvement Association, led by a young Luther King Jr, called a boycott of the city’s municipal bus company. It was eventually called off on December 20, 1956, after the segregation seating policy was held unconstitutional.








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The years that followed were a time of great turbulence in America, as riots swept city after city. The Watts riots in 1965 in Los Angeles (that started after Marquette Frye, an African American, was pulled over for suspected drunk-driving and roughed up by the police), the Detroit and Newark riots the same year and the unrest in a number of cities following King’s assassination in 1968, were all fuelled in large part by economic and social disparity, prejudiced policing and general disaffection, that continues today. Rodney King, LA riots

On March 3, 1991, Rodney King, a black motorist, was beaten by LAPD officers after a high-speed chase. A man called George Holliday, who witnessed the beating from his balcony, videotaped the incident and gave it to a local TV station. From then on, it went, what we would now call, viral. On April 29, 1992, the four LAPD officers were acquitted, sparking outrage and triggering one of the worst race riots in LA, that lasted six days and left over 50 dead, 2,300 injured. “King was certainly not the first black man to be beaten up by the police, but it was the first time that someone video-recorded the beating. That video validated what many African Americans knew at that time – that Los Angeles police were very brutal towards black people,” said Hasset-Walker. Troy Davis, Central Park 5

More than 15 years after the LA riots, came a moment in American history that many had dreamt of but few had imagined. Barack Obama winning the presidential election in November 2008 was a moment that was both a rupture and a healing. But did it fundamentally change anything for the community? For many, it was the execution of Troy Davis that showed that nothing had changed. Davis was a black man on death row in Georgia, who many believed had been wrongfully convicted for the murder of a police officer. Wrong convictions haven’t been rare. In 2002, convictions against the Central Park Five — teenagers (four blacks and one Latino), accused of raping and grievously assaulting a jogger in Central Park in 1989 — were vacated and the charges withdrawn after over 10 years. The Central Park case — many would remember it from the Netflix series When They See Us — had made national news with the current President Donald Trump buying full-page ads in New York newspapers calling for the state to bring back the death penalty. Even after they were exonerated, Trump insisted they were guilty. For Davis, thousands rallied, appealing to the country’s first Black President to stay the execution. Davis was executed on September 21, 2011, and the night after as protestors filed into Union Square in Manhattan, they merged with another group — Occupy Wall Street. As Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor wrote in The Guardian, the convergence of the two groups underlined the economic disparity in America and showed the connections between racism and black poverty.








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Birth of Black Lives Matter

But it was the shooting of Trayvon Martin, a 17-year-old African American high-school student in Sanford, Florida on February 26, 2012 that started another round of conversation around racial profiling, prompting even President Obama to say, “If I had a son, he’d look like Trayvon”. George Zimmerman, a neighbourhood watch volunteer who claimed he had shot Trayvon in self-defence, was acquitted a year later. The prosecution had contended that Zimmermann had followed the hoodie-clad boy because he assumed he was a criminal but the six-women jury rejected it. It was Zimmerman’s acquittal that gave rise to a hashtag and a movement. #BlackLivesMatter, started in 2013 by Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors and Opal Tometi, has now grown into a global network whose members “organise and build local power to intervene in violence inflicted on black communities by the state and vigilantes.” The BLM movement has been at the forefront of subsequent street demonstrations, most notably following the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson near St Louis and of Eric Garner in New York City. Cornel West, a public intellectual and a fearless voice in left-wing politics, traces the current unrest to the failures of Obama. West, who had once shared the stage with Obama, is now one of the most vocal critics of many of his policies. In a recent interview to CNN, he said, “The Black Lives Matter movement emerged under a black president, black attorney general, and black homeland security and they couldn’t deliver.” Black faces in high places, he said, succumbed to the “capitalist economy” and “militarised nation-state”. Tamir Rice and later

The shooting of 12-year-old Tamir Rice in 2014 by a police officer (Rice was carrying a replica toy Airsoft gun), of Ahmaud Aubrey, who was tagged and killed by armed white residents while jogging in his Georgia neighbourhood and of Breonna Taylor in Louisville this March by plainclothes policemen, who barged into her apartment looking for someone else, all brought about a cycle of debate and protests. Could the current uprising be a crack, however slight, that will let in the light? In the early days of the Floyd protests, Trump had tweeted in support of using military force to quell the riots. “Law-and-order demagogues seek to discredit black rebellion as a mindless orgy of violence committed by thugs and criminals, encouraged by radical agitators and spineless, liberal officials,” said Letwin. But there are signs that this time things could be different: “For one, street protests appear much more diverse, with a higher participation of whites and Hispanics alongside African Americans. The unrest is no longer so confined as it once was to black neighbourhoods. Certainly, the ease with which acts of police violence can be recorded and publicised has changed the picture as well.” Hasset-Walker, too, pointed at a crucial difference. “What is different about the murder of George Floyd is how quickly the police officer, Derek Chauvin, who kneeled on Floyd’s neck, was charged with third degree murder.”








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On Wednesday, the former Minneapolis Police officer was charged with a fresh count of second-degree murder, and the three other officers with him were charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder. “Whether he will ultimately be convicted, we’ll see. But the swift arrest and issuing of a charge – that’s important, and unusual,” she said. Source: The Indian Express

7. India demands restoration of April status along LAC Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; IOBR

India has firmly conveyed its demand to China for restoring the status quo as existed in April along the border during the senior military commander talks on Saturday, sources said. Concerns of both the sides

Sources said the talks, which went on for several hours, remained inconclusive, but each side put across their issues, which would be conveyed to the respective governments and taken up in subsequent meetings. While India was firm on restoring the status quo of April and pull back of Chinese troops and equipment from inside India territory and along the LAC, the Chinese side raised objections to India’s infrastructure development. Position of India on infrastructure development

It was conveyed that infrastructure development will go on in Indian territory and that China has already developed infrastructure on its side, sources said. Senior defence sources had told The Hindu earlier that infrastructure development would continue along the LAC despite the ongoing tensions. China’s actions violate the existing boundary agreement meant to preserve peace and tranquillity on the border and this was also communicated, it has been learnt.








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Tension on border

Tensions between the two sides have continued for more than a month, and serious skirmishes were reported between the Indian Army and PLA soldiers at several points of the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh and Sikkim since May 5, where China is understood to have made significant incursions, and the Indian Army has also bolstered its positions. In its release, the MEA said the two sides will continue diplomatic and military engagements to resolve the “situation”, without elaborating on developments on the ground. Communications between senior military commanders will ensure that tensions don’t flare up on the ground as talks continue at the highest levels to find a way to resolve the issue, an officer, who had served in the area in the past, said on condition of anonymity. Source: The Hindu

8. India, China agree to ease standoff Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; IOBR

Indian and Chinese troops began partial “disengagement” from the some of the standoff points along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Eastern Ladakh, defence sources said on June 9, in a first sign of moving towards resolution of the month long standoff between the Indian Army and the People’s Liberation Army there. Talks ahead








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A series of ground level military talks are due to be held over the next 10 days, beginning Wednesday, to try and resolve most of the other issues at the local level. Present position “Partial deinduction has happened from some points in Galwan and Hot Springs areas. [The] Chinese side removed some of the tents and some troops and vehicles have been moved back, and the Indian side too has reciprocated,” official sources said. At some points in the Galwan Valley, Chinese troops have moved back 2-3 km. However, there is no change on the ground situation at Pangong Tso. While this is the first time officials spoke about the ground situation, no government statement was issued, either in Delhi or Beijing. Chinese presence on Indian side noticed

This is also the first time senior government officials have acknowledged the continued presence of Chinese troops in these areas where India patrols, and the heavy build-up of vehicles and firepower behind the LAC lines. Despite references to the major build-up that had taken place, officials insisted that there had been “no intelligence failure” and that the Indian Army stopped the PLA advances “quickly and strongly”.








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At the meeting, both sides agreed and identified five locations of conflict currently, PP 14, 15 and 17, North bank of Pangong Tso and Chushul. Of these, Finger 4 area in Pangong Tso was a contentious issue and would take some time to be resolved, the sources said. This would likely be taken up at the Lieutenant General level at a later stage if needed. Pangong Tso issue

However, major worries remain at the Pangong Tso (lake), where territory is marked by ridges or “Fingers” in increasing serial order, towards Chinese territory. India claims upto Finger 8 and patrols upto Finger 4, but after a major skirmish on May 5, Chinese troops have dug in at Finger 4. No mention was made of the situation at Naku La in Sikkim, where the stand-off continues, as the focus for these talks was the Ladakh situation. The sources stressed that India remained “firm” on restoring the Status quo to pre-May 5 positions, and that apart from troops retreating from the “front lines”, it was necessary to ensure a drawdown of troops and firepower behind the Chinese lines where the PLA had deployed “fighter bombers, rocket forces, air defence radars and jammers among others”. “India will continue to have a major build-up until China withdraws the build-up done there. The Indian Army is fully prepared for a long and permanent deployment if the PLA doesn't retreat,” the sources stated. As reported earlier, the Indian side also told the Chinese counterparts that it would not stop construction, including the DBO road, as it is well within Indian territory. Source: The Hindu

9. In the reporting on the LAC stand-off, the Darbuk-Shyok-Daulat Beg

Oldie (DSDBO) road has often appeared. What is this all-weather road

built by India over nearly 20 years, and why does it matter? Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; IOBR

Of the possible triggers cited for the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) targeting of Indian territory along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh, the construction of the 255-km long Darbuk-Shyokh-Daulat Beg Oldie (DSDBO) all-weather road is possibly the most consequential. Running almost parallel to the LAC, the DSDBO road, meandering through elevations ranging between 13,000 ft and 16,000 ft, took India’s Border Roads Organisation (BRO) almost two decades to construct. Its strategic importance is that it connects Leh to DBO, virtually at the base of the Karakoram Pass that separates China’s Xinjiang Autonomous Region from Ladakh.








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DBO is the northernmost corner of Indian territory in Ladakh, in the area better known in Army parlance as Sub-Sector North. DBO has the world’s highest airstrip, originally built during the 1962 war but abandoned until 2008, when the Indian Air Force (IAF) revived it as one of its many Advanced Landing Grounds (ALGs) along the LAC, with the landing of an Antonov An-32. In August 2013, the IAF created history by landing one of its newly acquired Lockheed Martin C-130J-30 transport aircraft at the DBO ALG, doing away thereafter with the need to send helicopters to paradrop supplies to Army formations deployed along the disputed frontier. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh has acknowledged that “large numbers” of Chinese troops had massed along the LAC, and had “come a little further than they used to earlier”, making the situation “different” this time from earlier incidents between the two sides in the same region.

The Chinese build-up along the Galwan River valley region overlooks, and hence poses a direct threat to the DSDBO road.








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The token mutual de-escalation of the two armies, ahead of a series of bilateral consultations between senior military and other officials, is expected to be completed over an extended period. The withdrawals are subject to reciprocal endorsement. The DSDBO highway provides the Indian military access to the section of theTibet-Xinjaing highway that passes through Aksai Chin. The road runs almost parallel to the LAC at Aksai Chin, the eastern ear of erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir state that China occupied in the 1950s, leading to the 1962 war in which India came off worse. The DSDBO’s emergence seemingly panicked China, evidenced by the 2013 intrusion by the PLA into the nearby Depsang Plains, lasting nearly three weeks. DBO itself is less than 10 km west of the LAC at Aksai Chin. A military outpost was created in DBO in reaction to China’s occupation of Aksai Chin, and is at present manned by a combination of the Army’s Ladakh Scouts and the paramilitary Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP). Both forces regularly patrol the LAC. There are additional strategic considerations in the area. To the west of DBO is the region where China abuts Pakistan in the Gilgit-Baltistan area, once a part of the erstwhile Kashmir principality. This is also the critical region where China is currently constructing the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) in Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir (PoK), to which India has objected. As well, this is the region where Pakistan ceded over 5,180 sq km of PoK to China in 1963 under a Sino-Pakistan Boundary Agreement, contested by India. What makes the DSDBO an “all-weather” road is the 37 prefabricated military truss bridges along it. Previously an old road, largely a track, existed along the same alignment as the pucca road, but was practically unusable during summer due to the flooding of the snow-fed Shyok river – or River of Death – and its tributaries, including the Chip Chap, Galwan, and Chang Chenmo that crisscross it. The Shyok river itself is a tributary of the Indus, flowing through northern Ladakh and Gilgit-Baltistan. It eventually re-joins the Indus at Keris, east of Skardu. In October 2019, Defence Minister Singh inaugurated a 500-m-long Bailey Bridge on the road. The bridge is named after Colonel Chewang Rinchen, an Indian Army hero from Ladakh. Located at 14,650 ft, it is believed to be the world’s highest such bridge. An alternative route exists from Leh to Daulat Beg Oldie through the 17,500-ft-high Sasser Pass that was part of the ancient Silk Route connecting Leh to Yarkand. It leads from the








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Nubra Valley into the Upper Shyok Valley en route to China’s Karakoram Pass, indicating the topographical and strategic interlinking of the entire disputed region between India and China and to a lesser extent, Pakistan. For most of the year bar a few summer months, Sassar La — or pass — is snow-bound and inaccessible. The BRO is currently building a “glaciated road” between Sasoma (north of Leh, near the Nubra river) to the Sasser Pass, but it could take several years to complete. But even when it is, the alternate DBDSO will remain critical to the Army and its defences in the region. Source: The Indian Express

10. Nepal passes amendment on new map Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; IOBR

The Lower House of Nepal's Parliament on Saturday unanimously passed the historic Second Constitution Amendment Bill guaranteeing legal status for the updated political map of Nepal which includes India's territories in Uttarakhand’s Pithoragarh district. The total votes cast in favour were 258 and no one voted against the bill though 11 members remained absent or abstained. It is not clear yet why they did not vote.

The voting in the Pratinidhi Sabha (House of Representatives) came after day-long discussions, which included praise from co-chair of the Nepal Communist Party Pushpa Kamal Dahal “Prachanda” for the Nepalese democracy, which, he said, is reversing centuries of diplomatic humiliation.

India’s response








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Responding to the development, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said it had “noted” the legislative process. “The artificial enlargement of claims is not based on historical fact or evidence and is not tenable. It is also violative of our current understanding to hold talks on outstanding boundary issues,” said MEA spokesperson Anurag Srivastava. Rationale given by both nations

The territorial dispute stems from the fact that Nepal claims the land to the east of river Kali, which forms the country’s western border. As per Kathmandu’s understanding, the river originates from Limpiyadhura in the higher Himalayas, giving it access to a triangular-shaped land defined by Limpiyadhura-Lipulekh and Kalapani. India opposes the notion and says the origin of the river is much further down, which reduces Nepal’s territorial demand. Background

Nepal unveiled the new map on May 20 after Defence Minister Rajnath Singh inaugurated Darchula-Lipulekh link road on May 8. Nepal had earlier strongly protested when the updated Indian map published in November last year showed the region as part of Uttarakhand. Nepal claims right to the region and says India was allowed to station troops there in the 1950s and that Delhi has refused to remove forces from the region ever since. Chances of resolution have reduced

Now, Indo-Nepal border negotiations will be all the more complicated as secretaries have no right to negotiate on the provisions of our Constitution. It is argued that the territorial dispute of Kalapani, Limpiyadhura and Lipulekh cannot be resolved at talks led by Foreign Secretaries or senior envoys as the disputed territories are now part of Nepal’s constitution and public imagination. Source: The Hindu

11. India, China expanded nuclear stockpile in last one year Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; IOBR

All nations that have nuclear weapons continue to modernise their nuclear arsenals, while India and China increased their nuclear warheads in the last one year, according to a latest report by Swedish think tank Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). “China is in the middle of a significant modernisation of its nuclear arsenal. It is developing a so-called nuclear triad for the first time, made up of new land and sea-based missiles and








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nuclear-capable aircraft. India and Pakistan are slowly increasing the size and diversity of their nuclear forces...,” according to the findings of SIPRI Yearbook 2020. Number of nuclear warheads The report said China’s nuclear arsenal had gone up from 290 warheads in 2019 to 320 in 2020, while India’s went up from 130-140 in 2019 to 150 in 2020. Pakistan’s arsenal was estimated to be between 150-160 in 2019 and has reached 160 in 2020. Both China and Pakistan continue to have larger nuclear arsenals than India, according to the Swedish think tank. The nuclear arsenals of the nuclear-armed states other than the United States and Russia were considerably smaller but all these states were either developing or deploying new weapon systems or had announced their intention to do so, it noted. Overall number of nuclear warheads

Together the nine nuclear-armed states — the U.S., Russia, the United Kingdom, France, China, India, Pakistan, Israel and North Korea — possessed an estimated 13,400 nuclear weapons at the start of 2020, which marked a decrease from an estimated 13,865 nuclear weapons at the beginning of 2019. The decrease in the overall numbers was largely due to the dismantlement of old nuclear weapons by Russia and the U.S., which together possess over 90% of the global nuclear weapons. Low levels of transparency

The availability of reliable information on the status of the nuclear arsenals and capabilities of the nuclear-armed states varied considerably, the report noted. “The governments of India and Pakistan make statements about some of their missile tests but provide little information about the status or size of their arsenals,” it said. The U.S. had disclosed important information about its stockpile and nuclear capabilities, but in 2019, the administration ended the practice of publicly disclosing the size of its stockpile, the report stated. New START

The U.S. and Russia have reduced their nuclear arsenals under the 2010 New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (New START) but it will lapse in February 2021 unless both parties agree to prolong it. However, discussions to extend the New START or negotiate a new treaty made no progress with the U.S.’s insistence that China must join any future nuclear arms reduction talks, which China has categorically ruled out. “The deadlock over the New START and the collapse of the 1987 Soviet–U.S. Treaty on the Elimination of Intermediate-Range and Shorter-Range Missiles (INF Treaty) in 2019 suggest that the era of bilateral nuclear arms control agreements between Russia and the U.S. might be coming to an end,” the report cited.








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Russia and the U.S. have already announced extensive plans to replace and modernise their nuclear warheads and delivery systems. “Both countries have also given new or expanded roles to nuclear weapons in their military plans and doctrines, which marks a significant reversal of the post-Cold War trend towards the gradual marginalisation of nuclear weapons,” the report observed. Source: The Hindu

12. Indian Army says 20 soldiers killed in clash with Chinese troops in

the Galwan area Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; IOBR

Twenty Indian personnel, including a Colonel, were killed in violent clashes with Chinese troops on Monday along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Ladakh, in what is possibly the worst incident between the two countries in decades. The clashes came amidst a “de-escalation” process in the Galwan area that was started last week, after a month long standoff between troops at several points along the LAC in Ladakh and Sikkim. 20 troops killed “Indian and Chinese troops have disengaged at the Galwan area where they had earlier clashed on the night of June 15/16 June. Seventeen Indian troops who were critically injured in the line of duty at the standoff location and exposed to sub-zero temperatures in the high altitude terrain have succumbed to their injuries, taking the total that were killed in action to 20,” the Army said in a late-night statement. Casualties on both sides

The violent face-off took place during the de-escalation process underway in the Galwan Valley and resulted in “casualties on both sides”, the Army stated. Indian Army is firmly committed to protect the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the nation, it added. However, Army sources said there was no firing during the face-off. What does China say? In a statement, The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) accused India “of going back on its word” and “violating commitments” reached by both sides at Corps Commander-level talks on June 6. The Indian Army “violated its commitment and crossed the Line of Actual Control (LAC) again, illegally and deliberately launched provocative attacks, triggered fierce physical confrontation between the two sides, resulting in casualties,” said PLA Western Theater Command spokesperson Zhang Shuili, making the claim that “the sovereignty of the Galwan Valley region has always belonged to [China]”, something India has always contested.








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Pressure on govt.

The casualties in combat action, have increased pressure on the government to make a full statement on the month long standoff, as demanded by Opposition parties. The standoff had begun with a scuffle in the Pangong Tso area on the intervening night of May 5/6, resulting in serious injuries on both sides. Around 76 Indian personnel were injured including a Commanding Officer, who had to be airlifted to Delhi. There was a second scuffle on May 9 at Naku La in North Sikkim. No incident of firing

While faceoffs and standoffs keep occurring on the LAC and even stone throwing and fist-fights between troops due to differences in perception on the alignment, there has been no instance of firing on the 3,488 km long LAC since 1975. The last incident of firing and fatalities on the border with China occurred in October 20, 1975 when a patrol team of the Assam Rifles was ambushed by the Chinese troops at Tulung La in Arunachal Pradesh resulting in the death of four personnel. Source: The Hindu

13. Is China’s ‘peaceful rise’ over?


On Tuesday, the same day news broke about the violent clashes between Indian and Chinese troops in the Galwan Valley of eastern Ladakh, in which at last 20 Indian soldiers died, a Chinese J-10 fighter briefly entered Taiwan’s air defence zone, prompting the self-ruled island to scramble its aircraft in response. This was the third Chinese incursion into Taiwan’s airspace within a week. Two months ago, Chinese vessels had entered the waters of Malaysia and Vietnam. Last month, Chinese Coast Guard ships pursued Japanese fishing boats in waters claimed by both countries. All these incidents point to a newfound aggressiveness in China’s approach towards its already troubled neighbourhood, from the Himalayas to the South and East China Seas. Tensions in the neighbourhood are not new for China. The roughly 4,000 km-long India-China border, which is not clearly demarcated, has seen occasional flare-ups. In 2017, troops from both countries were locked in a face-off in the India-China-Bhutan tri-junction of Doklam for over two months. China has claims over the South China Sea and “reunification” with Taiwan is one of its self-declared goals. But what makes the current stand-offs different is China’s readiness to use force in addressing these challenges. This was the first time in 45 years that blood was spilt on the India-China border. Last month, in an annual policy blueprint, China dropped the word “peaceful” in referring to its desire to “reunify” with Taiwan, ending a nearly 30-year-long precedent.








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More incidents of aggressivenes This sharp turn marks China’s most major policy decisions post-COVID-19. Relations with the U.S. are particularly bad, with the Trump administration now openly targeting China for its handling of the pandemic. China has already slammed the U.S.’s “Cold War mentality”, referring to the period of the U.S.-Soviet contest. When Australia pushed for investigation into the pandemic outbreak, Beijing punished the country by imposing trade curbs. Earlier this week, an Australian citizen was sentenced to death in China over drug trafficking, complicating relations further. In Hong Kong, which has been seeing anti-China protests for a year, Beijing has introduced a new national security law, granting itself broader powers in the Special Administrative Region. If Xi Jinping was facing one the biggest crises of his Presidency early this year, in the middle of the COVID-19 outbreak, he now appears to be firmly in control, overseeing an expansive foreign policy that pushes the boundaries. Adopted ‘peaceful rise’ in the past “The ‘peaceful rise’ is now out of the question. They think they have arrived,” said Alka Acharya, Professor of International Studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University, Delhi. President Hu Jintao, Mr. Xi’s predecessor, had adopted the “peaceful rise” (or “peaceful development”, as the the Chinese later called it) policy to assure other countries, especially the U.S. and China’s Asian neighbours, that the country’s rise did not pose any threat to others. China came out of it long ago, Prof. Acharya told The Hindu. “The whole series of positions China has taken with respect to Taiwan, Tibet, Hong Kong, national sovereignty or whatever problems they have with the U.S. are nothing new. The question is what are the elements in China’s behaviour today which are different from what had happened in the past,” she pointed out. The virus factor In Prof. Acharya’s view, COVID-19 has brought on a “sharper turn” to China’s foreign policy because: “suddenly, it was quite obvious that China was on the back foot. It was getting very bad press all around. Other countries were speaking out against its handling of the outbreak. The Americans are now open about building a coalition against China. So a lot of China’s response is part of their way of tackling this crisis. We are going to fight back is the message from Beijing.” But China has always contested such analysis. In its version, China is a rising, responsible power and some tensions are part of its rise. The “China Dream”, laid out by President Xi after he took power in 2012, seeks to turn the country into wealthy, strong and modern global power by 2049, the centenary of the Communist revolution. Source: The Hindu








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14. India-China Galwan faceoff: How serious is the situation, what

happens next? Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; IOBR

Nearly 24 hours after news of the violent clash between Indian and Chinese soldiers in Ladakh broke, here’s what we know about the incident. Is the situation serious?

Yes, undoubtedly so. This is the first time after the 1962 War that soldiers have died in clashes on the India-China border in Ladakh. Even otherwise, the last deaths on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) were an ambush of an Assam Rifles patrol in Arunachal Pradesh by the Chinese in 1975. But the last real military engagement between the two armies was at Nathu La in Sikkim in 1967, in which 88 Indian soldiers lost their lives, and more than 300 Chinese soldiers were killed. But all these incidents were prior to the two countries signing, starting from 1993, various agreements for maintaining peace and tranquility on the border. Moreover, at least 20 soldiers including a Commanding Officer lost their lives on a single day in Galwan on Monday. To put that number in context, when 19 soldiers lost their lives in Uri in 2016, the Narendra Modi government launched surgical strikes across the Line of Control. But no rounds were fired by either side. Isn’t that a good thing?

Not really. If such a large number of soldiers could be killed without firing a round, it means that these deaths were far more brutal than they would have been had guns and rifles been used. However, that it remained restricted to a physical brawl points to the fact that there was no escalation to a kinetic level — rifles, howitzers, rockets, missiles, and fighter jets. China and India are both nuclear powers, and any climbing up the escalation ladder is fraught. But it could be a hope hanging by a slender thread if the history between the two sides is any precedent to go by. Even at Nathu La, before the military engagement escalated to artillery guns and threats of fighter jets, there was a scuffle between the soldiers of the two armies on the border. So, what exactly happened in the Galwan Valley on Monday?

Tensions had been running high in the area for the past few weeks, with a large number of soldiers and military equipment deployed along the LAC by both sides. Even though the LAC in Galwan Valley was never disputed by the two sides, the Chinese had moved into the Indian side of the LAC. After the meeting at the level of Corps Commanders on June 6,








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negotiations had been conducted between local military commanders of both the armies for a mutually agreed disengagement process. As part of that process, a buffer zone had been agreed to be created between the LAC and the junction of the Shyok and Galwan rivers to avoid any faceoff between the two armies. The two armies were to move back by a kilometre each in that area as a first step.

When Colonel B Santosh Babu, who was monitoring this process, noticed that a Chinese camp was still existing in the area, he went to get it removed. This soon led to fisticuffs and blows being exchanged, resulting in deaths and injuries. Were the Indian soldiers not carrying weapons?

No, this is as per the drill followed by both sides in the border areas to avoid inadvertent escalation by opening fire. This is in tune with the 1996 agreement between the two countries on Confidence Building Measures in the Military Field Along the Line of Actual Control in the India-China Border Areas, which imposed a lot of restrictions on military equipment, exercises, blasts, and aircraft in the vicinity of the LAC.








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But if there were no shots fired, how did the soldiers die?

Since the time tensions have erupted on the Ladakh border, there have been reports of some scuffles between the soldiers of both the armies. At Pangong Tso on the intervening night of May 5/6, there was a major scuffle between the soldiers in which more than 70 Indian soldiers were injured. In most of these scuffles, the Chinese have used bats, clubs, sticks and stones to cause major injuries. In Monday’s clash, besides the use of these blunt objects to cause injuries, some soldiers, it has been learnt, could have been pushed into the fast-flowing Galwan river. Most of the deaths were due to injuries aggravated by the intense cold in the high-altitude area. And how many Chinese soldiers were killed or injured in the clash?

The official statements put out by the Army and the Ministry of External Affairs have no details of any deaths or injuries to Chinese soldiers, although the first statement by the Army on Tuesday was amended to say that there were casualties “on both sides”. The Chinese government or the PLA too, have not provided any details of soldiers killed or injured in the clash. The only numbers that have come from are from the news agency ANI, which has quoted unnamed sources claiming that as per radio transmission intercepts, 43 Chinese soldiers were either killed or injured in the clash. Another report in usnews.com has cited “American intelligence” to say that 35 Chinese troops, including an officer, are believed to have died. Has the situation now been defused at the site of the clash?

A meeting at the level of Major Generals of both armies took place at PP14 in the area on Tuesday, which continued until late in the evening. It brought the situation under control, and the Indian side was able to collect all the bodies. The Chinese were given permission to bring in helicopters to ferry their injured back. Tensions must then be high at the Ladakh border?

Yes, tensions have already been running high at various places on the Ladakh border where Indian and Chinese soldiers have been facing each other on the LAC since May. The latest incident has added to the tensions, but there have been no reports of any other clashes at the border. So, what does all this mean? What is the key takeaway?

There were hopes of an early disengagement and de-escalation after conciliatory statements from both countries in the past few days, after the meeting at the level of Corps Commander on June 6. There were meetings being held at the level of various other military commanders from June 10, which were to continue for 10 days, by when the disengagement process would have been decided and finalised.








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But after this incident, that process is likely to take a back seat, and an early resolution now looks unlikely. China has reasserted its claim over Galwan Valley, and its army has made sharp statements alleging that Indian soldiers twice crossed the LAC. The MEA too, has categorically stated that the Chinese had violated the LAC in the Galwan Valley region, which had led to the current situation. These allegations and counter-allegations, along with the heightened public sentiment on the deaths of so many soldiers, will test any process towards resolution. Can the situation escalate hereon?

As the two countries are still talking at military and diplomatic levels, any escalation into a major conflict looks some distance away at this moment. But conflict situations have a dynamic of their own, and events can overtake the best laid plans. A military conflict, if it occurs, can be localised to one area, can be along the whole border, or can be in any one sector. But unless there is another provocation and crisis, the two sides should be able to resolve the situation peacefully. That said, the government will place the armed forces on full alert, moving some of them forward for an early response in case of any eventuality. Simultaneously, it will continue to use diplomatic channels to resolve the crisis, while controlling the domestic messaging to avoid inflaming public emotions that can create pressure on it to act strongly against China. The execution of that strategy will determine the course of the future action on China. Source: The Indian Express

15. India secures non-permanent member seat in U.N. Security Council

polls Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; IOBR

India’s term as non-permanent member in Security Council for two-year term will begin in January 2021. In the election decided overnight on Wednesday, India secured 184 of the 192 votes, far in excess of the 128, or two-thirds minimum, it needed to be confirmed. Others that won were Mexico with 187 votes, Norway 130 and Ireland 128, defeating Canada, which won 108. Significantly, in June 2019, both China and Pakistan had endorsed India as the Asia-Pacific grouping’s nominee. Neither Kenya (113 votes) nor Djibouti (78), both contesting for one seat from Africa, won a two-thirds majority.








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8th time India’s term on the 15-member Council will be its eighth. In its last bid for the UNSC seat in 2010, India had won 187 votes. India’s vision for UNSC

Earlier in June, External Affairs Minister Mr. Jaishankar gave India’s overall objective during its forthcoming UNSC tenure as an acronym ‘NORMS’ — New Orientation for a Reformed Multilateral System, making it clear that U.N. reforms, including the push for expanding the UNSC permanent membership, would be high on agenda when it assumes the UNSC seat. Source: The Hindu

16. Who does Galwan Valley belong to? Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; IOBR

Has China staked claim to it before? Why do maps paint a complicated picture?

Where is the LAC? On June 15, the worst violence on the India-China border since 1967 claimed the lives of 20 Indian soldiers. The clash occurred in the Galwan Valley, which hasn’t been a site of conflict since 1962. On June 19, the Chinese Foreign Ministry in a statement claimed that the entire valley is located “on the Chinese side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC)”, which followed a statement from the People’s Liberation Army stating that “China always owns sovereignty over the Galwan Valley region”. India has described the claims as “exaggerated and untenable”. Where is Galwan Valley?

The valley refers to the land that sits between steep mountains that buffet the Galwan River. The river has its source in Aksai Chin, on China’s side of the LAC, and it flows from the east to Ladakh, where it meets the Shyok river on India’s side of the LAC. The valley is strategically located between Ladakh in the west and Aksai Chin in the east, which is currently controlled by China as part of its Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. At its western end are the Shyok river and the Darbuk-Shyok-Daulet Beg Oldie (DSDBO) road. Its eastern mouth lies not far from China’s vital Xinjiang Tibet road, now called the G219 highway.








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Where does the Line of Actual Control lie?

The LAC lies east of the confluence of the Galwan and Shyok rivers in the valley, up to which both India and China have been patrolling in recent years. After the June 15 clash, however, China has claimed the entire valley lies on its side of the LAC. Since early May, China has been objecting to India’s road construction activities at the western end of the valley, in the area between the Galwan-Shyok confluence and the LAC. Beijing is now saying the entire valley is on its side of the LAC, which pegs the line further west near the Shyok river. India has rejected the claim as “exaggerated and untenable”. What do maps tell us?

Maps paint a complicated picture. As Manoj Joshi of the Observer Research Foundation notes, in 1959, then Premier Zhou Enlai said a 1956 map portrayed the correct alignment. This showed the entire Galwan Valley as a part of India. However, in June 1960 China put out a map claiming sovereignty over the valley. A Chinese map from November 1962 also claims the entire valley, but subsequent maps have not shown the western tip of the river as a part of China.








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By citing its territorial claims, can China alter the Line of Actual Control? Territorial claims and LAC claims are not the same. Regardless of whether or not China claims territorial rights to the valley, as one scholar suggested this week, the LAC that both countries abided by until recently ran through the valley. The distinction between territorial claims and LAC claims is sometimes blurred. The LAC refers to territory under the effective control of each side, not to their entire territorial claim. For instance, India’s territorial claims extend 38,000 sq km on the other side of the LAC across all of Aksai Chin, but the LAC India observes runs through the valley. It is true that the LAC has never been demarcated and there are differences in perception of where it lies in more than a dozen spots, but there have not been previous incidents in the valley. By now staking a claim to the entire Galwan Valley and up to the confluence of the rivers, China is, in India’s view, unilaterally altering the LAC here. According to the 1993 Border Peace and Tranquility Agreement (BPTA), India and China agreed to “strictly respect and observe the LAC between the two sides”. This referred to the LAC at the time, rendering irrelevant the line of actual control in 1959 or 1962. It also says that “when necessary, the two sides shall jointly check and determine the segments of the line of actual control where they have different views as to its alignment.” Clarifying the LAC has also been explicitly codified in the 1996 agreement on confidence-building measures and subsequent agreements. China, however, has refused to exchange maps in the western sector to take this process forward.








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The BPTA also said “the two sides agree that references to the line of actual control in this agreement do not prejudice their respective positions on the boundary question.” Source: The Hindu

17. Why China trade ban will hurt India more Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; IOBR

The outrage over the killing of Indian soldiers has led to calls for banning trade with China. However, India would stand to lose more than China if trade were to be banned. Here are six reasons why

The Indian government has tried to respond to the border dispute with China by training its guns on trade. The idea resonating in Indian streets is that Indians should boycott Chinese goods and thus “teach China a lesson”. Visuals of Indians breaking and burning their fully functional Chinese appliances such as TVs have been doing the rounds in social media. Union minister Ramdas Athawale has even demanded a ban on restaurants selling Chinese food even though these would be Indian restaurants, employing Indian chefs and using largely Indian agricultural produce to serve such Chinese dishes. While one can understand the outrage that Indians feel when they hear about the brutal deaths of their soldiers, turning a border or defence dispute into a trade one is an ill-advised move. There are several reasons.

1. Trade deficits are not necessarily bad

One of the main reasons why banning trade has been the first reaction is the notion that having a trade deficit is somehow a “bad” thing. The fact is altogether different. Trade deficits/surpluses are just accounting exercises and having a trade deficit against a country doesn’t make the domestic economy weaker or worse off. For instance, if one looks at the top 25 countries with whom India trades, it has a trade surplus with the US, the UK and the Netherlands. But that doesn’t mean the Indian economy is stronger or better off than any of these three. Why? Because it shows that Indian consumers — who made these purchase decisions individually and voluntarily — are now better off than what they would have been had they bought either, say, a Japanese or French or even an Indian alternative.








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Essentially, it shows that Indian consumers, as well as the Chinese producers, gained through trading. It is this very process that generates the gains from trade. Both sides are better off than what they would have been without trade. Of course, running persistent trade deficits across all countries raises two main issues. One, does a country have the foreign exchange reserves to “buy” the imports. Today, India has more than $500 billion of forex — good enough to cover imports for 12 months. Two, it also shows that India is not capable of producing for the needs of its own people in the most efficient manner. At one level, no country is self-sufficient and that is why trade is such a fantastic idea. It allows countries to specialise in what they can do most efficiently and export that good while importing whatever some other country does more efficiently. So while a persistent trade deficit merits the domestic government — the Indian government in this case — to put in place policies and create the infrastructure that raises competitiveness, it should not “force” or even “nudge” people to move away from trade because doing so will undermine efficiency and come at the cost of the consumer’s benefits.

2. Will hurt the Indian poor the most

More often than not, the poorest consumers are the worst-hit in a trade ban of this kind because they are the most price-sensitive. For instance, if Chinese ACs were replaced by either costlier Japanese ACs or less efficient Indian ones, richer Indians may still survive this ban — by buying the costlier option — but a number of poor, who could have otherwise afforded an AC, would either have to forgo buying one because it is now too costly (say a Japanese or European firm) or suffer (as a consumer) by buying a less efficient Indian one. Similarly, the Chinese products that are in India are already paid for. By banning their sale or avoiding them, Indians will be hurting fellow Indian retailers. Again, this hit would be proportionately more on the poorest retailers because of their relative inability to cope with the unexpected losses. 3. Will punish Indian producers and exporters

Some may argue that trading with China hurts many Indian producers. This is true, but it is also true that trading hurts only the less efficient Indian producers while helping the more efficient Indian producers and businesses. It is important to note that the list of Indian consumers of Chinese imports does not comprise just those who consume the final finished good from China; several businesses in India import intermediate goods and raw materials, which, in turn, are used to create final








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goods — both for the domestic Indian market as well as the global market (as Indian exports). Contrary to popular belief an overwhelming proportion of Chinese imports are in the form of intermediate goods such as electrical machinery, nuclear reactors, fertilisers, optical and photographic measuring equipment organic chemicals etc. Such imports are used to produce final goods which are then either sold in India or exported. A blanket ban on Chinese imports will hurt all these businesses at a time when they are already struggling to survive, apart from hitting India’s ability to produce finished goods. To recap: Trade deficits are not necessarily bad; they improve the wellbeing of Indian consumers including producers and exporters. In any case, India has trade deficits with most countries so why single out China. 4. Will barely hurt China

Still, some may argue that we want to single out China because it has killed our soldiers at the border and we will now punish it through trade. Then the question is: Will banning trade hurt China?

The truth is the exact opposite. It will hurt India and Indian far more than it will hurt China. Let’s look at the facts again. While China accounts for 5% of India’s exports and 14% of India’s imports — in US$ value terms — India’s imports from China (that is, China’s exports) are just 3% of China’s total exports. More importantly, China’s imports from India are less than 1% of its total imports. The point is that if India and China stop trading then — on the face of it — China would lose only 3% of its exports and less than 1% of its imports, while India will lose 5% of its exports and 14% of its imports. 5. India will lose policy credibility

It has also been suggested that India should renege on existing contracts with China. Again, while in the short-term this may assuage hurt sentiments, it would be hugely detrimental for a country such as India which has been trying to attract foreign investment. One of the first things an investor — especially foreign — tracks is the policy credibility and certainty. If policies can be changed overnight, if taxes can be slapped with retrospective effect, or if the government itself reneges on contracts, no investor will invest. Or, if they do, they will demand higher returns for the increased risk. 6. Raising tariffs is mutually assured destruction

It has also been argued that India should just slap higher import duties on Chinese goods. Others have suggested that India can allow primary and intermediate goods from China at zero duty, but apply prohibitive tariffs on final goods.








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Even leaving aside the rules of the World Trade Organization that India would be violating, this is a poor strategy since others — not just China — can and most likely will reciprocate in the same way. What will also go against India here is its relatively insignificant presence in global trade and value chains. In other words, it is relatively easy for the world to bypass India and carry on trading if India doesn’t play by the rules. The Upshot:

The first thing to understand is that turning a border dispute into a trade war is unlikely to solve the border dispute. Worse, given India and China’s position in both global trade as well as relative to each other, this trade war will hurt India far more than China. Thirdly, such a shock — banning all trade with China — will be most poorly timed since the Indian economy is already at its weakest point ever — facing a sharp GDP contraction. The surge of protectionism and anti-globalisation sentiment since the start of the Global Financial Crisis of 2008 is well known but it is also well established that trade leaves people better off. Of course, not everyone. For instance, all inefficient domestic industries would want to be protected by higher tariffs in the name of economic nationalism. But, as explained above, this protection will come at the cost of domestic consumers. Indeed, in the first four decades of India’s existence, it has tried — and miserably failed — making mantras like “self-reliance”, “import-substitution” and “protecting infant domestic industries” work. India must try to aggressively acquire a higher share of global trade by raising its competitiveness. India now has an insignificant share in world trade. If it is not careful, much smaller countries will further chip away. For instance, while in November 2019, India refused to join the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) — a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) in a region that is least affected by Covid and most likely to see trade volumes in the future — Vietnam signed an FTA with the European Union earlier this month. Indian exporters were already losing ground in the EU to Vietnam will now be adversely affected since most Vietnamese goods will enjoy zero import duties in the EU, thus making them more affordable for European consumers. Source: The Indian Express

18. If soldiers on LAC were carrying arms, why did they not open fire?








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The political slugfest on Twitter between Congress MP Rahul Gandhi and Foreign Minister S Jaishankar about the death of 20 soldiers in a violent faceoff with the Chinese in Ladakh brought home the fact that the Indian troops were armed, but did not open fire. The minister said that “all troops on border duty always carry arms, especially when leaving post. Those at Galwan on 15 June did so. Long-standing practice (as per 1996 & 2005 agreements) not to use firearms during faceoffs”. The protocols Jaishankar referred to are from agreements signed between India and China in 1996 and 2005. The 1996 agreement is on Confidence-Building Measures in the Military Field Along the Line of Actual Control in the India-China Border Areas. “With a view to preventing dangerous military activities along the line of actual control in the India-China border areas… Neither side shall open fire, cause bio-degradation, use hazardous chemicals, conduct blast operations or hunt with guns or explosives within two kilometres from the line of actual control. This prohibition shall not apply to routine firing activities in small arms firing ranges,” says Article VI(1) of the 1996 agreement. However, it is Article VI(4) that is more applicable in the current instance: “If the border personnel of the two sides come in a face-to-face situation due to differences on the alignment of the line of actual control of any other reason, they shall exercise self-restraint and take all necessary steps to avoid an escalation of the situation. Both sides shall also enter into immediate consultations through diplomatic and/or other available channels to review the situation and prevent any escalation of tension.” But the 1996 agreement comes with a proviso in Article X(1) that “the full implementation of some of the provisions of the present Agreement will depend on the two sides arriving at a common understanding of the alignment of the line of actual control in the India-China border areas, the two sides agree to speed up the process clarification and confirmation of the line of actual control”. In Article 1 of the 2005 agreement, “the two sides will resolve the boundary question through peaceful and friendly consultations. Neither side shall use or threaten to use force against the other by any means”. The 2013 agreement on Border Defence Cooperation also stated that neither side shall use its military capability against the other. None of these articles pertains directly to the situation that emerged on Monday where soldiers were brutally assaulted to death by the Chinese side in Galwan Valley area. As Jaishankar explained, it was as per longstanding practice in the area flowing from these agreements that the soldiers did not open fire. The Indian Express spoke to Army officers, who confirmed that most of the soldiers in that group which clashed with the Chinese soldiers were carrying their personal weapons, and








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had ammunition on person. This is as per prevalent practice, borne out by videos and pictures of certain patrols coming face-to-face in the recent past that show soldiers carrying weapons, but with the barrels pointing downwards. That is part of a local drill followed to avoid any accidental firing or misunderstanding because of the rifle barrel pointing towards each other. Even though not strictly coded in any rules, officers said these practices have evolved over a period of time and have been firmed as part of a routine on the LAC. Since no round has been fired on the Sino-India border in Ladakh after 1962 and with a view to preventing any escalation, these routines of not firing have been drilled into the soldiers. In such an environment, every other weapon short of firing has become acceptable to use for the soldiers, who have used them during previous clashes. Even though people have been injured in such clashes, no one has died due to use of rocks and sticks. However, the ferocity of the use of these weapons has been increasing over time, as observed during the clash at Pangong Tso on May 5/6 which left more than 70 Indian soldiers injured. As per some reports, even the Army recently ordered full body protectors and anti-riot gear for its soldiers deployed there, further lending credence to the notion that opening of fire was strict taboo on the LAC. The incident on Monday happened under these circumstances, even though the Army’s rules of engagement allow soldiers from opening fire if lives of their uniformed brethren is threatened. Questions have been raised in many quarters, including by Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, about the fact that no officer in the chain of command thought it fit to open fire in a clash that lasted a few hours. Some military veterans have even argued that even calling for artillery fire would have been fully justified as per rules in such a scenario. Army officers, however, argue that there is another side to the story. In the melee during the clash, where Indian and Chinese soldiers were grappling with each other in a hand-to-hand combat, it was very difficult to open fire without hitting one of your men. That, they say, was the reason soldiers did not open fire even when their Commanding Officer and 19 other men were killed, and 10 others taken captive. Arriving at judgments about complex military situations is fraught, especially for those not present on the ground. Decisions are taken on the spur of the moment, which change the course of events, and their consequences have to be borne by posterity. Whatever be the reason for Indian soldiers not opening fire, their decision prevented the situation from escalating. That said, the killings have put a question mark on the terms of engagement between the two armies going forward.

Source: The Indian Express

19. Modi's statement on China’s role in LAC








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PM statement Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s comments to an all-party meet on Friday, claiming there had neither been any intrusion by China nor was any intruder present, expectedly caused a political storm. China within India’s territory

Not only was the violence on the night of June 15 that claimed 20 Indian soldiers triggered by China erecting structures on India’s side of the LAC in the Galwan Valley, Chinese troops still remain present on Indian territory elsewhere in Ladakh, including on the northern bank of Pangong Lake. Reponse by PMO

After the problems with his remarks were highlighted by the Opposition, the Prime Minister’s Office was moved to issue a much needed clarification on Saturday, stating the PM was only referring to the situation in the Galwan Valley “as a consequence of the bravery of our armed forces” that foiled a Chinese transgression. Impact of statement by PM Even if the PMO attributed the political storm to “a mischievous interpretation”, it is more than clear that the PM did not choose his words carefully. In fact, his remarks have already been seized upon by the Chinese state media, and were seen as endorsing Beijing’s claims that its troops did not cross the LAC and justifying the People’s Liberation Army’s recent actions. The MEA issued its own statement on Saturday, reiterating that the Chinese had crossed the LAC and erected structures across the line. Information kept away from public

While it should be obvious that any speech that requires no less than two clarifications has serious problems with its messaging, the controversy has only underlined the government’s poor communication on the border issue. The tragic loss of lives followed more than six weeks of tensions in the Galwan Valley. During this time, the public was kept in the dark about what was transpiring along the LAC. True, sharing every detail in the public domain is not possible when it comes to negotiating sensitive issues of national security. Indeed, the solution to the current crisis, and the disengagement that is needed urgently at various points along the LAC, can make progress only through diplomacy. At the same time, a blanket of silence hardly serves the government’s interests. The absence of timely and credible information will only fuel speculation and alarm. The silence has also triggered unseemly domestic politics and a blame-game, at a time when India is confronting possibly its biggest national security challenge since Kargil. Friday’s all-party meet was certainly a step in the right direction, even if it perhaps came a few weeks too








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late. India’s China policy may be approaching as significant an inflection point as 1988, which marked the normalisation of ties after 1962. Crafting the way ahead for the relationship after the worst violence since 1967 will require a measured appraisal of how to purposively engage India’s biggest and most powerful neighbour. This cannot happen by being in denial or by attempting to obscure facts. The first step to a solution is a realisation of the nature and the magnitude of the problem. Source: The Hindu

20. What changed in India-Nepal ties? Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; IOBR

Last week, Nepal’s Parliament cleared a Constitution Amendment Bill that endorses the country’s new map that includes territories with India — Limpiadhura, Lipulek and Kalapani. Weeks earlier, Nepal Prime Minister K P Oli had said in a speech that those areas would be brought within Nepal’s map and possession. This has been a troubled phase in Nepal-India relations, often described in textbooks as “unique”, “time-tested” and cemented by “common heritage, culture, civilisation, history and geography”. Favouring India

Previous standoffs have been effectively resolved through direct negotiations, back-channel diplomacy and an accommodative spirit on both sides. King Mahendra convincingly assured India way back in the 1960s that a road built to connect Nepal with Tibet had only “developmental significance and no strategic significance at all”. In the 1980s, King Birendra annulled a contract that China had won under a global tender to build the 210-km Kohalpur Banbasa Road closer to the Indian border, after Rajiv Gandhi raised concerns over security. Birendra handed the task over to India. According to the accounts of Bishwabandhu Thapa, Home Minister in 1962, King Mahendra “gave the Kalapani location temporarily to India” on Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s request following India’s setback in the war with China. However, this is not in line with India’s official perception. Former Foreign Secretary Shyam Saran wrote in The Indian Express (June 13, 2020), that “both Monarchs Mahendra and Birendra thrived on a diet of anti-Indian nationalism”. According to Punya Prasad Oli, a former Director General of Nepal’s survey department, King Birendra had asked him not to make an issue of the Kalapani dispute in the 1970s.








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All these are seen as instances of Nepali rulers maintaining a delicate balance in relations with two giant neighbours, but eventually favouring the south whenever India and China’s interests have clashed. The turning point

A 12-point understanding among Nepal’s eight political parties including Maoists, signed in November 2005 in Delhi, scripted the ouster of the monarchy. India was for long a factor — and to a large extent the sole external actor — in Nepal’s internal politics. But when India openly took the lead role in transforming Nepal into a secular republic from a Hindu kingdom, it set off events leading to India losing its clout and allies in Nepal. The suspension of the monarchy and its subsequent abolition in 2008, and declaration of Nepal as a secular country, was followed by Nepal’s journey towards federalism. None of these crucial issues was discussed at length in Parliament. The European Union took a very open stance that secularism will have no meaning without the right to conversion being incorporated as a fundamental right in the new Constitution. This led to resentment among the majority population about this “imposed secularism”. Other radical agenda got overshadowed as the civil-society-new-power axis and international stakeholders simply dismissed these as regressive forces. The EU and the US, which had begun to emerge as India’s allies in Nepal’s transition after 2005-06, began supporting radical federalism based on ethnicity, higher autonomy and with the right to self-determination that initially Maoists had backed. China, worried about the combined presence of India, US and EU in Nepal and their influence on internal politics, began increasing its presence and investment in Nepal, targeting tourism, post-earthquake reconstruction, trade and energy, with a message that its interest in Nepal is no less than India’s or its allies put together. Although political parties backed by India in the 2005-06 movement continue to be in power in Nepal, they have visibly become more and more distant from New Delhi. The Maoists, who are now part of the ruling NCP headed jointly by Oli and Prachanda, are no longer under Indian influence. Relations, then and now Two major questions that crop up in the context of bilateral context. Why did China’s clout increase to this level when India apparently calculated that the monarchy’s exit will increase its own influence on Nepal? And does India have any institutional allies left in Nepal, like the monarchy and Nepali Congress like in the pre-2005 phase?








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The Nepali Congress was formed in India in the early 20th century and many of its leaders participated in India’s freedom struggle, thinking an independent and democratic India would help establish democracy back home. The party, despite consistently taking the lead role in the movement for a multi-party democracy with constitutional monarchy, was often branded “pro-India” by Communists given their close ties with Indian National Congress and socialists. However, following the 12-point agreement, the Nepali Congress was forced to accept the lead role of Maoists (Communists) in the impending political change, and agree to dispense with constitutional monarchy that it had all along said represented “forces of nationalism” and “symbol of unity in diversity”. During major face-offs, three trade embargos since the 1970s and sensitive security issues, the Kings of Nepal and the Indian Prime Ministers, directly or by using back channels — including Indian royalty and even shankaracharyas when Nepal was a Hindu nation — have succeeded in bringing the crises to an end. But over the years, India’s focus on Nepal appears driven more by security concerns and threat perception than by promoting a soft power-based approach like in the past. During the current spell of dispute, India has once again begun ‘valuing’ common civilisational, cultural, historic and people to people ties. India’s old allies, today India’s old allies are regretting having aligned with the Maoists. “Nothing could have been a more erroneous judgment of India in 2006 than that Maoists were the emerging forces of the people and bringing them to the centrestage of Nepali politics and power would consolidate democracy,” a senior Nepali Congress leader said. “I think it is about time that we reviewed the 12-point agreement and restore our lead role in Nepali politics rather than being seen as follower of the Maoists,” said Gopal Man Shrestha, one of the eight leaders who signed the 12-point agreement. Besides the monarchy, Nepali Congress and in the recent past Madhes parties to some extent, the only other institutional ally that India has had is the Nepal army. The chief of each national army has enjoyed the status of Honorary General of the other side, on a reciprocal basis since 1950. When Oli refused to accept India’s invitation for a state visit in April 2006, during a blockade, it was the armies of both sides—especially at the then chiefs’ level –that did the homework for lifting it. Oli became a nationalist and gained much popularity thanks to the blockade. But in the current sentiment triggered by the border dispute, the idea of nationalism has once again been appropriated by a Communist leader who has all through concentrated state powers upon himself. It’s Oli who is dictating Nepal-India relations. Source: The Indian Express








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21. Why high-altitude warfare is challenging, and how soldiers are

trained Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; IOBR

The violent standoff between Indian and Chinese troops in Galwan Valley of Ladakh region has thrown the spotlight on high-altitude warfare and the challenges that troops face, particularly when advantageous positions on the heights are occupied by the other side.

How is high-altitude warfare fought?

High-altitude warfare is fought keeping the terrain and weather in mind. The kind of infrastructure and training that the troops require for high-altitude warfare are key factors. The evolution of such warfare goes back a long way: European countries had mountain brigades in view of the kind of terrain prevalent in those countries. The harshness of the terrain calls for a specialised kind of training to prepare soldiers in terms of mindset and acclimatisation. To begin with, the troops are imparted training in basic and advance training in mountaineering to make them equipped for mountain warfare. How is India equipped in such warfare?

Generally, India is considered a hub of mountain warfare skills since most of the country’s north and northeast requires such skills. Ladakh Scouts are considered the best in this kind of warfare. Mountain chop, a tactic involved in such warfare, evolved in India where the mountainous terrain is very difficult to scale. What are the challenges involved in warfare in a high-altitude place like Galwan

Valley?

A big factor is who has taken defensive positions and who is sitting on higher ground. Once troops are sitting on high ground, it becomes very difficult to dislodge them from there. In a place like Galwan Valley, which is absolutely barren, there is not much concealment. The soldier on high ground is absolutely stationary, which makes those on lower terrain easy targets; the enemy can pick them up one by one. Normally in mountain warfare, troops on lower ground use a combat ratio of 1:6, but in circumstances as in Galwan, it may go up to 1:10. Generally, mountain warfare is fought using the period of darkness to reach the opposing army, engage and overpower them before the first light of day. In case troops do not have the capabilities, fitness or strategies to do so before dawn, then it is a lost cause. What are the other challenges faced by soldiers in high altitudes?








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The first major factor is acclimatisation since the oxygen supply reduces drastically. Next, the load carrying capacity of individuals reduces drastically. Things move very slow in the mountains and mobilisation of troops consumes time. Thus, time and place need to be kept on top priority when deciding where the troops have to be stationed and how they have to be mobilised. At every stage when an assault progresses, the troops require access to maintenance. One needs to identify tactical points (which are passes in the current scenario) where troops can build roads and take defensive positions, and where those troops need to be maintained. Normally, advance troops may be able to carry packed rations or other required equipment that can last for 48-72 hours, but then constant supplies are required to reach them. Generally, troops carry a 30-35 kg load including weapons, ammunition, communication equipment, rations etc. It is difficult to negotiate such terrains carrying such loads; it is difficult even to raise one’s hand. What are the logistical challenges in this kind of warfare?

One major challenge is that weapons jam, particularly in high-altitude areas. When a soldier is at a height of 17,000 ft or above, it is very cold, and he needs to grease the weapons and clean the barrels at least once a week to ensure they function efficiently. But at the time of combat, this becomes difficult. Vehicles do not start when fuel jams. If the fuel is diesel, it won’t ignite unless it is mixed with thinners or other chemicals to make them thin enough to fire the engine. Planning has to be done in advance, with recces carried out, which again is difficult in the mountains. There has to be a contingency plan to first identify the tactical points that need to be used in case of an assault. In Galwan, which is an extremely tactical area and strategically important, reinforcement plays a vital role, particularly when the Indian troops are not in a position of advantage. For communication equipment, troops need to carry more batteries because they drain very quickly at high altitude. While a battery tends to last for 24 hours in the plains, it will drain in 1-2 hours in these severely cold areas. Transport animals such as mules need to be used to maintain adequate supplies, which is not an easy task. Weather constraints play a major factor. What kind of training do Indian troops get in mountain warfare?

First, the troops are trained in skilled mountaineering techniques, rock-craft as well as mountain craft. Col Sonam said, “Generally, soldiers of the unit that is going to be inducted get month-long training. It’s concerted training with the best instructors placed in every unit. The training continues whenever the units are inducted. Then comes the acclimatisation to avoid non-battle, cold casualties. Almost all units have these trainers who keep troops well-equipped and efficient to meet any contingency.” Source: The Indian Express








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22. Why Russia has emerged as a key player amid India, China tensions


Russia has emerged, all of a sudden, as a key diplomatic player amid the tension between India and China. * On Tuesday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov hosts the Russia-India-China (RIC) trilateral foreign ministers’ meeting, which will be the first opportunity for External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi for face-time with each other over videoconference. Jaishankar and Wang, who is also Chinese State Councillor, had an angry phone call on June 17 over the June 15 border clash, in which 20 Indian soldiers were killed. * On Wednesday, Moscow will host Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and his Chinese counterpart, Wei Fenghe, who will attend the Victory Day parade on June 24, along with Indian and Chinese marching contingents. While these are ministerial-level engagements, there have been at least two outreaches between India and Russia through diplomatic channels. * Early this month, before the June 6 Lieutenant General-level talks between India and China, Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla “updated” Russian Ambassador Nikolay Kudashev on the “recent developments” on the situation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC). * After the June 15 clash between Indian and Chinese troops in Galwan Valley, Indian Ambassador to Russia D Bala Venkatesh Varma had a conversation with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov on June 17. “The officials discussed regional security, including developments on the Line of Actual Control on the border between India and China in the Himalayas,” a brief statement by the Russian Foreign Ministry said. The Indian government did not issue a statement on this. Why it matters

While India and China have been talking at each other — and not to each other — the outreach to Moscow is noteworthy. It is widely known that Russia and China have grown their relationship in the past few years. The Moscow-Beijing axis is crucial, especially since Washington has been at loggerheads with China in recent months and Russia much more calibrated, even in its response on the Covid-19 outbreak.








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New Delhi believes that the approach of Western countries, especially that of the US towards both Moscow and Beijing, has brought them even closer.

Initial friction

Russia and China have had a rocky start to their relationship, after Mao Zedong founded the People’s Republic of China. When Mao made his first visit to Moscow after winning control of China, in 1949, he was made to wait for weeks for a meeting with the Soviet leader. “He spent several weeks cooling his heels in a remote dacha outside Moscow where the sole recreational facility was a broken table tennis table,” an article in the Smithsonian Magazine said. During the Cold War, China and the USSR were rivals after the Sino-Soviet split in 1961, competing for control of the worldwide Communist movement. There was a serious








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possibility of a major war in the early 1960s and a brief border war took place in 1969. This enmity began to reduce following Mao’s death in 1976, but relations were not very good until the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991. Mending fences

In the post-Cold War era, economic relations have formed the “new strategic basis” for Sino-Russian relations. China is Russia’s biggest trading partner and the largest Asian investor in Russia. China sees Russia as a powerhouse of raw material and a growing market for its consumer goods. The West’s approach towards Russia after the annexation of Crimea through harsh sanctions in 2014 brought Moscow much closer to China. And India, for its part, has always felt that it was the West which has pushed Russia towards a tighter embrace of Beijing. A Sino-Russian quasi-alliance has formed in recent years, and this has been possible due to the anti-Chinese rhetoric from Washington, collapse of oil prices and growing dependence of Russia on Chinese consumption. Western analysts see this as a “friendship of convenience” between two countries led by strongmen — Russia by President Vladimir Putin and China by President Xi Jinping. Russia has been extremely calibrated in its statements on issues on which Beijing is most sensitive to: Huawei’s 5G rollout, Hong Kong and the Covid-19 pandemic. Beijing and Moscow, however, do not always see eye to eye with each other. China does not recognise Crimea as part of Russia, and Moscow, formally speaking, takes a neutral stance on Beijing’s claims in the South China Sea. India and Russia

India has a historical relationship with Russia, spanning over seven decades. While the relationship has grown in some areas and atrophied in some others, the strongest pillar of the strategic partnership is of the defence basket. Although New Delhi has consciously diversified its new purchases from other countries, the bulk of its defence equipment is from Russia. Estimates say 60 to 70 per cent of India’s supplies are from Russia, and New Delhi needs a regular and reliable supply of spare parts from the Russian defence industry. In fact, Prime Minister Modi has held informal summits with only two leaders — Xi and Putin. India has made this decision to reach out to Russia not just out of choice, but also out of necessity, since it believes Moscow has leverage and influence to shape and change Beijing’s hard stance on border issue.








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At this time when there is tension at the border, Defence Minister Singh will discuss supply and purchase of new defence systems — like the S-400 missile defence system — with the Russian top brass in the military and government. Russia position, then & now

During the Doklam crisis in 2017, Russian diplomats in Beijing were among the few briefed by the Chinese government. At that time, it was kept under the wraps. While Russia’s position during the 1962 war was not particularly supportive of India, New Delhi takes comfort in Moscow’s support during the 1971 war. Tuesday’s RIC Foreign Ministers’ meeting, which was put off in March, will be the first opportunity for Jaishankar and Wang Yi to engage in that trilateral format. Asked on the possibility of discussing the India-China tension, Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov had said last week: “The agenda does not involve discussing issues that relate to bilateral relations of a country with another member of this format.” On the events in Galwan, Moscow responded in a very calibrated manner last week. On June 17, Russian Ambassador Kudashev tweeted, “We welcome all steps aimed at de-escalation at the LAC, including the conversation between the two FMs, and remain optimistic.” He had said: “The existence of the RIC is an undisputable reality, firmly fixed on the world map. As for the current stage of the trilateral cooperation, there are no indications that it might be frozen.” According to Russian news agency TASS, Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the Kremlin is concerned over a clash between the military on the border between China and India but believes that the two countries could resolve this conflict themselves. “Certainly, we are watching with great attention what is happening on the Chinese-Indian border. We believe that this is a very alarming report,” Peskov said. “But we consider that the two countries are capable of taking necessary steps to prevent such situations in the future and to ensure that there is predictability and stability in the region and that this is a safe region for nations, first of all, China and India.” Source: The Indian Express

23. Victory Day: Why Russia celebrates WWII triumph on a different date Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; IOBR

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is on a three-day trip to Russia to attend the 75th Victory Day. India has sent a tri-services contingent to participate in the Victory Day Parade on Wednesday. China’s Defence Minister and troops will also be present.








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What is Victory Day?

Victory Day marks the end of World War II and the victory of the Allied Forces in 1945. Adolf Hitler had shot himself on April 30. On May 7, German troops surrendered, which was formally accepted the next day, and came into effect on May 9. In most European countries, it is celebrated on May 8, and is called the Victory in Europe Day. Why does Russia not celebrate Victory Day on the same date?

The erstwhile Soviet Union had not wanted the surrender to take place in the west, and wanted that such a significant event should reflect the contribution of the Red Army and the Soviet population. According to military historian Antony Beevor’s definitive book on World War II, Joseph Stalin, premier of the Soviet Union, wanted Germany to also sign a surrender in Berlin. The Act of Military Surrender was signed by Chief of the Operations Staff of the Armed Forces High Command Generallutenant Alfred Jodl and General Admiral Hans-George von Friedeburg in the early hours of May 7 in France at Rheims, which was the headquarters of the Supreme Headquarters Allied Expeditionary Force (SHAEF). The surrender was to come into effect a minute past midnight on May 9. But, Beevor writes, “Stalin could not let the final ceremony take place in the west, so he insisted that the Germans sign another surrender in Berlin, at one minute past midnight on 9 May, the moment the capitulation agreed at Rheims came into effect”. Though the document was signed, Beevor says that British Prime Minister Winston Churchill “cabled Stalin to explain that, since crowds were already gathering in London to celebrate, Victory in Europe Day celebration in Britain would take place on 8 May, as they did in the United States”. This did not convince Stalin, who argued that “Soviet troops were still fighting” the German forces in many areas. German soldiers did not surrender in East Prussia, Courland Peninsula, Czechoslovakia till later. “Victory celebration, Stalin wrote, could therefore not begin in the Soviet Union till 9 May,” Beevor says in his book. Since then May 9 has been celebrated at Victory Day in Russia. If May 9 is Victory Day, why is it being celebrated on June 24?

This year, the celebrations this year were pushed to June because of the Covid-19 pandemic. In November 2019, Russian President Vladimir Putin had invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the Victory Day celebration which were due to be held on May 9.

Modi could not travel to Moscow, but he wished Putin on May 9 through a tweet: “India stands with Russia in solemn remembrance today, on the 75th Anniversary of Victory Day.








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Tens of thousands of Indian soldiers also made the supreme sacrifice in the Second World War. My warm greetings to President Putin and the Russian people on this occasion.”

Is the June 24 date particularly significant?

Yes, it is. After winning the war and having its own Victory Day on May 9, Stalin wanted to commemorate the victory with a military parade. On June 22, 1945, he ordered: “In commemoration of the victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War, I appoint to hold the parade of the regular Army, Navy and the Moscow garrison — Victory Parade June 24, 1945 in Moscow’s Red Square.” Hence the first Victory Day Parade took place on June 24 in Moscow. However, since then, the Victory Day Parades have taken place on May 9. Who is participating in the parade on Wednesday?

The parade will last for around 90 minutes and see the participation of military personnel from 19 countries, including India and China. The celebrations are expected to include 64,000 participants. In Moscow, 14,000 military personnel will march through Red Square. Additionally, 50,000 more troops will march through 27 other cities that have military units. Have Indian politicians taken part in such celebrations earlier?

Yes. Indian leaders have attended several Victory Day Parades. At the 70th anniversary Victory Day celebrations in 2015, then President Pranab Mukherjee went to represent India. Manmohan Singh had attended the 60th anniversary in 2005 as the then Prime Minister of India. Mukherjee had attended the celebrations earlier as well. In 1995, as the External Affairs Minister, he was present at the 50th anniversary celebrations. However, he noted in his memoirs that he had objected to India’s participation before P V Narasimha Rao, the Prime Minister at that time, as “there were several reasons why the government should not participate in Victory Day celebrations for the Second World War”. He had stated that the Indian National Army of Subhash Chandra Bose had fought the Allied Forces and that leaders of Congress were jailed during the war for their protests. Source: The Indian Express

24. First time after 2001, India cuts Pakistan High Commission strength

by half


India on Tuesday asked Pakistan to reduce the strength of its High Commission in New Delhi by half, and said it would do the same at its own mission in Islamabad within a week.








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The last time a 50 per cent downgrade of the two High Commissions took place was in December 2001. Following the terrorist attack on Parliament, then External Affairs Minister Jaswant Singh had asked for the reduction in strength to be completed within 48 hours. Reasons for reducing strength Tuesday’s move by India came after two Indian High Commission staffers were detained by Pakistani authorities for several hours on June 15, and released only after New Delhi lodged a protest. India had last month expelled two officials of the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi for spying. Ten months ago, Pakistan had downgraded bilateral ties after India revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370. India had retaliated, and both countries had withdrawn their High Commissioners. Tuesday’s decision, conveyed to the Acting High Commissioner of Pakistan who was summoned to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), downgraded the relationship further. According to the bilateral understanding, India and Pakistan have 110 diplomats and staffers each in their High Commissions in the other country. This number will now come down to 55 in each capital. Sources said the details of the diplomats and staffers who will have to leave will be worked out over the next few days. As per the general practice, this will be proportionate to the diplomatic functions that are considered essential, and the staffers who will remain to assist the diplomats. Source: The Indian Express

25. How will the U.S. visa ban impact India? Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; IOBR

On June 22, the White House made a proclamation halting the processing and issuance of non-immigrant work visas of several types, with the stated aim of this sweeping policy being to stop foreign workers snagging American jobs, especially at a time of deep economic distress brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. The order by the Donald Trump administration includes the H-1B visa for skilled workers, a large proportion of which goes to Indian nationals, dependents of the H-1B who are seeking the H4 visa, the H-2B visa issued to seasonal workers in the landscaping and hospitality industries, the L-1 visa for intra-company transfers and their dependents on the L-2 visa, and the J-1 visa for students on work-study summer programmes and related occupations. The important questions on








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this latest policy shift by Mr. Trump on immigration relate to whether it will muddy the waters of the U.S.-India relationship by adversely impacting Indian IT services exported to the U.S., and whether it has the potential to shore up the flagging U.S. economy and open up more jobs for U.S. persons, or whether it will fail in that goal and yet yield dividends in terms of campaign strategy for the U.S. presidential election on November 3, 2020. Why is the Trump administration tightening the screws on its immigration policy?

It had earlier instituted a ban on visitors from certain Muslim-majority countries and periodically engaged in rhetoric on building a wall to stop undocumented workers from entering the U.S. from across its southern border. On April 21, the White House announced a 60-day halt in legal migration — effectively a ban on “green card” issuance. The gaping hole in this policy was the fact that the number of jobs purportedly saved from immigrants for U.S. persons was relatively small compared to the number of jobs going to foreign nationals who enter the U.S. on non-immigrant visas. Unemployment claims filed since the novel coronavirus pandemic hit the U.S. economy in March have crossed 40 million. Analysts argued that out of the million or so green cards that the U.S. issues annually, approximately only 358,000 would likely be impacted by the pause in immigration processing. It appears that the Trump administration has been seized of this fallacy in its immigration policy in this regard, and the proclamation of June 22 is likely to have been a remedial measure to bring non-immigrant work visas under the purview of the ban. The reasoning offered by the White House is that the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has “significantly disrupted Americans’ livelihoods”, to the extent that the overall unemployment rate in the country nearly quadrupled between February and May 2020 to a little over 13%. To what extent is the motive behind the visa ban political?

Despite the stated reasoning for the work visa ban, which is to protect U.S. persons from loss of livelihoods to foreign nationals, it is still unclear that tangible economic benefits of this sort can be achieved at this juncture. The reason is that the latest restrictions do not apply to visa-holders who are already within the U.S., or those who are outside the country and have already been issued valid visas. Given that the ban will remain in force until the end of the 2020 calendar year, this implies that U.S. firms or others with U.S. operations who rely on skilled foreign nationals working in the U.S. will be unable to make new hires as long as the ban stands. How many firms are likely to do any hiring at this economically depressed time? How many will do so before the end of the calendar year? If we assume, as we safely can, that the answer is “negligibly few”, then it is hard to see the Trump White House’s policy as anything other than a campaign tactic. What further policies do we expect on the visa ban?

If indeed these moves have been made keeping in mind the imperatives of the 2020 Republican presidential campaign, then that would be signalled by Mr. Trump seeking, in the months ahead, to build political capital in the name of the “America First” mantra — a foregone conclusion given his outspokenness on the subject to date.








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Google CEO Sundar Pichai wasted little time in responding to Mr. Trump’s latest visa proclamation tweeting, “Immigration has contributed immensely to America’s economic success, making it a global leader in tech, and also Google the company it is today. Disappointed by today’s proclamation — we’ll continue to stand with immigrants and work to expand opportunity for all.” Elon Musk, SpaceX founder and Tesla CEO, and Apple CEO Tim Cook, posted similar messages on social media. Will Indian corporations be hit?

The prospects of Indian IT majors building up their order books as they limp back through an economic recovery in India are, in the interim, likely to be seriously undermined by this move. What is more, this may come at a crucial inflection point for the Indian economy, even as restrictions on the movement of people and goods slowly lift after India passes its peak viral case numbers, thus leading to a knock on effect from IT to other sectors. India’s IT services exports to the U.S., which depend significantly on the H-1B visa, have been an important constituent element of bilateral economic trade. U.S. imports of services from India were an estimated $29.6 billion in 2018, 4.9% more than in 2017, and 134% greater than 2008 levels, according to the U.S. Trade Representative. The major services exports from India to the U.S. are in the telecommunications, computer and information services, research and development, and travel sectors. Until now, the U.S. issued 85,000 H-1B visas annually, of which 20,000 went to graduate students and 65,000 to private sector applicants, and Indian nationals would garner approximately 70% of these. Now the Migration Policy Institute has been cited predicting that up to 219,000 workers would be blocked as a result of Mr. Trump’s proclamation. What is the Indian government saying?

Its response has so far been muted, limited to highlighting the importance of highly-skilled Indian professionals to imparting a competitive edge to the U.S. economy. Nevertheless, that the high-skilled non-immigrant visa ban is a double-edged sword is amply demonstrated by the fact that the unemployment rate in the “Professional and Business Services” super-sector, which includes IT services, unemployment actually dropped between April and May 2020, and there remained almost 950,000 job openings in this sector nationwide despite the sharp hike in overall unemployment filings. If there is one assumption of the Trump administration’s immigration policies that is most likely to fail, it is that there are sufficient numbers of U.S. persons with the requisite skill set to perform the jobs that Mr. Trump is “protecting” for them. Source: The Hindu








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26. Amid pandemic, SE Asian nations warn of 'alarming' South China Sea

incidents Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; IOBR

Vietnam and the Philippines warned of growing insecurity in Southeast Asia at a regional summit on Friday amid concerns that China was stepping up its activity in the disputed South China Sea during the coronavirus pandemic. Both Hanoi and Manila lodged protests with China in April after Beijing unilaterally declared the creation of new administrative districts on islands in the troubled waterways to which Vietnam and the Philippines also have competing claims. China has been pushing its presence in the Exclusive Economic Zones of other countries while claimants are preoccupied tackling the COVID-19 pandemic, prompting the United States to call on China to stop its "bullying behaviour" there. About South China Sea Dispute

The South China Sea disputes involve both island and maritime claims among several sovereign states within the region, namely Brunei, the People's Republic of China (PRC), the Republic of China (ROC/Taiwan), Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Vietnam. An estimated US$3.37 trillion worth of global trade passes through the South China Sea annually, which accounts for a third of the global maritime trade. 80 percent of China's energy imports and 39.5 percent of China's total trade passes through the South China Sea. The disputes include the islands, reefs, banks, and other features of the South China Sea, including the Spratly Islands, Paracel Islands, Scarborough Shoal, and various boundaries in the Gulf of Tonkin. There are further disputes, including the waters near the Indonesian Natuna Islands, which many do not regard as part of the South China Sea. Claimant states are interested in retaining or acquiring the rights to fishing stocks, the exploration and potential exploitation of crude oil and natural gas in the seabed of various parts of the South China Sea, and the strategic control of important shipping lanes. Since 2013, the People's Republic of China has resorted to island building in the Spratly Islands and the Paracel Islands region. These actions have been met with a wide international condemnation, and since 2015 the United States and other states such as France and the United Kingdom have conducted freedom of navigation operations (FONOP) in the region. In July 2016, an arbitration tribunal constituted under Annex VII of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) ruled against the PRC's maritime claims in Philippines v. China. The tribunal did not rule on the ownership of the islands or delimit maritime boundaries. The People's Republic of China and the Republic of China (Taiwan) stated that they did not recognize the tribunal and insisted that the matter should be resolved through bilateral negotiations with other claimants.








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27. Pakistan has bought time, but it cannot back away from its

commitments to the FATF Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper II; IOBR

According to reports in Pakistan and India, the Financial Action Task Force, the global watchdog group, has decided to grant Pakistan and other countries on its watch list a three-month extension on fulfilling commitments, in view of the pandemic.








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Pakistan on Grey List since June 2018 Pakistan was placed on the grey list or “increased monitoring” list in June 2018, and given time until October 2019, in order to complete a 27-point action plan on countering terror finance and anti-money laundering. Failing that, it would be put on the black list of “high-risk jurisdictions” facing severe financial sanctions. This means that in effect, Pakistan will have had at least one extra year to meet its deadlines, despite the fact that it has only completed about 14 points so far. The remainder is still a tall order, and includes improving mechanisms to curb terror financing, amending laws to curb ‘Hawala’ transactions and placing sanctions against cash couriers who facilitate terror groups, completing the prosecution of groups banned by the UNSC, and converting madrassas run by them into formal schools. Each item demands more accountability by Pakistan on terror groups, as well as a shift within its ruling establishment on the benefits of allowing such groups to exist at all. Safe haven for terrorists Despite this being Pakistan’s third stint on the FATF watch list (prior occasions were in 2008 and 2012-2015), there is little evidence that it has yet internalised that message. In a U.S. report on terrorism released last week, Pakistan remains a “safe haven” for most UN proscribed groups. The report also adds that its steps to prosecute certain leaders of JeM and LeT are inadequate. In the past year, Pakistan has pursued indictments against LeT leaders, but not on serious charges, and even 26/11 mastermind Hafiz Saeed has only been convicted for “being part of a banned terrorist outfit” and for “having illegal property”. Meanwhile, LeT operations commanders Zaki Ur Rehman Lakhvi, Sajid Mir, and JeM chief Masood Azhar appear to be at large. Situation in Pakistan Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan’s reference in its Parliament to al-Qaeda founder Osama Bin Laden as a “martyr” underlines the establishment’s attitude to these groups. Pakistan’s failed attempt to have the UNSC designate four Indians as terrorists last week — it was vetoed by the U.S. — speaks to its lack of credibility on the issue. Pakistan is counting on its role in facilitating the Afghanistan peace deal by pushing Taliban leaders to participate in order to mitigate its troubles at the FATF, and with support from countries keen to conclude the Afghan deal, may even ensure a few more extensions for its government. Eventually, given the rigorous FATF action plan, and the combined pressure of countries in the group, Pakistan would do well to realise that only clear and consistent actions would free it from the commitments at the FATF. In any case, giving a free rein to terror groups cannot be in its own interest. Source: The Hindu








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Geography

1. Cyclone Nisarga Explained: How big is the threat on west coast? Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper I; Geography

Less than two weeks after a powerful cyclone passed through West Bengal on its way to Bangladesh, India is bracing to face another cyclone, this time on its western coast. In strength and intensity, this would be much weaker than Cyclone Amphan that struck on May 20. In fact, it is not even a full-fledged cyclone right now, just a ‘depression’ that is likely to intensify into a ‘deep depression’ by Tuesday morning, and eventually into a cyclone, after which it would be called Nisarga. Where is it headed?

It is headed towards the coastline of north Maharashtra and south Gujarat. It is likely to hit the coastline on Wednesday, between Harihareshwar in Raigad district, just south of Mumbai, and Daman, just below Gujarat coast. By that time, it is likely to evolve into a Severe Cyclonic Storm, which, roughly stated, is of strength 2 on a 1-to-5 of strength of cyclones that arise in the Indian Ocean.

What does that mean?

The strength of the cyclones are measured by the wind speeds they generate. At its strongest, Nisarga would be associated with wind speeds in the range 95-105 km per hour. Amphan, on the other hand, was classified as a super-cyclone, of category 5, though it had








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weakened to category 4, ‘Extremely Severe Cyclonic Storm’, ahead of its landfall, at which time the wind speeds were in excess of 180 kph. Cyclones formed in the Bay of Bengal side of the north Indian Ocean are more frequent and stonger than those on the Arabian Sea side. Meteorologists suggest the relatively cold waters of the Arabian Sea discourage the kind of very strong cyclones that are formed on the Bay of Bengal side; Odisha and Andhra Pradesh face the brunt of these cyclones every year. Last year, however, was slightly unusual as the Arabian Sea saw the most frequent and intense cyclonic activity in more than 100 years, according to India Meteorological Department. Five cyclones originated in the area in 2019 — Vayu, Hikka, Kyarr, Maha and Pavan – when normally only one or two are formed. So how big is the threat?

If the system does intensify into a cyclonic storm, some coastal districts of Maharashtra will come directly in line of its predicted path. Though the exact location of the landfall is still to be determined, it is likely to be close to Mumbai. Neighbouring Thane, Raigad, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg are also likely to be affected, and heavy to very heavy rainfall is predicted in these areas until June 4. The southwest monsoon has already made an onset over Kerala. There is an associated depression lying parallel to the west coast which is intensifying and moving northwards along the coast. Under such circumstances, the east-central and southeast regions of Arabian Sea are already experiencing rough weather conditions, which is likely to get intensified because of this cyclone. So, would Maharashtra get early monsoon rainfall?

No. The rainfall over the next three days in Maharashtra would not be due to the southwest monsoon, which is still to begin its northward movement from Kerala. Normally, monsoon arrives over Maharashtra after June 10. Source: The Indian Express

2. Assam gas leak: why it’s tough to plug, and what threat it poses to the area

Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper I; Geography

Since the morning of May 27, natural gas has been continuously flowing out of a gas well in Assam following a blowout — or a sudden, uncontrolled release of gas/oil. With authorities unable to control it, experts from a Singapore firm reached Assam today. Meanwhile,








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people from surrounding villages have been evacuated, while a variety of fish and an endangered Gangetic dolphin have died. Where is the oil rig?

The Baghjan 5 well is a purely gas-producing well in Tinsukia district, and is at an aerial distance of 900 metres from the Dibru-Saikhowa National Park. It was drilled by Oil India Limited (OIL) in 2006. It produces around 80,000 standard cubic metres per day (SCMD) of gas from a depth of 3,870 metres. As per officials, the current discharge is at 90,000 SCMD at a pressure of 4,200 PSI, far higher than the normal producing pressure of around 2,700 PSI. “It’s a very good reservoir, one of the most prolific gas reservoirs owned by OIL,” said Tridiv Hazarika, spokesperson of OIL. Why do blowouts happen? Sometimes, the pressure balance in a well may be disturbed leading to ‘kicks’ or changes in pressure. If these are not controlled in time, the ‘kicks’ can turn into a sudden blowout. “The force with which a pressure cooker releases steam is understandable. Imagine a situation where one million pressure cookers do the same in an uncontrolled manner,” said geologist Siddhartha Kumar Lahiri of Dibrugarh University. He cited many possible reasons behind blowouts, “from simple lack of attention, poor workmanship, bad maintenance, old age, sabotage to morpho-tectonic factors”. A device called a blowout preventer is usually installed in wells. The gas well at Baghjan was being serviced, and a new sand was being tested at another depth in the same well. “We were also repairing the existing well-head (the exposed top portion),” said Hazarika. “To repair the well-head, you need to temporarily ‘kill the well’ or shut down the producing zone,” said Hazarika. “The blowout preventer was also removed, since we were in the process of repairing the well-head. But suddenly, gas started to ooze out of the exposed well. Before anyone could do anything, it broke through our cement barrier,” he said. “How and why it happened, how the gas came out of the ‘killed zone’ is what we are inquiring into.” In the recent past, two comparable blowouts have happened in Assam: at an OIL-owned oil well in Dikhom (Dibrugarh) in 2005 and an ONGC-owned oil well in Rudrasagar in the 1970s. The latter took three months to contain. Why is it so difficult to control?

According to a Guwahati-based expert, “the control of a blowout depends on two things: the size of the reservoir and the pressure at which the gas/oil is flowing out. This reservoir was particularly difficult to control since it was a gas well and ran the risk of catching fire at any point”.








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While many blowouts automatically collapse on their own, it can take up to months. To control a blowout, the first step is to pump in water, so that the gas does not catch fire. “Sheer magnitude of the event invites specialists to douse the fire,” Professor Lahiri said. What is being done?

A crisis management team from OIL and ONGC intend to create a water umbrella to protect workers while they hook up the blowout preventer. “With very limited space and non-availability of open space above the well head, placement of the BOP is a huge challenge and entails a huge risk. It is planned to place the BOP on the well head through a hydraulically driven mechanical transporter,” OIL said in a release on Sunday. Drilling mud will have to be pumped in immediately after capping the well by the BOP. About the water umbrella, Hazarika said: “For that we have had to build a temporary reservoir, channel cables or temporary pipelines from the Dangori river nearby”. OIL has reached out to Singapore-based firm Alert Disaster Control, whose experts arrived in the state on Sunday. OIL said that they will carry out the first inspection of Baghjan gas well on Monday. How serious is the impact to the neighbourhood?

As many as 1,610 families with 2,500-3,000 people have been evacuated to relief camps. There are reports of deaths of a river dolphin, and a variety of fish. While the administration has kept an ambulance with paramedical staff on standby, locals have complained of symptoms such as burning of eyes, headache etc. As per Assam Pollution Control Board chairman, Y Suryanarayana, the gas — which is a mix of propane, methane, propylene and other gases — is flowing with the wind, towards the northeast. “That is a radius up to 5 km and condensate is mostly falling on bamboo, tea gardens, banana trees and betel nut trees,” he said. While the well is outside the Eco Sensitive Zone of the park, Tinsukia’s divisional forest officers (wildlife), Rajendra Singh Bharti said the boundary does not matter since the gas is moving through the air. “Condensate is falling into Dibru-Saikhowa National Park too,” he said. Also close is the Maguri-Motapung wetland —an Important Bird Area notified by the Bombay Natural History Society. “The park is famous for its birds, butterflies, wild cats, and feral horses,” said Bharti. “The impact is visible in the sense that you can see traces of condensate on the water bodies, the numbers of birds have decreased,” said Bharti, “Not because they have been killed but because they have flown away.” Source: The Indian Express








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3. Why Delhi earthquakes aren’t a signal Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper I; Geography

An earthquake of magnitude 2.1 was detected near Delhi on Monday. It was the eleventh minor earthquake recorded in and around Delhi since May, the most powerful of which happened to be of magnitude 3.4. These recent earthquakes have triggered discussions on the possibility of increased seismicity around Delhi, and fears of an impending big earthquake sometime soon. None of these apprehensions have any scientific basis. Is it unusual for Delhi to experience so many earthquakes in such a short time?

Scientists are unequivocal in asserting that no unusual seismic activity is taking place around Delhi in the last few months. “There is absolutely nothing happening in Delhi that can be called unusual or abnormal,” said Vineet Gehlot, former head of the National Centre for Seismology in Delhi, who is now at the Hyderabad-based National Geophysical Research Institute (NGRI). Detection of earthquakes, especially those of smaller magnitude, being recorded in an area also depends on the number of seismic recorders installed in that area. The area around Delhi has the most dense concentration of seismometers anywhere in the country, even more than the Himalayan region which is seismically much more active. Out of the 115 detectors installed in the country, 16 are in or around Delhi. As a result, even the earthquakes of smaller magnitude, those that are not even felt by most people, are recorded, and this information is publicly accessible. Do these small earthquakes foretell a bigger one?

Earthquakes of magnitude four or below hardly cause any damage anywhere and are mostly inconsequential for practical purposes. Thousands of such earthquakes are recorded around the world every year, and most of them are uneventful. And, they certainly do not signal any big upcoming event. “The concept of foreshocks is something that is largely applied in hindsight. When a big event happens, all the smaller earthquakes that have occurred in that region in the near past are classified as foreshocks. Foreshocks are post-event definitions. The description does not exist before any big earthquake has happened. So all this talk of these being foreshocks of a big earthquake in Delhi have no basis at all,” said Harsh Gupta, one of India’s foremost experts on earthquakes and a former director of NGRI. “A big earthquake might still occur. No one can rule it out. But they cannot be predicted. So to say that these small earthquakes are precursors to the big one is totally unscientific,” he said. What, then, is a signal to an upcoming earthquake?








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Scientists have been working for years to identify “precursors” to an earthquake, but have so far met with no success. Some special earthquakes, the ones that are triggered by volcanic activity, can be predicted to some extent. Predicting earthquakes in a region like Delhi is all the more difficult because the place does not lie on any faultlines. “I would say we still understand a little bit about the tectonics in the Himalayan region, where two tectonic plates are meeting each other. But Delhi does not lie on a plate boundary. It is located on a single plate, and the seismic activity is generated by internal deformities. Here, we understand even less. Therefore, predicting earthquakes in advance is out of the question,” Gehlot said. The Himalayan region, extending from the Hindu Kush to the Northeast and going south to Southeast Asia, is seismically one of the most active regions in the world. The region has experienced several big earthquakes in the past, most recently in 2015 in Nepal. Is a big one is coming to the region?

Scientists say that the Himalayan region is due for a big earthquake, of magnitude 8 or even higher. That is because they have been able to measure the energy that is getting trapped under the surface as a result of one tectonic plate trying to move beneath the other one. But even here, scientists have no idea when this big earthquake will occur. The prediction about the big one is based only on the estimate of the energy that is ready to be released. A magnitude 6 earthquake is typically associated with the kind of energy that was released by the atom bomb in Hiroshima. Since the magnitude of earthquakes are measured on a logarithmic scale, a magnitude 7 earthquake is about 32 times more powerful than a magnitude 6 earthquake. Accordingly, a magnitude 8 earthquake would be almost 1,000 times more powerful than a magnitude 6 event. Gupta said even the argument that the smaller quakes are helping release the energy bit by bit so that a big one would not be necessary also does not hold. “Delhi area has experienced earthquakes of magnitude between five and six, but fortunately not in the last 50-60 years… You would need 1,000 earthquakes of magnitude 4 to release the energy equivalent of a magnitude 6 earthquake. These arguments have no basis,” he said. So, is a big one coming to Delhi?

No one knows, but a more relevant question, Gupta said, is what even if we knew. “Supposing we know that a magnitude 6 earthquake is going to occur in Delhi at 11 am tomorrow. What can we do after that? Can we get the entire city evacuated? Is that possible? Prediction is not going to make us safe against earthquakes. What is important is that we need to make our structures earthquake resistant, we need to follow prescribed drills when an event happens, everyone must know what is the best place to run to when we are in office, or at home, or in open spaces. It is these kinds of discussions that are meaningful. Instead, what we see is speculation, rumours and half-baked information in public discussions,” he said.








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So a big earthquake is very much possible in Delhi. No one is ruling out that possibility. But they would occur when they have to. Earthquakes still like to come unannounced. They do not like to knock on our doors with foreshocks. Source: The Indian Express

Economics

1. Forex reserves hit all-time high on FDI, FPI inflows, fall in import

expenditure

Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Economics

Even as the coronavirus pandemic continued to spread and impact inflow of funds by foreign portfolio investors, foreign exchange reserves hit an all-time high of $490 billion in the week-ended May 22 on account of foreign direct investments (FDI), net inflow of funds by FPIs in domestic equities over the last couple of weeks and a sharp decline in import expenditure following impact of pandemic on global trade. While the foreign exchange reserves started to decline after hitting a high of $487 billion in the week ended March 6 on account of the pandemic, it has risen over the last four consecutive weeks and has grown by $10.5 billion from $479.5 billion on April 24 to $490 billion on May 22. Rise in value of rupee

The rise in foreign exchange reserves have resulted into strengthening in the value of the rupee against the US dollar. Source: The Indian Express

2. What RBI discontinuing 7.75% saving bonds means to investors Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Economics

After the cut in deposit rates by the banks and a cut in small savings rate by the government over the last couple of months, the Reserve Bank of India on Wednesday said the Government of India has discontinued 7.75 per cent savings (taxable) bonds, 2018 for subscription with effect from the close of banking business on Thursday. While the move comes in line with the cut in repo rate by the RBI and subsequent cut in deposit rates by banks and small savings rate by the government, the move will deprive investors of another saving instrument that yielded relatively higher post tax returns for investors.








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What are 7.75 per cent RBI bonds?

The 7.75 bonds 2018 were issued with effect from January 10, 2018 and were available for subscription to resident citizens/HUF to invest in a taxable bond. While one bond was of Rs 1,000 each, the bonds had no maximum limit for investment. The bonds had a 7-year lock-in period from the date of issue, but, it permitted premature encasement to individuals who were 60 years and above. Interest on these bonds will be taxable under the Income-tax Act, 1961. What has happened now?

The government has withdrawn these bonds with effect from Friday and therefore it will not be available for investors to invest. This means it is only ceasing fresh issuance and not redeeming those already invested. Those whose cheque’s got submitted and cleared till yesterday will get 7.75 per cent. Was it in high demand?

Investment advisors say that while it was mostly used by HNIs to invest, the demand for RBI bonds went up significantly over the last couple of months as investors turned risk averse. Even as the post-tax returns were low as compared to PSU-debt, experts say investors rushed for it as they saw it as the safest investment instrument available. “At this time investors are not looking for return for for the safety of their capital and so many investors were investing in these instruments purely for reasons of safety of their capital,” said Surya Bhatia of Asset Managers, an investment advisory firm. How did it fare against other options?

As the 7.75 per cent RBI bonds were taxable instruments, the interest income on it would be taxable at the marginal tax rate. For those having income of over Rs 5 crore and having interest income from these bonds, the return would be 4.44 per cent. For those falling in the tax bracket of 30 per cent, the return from these bonds would stand at 5.4 per cent, while for those falling in the lowest tax bracket of 10 per cent, the post-tax return would be 6.975 per cent. In April 2020, the government announced a cut in the small savings rate. While the rates for PPF were cut from 7.9 per cent earlier to 7.1 per cent, that on Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana was brought down to 7.6 per cent from 8.4% earlier. In comparison, SBI is currently offering 5.3 per cent for a term deposit of 3-5 years and 5.4 per cent on term despots of 5-10 years. The post-tax return for those falling in 30 per cent tax bracket would stand at 3.71 per cent and 3.78 per cent respectively. Experts say that PSU debt papers offer post tax return of around 7 per cent. Why the cut in rates?

The interest rates have been on a decline since the global growth rate projections have been brought down following the spread of coronavirus Pandemic. The Reserve Bank of India first announced a 75 basis point cut in repo rate on March 27, 2020 to 4.4 per cent








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and then again announced a cut in repo rate by 40 basis points to 4 per cent on May 22. A cut in repo rates not only reduces the rate at which commercial banks borrow from RBI but also leads to a cut in deposit and lending rates for banks. The RBIs move to cut in repo rate has been to push credit growth and demand in the economy in a bid to augur growth in the economy.


3. Why Moody’s downgraded India’s rating, what the implications may be Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Economics

On Monday, Moody’s Investors Service (“Moody’s”) downgraded the Government of India’s foreign-currency and local-currency long-term issuer ratings to “Baa3” from “Baa2”. It stated that the outlook remained “negative”. The latest downgrade reduces India to the lowest investment grade of ratings and brings Moody’s — which is historically the most optimistic about India — ratings for the country in line with the other two main rating agencies in the world — Standard & Poor’s (S&P) and Fitch (see attached chart on the brief history of India’s sovereign rating).

What is the reason for this downgrade?

There are four main reasons why Moody’s has taken the decision. 1. Weak implementation of economic reforms since 2017 2. Relatively low economic growth over a sustained period








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3. A significant deterioration in the fiscal position of governments (central and state) 4. And the rising stress in India’s financial sector In November last year, Moody’s changed the outlook on India’s Baa2 rating to “negative” from “stable” precisely because these risks were increasing. Since many of the apprehensions that it had in November 2019 have come through, Moody’s has downgraded the rating to “Baa3” from “Baa2”, while maintaining the negative outlook. In its official statement, Moody’s said, “The decision to downgrade India’s ratings reflects Moody’s view that the country’s policymaking institutions will be challenged in enacting and implementing policies which effectively mitigate the risks of a sustained period of relatively low growth, significant further deterioration in the general government fiscal position and stress in the financial sector”. What does “negative” outlook mean? “The negative outlook reflects dominant, mutually-reinforcing, downside risks from deeper stresses in the economy and financial system that could lead to a more severe and prolonged erosion in fiscal strength than Moody’s currently projects”. In particular, Moody’s has highlighted persistent structural challenges to fast economic growth such as “weak infrastructure, rigidities in labor, land and product markets, and rising financial sector risks”. In other words, a “negative” implies India could be rated down further. Is the downgrade because of Covid-19 impact? No. Moody’s was categorical that while this downgrade is taking place “in the context of the Coronavirus pandemic, it was not driven by the impact of the pandemic”. According to Moody’s “the pandemic amplifies vulnerabilities in India’s credit profile that were present and building prior to the shock, and which motivated the assignment of a negative outlook last year”. Then, why did the downgrade happen? More than two years ago, in November 2017, Moody’s had upgraded India’s rating to “Baa2” with a “stable” outlook. At that time, it expected that “effective implementation of key reforms would strengthen the sovereign’s credit profile” through a gradual but persistent improvement in economic, institutional and fiscal strength.








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But those hopes were belied. Since that upgrade in 2017, implementation of reforms has been “relatively weak and has not resulted in material credit improvements, indicating limited policy effectiveness,” according to Moody’s. The low effectiveness of policy and the resulting loss of growth momentum is evidenced in the sharp deceleration in India’s GDP growth rates. The provisional estimates for 2019-20 were pegged at 4.2% — the lowest annual growth in a decade — and even these estimates are likely to be revised down further. Poor growth has been made worse by worsening government (both Centre and state-level) finances. Each year, the central government has failed to meet its fiscal deficit (essentially the total borrowings from the market) target. This has led to a steady accretion of total government debt. Total government debt (measured as a percentage of GDP) is nothing but the debt till the last year and the fiscal deficit of the current year. According to Moody’s, even before “the coronavirus outbreak, at an estimated 72% of GDP in fiscal 2019, India’s general government (combined central and state governments) debt burden was 30 percentage points larger than the Baa median”. In other words, government debt was already quite high. This already high number is expected to go up to 84% of the GDP just within 2020 — thanks to governments being forced to borrow even more, in a big part because their revenues are likely dry up as the economy contracts. What will be the implications of this downgrade?

As explained above, ratings are based on the overall health of the economy and the state of government finances. A rating downgrade means that bonds issued by the Indian governments are now “riskier” than before, because weaker economic growth and worsening fiscal health undermine a government’s ability to pay back. Lower risk is better because it allows governments and companies of that country to raise debts at a lower rate of interest. When India’s sovereign rating is downgraded, it becomes costlier for the Indian government as well as all Indian companies to raise funds because now the world sees such debt as a riskier proposition. What is Moody’s outlook on economic growth, jobs and per capita income? Moody’s expects India’s real GDP to contract by 4.0% in the current financial year. Thereafter it expects a sharp recovery in 2021-22. But over the longer term, it states “growth rates are likely to be materially lower than in the past, due to persistent weak private sector investment, tepid job creation and an impaired financial system”.








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It states that “a prolonged period of slower growth may dampen the pace of improvements in living standards…” Source: The Indian Express

4. Union Cabinet nod for agricultural marketing reforms Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Economics

The Union Cabinet has approved an amendment to the 65-year-old Essential Commodities Act, removing cereals, pulses, oilseeds, edible oils, onion and potatoes from the list of essential commodities. The amendment will be made effective immediately via an ordinance, according to the Agriculture Ministry. Restrictions on selling of produce ended

At its meeting on Wednesday, the Cabinet also approved ordinances to remove restrictions on farmers selling their produce outside notified market yards, as well as to facilitate contract farming and allow farmers to engage in direct marketing, according to an official statement. Protection to consumers

To protect consumers, the amendment allows regulation during war, famine, extraordinary price rise and natural calamity, while providing exemptions for exporters and processors at such times as well. Ordinance

The Farming Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Ordinance, 2020 aims to open up agricultural marketing outside notified mandis for farmers, and also remove barriers to inter-State trade. While both agriculture and markets are State subjects, the Centre is counting on the fact that trade and commerce in foodstuffs is part of the concurrent list to push through its ordinance. What is the present Situation?

In fact, industry sources suggest that 60% of agricultural trade already takes place outside the mandis through unregulated sales. By legalising and facilitating such sales, the Centre hopes that farmers will benefit, rather than middlemen. Not all States have been on board with these reforms, especially as State governments will not be allowed to levy fees on these sales. The Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement on Price Assurance and Farm Services Ordinance, 2020 is aimed at facilitating contract farming, where a private buyer contracts to purchase a crop at a certain price at the beginning of a season, transferring the








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risk of market unpredictability from the farmer to the corporate sponsor. However, farmers groups have expressed concern that corporates will benefit more than small farmers from such direct marketing measures, and wish to see the specific provisions of the ordinance before welcoming it.

Source: The Hindu

5. Despite Govt’s big MSME push, entrepreneurs are guarded in their optimism. Four reasons why Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Economics

The biggest thrust of the central government’s relief package has been on Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), but as the pandemic endures, this segment of India’s industry does not appear to be optimistic about the prospects and road ahead. A survey by an industry body, All India Manufacturers’ Organisation (AIMO), of 46,525 MSMEs, self-employed, corporate CEOs, and employees conducted online between May 24-30 had 35 per cent of MSMEs and 37 per cent of the self-employed respondents saying that their enterprises were beyond recovery. A slightly lower 32 per cent of MSMEs said a recovery would take six months, and just 12 per cent expected a recovery in less than three months. Only 3 per cent of MSMEs, 6 per cent of corporates, and 11 per cent of the self-employed respondents said they would stay unaffected and would continue to do well, primarily since they were engaged in supply of essential services during the lockdown. So, what explains this pessimism?

There could be four main reasons for the downbeat mood. They were troubled already, lockdown has made things worse The problems faced by the MSME sector, which makes up about 45 per cent of the country’s total manufacturing output, 40 per cent of its exports, almost 30 per cent of the national GDP, and employs an estimated 11 crore persons, precede the pandemic. While both demonetisation and the faulty implementation of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime hit this sector the most, the mess in the banking sector and subsequent problems with the Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) further impacted MSMEs, depleting their internal reserves, and exacerbating the low visibility of demand.








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A LocalCircles survey in April — the first month of the lockdown — had pointed to 74 per cent start-ups and small businesses (out of 13,970 responses) saying that they expected to shut down or scale down their businesses in the following six months. The problems were already festering. The lockdown impact has come on top of this, compounding them further. Financial channels are mostly informal, credit guarantee of limited help The dissatisfaction over the government’s MSME package, in particular at the lack of fiscal support which would share some of the costs inflicted by the pandemic lockdown, is based on the view that the proposals on credit guarantee has limited relevance for the sector as a whole, given that only a little over 15% of the Rs 70 lakh crore MSME credit demand was met by formal financial channels. Willingness of lenders uncertain, so too the availability of future resources to service loan While the extension in moratorium on term loan instalments is aimed at providing relief to borrowers and companies facing cash flow problems, much of the intended relief will come through only if banks are willing to take the bait and lend. It’s a divided house on whether this will happen as planned. Plus, much of this intervention is aimed at firms whose loan accounts continue to remain standard up to a cut-off date. A majority of smaller units are already behind on this count, given that their receivables from customers — larger companies and state-owned units — are way behind schedule. For leveraged companies facing a cash crunch, the moratorium of 6 months is intended to provide survival time. But for a unit owner to borrow to essentially meet working capital expenses during a period where hardly any production happened, the interest rate will be a key determining factor, the facility of collateral-free loans notwithstanding. Also, the concern among MSMEs is that with the additional loans, they would have to earn a sizable amount to service the loans after 12 months. A lot of payments are pending, and there is no confidence they will be cleared soon

The total outstanding payments to units in the MSME sector is pegged at upwards of Rs 5 lakh crore, with the larger private companies and government entities accounting for a big chunk of this. Most MSME players are not convinced by the government’s assurance of dues being cleared in 45 days. Similar assurances have been handed out in the past, but have not been fulfilled.








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In September last year, then Expenditure Secretary G C Murmu had said that of the outstanding non-litigated MSME dues of Rs 60,000 crore, a payment of Rs 40,000 crore had been cleared. But not much has moved on the ground, say MSME representative bodies such as AIMO. As per industry estimates by AIMO, almost 30 per cent of the outstanding amounts are due over 120 days, 45 per cent are between 60 to 120 days, and the rest below 60 days. An estimated amount of over 60 per cent is pending from state governments and their undertakings. There is a lack of conviction among MSME units that the government’s fiat will work, especially since a bulk of the dues are on account of state government entities and larger private companies.


6. Investments continue to rain in on Jio, raises further 13K crores in a

day in twin transactions Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Economics

Jio Platforms, the telecom and digital business wing of the Reliance Industries continues to be the darling of the big foreign investors. It has just raised Rs. 13,640 crores by selling stakes in two separate transactions. Till date, Jio has attracted an investment of just over Rs 92,200 crores from six investors by selling a total of nearly 20% of its stake to them. About the Twin deals

The first of the two deals saw Jio raising Rs. 9,093 crores from Mubadala Investment, Abu Dhabi’s 2nd-largest sovereign investor. The latter got a 1.85% stake in exchange of it.

Under the other transaction, Silver Lake which had ☝️already invested Rs. 5,655 crores in Jio

in early May will invest a further Rs. 4,546 crores along with its co-investors. This will take its stake in Jio to 2.08%. Takes Jio on a high These twin investments peg Jio Platforms’ equity value at Rs 4.91 lakh crore and enterprise value at Rs 5.16 lakh crore. The stake sales are part of Reliance’s plan to be debt-free at the end of FY20. It is likely to do that before the targeted period considering the fact, that the company has already raised over Rs. 53,000 crores from a just-concluded rights issue.








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Big Future Plans

Reliance is keen to transform itself from an oil and petrochemicals major into a consumer technology giant. It aims to build Jio Platforms into a digital entity on the lines of global giants, Alphabet and Tencent.

7. How many migrant workers displaced? A range of estimates Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Economics

A problem in dealing with issues relating to migrant labour after the lockdown was announced on March 25 has been the absence of firm estimates of the number of displaced. Various govt estimates: Last week, the Chief Labour Commissioner put the figure at 26 lakh migrants stranded across the country, of whom 10% are said to be in relief camps, 43% on work sites and 46% in other clusters. The Solicitor General, on the other hand, informed the Supreme Court of 97 lakh who had been transported back home. Among the states, UP has said 21.69 lakh workers had returned, and UP itself had sent back 1.35 lakh. Bihar has said 10 lakh had returned; Maharashtra has said 11 lakh have left the state. Gujarat said 20.5 lakh had gone back home. West Bengal said 3,97,389 migrant workers from other states were still stranded. Karnataka said in court that the state had facilitated the return of 3 lakh migrant workers. Scholars and those watching migration estimate those dislocated to be many more. Chinmay Tumbe, 3 crore: He puts India’s reverse migration since mid-March “conservatively at 30 million or 3 crore or 15-20% of the urban workforce”. This is conservative because a lot of intra-state migration is not accounted for. He is not so sure if train journeys are a good approximation, because most returned by road rather than rail. “Phase 1, just before the lockdown, saw people go back for Holi. A conservative estimate of 5 million based on old passenger traffic data as the number that stayed on, mostly within-state migration. Phase 2 (March 25-April 30) started with a rush, especially from Delhi and other places where some state governments did arrange for buses. Based on numerous reports on this and district-border crossings, I estimate 5 million as a very conservative number, mostly within-state migration. For Phase 3 in May, with Shramik trains (5 million people) and road transport options saw the maximum exodus, with 20 million as a very conservative figure, most of which is inter-state migration.” He regards the Shramik trains as useful to help measure “because it’s the only firm number available, across states.” Prof Amitabh Kundu & colleagues, 2.2 crore: The economist and demographer, along with K Verghese and Khalid Khan, has made estimates of “interstate migrants who have been economically destabilised during March-April 2020. The estimated number is 22 million (the break up being 16 million internal migrants and 6 million short-duration migrants








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destabilised).” But not all of these have returned. “Of these, about 12 million have returned. Possibly 60% of the rest would stay back. About 4 million would still want go back before the kharif season harvesting begins, unless there is sudden spurt in urban economy in the next couple of weeks.” Dr Noman Maajid, 5 million: He works with the ILO Decent Work Team for South Asia. In a paper for The India Forum, he said: “The overall number… is likely to be around 5 million in the first wave — persons who find themselves without shelter and have been mostly casually employed.” Scholars believe the absence of even an estimate of the numbers is evidence of the neglect migrant workers have faced. Source: The Indian Express

8. The importance of India’s rising forex reserves amid Covid economic crisis Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Economics

Unlike in 1991, when India had to pledge its gold reserves to stave off a major financial crisis, the country can now depend on its soaring foreign exchange reserves to tackle any crisis on the economic front. While the situation is gloomy on the economic front with the GDP growth in the contraction mode for the first time in 40 years and manufacturing activity and trade at standstill, there’s still some reason to cheer about amidst the raging Covid-19 pandemic: India’s foreign exchange reserves are rising and are slated to hit the $500 billion mark soon. In the month of May, forex reserves jumped by $12.4 billion to an all-time high of $493.48 billion (around Rs 37.30 lakh crore) for the week ended May 29. The level of foreign exchange reserves has steadily increased by 8,400 per cent from $5.8 billion as of March 1991 to the current level. What are forex reserves?

Forex reserves are external assets in the form gold, SDRs (special drawing rights of the IMF) and foreign currency assets (capital inflows to the capital markets, FDI and external commercial borrowings) accumulated by India and controlled by the Reserve Bank of India. The International Monetary Fund says official foreign exchange reserves are held in support of a range of objectives like supporting and maintaining confidence in the policies for monetary and exchange rate management including the capacity to intervene in support of the national or union currency. It will also limit external vulnerability by








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maintaining foreign currency liquidity to absorb shocks during times of crisis or when access to borrowing is curtailed. Why are forex reserves rising despite the slowdown in the economy?

The major reason for the rise in forex reserves is the rise in investment in foreign portfolio investors in Indian stocks and foreign direct investments (FDIs). Foreign investors had acquired stakes in several Indian companies in the last two months. After pulling out Rs 60,000 crore each from debt and equity segments in March, Foreign Portfolio Investments (FPIs), who expect a turnaround in the economy later this financial year, have now returned to the Indian markets and bought stocks worth over $2.75 billion in the first week of June. Forex inflows are set to rise further and cross the $500 billion as Reliance Industries subsidiary, Jio Platforms, has witnessed a series of foreign investments totaling Rs 97,000 crore. On the other hand, the fall in crude oil prices has brought down the oil import bill, saving the precious foreign exchange. Similarly, overseas remittances and foreign travels have fallen steeply – down 61 per cent in April from $12.87 billion. The months of May and June are expected to show further decline in dollar outflows. What’s the significance of rising forex reserves?

The rising forex reserves give a lot of comfort to the government and the Reserve Bank of India in managing India’s external and internal financial issues at a time when the economic growth is set to contract by 1.5 per cent in 2020-21. It’s a big cushion in the event of any crisis on the economic front and enough to cover the import bill of the country for a year. The rising reserves have also helped the rupee to strengthen against the dollar. The foreign exchange reserves to GDP ratio is around 15 per cent. Reserves will provide a level of confidence to markets that a country can meet its external obligations, demonstrate the backing of domestic currency by external assets, assist the government in meeting its foreign exchange needs and external debt obligations and maintain a reserve for national disasters or emergencies. What does the RBI do with the forex reserves?

The Reserve Bank functions as the custodian and manager of forex reserves, and operates within the overall policy framework agreed upon with the government. The RBI allocates the dollars for specific purposes. For example, under the Liberalised Remittances Scheme, individuals are allowed to remit up to $250,000 every year. The RBI uses its forex kitty for the orderly movement of the rupee. It sells the dollar when the rupee weakens and buys the dollar when the rupee strengthens. Of late, the RBI has been buying dollars from the market to shore up the forex reserves. When the RBI mops up dollars, it releases an equal amount in the rupees. This excess liquidity is sterilized through issue of bonds and securities and LAF operations. “Despite the global dollar weakness, the RBI does not seem to be keen to step off the gas as far as reserve accumulation is concerned… the sentiment in the rupee has been skewed by incessant dollar purchases by the central bank to strengthen its balance sheet,” said Abhishek Goenka, CEO, IFA Global.








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Where are India’s forex reserves kept?

The RBI Act, 1934 provides the overarching legal framework for deployment of reserves in different foreign currency assets and gold within the broad parameters of currencies, instruments, issuers and counterparties. As much as 64 per cent of the foreign currency reserves is held in the securities like Treasury bills of foreign countries, mainly the US, 28 per cent is deposited in foreign central banks and 7.4 per cent is also deposited in commercial banks abroad, according to the RBI data. India also held 653.01 tonnes of gold as of March 2020, with 360.71 tonnes being held overseas in safe custody with the Bank of England and the Bank for International Settlements, while the remaining gold is held domestically. In value terms (USD), the share of gold in the total foreign exchange reserves increased from about 6.14 per cent as at end-September 2019 to about 6.40 per cent as at end-March 2020. Is there a cost involved in maintaining forex reserves? The return on India’s forex reserves kept in foreign central banks and commercial banks is negligible. While the RBI has not divulged the return on forex investment, analysts say it could be around one per cent, or even less than that, considering the fall in interest rates in the US and Euro zone. There was a demand from some quarters that forex reserves should be used for infrastructure development in the country. However, the RBI had opposed the plan. Several analysts argue for giving greater weightage to return on forex assets than on liquidity thus reducing net costs if any, of holding reserves. Another issue is the high ratio of volatile flows (portfolio flows and short-term debt) to reserves which is around 80 per cent. This money can exit at a fast pace. There are some differences among academics on the direct as well as indirect costs and benefits of the level of forex reserves, from the point of view of macro-economic policy, financial stability and fiscal or quasi-fiscal impact, former RBI Governor YV Reddy said in one of his speeches. Source: The Indian Express

9. Why companies are going for rights issue amidst Covid-19 pandemic Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Economics

Reliance Industries Limited recently concluded its rights issue, raising a total of Rs 53,124 crore and witnessing an oversubscription of 1.59 times or received applications worth over Rs 84,000 crore. Moreover, reports suggest that several companies, including Mahindra finance, Tata Power, Shriram Transport Finance among others plan to raise funds (aggregating to over Rs 10,000 crore) through rights issue amidst the Covid-19 pandemic. While the success of RIL and the big demand shows that there is investor appetite in the market for good companies with strong credentials at a good price, it is important to note that the capital markets regulator, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI),








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undertook certain reforms over the last one year that has made rights issue a more efficient process and has provided temporary relaxations to companies in order to ease raising of funds. What is rights issue?

A rights issues is a mechanism by which companies can raise additional capital from existing shareholders. While existing shareholders may not necessarily be able to participate in other fund-raising mechanisms like QIPs, preferential allotment etc, rights issue is a more democratic approach to raising funds as it allows the existing shareholders the right to invest first in the company. Why are companies going for rights issue in current times? For a rights issue, there is no requirement of shareholders’ meeting and an approval from the board of directors is sufficient and adequate. Therefore, the turnaround time for raising this capital is short and is much suited for the current situation unlike other forms that require shareholders’ approval and may take some time to fructify. Thus the rights issue are a more efficient mechanism of raising capital.

Has the regulator made changes to ease rights issue?

Over the last one year, SEBI has undertaken significant steps to reform the rights issue process. While SEBI made some permanent reforms in the process, it also provided some temporary relaxations in the wake of Covid-19 pandemic.

What were the temporary relaxations provided in the wake of Covid-19 by SEBI?

In a bid to expand the universe of listed entities that are eligible for raising funds through fast track rights issuance and ease the process for companies to raise funds during the present crisis, SEBI relaxed certain guidelines for right issues that open on or before March 31, 2021. While it reduced the eligibility requirement of average market capitalisation of public shareholding from Rs 250 crore to Rs 100 crore for a fast track rights issuance, the regulator also reduced the minimum subscription requirement from 90 per cent to 75 per cent of the issue size. Also, listed entities raising funds upto Rs 25 crores (erstwhile limit was Rs 10 crores) through a rights issue are now not required to file draft offer document with SEBI. What are the reforms undertaken by SEBI for rights issue?

In November 2019, SEBI streamlined the rights issue process and the timelines for completion was significantly reduced from T+55 days to T+31 days — a 40 per cent cut in the time. It has also reduced the advance notice for the record date from seven working days to three working days.








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In a major move that makes it possible for eligible investors to subscribe and trade their rights entitlement (RE) and also makes it possible for interested investors to subscribe to more shares than they are eligible for, Sebi on January 22, 2020, laid down the detailed procedure of the improved rights issue process and the dematerialised REs framework. While the previous process of trading rights entitlement entailing physical settlement was marred with low liquidity, the decision to dematerialise the REs and permitting their trading through stock exchange framework ensures higher liquidity and determination of a fair market price for REs. Shareholders with small holdings, who were earlier not able to renounce REs for lack of an accessible platform, can renounce and trade their REs easily now. This reform enables all shareholders to renounce-cum-trade their entitlements and obtain a fair market price for the same. For shareholders who want to invest more, this also provides them with the opportunity to buy more shares from those who are willing to trade their REs in the market. Source: The Indian Express

10. How Covid-19 could affect aviation in the long run Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Economics

Researchers have assessed the initial impact of Covid-19 on air transport and found that it is likely to lead to a smaller, consolidated sector in the future. The research, led by Cranfield University, involved a series of in-depth interviews with senior aviation industry executives, along with analysis of flight and air freight data. The paper is published in the Journal of Transport Geography. In the drop in flight numbers since March, data showed the impact has been stronger in international than domestic markets. Interviewees thought the crisis would lead to consolidation and a significantly smaller industry. “Along with other sectors of the economy, air traffic is vulnerable to external factors, such as oil crises, natural disasters, armed conflicts, terrorist attacks, economic recessions and disease outbreaks. The findings of this paper represent an early assessment that can help the aviation industry and other related industries like tourism in the preparation for the recovery period,” Dr Pere Suau-Sanchez, Senior Lecturer in Air Transport Management at Cranfield University, said in a statement.

Covid-19 consequences highlighted by the interviewees included:








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* Full-service network carriers are likely to be major losers since the recovery in international markets will be slower and they may face new competition with the potential entry of new airlines in their home hub markets. * Regional airlines were identified as possible short-term winners during the recovery period as they could potentially help FSNCs adjust their feeding capacity. * Low-cost carriers are expected to concentrate in primary markets with possible entry in hub airports, and a general reduction in frequencies at the route level. * Regional and secondary airports are likely to lose out as capacity is freed up in larger markets, attracting airlines and enabling larger hub airports to reinforce their positions. Interviewees were concerned about the recovery of business travel, mainly due to the cancellation of meetings, incentives, conferencing and exhibitions (MICE) events, and the uneven lift of travel bans. Teleworking was seen as a serious threat to demand, with the current context of digital transformation and cloud apps offering better solutions for teleworking than the traditional videoconference. The leisure passenger segment was expected to be recover faster. But reduced disposable incomes would curtail propensity to fly. Fear and health concerns were identified as major issues for leisure travellers, more so than for business travellers. All interviewees believed new health screening controls would translate into higher costs for airports and passengers, but did not consider social distancing to be a viable commercial option for airlines. Source: The Indian Express

11. How fuel price decontrol works — or why consumers always lose out Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Economics

In theory, retail prices of petrol and diesel in India are linked to the global crude prices. There is supposed to be complete decontrol of consumer-end prices of auto fuels and others such as the aviation turbine fuel or ATF. Which means that if crude prices fall, as has largely been the trend since February, retails prices should come down too, and vice versa. Has that been happening?

No. Auto fuel prices were hiked for the sixth day in a row Friday since oil companies restarted revising prices starting Sunday, after an 82-day hiatus. In the last six days, the petrol price has gone up by Rs 3.31 per litre and diesel by Rs 3.42. This coincided with oil benchmarks heading for their first weekly declines, with Brent and US crude index (WTI)








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dropping about 10 per cent, breaking a rally that pushed oil off its April low as the market reconciled with the reality that Covid-19 may be far from over. So, why the divergence in the trends?

One main reason: Oil price decontrol is a one-way street in India — when global prices go up, this is passed on to the consumer, who has to cough up more for every litre of fuel consumed. But when the reverse happens and prices go down, the government — almost by default — slaps fresh taxes and levies to ensure that it rakes in extra revenues, even as the consumer, who should have ideally benefited by way of lower pump prices, is short changed and forced to either pay what she’s already paying, or even more. The key beneficiary in this subversion of price decontrol is the government. The consumer is a clear loser, alongside fuel retailing companies as well. How does decontrol work?

Price decontrol essentially offers fuel retailers such as Indian Oil, HPCL or BPCL the freedom to fix prices of petrol or diesel based on calculations of their own cost and profits — essentially a factor of the price at which the source their inputs from upstream oil companies such as ONGC Ltd or OIL India Ltd, for whom the price benchmark is derived from global crude prices. Fuel price decontrol has been a step-by-step exercise, with the government freeing up prices of ATF in 2002, petrol in the year 2010 and diesel in October 2014. Prior to that, the Government used to intervene in fixing the price at which the fuel retailers used to sell diesel or petrol. While fuels such as domestic LPG and kerosene still are under price control, for other fuels such as petrol, diesel or ATF, the price is supposed to be reflective of the price movements of the so-called Indian basket of crude oil (which represents a derived basket comprising a variety — ‘sour grade’ (Oman and Dubai average) and ‘sweet grade’ (Brent) — of crude oil processed in Indian refineries). Why haven’t consumers benefited now despite the sharp fall in crude prices since February?

Crude prices nosedived from an average of about $55 per barrel in February to $35 in early March, and then falling to $20 by end March as demand slumped because of the pandemic. From that point, the prices have recovered to around $37 now. On the other hand, in India, retail prices of fuel were frozen for a record 82-days that covered much of this period, even as the excise duty on fuels was hiked by the Centre twice. While the government claimed that the impact of the hike was not passed on to consumers, the latter, however, did not benefit from this fall in crude oil prices to record low levels. Apart from the Centre, a number of states too hiked the levies on auto fuels during this period. The decision to raise the duties, Finance Ministry officials said, was taken in view of the tight fiscal situation and that retail prices were unchanged. So, effectively, the excise duty hikes by the centre was to be adjusted by the OMCs against the fall in oil prices. But now, the retail prices are being progressively hiked. Are India’s taxes on fuels high?








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On May 5, the Centre announced one of the steepest ever hikes in excise duty by Rs 13 per litre on diesel and Rs 10 per litre on petrol, following up on another round of sharp hikes in the first week of March. All of this effectively cements India’s position as the country with among the highest taxes on fuel. Prior to the increase in excise duty (in February 2020), the government, centre plus states was collecting around 107 per cent taxes, (Excise Duty and VAT) on the base price of petrol and 69 per cent in the case of diesel. Post the first revision the government was able to collect around 134 per cent taxes, (Excise Duty and VAT) on the base price of petrol and 88 per cent in the case of diesel (as on March 16, 2020). With the second revision in excise duty in May, the government is collecting around 260 per cent taxes, (Excise Duty and VAT) on the base price of petrol and 256 per cent in the case of diesel (as on 6th May 2020), according to estimates by CARE Ratings. In comparison, taxes on fuels as a percentage of pump prices was around 65 per cent of the retail price in Germany and Italy, 62 per cent in the UK, 45 per cent in Japan and under 20 per cent in the US. Now, as countries get their economies back on track, oil prices have been moving upwards from the lows seen in April. So, as OMCs pass these hikes on, consumers are forced to bear the increase in global crude prices and face up to the harsh reality — that every time the crude price drops sharply, the government uses the opportunity to fill up its coffers while pump prices for the consumer barely change. But when the reverse happens, consumers are forced to pay up more. So the government gets to encash the upside while the consumers have to make good the downside. Do OMCs also benefit?

The only entity that benefits at the consumers expense is the government — in fact, both the Central and state governments. OMCs, interestingly, are also among the losers from the sharp downward gyrations in oil prices. The problem for companies such as IOC or BPCL is that a continuous slide in fuel prices leads to the prospect of inventory losses — a technical term for the losses incurred when crude oil prices start falling and companies that have sourced the crude oil at higher prices discover that the prices have tumbled by the time the product reaches the refinery for processing or the finished product is ready for selling. Including both crude oil and products, companies such as IOC keep an inventory of about 20-50 days. For oil refiners, the inventory loss was pegged at over Rs 25,000 crore in the January-March quarter because of the 70 per cent fall in crude oil prices, and a likely plunge in their gross refining margins in the first quarter (April-June) of fiscal 2021 because of demand destruction, according to CRISIL estimates. Did other fuels see an impact?

Interestingly, prices of ATF was cut seven consecutive times since February. Prior to the beginning of the reduction cycle in February — when airlines had already started curtailing








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flights on account of low demand and travel restrictions caused by COVID-19 outbreak — the price of jet fuel stood at Rs 64,323.76 per kilolitre. Even as no airline operated scheduled passenger flights, the mainstay of their business, between March 25 and May 25, oil companies continued to pass on the reduction in crude oil rates in the form of cutting the price for jet fuel. Starting from May 25, the Centre allowed airlines to operate commercial passenger flights on domestic routes, hitherto with a curtailed schedule. Six days after the resumption of flights, the Centre announced a sharp 56 per cent increase in ATF prices, effectively negating any tangible benefits to airlines.


12. Unemployment figures fell rapidly in June but experts warn to read

the fine print too! Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Economics

There has been encouraging news from the employment scene in the country. As per a survey by the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE), the national unemployment rate fell sharply to 11.6% in the week up to 14th June from 17.5% in the previous one. Notably, this figure was a staggering 23.5% in April and May. More promising signs

As per CMIE data, the labour participation rate (LPR) has also significantly improved in the surveyed period. LPR, which is a measure of an economy's active workforce, stood at 40.4% in the week up to June 14th. Significantly, it was not too far from its pre-lockdown level of around 42.7%. What brought this revival?

The improvement came as more and more people returned to work after the government lifted nearly all lockdown restrictions after more than two months. The ongoing summer crop planting season and the rural job guarantee plan also provided ample employment opportunities to people in the villages. A word of caution!

As per economists and job market experts, the fall in unemployment levels is largely because of a growth in casual work and self-employment activities. Thus, it should not be interpreted as a growth in formal sector jobs. As at least 75% of the people in the labour market are in non-wage works, this trend in the long run will potentially push many of them into poverty.








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13. Indian economy to contract by 4% in 2020-21, forecasts ADB


Hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Indian economy is expected to contract by 4% during the current financial year, the ADB said in a supplement to its Asian Development Outlook (ADO) on Thursday. Countries in ‘Developing Asia’ will ‘barely grow’ in 2020, the ADB forecast. For the countries in Developing Asia, ADB forecasts growth of 0.1% in 2020. ‘Developing Asia’ refers to a group of over 40 countries that are members of the ADB. China, however, is expected to record a positive growth of 1.8% in 2020, sharply down from 6.1% in 2019, the lender said. Performance before Covid struck India “Growth in Indian GDP slowed to 3.1% in the last quarter...its slowest since early 2003. Economic growth slowed to 4.2% in the whole of” the last fiscal year as both exports and investment started to contract, the ADB said. Hit hard by COVID-19, South Asia is forecast to contract by 3 per cent in 2020, compared to 4.1 per cent growth predicted in April. Growth prospects for 2021 are revised down to 4.9 per cent from 6 per cent, ADB said. Bleak 2020-2021 for India International rating agencies like Moody’s Investors Service, Fitch Rating and S&P Global Ratings have all predicted a 4-5 per cent contraction in India’s economic growth rate during April 2020 to March 2021 fiscal. Crisil has said this would be the country’s fourth recession since Independence, first since liberalisation, and perhaps the worst to date. Source: The Hindu

14. Mukesh Ambani fulfils ‘his promise’, makes Reliance net debt-free,

nine months ahead of target Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Economics

Reliance Industries, India's most valuable company has achieved two momentous feats almost simultaneously. The company has become free of net debt, much earlier than its March 2021 target.








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This target was set by the company’s chairman, Mukesh Ambani at the company’s annual general meeting last August. Net debt is the excess of cash and cash equivalents over the total debts of an entity. Apart from shedding off its debt burden, Reliance also became the first Indian company to cross $150 billion (Rs. 11.15 lakh crore) in market capitalization. How was this achieved?

Since April, Reliance has succeeded in raising over Rs. 1.68 lakh crore against its net debt of Rs. 1.61 lakh crore, as on 31st March 2020. The company received investments of Rs.1.15 lakh crore by global tech investors as well as private equity and sovereign wealth funds in its wholly-owned subsidiary, Jio Platforms Ltd. Apart from selling stakes in Jio, Reliance raised Rs. 53,000 crore by rights issue. Not only was it the largest ever in India, but also the largest in the world in the past ten years by a non-financial entity. Remarkably, Reliance raised all of this funding, right in the middle of a global lockdown caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. The company also earned Rs. 7,000 crore last August by selling its stake to BP in their petro-retail joint venture.

15. Why has the US accused Air India of unfair practices? Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Economics

The US Department of Transportation (DOT) has levelled allegations against India of being “unfair” and engaging in “discriminatory practices” with regard to repatriation flights. The DOT has restricted flights operated by Air India, saying it will need specific authorisation from the DOT to conduct any such flights. “…Effective 30 days from the service date of this Order, it shall not perform any Third- and/or Fourth-Freedom charter flights unless the Department has granted it specific authority in the form of a statement of authorisation to conduct such charters,” the Department said in an order dated June 22. What are the allegations being made?

The US DOT has said the Government of India has “impaired the operating rights of US carriers” and has engaged in “discriminatory and restrictive practices with respect to US carrier services to and from India”. It added the Indian government has prevented US carriers from conducting India-US passenger charter operations involving direct sales to individual passengers or through other distribution systems.








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“For its part, the United States has not placed any limitations on US-India charter operations, and Air India has been and remains free to conduct the full complement of passenger charter services…,” its order of June 22 read. It also said Air India’s repatriation flights have gone beyond the purpose “at least on the India to the US segments” and involved sales. How does this affect fliers booked to travel to the US?

Air India flights for repatriating Indian citizens from the US are slotted till July first week. The US order has said that effective 30 days from the service date of the order, Air India won’t be allowed to exercise the “third and fourth freedoms of flight”. Pending an agreement, the decision could affect those planning to fly back pm flights in the fourth phase of Vande Bharat. Has the US conveyed this to India?

According to the order, on May 19, an official from the US DOT had advised Air India of the concerns that some, if not all, of “Air India’s so-called evacuation charters have gone beyond true evacuations and involved sales to any member of the general public able to enter the United States”. On May 26, Delta Air Lines, via a letter, requested permission from the Indian Ministry of Civil Aviation to run repatriation charter services. To date, Delta has not received approval, the US DOT said. Further, the US registered its objections through engagement by the US Embassy in New Delhi on May 28. However, the Indian government “has thus far failed to remedy the situation”. How many flights has Air India operated to the US under Vande Bharat Mission?

The Vande Bharat Mission was announced in April to bring Indian citizens back from several countries. On June 3, Air India released a schedule for additional repatriation flights that includes 49 US-India round-trip charter flights between June 10-July 1. On June 13, it announced 10 additional repatriation flights between June 20-July 3. Prior to the lockdown, Air India operated 34 round-trip flights per week to the US. The US has noted that with 59 flights advertised for the period June 10-July 3, Air India would be performing charter operation at 53% of the operations it previously performed. “As such, it appears that Air India may be using its passenger repatriation charters as a way of circumventing the GoI-imposed prohibition of all scheduled services. This situation… creates a competitive disadvantage for US carriers vis-à-vis Indian carriers,” it said. What action is being taken by the US? The DOT has “determined that this situation calls for close scrutiny, on a case-by-case basis, of Air India passenger charter operations until this issue has been satisfactorily resolved”. It has ordered that prior approval be sought for all Air India repatriation flights. How has India responded? In a statement on Tuesday, the Ministry of Civil Aviation said: “We have received requests from concerned authorities in several countries including the US, France, Germany among








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others requesting that their air carriers be allowed to participate in the transportation of passengers along the line being conducted by Air India under Vande Bharat Mission. These requests are being examined.” What are the third and fourth freedoms of air? These pertain to a set of rights accorded to a country’s airlines to enter or land in another country’s airspace or airports. According to the International Civil Aviation Organization of the UN, there are nine freedoms of the air. These rights, generally, operate on a bilaterally reciprocal basis. However, in certain cases some handicaps are imposed on capacity allowed from one country to another. The third and fourth freedoms essentially allow basic international service between two countries. The third freedom accords the right to an airline to carry passengers or cargo from its home state to another, while the fourth allows it to bring passengers or cargo from another country to its home state.


16. How US pause on H1-B visas will hit Indian companies


The US administration on Tuesday said it was extending the 60-day ban on immigration and non-immigrant worker visas till the end of 2020. Popular work visas including the much-coveted H-1B and H-2B, and certain categories of H-4, J, and L visas shall also remain suspended until December 31, the White House said in a press note. The move, US President Donald Trump said, was to protect domestic workers who had been impacted due to a contraction in the economy in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. What are H-1B, H-2B, L and other work visas?

In order to fill a vacuum of highly-skilled low-cost employees in IT and other related domains, the US administration issues a certain number of visas each year which allows companies from outside the US to send employees to work on client sites. Of these work visas, the H-1B remains the most popular among Indian IT companies. The US government has a cap of 85,000 total H-1B visas for each year. Of this, 65,000 H-1B visas are issued to highly skilled foreign workers, while the rest 20,000 can be additionally allotted to highly skilled foreign workers who have a higher education or masters degree from an American university. Who is H-1B for?

H-1B: Person is Specialty Occupation: To work in a specialty occupation. Requires a higher education degree of its equivalent. Includes fashion models of distinguished merit and








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ability and government-to-government research and development, or co-production projects administered by the Department of Defence. Apart from the H-1B visas, the US government also issues L1 visas which allows companies to transfer highly skilled workers to US for a period of up to seven years. H-2B visas allow food and agricultural workers to seek employment in the US. Why did the US suspend non-immigrant worker visas?

Since it was started in 1952, the H-1 visa scheme has undergone many changes and revisions to allow or disallow certain categories of skilled workers in the US, depending on the economic situation of the country. The technology boom coupled with the arrival of the internet and low-cost computers in developing nations such as India and China saw a large number of graduates willing to work at relatively low costs in the US, a win-win situation for both the employer and the employee. However, it has since often been criticised for sending low cost workers to the US at the expense of domestic workers. In January 2017, after taking over as the president of the US, Trump had hinted that the low-cost workers were hampering the economy and undercutting jobs of citizens. The US had then hinted at reforming the “broken” H-1B visa system. Trump seized the opportunity provided by the economic contraction due to Covid-19 by first banning the entry of non-immigrant workers till June 23, and then extending it till December 31. In his executive order extending the ban, Trump said that while under normal circumstances, “properly administered temporary worker programs can provide benefits to the economy,”, the extraordinary economic contraction created due to Covid-19 posed a threat to the US workers. Who all does it impact?

Since the ban is effective immediately, the processing of all new H-1B, H-2B, J, and L visa categories stand suspended. This means those who do not have a valid non-immigrant visa as of June 23, and are outside of the US, will not be allowed to enter the country until December 31. Workers in essential services in the food sector have been given some reprieve, and their entry shall be decided by the consular officer of immigration services. H-1B, H-2B, J and L visa holders, and their spouse or children already present in the US shall not be impacted by the new worker visa ban. How does it impact Indian IT companies?

Indian IT companies are amongst the biggest beneficiaries of the US H-1B visa regime, and have since 1990s cornered a lion’s share of the total number of visas issued each year.








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As of April 1, 2020, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) had received about 2.5 lakh H-1B work visa applications, according to official data. Indians had applied for as many as 1.84 lakh or 67 per cent of the total H-1B work visas for the current financial year ending March 2021. Apart from the suspension of these work visas, the executive order signed by Trump has also made sweeping changes to the H-1B work visa norms, which will no longer be decided by the currently prevalent lottery system. The new norms will now favour highly-skilled workers who are paid the highest wages by their respective companies. This could result in a significant impact on margins and worker wages of Indian IT companies which send thousands of low-cost employees to work on client sites in the US. Though the large Indian IT companies have cut down their dependency on H-1B and other worker visas by hiring as much as 50 per cent of staff locally, they still rely on these visas to keep costs in check. Indian IT companies also offer subcontracts to Indian nationals already present in the US with valid H-1B visas. Bangalore-based Wipro spends as much as 20 per cent of its revenue to subcontract Indian workers with valid H-1B visas. Source: The Indian Express

17. India GDP to contract 4.5% on COVID-19: IMF Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Economics

Key emerging market economies are taking a severe hit to GDP amid the COVID-19 pandemic, with India seeing the first contraction in decades, the IMF said. Fall in various economies The updated World Economic Outlook shows India’s GDP will fall 4.5% this year, far worse than expected in April just after the pandemic first took hold outside of China. Mexico will see a double digit decline of 10.5% while Brazil just misses that mark with a drop of 9.1%. Argentina is projected to fall 9.9%, with the country already in the middle of a massive debt crunch on top of the health and economic crises. During the global financial crisis in 2009, these emerging markets, along with China, were booming, supporting the global economy even as advanced nations faced severe recessions. Meanwhile, South Africa’s GDP is seen dropping 8%, while oil-producer Nigeria falls 5.4%, it said. The pandemic has sparked an economic “crisis like no other,” sending world GDP plunging 4.9% this year and wiping out $12 trillion over two years, the IMF said.








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Jobs destroyed

Worldwide business shutdowns destroyed hundreds of millions of jobs, and the prospects for recovery — along with the forecasts themselves — are steeped in “pervasive uncertainty” with the virus still rife, the IMF said. The U.S. economy is set to contract 8% in 2020, while China fares slightly better, posting growth of 1%, the report said. The IMF cautioned that trade and geopolitical tensions between the world’s largest economies could undercut a modest recovery in 2021. Source: The Hindu

18. Why diesel has become more expensive than petrol in Delhi Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Economics

The price of diesel in New Delhi surpassed the price of petrol for the first time with OMCs hiking the price of diesel by 48 paise per litre to Rs 79.88 even as the price of petrol was at Rs 79.76, not hiked for the first time in 18 days. The price of diesel has traditionally been lower than that of petrol and continues to be lower in other parts of the country. The price of petrol has risen by Rs 8.5/litre and the price of diesel has increased by Rs 10.5 per litre since June 7 when oil marketing companies began revising the prices of petrol and diesel after an 82-day hiatus during which the international price of crude oil fell to below $20/barrel. Why has this happened in Delhi?

The price gap between petrol and diesel in the national capital was Rs 7.3 on May 5 when the Delhi government increased the VAT on diesel to 30% from 16.75% and that on petrol to 30% from 27%. Diesel also attracts an additional air ambience levy of Rs 250/kilolitre. This increase brought the price of diesel within Rs 2 from the price of petrol at the time, a gap which has been closed with OMCs hiking diesel prices more than petrol prices. According to experts, there is very little difference between international prices of petrol and diesel currently leading to taxes becoming the key component maintaining a price difference between petrol and diesel. The price of diesel and petrol are also almost on par in Ahmedabad as the VAT on both petrol and diesel is comparable.








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While other states have also hiked levies on both petrol and diesel, most states have maintained lower tax rates on diesel than on petrol leading to the price of diesel remaining below the price of petrol despite a greater hike in the price of diesel than the price of petrol over the past 18 days. Why were prices frozen and why are they rising now?

OMCs stopped revising prices from March 16 to June 7 even as international prices of crude oil, a crucial input in the production of petrol and diesel hit historic lows. During this time the only revisions in the prices of diesel and petrol were a result of changes in state taxes. Representatives of Indian Oil Corporation, the largest OMC in the country, said they had decided to stop revising prices in line with international prices of petrol and diesel as following those guidelines during the historic fall in the prices of crude in late March and April would have lead to negative margins for the OMCs which they considered “not sustainable”. The oil marketing companies are now revising prices in line with guidelines and domestic prices of petrol and diesel are rising in line with international prices of petrol and diesel. International prices of both diesel and petrol are rising due to increasing demand as countries ease restrictions imposed to curb the spread of Covid-19 and the price of Brent crude has risen to around $42/barrel. Source: The Indian Express

19. Hinduja brothers: what property dispute is about, how much is at

stake








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On June 23, a UK court ruled in favour of Srichand Hinduja (SP), Chairman of the Hinduja group with operations in several countries, and his daughter Vinoo on the issue of control of Hinduja Bank, headquartered in Switzerland, much against the wishes of his three younger brothers. The Hinduja group, once considered as a closely-knit business family, is facing a big challenge – division of assets. Three Hinduja brothers – Gopichand, Prakash and Ashok – contested the claim of Srichand and his daughter, saying “everything belongs to everyone and nothing belongs to anyone.” Hinduja brothers: What’s the tussle all about?

On July 2, 2014, the four brothers purportedly signed an agreement which says assets held by one brother belong to all and each brother will appoint the others as their executors. Srichand and his daughter Vinoo went to court stating that the letter should have no legal effect and cannot be used as a will or power of attorney. Srichand wanted the letter declared worthless. Justice Falk of the High Court of Justice, Business and Property Court of England and Wales said that the three other brothers Gopichand, Prakash and Ashok tried to use the letter to take control of Hinduja Bank which was in Srichand’s sole name. The court said that Srichand had insisted in 2015 that the letter “doesn’t reflect his wishes and that the family’s assets should be separated”. Srichand’s three younger brothers said Srichand was suffering from a form of dementia and that his health has been deteriorating for a number of years. What was the UK court’s decision? “Vinoo is appointed as Srichand’s litigation friend. Steps taken in the litigation prior to that appointment will have effect, as permitted under CPR 21.3(4),” Justice Falk said. CPR 21.3(4) provides that any step taken before a protected party has a litigation friend “has no effect unless the court orders otherwise”. The three younger brothers had used the July 2014 letter to take control of Hinduja Bank. This is not valid now. What are the three Hinduja brothers saying about the fight?

They claim that this litigation will not have any impact on its global businesses, which will continue to function as they have been. It will be apparent from the judgment of the High Court in England that SP Hinduja’s health has been deteriorating for a number of years suffering from Lewy Body disease, which is a form of dementia, they say. “Vinoo, his younger daughter, acting as his Litigation Friend is bringing these proceedings on his behalf. It is very unfortunate that these proceedings are taking place as they go against our founder’s and family’s values and principles that have stood for many decades, especially, everything belongs to everyone and nothing belongs to anyone,” they said. “We intend to defend the claim to uphold these dearly held family values,” they said in a statement, hinting that the legal fight is likely to continue in the future. Observers don’t rule out a division in the empire in the near future as the next generation from the family is already active in the group’s operations.








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What Srichand Hinduja wanted and the court said Srichand wants the July 2 letter signed by the four brothers to be revoked. “Srichand Hinduja seeks a declaration that neither document has legal effect, whether as a will, power of attorney, declaration of trust or other binding document, or alternatively that the documents are revocable and have been revoked,” the court judgement says. The defendants (the three brothers) do not dispute that Srichand lacks capacity, and indeed have relied on it as a basis for seeking to take control of Hinduja Bank, an asset in Srichand’s sole name, relying on the July letter. Clifford Chance (Srichand’s law firm) sent an email on May 2, 2015 stating that Srichand did not consider themselves legally or morally bound by the July letter. A further letter from the firm dated July 24, 2015 reiterated that Srichand was not bound by it, and he made the same point in a letter he sent dated July 16, 2015. “I am also satisfied that Vinoo can act fairly on behalf of Srichand and that she does not have an adverse interest,” Justice Falk said. “If Srichand’s claim has foundation, then it would certainly be the case that it is in SP‘s financial interests to challenge what is being portrayed as a use of the July letter to allow seizure of control of his assets and disruption of his financial affairs,” the court said. Will Srichand’s assets pass on to his daughter? The three brothers noted that if the claim succeeds then all assets in SP’s name would pass to Vinoo and her immediate family on SP’s death, including the entire shareholding in Hinduja Bank, according to the judgement. They maintain that a number of the complaints about the July letter relate to its impact on Vinoo personally rather than Srichand. The Defendants also contend that Vinoo has shown a disregard for Srichand’s best interests in bringing the claim, and it was not in his best interests for the proceedings to continue. Srichand has two daughters, Shanu and Vinoo. The certificate of suitability confirms that her father is no longer able to give instructions to lawyers and has asked her to do so, the court said. What’s at stake in the Hinduja empire?

The Bloomberg Billionaires Index values the family fortune at $11.2 billion. The $ 50-billion Hinduja group, controlled from the UK, is active in old economy sectors such as banking & finance, transport, automobiles and energy as well as the new economy sectors like technology, media and renewables. It’s now an international conglomerate with a footprint across 38 countries and a 150,000-plus strong team. Ashok Leyland, flagship of the Hinduja group in India, is the 2nd largest manufacturer of commercial vehicles in India. Dheeraj Hinduja, son of Gopichand, is on the board of Ashok Leyland. IndusInd Bank, a leading private sector bank, is also controlled by the Hindujas. Gulf Oil controlled by the group has sales in 100 countries. PD Hinduja, father of the four brothers, who is credited with establishing trade links between India and Persia set up the business in 1914. Two of his major philanthropic projects are Hinduja Hospital in Mumbai and Hinduja Foundation. The four Hinduja brothers








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Srichand Hinduja, 84, is the head of Hinduja family and Chairman of Hinduja group and charitable foundations. After completing his education in 1952, he joined his father in the family business. Srichand along with his brothers Gopichand, Prakash and Ashok conceived and strategized the diversification and expansion of the Hinduja group. Gopichand Hinduja, Co-Chairman of the group, was one of the architects of the transformation of the group from an Indo-Middle East trading operation into a multi-billion dollar transnational conglomerate. The group acquired Gulf Oil in 1984, closely followed by the acquisition of the then Ashok Leyland, in 1987, which was the first major NRI investment in India. He is also behind the group’s forays into power and infrastructure sectors, especially the group’s plan for building 10 GW of power generation capacity in India, says the group’s website. Prakash Hinduja is the Chairman of Hinduja Group in Europe. Since 2008, he has been based in Monaco. After completing his university education, PP joined the family business in Tehran, Iran. He later moved to Geneva in Switzerland and took charge of the group’s European operations. Thereafter in 2008, he moved to Monaco. Ashok Hinduja, based in Mumbai, is looking after the affairs in India. As Chairman, Hinduja group of companies (India), he has been driving the group’s growth and diversification since it re-entered India in the mid-eighties. He serves as the Chairman of IIHL (Mauritius), the parent promoting company of IndusInd Bank. He is the Chairman of Nxt Digital Ltd, the media and entertainment vertical of the group and Executive Chairman of Hinduja National Power Corporation, the company that runs a 1,040 MW thermal power plant. Source: The Indian Express

20. Why shipments from China are stuck at Indian ports Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Economics

The conflict on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) has started to cause concern for American firms with manufacturing operations in India, as they are experiencing difficulties in accessing crucial components from their facilities in China. A group representing some of these firms has written to the Secretary in charge of the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Dr Guruprasad Mohapatra, expressing these concerns. What is the issue here?

Import consignments from China are learnt to be facing hurdles at some ports, including Chennai and Mumbai. It is learnt that over the last fortnight, Customs authorities have indicated to importers that there will be delays in clearing Chinese shipments, but have not cited any reasons.








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There has not been any written or verbal instructions from the Customs or Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) authorities either, importers say. While some Chennai Customs zone officials said that checks were being carried out on the basis of specific intelligence-based inputs, importers and industry are seeing it as a nudge to change their import pattern, especially of non-essential goods, amid calls for reducing the consumption of Chinese goods in the wake of the border tensions. Why are American firms worried?

The US-India Strategic Partnership Forum (USISPF), a group representing some American firms involved in manufacturing activities in India, said they were “increasingly concerned” that component parts and other inputs “necessary” to their manufacturing operations here, were being detained at the ports. The forum has sought the restoration of port operations or, “at a minimum”, that the government publish any change in port policy “to provide the business community with the visibility they need to function.” Consignments of around 50 US firms with manufacturing operations in India across sectors such as telecommunications, automobiles, medical equipment, and fast moving consumer goods (FMGC) are learnt to be among those affected. For instance, some major American telecom and auto makers have direct or contract manufacturing operations in Chennai, and some of them import components from facilities in China. And with “no formal orders” issued by the government nor any “specific” reason provided to the firms as to why their consignments are not being cleared, the group has flagged the lack of transparency that they feel “threatens” the business continuity. An “unanticipated” embargo on imports of goods from neighbouring countries will have repercussions on supply chains and manufacturing in India, and will send a “chilling” signal to foreign investors, who look for predictability and transparency, the USISPF has argued. What is the volume of trade with China?

Possible curbs on imports from China in the form of tariff or non-tariff barriers are being discussed within the government, which is said to be considering a list of imported items for the various restrictive measures. Between April 2019 and February 2020, China accounted for around 14 per cent of India’s total imports; the main items being components for smartphones and automobiles, telecom equipment, plastic and metallic goods, active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), and other chemicals.








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In pharmaceuticals particularly, India depends heavily on China for crucial ingredients. In 2018-19, around 68 per cent of India’s $3.56 billion worth of bulk drugs or API imports were from China.


21. Why India is producing less and less oil


India’s crude oil production fell 7.1% in May 2020 compared to May 2019 on the back of low demand due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Domestic production of crude has, however, been falling every year since FY 2012. Annual crude oil production has fallen at a compounded annual rate of 2.1% since to 32,169.3 thousand Metric Tonnes (TMT) in FY 2020 from 38,089.7 TMT in FY 2012. This has led to a steady climb in the proportion of imports in domestic crude oil consumption from 81.8% in 2012 to 87.6% in 2020. Why is production falling? Experts say that most of India’s crude oil production comes from aging wells that have become less productive over time. A lack of new oil discoveries in India coupled with a long lead time to begin production from discovered wells has led to a steady decline in India’s crude oil production making India increasingly dependent on imports. The output of these aging wells is declining faster than new wells can come up according to experts. Domestic exploration companies are attempting to extend the life of currently operational wells.








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Falling production, rising imports

Crude oil production in India is dominated by two major state-owned exploration and production companies, ONGC and Oil India. These companies are the key bidders for crude oil block auctions and end up acquiring most of the blocks that are put up for auction in India, according to experts. Why are there not more private players?

While there are some private players in the upstream oil sector including Cairn India and Hindustan Oil Exploration Company there has been a lack of interest in exploration and production in India from major private players, particularly those based abroad. According to experts, this is because of long delays in the operationalisation of production even after an oil block is allotted due to delays in approvals. Some of the key approvals which are required to begin production include, environmental clearances and approval by the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons after the allottee completes a seismic survey and creates a field development plan. “The best-case scenario from allotment to production is at least 5-7 years,” said an industry expert noting that in many cases it was delayed beyond this timeline particularly in the case of public sector companies. What policy changes could help?

Existing public and private sector players have asked for reduced levies of oil production including oil cess, royalties, and profit petroleum especially when crude oil prices are








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below $45/barrel. Experts say the requirement to pay royalties to the government at low crude prices can make it unviable for these companies to invest in further exploration and production. The government introduced the Open Acreage Licensing Programme (OALP) in 2019 to allow companies to carve out blocks that they are interested in and with lower royalties and no oil cess. However, existing players are calling for a relaxation of royalties and oil cess on block allotted under previous policies. One expert pointed out that the Chinese government offered a floor price to oil producers insulating them somewhat from any sharp falls in international crude prices.


Environment

1. Killing of an elephant in Kerala Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Environment

An outpouring of grief has followed the death of a pregnant elephant in Kerala, the treacherous use of a food bomb causing widespread revulsion and anger. Scores of elephants are killed every year in India as their paths cross those of humans, but the image of a mortally wounded animal standing impassively in a river in Palakkad as life ebbed out of it will remain imprinted on the mind. Whether the booby-trapped pineapple that took its life was intended for elephants or other animals matters little, because such traps litter the troubled landscapes that surround forests across the country.

Human-animal conflict

The tragic fate that befell this creature, however, is a ghastly reminder of the rising conflicts between humans and animals that are only destined to grow, as commercial pressures eat into already diminished habitat. The perpetrators may be prosecuted for the elephant’s death, but that can do little to mitigate the larger issue of lost ranges and blocked corridors for these wandering giants. India has thousands of elephants — just under 30,000 according to available counts — but no strong science-imbued policy that encourages soft landscapes and migrating passages that will reduce conflict. Ironically, Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar invoked Indian culture to deplore what happened in Kerala, but it is the lack of a scientific culture and the readiness to spare forested lands from commercial exploitation that is eviscerating nature. Even during the lockdown in April, the Ministry convened video conference meetings of the National Board for Wildlife and the Expert Appraisal Committee to clear disruptive projects in protected areas.








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Shrinking ranges and feeding grounds for elephants cause serious worry, because the animals look for soft landscapes adjoining forests such as coffee, tea and cardamom estates, and in the absence of these, wander into food-rich farms falling in their movement pathways. Research in Karnataka showed that 60% of elephant distribution was encountered outside protected areas. In Kerala, such movement along human-dominated landscapes routinely produces conflict. Unsurprisingly, politicians of many hues in the State were opposed to the Madhav Gadgil Committee Report calling for the entire Western Ghats to be classified as ecologically sensitive and spared of destructive development. With such fundamental philosophical disagreement, and a vision of verdant landscapes as nothing more than a resource to be exploited for minerals and cash crops, elephants and other creatures have little chance of escaping deadly conflict. A sensible course open to conservation-minded governments is to end all intrusion into the 5% of protected habitat in India, and draw up better compensation schemes for farmers who lose crops to animals. A culture shift to protect, rather than prospect, would genuinely enrich people and save biodiversity. Source: The Hindu

2. How Gujarat estimated its lion population without holding a census Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Enviroment

ON WEDNESDAY, the Gujarat Forest Department announced the population of Asiatic lions in the state — 674, up from 523 in a Lion Census five years ago. Unlike in previous years, this count was estimated not from a Census, but from a population “observation” exercise called Poonam Avlokan.

Why was the Lion Census not conducted this year?

Conducted once every five years, the Lion Census was due on June 5-6 this year, but was postponed after the lockdown was announced on March 24. Over 1,500 forest guards, foresters and range forest officers were deputed on policing duty to enforce the lockdown. The Forest Department invites NGOs, experts and wildlife enthusiasts to join the Census for transparency and augmenting manpower, but this time, Forest Minister Ganpat Vasava said on June 3, it was not advisable to send so many people inside the forest as the Bronx Zoo in New York had reported a case of transmission of novel coronavirus from a human to a tigress. So, how were the numbers estimated?

Through Poonam Avlokan, which is a monthly in-house exercise carried out every full moon. Field staff and officers spend 24 hours assessing the number of lions and their








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locations in their respective jurisdictions. It was a mechanism developed by the Forest Department in 2014 as part of preparations for the 2015 Lion Census. This time, the exercise was undertaken from 2 pm Friday to 2 pm Saturday. It covered 10 districts where lion movements have been recorded in recent years, and 13 forest divisions. All these divisions, save Surendranagar and Morbi, were part of the 2015 Lion Census too. How is this ‘observation’ different from a regular census?

The Lion Census involves larger participation. Around 2,000 officers, experts and volunteers were involved in the 2015 Census. That makes the Census more transparent. The lion ‘observation’ this month was conducted by around 1,400 forest staff and a few experts. The Lion Census usually runs for more than two days, including a preliminary census and a final census. It is done using the block counting method — in which census enumerators remain stationed at water points in a given block and estimate abundance of lions in that block, based on direct sighting of lions who need to drink water at least once in 24 hours during the summer. A ‘lion observation’ is an in-house exercise, conducted only by forest staff. The methodology too is different as, instead of remaining stationary at water points, teams keep moving in their respective territories and make their estimates based on inputs provided by lion trackers and on chance sightings. Has the Lion Census ever been postponed before?

The first Lion Census was conducted by the Nawab of Junagadh in 1936; since 1965, the Forest Department has been regularly conducting the Lion Census every five years. The 6th, 8th and 11th Censuses were each delayed by a year, for various reasons. The 2020 count is particularly important. The 2015 Census had counted 523 lions, up from 411 in 2010. But 12 lions were killed in a flash flood in Amreli just a month after the 2015 cenus, followed by deaths of more than two dozen lions in an outbreak of canine distemper virus (CDV) and babesiosis in 2018. A babesiosis outbreak was reported in Gir (east) this summer too, and around two dozen lions are reported killed. Source: The Indian Express

3. The pangolin: can the protection upgrade by China curb its trafficking?

Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Environment & Biodiversity








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Last week, China accorded the pangolin the highest level of protection and removed the scales of the endangered mammal from its list of approved traditional medicines. Experts said that while China banned pangolin meat in February amid links between wild meat and the transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, they remain sceptical on how seriously the ban on its scales — which are believed to have various health benefits — will be imposed. What is China’s latest decision?

A report published on June 6 in the Health Times, a Chinese state-run publication, says that the State Forestry and Grassland Administration had issued a notice on June 5 upgrading its protection of pangolins and banning all commercial trade of the endangered mammal. The move came about after the 2020 edition of the “Chinese Pharmacopoeia” excluded traditional medicines made from four species, and also listed alternatives sourced from species which are not endangered, reported the Health Times. What does Covid-19 have to do with China’s decision?

Back in February, when reports linking the transmission of the virus to wet markets in Wuhan emerged, China banned the consumption of wild animals, including pangolins, in an attempt to limit the risk of diseases being transmitted to humans from animals. Before its latest decision, China has, over the past year, removed health insurance cover to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) recipes containing pangolin products. Also, pangolin meat is considered a delicacy in China and Vietnam, and their scales — which are made of keratin, the same protein present in human nails — are believed to improve lactation, promote blood circulation, and remove blood stasis. These so-called health benefits are so far unproven. Jose Louies, Deputy Director & Chief, Wildlife Crime Control Division at the Wildlife Trust of India, said that the suspected link between the virus and pangolins likely influenced China’s decision. What makes pangolins the most trafficked animals in the world?

Eight species of the scaly insectivorous creatures are distributed across Asia and Africa. They have long been hunted for their meat and scales, which indigenous tribes in central and eastern India are also known to have worn as rings. Two of these species are found in 15 states in India, although their numbers are yet to be completely documented. The creatures are strictly nocturnal, repelling predators by curling up into scaly spheres upon being alarmed. The same defence mechanism however, makes them slow and easy to catch once spotted. While pangolin populations are well spread out across the country, they do not occur in large numbers and their shy nature makes encounters with humans rare.








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Their alleged health benefits in TCM prompted a booming illicit export of scales from Africa over the past decade. International outcry over pangolins being hunted to near extinction has resulted in crackdowns on wildlife traffickers in Africa, and the interception of containers containing several tonmes of live pangolins and scales. Conservation of pangolins received its first shot in the arm when the 2017 Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) enforced an international trade ban. Are the animals trafficked from India as well?

Given the fluctuating demand for scales, Mitra said, it is difficult to put a value to pangolin parts. Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB) detectives who have managed to successfully trap smugglers over the years by posing as buyers, have had to quote anywhere between Rs 30,000 and Rs 1 crore for a single animal. “The price went through the roof in September last year after the supply of pangolins from Africa dropped sharply,” he said.

How will China’s decision impact pangolin trafficking?

The immediate impact would be pangolin scales losing their legitimacy in Traditional Chinese Medicine. However, WTI’s Louies said that the history of the ban of wildlife trade in China is not encouraging, citing as an example the continued availability of tiger bone wine — believed to cure a host of conditions ranging from dysentery to rheumatism — despite its ban on tiger products in 1993. Source: The Indian Express








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Science and Technology

1. Why is the locust surge posing a threat to agriculture in India? Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Science & Technology

What explains the attack this year? How can the country combat the insect invasion?

India is gearing up for what could be one of its worst locust invasions in decades. Outbreaks of the insect attack have been reported from Gujarat, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh. On Thursday, May 28, the Delhi government issued an advisory to farmers to spray pesticides and keep a possible attack at bay. Last year, Gujarat and Rajasthan had reported infestations. But it could be worse this year because of a chain of climate events, administrative laxity in several countries and the difficult circumstances brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. Experts have warned of huge crop losses if the swarms are not stopped by June when the monsoons will lead to a new season of sowing rice, sugarcane, cotton and other crops. When was the last big outbreak?

The last big infestation was in 2010. There were 13 locust plagues between 1964 and 1997. From 1997 to 2010, there were five outbreaks that were controlled. From 2010 to 2018, there were no major swarms or breeding reported, according to the Locust Warning Organization (LWO), in Jodhpur. In 2019, Gujarat and Rajasthan reported a significant surge in locust infestations. Nearly 3.5 lakh hectares of cumin, rapeseed and mustard were damaged and officials had then said that it was the worst attack since 1993. This was partly








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due to an unusually long monsoon but also because pest-control operations were inadequate; therefore, nascent populations of the insect had not been wiped out. Who keeps an eye on the locusts?

As a result of the 1926-1931/1932 locust plague, India, under the British Raj at the time, began research into the desert locust, beginning in 1931. It then led to the establishment, in 1939, of a permanent Locust Warning Organization (LWO), with a station in Karachi (undivided India). Its main job was to keep out an eye for a specific sub-species of the insect, the desert locust, that sprang into the region from the Thar desert. There is a wealth of scientific and newspaper reports that point to locust attacks being a major scourge to the colonial administration and hence the references to it as a “plague” which is how they continue to be recorded to the present. There were serious outbreaks in 1812, 1821, 1843-44, 1863-67, 1869-73, 1876-81, 1889-98, 1900-1907, 1912-1920. A particularly bad season in 1926-1931 prompted the imperial administration to establish the Karachi warning centre and after Independence, India established its own centre at Jodhpur, Rajasthan, as a part of the Directorate of Plant Protection Quarantine and Storage, under the Ministry of Agriculture. What is the climate link to the infestation?

A pattern of warming in the Indian Ocean may be a trigger. A phenomenon called the Indian Ocean Dipole, in which the western and eastern parts of the ocean, warm differentially, tend to have an outsized impact in bringing excessive rains to India and West Asia. A ‘positive’ dipole is when the western part is hotter by a degree or more than the eastern. Last year saw one of the strongest positive dipoles in the Indian neighbourhood which brought on a difference of more than two degrees. The Indian Ocean Dipole was so strong that it over-rode concerns of a drought in India last June and brought torrential rainfall — the most India has seen in decades. It also lasted nearly a month more than what is normal. This extended rainfall continued in several parts of West Asia, Oman, Yemen and in the Horn of Africa — Ethiopia, Somalia, Kenya — so much so that that the dry sand became heavily moisture laden, facilitating the formation of several locust swarms. While this dipole was beginning to take shape by late 2018 — and locust outbreaks were growing in Africa — it increased last year. Due to favourable winds, it helped swarms to fly and breed in traditional grounds in Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and India. The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), a specialised agency of the United Nations has been sending alerts on developing swarms. Somalia announced a national state of emergency due to the outbreak in February 2020, while Pakistan declared a national emergency for the second time this year, in April. The unusually mild summer this year, which saw several bouts of rainfall over north and western India from March to May, also helped the insects breed. The normal locust season in India spans June-November and coincides with the kharif season. So far swarms have been recorded in nearly 50,000 hectares in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh and if they continue to thrive as the monsoon arrives, it could cause serious agricultural damage.








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How are locust invasions dealt with?

A locust attack has to be dealt with by spraying pest control and plant protection chemicals. According to the FAO’s locust situation bulletin of May 27, adult locusts were forming groups and small swarms in spring breeding areas in Baluchistan, Indus Valley (Pakistan) and southern coast and parts of Sistan-Baluchistan. These infestations are likely to move to the summer breeding areas along India-Pakistan from Cholistan to Tharparkar. In India, existing groups of swarms have continued to move east and to the central States of Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra. Much of these movements were associated with the strong westerly winds of Cyclone Amphan. Several successive waves of invasions are likely until July in Rajasthan, with eastward surges across northern India as far as Bihar and Odisha followed by westward movements and a return to Rajasthan on the changing winds associated with the monsoon. These movements will cease as swarms begin to become less mobile. The swarms are less likely to reach Nepal, and Bangladesh and south India, according to experts. Is adequate action being taken?

Indian officials, last year and this year too, have blamed Pakistan for not spraying adequate pesticide to stem the nascent population. It has been part of the protocol for many years, for entomologists from India and Pakistan to conduct border meetings and divide pest control responsibilities. While the lack of funds and inadequate monitoring have been a problem for many years, as the FAO has frequently pointed out, the novel coronavirus pandemic this year has caused unusual focus on natural disasters such as cyclones as well as locust attacks. While locusts are unlikely to be a threat in urban centres as they do not have much to feed on, the national lockdown has made the availability of pesticide as well as its transportation difficult. With labour also not being available easily due to the lockdown, this could affect spraying operations and, as a result, allow locusts to cause significant damage. Experience shows that a locust plague usually follows a one to two year cycle after which there is a lull for eight to nine years. However, strong Indian Ocean Dipoles are expected to become more frequent whetted by an overall trend of warming oceans. This phenomenon could trigger regular locust infestations. Source: The Hindu

2. SpaceX Crew Dragon: A new era in space exploration

Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Science & Technology








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On Sunday night, two American astronauts flew to the International Space Station, the world’s only space-based laboratory, located about 400 km from the earth, in a journey that has been undertaken hundreds of times earlier. The event generated tremendous excitement around the globe, not because of any special technological achievement but because of the agency that facilitated the trip. It was the first time that astronauts used a spaceship built and launched by a private company, and the event is being widely seen as the beginning of a new era in space exploration. Two NASA astronauts, Robert Behnken and Douglas Hurley, flew onboard a spaceship named Crew Dragon built by SpaceX, a company founded by billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk who also heads Tesla Motors which produces new-age automobiles. The rocket, named Falcon 9, which carried the spaceship into the orbit, was also built by SpaceX. The Florida launch facility used for the flight still belonged to NASA, however, and had previously been used to launch American spaceships including the Apollo missions that took human beings to moon. The mission was called Demo-2, in keeping with the fact that it was still only a ‘test flight’, which if successful, would lead to more missions in the coming months. What’s the big deal For NASA, it was the first flight of its astronauts on an American spaceship, launched on American soil, after nine years. NASA used to have a fleet of five spaceships under its Space Shuttle programme, that were used to make a total of 135 of journeys into space, and the International Space Station (ISS), in the 30 years between 1981 and 2011. Two of these were destroyed in accidents, the Challenger in 1986 and Columbia in 2003, each resulting in the death of seven astronauts. After the 2003 accident, in which India-born astronaut Kalpana Chawla was among those killed, the US government had decided to close the Space Shuttle programme. The three remaining spaceships, Discovery, Atlantis, and Endeavour, were formally retired in July 2011, even though they were fit for many more flights. It was decided that it probably no longer made sense for NASA to build and operate these spaceships. It was not just costly, but was also consuming a lot of scientific resources. The transportation needs could easily be fulfilled by space vehicles that some private companies were promising to make. Accordingly, it was decided to help and support these companies in building these spaceships that can be hired by other agencies as well, and even private individuals. The NASA collaboration with SpaceX and Boeing was a result of this. In the meanwhile, NASA hitched rides on Russian spaceships to travel to the ISS, for which it paid tens of millions of dollars for every trip. Russia also uses the ISS facility, and routinely sends its astronauts to the space station on its own spaceships. The new option is expected to be cheaper than that, besides offering the comfort of operating from home soil and eliminating dependence on a foreign country.








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Sunday’s SpaceX flight therefore is a culmination of more than decade-long efforts to free to enable private players build and operate what essentially is a commercial taxi-service to space, and allow NASA to concentrate on deep space exploration, and work more vigorously towards taking humans to moon, and Mars, and, possibly, on some asteroid, in between. Private participation, so far

The involvement of private industry in the space sector is nothing new. World over, more and more work of space agencies is being done in collaboration with private companies. There are literally hundreds of private entities building commercial satellites for their clients. Launch services are still a somewhat restricted zone, considering that it requires elaborate facilities and deep pockets, but here too, there are several players apart from SpaceX and Boeing. Many, like Virgin Galatic of businessman Richard Branson, have been already made space flights and hope very soon to start offering passenger rides to space whoever can afford to pay. In fact, last year, a spacecraft built by Scaled Composites, a US company, even took a human being for a very short ride into space, becoming the first private spacecraft to do so. While there are a lot many private companies operating in the space sector in the United States, there is no dearth of them even in India. Most of them collaborate with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), in building and fabricating the components that go into making rockets and satellites. There are several that have started making satellites for their own use, or for their clients. However, launch services, including the building of rockets or launch vehicles to take the satellites into space, is something that is still some distance away in India right now. While ISRO has been collaborating more and more with private industry, the capability to independently carry out even routine space missions, like the ones that SpaceX or Boeing or Virgin Galactic, have been undertaking frequently now, has been missing. Window to the future Sunday’s flight also underlines the fact that space research and exploration is now a much more collaborative enterprise than earlier. Space agencies of different countries are not just sharing data and resources, but increasingly getting together to carry out joint missions as well. The International Space Station itself is a good example of international cooperation in the space sector. The space facility is set to retire somewhere around 2028, and its replacement being planned is likely to have participation from at least ten countries, and possibly private players as well. There is also a growing realisation that space agencies need to direct their energies and resources more towards scientific research and deep space exploration. It’s been fifty years since the landing on moon, and efforts to take human beings to Mars and other celestial bodies, needs to be expedited. Getting back to the Moon, which NASA and some other agencies plan to do in the next few years, is just the first step in that direction. But that








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would also require huge amounts of financial resources that most of the space agencies, including NASA, are currently starved of. Private players are expected to infuse fresh investments, and also technological innovation that will benefit everyone. Source: The Indian Express

3. Restarting international air travel; the concept of ‘air bridges’ and ‘bubbles’


From lockdown in metro cities to restrictions imposed by various countries on the entry of foreigners, “several factors need to be addressed” for the resumption of international flights, according to Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, who took to Twitter to list out the concerns given the rise in demand for restarting overseas flight operations. “Many international destinations are not allowing incoming passenger traffic, except for their own citizens or diplomats. Within India, most international flights operate from the metros where travellers arrive from neighbouring cities & states. Our metro cities were under various degrees of lockdown which are beginning to be lifted,” Puri said. He added that as India moves towards the critical mass of 50-60% operation of domestic flights, the ability to resume international operations would also improve. So, when will India allow regular International flights?

Hours after the Home Ministry announced fresh guidelines pertaining to the countrywide lockdown to contain the coronavirus pandemic, India’s aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said the suspension of scheduled international commercial passenger flights would continue until midnight on June 30. “It is once again reiterated that foreign airlines shall be suitably informed about the opening of their operations to or from India in due course,” the circular issued by the DGCA said. Domestic passenger flight services resumed in the country from May 25, two months after the announcement of the lockdown and suspension of all scheduled commercial passenger flights in India. International air travel shall remain suspended, the MHA order said, adding that a decision on when to resume it would be taken after an assessment of the situation. Have other countries allowed international flights?

A number of countries in Europe have announced the opening up of borders for intra-Europe travel June 15 onwards, which will enable air travel, including for leisure purposes. Countries like Sweden, the UK, Ireland, The Netherlands, and Slovenia have opened borders to EU tourists, while those such as Germany, Hungary, Romania, and Finland have opened up partially.








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Lufthansa has announced 3,600 weekly flights in June. Together with its group airlines SWISS and Eurowings, Lufthansa is likely to operate 70 overseas flights as well. However, the European Union is yet to take a call on whether it will reopen its external borders on June 15. In Asia, Qatar Airways has said it plans to grow its network back to over 50 destinations before mid-June, including resumption of services to Manila, Amman, and Nairobi. The Doha-based airline has also said that by the end of this month, it hopes to connect 80 destinations, including 23 in Europe, four in the Americas, 20 in the Middle East/Africa and 33 in the Asia-Pacific. Have any countries restricted Indian citizens from flying into their borders?

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has notified a list of airports located in affected areas with high risk of Covid-19 transmission. This list classifies all airports in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh as ones with high risk of transmission. The list is continuously updated by EASA after consultation with EASA member states, and is based on information from World Health Organisation (WHO), the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, and other “reputable public health institutes”. This is one of the initial examples of aviation regulators segregating regions according to the rate of occurrence of Covid-19. EASA has said that the list of airports has been established to support airlines and airports to put in place “an extra layer of protection for the passengers and crew members”. And how would the opening up of international routes progress?

While the EASA does not explicitly advise member states to restrict flights from its list of high-risk airports, some countries have taken it upon themselves to do so. For example, Greece has said it would conduct coronavirus tests on visitors arriving from airports considered to be high-risk by EASA, when the country opens its airports to tourism traffic on June 15, according to a Reuters report. In case of a negative test report, the passenger will need to quarantine for seven days, while passengers testing positive for the virus will be quarantined under supervision for 14 days. Even as quarantining and testing of passengers are measures that have universal appeal, there is already talk of “bubbles” or “air bridges” joining jurisdictions that have largely eliminated the virus, and trust in each other’s testing and case numbers. According to The Economist, Australia and New Zealand could lead the way with a proposed “Covid-safe travel zone”, or the trans-Tasman bubble. Small countries in the Pacific including Fiji and the Cook Islands, which have kept the virus at bay, could join in, with the zone being expanded to other jurisdictions such as Hong Kong, South Korea and Taiwan.








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For Indian travellers to fly abroad, a lot will depend on the trajectory of the pandemic in the country, and on how regulators — DGCA as well as international regulators — certify the opening of their flight operations to or from India in the coming months. Source: The Indian Express

4. Can a handheld device kill virus with UV light? Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Science & Technology

Can you kill the novel coronavirus with ultraviolet light? Yes, you can, but the hurdle for such an approach lies in finding a device that would emit sufficient amounts of ultraviolet light while being, at the same time, energy-efficient and portable. Now, researchers have reported that such a device is feasible — personal, handheld, and built from a newly discovered class of conductors. They have reported their findings in the Nature Group journal Physics Communications. Ultraviolet light

In the broad spectrum of electromagnetic radiation that comes from the sun, and which is transmitted in waves or particles, visible light is just one of several regions that are defined based on the wavelength and frequency of these waves or particles. When these regions are arranged according to wavelength, ultraviolet light comes between visible light and X-rays — that is, the wavelength of UV light is smaller than that of visible light and greater than that of X-rays. The wavelength of ultraviolet radiation is between 10 nanometres and 400 nanometres (1 nanometre is a billionth part of a metre). Ultraviolet radiation in the 200-300 nanometre range is known to destroy the virus, making it incapable of reproducing and infecting, according to Pennsylvania State University, which was involved in the new research. Ultraviolet radiation is one of two methods for sanitising and disinfecting public spaces from bacteria and viruses — the other being chemicals. Both chemicals and ultraviolet radiation are meant to disinfect public spaces only, not human skin. As the World Health Organization points out: “Ultra-violet (UV) lamps should not be used to disinfect hands or other areas of your skin. UV radiation can cause skin irritation and damage your eyes.” The hurdles

To disinfect areas from the coronavirus with UV radiation, one needs sources that emit sufficiently high doses of UV light. Such devices do exist, but as Pennsylvania State University points out, these radiation sources are “typically an expensive mercury-containing gas discharge lamp, which requires high power, has a relatively short lifetime, and is bulky”.








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The solution is to develop UV light-emitting diodes (LEDs), which would be portable and energy-efficient. Diodes are, simply put, specialised conductors that transmit electricity in one direction. LEDs that emit UV light, too, exist. But again, “applying a current to them for light emission is complicated by the fact that the electrode material also has to be transparent to UV light”. The challenge was to find such a material. The solution

The Pennsylvania State University team, in collaboration with materials theorists from the University of Minnesota, figured that the solution to this challenge could lie in a recently discovered new class of transparent conductors that use a material called strontium niobate. Indeed, theoretical predictions pointed to the material. The researchers reached out to Japanese collaborators to obtain strontium niobate films, and tested their performance as UV transparent conductors. “We immediately tried to grow these films using the standard film-growth technique widely adopted in industry, called sputtering, We were successful,” Joseph Roth, a doctoral candidate at Pennsylvania State University, said in a statement. The researchers said this is a critical step towards technology maturation which makes it possible to integrate this new material into UV LEDs at low cost and high quantity. Source: The Indian Express

5. Debate over a homoeo drug – Arsenicum album 30 Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Science & Technology

A homoeopathic drug, Arsenicum album 30, has become a subject of debate after several states recommended it for prophylactic (preventive) use against Covid-19. This was after the Ministry of AYUSH listed the drug among “preventive and prophylactic simple remedies” against Covid-19. The debate stems from the fact that there is no scientific evidence that the drug works against Covid-19, a fact stressed not only by medical scientists but also by some homoeopathic practitioners themselves. Arsenicum album 30 has been recommended by the state governments in Rajasthan, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala. While the Maharashtra government is yet to take a formal decision, Mumbai civic authorities have been distributing the drug to high-risk populations in at least two wards. The Haryana prisons department and Mumbai police too are also distributing the drug to prisoners and officers respectively.








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Even in states that have no protocol for using the drug against Covid-19, there have been reports about people flocking to homeopathic clinics to buy Arsenicum album, sometimes at triple the cost. Even local chemists have started stocking this medicine. The drug

Arsenicum album is made by heating arsenic with distilled water, a process repeated several times over three days. The health hazards of arsenic contamination in water are well known: long-term exposure to the metal can cause skin cancer, pulmonary and cardiovascular diseases. The homoeopathic drug has less than 1% arsenic, said Dr Amrish Vijayakar of Predictive Homoeopathy Clinic in Mumbai. The Covid-19 context

On January 28, at its 64th meeting, the Scientific Advisory Board of the Central Council for Research in Homoeopathy (CCRH) opined that “Arsenicum album 30 could be taken as prophylactic medicine against Coronavirus infections”. The CCRH released a fact sheet stating this medicine is only a “possible prevention” against flu. The following day, the Ayush Ministry recommended taking the medicine for three days on an empty stomach and repeating the dose after a month if an outbreak continues locally. On March 6, by when India had recorded five Covid-19 cases, Rajesh Kotecha, Secretary in the Ayush Ministry, wrote to all chief secretaries listing out preventive and prophylactic measures. His letter recommended a three-day dose of Arsenicum album 30 as a prophylactic. The following day, the Ministry released another notification with “preventive and prophylactic simple remedies” against Covid-19-like illness and listed Arsenicum album 30 as a homeopathic solution. “Arsenicum album 30, daily once in empty stomach for three days. The dose should be repeated after one month by following the same schedule till Corona virus infections prevalent in the community,” the letter said. For symptom management, the letter listed Arsenicum album among various homeopathic treatments, including Bryonia alba, Rhus toxico dendron, Belladona and Gelmesium. “Homeopathy has reportedly been used for prevention during the epidemic of cholera, Spanish influenza, yellow fever, scarlet fever, diphtheria, typhoid, etc,” it said. The letter said during the 2014 Ebola outbreak, an expert committee in the World Health Organization (WHO) recommended “it is ethical to offer unproven interventions with as yet unknown efficacy and adverse effects, as potential treatment on prevention keeping in view no vaccine or anti-virals were available”. Following the Ministry’s recommendations, various state governments and district authorities have started distributing the medicine, in some cases free.








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The Central Drug Standard Control Organisation last month issued a notification allowing private practitioners to try alternative remedies like Ayurveda and homoeopathy to treat Covid-19. Where’s the science?

Dr Balram Bhargava, director of the Indian Council of Medical Research told The Indian Express, “We have issued no guidelines regarding the medicine.” The WHO has no guidelines on using Arsenicum album as a Covid-19 treatment either. “No evidence that it works,” WHO chief scientist Dr Soumya Swaminathan told The Indian Express. The Maharashtra government has set up a task-force to evaluate the homoeopathic drug and decide whether it should be used against Covid-19. Its members said they remain undecided. Dr Archana Patil, joint director in the Public Health Department, said Maharashtra is allowing the drug’s use as an immunity booster, like vitamin C tablets, but not encouraging it as a prophylactic. “There is no scientific evidence that it works as prophylactic. So, we are not encouraging it universally for everyone,” she said. Mumbai corporator Alpa Jadhav remembered seeing locals roaming around her area one day, although the lockdown was in effect. “They said they had taken Arsenicum album. It was scary; they believe this medicine can save them from coronavirus.” Concerns within the field

With no clinical trial or large-scale study having been undertaken anywhere to scientifically validate the use of Arsenicum album 30 as a preventive medication, the massive demand has worried some homeopaths, too. Dr Vijayakar said their organisation has written to the Ayush Ministry asking why no trial has been conducted to assess its efficacy before recommending it. The Ayush Ministry has based its recommendation on existing use of the medicine for respiratory illness and influenza. Several homeopaths have pointed out that each individual reacts differently to homeopathic medicines and one medicine cannot be universally held as a prophylactic for all. “It can only be a part of the treatment, if at all,” said Dr Bahubali Shah, a homeopathy practitioner. Source: The Indian Express

6. Study finds link between high blood pressure and Covid-19 death risk









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A new study has found that patients with higher blood pressure face twice as high a risk of dying from the COVID-19 compared to patients without high blood pressure. The research was published in the European Heart Journal on Friday. People with High Blood pressure more susceptible

Researchers in China and Ireland analysed data from over 2,800 Covid-19 patients admitted between February 5 and March 15 to Wuhan’s Huo Shen Shan Hospital, which is exclusive to Covid patients. Of these patients, 29.5% (850) had a medical history of high blood pressure (hypertension). The researchers found that 34 of these 850 hypertensive patients (4%) with Covid-19 died compared to 22 out of 2,027 patients without hypertension (1.1%) – a 2.12-fold increased risk after adjustment for factors that could affect the results, such as age, sex and other medical conditions. Medication of High blood pressure necessary

In addition, the study found that patients with high blood pressure who were not taking medication to control the condition were at even greater risk of dying from Covid-19. Among the patients with hypertension who were not taking medication for the condition, 11 out 140 (7.9%) died from coronavirus compared to 23 out of 710 (3.2%) of those who were taking medication – a 2.17-fold increased risk after adjusting for confounding factors. Source: The Indian Express

7. Has Google been misrepresenting data practices?


A proposed class action lawsuit filed against Google on Tuesday alleges that the Internet search giant tracks and collects browsing data “no matter what” steps users take to safeguard their privacy. The plaintiffs, Chasom Brown, Maria Nguyen and William Byatt, have filed the lawsuit on behalf of “millions of individuals” (Google users in the U.S.) at the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. They allege Google has violated the federal wiretap law as well as a California privacy law. What, according to the plaintiffs, is wrong with what Google is doing?

The plaintiffs allege that Google tracks, collects, and identifies the browsing data of even those users who browse the Web privately via, say, the Incognito mode. Google, they claim, “accomplishes its surreptitious tracking” through near ubiquitous tools such as Google Analytics, Google Ad Manager, and other plug-ins. Google Analytics and other tools are implemented only when their code is embedded into the code of existing websites. The petitioners reckon “over 70% of online websites and publishers on the internet” employ Google Analytics. The point of Brown and others is, when a user accesses websites that employ these Google tools, Google automatically gets information about the user’s IP address, URL of the site,








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and many, many more details. “Google designed its Analytics code such that when it is run, Google causes the user’s browser to send his or her personal information to Google and its servers in California,” the petitioners say in the lawsuit. And, they say, it doesn’t matter if a user is on private viewing mode. That’s not all. They also allege that Google has been misrepresenting its data collection practices. What does the lawsuit say about the misrepresentation?

The petitioners charge Google with giving false assurances about the ability of users to control what they share with the search engine. They say that users not only don’t know that Google is collecting information even when they are in a private view mode but also have no means to avoid its scrutiny. How, according to the petitioners, do the actions of Google violate the provisions of

the Federal Wiretap Act and privacy laws of California?

The Federal Wiretap Act disallows any intentional interception of any wire, oral, or electronic communication. The petitioners have invoked this Act, saying the following: “Google’s actions in intercepting and tracking user communications while they were browsing the internet using a browser while in ‘private browsing mode’ was intentional. On information and belief, Google is aware that it is intercepting communications in these circumstances and has taken no remedial action.” They have also contended that the acts of Google violate the California Invasion of Privacy Act, which prohibits intentional tapping of communication. Further, they say, the right to privacy has also been violated. What has Google’s response been?

Reuters has reported Google spokesperson Jose Castaneda as saying that the company will defend itself against the claims. He has been cited as saying, “As we clearly state each time you open a new incognito tab, websites might be able to collect information about your browsing activity.” The petitioners also use the example of the recent Arizona v. Google case to bolster

their arguments. What is the case about and how is it relevant?

This case against Google was filed by Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich in May. The allegation was one of privacy violation by Google, the specific charge being that the company was tracking user location even when the user had turned off location tracking. Brnovich had tweeted on May 28: “Today we filed a consumer fraud lawsuit against Google for deceptive and unfair practices used to obtain users’ location data, which Google then exploits for its lucrative advertising business.” Petitioners Brown and others referred to this case while elaborating on the “passive data collection practices employed by Android, Google applications (e.g., Chrome and Maps), Google Home, and other Google applications and services ....”








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Has Google been sued in the past for wiretapping law violations?

Yes. One of the long-running cases ended last year when Google agreed to a $13 million settlement. The allegation was its “Street View mapping project captured data from private Wi-Fi networks,” according to a Bloomberg report. Later, media reports suggested that some nine States were against this settlement as it contributed to massive privacy violation. In 2016, it reportedly settled a case where it was accused of “surreptitiously scanning Gmail messages for advertising revenues”. It was reported then that it had agreed to stop the practice. Last year, it was fighting a similar case, as per reports. Source: The Hindu

8. What are some of the key terms being used to describe the novel

coronavirus outbreak? Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Science & Technology

Everywhere you go, it has become impossible to avoid conversations about COVID-19, and most conversations are peppered with scientific terms that have now become commonplace. Here is a short glossary of terms that you might hear/use regularly, but may not understand entirely. COVID-19 — A term coined by the World Health Organization (WHO) to denote the disease that has led to a pandemic. On February 11, 2020, WHO announced a name for the mysterious disease originating in China, caused by a new coronavirus. It called it coronavirus disease 2019, abbreviated as COVID-19, where CO stands for corona, VI for virus, and D for disease, while the numerals – 19 refer to the year in which the first case was detected. WHO claimed it had consciously avoided naming the disease after the place of origin, to avoid stigmatising that country/area. The International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV) announced “severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)” as the name of the new virus, also on February 11, 2020. This name was chosen because the virus is genetically related to the coronavirus responsible for the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) outbreak of 2003. While related, the two viruses are different. WHO and the ICTV were in communication about the naming of both the virus and the disease. Epidemic — When the incidence of a disease rises above the expected level in a particular community or geographic area, it is called an epidemic. The outbreak started in Wuhan city in Hubei province in China, with what seemed then as a cluster of pneumonia-like cases. Pandemic — A global epidemic. When the epidemic spreads over several countries or continents, it is termed a pandemic. On January 30, WHO announced that COVID-19 was a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. On March 11, WHO decided to announce COVID-19 as a pandemic.








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R0 — R-Naught is the basic reproduction number. This is the number of new infections caused by one infected individual in an entirely susceptible population. It helps determine whether an epidemic can occur, the rate of growth of the epidemic, the size of the epidemic and the level of effort needed to control the infection. If R0 is 2, then one individual will infect two others. As of end May, India’s R0 value was in the range of 1.22. Co-morbidities — Several health conditions including uncontrolled diabetes and hypertension, cancer, morbid obesity, lung diseases, compromised immune systems put patients at greater risk for contracting the infection, and also have poor clinical outcomes. Special attention to prevent the disease and prevent mortality in these groups is the concern of health managers. Transmission — The method by which the disease spreads. In COVID-19 it is through respiratory droplets, expelled while talking, laughing, coughing and sneezing. This makes mask wearing and physical distancing the main tools for protection against the virus. Washing hands with soap and water is an effective way to kill the virus. Community transmission — When you can no longer tell how someone contracted the disease, or who the source of infection was. As numbers climb, this tracing becomes next to impossible. Contact tracing — Identifying and monitoring people who may have come into contact with an infectious person. In the case of COVID-19, monitoring usually involves self-quarantine as an effort to control the spread of disease. Super spreader — Some individuals seem to have the capacity to cause more infections in a disproportionately large number of people, than others. The current pandemic has recorded some super spreaders who have had a huge role in the transmission. Positivity rate — The percentage of people who test positive among all those who are tested. If positivity rate is high, it is possible that only high risk groups are being tested. A low positivity rate can also indicate that not enough testing is being done. Infection fatality rate — It is the number of deaths occurring in all infected people in a particular population. This includes those who might have the COVID-19 infection, but have not been tested for it. Given that the number of tests is not high, experts have clarified that this is not a useful metric to have in this pandemic. Case fatality rate — This is the number of deaths occurring among confirmed cases of COVID-19. Since these two figures are available with a certain amount of reliability, it is actually CFR that is being referred to when there is a loose reference to fatality rate. Severe Acute Respiratory Infection (SARI) — A respiratory disease also caused by a coronavirus, and spread through the same transmission method, i.e. respiratory droplets.








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The symptoms (fever, cough, body ache, difficulty in breathing) are also similar. The government has begun surveillance of SARI patients as also patients with Influenza-like Illness (ILI) admitted in hospitals too. Cytokine storm — An immune reaction triggered by the body to fight an infection is known as a cytokine storm when it turns severe. The body releases too many cytokines, proteins that are involved in immunomodulation, into the blood too quickly. While normally they regulate immune responses, in this case they cause harm and can even cause death. Experts have noticed a violent cytokine storm in several individuals who are critical with COVID infection. These cytokines dilate blood vessels, increase the temperature and heartbeat, besides throwing bloodclots in the system, and suppressing oxygen utilisation. If the cytokine flow is high and continues without cessation, the body’s own immune response will lead to hypoxia, insufficient oxygen to the body, multi-organ failure and death. Experts say it is not the virus that kills; rather, the cytokine storm. RT- PCR (Reverse Transcription-Polymerase Chain Reaction) — It is the primary test to detect COVID-19 infection across the globe. It is a sensitive test that uses swab samples drawn from the nasal/oral cavity to test for the presence of viral RNA (ribonucleic acid). It has got better sensitivity (ability to correctly identify those with the disease) and specificity (ability to correctly identify those without the disease) rates in current diagnostic tests for COVID. Antibody tests — These tests check your blood by looking for antibodies, and that just means you have had a past infection of SARS-CoV-2. Antibodies are proteins that help fight off infections, and are specific to every disease, granting immunity against getting that particular disease again. An antibody test, with poor specificity, is not believed to be effective in detecting new infections. States have been asked to commence testing seroprevalence in the community, using antibody tests, that are blood tests. Convalescent plasma therapy — Researchers are examining the efficacy of using convalescent plasma, that is, using neutralising antibodies from the blood of people who have recovered from the COVID-19 infection to treat patients with COVID-19. Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) — An antimalarial oral drug that is being repurposed for treatment in COVID-19. It has also been used successfully in the treatment of some auto immune conditions. Its value in COVID-19 has not been resolved entirely. Flattening the curve — Reducing the number of new COVID-19 cases, day on day. The idea of flattening the curve is to ensure that the health infrastructure is not overwhelmed by a large number of cases. Herd immunity — This is also known as community immunity, and constitutes the reduction in risk of infection within a population, often because of previous exposure to the virus or vaccination.








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PPE — Personal protective equipment, or PPE, is specialised clothing and equipment used as a safeguard against health hazards including exposure to the disease. Source: The Hindu

9. The Lancet’s HCQ study: Why it was retracted, and the status now Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Science & Technology

Last week, The Lancet published a retraction from three of four authors of a study that had said neither chloroquine nor hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) with antibiotics hold any significant promise as a treatment for Covid-19. The World Health Organization (WHO), which had suspended enrolment for the HCQ arm of the Solidarity Trial following the original study, has reinstated it following the retraction. Solidarity is an international clinical trial on possible Covid-19 treatments, including HCQ, which is an antimalarial drug. India has continued to repose its faith in HCQ, while US President Donald Trump claims to use it himself. What is the status of HCQ now?

While the WHO has reinstated the HCQ arm of its trial, India has never wavered from its faith in the drug as a treatment and a prophylactic for Covid-19. India weathered The Lancet study, citing its own data to justify the use of the drug. Meanwhile, investigators in the Recovery Trial at the University of Oxford have announced that they would stop enrolment for the HCQ arm as no benefits have been found of the drug. Peter Horby, chief investigator of the trial, said: “Hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine have received a lot of attention and have been used very widely to treat COVID patients despite the absence of any good evidence. The RECOVERY trial has shown that hydroxychloroquine is not an effective treatment in patients hospitalised with COVID- 19. Although it is disappointing that this treatment has been shown to be ineffective, it does allow us to focus care and research on more promising drugs.” Source: The Indian Express

10. The drugs India is fighting Covid-19 with


A look at 8 therapies being used in hospitals in Mumbai and elsewhere. Remdesivir








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Remdesivir, an antiviral drug first developed for treating Ebola in 2014, is one of the possible Covid-19 treatments being investigated in the WHO’s Solidarity Trial. It inhibits viral replication in the body. Last month, the US National Institutes of Allergies and Infectious Diseases released preliminary trial results showing recovery time of Covid patients given remdesivir improved from 15 to 11 days. The Drug Controller General of India on June 1 approved a five-day regime of remdesivir. Doctors are currently prescribing it for moderately to severely ill patients. “The selection of patients and at what point to administer the drug is based on the clinician’s choice as there aren’t enough results from clinical trials,” said Dr Om Srivastava, infectious disease expert. Remdesivir costs Rs 10,000-20,000 per vial. Gilead Sciences, the manufacturer, has signed licensing deals with Cipla, Ferozsons Labs, Hetero Labs, Jubilant Lifesciences and Mylan to expand supply in India and Pakistan. Favipiravir

Favipiravir is an antiviral given to inhibit viral replication. It is used as an anti-influenza drug. First manufactured by Japan’s Fujifilm Toyama Chemical Ltd, it is manufactured in India by Glenmark Pharmaceutical and Strides Pharma. It is being used for moderately symptomatic to severely ill Covid patients, but access is not easy. Ten hospitals have been shortlisted for a phase III trial with mild and moderately ill Covid-19 patients. Another trial by Glenmark will test favipiravir with the drug umifenovir on 158 Covid patients. Tocilizumab

This is an immunosuppressant commonly used to treat for rheumatoid arthritis. In Mumbai, more than 100 severely ill Covid patients have been treated with this expensive drug (Rs 40,000-60,000 per dose) as a preventive against ventilator requirement; government hospitals are giving it free. It was first tried in Lilavati Hospital on a 52-year-old patent, whose health did not improve as he had reached an advanced stage. In other patients a recovery is being observed although it is too early to provide data, doctors said. Dr Mohan Joshi, Dean of Nair Hospital, said over 95 per cent patients administered tocilizumab have shown recovery in civic hospitals. “We are giving this drug to breathless, patients with pneumonia and those at risk of cytokine storm (a severe immune reaction),” said Lilavati Hospital pulmonologist Dr Jalil Parkar. A randomised control trial has begun across several centres in India. Tocilizumab is manufactured by Roche Pharma, and marketed by Cipla. In India it is sold under the brand name Actemra. Itolizumab








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This drug is commonly used for the skin disorder psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, and autoimmune disorders. In India, Biocon launched it in 2013. It is being trailled in Mumbai and Delhi on moderately to severely ill Covid patients. Initial results will come by July. “The trial will take some time. We are yet to assess its outcome,” said Dr Joshi, Nair Hospital Dean. Hydroxychloroquine

This antimalarial drug is a subject of debate over its efficacy against Covid. The WHO halted its HCQ arm in the Solidarity Trial following a study in The Lancet, then reinstated it after a retraction by the authors. India is the largest producer of this drug. Doctors use HCQ use in Covid patients with symptoms as mild as headache, fever, body pain, and even in critically ill patients. ICMR guidelines recommend low doses for nine days. “This drug is helping in faster recovery, but that is just preliminary assessment,” one doctor said. Others warn against side effects such as a chaotic heartbeat. Said Dr Gunjan Chanchalani, chief intensivist in Mumbai’s Bhatia Hospital, “We reduced HCQ use to very few patients after so many negative reports came in medical literature. Now we plan to completely stop using HCQ.” Doxycycline + ivermectin

Doxycycline is an antibiotic used to fight infection in the urinary tract, eye, or respiratory tract. Ivermectin is an anti-parasite drug for treatment of scabies, head lice, and filariasis. The combination is used to treat Covid patients with acute symptoms. In mid-May, a Bangladesh Medical College Hospital study found 60 Covid patients given this combination had recovered. A Monash Biomedicine Discovery Institute study also found through laboratory analysis that ivermectin helps eliminate the virus in 48 hours. “There is very little information about these two drugs on Covid-19 patients. It is still in experimental stage,” said Dr Nitin Karnik, member of the task force in Mumbai for treating critically ill patients. Ritonavir + lopinavir

These antivirals are commonly used to treat HIV patients. They are being investigated in the Solidarity Trial. Some studies suggest they reduce mortality risk in Covid-19 patients; others have found no major improvement. Over a dozen manufacturers supply ritonavir and lopinavir in India. Doctors sometimes use the combination for severely ill patients. Several doctors The Indian Express spoke to found no remarkable impact on the recovery of patients. Plasma therapy








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This is meant for critical patients with low oxygen saturation levels, or those suffering a cytokine storm. Patients who have recovered from severe Covid-19 donate their plasma, which is then injected into other critical patients to boost their immunity. A protocol approved by ICMR is used to select which patient is best suited for plasma therapy. Preference is given to those at risk of cytokine storm, extreme breathlessness with severe pneumonia.


11. Selling space: On SpaceX's mission to space


For the United States to send American astronauts to space from American soil after a gap of nine years is a milestone in itself. That this took place at the time of one of the biggest civil rights upsurges since the 1960s makes it almost like an escape to fantasy, riding on the wings of a public-private partnership between NASA and Elon Musk’s SpaceX. The less expensive journey is a clear financial advantage as the U.S. has been paying the Russians $80 million to put one astronaut into space ever since they stopped NASA’s human space launch programme. Thus, SpaceX comes in to provide advantages in costs, innovation and safety. Search for space customers

In the 2000s, when Mr. Musk showed off his rockets and lobbied in Washington DC, he was mostly ignored, yet now, NASA wants him to find customers for space flights. This can expand the power of U.S. commerce exponentially. Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa has already signed up as a potential traveller to the moon and back. With this partnership, Americans have taken yet another leap of faith in creating commerce in space. If his plans get realised, Mr. Musk could make space flights as common as domestic flights. Technologically, it is a remarkable feat. Public Private Partnership

NASA has partially outsourced its work of innovating, testing and building new technology to market players such as SpaceX. It has made clear its desire to invite more such innovative space companies to participate. India under Prime Minister Modi has also opened up the space sector including ISRO facilities to private players. The emergence of successful partnerships here will likely depend on how well they stand up against the American example of allowing for failure. ‘Fly, test, fail, fix’ has been the rubric followed by SpaceX. India has not witnessed such huge experiments in space except by the state-led ISRO, its most recently celebrated one being the Mars Orbiter Mission at

the cost of ₹7 per km, which is cheaper than autorickshaw travel as cited by Mr. Modi himself, famously.








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ISRO already has a competitive edge in the global market for space technology. The opening up of space technologies could harbour many an innovation of this kind; however, it calls for a high degree of accountability coupled with a non-partisan approach on the part of all players. The state’s role as a just arbiter in finding a delicate balance between entrepreneurial adventure and vested interests is a prerequisite to compete in space with the superpowers. Source: The Hindu

12. Population-wide mask use can bring R number below 1: study Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Science & Technology

Face mask and lockdown

A new modelling study led by the University of Cambridge suggests that if facemasks are used across a population, it keeps the coronavirus ‘reproduction number’ under 1.0. When combined with lockdowns, widespread facemask use prevents further waves of the virus, according to the study, led by the University of Cambridge and published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society A. The modelling included stages of infection and transmission via surfaces as well as air. Researchers also considered negative aspects of mask use, such as increased face touching. Lockdown alone is not successful

The research suggests that lockdowns alone will not stop the resurgence of SARS-CoV-2. However, even homemade masks with limited effectiveness can dramatically reduce transmission rates if worn by enough people, regardless of whether they show symptoms. Role of mask

The reproduction or ‘R’ number – the number of people an infected individual passes the virus onto – needs to stay below 1.0 for the pandemic to slow. The study found that if people wear masks whenever they are in public it is twice as effective at reducing ‘R’ than if masks are only worn after symptoms appear. In all modelling scenarios, routine facemask use by 50% or more of the population reduced Covid-19 spread to an R less than 1.0, flattening future disease waves and allowing less-stringent lockdowns. Viral spread reduced further as more people adopted masks when in public. And 100% mask adoption combined with on/off lockdowns prevented any further disease resurgence for the 18 months required for a possible vaccine. The models suggest that a policy of total facemask adoption can still prevent a second wave even if it isn’t instigated until 120 days after an epidemic begins (defined as the first 100 cases).








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13. GM seeds: the debate, and a sowing agitation Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Science & Technology

Last week, Shetkari Sanghatana — the farmers’ union founded by the late leader Sharad Joshi — announced fresh plans in its agitation for use of genetically modified seeds. In the current kharif season, farmers would undertake mass sowing of GM seeds for maize, soyabean, mustard brinjal and herbicide tolerant (Ht) cotton, although these are not approved. Farmers had carried out a similar movement last year, too. What are genetically modified seeds?

Conventional plant breeding involves crossing species of the same genus to provide the offspring with the desired traits of both parents. Genetic engineering aims to transcend the genus barrier by introducing an alien gene in the seeds to get the desired effects. The alien gene could be from a plant, an animal or even a soil bacterium. Bt cotton, the only GM crop that is allowed in India, has two alien genes from the soil bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) that allows the crop to develop a protein toxic to the common pest pink bollworm. Ht Bt, on the other, cotton is derived with the insertion of an additional gene, from another soil bacterium, which allows the plant to resist the common herbicide glyphosate. In Bt brinjal, a gene allows the plant to resist attacks of fruit and shoot borer. In DMH-11 mustard, developed by Deepak Pental and colleague in the South Campus of University of Delhi, genetic modification allows cross-pollination in a crop that self-pollinates in nature. Across the world, GM variants of maize, canola and soyabean, too, are available. What is the legal position of genetically modified crops in India?

In India, the Genetic Engineering Appraisal Committee (GEAC) is the apex body that allows for commercial release of GM crops. In 2002, the GEAC had allowed the commercial release of Bt cotton. More than 95 per cent of the country’s cotton area has since then come under Bt cotton. Use of the unapproved GM variant can attract a jail term of 5 years and fine of Rs 1 lakh under the Environmental Protection Act ,1989. Why are farmers rooting for GM crops?

In the case of cotton, farmers cite the high cost of weeding, which goes down considerably if they grow Ht Bt cotton and use glyphosate against weeds. Brinjal growers in Haryana have rooted for Bt brinjal as it reduces the cost of production by cutting down on the use of pesticides.








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Unauthorised crops are widely used. Industry estimates say that of the 4-4.5 crore packets (each weighing 400 gm) of cotton sold in the country, 50 lakh are of the unapproved Ht Bt cotton. Haryana has reported farmers growing Bt brinjal in pockets which had caused a major agitation there. In June last year, in a movement led by Shetkari Sanghatana in Akola district of Maharashtra, more than 1,000 farmers defied the government and sowed Ht Bt cotton. The Akola district authorities subsequently booked the organisers. Environmentalists argue that the long-lasting effect of GM crops is yet to be studied and thus they should not be released commercially. Genetic modification, they say, brings about changes that can be harmful to humans in the long run. What is the movement about?

The Sanghatana has announced that this year they are going to undertake large-scale sowing of unapproved GM crops like maize, Ht Bt cotton, soyabean and brinjal across Maharashtra. Farmers who plant such variants will put up boards on their fields proclaiming the GM nature of their crop. Anil Ghanwat, president of the union, has said this action will draw attention to the need for introduction of the latest technology in the fields. He said farmers will not be deterred by any action taken against them by the authorities. Source: The Indian Express

14. Asymptomatic transmission of Covid-19: Why it matters, where

evidence stands Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Science & Technology

On Monday, the World Health Organization’s Covid-19 technical lead Maria Van Kerkhove claimed that asymptomatic transmission of the disease is “extremely rare.” After queries poured in from around the world, the WHO called a social media interaction in which Van Kerkhove clarified that asymptomatic transmission does happen and that, according to some modelling studies, the incidence of such transmission could be as high as 40%. A look at why the question of asymptomatic transmission is an important factor in the Covid-19 pandemic, and where the evidence stands. What is asymptomatic transmission?

Asymptomatic transmission is when a person who has no symptoms of Covid-19 — such as fever, body ache, cough etc — transmits the novel coronavirus to another person. This is important because of the high infectiousness of the virus. If indeed asymptomatic transmission was rare as the WHO had initially claimed, the need for universal use of masks would reduce. In such a scenario, only people who showed symptoms would need to








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wear face covers to prevent onward transmission of the virus. Also, containing the virus would be easier if every person who showed symptoms simply self-isolated. How far does asymptomatic transmission occur?

Estimates vary but, by all accounts, it does take place. A study from China published in Nature Medicine on April 15 estimated that 44% cases who had contracted the disease had caught the disease from a person who was not showing symptoms. “We observed the highest viral load in throat swabs at the time of symptom onset, and inferred that infectiousness peaked on or before symptom onset. We estimated that 44%… of secondary cases were infected during the index cases’ presymptomatic stage, in settings with substantial household clustering, active case finding and quarantine outside the home,” reported researchers including from Guangzhou Medical University and the WHO Collaborating Centre for Infectious Disease Epidemiology and Control, at the University of Hong Kong. The study looked at 94 Covid-19 patients admitted to Guangzhou Eighth People’s Hospital. In the second WHO interaction, Van Kerkhove said there had been a “misunderstanding” about her statement on asymptomatic transmission. She revised her position and said: “There have been two-three studies that followed asymptomatic cases over time and looked at all contacts and came to the conclusion that there was no spread but that is a very small subset of studies. In trying to articulate what we know, I used the words ‘very rare’ and there was a misunderstanding… what I didn’t report yesterday because this is a major unknown is that there are some modelling studies that estimate that 40% transmission may be due to asymptomatic models. It is a modelling study so I didn’t include in my answer yesterday.” However, she said, it is an open question as to what percentage of people who don’t have symptoms transmit the disease. She quoted a figure of 6-41%. At how much has India assessed asymptomatic transmission?

The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has given widely varying figures for the extent of asymptomatic cases in the country. While the head of infectious diseases at ICMR, Dr R R Gangakhedkar, had said in April that 69% of all Covid-19 patients in India are asymptomatic, a study by ICMR of all positive cases till April 30 returned a figure of 28% asymptomatic patients in a total of 40,184. This latter figure is more in line with the WHO estimates. In general, asymptomatic patients of Covid-19 have been observed to be younger and without comorbidities. How can an asymptomatic person, who is not coughing and sneezing, transmit a

disease that spreads through droplets?








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The coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 resides in the upper respiratory tract. That is what makes it such a potent traveller through droplets from the human body to a surface and then onwards to its next victim. “Normally for symptomatic people therefore the transmission mode is obvious — coughing or sneezing. But for asymptomatic it can happen when you are singing, or in the gym breathing heavily or in a night club where you are shouting to be heard by somebody who is standing very close to you. Basically in any situation when you express air under pressure, droplet transmission can happen,” Dr Michael Ryan, Executive Director, WHO Health Emergencies Programme, said in the interaction. If asymptomatic COVID cases spread the disease, how does one stay safe?

Universal use of masks is a good place to start. This can prevent inadvertent spread by an asymptomatic person who is not aware of his/her positive status. It is also important to maintain a distance of at least one metre from any individual, apart from handwashing and maintenance of personal hygiene. At home, it is best to wear a mask, especially if there are elderly people in the house. but if that is not possible, it is advisable to cover one’s mouth when coughing or sneezing or to do so into one’s shirt sleeve. WHO recommends fabric masks for people who are living in areas of active transmission and cannot practise physical distancing, such as in public transport or in closed settings. Source: The Indian Express

15. What role do people without symptoms play in spreading COVID-19? Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Science & Technology

On June 8, the technical lead of the World Health Organisation (WHO), on the COVID-19 pandemic, said transmission by people without symptoms is “very rare”. Following a firestorm of protests by health experts, WHO retracted the claim on June 9, calling it a “misunderstanding”. WHO has been engaged in a series of controversial statements on the role of asymptomatics — those who have been infected with the virus but do not display symptoms — in spreading SARS-CoV-2. What did the World Health Organisation (WHO) say about the role of

asymptomatics? On Monday, June 8, at a virtual press conference, Dr. Maria van Kerkhove, WHO’s technical lead on the COVID-19 pandemic, said in response to a question by a journalist, that current evidence seemed to suggest that many countries monitoring asymptomatic cases and their contacts were not finding enough evidence to suggest that they were actually transmitting the disease. She said, “It’s very rare and much of that is not published in the literature... These comments provoked opposition from infectious disease experts and doctors — primarily on social media — arguing that Dr. Kerkhove may have downplayed the








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significance of this mode of transmission. Even more significantly, a recommendation to “focus on symptomatics” would mean ignoring infections by a category called “presymptomatics”. The next day Dr. Kerkhove appeared to backtrack. “I used the phrase ‘very rare’ and I think that it’s a misunderstanding to state the asymptomatic transmission globally is very rare. What I was referring to was a subset of studies. I was also referring to some data that isn’t published,” she said, as quoted in The Guardian. However, she maintained that significant disease spread by asymptomatics was the result of “modelling studies”, meaning they were not based on real world observations or properly vetted by peer-reviewed studies. Why do WHO’s observations matter?

Asymptomatics are those people who never show symptoms of the disease but test positive for the virus. WHO and infectious disease specialists assert that asymptomatic patients exist but it is not known how many there are and in what proportion. The current understanding of the disease is that people are most infectious when symptoms start to manifest, or are “presymptomatic”. It is not clear if asymptomatics are much less likely than presymptomatics and symptomatics to transmit the disease. WHO’s emphasis on symptomatics could imply that asymptomatics are “safe” and this undermines the widespread adoption of face masks and social distancing. A potentially greater role of asymptomatics and presymptomatics means that isolating and quarantining ought to be more aggressive. However, when numbers are large, as in India, the vast majority are not likely to suffer from serious infection and the focus is on treating only the manifestly ill — as is now being followed in several States—and opening up restrictions on movement. This way, many experts say, it is more feasible to focus on symptomatics and their contacts. Do genes have a role in determining the degree of sickness?

This is still an open question and researchers across the world are comparing the genes of those with the disease and trying to find correlations with the severity of illness. But there is no genetic link yet on why some people are asymptomatic. Source: The Hindu

16. BrainPort-Now see with your Tongue Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Science & Technology

One of the best wearable technology for the blind has been developed by neuroscientists of Wicab Inc. This device allows the blind to see without the help of eyes.








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BrainPort vision device technology is defined as a wearable tech that translates the information/data from a digital video camera to the tongue of the users with a small electric stimulation. In simple words, a camera image is just being transformed into something which users can feel and then see inside their heads. Hence it is used as a technology for the blind. The Parts

Digital Video Camera

It is placed in a pair of glasses to capture the visual data. Signals from the camera are then passed to the Brainport device along a cable and then to the lollipop-shaped stick, placed on the tongue. BrainPort Balance

It consists of a power button to start and stop the BrainPort balance. Then there is a control unit which comprises a CPU and a battery. CPU is used here to convert the digital output from the camera into electric pulses. Also, there is a Lollipop shaped stick which consists of 3 parts: Electrode Array, Simulation Circuitry, Accelerometer. The Working

Video camera collects visual information. A control unit translates the data and sends to the electrode array on the tongue. Users tongue will feel the shape of the object seen. Electrical impulses given to the brain through nerves in the tongue will eventually help the user to learn the shape of the object.

17. How India tests for Covid-19 Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Science & Technology

The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) recently approved ELISA test kits for Covid-19 developed by two companies. These were the first ELISA test kits approved other than those that use the ICMR’s own technology, and add to the basket of choices for testing for Covid-19. A look at these choices: ELISA

Developed in 1974, ELISA stands for enzyme-linked immuno-sorbent assay. It detects whether a person’s immune system has produced antibodies against a particular infection — such as HIV. The test is called “enzyme-linked” because it uses enzymes to detect presence of antibodies in a blood sample.








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An ELISA test is of two types depending on the antibodies tested for — immunoglobulin G (IgG) and immunoglobulin M (IgM). “IgG detects antibodies developed in later stage of infection, and IgM detects antibodies produced in early stages of infection. Currently only IgG testing kits have been approved in India.

In India, the ELISA test for Covid-19 is only approved for sero-surveys— which estimate the proportion of the population exposed to infection— and for surveys in high-risk areas and segments like containment zones, immunocompromised individuals, and frontline and health workers. RT-PCR

While ELISA is expected to relatively inexpensive and is fast, its use is limited to making population-based estimates that can inform policy decisions. For individual diagnosis and treatment of Covid-19, the test used worldwide is RT-PCR (reverse-polymerase chain reaction). Earlier it was also used for Ebola and Zika diagnosis. In India, RT-PCR remains the final confirmatory test for Covid-19. The test involves taking swabs from the nasal and oral tracts, extracting the viral RNA in a printer-like machine and amplifying it to detect SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19. RT-PCR is expensive, while free in government labs. Until May end, the ICMR had capped the cost of a test at Rs 4,500 for private laboratories, but has since removed the cap for private labs, allowing states to fix their own prices. ICMR has evaluated 97 kits of various manufacturers for RT-PCR testing, of which 40 have so far been approved. Apart from nasal or oral swab, another option for RT-PCR is the bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) method, which a bronchoscope is passed to obtain fluid from lungs or sputum. Sputum or BAL has a higher viral load, so there is a higher chance of virus detection than nasal or oral swab. Rapid antibody test








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This, too, looks for antibodies in the blood, takes hardly 20-30 minutes, and is the cheapest. But a rapid test involves a high risk of false results — it may detect antibodies against of some other infection and show that the sample is positive for Covid-19. Hence this test is only used for population surveys. If a person tests positive through a rapid test, he has to undergo a confirmatory RT-PCR test before treatment. ELISA is more accurate than a rapid test. Rapid antibody test involves taking a blood sample from the finger and putting it in a testing template. It cost Rs 600. Plasma or serum can also be used to test instead of blood. The ICMR has evaluated 46 rapid testing kits, and approved 14 so far. Eleven of the manufacturers are based in India. According to ICMR, a person may test positive for antibodies 7-10 days after contracting Covid-19 infection and may continue to show positive results for several weeks. While a positive result indicates the person has been exposed to the coronavirus, a negative result may not entirely rule out Covid-19 TrueNat

This is a privately designed test that works on the same principle as RT-PCR, but with a smaller kit and with faster results. TrueNat, designed by MolBio Diagnostics Pvt Ltd, Goa, is commonly used for tuberculosis and HIV testing. Recently, the ICMR approved TrueNat for screening and confirmation for Covid-19. If a sample test negative, it has to be treated as negative; if it tests positive, a second test called RdRp gene confirmatory assay has to be performed. The TrueNat machine is small and portable, mostly running on batteries, and provides result within 60 minutes. It involves taking nasal or oral swabs. Across India there are over 800 machines to test for TB; hence the government will not have to invest further in machines. When to use which

To understand which test to use, the purpose has to be defined. A person may test positive in these tests at different point of time during an infection. After the person is exposed, the viral load may be high in the respiratory tract within a few days, and an RT-PCR or TrueNat test may return positive. But if the person has not developed antibodies, both a rapid test and ELISA will return negative. In a few days, say over a week later, antibodies start getting produced, at which point RT-PCR may show negative but ELISA and Rapid will show positive. To diagnose and treat, doctors rely on RT-PCR, which implies active infection. Once confirmed the person has to be isolated, and treated if symptoms emerge. A positive result from ELISA or rapid antibody test may not mean the person needs isolation or is infectious; it may simply mean the person was exposed to the virus and has developed antibodies. These two tests, being cheaper than RT-PCR, are employed in large-








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scale population surveys. According to Dr Archana Patil, Additional Director in the Directorate of Health Services, Maharashtra, rapid or ELISA tests are tools that only show how widespread the infection is. Source: The Indian Express

18. How rapid antigen test detects coronavirus, where it will be used Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Science & Technology

On Monday, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) approved one more kind of test for diagnosis of Covid-19. The rapid antigen detection test is to be used in specified settings, and kits from only one manufacturer have got approval. What is the rapid antigen detection test for Covid-19?

It is a test on swabbed nasal samples that detects antigens (foreign substances that induce an immune response in the body) that are found on or within the SARS-CoV-2 virus. It is a point-of-care test, performed outside the conventional laboratory setting, and is used to quickly obtain a diagnostic result. In India, the ICMR has allowed the use of antigen detection kits developed by the South Korean company S D Biosensor, which has a manufacturing unit in Manesar. The kit, commercially called Standard Q COVID-19 Ag detection kit, comes with a with an inbuilt Covid antigen test device, viral extraction tube with viral lysis buffer and sterile swab for sample collection. How is rapid antigen detection test different from RT-PCR test?

RT-PCR is currently the gold standard frontline test for the diagnosis of Covid-19. Like RT-PCR, the rapid antigen detection test too seeks to detect the virus rather than the antibodies produced by the body. While the mechanism is different, the most significant difference between the two is time. As the ICMR has pointed out, the RT-PCR test takes a minimum of 2-5 hours including the time taken for sample transportation. “These specifications limit the widespread use of the RT-PCR test and also impedes quick augmentation of testing capacity in various containment zones and hospital settings,” the ICMR advisory states. In a reliable rapid antigen detection test, the maximum duration for interpreting a positive or negative test is 30 minutes. Why has only the kit by the company SD Biosensor been allowed?

Very few reliable antigen detection kits for Covid-19 diagnosis are available worldwide. On May 9, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) authorised the first antigen test, with US-based Quidel’s antigen kit called the Sofia 2 SARS Antigen FIA. On May 14, Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare approved the use of Tokyo-based Fujirebio Inc’s antigen test kit. In India, the ICMR conducted an independent two-site evaluation of the SD Biosensor kit, at ICMR and AIIMS.








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The results revealed that the kit had a very high specificity, or the ability to detect true negatives, ranging between 99.3% and 100% at the two sites. The sensitivity of the test, or its ability to detect true positives, ranged between 50.6% and 84%, depending upon the viral load of the patient. The higher the ability to detect true negatives, the more reliable is any positive result. Having allowed SD Biosensor to market its kit commercially, ICMR has also asked other manufacturers/developers who have antigen detection assays to come forward for validation. Where will the test be used?

As of now, the kit will be used in containment zones or hotspots and healthcare settings. In both settings, the ICMR, has advised that the test will be performed onsite under strict medical supervision and maintaining the kit temperature between 2° and 30°C. In containment zones, the test can be conducted on all symptomatic influenza-like illnesses. Asymptomatic direct and high-risk contacts with co-morbidities (lung disease, heart disease, liver disease, kidney disease, diabetes, neurological disorders, blood disorders) of a confirmed case are to be tested once between day 5 and day 10 of coming into contact. In healthcare settings, it can be used in three categories. First, in all persons presenting influenza-like symptoms in a healthcare setting and suspected of having Covid-19 infection; second, in asymptomatic patients who are hospitalised or seeking hospitalisation, in the following high-risk groups — those chemotherapy, immunosuppressed patients including those who are HIV positive, patients diagnosed with malignant disease, transplant patients, elderly patients (over age 65) with comorbidities — and third, in asymptomatic patients undergoing aerosol-generating surgical/non-surgical interventions such as elective/emergency surgical procedures like neurosurgery, ENT surgery, dental procedures, and non-surgical interventions like bronchoscopy and dialysis.

Is the test a confirmatory one for diagnosis of Covid-19?

According to the ICMR guidelines, if the test shows a positive result, it should be considered as true positive, and does not need reconfirmation. However, those who test negative in the rapid antigen test should then be tested by RT-PCR to rule out infection. What are the limitations of an antigen test’s results?

When it gave emergency authorisation for the first antigen kit, the US FDA pointed out that antigen tests are very specific for the virus, but are not as sensitive as molecular PCR tests. “This means that positive results from antigen tests are highly accurate, but there is a higher chance of false negatives, so negative results do not rule out infection. With this in mind, negative results from an antigen test may need to be confirmed with a PCR test prior to making treatment decisions or to prevent the possible spread of the virus due to a false negative,” the USFDA said.








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Also, the ICMR has said that once the sample is collected in the extraction buffer, it is stable only for one hour. “Therefore, the antigen test needs to be conducted at the site of sample collection in the healthcare setting,” ICMR has said. SD Biosensor has said a negative test result may occur if the level of an extracted antigen in a specimen is below the sensitivity of the test or if a poor quality specimen is obtained; a negative result may also occur if the concentration of antigen in a specimen is below the detection limit of the test or if the specimen. Also, the company points out, children tend to shed the virus for longer periods than adults, which may result in differences in sensitivity between adults and children. Source: The Indian Express

19. As sports events resume, a look at the new protocols in place


On May 5, a nine-year-old took centrestage at the Suwon Baseball Stadium, South Korea. He had been given the privileged task of throwing the first pitch to mark the resumption of the country’s baseball league that had been halted because of the Covid-19 pandemic. The boy was placed inside a plastic bubble designed to look like a baseball, which was made to roll towards the home plate. In many ways, that ‘bubble’ is the symbol for social distancing is a metaphor for what the sporting world will need to do to fight the pandemic. And with the use of a ‘bio-bubble,’ there are now plans for major competitions to resume. A bio-bubble is essentially the securing of a sanitised area that can be accessed by only a certain set of people — all of whom need to be clear of coronavirus. The bubble has been tested briefly in the last few months, over exhibition tennis events involving players who live near the stadium, and even in the German Bundesliga, where players are to stay at a hotel seven days prior to a match. Now several major competitions are poised to resume, with protocols in place. NBA (basketball) Basketball’s marquee league has decided to resume the season by moving all teams still in the running for the playoffs — 22 out of 30 — to the 25,000-acre Disneyworld in Florida. At the moment, the park has been shut to the public, and will open its gates only for the 22 teams, that are expected to follow staggered travel plans to Orlando. Inside the venue is the 220-acre ESPN Wide World of Sports — a sports complex with three arenas, each capable of fitting 20 courts, and equipped with facilities for broadcasting. All matches will be played without spectators. There is a wide array of hotels for players, although the NBA is expected to house players in just one.








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With all teams at one venue, it eliminates the risk of players being infected during travel. Prior to coming to Orlando, guidelines have been issued. Teams are scheduled to assemble at their respective bases by June 30, where players are expected to be tested. Only those who test negative will be allowed to travel. Thereon, teams — with no more than 35 personnel, including players and support staff — will travel to Orlando no later than July 7, where they will be in quarantine for 36 hours. US Open (tennis)

It is still unclear if the United State Tennis Association (USTA) will cancel the US Open, but the governing body has put forward plans in case the events fall into place. Since most players are abroad, the USTA will help organise chartered flights. To board the plane each player (and the one member of their entourage they are allowed to bring), will need to undergo a Covid-19 test and also be symptom-free. Once in New York, players will undergo temperature checks and follow-up tests, and will be ferried to a designated hotel equipped with physiotherapists, and facilities for training and testing. Players’ movement in New York will be restricted between the hotel and the stadium. The draw will remain of 128 players, but there will no qualification round, no junior or legends events, and the doubles draw may be reduced to 24 teams (from the original 64). As for the French Open, as reported by Spanish newspaper Marca, the major which is scheduled to take place a week after the conclusion of the US Open (September 20) will start with a draw of 96 instead of the usual 128 for the men’s and women’s singles events. Windies in England (cricket)

The 25-player and 11-person support staff of the West Indies team has left for England, in two chartered planes, after having tested negative. Upon arrival in Manchester, the team will stay at an on-site hotel at Old Trafford, where they will self-isolate for two weeks, but will be allowed to train once they clear a follow-up test. The players are expected to play a three-day and a four-day matches among themselves. In the meantime, they are not allowed to leave the stadium or hotel. For the first Test in Southampton from July 8, the England and Wales Cricket Board has planned the bubble to include a hotel adjoining the stadium, with everybody being tested and nobody to leave the bubble throughout the duration. Premier League (football)

The league is expected to resume on June 17. The strict protocol in the lead-up includes sanitisation of corner flags, goalposts, balls, cones and practice pitches after each training session. Players are to be tested twice a week, and undergo temperature checks and pre-training questionnaires daily.








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For the first phase of training, players are prohibited from coming in contact or tackling, and they are to drive to training themselves and not use public transport. The league has confirmed that leaders Liverpool, just six points away from securing the title, will be allowed to win the league at their home stadium Anfield. This is despite reservations from police, who fear fans may flock outside the stadium to celebrate. The police have also listed several ‘high-risk’ matches – including Manchester United versus Sheffield United, Tottenham versus West Ham and West Ham versus Chelsea. German Bundesliga (football)

In the month before the May 16 resumption, players were tested at least twice a week and quarantined for a week ahead of the opening game. The German federation will pay for the 20,000 tests that the Bundesliga will conduct — approximately 0.4% of the country’s capacity — to complete the season. According to Sports Illustrated, conducting the remaining eight games per team to complete the league has around $800 million at stake. Players, additionally, are barred from interacting with visitors at home or using public transport. They are to be kept under security around the clock, and are not to share hotel rooms. They are to sit at least two metres apart during meals, and will enter hotels using exclusive entrances where their temperatures are checked each time. In the team bus, they will all sit metres apart. Schalke has arranged the purchase of groceries for all its players, which will be left in sanitised baskets for them to take home. Borussia Dortmund will use multiple locker rooms at its home ground, Signal Iduna Park. During matches, reserve players will not be in the dugout, but in the first row of the stands with masks. For each match, there will be no more than 322 people allowed in and around the stadium complex. This includes eight groundkeepers, three photographers, four ball kids, four medical personnel, security guards, doping control, journalists, police and support staff. La Liga (football)

The Spanish top flight returned on June 11 after a 91-day break. Training had resumed early in May, with all players, coaching staff and team doctors tested daily, and remaining personnel involved at least three thrice a week. Starting May 4, players were allowed to train only individually, and a week later, no more than 12 players were allowed to train at a given time — six on one pitch. The full squad was allowed practice a week after that, with members being tested constantly. Players were to come to training grounds individually, in a staggered manner, already dressed in their kits. Players were given training kits a day earlier in biodegradable bags. After going home they would place the dirty kits in the bags, and bring them for washing to the club the next day, according to the BBC. Only three players were allowed per dressing








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room, and their kits and boots were placed far apart. Meanwhile, food was placed in individual bags in the canteen. Players who had tested positive earlier were to go into isolation prior to resumption of training. If a player tests positive after the restart, the entire team will be placed in quarantine, and if there is a second outbreak, the league will be stopped. Source: The Indian Express

20. A badminton legend, a football star, latest Covid-19 drug: what’s common? Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Science & Technology

Drug dexamethasone

Researchers leading a major clinical trial in the UK announced on Tuesday that the drug dexamethasone had been found to cut death rates by around a third in the most severely ill among Covid-19 patients. The “first drug to be shown to improve survival” in the pandemic was hailed by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson as “the biggest breakthrough yet” in the fight against the novel coronavirus. Used as performance enhancer

The low-cost, anti-inflammatory steroid is well known in the world of sport. Dexamethasone has been used for years by sportspersons to hasten their rehabilitation from injuries and recover from infections. The drug is on the World Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA’s) list of prohibited substances, and sportspersons from Spain and Real Madrid star Sergio Ramos to Malaysian badminton legend Lee Chong Wei and, most recently, Indian javelin thrower Davinder Singh Kang, have been caught using it. Athletes are, however, barred from using dexamethasone only during competition — meaning, if the substance is detected prior to a competition, it will not be considered a doping offence. Dr Ashok Ahuja, former head of sports medicine at the Sports Authority of India (SAI), said dexamethasone is a corticosteroid, an easily available medicine that prevents the release of substances in the body that cause inflammation. Its effects are frequently seen within a day, and last for about three days. Source: The Indian Express








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21. How railway coaches were redesigned for Covid-19 patients, where

they will be deployed Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Science & Technology

On Sunday, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, after a meeting with Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, declared that 500 Covid isolation coaches would be deployed in Delhi. So far, over 5,000 coaches have been converted into Covid isolation coaches across India. What are these coaches? In March, Railways was sounded out by the PMO and the government’s multi-ministerial outbreak-containment apparatus that train coaches could also be used as a last resort to keep isolated patients. So far, 5,321 non-AC sleeper class coaches of ICF variety (older design) have been converted by the 16 zonal railways through their workshops spread across India. These are developed as COVID Care Level 1 centres—as per the Health Ministry classification of COVID facilities—where suspected cases or those with mild symptoms are to be kept. Suspected and confirmed cases will be kept in separate coaches. Besides the 500 being deployed in Delhi, Telangana has requested for 60 coaches in three locations, and UP has requested in 24 locations. Many states are said to be informally enquiring about the coaches in zones. How were these coaches selected?

Early into the pandemic, health experts were of the view that air-conditioned environments might aid the spread of the virus. Well-ventilated, airy environments were thought to be safer. India’s decision to use non-AC coaches for islation has to be viewed in that context. As per targets given to the 16 zonal railways, 5,000 older coaches, surplus to Railways’ operational needs, were marked for conversion. With each carrying 16 patients, this translates into 80,000 isolation/quarantine beds. Railways said it has set aside 20,000 coaches and if needed, more conversions can be done. How were they converted?

Each sleeper coach is divided into eight bays or “cabins”. The idea was to remove the middle berths so that each bay carries two patients on the lower berths — a capacity of 16 per coach. Two of the four toilets were converted into bathrooms. The windows were covered with mosquito nets. Power plug sockets were installed for medical equipment in each bay. And plastic curtains were installed in every cabin. Each coach also has oxygen cylinders. Each coach has been converted at a cost around Rs 2 lakh. So the 5,321 coaches have been converted at over Rs 100 crore.








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What were the challenges faced?

The summer heat in the coach was always a matter of discussion, not only in Railways but also in the Empowered Group of Secretaries based on whose inputs the coaches were converted. Several ideas were discussed, including erecting shamianas over the coaches, or painting the roof with “solar reflective” paints. Finally, it was decided the roof would be insulated in a number of coaches. The technical solution was vetted by the Research Designs and Standards Organisation of Railways. A solution has been developed by IIT Mumbai which brings down the temperature in the coach by several degrees. Railways has attached an AC coach as well, for doctors and medical staff. Another question was how to dispose of toilet waste if the coaches were in remote areas and whether such waste was potentially infectious. It was agreed that since chlorine tablets are placed in the chambers of the biotoilets, the risk was neutralised. In any case, bio-enzymes in the toilet tanks take care of the human waste. Another question was placement. The batteries of the coaches need to be charged and the water needs to be replenished. Not all areas in India might have such facilities. After discussions with the Health Ministry, 215 stations were identified across India. The idea was that being mobile units, they could be dispatched to any part of the country to pick up patients and come back to their bases.

Source: All information from Indian Railways








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Of the 215 stations, Railways would provide their own healthcare professionals for patients in 85. In the other 130, states would have to arrange doctors and medical staff, as per a protocol issued by the Health Ministry. Each isolation train will be tied to the nearest hospital.








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The Centre will not deploy these coaches at will; states will have to request for them. At least 10 coaches, or one train, will have to be deployed in one place. States can request for more. The Ministry of Environment and Forest and Climate Change has provided a one-time exemption from registration of train coaches for the purpose of generating hospital waste. The state is supposed to dispose waste. Railways will maintain the coaches, provide linen and may provide food also, depending on feasibility, if requested by states. Will these be upgraded further?

NITI Aayog in early May proposed that instead of mere COVID Care Level 1 centres, some of these coaches should be upgraded to hospitals, with oxygen, ICU and ventilator facilities. It was also suggested that Railways could take help from private hospitals for the upgrade. In a meeting with Railways, NITI Member V K Paul, who is also the head of the relevant Empowered Committee, suggested that the coaches be upgraded to Level II and III COVID Care Centres. Railways discussed internally that such a task would require months. One rake of Lifeline Express, which is “hospital on wheels” with all medical facilities, takes months to roll out. In Europe, governments have used trains to transport patients to other regions. In March, France used its TGV high speed trains to move patients out of Paris to other parts of the country where hospital capacity was yet unutilised. Spain also readied high-speed trains to carry patients to Madrid from other parts of the country where hospital facilities could be overwhelmed. Italy has now created similar hospitals on wheels as a defence against a second Covid wave. Source: The Indian Express

22. Govt ends monopoly over coal, opens mining sector to private

players Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Science & Technology

As a part of its measures to reform the economy, the govt. has launched the auction for 41 coal mines for commercial mining. It is aimed at reviving the economic growth and marks the end of seven decades of policy restrictions in this sector. The Details

Under this scheme, coal and lignite blocks will be auctioned on revenue sharing basis. Earlier, blocks were awarded on a fixed payment per tonne basis which as per govt. belief, was keeping the bidders away.








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There will be no restriction on both the sale and utilisation of coal from these mines as well as the transfer of mining leases. About: Investments and Revenues

These coal mines will require an investment of around Rs. 33,000 crore. They are expected to hit peak production of 22.5 crore million tonnes and will account for around 15% of India’s total coal production in 2025-26. Besides, such commercial mining will bring an annual revenue of Rs. 20,000 crore for the state govts. A sorry state of affairs Despite having the world’s 4th largest coal reserves, India imports over 23 crore tonnes of coal each year. However, out of this figure, around 13 crore tonnes could be sourced from domestic supplies. Aiming for a balance

The govt. is also taking steps to promote coal gasification to address pollution concerns. Under this technique, instead of burning the coal, it is chemically transformed into synthetic natural gas (SNG). The govt. plans to gasify 10 crore tonnes of coal each year by 2030.

23. How TrueNat test works Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Science & Technology

A few weeks ago, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) approved the use of TrueNat machines, manufactured by a Goa-based company, for carrying out confirmatory tests for Covid-19 disease. Before that, these machines, which were originally developed for detecting tuberculosis in patients a few years ago, were being used in the current coronavirus pandemic only for screening patients. Following the ICMR approval, these machines are now being sought by a number of states, especially those that lack a strong laboratory network that is required to carry out the traditional RT-PCR tests. While Uttar Pradesh has got 117 machines to be deployed in all its 75 districts, Bihar has ordered 50 machines. Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh all have sought these machines, and many of these have already been deployed.

How does TrueNat work?

To understand that, it helps to understand how the traditional PCR tests work. PCR is a method to capture a specific gene from the DNA in the swab sample, and multiply it through a series of chemical processes so that it can be detected using fluorescent dyes.








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Most modern PCR tests, which are used for detecting other kind of viruses as well, work in real time. The result is visible even while the chain reaction is happening. The SARS-CoV-2 virus, which causes Covid-19, does not have a DNA, but an RNA molecule. The reverse transcription process (the RT in RT-PCR) converts the RNA into the DNA molecule before the gene can be captured in the test. TrueNat is a chip-based, battery-operated RT-PCR kit. Initially, it could only identify the E-gene in the SARS-CoV-2 virus. This is the gene that helps the virus build a spherical envelope around it. At this point, TrueNat machines were used as a screening test. Samples that were detected with the E-gene could be sent for confirmatory RT-PCR tests in laboratories. But the new machines are now equipped to detect the RdRp enzyme found in the virus RNA, and hence the ICMR has ruled that these tests can be treated as a confirmation for the presence of the novel coronavirus. The big difference is that the machine is portable, and tests with it cost much less than the traditional RT-PCR tests. That make it extremely useful for deploying in interior districts and faraway places from where collecting and sending swabs for testing in big cities is a difficult task. In fact, these machines have already been deployed in villages of northern coastal belt of Andhra Pradesh, and inside the forested regions of Gadchiroli district. How is the test conducted?

Once the swab is collected at kiosks set up at these places, or in containment zones or health camps, it is dipped in a viral transmission medium where it gets neutralized. At the primary healthcare centre or a nearby laboratory, it is transferred to another liquid, a viral lysis bugger, in which the cells break and the impurities are removed. A part of this liquid is then transferred into a cartridge that looks like a flattened tape cassette and is inserted inside a machine very much like a cassette player. The play button activates the process. In just about 20 minutes, the process extracts the RNA, the signature set of genome instructions which command a cell to multiply the virus once it enters a human cell. This RNA extract is then transferred to another machine where the liquid is released into a miniature well that is attached to an electronic chip that is no bigger than a human thumb. While the miniature well is where the reagent activates the RNA, it is the chip that is fed with all the calculations of the viral load that helps in detecting whether a person is carrying the virus or not. Unlike in the conventional RT-PCR tests, the reagents do not require extreme temperatures in this process, and the quantity of swab required for testing is also much less. Given that the machines were developed for testing for tuberculosis, did they require

adapting for Covid-19 testing?

The machine, designed by Goa-based Molbio Diagnostics Private Limited, was originally developed for the diagnosis of tuberculosis, which affects at least one million children every year. A result of at least a decade of research, these machines had only recently been approved by the World Health Organization (WHO), which attested that these machines








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“showed similar accuracy” to other WHO approved commercial products for this purpose. These machines were ready to be deployed from April this year. The heart of the machine is designed to detect different kinds of infections. It is the chip that is specific to every infection. The company took 15 days to design the chip which had all the viral load diagnosis for detecting Coronavirus. According to Sriram, the company was busy making delivery arrangements for the consignee list provided to it by Ministry of Health for TB diagnostics. “Five hundred machines were divided between all the states, and union territories. After that, the states had started placing orders on their own. As of today, about 1,000 machines are already booked, and we are expecting another 3,000 to 4,000 to be ordered in the next two months,” he said. It was Goa that first purchased the new modified machine for Covid-19 screening. But Andhra Pradesh was the state that used it most extensively, running more than 2.5 lakh screening tests. The demand grew when the cases began to rise in states like Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Odisha, as migrants began to return in the second week of May. The machine has already enabled door-to-door surveys in many parts of these states. How does TrueNat compare with conventional tests?

Conventional RT-PCR requires RNA extraction and analysis to be done in two different rooms backed with cold storage and trained experts handling laboratory designed equipment. TrueNat on the other hand is designed primarily to work at remote locations, and considered as ‘last mile diagnostics’. “The machine is portable and can be carried in a briefcase, is battery operated with one charge lasting ten hours. An eight-hour shift gives 45 tests and most of the states are currently running three shifts a day,” said Sriram. “Most states have also ordered for the four slot machine which allows four tests to be conducted simultaneously,” he said. Each of the four slot machines costs upward of Rs 13 lakh but the test kit comes only for about Rs 1,300. Source: The Indian Express

24. Dexamethasone: its use, action, and what a Recovery Trial found Relevant for GS Prelims &Mains Paper III; Science & Technology








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A low-cost, widely used steroid, dexamethasone, has become the subject of discussion after researchers from the Recovery Trial reported that it helps reduce death rates in certain Covid-19 patients. What is dexamethasone?

It is an anti-inflammatory drug, commonly used to treat conditions in which the body’s immune system does not function properly, and causes inflammation and tissue damage. Dexamethasone reduces the production of the chemicals that cause inflammation and also reduces the activity of the immune system by affecting the way white blood cells function. Dexamethasone falls in a category called corticosteroids, which closely mimic cortisol, the hormone naturally produced by the adrenal glands in humans. It is commonly used in treatment for rheumatological inflammatory conditions: inflammations of muscles, inflammation of blood vessels, chronic arthritis, and lupus. It is used in lung diseases, kidney inflammation and eye inflammation, and to reduce swelling associated with tumours of the brain and spine. In cancer patients, it is used to treat nausea and vomiting caused by chemotherapy drugs. How useful is it in Covid-19 treatment?

There is no specific proven treatment for Covid-19 yet. Patients are being administered different drugs that are approved for treating for other diseases. During the SARS outbreak in 2003, corticosteroid therapy was used to reduce inflammatory-induced lung injury. In Covid-19, too, many countries are investigating the effectiveness of corticosteroid therapy on patients with an acute respiratory infection. Also, the World Health Organization (WHO) has prioritised the evaluation of corticosteroids in clinical trials to assess safety and efficacy. In interim guidelines on Covid-19 treatment released on May 27, the WHO has recommended “against the routine of systematic corticosteroid” for treatment of viral pneumonia. It said a systematic review and meta-analysis of the impact of corticosteroid therapy on persons with SARS-CoV-2, SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV revealed corticosteroids did not significantly reduce the risk of death, did not reduce hospitalisation duration, ICU admission rate and/or use of mechanical ventilation, and had several adverse effects. So, what has newly been reported?

The Recovery Trial in the UK has an arm investigating dexamethasone. Oxford researchers this week announced the results of the dexamethasone trial, where 2,104 enrolled patients were administered 6 mg of the drug for 10 days. The drug was found to have reduced deaths by one-third in ventilated patients and by one-fifth in patients receiving only oxygen. “Based on these results, 1 (one) death would be prevented by treatment of around 8 ventilated patients, or around 25 patients requiring oxygen alone,” the university said. It








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said the drug was found to have reduced the 28-day mortality rate by 17 per cent, with a “highly significant” trend showing “greatest benefit” among patients requiring ventilation.

How significant are these findings?

First, the study found no evidence of benefit for patients who did not require oxygen. Peter Horby, professor of Emerging Infectious Diseases in Nuffield Department of Medicine, Oxford University, acknowledged that survival benefit is clear and large only in patients who are sick enough to require oxygen treatment. Also, the trial did not study patients outside the hospital setting. Therefore, the drug is not recommended to the large population of mild patients. Does India use corticosteroid therapy?

Yes. The clinical management protocol for Covid-19 released by the Health Ministry allows the use of the corticosteroid methylprednisolone. For moderate cases, the protocol is: “Consider IV methylprednisolone 0.5 to 1 mg/kg for 3 days (preferably within 48 hours of admission or if oxygen requirement is increasing and if inflammatory markers are increased)”. And for severe cases: “For patients with progressive deterioration of oxygenation indicators, rapid worsening on imaging and excessive activation of the body’s inflammatory response, glucocorticoids can be used for a short period of time (3 to 5 days). It is recommended that dose should not exceed the equivalent of methylprednisolone 1 – 2mg/kg/day”. Dexamethasone: What are the side effects?

The Health Ministry protocol says a larger dose of glucocorticoid will delay the removal of coronavirus due to immunosuppressive effects. On May 25, The Lancet published a correspondence that said “improper use of systemic corticosteroids can increase the risk of osteonecrosis of the femoral head (ONFH)”. Osteonecrosis refers to the death of bone tissue due to lack of blood supply. Also, the WHO says that “given the lack of effectiveness and possible harm”, routine corticosteroids should be avoided unless they are indicated for another reason. “Other reasons may include exacerbation of asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), septic shock or ARDS, and risk/benefit analysis needs to be conducted for individual patients.” Source: The Indian Express

25. Has Google failed to protect its Chrome browser? Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Science & Technology








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A few days ago, Reuters reported a “newly discovered spyware effort” targetting users of Google’s browser Chrome. The spyware, it said, has been pushed through at least 111 malicious or fake Chrome browser extensions, which have been downloaded some 32 million times. (Browser extensions are add-ons that provide additional capabilities to the user.) The report also said Google had taken off more than 70 extensions from its official Web Store last month after being alerted to their malicious nature by researchers at Awake Security. The rest were never in its web store. How do these malicious extensions get in to the Chrome store in the first place?

Short answer: they seem harmless, to being with. According to the report by Awake Security, which brought this issue to light, these “sleeper agent extensions” appear to do nothing in the beginning. The “malicious payloads” are only pushed on to the extensions much after the “clean” versions have been approved. What do the malicious extensions do? They can take “screenshots, read the clipboard, harvest credential tokens stored in cookies or parameters, grab user keystrokes (like passwords),” says the report. It has been mentioned that some of the fake extensions were never in the Chrome Web Store. How were they made to work then?

This is due to the misuse of an open-source browser project, Chromium — installing it can lead to malicious add-ons. This works as a rogue browser when users unwittingly give it the okay to run when prompted. Are browser extensions a vulnerability?

A significant part of what we do on the computer these days is via the browser. Also, the research report points out that it has been a challenge for security solutions to spot malicious activity that is happening within the browser. The Awake Security report says, “Rogue access to the browser therefore frequently means rogue access to the ‘keys to the kingdom’ — from email and corporate file sharing to customer relationship management and financial databases.” How are users fooled?

Watch out for prompts that urge you to make a new browser as default. That is not all, though. The security firm has also documented some standard characteristics of malicious campaigns. For starters, some of these malicious players have professional-looking web sites that peddle false promises. An example recorded is that of a security extension that certifies a page with malicious content as secure. Security experts can visually figure out if an extension is malicious or fake, says the Awake Security report, listing out the following easy identifiers: These extensions, for an unknown








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brand and little information, have a huge following; the user reviews are always great; these extensions have a huge following despite being relatively new in the market. Source: The Hindu

26. A look at India’s evolving strategy on testing for Covid-19 Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Science & Technology

On Tuesday, the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) made a large shift in Covid-19 testing strategy, calling for “all symptomatic individuals in every part of the country” to be tested. It also urged private hospitals, offices, and public sector units to conduct antibody testing as a surveillance measure. A look at how ICMR’s testing protocols have evolved since the outbreak began: March: Reserved testing On March 17, the strategy was far more hesitant than now. “To avoid indiscriminate testing and reducing panic and optimally utilise the resources of the country and scale up facilities for testing,” it said, under “Objectives”. The strategy focused only on three symptomatic people: international travellers, contacts of a case, and healthcare workers. “Why should we go on telling people who have no history of travel or any contact with an actual case?” ICMR Senior scientist Nivedita Gupta had said to The Indian Express at the time. “In this process, in a huge country like India, I’m not able to test people who genuinely may need testing because I’m wasting it on futile testing. Though we are maintaining a stringent inventory, we also need to make sure that we are not in a situation where I exhaust all my testing capacity in futile testing and tomorrow, if there is an upsurge in cases, I say that I have exhausted all my tests.” At the time, private players had not yet been roped in to conduct testing, and the ICMR was just instituting processes to expand lab capacity. At the end of March, it gradually expanded testing to include hospitalised patients with severe acute respiratory illness (SARI) as well as asymptomatic contacts of cases. The new focus ran alongside the agency’s first surveillance method — testing SARI patients to see if any were positive for Covid-19. April: New techniques

ICMR advised rapid antibody tests in hotspots and migrant centres on April 4, leaving the decision to state governments. These tests are not diagnostic, but can determine if a patient has previously had coronavirus. States like Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Chhattisgarh were eager to undertake this type of surveillance.








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Later, the ICMR reversed its decision, given a batch of faulty kits from China. There also was divergence between the World Health Organization and ICMR in the beginning of April, with the former saying antibody testing should be used for research. Subsequent advisories from ICMR detailed antibody testing as “supplementary” to RT-PCR testing. The ICMR also advised enhanced testing in 20 hotspots, including Nizamuddin and Dilshad Garden in Delhi, Pathanamthitta in Kerala, and Mumbai and Pune. On April 9, it added symptomatic patients in hotspots, large migration gatherings and evacuee centres to the testing strategy. New ICMR research at the time also found the percentage of random positive samples of Covid-19 among SARI patients across the country has increased incrementally over the past month. On April 13, the ICMR detailed pooled sampling in areas with few cases or low positivity rates. If any positive sample comes for a pool of samples, then individual testing follows. States like UP jumped onto the strategy. The ICMR still faced a backlash for lack of testing. Responding to a question at the daily briefing, Dr R R Gangakhedkar, head of epidemiology and infectious diseases at ICMR, said: “As for testing strategy, your chances of testing positive become less as you near the infection time point. It comes positive when there are symptoms, so keeping in mind the cost effectiveness and risk-based approach, your yield will become less the sooner you test. Even to think about changing the testing strategy now… I cannot say.” May: Expanded protocols

On May 18, ICMR added symptomatic migrants, hospitalised patients, frontline workers to the testing strategy. The inclusion of all “hospitalised patients who develop ILI symptoms” indicated the concern over patients contracting the disease in hospital. And the inclusion of “returnees/migrants”, irrespective of contact history or whether they are travelling from a hotspot, signalled concerns about possible community transmission. Also in May, the Health Ministry decided not to test mild and moderate cases before their discharge or after a home isolation period. The government also initiated a nationwide sero-survey to assess the spread. This was also spurred by ICMR’s validation of its own “indigenous” antibody test kit. On May 30, ICMR reintroduced advice to states to use antibody tests, focusing on workers who have returned from other states, those who live in dense settings or poorly ventilated buildings; people who work in certain sectors; people in containment zones; police and paramilitary personnel, and prison officials, among others.








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By May-end, the positivity rate in India had begun to steepen just as the country began testing over 1 lakh samples a day. Along with the expanding testing strategy, facilities and types of kits also gradually increased. June: rapid antigen tests

The ICMR approved on June 15 a new on-site diagnostic kit for containment zones and healthcare settings, which can give rapid, low-cost results without needing a laboratory. In containment zones, the rapid antigen test was encouraged for all people with fever and cough and all contacts of a case who are direct, asymptomatic, and have high co-morbidities. In healthcare settings, the test will be used for all patients of influenza-like illnesses suspected of having contracted Covid-19 and asymptomatic patients who are immunosuppressed or have other co-morbidities. The test will also be available for asymptomatic patients undergoing certain procedures such as neurosurgeries, dental work, and dialysis. While positive results will be considered confirmed, in case of negative results, an RT-PCR would be done for reconfirmation. Maharashtra, Delhi, Gujarat, Haryana, and UP have procured rapid antigen testing kits. “All the states are gearing up now to start the testing with this and almost all states will eventually buy it. Many hospitals are also inquiring and placing the order for any symptomatic individuals in their hospital with a heavy viral load,” said an official from SD Biosensor, which is supplying the test kit. The advisory on June 23 said: “Despite new types of testing kits being added, access to testing still remains a huge challenge in a large country like India.” Source: The Indian Express

27. IN-SPACe: what it means to the future of space exploration Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Science & Technology

The government on Wednesday approved the creation of a new organisation to ensure greater private participation in India’s space activities, a decision which it described as “historic”, and which Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chairman K Sivan said was part of an important set of reforms to open up the space sector and make space-based applications and services more widely accessible to everyone. The new Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe), which is expected to be functional within six months, will assess the needs and demands of private players, including educational and research institutions, and, explore ways to accommodate these requirements in consultation with ISRO. Existing ISRO infrastructure, both ground- and space-based, scientific and technical resources, and even data are








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planned to be made accessible to interested parties to enable them to carry out their space-related activities. Why private participants It is not that there is no private industry involvement in India’s space sector. In fact, a large part of manufacturing and fabrication of rockets and satellites now happens in the private sector. There is an increasing participation of research institutions as well. But as Sivan told this newspaper on Thursday, Indian industry had a barely three per cent share in a rapidly growing global space economy which was already worth at least $360 billion. Only two per cent of this market was for rocket and satellite launch services, which require fairly large infrastructure and heavy investment. The remaining 95 per cent related to satellite-based services, and ground-based systems. Indian industry, however, is unable to compete, because till now its role has been mainly that of suppliers of components and sub-systems. Indian industries do not have the resources or the technology to undertake independent space projects of the kind that US companies such as SpaceX have been doing, or provide space-based services. Additionally, the demand for space-based applications and services is growing even within India, and ISRO is unable to cater to this. The need for satellite data, imageries and space technology now cuts across sectors, from weather to agriculture to transport to urban development, and more. As Sivan told this newspaper, ISRO would have to be expanded 10 times the current level to meet all the demand that is arising. At the same time, there were several Indian companies waiting for make use of these opportunities. Sivan said there were a few companies that were in the process of developing their own launch vehicles, the rockets like ISRO’s PSLV that carry the satellites and other payloads into space, and ISRO would like to help them do that. Right now, all launches from India happen on ISRO rockets, the different versions of PSLV and GSLV. Sivan said ISRO was ready to provide all its facilities to private players whose projects had been approved by IN-SPACe. Private companies, if they wanted, could even build their own launchpad within the Sriharikota launch station, and ISRO would provide the necessary land for that, he said. IN-SPACe is supposed to be a facilitator, and also a regulator. It will act as an interface between ISRO and private parties, and assess how best to utilise India’s space resources and increase space-based activities. How ISRO gains

There are two main reasons why enhanced private involvement in the space sector seems important. One is commercial, and the other strategic. Of course, there is need for greater dissemination of space technologies, better utilisation of space resources, and increased requirement of space-based services. And ISRO seems unable to satisfy this need on its own.








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The private industry will also free up ISRO to concentrate on science, research and development, interplanetary exploration and strategic launches. Right now, too much of ISRO’s resources is consumed by routine activities that delay its more strategic objectives. There is no reason why ISRO alone should be launching weather or communication satellites. The world over, an increasing number of private players are taking over this activity for commercial benefits. ISRO, like NASA, is essentially a scientific organisation whose main objective is exploration of space and carrying out scientific missions. There are a number of ambitious space missions lined up in the coming years, including a mission to observe the Sun, a mission to the Moon, a human spaceflight, and then, possibly, a human landing on the Moon. And it is not that private players will wean away the revenues that ISRO gets through commercial launches. As Sivan said, the space-based economy is expected to “explode” in the next few years, even in India, and there would be more than enough for all. In addition, ISRO can earn some money by making its facilities and data available to private players. Beyond IN-SPACe

IN-SPACe is the second space organisation created by the government in the last two years. In the 2019 Budget, the government had announced the setting up of a New Space India Limited (NSIL), a public sector company that would serve as a marketing arm of ISRO. Its main purpose is to market the technologies developed by ISRO and bring it more clients that need space-based services. That role, incidentally, was already being performed by Antrix Corporation, another PSU working under the Department of Space, and which still exists. It is still not very clear why there was a need for another organisation with overlapping function. On Wednesday, however, the government said it was redefining the role of NSIL so that it would have a demand-driven approach rather than the current supply-driven strategy. Essentially, what that means is that instead of just marketing what ISRO has to offer, NSIL would listen to the needs of the clients and ask ISRO to fulfil those. This change in NSIL’s role, Sivan said, was also part of the reforms that have been initiated in the space sector. This article first appeared in the print edition on June 26, 2020 under the title ‘In space, growing private role’. Source: The Indian Express

28. What due process must be followed in the appraisal of any drug,

especially those for COVID-19? Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Science & Technology








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On June 23, the claim by Patanjali Ayurved [Haridwar (Uttrakhand)] that its preparations, ‘Coronil’ and ‘Swasari’, would cure COVID-19 in only seven days, was met with robust disbelief in some quarters, even as it hogged media space soon after the announcement. Ramdev, the yoga guru, and who is associated with the company, claimed that a randomised controlled trial (RCT) among COVID-19 positive patients had proved favourable results. The government, through the Ministry of AYUSH (ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy) responding a short while later, told the company to stop advertising the drug as a cure for COVID-19, pointing out that it would attract provisions of Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954 What has the government said?

The Ministry, in a statement, said the details of the study were not known to it and it has asked Patanjali Ayurved “to provide at the earliest details of the name and composition of the medicines being claimed for COVID treatment; site(s)/hospital(s), where the research study was conducted for COVID-19; protocol, sample size, Institutional Ethics Committee clearance, CTRI registration and results data of the study (ies) and stop advertising/publicizing such claims till the issue is duly examined”. The Ministry has also “requested the State Licensing Authority of the Uttarakhand government to provide copies of the licence and product approval details of the Ayurvedic medicines being claimed for the treatment of COVID-19”. It is learnt from media reports on the yet-to-be published RCT conducted on behalf of the company, that 100 patients who had tested positive were given the medicine (five dropped out midway). The clinical trial tested the drug on 45 people and another 50 were given a placebo. The claim was that 69% (31 persons) of those on the drug tested negative on the third day, and 25 of those on the placebo arm of the trial had also tested negative. What is the place of RCTs place in clinical trials?

As per definition, a randomised controlled trial, or RCT, is a study in which people are allocated at random, entirely by chance, to receive one of several clinical interventions. One of these interventions is the standard of comparison or control. The control may be standard practice/treatment options, a placebo (a drug without an active substance, or a ‘sugar pill’), or no intervention at all. The idea is to measure and compare the outcomes against the control after the participants receive the treatment. Source: The Hindu

29. What Apple-Google Covid feature does, why it doesn’t work in India Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Science & Technology

In April, rivals Google and Apple made an unprecedented move of joining hands to help governments in tracing contacts of Covid-19-positive people. On Sunday, the “COVID-19








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exposure notifications” feature appeared on Android and Apple phones everywhere. But that means very little for those living in India. Apple-Google contact tracing app: Does it not work in India?

As of now, it does not. The feature will only work in a phone that has downloaded an application that it works with. “What we have built is not an app — rather public health agencies will incorporate the API into their own apple that people install,” the companies said in a release. In other words, the software links up to the government’s own contact tracing applications through an API, or application programming interface. An API is a highway that allows two programs to speak to each other, and it is different from a single application installed in your phone. India’s contact-tracing application, Aarogya Setu, has not linked up to the Apple-Google API. A likely reason is the fact that the API does not allow location data to be retrieved, which Aarogya Setu does. “The public health authority app is not allowed to use your phone’s location,” a Google blog states. Another potential reason is that the API does not allow public authorities to collect phone numbers from their users. The Aarogya Setu application collects such information during registration. The “Exposure Notification API” is off by default and requires users to opt in. Since Indian users cannot opt in anyway, the API is not collecting data from their phones. How does it work in the countries that are using it?

If two people meet for more than five minutes, their phones exchange an identifier via Bluetooth. If one of those people later tests positive and the data enters the government’s application, their contacts from the last 14 days are uploaded to the cloud. The person that the now-positive user had met will be matched as a previous contact and will be alerted with a notification on their phone. Before this software update, in an interim step, the companies had released this feature in an application-form, requiring a user to download it. Now, the update is a built-in feature that can be turned on or off. Does it clash with contact-tracing apps of other countries?

The companies are asking for more privacy in the contact tracing applications they partner with. This is creating a tussle between governments and the companies, with several governments frustrated that the companies are asking them to collect less data. One of the main aspects of this debate is a “centralised” versus a “decentralised” model. For example, the UK’s former approach was to keep all the data about all suspected infected people in a centralised database, while the Apple-Google model stores the information on








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the user’s phone and only uploads it in certain circumstances. France was another country that clashed with Apple. Aarogya Setu stores most data on the user’s phone and uploads it under listed circumstances. But it collects more data (location, numbers), which the API does not allow. Both Apple and Google have taken a strong stand of prioritising user privacy over Covid-fighting efforts. Which countries are using it?

There is no official list from the companies but according to news reports, these countries have released applications that hooks up to the feature: Australia, Austria, Brazil, Canada, Croatia, Denmark, Germany, Ghana, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Latvia, Philippines, Poland, Saudi Arabia, Switzerland, the UK, and Uruguay. Other countries that have announced upcoming plans include Canada, Netherlands, Spain, and certain US states. Norway is comparing its own location-taking application to the Google-Apple model. The UK made a U-turn and decided to drop its own application and use the companies’ feature, after their application was found to have huge security flaws. Germany made a similar turn around earlier. This tussle over location data is a key part of the privacy versus contact tracing debate. While location data can help authorities determine hotspots (which Aarogya Setu does), there are fears that tracking and surveillance are enabled far more in a location-taking feature. Source: The Indian Express

Social Issues

1. Introspection on the migrant labour crisis Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper I; Social Issues

The worst may be over for the country’s inter-State workers. Many have returned home. More may be accommodated in Shramik trains scheduled to run, and some, it appears, do not mind staying where they are for work, now that the ‘unlock’ phase has begun in many parts of the country. Supreme Court order

The Supreme Court has fixed a 15-day deadline for the completion of the process of transporting all of them back home, besides asking governments across the country to drop








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criminal cases against them for violating the lockdown since it was imposed at short notice on March 25. Pursuing the lockdown violation charge would have been an exercise in triviality in the face of the desperation and despair this section of the population faced. Notwithstanding lingering criticism that the Supreme Court’s intervention, on its motion, may have come too late, there ought to be a sense of relief over the improvement in their situation. Estimated number of migrants who returned

Going by official claims by the Centre, as many as 57.22 lakh migrant workers have returned to their home towns from the States in which they have been earning a living. Given the scale of the unprecedented misery millions of them found themselves in over the last two months, the idea that both authorities and the courts are making an effort to ameliorate their living conditions is an undoubted source of comfort and relief. Supreme Court reaction

Chastened by open criticism from former members of the higher judiciary, as well as many senior lawyers and jurists, the top court has sought to redeem its stature by a series of directions; as well as by indicating its willingness to go into all pending issues. As part of its efforts, it made all State governments file comprehensive affidavits on the action they had taken to facilitate the return of the workers, provide them with immediate relief and the arrangements made for food and water for them during train journeys. It has further asked the States to spell out their plans for registering all the workers, their skills, their areas of employment and the different welfare and employment schemes meant for them. Source: The Hindu

2. How the Oscar Awards are going to be different once again, and why Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper I; Social Issues

Falling viewership, goof-ups by anchors, mix-ups by presenters, OscarsSoWhite accusations, and now the pandemic that has ripped through the heart of movie business and put its own show next year under a cloud — the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has been struggling to get things right the past few years. Post George Floyd though, it can afford few mistakes. So, came the announcement Friday that the Academy is aiming to develop new “representation and inclusion standards” for awards, with a task force to come out with








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these by July 31. Films submitted this year will not be affected. The Academy also announced that the best picture category will now be fixed at 10 films, rather than the fluctuating number of nominations since the 2010 Oscars.

The notification The new rules are part of the Academy’s “Aperture 2025 equity and inclusion” initiative, to address “institutionalised inequity” within the organisation and industry. Announcing the rules, Academy CEO Dawn Hudson said, “The need to address this issue is urgent. To that end, we will amend our rules to ensure that all voices are heard and celebrated.” The task force will develop the new standards in collaboration with the Producers Guild of America. “Unconscious bias training”, already undertaken by the Academy’s Board of Governors, will be made mandatory now for most of the senior Academy staff, as well as offered to its nearly 9,000 members. On Wednesday, the Academy unveiled a new board of governors, including director Ava DuVernay and Lynette Howell Taylor, increasing the number of women to 26 in the 54-member board, and people of colour to 12.

The background

It took 73 years after the Oscars started for the best actress award to be won by a black woman, with Halle Berry getting it for Monster’s Ball in 2002. This was 62 years after Hattie McDaniel became the first Black person ever to win an Oscar, incidentally for Gone With the Wind, which is itself seeing a renewed backlash over its casual racism. The #OscarsSoWhite hashtag followed the 2015 nominations, all 20 of which in acting categories went to white performers. The next year, only one nominee in the major acting and directing categories was not White. In the wake of the controversy, the Academy announced major changes to its membership, seeking to bring in more representation. Incidentally, this year, amid the criticism over only one acting Oscar nomination for people of colour — Cynthia Erivo, for her role as slave-turned-abolitionist Harriet Tubman — some media reports mentioned Antonio Banderas. He was nominated for best actor for his role in Pain and Glory. Banderas is actually from Spain, and does not identify as a person of colour. The precedent

While how the Academy will go about its inclusion standards will be clear only by July 31, it could take some cues from BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Awards) that








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became the first major awards body to introduce diversity and inclusion criteria in 2018. A report that year showed that 94% of all BAFTA film award nominees had been white. Since 2018, all entries in two categories in BAFTA awards — outstanding British film, and outstanding debut by a British writer, director or producer — are required to meet at least two of four standards, for increasing “the representation of under-represented groups”. These include “on-screen representation, themes and narratives; project leadership and creative practitioners; industry access and opportunities; and opportunities for diversity in audience development”. BAFTA also announced changes in its membership process to include more women and ethnic minorities. It has also been conducting unconscious bias training for its senior executives. Welcoming the Academy’s announcement, BAFTA said it hoped they could together reach a uniform set of diversity requirements. The impact

BAFTA nominations in the years since have shown that in the categories set aside for meeting diversity standards, smaller films have managed to get a foot in, though women directors continue to be under-represented. But as Prince William, the president of BAFTA, noted in his speech at the awards this year, the nomination of only white performers in acting categories in 2020 showed there was a long way to go. “BAFTA have launched a full and thorough review of the entire awards process,” he said. Cesar Awards

Earlier this year, the entire board overseeing the Cesar Academy, which distributes France’s equivalent of the Oscars, resigned following industry-wide backlash over 12 nominations going to controversial director Roman Polanski’s An Officer and a Spy (about Alfred Dreyfus, the Jewish officer wrongly persecuted for treason by the French army). Academy head Alain Terzian had justified the choice saying the academy “should not take moral positions” about giving awards. In the wake of the uproar, Polanski, who faces several sexual assault allegations, did not attend the awards ceremony, where the film, incidentally, was a big winner. Many industry executives highlighted the lack of gender parity, diversity and transparency within the Cesar’s voting body, as well as the academy itself. The Cesar Academy later vowed to reform its operating model. Oscar Best Picture nominees








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In 2009, the Academy doubled the number of best picture contenders to 10, to counter accusations that it’s voting was tilted in favour of box-office favourites like Titanic and The Lord of the Rings. In 2018, the Academy tried to add a category for ‘popular films’, but that idea was quickly junked. Then, for a while nominations were dominated by arthouse films, with the Academy seen as shunning acclaimed hits like The Dark Knight. However, when the numbers went to 10, some members complained it diluted the prestige of a best picture nomination. So, two years later, the Academy decided to make it flexible, between five and 10 nominations. The reaction

An Academy Award voter, bestselling writer Stephen King set off a firestorm in January this year when, asked about the fact that the just-announced Oscar nominees included no women directors or actors of colour, he said, “I would never consider diversity in matters of art. Only quality. It seems to me that to do otherwise would be wrong.” Director Martin Scorsese last year rejected a question on the lack of prominent roles for women in his films, saying, “that’s not even a valid point”. His films would include such roles “if a story calls for a female lead”, he said. Oscar winner writer-director Joel Coen, while underlining that diversity was important, said in 2016, “You don’t sit down and … say, ‘I’m going to write a story that involves four black people, three Jews, and a dog’ — right?” Source: The Indian Express

3. Nod for Puri Rath Yatra with conditions Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper I; Social Issues

The Supreme Court on Monday lifted its June 18 ban on the conduct of Puri Jagannath Rath Yatra after ensuring a complete lack of public attendance for the festival to avoid spread of infection amid a pandemic. What did Supreme Court say? A virtual court Bench led by Chief Justice of India Sharad A. Bobde ordered “strict curfew” in the city of Puri from Monday night (June 22) onwards till the entire duration of the festival. All entry points to the city would also remain closed during this period. The festival is scheduled to begin from June 23. The court said the Jagannath Puri temple administration and the State government, in consultation with the Centre, were entirely responsible for the safe conduct of the festival in line with COVID-19 guidelines.








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Short notice

The court had stopped the yatra for this year to avoid public gathering and risk of infection. The Bench was assembled in short notice during court vacation on Monday after the Centre made an urgent mentioning along with over a dozen other applicants seeking a recall of the injunction order. “We are informed that in the 18th-19th century a yatra of this kind was responsible for the spread of cholera and plague ‘like wild fire’. We say this in order to remind the authorities concerned that the situation can become dangerous if the rules of caution are ignored,” the court cautioned the applicants. Conditions laid down by Supreme Court

The 11 conditions include that only those who have been tested COVID-19 negative would be allowed to pull the chariots and participate in the rituals associated with the festival. It said only “bare minimum number of people” would be allowed to participate in the rituals and Yatra. The court directed that 500 people who have cleared the COVID-19 test would be allowed to pull each chariot. Chariot-pullers should maintain physical distancing. There should be a one-hour gap between two chariots. Visual media would be allowed to install cameras at vantage points and cover the festival extensively for the benefit of viewers. The “primary responsibility” to conduct the festival in line with public health safety norms lies with the committee in-charge of the Puri Jagannath temple administration. Each member of the committee is responsible for the safe conduct of the festival. In addition, State government officials designated for the Yatra are also responsible. Both the temple management and the State should consult the Centre on the safety norms. The Union Government should help the State in the endeavour, the court said. The State should maintain a record containing details of participants along with their medical test results. Source: The Hindu

Disaster Management

1. Mumbai’s new flood warning system: iFlows-Mumbai

Relevant for GS Prelims & Mains Paper III; Disaster Management








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iFLOWS-Mumbai

Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray on Friday inaugurated IFLOWS-Mumbai, a state-of-the-art flood warning system developed for the city. “The flood management system is a boon for the city and it will be helpful in saving Mumbai,” Mr. Thackeray said via videoconferencing after the launch. Who has developed the system?

The Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) has developed the system with in-house expertise and coordination with the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).

What will the system do?

IFLOWS-Mumbai will enhance the resilience of the city by providing early warning for flooding, especially during high rainfall events and cyclones. Using this, it will be possible to have an estimate of the flood inundation three days in advance, along with immediate weather updates. A similar system was already developed by the MoES and is in operation in Chennai.








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Source: The Hindu

Miscellaneous

1. Jessica Lal murder convict Manu Sharma walks out of jail

Relevant for GS Prelims

Siddharth Vashisht, better known as Manu Sharma, who was serving a life sentence in the 1999 Jessica Lal murder case, was released from Tihar jail here on Monday. Sharma was convicted in 2006 for shooting model Jessica Lal after she refused to serve him a drink on April 30, 1999, at a party in south Delhi.

Procedure of early release

The Home Department of the Delhi government ordered the release of 19 convicts, including Sharma, on the recommendation of the Sentence Review Board (SRB). According to Sandeep Goel, Director-General of Tihar Prisons, Sharma was released on Monday evening. His term was till May 6, 2023. Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal’s office said Sharma had undergone imprisonment of 16 years, 11 months and 24 days. The recommendations of the SRB were approved by the L-G. According to Raj Niwas, the L-G had concurred with the recommendations of the SRB on May 21, 2020, as approved by Delhi Home Minister Satyendar Jain to “release 19 prisoners, including Siddharth Vashisht @ Manu Sharma as covered under the guidelines, provisions of CrPC and extant Prison Rules”. According to the Home Department’s order in this regard, only one of the 19 life convicts whose release was ordered had served their full sentence. Of the remaining life convicts, as many as 14 were to serve their respective sentences till 2026 and one each till 2024, 2025 and 2027. Consideration eligibility

According to Raj Niwas, the SRB guidelines state that every convicted prisoner, undergoing sentence of imprisonment, “shall be eligible for consideration for premature release from jail after serving 14 years of actual imprisonment. It is, however, stated in the guidelines that a total period of incarceration, including remission in these cases shall ordinarily not exceed 20 years”.

Source: The Hindu








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2. Central Vista project Relevant for GS Prelims

The Narendra Modi government is so possessed by its plan to redevelop the Central Vista, the 3-km long stretch from Rashtrapati Bhavan to India Gate, that even a devastating pandemic is no distraction from it. What are the details?

The plan is also to construct a new Parliament building by March 2022 and a common central secretariat by March 2024 along with new residences for the Prime Minister and the Vice President near South and North Blocks which will be repurposed as museums. There will be a new building for the PMO. A draft master plan by a private firm contracted by the government has proposed a triangular-shaped Parliament building next to the existing heritage structure, and office buildings all along Rajpath, after demolishing existing buildings. Till date, the government has not publicly stated the project’s estimated cost. The construction of the new parliament building, according to the CPWD application for

environmental clearance for the project on March 12, is estimated to cost ₹922 crore. Reasons cited by Centre

The Centre has given a range of reasons behind the redevelopment plan, from the structural safety of the Parliament building and the North and South Blocks, which came up between 1911 and 1931, and once delimitation is done and the number of seats increase, to the need for more space to seat MPs and office space for all of them. For the post-Independence buildings such as Shastri Bhawan and Krishi Bhawan, it has cited the need for modern workspaces. Criticism

1. The decision on redevelopment was taken in a hurry and without adequate consultations. The Opposition, environmentalists, architects and citizens have raised a range of concerns even before the pandemic brought in additional issues. But far from pausing, several key approvals for the proposed Parliament building have been pushed during the lockdown, leading to allegations of a lack of transparency. 2. Independent expert members of the Central Vista Committee could not attend the meeting where it was passed without much discussion, as per the minutes of the meeting. 3. The process for change of land use by the Delhi Development Authority was completed just before the lockdown began on March 25.








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4. Activists and architects have questioned the lack of studies to ascertain the need for the project and its impact on the environment, traffic and pollution. There were enough reasons to be circumspect about this grand idea from the very beginning. Source: The Hindu

3. Adani wins world’s ‘largest’ solar project; to invest $6 billion Relevant for GS Prelims

The Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) has awarded Adani Group’s renewable energy arm a project to build an 8 gigawatt (GW) solar power plant and 2 GW of additional solar cell and module manufacturing capacity over the next five years. The project, which Adani Green Energy Ltd (AGEL) claims is the “largest of its type”, will entail a single investment of $6 billion and is expected to create 4,00,000 direct and indirect jobs. Adani Group to become leading producer

The development also helps AGEL overtake ReNew Power as the largest renewable player, as it will be managing a renewable portfolio with a 15 GW capacity compared with ReNew’s 8.65 GW renewable assets. Azure Power, which has a portfolio of over 7 GW in “various stages”, will become the third largest player. Azure Power, which had also participated in the bids invited by SECI for this project, has reportedly received approval to build 1 GW solar manufacturing and a 4 GW linked solar power plant after exercising a greenshoe option provided to it in November. Adani, under its greenshoe option, reportedly offered to build an additional capacity of 1.5 GW in solar manufacturing and 6 GW in power generation. Adani had already won 1 GW in manufacturing and 4 GW as the linked power plant. Based on the award agreement, the first 2 GW of generation capacity will come online by 2022 and the subsequent 6 GW capacity will be added in 2 GW annual increments through 2025. The projects will include a variety of locations, including a 2 GW single-site generation project that is tied for the rank of the largest single-site project announced globally. The solar cell and module manufacturing capacity of 2 GW will be established by 2022 and along with the existing 1.3 GW of capacity will further consolidate the Group’s position as India’s largest solar manufacturing facility.








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The company expects this award to bring it closer to an installed renewable power generation capacity target of 25 GW, which will see it committing an investment of $15 billion in this space over the next 5 years. Source: The Indian express

4. Four-year ban on Gomathi Marimuthu Relevant for GS Prelims

A year ago, her story moved many. When Gomathi Marimuthu spoke about her struggle following the death of her father and coach in succession, the 800m gold she won then at the Asian Championships in Doha appeared to have a lot of sparkle. But all that changed when reports emerged a month later about the middle distance runner from Tiruchirappalli testing positive for a banned substance twice, both at Doha and the Federation Cup in Patiala, an event prior to the Asian Championships. 4 year ban

The latest verdict from the International Disciplinary Tribunal which has punished the 31-year-old with probably a career-ending four-year ban, will also strip her of the Asian gold. Drug used

It should not come as a surprise as four of her urine samples had the presence of 19 Norandrosterone (19-NA), a metabolite of nandrolone, which is prohibited at all times. Delay by National Dope Testing Laboratory

What remains strange is the two-month delay by the National Dope Testing Laboratory, which is now suspended by the World Anti-Doping Agency, and the National Anti-Doping Agency in bringing out the results of Gomathi’s sample taken during the Federation Cup. Had it come earlier, she would not have gone to Doha and it would have saved the country a lot of embarrassment. Meanwhile, Gomathi has claimed innocence and suggested that the steroid may have been accidentally imbibed through some non-vegetarian food she had consumed. Source: The Hindu

5. China’s Great Wall Motor commits to $1 billion investment in Maharashtra

Relevant for GS Prelims








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China’s largest sport utility vehicle (SUV) manufacturer Great Wall Motor Company Ltd., which recently acquired General Motors’ car manufacturing plant at Talegaon, near Pune, has signed an MoU with the Maharashtra government reaffirming its commitment to invest $1 billion in phases. “The MoU officially announced the investment in the state-of-the-art automotive manufacturing facility in Talegaon, Maharashtra. The plant will be equipped with latest world-class technology and along with the R&D centre in Bengaluru will generate employment for over 3,000 people in phased manner,” GWM said in a statement. The plant located in Talegaon Industrial Park, Maharashtra, covers an area of about 300 acres and is close to the Expressway. The unit is about 100 kilometres from Mumbai Port. The factory already has facilities like logistics distribution centre, training centre, project management building, administrative office building and a public facilities centre. Source: The Hindu

6. Took a long time coming, Unilever renames Fair & Lovely skin cream

after years of backlash Relevant for GS Mains paper IV

One of the most iconic and often controversial brand is getting a name change. FMCG giant, Hindustan Unilever (HUL) is dropping the word ‘Fair’ from its skin-care brand, Fair & Lovely. As per the company, it is going to be ‘Glow & Lovely’. Joining its Peers

The announcement from HUL comes after another major consumer products company, Johnson & Johnson took a similar decision. It has decided to stop selling its skin-whitening product lines such as Clean & Clear and Neutrogena in India and other markets. Emami, which also sells a fairness cream named Fair & Handsome has hinted that it too will change the name of that product.

What’s the reason?

HUL and other companies which sell skin lightening products in India have been under fire for quite a long time. They have been accused of racial stereotyping through their ads. Lately, public opinion against such ads have gained a lot of momentum through social media. Recently, an online petition was circulated to stop Fair & Lovely’s sales.








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Notably, many celebrities have also lent their support to this cause. The issue was highlighted after the recent ‘Black Lives Matter’ protests throughout the world. Highly lucrative segment

Although there is no specific data on the size of the Indian fairness cream industry but as per estimates, it ranges between Rs. 5,000 - 10,000 crore. Fair & Lovely is believed to have as much as 80% share of this market.

Quiz Questions with answer key:

Q1. Recently, two American astronauts flew to the International Space

Station, the world’s only space-based laboratory, located about 400 km

from the earth. What is special about the event? 1. It was the first time that astronauts used a spaceship built and launched by a private company. 2. Two NASA astronauts flew onboard a spaceship named Crew Dragon built by SpaceX, a company founded by Elon Musk. 3. The rocket, named Falcon 9, carried the spaceship into the orbit, was also built by SpaceX. Which of the statements given above is/are correct? (a) 1 only (b) 2 and 3 only (c) 1 and 3 only (d) 1, 2 and 3

Q2. Which of the following boundary line demarcates boundary of

Arunachal Pradesh with China? (a) Jonhson Line (b) Radcliffe line (c) Durand Line








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(d) McMahon Line

Q3. Which of the following country is not a member of G-7? (a) UK (b) Canada (c) Russia (d) Italy

Q4. Recently, President Trump has proposed to expand G-7 to G-11.

Which of the following 4 nations will be added to the grouping? (a) India, Russia, South Korea and Australia (b) India, Mexico, South Korea and Australia (c) India, Turkey, Australia and Russia (d) China, Australia, Russia and India

Q5. Consider the following statements regarding Farming Produce Trade

and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Ordinance, 2020: 1. The ordinance brings amendment to the Essential Commodities Act, removing cereals, pulses, oilseeds, edible oils, onion and potatoes from the list of essential commodities. 2. The ordinance removes restrictions on farmers for selling their produce outside notified market yards. 3. The ordinance also seeks to promote contract farming. Which of the statements given above is/are correct? (a) 3 only (b) 1 and 2 only (c) 2 and 3 only (d) 1, 2 and 3








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Q6. The Inner Line separated the tribal-populated hill areas in the

Northeast from the plains. To enter and stay for any period in these

areas, Indian citizens from other areas need an Inner Line Permit (ILP).

The ILP is not applicable in which of the following states? (a) Arunachal Pradesh (b) Nagaland (c) Manipur (d) Assam

Q7. What is the difference between Epidemic and Pandemic? (a) Endemic refers to prevalence of disease in local geographic area and Pandemic is used for a global epidemic. (b) Endemic is used for diseases which have origin in a particular area whereas origin is not traceable in case of Pandemic. (c) Pandemic are localized in nature and Endemic are global in nature. (d) Pandemic means a higher prevalence rate and endemic means a lower prevalence rate.

Q8. What is the meaning of R0 (R-Naught) in context of a disease? (a) RO denotes the social distance required to be maintained to reduce the chances of viral infection. (b) RO denotes the number of new infections caused by one infected individual in an entirely susceptible population. (c) RO denotes the availability of treatment for the disease. (d) RO denotes the prevalence of disease in a particular region.

Q9. What is Cytokine storm? (a) Breaking of infection spread chain (b) Immune reaction triggered by the body to fight an infection








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(c) Spread of disease among population (d) Medicine to boost immunity of body

Q10. Recently, Gomathi Marimuthu has been subjected to four year ban

by the International Disciplinary Tribunal. She is guilty of consuming

which of the following substance? (a) Boldenone (b) Trenbolone (c) Androstenedione (d) Nandrolone

Q11. What is Poonam Avlokan? (a) It is the traditional festival celebrated by people of Gujarat. (b) It is the name of the recent Lion population exercise of Gujarat. (c) It is the fortnightly lockdown practice adopted State of Gujarat. (d) It is the religious place which was highlighted in news recently.

Q12. Conventional plant breeding involves crossing species of the same

genus to provide the offspring with the desired traits of both parents.

Genetic engineering aims to transcend the genus barrier by introducing

an alien gene in the seeds to get the desired effects. The alien gene used

to produce Genetically modified crop could be from 1. A Plant 2. An animal 3. A soil bacterium Select the correct answer using the code given below: (a) 1 only








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(b) 2 and 3 only (c) 1 and 2 only (d) 1, 2 and 3

Q13. Recently, Galwan Valley has been in news. Where is Galwan Valley

located? (a) Ladakh (b) Uttarakhand (c) Sikkim (d) Arunachal Pradesh

Q14. It is said that drug dexamethasone can cut death rates by around a

third in the most severely ill among Covid-19 patients. Consider the

following statements about drug dexamethasone: 1. It is a anti-inflammatory steroid. 2. It is used by sportspersons to hasten their rehabilitation from injuries and recover from infections. 3. It is the only drug of its class which is allowed for athletes. Which of the statements given above is/ are correct? (a) 1 only (b) 2 and 3 only (c) 1 and 2 only (d) 1, 2 and 3

Q15. Great Wall Motor Company Ltd. Is a SUV manufacturing company. It

owns a manufacturing plant in Talegaon, near Pune in Maharashtra. The

company belongs to which country?








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(a) China (b) Japan (c) USA (d) UK

Q16. Fashion models of distinguished merit and ability from foreign

countries are given entry into USA on which type of visa? (a) H-1B (b) H-2B (c) L1 (d) None of the above

Q17. Consider the following statements: 1. Trump administration has suspended of all new H-1B, H-2B, J, and L visa categories till 31st December, 2020. 2. H-1B, H-2B, J and L visa holders, and their spouse or children already present in the US shall not be impacted by the new worker visa ban. Which of the statements given above is/are correct? (a) 1 only (b) 2 only (c) Neither 1 nor 2 (d) Both 1 and 2

Q18. Consider the following statements about Victory Day: 1. Victory Day marks the end of World War II and the victory of the Allied Forces in 1945. 2. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh attended the 73rd Victory Day celebrations in Russia.








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3. Russia usually celebrates Victory Day on May 9. In most European countries, it is celebrated on May 8, and is called the Victory in Europe Day. Which of the statements given above is/are correct? (a) 1 only (b) 2 and 3 only (c) 1 and 3 only (d) 1, 2 and 3

Q19. On June 22, the White House made a proclamation halting the

processing and issuance of non-immigrant work visas of several types.

This change is going to affect which of the following categories: 1. Visa-holders who are already within the U.S. 2. People who are outside U.S. and who already have valid visas. 3. New applicants of visas. Select the correct answer using the code given below: (a) 3 only (b) 2 and 3 only (c) 1, 2 and 3 (d) None

Q20. What are randomised controlled trial? (a) Method to test efficacy of a new drug (b) New algorithm released by Google (c) Criminal case proceeding using technology (d) None of the above








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Q21. Which of the following nation is not a direct participant in South

China dispute? (a) Brunei (b) Vietnam (c) Malaysia (d) Australia

Solutions:

1. (d) 2. (d) 3. (c) 4. (a) 5. (d) 6. (d) 7. (a)

8. (b) 9. (b) 10. (d) 11. (b) 12. (d) 13. (a) 14. (c)

15. (a) 16. (a) 17. (d 18. (c) 19. (a) 20. (a) 21. (d)





WhatsApp No. 88986-30000 · 2020. 7. 2. · The Rajya Sabha is losing its sheen as an exalted forum...

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