Election of Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha

Rajya Sabha is to elect its new Deputy Chairman. The Deputy Chairman is a constitutional position created under Article 89 of the Constitution, which specifies that Rajya Sabha shall choose one of its MPs to be the Deputy Chairman as often as the position becomes vacant.

• The Deputy Chairman is elected by the Rajya Sabha itself from amongst its members.
• Whenever the office of the Deputy Chairman falls vacant, the Rajya Sabha elects another member to fill the vacancy.
• The Deputy Chairman vacates his office in any of the following three cases:
  • if he ceases to be a member of the Rajya Sabha;
  • if he resigns by writing to the Chairman;
  • if he is removed by a resolution passed by a majority of all the members of the Rajya Sabha. Such a resolution can be moved only after giving 14 days’ advance notice.
• The Deputy Chairman performs the duties of the Chairman’s office when it is vacant or when the Vice-President acts as President or discharges the functions of the President. He also acts as the Chairman when the latter is absent from the sitting of the House. In both the cases, he has all the powers of the Chairman.
• The Deputy Chair is the one position that is elected solely by members of Rajya Sabha. The Deputy Chairman also plays a critical role in ensuring the smooth running of the House.
• The Deputy Chairman is not subordinate to the Chairman. He is directly responsible to the Rajya Sabha.
• The Deputy Chairman is entitled to a regular salary and allowance which are fixed by Parliament and are charged on the Consolidated Fund of India.

Procedure

• For electing the Deputy Chair any Rajya Sabha MP can submit a motion proposing the name of a colleague for this constitutional position. The motion has to be seconded by another MP.
• Additionally, the member moving the motion has to submit a declaration signed by the MP whose name s/he is proposing stating that the MP is willing to serve as the Deputy Chairperson if elected. Each MP is allowed to move or second only one motion.
• Then the majority of the House decides who gets elected as the Deputy Chairperson.
• However, if the political parties arrive at a consensus candidate, then that MP will be unanimously elected as the Deputy Chair.

CAG Report on Indian Railways

According to a recent CAG report tabled in the Parliament, the focus of Railways’ modernisation plans is misplaced.

• According to the report titled ‘Augmentation of Station Line Capacity on Selected Stations in Indian Railways’, timely movement of trains should be one of the most important parameters to judge the quality of service being provided to the passengers.
• The audit studied 15 railway stations across the country with maximum traffic, including Allahabad, Kanpur, Mathura, Mughalsarai, Chennai Central, Howrah, Bhopal, Ahmedabad and New Delhi railway stations.
• At present the focus is mainly on improving the façade and passenger facilities, rather that removing bottlenecks to ensure timely movement of trains.
• It acknowledged that although there has been a significant increase in the number of trains handled per day in the 15 selected stations, the infrastructure were not augmented.
• It noted that the trains have to wait at outer signals or the adjacent station until the platform is vacated by the earlier train because of non-availability of platforms. The detention of goods trains was significantly higher.

Major Recommendations

• Providing platforms with adequate length for easy boarding of long trains,
• Further expansion of the stations by adding more platforms,
• Providing adequate facilities for stabling trains (trains that are parked while awaiting their next turn of duty)
• Adequate yard capacity
• Availability of adequate washing pit lines.

Restricted Area Permit Eased for Foreigners Visiting Andaman Islands

In a bid to boost tourism prospects of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the Central government has decided to ease restrictions which will allow the foreigners to visit 29 inhabited islands without the Restricted Areas Permit (RAP).

• The 29 inhabited islands have been excluded from the restricted area permit (RAP) notified under the Foreigners (Restricted Areas) Order, 1963, till December 31, 2022, subject to certain conditions.
• Among the de-notified islands are Havelock Island, Neil Island, Little Andaman, Baratang Island and Katchal Island.
• As per the Government, Citizens of Afghanistan, China, Pakistan and foreign nationals having their origin in these countries would continue to require RAP to visit Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
• Similarly for visiting Mayabunder and Diglipur, citizens of Myanmar will continue to require RAP, which shall be issued only with the prior approval of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).
• Separate approvals of a competent authority would continue to be required for visiting reserved forests, wildlife sanctuaries and tribal reserves.
• Foreigners will also be allowed to have day visits to another 11 uninhabited Islands, to be notified separately by Andaman and Nicobar Islands Administration.

Earth at Risk of Becoming 'Hothouse'

A recent report titled "Trajectories of the Earth System in the Anthropocene", has warned about ill-effects of global temperatures rising more than 2°C above pre-industrial levels.

• Currently, global average temperatures are just over 1°C above pre-industrial and rising at 0.17°C per decade.
• According to the report,  a domino effect will kick in leading to "hothouse" conditions even if we manage to keep global temperatures to 2°C above pre-Industrial levels and higher sea levels, making some areas on Earth uninhabitable.
• Hothouse is a condition where the global temperatures will be 4-5 degrees higher than the pre-industrial level and sea levels may surge by up to 60 metres higher than today even if emission reduction targets under the Paris climate deal are met.

Feedback Processes

• Human emissions of greenhouse gas are not the sole determinant of temperature on Earth.
• The scientists looked at 10 natural systems, which they term "feedback processes" which help humanity to avoid the worst impacts of carbon and temperature rises. However, if one of these systems tips over and starts pushing large amounts of CO2 into the atmosphere, the rest could follow like a row of dominoes.
• These natural systems are: permafrost, methane hydrates trapped in ocean floors, land and ocean carbon sinks, Arctic summer sea ice, Antarctic sea ice, polar ice sheets, etc.

Impact

• Crossing into a Hothouse Earth period would see a higher global temperature than at any time in the past 1.2 million years.
• Although the worst impacts may not be felt for a century or two, it would be irreversible once it starts.
• The report says that the extreme weather events being experienced right now around the world cannot be immediately associated with the risk of passing 2 degrees C. However, it may be evidence of the Earth becoming more sensitive to warming than previously thought.

Solution

• The hothouse scenario can be avoided by fundamentally re-adjusting mankind's’  relationship with the planet.
• A total re-orientation of human values, equity, behaviour and technologies are required.
• Not only burning of fossil fuels must be stopped by the middle of this century, but mitigation measures like planting trees, protecting forests, working out how to block the Sun's rays and developing machines to suck carbon out of the air must be taken up at massive scale.
• Maximizing the chances of avoiding a "Hothouse Earth" requires not only reduction of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions but also enhancement and/or creation of new biological carbon stores, for example, through improved forest, agricultural and soil management; biodiversity conservation; and technologies that remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and store it underground.
• However, many scientists argue that we have entered a new geological era, the Anthropocene, in which human activity is directly affecting the planet.

Editorial: Pulling Back From the Brink

Most Babies Not Breastfed In Their First Hour

The 5th Report of Assessment of India’s Policy and Programmes on Breastfeeding and Infant and Young Child Feeding, 2018, was recently released.

• The report has been prepared by a national consortium of public health groups and agencies including government departments, AIIMS and UNICEF, under the aegis of World Breastfeeeding Trends Initiative (WBTI).

Key Findings

• India performs better in terms of infant and young child feeding practices scoring 34 out of 50 on five parameters.
• 6 out of 10 babies born in the country are not able to begin breastfeeding within one hour of birth despite an improvement in institutional deliveries.
  • This is due to a lack of supportive work environment, inadequate skills of health care providers as well as caesarean deliveries.
• The study gives India a score of 45 out of 100 on 10 parameters under the category of policy and programmes.
• India has made some progress over the years and between National Family Health Survey NFHS-3 (2005-06) and NFHS-4 (2015-16), early initiation of breastfeeding has improved from 23.4% to 41.5% children breastfed within one hour of birth. However, this hasn’t kept pace with the increase in institutional deliveries which more than doubled during the same period.
• The report notes that the the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and the Ministry for Women and Child Development have taken several initiatives on infant and child nutrition but have not adopted an overall official policy, which is hindering action plans and budgets.
• The replacement of the Baby Friendly Hospitals Initiative, which is a worldwide programme of WHO and UNICEF, with the health ministry’s programme called Mother’s Absolute Affection is problematic.
  • The health ministry programme does not provide accreditation to hospitals that are baby friendly and is not applicable to private sector institutions where a large percentage of deliveries and caesarean sections take place.
• India has slipped in regulating the marketing of breastmilk substitutes since the last assessment. The companies are marketing breastmilk substitutes more aggressively since monitoring of the law is weak.
  • Although, India has had a strong law on infant milk substitutes since 1992, it does not have authorised government officers and is dependent on NGOs to check if the law is being followed.
  • Legislative proceedings against violators have also not been quite upto the mark.
• India has performed badly in other key indicators like support for mothers and community outreach, disseminating information on infant and child feeding, feeding children with HIV and feeding children during emergencies.
• India has made significant progress in maternity protection. The Maternity Benefits Act, 2017 passed by the government which increased the maternity leave for women from 12 weeks to 26 weeks, has contributed to it. However, this law does not cover the large number of women who work India’s informal sector.

Significance of Mother’s Breast Milk

• Mother’s breast milk within one hour of birth ensures that the infant receives the colostrum or first milk, which is extremely rich in nutrients and antibodies.
• The WHO and UNICEF also recommend exclusive breastfeeding for infants up to the age of six months and thereafter complementary foods with continued breastfeeding up to 2 years of age or beyond.
• Other than health benefits to children, breastfeeding also reduces the risk of breast and ovarian cancer in the mothers and protects the baby from risks of future obesity and diabetes in children.

Way Forward

• To improve nutrition standards, India needs to elevate its Infant and Child Feeding guidelines to policy.
• The government should also effectively enforce the Infant Milk Substitutes Act with better monitoring and action against violators. The Act calls for specific attention to the Maternity Benefit Act to support women in the informal sector and universal application of the Pradhan Mantri Matritva Vandana Yojana.

Study Reveals Presence of Scrub Typhus Among Encephalitis Patients

Majority of the patients admitted for treatment of Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) have Scrub Typhus according to the recent study of Baba Raghav Das (BRD) Medical college,Gorakhpur.

• This findings has also been backed by the research conducted by National Institute of Epidemiology.
• The finding is important as Scrub Typhus if diagonsed earlier can be easily treated.
• As per the  paper published in Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal in May this year revealed about the efficacy of drug azithromycin in treating Scrub Typhus.
• Further evidence regarding the role of scrub typhus comes from a study of trombiculid mites in eastern Uttar Pradesh by Chennai’s Vector Control Research Centre (VCRC) which found that  the mites carried Orientia tsutsugumashi, the bacterium which causes scrub typhus.
• The study also found an increase in infestation of rodents by trombiculid mites during August-October, a reason behind high occurrence of the disease during monsoon.