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Coronaviruses

10 Jan 2020 News Analysis
States’ Prerogative to Provide 10% Reservation

Why in News Recently, the Centre informed the Supreme Court that it would be the States’ prerogative to provide 10% economic reservation in...

10 Jan 2020 News Analysis
Army’s GOCO Model for Improving Efficiency

Why in News Recently, the Indian Army has initiated the process of identifying potential industry partners to implement the Government Owned...

10 Jan 2020 News Analysis
Nalabana Bird Sanctuary

Why in News Recently, a record number of migratory birds have arrived at the Nalabana bird sanctuary in Odisha. The dismantling of illegal prawn...

10 Jan 2020 News Analysis
Panel Approves Scheme to Trade in Forests

Why in News Recently, the Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) has approved the Green Credit Scheme. It will allow the Forest Department to outsource the...

10 Jan 2020 News Analysis
Annual Crimes in India Report 2018: NCRB

Why in News The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) published the annual Crime in India Report 2018. It shows the crime statistics in the country...

10 Jan 2020 News Analysis
Miyawaki Method in Kerala

Why in news? Kerala has decided to use the Japanese Miyawaki method of afforestation. Earlier, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Telangana and some other...

10 Jan 2020 News Analysis
Issues Related to Persons with Disability

For...

09 Jan 2020 Paper 2
Issues Related to Persons with Disability

Introduction Disabilities is an umbrella term, covering impairments, activity limitations, and participation restrictions. An impairment is a...

09 Jan 2020 Paper 2
New Space Policy for New Space Age

This article is based on Let’s go further in our tryst with outer space, A home in space, Soaring to the moon. It talks about the need for...

09 Jan 2020 News Editorials
TOI 700 d

Why in News The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has reported the discovery of an Earth-size planet, named TOI 700 d. The...

09 Jan 2020 News Analysis
Mandatory Re-grassing After Mining: SC

Why in News Recently, the Supreme Court of India ordered the government to include re-grassing of mined areas as a mandatory condition in every...

09 Jan 2020 News Analysis
Sea Guardians

Why in News The sixth joint naval exercise between China and Pakistan started on 6th January, 2019. It is being held in the Arabian Sea. For the...

09 Jan 2020 News Analysis
Revised Norms for Data-led Probes

Why in News The Ministry of Home Affairs has issued revised guidelines to streamline the process of seeking legal assistance from foreign countries...

09 Jan 2020 News Analysis
Investment in Coal Mining

Why in News The Union Cabinet has approved an ordinance to attract investment in coal mining. The ordinance amends the Mines and Minerals...

09 Jan 2020 News Analysis
Assassination of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani

This article is based on US-Iran: New Delhi must weigh its options carefully, The U.S. is weakened by Soleimani’s killing, West Asia after...

08 Jan 2020 News Editorials
2nd National GST Conference

Why in News The 2nd National GST Conference of the Commissioners of State Tax and Chief Commissioners of Central Tax was held recently. The...

08 Jan 2020 News Analysis
New Energy Performance Standards for Air Conditioners

Why in News The Central Government in consultation with the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) has notified new energy performance standards for Room...

08 Jan 2020 News Analysis
Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary

Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary is located in North Goa District, Sanguem taluka near the town of Valpoi. Owing to the presence of Bengal Tigers, it can...

08 Jan 2020 News Analysis
Railways Plans Hydrogen-Powered Engine by 2021

Why in News During the 107th Indian Science Congress, the Indian Railways has announced that it will build a hydrogen-powered rail engine by the end...

08 Jan 2020 News Analysis

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			'title' => 'Coronaviruses',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578903634_Coronaviruses-01.png" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578903634_Coronaviruses-01.png" width="344" height="921" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></a></p>',
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		(int) 1 => [
			'title' => 'States’ Prerogative to Provide 10% Reservation',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>Recently, the Centre informed the <a href="/important-institutions/drishti-specials-important-institutions-national-institutions/supreme-court-of-india" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Supreme Court</strong></a> that it would be the States&rsquo; prerogative to provide <strong>10% economic reservation</strong> in government jobs and admission to educational institutions.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The State governments concerned are to decide whether or not to provide reservation to the <strong>Economically Weaker Section (EWS)</strong> in appointment to State government jobs and admission to State government educational institutions, as per provisions of the newly inserted <strong>Articles 15(6) and 16(6) by the Constitution 103<sup>rd</sup> Amendment Act, 2019.</strong></li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Points</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>This comes as a response to a<a href="/to-the-points/Paper2/public-interest-litigation" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong> Public Interest Litigation</strong></a> <strong>(PIL)</strong> that seeks the Supreme Court&rsquo;s intervention to<strong> implement the 10% EWS quota in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka</strong> without disrupting the <a href="/to-the-points/Paper2/reservation-in-india" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>existing reservation framework</strong></a>, which covers the Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), Backward Classes (BC) and Most Backward Classes (MBC).</li>
<li>The 10% reservation prescribed by the Amendment Act is <strong>in addition to the existing reservation.</strong> It nowhere affects or infringes anybody&rsquo;s fundamental rights to equality instead gives rights of equal participation and representation to the EWS.</li>
<li>Centre informed the Supreme Court that it has <strong>no role in deciding the reservation policy of any state government.</strong> The concerned state governments have to decide the reservation under Articles 15(6) and 16(6).</li>
</ul>
<h3>Background</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>In 2019, SC issued a notice to the Centre on a PIL <strong>seeking direction to Karnataka and Tamil Nadu to implement 10% quota</strong> in jobs and education for EWS as per the mandate of the 103rd Constitutional (Amendment) Act, 2019.</li>
<li>The petition contended that <strong>neither Tamil Nadu nor Karnataka had implemented </strong>this amendment.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>It also highlighted that <strong>Tamil Nadu reserves 69%</strong> of its jobs and education seats for SCs, STs, BCs and MBCs, while the number stands at <strong>70% in Karnataka.</strong></li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Constitution (103<sup>rd</sup> Amendment) Act, 2019</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It introduced <strong>economic reservation</strong> by <strong>amending</strong> <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/lok-sabha-passes-the-constitution-124th-amendment-bill-2019" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Articles 15 and 16.</strong></a> It inserted <strong>Article 15 (6) and Article 16 (6)</strong> in the Constitution to allow reservation for the economically backward in the unreserved category.</li>
<li>It was enacted to promote the welfare of the poor not covered by the 50% reservation policy for SCs, STs and Socially and Educationally Backward Classes (SEBC).</li>
<li>It enables both Centre and the states to provide reservation to the EWSs of society.</li>
<li>Since this is a<strong> central law on subjects (employment, education) in the concurrent list (subjects on which states and the central government both have jurisdiction),</strong> the state governments need to ratify it before adopting it locally.</li>
</ul>
<p><a href="https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/it-is-up-to-states-to-provide-10-quota/article30506662.ece" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: TH</strong></a></p>',
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		],
		(int) 2 => [
			'title' => 'Army’s GOCO Model for Improving Efficiency',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>Recently, the Indian Army has initiated the process of identifying potential industry partners to implement the <strong>Government Owned Contractor Operated (GOCO) model</strong> for its base workshops and ordnance depots.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>GOCO will improve the operational efficiency of the army.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Points</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The army issued a <strong>Request For Information (RFI)</strong> to shortlist service providers with experience in <strong>warehousing, logistics and supply chain management.</strong></li>
<li><strong>Criteria for Service Provider:</strong> It should be an <strong>Indian registered company</strong> with at <strong>least 10 years of working experience</strong> in related domains and have an <strong>average annual turnover of ₹50 crore</strong> for each of the last three financial years.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Government Owned Contractor Operated Model</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It was one of the recommendations of the <strong>Lt. Gen. DB Shekatkar (Retd.) committee to enhance combat capability and re-balancing defence expenditure.</strong></li>
<li>In GOCO model, the assets owned by government is operated by the private industries.</li>
<li>The private players are given full autonomy in implementing the vision set by the government, using their best practices.</li>
<li>The main advantage of the model is that it is efficient and will boost competitiveness among the private entities.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<p><a href="https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/army-gets-working-on-government-owned-contractor-operated-model-to-improve-efficiency/article30506622.ece" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: TH</strong></a></p>',
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		],
		(int) 3 => [
			'title' => 'Nalabana Bird Sanctuary',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>Recently, a record number of migratory birds have arrived at the Nalabana bird sanctuary in Odisha.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The <strong>dismantling of illegal prawn gherries inside the lake</strong> is being cited as the main <strong>reason</strong> behind the avian gathering. <strong>Gherries</strong> are areas encroached for illegal prawn cultivation inside the wetland area.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Points</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Nalabana bird sanctuary is located on <strong>Nalabana Island in the Chilika lagoon area in Odisha.</strong></li>
<li>The Nalabana Bird Sanctuary is the <strong>core area of Chilika.</strong></li>
<li>The large Nalabana Island <strong>(Forest of Reeds)</strong> covering about 16 sq km was declared a<strong> bird sanctuary</strong> in <strong>1987.</strong></li>
<li>The island <strong>disappears during the monsoon</strong> due to inundation, only to emerge again post-monsoon.</li>
<li>Nalabana and <strong>Mangalajodi</strong> (on the banks of Chilika lake) are the two major places in Chilika where the <strong>birds congregate.</strong></li>
<li>Migratory birds usually start arriving at Chilika in November as it is a comparatively hospitable alternate habitat compared to the extreme freezing conditions in their natural habitats in <strong>Siberia, China, Japan and other countries in the northern hemisphere.</strong></li>
<li>Few important migratory birds seen here are: Bar-headed geese, greater flamingos, herons, black-tailed godwits and rare Great Knot. The <strong>Great Knot</strong> was seen after five years.</li>
<li><a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/important-facts-for-prelims-27th-october-2018" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Chilika Lake</strong></a> <strong>is Asia's largest</strong> and <strong>world's second-largest lagoon</strong> after the<strong> New Caledonian barrier reef</strong> in <strong>New Caledonia.</strong></li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Great Knot (Calidris tenuirostris)<a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578651485_image3.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578651485_image3.jpg" style="float: right;" width="250" caption="false" /></a></strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Great Knot is an <strong>international migratory bird</strong> that travels vast distances between the northern hemisphere breeding grounds and southern hemisphere summer feeding grounds around.</li>
<li>It is distributed in far northeast Russia, coastal Australia, southeast Asia, India, Bangladesh, Pakistan and eastern Arabian Peninsula.</li>
<li>It is listed as <strong>Endangered</strong> under the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/iucn-red-list" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List.</strong></a></li>
</ul>
</div>
<p><a href="https://www.thehindu.com/life-and-style/travel/the-birds-of-nalabana/article26192823.ece" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: TH</strong></a></p>',
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			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/nalabana-bird-sanctuary'
		],
		(int) 4 => [
			'title' => 'Panel Approves Scheme to Trade in Forests',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>Recently, the <strong>Forest Advisory Committee (FAC)</strong> has approved the <strong>Green Credit Scheme.</strong> It will allow the Forest Department to outsource the responsibility of reforesting to non-government agencies, if implemented.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Currently, in the case of the loss of forest, the industry needs to find appropriate non-forest land and pay <strong>Net Present Value</strong> (current economic equivalent) to the State Forest Department. Then it is the Forest Department&rsquo;s responsibility to grow appropriate vegetation which would grow into forests over time.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Points</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Green Credit Scheme allows agencies (private companies, village forest communities etc.) to identify land and grow plantations. After three years, the land would be eligible to be considered as compensatory forest land if it meets the criteria set by the Forest Department. An industry needing forest land could then approach the agency and pay it for parcels of such forested land and this would then be transferred to the Forest Department and be recorded as forest land. In simpler words, it will allow forests to be traded as a commodity.</li>
<li>This scheme will encourage plantation by individuals outside the traditional forest area and will help in meeting international commitments such as <strong>Sustainable Development Goals </strong>and<a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/co2-level-hit-record-high" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong> Nationally Determined Contributions.</strong></a></li>
<li>It will also help in solving various industries&rsquo; complain that they find it hard to acquire appropriate non-forest land, which has to be contiguous to existing forest.</li>
<li>The scheme will also supplement the<strong> Green India Mission,</strong> which is one of India&rsquo;s initiatives to combat climate change.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>It aims to sequester 2.523 billion tonnes of carbon by 2020-30 and this involves adding 30 million hectares in addition to an existing forest.</li>
<li>However, it does not solve the core problems of compensatory afforestation and creates problems of privatising multi-use forest areas as monoculture plantation plots.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Earlier in 2015, a &lsquo;Green Credit Scheme&rsquo; for degraded forest land with public-private participation was recommended but it was not approved.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Forest Advisory Committee</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It is a statutory body which was constituted by the Forest (Conservation) Act 1980.</li>
<li>It comes under the Ministry of Environment, Forests &amp; Climate Change (MoEF&amp;CC).</li>
<li>It considers questions on the diversion of forest land for non-forest uses such as mining, industrial projects, townships and advises the government on the issue of granting forest clearances. However, its role is advisory.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<p><a href="https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/forest-committee-approves-scheme-to-trade-in-forests/article30527065.ece" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: TH</strong></a></p>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/panel-approves-scheme-to-trade-in-forests'
		],
		(int) 5 => [
			'title' => 'Annual Crimes in India Report 2018: NCRB',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>The <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/crime-in-india-ncrb" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB)</strong></a> published the <strong>annual Crime in India Report 2018.</strong> It shows the <strong>crime statistics in the country</strong> between 2017 and 2018.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>NCRB has also released <strong>Accidental Death and Suicides in India 2018 report</strong> which outlines death and suicide statistics of the country.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Points</h3>
<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578644164_image2.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578644164_image2.jpg" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" caption="false" width="615" height="413" /></a></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The report shows an <strong>increase of 1.3% in the registration of cases.</strong></li>
<li>The<strong> crime rate per lakh population has come down</strong> from 388.6 in 2017 to 383.5.</li>
<li><strong>Crime Against Women:</strong> The <strong>rise</strong> has been observed in 2018 compared to 2017.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>Uttar Pradesh topped</strong> the list followed by <strong>Maharashtra and West Bengal.</strong></li>
<li><strong>Delhi tops</strong> the list among the <strong>metropolitan cities.</strong></li>
<li>Cruelty by husband or his relatives (31.9%) followed by an assault on women with intent to outrage her modesty (27.6%) constituted the major share of crimes against women.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Suicides:</strong> The total number of people who committed suicide in 2018 has <strong>increased</strong> from 2017.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The <strong>highest</strong> number of suicide victims were <strong>daily wage earners</strong> comprising<strong> 22.4%</strong> of such deaths.</li>
<li><strong>Maximum</strong> of the suicides were reported from <strong>Maharashtra</strong> followed by Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka.</li>
<li>Farm sector workers accounted for<strong> 7.7 % of the total number of suicides</strong> in the country.</li>
<li>West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha, Uttarakhand, Meghalaya, Goa, Chandigarh, Daman &amp; Diu, Delhi, Lakshadweep and Puducherry <strong>reported zero suicides by farmers/cultivators and agricultural labourers.</strong></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Economic Offences:</strong> It includes criminal breach of trust, forgery, cheating, fraud and counterfeiting, etc. <strong>Higher</strong> economic offences were observed in 2018 as compared to 2017.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>Uttar Pradesh</strong> accounted for the <strong>maximum number</strong> of economic offences followed by Telangana and Bihar.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Violence due to Riots:</strong> Riot cases due to communal, political, agrarian and student issues <strong>declined</strong> but riots arising out of <strong>industrial and water disputes rose sharply.</strong></li>
<li><strong>SC/ST related crimes:</strong> The incidents registered under the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes related Acts observed a <strong>decline</strong> in 2018 from 2017.</li>
<li><strong>Cyber Crimes:</strong> An <strong>increase in cybercrimes</strong> has been observed in 2018 compared to 2017.</li>
</ul>
<p><a href="https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/uttar-pradesh-tops-in-crimes-against-women/article30526919.ece" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: TH</strong></a></p>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/annual-crimes-in-india-report-2018-ncrb'
		],
		(int) 6 => [
			'title' => 'Miyawaki Method in Kerala ',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<h3>Why in news?</h3>
<p>Kerala has decided to use the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/miyawaki-method" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Japanese Miyawaki method</strong></a> of afforestation.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Earlier, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Telangana and some other states adopted this method.</li>
<li>The replication of the model across Kerala, which <a href="/loksabha-rajyasabha-discussions/the-big-picture-floods-and-dam-management" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>has suffered floods, landslides and soil erosion</strong></a>, assumes significance with the <strong>Rebuild Kerala</strong> initiative on.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Points</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Miyawaki method has revolutionised the concept of <strong>urban afforestation by turning backyards into mini-forests.</strong></li>
<li>Regardless of soil and climatic conditions it has helped create <strong>more than 3,000 forests all over the world.</strong></li>
<li>It creates a <strong>dense forest in just 20 to 30 years,</strong> while through conventional methods it takes anywhere between 200 to 300 years.</li>
<li>Forests grow <strong>10 times faster and 30 times denser.</strong></li>
<li>The saplings become <strong>self-sustainable after the first three years.</strong></li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Miyawaki Process</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The native trees of the region are identified and divided into <strong>four layers &mdash; shrub, sub-tree, tree, and canopy.</strong></li>
<li>The quality of soil is analysed and biomass which would help enhance the perforation capacity, water retention capacity, and nutrients in it, is mixed with it.</li>
<li>A mound is built with the soil and the seeds are<strong> planted at a very high density.</strong> The ground is covered with a thick layer of mulch.</li>
<li>Multi-layered saplings are planted close to each other. This blocks sunlight from reaching the ground and <strong>prevents weeds</strong> from growing, thus <strong>keeping the soil moist.</strong> The close cropping further ensures that the plants <strong>receive sunlight only from the top</strong> thus enabling them to <strong>grow upwards rather than sideways.</strong></li>
<li>This is one of the reasons why the saplings grow tall in a short span of time.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>Concerns</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Such forests lack some qualities of natural forests, such as<strong> medicinal properties and the ability to bring rain.</strong></li>
<li>Such fast-growing plantations are <strong>actually wood lots</strong> (a parcel of a woodland or forest capable of small-scale production of forest products (such as wood fuel, sap for maple syrup, sawlogs, and pulpwood) and <strong>cannot be termed as forests.</strong></li>
<li>Several environmentalists have questioned the efficacy of the method that accelerates the growth of trees and claims to match a forest&rsquo;s complex ecosystem (as it is <strong>not a</strong> <strong>good idea to force plants to photosynthesize fast).</strong></li>
<li>Environmentalists also pointed out that the<strong> technique was started by the Japanese considering the climate in Japan</strong> and the regular occurrence of natural calamities like earthquakes. But, the method is <strong>not good for a tropical country like India.</strong></li>
</ul>
<p><a href="https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Thiruvananthapuram/kerala-to-take-more-cover-under-miyawaki-forests/article30479463.ece" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: TH</strong></a></p>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/miyawaki-method-in-kerala'
		],
		(int) 7 => [
			'title' => 'Issues Related to Persons with Disability',
			'catname' => 'Paper 2',
			'desc' => '<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1582722872_Issues%20Related to Persons with Disability (Mind Map)_Artboard 1.png" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1582722872_Issues Related to Persons with Disability (Mind Map)_Artboard 1.png" width="563" height="2331" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></a></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="/to-the-points/Paper2/issues-related-to-persons-with-disability" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>For TTP</em></a></p>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/mind-map/gs-paper2/issues-related-to-persons-with-disability-mind-map'
		],
		(int) 8 => [
			'title' => 'Issues Related to Persons with Disability',
			'catname' => 'Paper 2',
			'desc' => '<h3>Introduction</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Disabilities is an umbrella term, covering impairments, activity limitations, and participation restrictions. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>An<strong> impairment</strong> is a problem in body function or structure;</li>
<li>An <strong>activity limitation</strong> is a difficulty encountered by an individual in executing a task or action;</li>
<li>A <strong>participation restriction</strong> is a problem experienced by an individual in involvement in life situations.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>As per Census 2011, in India, out of the total population of 121 crore, about 2.68 Cr persons are &lsquo;Disabled&rsquo; (2.21% of the total population)<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Out of 2.68 crore, 1.5 crore are males and 1.18 crore are females</li>
<li>Majority (69%) of the disabled population resided in rural areas</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578574066_image1.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578574066_image1.jpg" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" caption="false" width="630" height="473" /></a></p>
<h3>Constitutional Frameworks for Disabled in India</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Article 41</strong> of the Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSP) states that State shall make effective provision for securing right to work, to education and to public assistance in cases of unemployment, old age, sickness and disablement, within the limits of its economic capacity and development.</li>
<li>The subject of <strong>&lsquo;relief of the disabled and unemployable&rsquo;</strong> is specified in <strong>state list of the Seventh Schedule of the constitution.</strong></li>
</ul>
<h3>Legislations for Disabled</h3>
<p><strong>Right of Persons with Disabilities Act 2016</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Act replaces the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995.</li>
<li><strong>"Person with disability"</strong> means a person with long term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairments which, in interaction with barriers, hinders his full and effective participation in society equally with others.</li>
<li><strong>"Person with benchmark disability"</strong> means a person with not less than 40% of a specified disability where specified disability has not been defined in measurable terms and includes a person with a disability where specified disability has been defined in measurable terms, as certified by the certifying authority.</li>
<li>Disability has been defined based on an evolving and dynamic concept.</li>
<li>Principles stated to be implemented for empowerment of persons with disabilities (PWD) are respect for the inherent dignity, individual autonomy including the freedom to make one's own choices, and independence of persons.The principle reflects a paradigm shift in thinking about disability from a social welfare concern to a human rights issue.</li>
<li>The types of disabilities have been increased from 7 to 21. The act added mental illness, autism, spectrum disorder, cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, chronic neurological conditions, speech and language disability, thalassemia, hemophilia, sickle cell disease, multiple disabilities including deaf blindness, acid attack victims and Parkinson&rsquo;s disease which were largely ignored in earlier act. In addition, the Government has been authorized to notify any other category of specified disability.</li>
</ul>
<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578574126_image2.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578574126_image2.jpg" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="630" caption="false" /></a></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It increases the quantum of reservation for people suffering from disabilities from 3% to 4% in government jobs and from 3% to 5% in higher education institutes.</li>
<li>Every child with benchmark disability between the age group of 6 and 18 years shall have the right to free education. Government funded educational institutions as well as the government recognized institutions will have to provide inclusive education.</li>
<li>Stress has been given to ensure accessibility in public buildings in a prescribed time frame along with Accessible India Campaign.</li>
<li>The Chief Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities and the State Commissioners will act as regulatory bodies and Grievance Redressal agencies, monitoring implementation of the Act.</li>
<li>A separate National and State Fund be created to provide financial support to persons with disabilities.</li>
<li>The Bill provides for grant of guardianship by District Court under which there will be joint decision &ndash; making between the guardian and the persons with disabilities.</li>
<li>The Chief Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities and the State Commissioners will act as regulatory bodies and Grievance Redressal agencies and also monitor implementation of the Act.</li>
<li>The Bill provides for penalties for offences committed against persons with disabilities and also violation of the provisions of the new law.</li>
<li>Special Courts will be designated in each district to handle cases concerning violation of rights of PwDs.</li>
<li>The New Act will bring our law in line with the United National Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), to which India is a signatory.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Programmes/initiatives for Disabled in India</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Accessible India Campaign : Creation of Accessible Environment for PwDs:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>A nation-wide flagship campaign for achieving universal accessibility that will enable persons with disabilities to gain access for equal opportunity and live independently and participate fully in all aspects of life in an inclusive society.</li>
<li>The campaign targets at enhancing the accessibility of built environment, transport system and Information &amp; communication ecosystem.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>DeenDayal Disabled Rehabilitation Scheme:</strong> Under the scheme financial assistance is provided to NGOs for providing various services to Persons with Disabilities, like special schools, vocational training centres, community based rehabilitation, pre-school and early intervention etc</li>
<li><strong>Assistance to Disabled Persons for Purchase / fitting of Aids and Appliances (ADIP):</strong> The Scheme aims at helping the disabled persons by bringing suitable, durable, scientifically-manufactured, modern, standard aids and appliances within their reach.</li>
<li><strong>National Fellowship for Students with Disabilities (RGMF)</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The scheme aims to increase opportunities to students with disabilities for pursuing higher education.</li>
<li>Under the Scheme, 200 Fellowships per year are granted to students with disability.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Schemes of the National Trust for the Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Issues and Challenges</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Health:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>A large number of disabilities are preventable, including those arising from medical issues during birth, maternal conditions, malnutrition, as well as accidents and injuries.</li>
<li>However, the health sector especially in rural India has failed to react proactively to disability</li>
<li>Further there are lack of affordable access to proper health care, aids and appliances</li>
<li>Healthcare facilities and poorly trained health-workers in rehabilitation centres is another concern.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Education:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The education system is not inclusive. Inclusion of children with mild to moderate disabilities in regular schools has remained a major challenge.</li>
<li>There are various issues such as availability special schools, access to schools, trained teachers, and availability of educational materials for the disabled.</li>
<li>Further, reservations for the disabled in higher educational institutions has not been fulfilled in many instances</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Employment:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Even though many disabled adults are capable of productive work, disabled adults have far lower employment rates than the general population.</li>
<li>The situation is even worse in the private sector, where much less disabled are employed</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Accessibility:</strong> Physical accessibility in buildings, transportation, access to services etc still remain a major challenge.</li>
<li><strong>Discrimination/Social Exclusion:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Negative attitudes held by the families of the disabled, and often the disabled themselves, hinder disabled persons from taking an active part in the family, community or workforce.</li>
<li>Differently-abled people face discrimination in everyday life. People suffering from mental illness or mental retardation face the worst stigma and are subject to severe social exclusion.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Inadequate data and statistics:&nbsp;</strong>The lack of rigorous and comparable data and statics further hinders inclusion of persons with disabilities. The major issues with collection of data and measuring disability are:<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Difficult to define disability</li>
<li>Coverage: Different purposes require different disability data</li>
<li>Reluctance in reporting disability as disability is considered to be a stigma in many places/societies</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Poor implementation of policies and schemes</strong> hinders the inclusion of disabled persons. Though various acts and schemes have been laid down with an aim to empower the disabled, their enforcement face many challenges.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Prevention:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Preventive health programs need to be strengthened and all children need to be screened at a young age.</li>
<li>Kerala has already started an early prevention programme. Comprehensive Newborn Screening (CNS) programme seeks early identification of deficits in infants and reduce the state's burden of disability.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Awareness:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>People with disabilities need to be better integrated into society by overcoming stigma</li>
<li>There should be awareness campaigns to educate and aware people about different kinds of disability</li>
<li>Success stories of people with disabilities can be showcased to inculcate positive attitude among people</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Employment:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Disabled adults need to be empowered with employable skills</li>
<li>The private sector needs to be encouraged to employ them.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Better measurement:</strong> The scale of disability in India needs to be better understood by improving the measurement of disability.</li>
<li><strong>Education:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>State-wise strategies on education for children with special needs need to be devised.</li>
<li>There should be proper teacher training to address the needs of differently-abled children and facilitate their inclusion in regular schools</li>
<li>Further there should be more special schools and ensure educational material for differently-abled children</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Access:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Safety measures like road safety, safety in residential areas, public transport system etc, should be taken up</li>
<li>Further, it should be made legally binding to make buildings disabled-friendly</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Policy Interventions:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>More budgetary allocation for welfare of the disabled. There should be a disability budgeting on line of gender budget.</li>
<li>Proper implementation of schemes should be ensured. There should be proper monitoring mechanisms and accountability of public funds.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<p><a href="/mind-map/gs-paper2/issues-related-to-persons-with-disability-mind-map" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>For Mind Map</em></a></p>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/to-the-points/Paper2/issues-related-to-persons-with-disability'
		],
		(int) 9 => [
			'title' => 'New Space Policy for New Space Age',
			'catname' => 'News Editorials',
			'desc' => '<div class="border">
<p>This article is based on <a href="https://www.livemint.com/opinion/online-views/let-s-go-further-in-our-tryst-with-outer-space-11577897343817.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Let&rsquo;s go further in our tryst with outer space</strong></a>, <a href="https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/editorial/soaring-to-the-moon/article28660484.ece" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>A home in space, Soaring to the moon</strong></a>. It talks about the need for India&rsquo;s Space programme to evolve into a space power and develop its space private sector.</p>
</div>
<p>Recently, the <a href="/important-institutions/drishti-specials-important-institutions-national-institutions/indian-space-research-organisation-isro" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Indian Space Research Organisation</strong></a> (ISRO) had announced that nearly 20 space missions will be launched in the near future like <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/chandrayaan-3-and-gaganyaan" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Chandrayaan-3</strong></a>, <a href="/to-the-points/paper3/to-the-point-paper3-mission-gaganyaan" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Gaganyaan</strong></a> etc. For four decades since its inception in the 1969 ISRO apart from building its capacities, focused primarily on harnessing space technologies for societal and scientific benefits.</p>
<p>However, as developments in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and big data analytics have led to the emergence of the<a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/isro-challenges-and-opportunities" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong> new space age</strong></a>, India&rsquo;s space programme needs to take two additional leaps i.e. foster a private space industry and start work on a space force.</p>
<h3>Planned Space Projects of ISRO</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>After the mission to Moon (Chandrayaan 1 and 2) and Mars (Mangalyaan), the government has proposed a manned space flight (Gaganyaan) before 2022.</li>
<li>ISRO would be undertaking many prolonged space exploration projects and sending many astronauts into space. In this pursuit, ISRO has declared its intention to build a permanent space station for itself, possibly in the next five to seven years.</li>
<li>Aditya-I will be India's first solar mission scheduled to be launched in 2020. Similar project is planned for Venus.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Need to Develop Private Capacity in Space</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Space tourism</strong> is one among several opportunities that Indian businesses may be keen to explore.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>A policy framework to enable private participation in this sector, of course, would have to be formulated by the government.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Small satellite revolution</strong> is underway, globally, 17,000 small satellites are expected to be launched between 2020 and 2030.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>A strong private sector in space will help India to tap into this lucrative commercial space launch market.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Increasing space competitiveness</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Singapore is offering itself as a hub for space entrepreneurship based on its legal environment, availability of skilled manpower and equatorial location.</li>
<li>New Zealand is positioning itself as a location for private rocket launches.</li>
<li>China, too, has changed its rules to allow private commercial space activity.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>ISRO has been a genuine <strong>global pioneer of aerospatial cost compression</strong> on several fronts. Cost-effectiveness has given the agency a distinct edge in the commercial arena of satellite launch services.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>With such a valuable base of expertise within the country, it is only natural to expect the emergence of a private space industry that could prove globally competitive.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Significance of Becoming a Space Power</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Space is emerging as a <strong>potential fourth arm of the country&rsquo;s defence setup.</strong></li>
<li>With US, Russia and China already in pursuit of becoming a Space power, India will need to equip itself appropriately to meet emerging security challenges.</li>
<li>Space power has the ability to use space while denying reliable use to any foe.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>India already has significant ability to use space. But it's ability to deny space use to an adversary is, understandably, negligible.</li>
<li>When it comes to satellites, India has a handful of military satellites in operation, compared to over 40 civilian ones. Our first dedicated military satellite was launched only in 2013.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>However, India has made some progress in pursuit of becoming a space power.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Recently conducted Mission Shakti has demonstrated India's capability to target enemy satellite.</li>
<li>Newly instituted <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/defence-space-research-agency-dsra" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>DSA (defence space agency)</strong></a> will be supported by a defence space research organization (DSRO) has the mandate to create weapons to &ldquo;degrade, disrupt, destroy or deceive an adversary&rsquo;s space capability".</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>India needs to structurally separate the regulatory, commercial and scientific research elements of the space programme.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>Funding on Space Research and development</strong> must be enlarged and ISRO &amp; private research institutions should work be encouraged to work in tandem.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>India needs a <strong>new space policy&mdash;</strong>one that aims to harness space as a growth sector for the economy, attracts private investment and creates jobs, even as it promotes scientific breakthroughs and helps leapfrog developmental challenges.</li>
<li>There is need to establish an<strong> independent regulator</strong> that governs both ISRO and new space operators on a level playing field.</li>
<li>In order to <strong>effectively defend our space assets,</strong> India must have reliable and accurate capabilities to track space objects, from debris and spacecraft to celestial bodies.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Since <strong>accurate tracking</strong> forms the basis of almost every conceivable action in space, therefore, this crucial capability must be developed indigenously.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>For space defence to be effective, India must acquire a <strong>minimum, credible capacity</strong> across the various types of space weapons, physical, electronic and cyber.</li>
</ul>
<p>Failures of the space missions can build an overall perception about wastage of money and time. Losses in space missions can seriously impact the future of cooperation between space powers. Therefore, in the new space age, India's space policy must acquire a new seriousness that can tap into the creative energies of private entrepreneurs and bolster India into a space power.</p>
<table border="1" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 508px; border-style: dotted; border-color: #5e84ff; background-color: #ece6ff;"><span style="color: #ff0000;"><em><strong>Drishti Mains Question</strong></em></span><br /><br />Discuss the significance of space power for India.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p></p>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/new-space-policy-for-new-space-age'
		],
		(int) 10 => [
			'title' => 'TOI 700 d',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<h3>Why in News<a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578561807_image1.png" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578561807_image1.png" style="float: right;" width="427" height="163" /></a></h3>
<p>The <a href="/important-institutions/drishti-specials-important-institutions-international-institution/national-aeronautics-and-space-administration-nasa" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)</strong></a> has reported the discovery of an <strong>Earth-size planet</strong>, named <strong>TOI 700 d</strong>.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The planet was found by <strong>NASA&rsquo;s <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/toi-270-system" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS)</a></strong> <strong>mission</strong>, which was launched in 2018. With TOI 700 d, TESS has discovered its first Earth-size planet in its star&rsquo;s habitable zone.</li>
<li><strong>In comparison to the Earth:</strong> TOI 700 d measures <strong>20% larger than Earth</strong>. It <strong>orbits its star, TOI 700, once every 37 days</strong>.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The star, TOI 700, is an <strong>"M dwarf"</strong> located just over 100 light-years away in the southern constellation Dorado. It is roughly 40% of the Sun's mass and size, and has about half its surface temperature.</li>
<li>Two other planets orbit the star:<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>TOI 700 b, which is almost exactly Earth-size, probably rocky, and which completes an orbit every 10 days.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>TOI 700 c, the middle planet, which is 2.6 times larger than Earth, is probably gas-dominated, and orbits every 16 days.</li>
<li><strong>Orbits in Habitable Zone:</strong> TOI 700 d is the outermost planet, and the only one in the TOI 700&rsquo;s habitable zone.</li>
<li>A habitable zone, also called the <strong>"Goldilocks zone"&nbsp;</strong>is the area around a star where it is not too hot and not too cold for liquid water to exist on the surface of surrounding planets.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>Earth is in the Sun&rsquo;s Goldilocks zone.</strong> If Earth were where the dwarf planet Pluto is, all its water would freeze; on the other hand, if Earth were where Mercury is, all its water would boil off.</li>
<li>Goldilock Zone is always defined with <strong>reference to a particular star</strong>. It can be different for different stars.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>M-dwarf Star</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>M dwarf or M-type star, also called Red Dwarf Star are the most numerous type of star in the universe and the smallest type of hydrogen-burning star.</li>
<li>These have masses from about 0.08 to 0.6 times that of the Sun.</li>
<li>In the Milky Way Galaxy, about three-fourths of the stars are red dwarfs.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<p><a href="https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/this-word-means-goldilocks-zone-6206998/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: IE</strong></a></p>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/toi-700-d'
		],
		(int) 11 => [
			'title' => 'Mandatory Re-grassing After Mining: SC',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>Recently, the <a href="/important-institutions/drishti-specials-important-institutions-national-institutions/supreme-court-of-india" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Supreme Court of India</strong></a> ordered the government to <strong>include re-grassing of mined areas</strong> as a mandatory condition in every mining lease, environmental clearance and mining.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It also held that mining leaseholders should take responsibility for re-grassing mined areas so that biodiversity can flourish in such areas.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Points from the Order</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The SC ordered the government to <strong>file a report in three weeks after taking appropriate actions</strong> and directed it to devise methods to ensure compliance by mining leaseholders.</li>
<li>The <strong>cost of re-grassing</strong> the mined area and wherever damage was caused, would be entirely <strong>borne by the licence holder</strong>.</li>
<li><strong>Mine closure plan</strong> imposes conditions on the licence holder to restore biodiversity. The mandatory re-grassing would be in addition to these conditions.</li>
<li>The apex court held that mined areas result in the complete elimination of grass and denies fodder to herbivores.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Re-grassing of such mined areas is the only solution so that grass and other vegetation, including trees, can grow in the mining area for the benefits of animals and the land is restored to a condition which is fit for the growth of fodder, flora, fauna, etc.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Environmental Issues Caused by Mining</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Erosion.</li>
<li>Formation of sinkholes.</li>
<li>Loss of biodiversity.</li>
<li>Contamination of soil, groundwater and surface water by chemicals from mining processes.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Mine Closure Plan</strong></p>
<p>It involves effective planning of the after-mining landscape of a mine after its operating life has ended. These activities include <strong>Water Quality Management, Air Quality Management, Waste Management, Top Soil Management, Disaster Management and Risk Assessment, Safety and Security etc.</strong></p>
</div>
<p><a href="https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/re-grassing-is-mandatory-after-mining-rules-sc/article30518853.ece" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: TH</strong></a></p>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/mandatory-re-grassing-after-mining-sc'
		],
		(int) 12 => [
			'title' => 'Sea Guardians',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>The <strong>sixth joint naval exercise between China and Pakistan</strong> started on 6<sup>th</sup> January, 2019. It is being held in the <strong>Arabian Sea</strong>.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>For the first time, the exercise has been named as <strong>'Sea Guardians'</strong>.</li>
<li>'Sea Guardians' is expected to become a series of naval exercises between China and Pakistan, similar to:<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>Warrior:</strong> Series of joint land exercises</li>
<li><strong>Shaheen:</strong> Series of joint air exercises.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Note:</strong> <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/exercise-dharma-guardian-2019" target="_blank" rel="noopener">'Dharma Guardian'</a> is the joint military exercise between <strong>India and Japan</strong>.</p>
</div>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/sea-guardians'
		],
		(int) 13 => [
			'title' => 'Revised Norms for Data-led Probes',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>The <strong>Ministry of Home Affairs</strong> has issued revised guidelines to streamline the process of seeking <strong>legal assistance from foreign countries in criminal matters</strong>. The revised guidelines will direct how data requests are processed in any criminal investigations.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The revised guidelines also include the process for <strong>issuing directives on drafting and processing letters of request, mutual legal assistance requests and service of summons, notices and other judicial documents</strong>.</li>
<li>Most intermediaries and social media platforms such as Facebook, WhatsApp, Google, Yahoo!, Twitter and YouTube have their servers outside India. And thus Indian investigation agencies need to follow a particular procedure to access the data from these platforms.</li>
<li>The revised norms have come in the backdrop of recently tabled <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/personal-data-protection-bill-2019" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019</strong></a> in the parliament.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Points</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Criteria to seek information from foreign countries:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Before seeking information about a person&rsquo;s e-mail account hosted on servers in foreign countries, <strong>investigating agencies will have to establish that it is linked to a crime</strong>.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Data Preservation:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Data preservation is the key to the <strong>investigation of cyber-offences and those involving digital evidence</strong>.</li>
<li>Accessing the internet through an Internet Service Provider (ISP) creates <strong>important records and other information</strong> such as customer records, connection information and stored data.</li>
<li>These are very <strong>important evidence</strong> to prove the guilt intention of the accused.</li>
<li>Since this type of evidence <strong>can disappear quickly</strong>, it is important to get the data preserved through appropriate channels.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Place for Data Preservation:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The <strong>G-8 24/7 Network</strong> allows law enforcement agencies to make urgent preservation requests of the digital data before it perishes.</li>
<li>The request for data may be sent to the service provider or to the <strong><a href="/important-institutions/drishti-specials-important-institutions-national-institutions/central-bureau-of-investigation-cbi" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)</a> &mdash; the contact point for India with respect to G-8 24/7 Network</strong>.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Time Period:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The requested country has to be informed about the time period for <strong>which the data is required</strong>.</li>
<li>Such period shall be consented by the requested country.</li>
<li>The transferred data shall be kept for no longer than the period required for the purpose for which it has been received and shall be returned to the requested country or deleted at the end of the period specified.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>G-8 24/7 Network</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The G8 24/7 provides for investigations involving electronic evidence that require urgent assistance from foreign law enforcement.</li>
<li>Therefore, to enhance and supplement (but not replace) traditional methods of obtaining assistance, the G8 has created the network.</li>
<li>It is a new mechanism to expedite contacts between the Participating States or other autonomous law enforcement jurisdictions of a State.</li>
<li>It is a point to point network for urgent assistance in cybercrime matters.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>G7</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/g7-summit" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Group of Seven (G7)</a> is a forum of the world's seven largest developed economies whose government leaders meet annually to discuss international economic and monetary issues.</li>
<li>The G-7 has its roots in an informal meeting of the finance ministers of France, West Germany, the U.S, Great Britain, and Japan (the Group of Five) in the wake of the 1973 oil crisis.</li>
<li>The 45th G7 summit was hosted by France from August 24-26, 2019, in Biarritz in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France.\</li>
<li>The G7 members are recognized as the seven wealthiest and most advanced nations in the world. The members are:<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>France</li>
<li>Germany</li>
<li>The United Kingdom</li>
<li>Italy</li>
<li>The United States of America</li>
<li>Canada</li>
<li>Japan</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The <a href="/important-institutions/drishti-specials-important-institutions-international-institution/european-union" target="_blank" rel="noopener">European Union</a> is sometimes considered an eighth member of the G-7 since it holds all the rights and responsibilities of full members except to chair or host the meeting.</li>
<li>In 1998, after urging from leaders including U.S. President, <strong>Russia</strong> was added to the G-7 group as a full-time member, <strong>creating a formal G-8</strong>. However, in <strong>2014</strong>, <strong>Russia was suspended from the group after the annexation of Crimea and tensions in Ukraine.</strong></li>
</ul>
</div>
<p><a href="https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/home-ministry-issues-norms-to-seek-legal-aid-from-abroad/article30518873.ece" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: TH</strong></a></p>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/revised-norms-for-data-led-probes'
		],
		(int) 14 => [
			'title' => 'Investment in Coal Mining',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>The <strong>Union Cabinet</strong> has approved an <strong>ordinance</strong> to attract <strong>investment in coal mining</strong>.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The ordinance amends the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957 and the Coal Mines (Special Provisions) Act, 2015.</li>
<li>The <strong>Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957</strong> regulates the mining sector in India and specifies the requirement for obtaining and granting mining leases for mining operations.</li>
<li>The <strong>Coal Mines (Special Provisions) Act, 2015</strong> is an Act that provides for allocation of coal mines and vesting of the right, title and interest in and over the land and mine infrastructure together with mining leases to successful bidders with a view to ensure continuity in coal mining operations and production of coal.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Points</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The amendment opens up <strong>coal mining to any firm whose office is registered in India</strong>.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>Open To All:</strong> <strong>Earlier,</strong> the government used to auction coal and lignite mining licences only to companies <strong>engaged in iron and steel</strong>, power coal washing sectors. By opening to everyone, the government seeks to democratize the coal mining sector.</li>
<li><strong>Foreign Direct Investment:</strong> The move will <strong>promote <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/revised-fdi-norms" target="_blank" rel="noopener">foreign direct investment</a> in the sector</strong>. This will help India gain access to sophisticated technology for underground mining used by global miners. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>This may also bring an <strong>end to state-run Coal India Ltd&rsquo;s</strong> (a Maharatna company) <strong>monopoly</strong> in the sector.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Coal Production:</strong> With this move, the government aims at greater participation in commercial mining of coal and targets <strong>1000 Million Tonnes (MT) coal production by Financial Year (FY) 2023 -24</strong>.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>The country produced 730 million tonne of coal in 2018-19.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Import Substitution:</strong> The move will boost both production and mining efficiency besides <strong>substituting import of coal worth Rs 30,000 crore.</strong> <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>Despite having the world&rsquo;s fifth largest coal reserves, India imported 235 million tonnes (mt) of coal in 2019.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Enhanced Competitiveness:</strong> The <strong>steel industry would get cheaper inputs,</strong> leading to an increase in &lsquo;competitiveness&rsquo;.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The amendment <strong>extends the policy of composite mining licence to the coal sector</strong>.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Composite Mining Licence</strong> is a prospecting license which is followed by a grant of Mining Lease.</li>
<li>Earlier, the policy of composite mining licence was in force for unexplored blocks of most non-coal minerals.</li>
<li>This move will add to the <strong>certainty of tenure from the prospecting to the production stages</strong>.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Coal in India</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Coal is the <strong>main source of energy</strong> in India. This fossil fuel is found in a form of <strong>sedimentary</strong> rocks and is often known as <strong>'Black Gold'</strong>.</li>
<li><strong>Formation:</strong> It originates from <strong>organic matter wood</strong>. When large tracts of forests are buried under sediments, wood is burnt and decomposed due to heat from below and pressure from above. The phenomenon makes coal but takes centuries to complete.</li>
<li><strong>Classification:</strong> Coal can be classified on the <strong>basis of carbon content</strong> as follows:<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>Anthracite:</strong> It is the best quality of coal which <strong>carries 80 to 95% carbon content</strong>. It has the highest calorific value. It is found in small quantity in <strong>Jammu and Kashmir</strong>.</li>
<li><strong>Bituminous:</strong> It <strong>carries 60 to 80% of carbon content</strong> and a low level of moisture content. It is widely used and has high calorific value. It is found in Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh.</li>
<li><strong>Lignite:</strong> It is often brown in colour. It carries 40 to 55% carbon content. It has high moisture content so it gives smoke when burnt. It is found in Rajasthan, Lakhimpur (Assam), and Tamil Nadu.</li>
<li><strong>Peat:</strong> It has less than 40% carbon content. It has low calorific value and burns like wood.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Regulation</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>Ownership of Mineral</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>The State Governments are the owners of minerals located within the boundary of the State concerned.</li>
<li>The Central Government is the owner of the minerals underlying the ocean within the territorial waters or the Exclusive Economic Zone of India.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Granting Mineral Concessions</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>The State Governments grant mineral concessions for all the minerals located within the boundary of the State, under the provisions of the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957 and Mineral Concession Rules, 1960.</li>
<li>However, for <strong>minerals specified in the First Schedule</strong> to the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957 <strong>approval of the Central Government is necessary. Schedule I</strong> contains minerals such as coal and lignite, minerals of the &ldquo;rare earths&rdquo; group containing Uranium and Thorium.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Also, the <strong>Central Government notifies certain minerals as 'minor' minerals</strong> from time to time for which the absolute powers for deciding on procedures of seeking applications for and <strong>granting mineral concessions</strong>, fixing rates of royalty, dead rent, and power to revise orders rest only with the <strong>State Government. Example of minor minerals include</strong> building stones, gravel, ordinary clay, ordinary sand.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<p><a href="https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/cabinet-nod-for-ordinance-enabling-fdi-in-coal-mining/article30515236.ece" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: TH</strong></a></p>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/investment-in-coal-mining'
		],
		(int) 15 => [
			'title' => 'Assassination of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani',
			'catname' => 'News Editorials',
			'desc' => '<div class="border">
<p>This article is based on <a href="https://www.hindustantimes.com/analysis/us-iran-new-delhi-must-weigh-its-options-carefully/story-9Y2vNP8x0fCd64S37eGrZP.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>US-Iran: New Delhi must weigh its options carefully</strong></a>, <a href="https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/the-us-is-weakened-by-soleimanis-killing/article30496111.ece" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>The U.S. is weakened by Soleimani&rsquo;s killing</strong></a>, <a href="https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/qassem-soleimani-quds-iran-us-donald-trump-india-6203258/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>West Asia after Soleimani</strong></a>, <a href="https://www.business-standard.com/article/opinion/preparing-the-response-120010700025_1.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Preparing the response</strong></a>. It talks about the implications of assassination of top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani on West Asia and India.</p>
</div>
<p>Recently, the top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani (the commander of the Al-Quds Force of Iran&rsquo;s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, IRGC) was assassinated by the US during his visit to Iraq.</p>
<p>The assassination of Qassem Soleimani may spark a full-blown war between the US and Iran as self-preservation or protecting the lives of the top leaders is the primary objective of any regime. The spiralling of the US-Iran tensions also puts India in a difficult spot.</p>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Chronology of US-Iran relations</strong></p>
<p><strong>1953: Overthrow of Mossadeq</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The US and British intelligence agencies planned a coup to oust Iran's democratically elected Prime Minister, Mohammad Mossadeq.</li>
<li>Mohammad Mossadeq sought to nationalise Iran's oil industry, which was against the USA's capitalist interests.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>1979: Iranian Revolution</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>The US-backed Shah of Iran, Mohammed Reza Pahlevi, is forced to leave the country</strong> in 1979, following months of demonstrations and strikes against his rule by secular and religious opponents.</li>
<li>This led to the return of Islamic religious leader Ayatollah Khomeini from exile and following a referendum, the Islamic Republic of Iran is proclaimed on 1 April 1979.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>1979-81: US Embassy Hostage Crisis</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The US embassy in Tehran is seized by protesters in November 1979 and American hostages are held inside for 444 days.</li>
<li><strong>The final 52 hostages were freed in January 1981,</strong> the day of US President Ronald Reagan's inauguration.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>2002-13: Nuclear Fears and Sanctions</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>In 2002 an Iranian opposition group reveals that Iran is developing nuclear facilities including a uranium enrichment plant.</li>
<li>In pursuance of this, several sanctions are imposed by the UN, the US and the EU against Iran.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>US President George Bush denounces Iran as part of an "axis of evil" with Iraq and North Korea.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>This causes Iran's currency to lose two-thirds of its value in two years.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>2013-2016: Closer ties, and a nuclear deal</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>In September 2013, Iran's new moderate President Hassan Rouhani takes office.</li>
<li>In 2015, after a flurry of diplomatic activity, <strong>Iran agrees on a long-term deal on its nuclear programme-</strong> <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/india-cuts-iranian-oil-imports-ahead-of-us-sanctions" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA)</strong></a> with a group of world powers known as the P5+1 - the US, UK, France, China, Russia and Germany.</li>
<li>Under the accord, Iran agrees to limit its sensitive nuclear activities and allow in international inspectors in return for the lifting of crippling economic sanctions.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>US-Iran Tensions in current times</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>The policy of maximum pressure:</strong> In May 2018, US President Donald Trump <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/us-reimposes-sanctions-on-iran" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>abandons the nuclear deal</strong></a> and reinstated economic sanctions against Iran and threatening to do the same to countries and firms that continue buying its oil.</li>
<li><strong>The policy of strategic patience:</strong> Iran acted with restraint, with thinking that abiding by the nuclear deal it could get economic favour from EU. However, this policy failed to work for Iran and thereby it began a counter-pressure campaign.</li>
<li>In June 2019, <strong>Iranian forces shoot down a US military drone over the Strait of Hormuz</strong> and then began the cycle of response and escalation between the two countries.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Possible Impact of US-Iran Conflict</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Destabilisation of West Asia:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>West Asia has already been ravaged by past conflicts like the Syrian civil war, War against ISIS.</li>
<li>Possibility of war between the US and Iran can further lead the region into destabilisation.</li>
<li>Further, this may enhance the sectarian divide in the region like in Iraq.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Shock in Oil Supplies</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Instability in the region can impact global oil supplies which in turn can affect the global production and trade.</li>
<li>Global oil prices have already seen a 4% rise within hours of the assassination of Qassem Soleimani.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Disruption in Afghan Peace Process</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Afghan Peace Process is already in jeopardy due to hasty American withdrawal from Afghanistan.</li>
<li>US-Iran conflict can also hamper connectivity to Afghanistan (via Iran).</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Intensification of Regional Rivalries</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Saudi Arabia and Israel are strategic allies of the US, the rising tension between the US and Iran will mean other regional players will also be involved.</li>
<li>As these countries are engaged in competition for influence, a war between these two nations can spread to a larger region.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Impact on India</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Oil Supply:</strong> The conflict can affect oil supplies in the country. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>India imports 84% of the oil</strong> it needs. Thus, a spike in the price of oil makes a big difference not just to domestic cost conditions but also to the <strong>balance of payments.</strong></li>
<li><strong>India&rsquo;s foreign exchange reserves</strong> are relatively comfortable, at over $450 billion, and can easily cover 9-10 months&rsquo; imports at current prices. An increase in the price of oil would have to be both sharp and sustained in order to erode this buffer</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Diaspora: Large Indian diaspora</strong> in West Asia, and particularly the Persian Gulf might be affected due to the tension in the region.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Their safety will have to be a priority. India has in the past organised big evacuations &mdash; famously from Kuwait at the time of the first Gulf War, and more recently from Libya.</li>
<li>However, the scale of any evacuation from the Gulf would on this occasion be even larger even if it remains relatively unlikely.</li>
<li>A downturn caused by tensions might cause a large number of guest workers to return to India &mdash; and to stop remitting money.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Connectivity: Strategic connectivity interests</strong> of India might be affected. This includes the port of Chabahar in Iran, linking India to Afghanistan and Central Asia.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The project which received a rare exemption from US sanctions, but in the event of an escalation of tensions the viability of other connectivity projects will also get compromised.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Last but not least, after Iran, India has perhaps the largest number of the world&rsquo;s Shia population and the possibility of some of them being radicalised by this event cannot be ruled out.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Conclusion</h3>
<p>Lord Krishna in Bhagwat Gita held that <strong>War shall be the last option,</strong> therefore, both the US and Iran must act with <strong>strategic restraint</strong> as any crisis in West Asia will not only affect the region as a whole but will have a detrimental impact on global affairs as well.</p>
<table border="1" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 100%; border-style: dotted; border-color: #6c3bff; background-color: #eae3fc;"><span style="color: #000080;"><em><strong>Drishti Mains Question</strong></em></span><br /><br />Discuss the impact of rising US-Iran conflict on India and its international relations.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/assassination-of-iranian-general-qassem-soleimani'
		],
		(int) 16 => [
			'title' => '2nd National GST Conference',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>The <strong>2<sup>nd</sup> National GST Conference</strong> of the Commissioners of State Tax and Chief Commissioners of Central Tax was held recently.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The conference was focused on streamlining Goods and Services Tax (GST) system and plugging revenue leakages.</li>
<li>The conference was aimed to build synergy and to share their knowledge and best practices with the intent to bring about uniformity in tax administrations.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Points</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The government has decided <strong>to constitute a panel of centre and state officials</strong> for designing a detailed Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to <strong>check fraudulent GST refund claims and evasion of GST.</strong></li>
<li>A memorandum of understanding would be signed among the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/farm-in-expenditure" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT)</strong></a>, the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) and the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/important-facts-for-prelims-27th-september-2018" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>GST Network</strong></a> <strong>to exchange data through the application program interface.</strong> <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The data would be shared on a <strong>quarterly</strong> basis, instead of being shared on a yearly basis.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>It was also decided to make the <strong>GST system aligned with the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU)</strong> for the purpose of getting bank account details and transactions and also PAN-based banking transaction.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Financial Intelligence Unit</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) was constituted in November 2004. The organization is in the process of seeking membership of the Egmont Group of FIUs which is an umbrella group of FIUs of various countries.</li>
<li>FIU is <strong>not a regulatory </strong>body. Its task is to gather and share financial intelligence in close cooperation with regulatory bodies like RBI, SEBI and IRDA.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<p><a href="https://pib.gov.in/PressReleseDetail.aspx?PRID=1598653" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source:PIB</strong></a></p>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/2nd-national-gst-conference'
		],
		(int) 17 => [
			'title' => 'New Energy Performance Standards for Air Conditioners',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>The Central Government in consultation with the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) has notified new energy performance standards for Room Air Conditioner (RACs).</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The 24<sup>0</sup>C default setting has been made mandatory from 1<sup>st</sup> January, 2020 for all room air conditioners covered under the ambit of BEE star-labelling program. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>BEE launched the voluntary star labelling program for fixed-speed room air conditioners (RACs) in 2006, and this program became mandatory on 12<sup>th</sup> January 2009. Thereafter, in 2015, voluntary star labelling program for inverter room air conditioners was launched and was made mandatory with effect from 1<sup>st</sup> January 2018.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE)</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>BEE is a statutory body under the <strong>Ministry of Power,</strong> Government of India.</li>
<li>It assists in developing policies and strategies with the primary objective of reducing the energy intensity of the Indian economy.</li>
<li>BEE coordinates with designated consumers, designated agencies, and other organizations to identify and utilize the existing resources and infrastructure, in performing the functions assigned to it under the energy conservation act.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<p><a href="https://pib.gov.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=197279" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: PIB</strong></a></p>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/new-energy-performance-standards-for-air-conditioners'
		],
		(int) 18 => [
			'title' => 'Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary</strong> is located in North Goa District, Sanguem taluka near the town of Valpoi. Owing to the presence of Bengal Tigers, it can be declared as a tiger reserve under <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/status-of-conservation-of-tigers" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Project Tiger.</strong></a><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>It has been declared an International Bird Area because of the presence of the Nilgiri wood-pigeon, Malabar parakeet, Malabar grey hornbill, Grey-headed Bulbul, Rufous babbler, White-bellied blue-flycatcher and Crimson-backed sunbird.</li>
<li>The sanctuary is a huge attraction for herpetologists( Study of amphibians and reptiles). since it contains a large variety of snakes including all of the &lsquo;big four&rsquo; of Indian venomous snakes which are Indian krait, Russell&rsquo;s viper, Saw-scaled viper and Spectacled cobra.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>This sanctuary was formed in 1999. The formation of this sanctuary has made Goa the only state in India that has completely protected the Western Ghats that are located within its boundaries.</li>
<li>The three highest peaks in Goa are situated in the hill ranges of the sanctuary. They are Sonsogod (1027 mts), Talavche Sada (812 mts) and Vageri (725 mts). Vageri means &lsquo;the abode of the tiger&rsquo;.</li>
<li>The <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/mhadei-river" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Mhadei River</strong></a>, known downstream as the Mandovi River, the lifeline of the state of Goa, originates in Karnataka, passes through the Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary and meets the Arabian Sea at Panaji in Goa.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The whole sanctuary acts as a catchment for the river. Most of the area has succumbed to the biotic pressure with agriculture and human interference replacing the rich natural vegetation of the past by cashew / kumeri cultivation.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578475484_image4.png" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578475484_image4.png" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" caption="false" width="391" height="252" /></a></p>',
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		(int) 19 => [
			'title' => 'Railways Plans Hydrogen-Powered Engine by 2021',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>During the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/107th-indian-science-congress" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>107<sup>th</sup> Indian Science Congress,</strong></a> the Indian Railways has announced that it will <strong>build a hydrogen-powered rail engine by the end of 2021.</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Indian Railways Organisation for Alternate Fuels (IROAF) will be developing a <strong>hydrogen-powered rail engine &mdash;</strong> a technology that has been demonstrated successfully <strong>only in Germany so far.</strong></li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Points</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The proposed train will have<strong> four passenger coaches</strong> operating at <strong>75 km/hr speed.</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>One coach will carry the hydrogen gas cylinders, fuel cells, supercapacitors and DC converters.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Hydrogen</strong> will be the <strong>input to the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/selenium-graphene-based-catalyst-in-fuel-cell" target="_blank" rel="noopener">fuel cell</a></strong> and the power output of the fuel cell will drive the train.</li>
<li>The<strong> next phase</strong> is to generate hydrogen on board the train from water. This means that water will be converted into hydrogen through water splitting technologies and hydrogen will then be used as the input for fuel cells.</li>
<li>Hydrogen-powered rail engine will help <strong>to reduce reliance on fossil fuel-based energy</strong> sources like diesel and electricity and to find alternative sources of fuel to power its trains.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Fuel Cell<a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578474834_image2.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578474834_image2.jpg" style="float: right;" caption="false" width="500" /></a></strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Fuel cells are electrochemical devices that convert chemical energy from the reactants directly into electricity and heat.</li>
<li>The device consists of an electrolyte layer in contact with a porous anode and cathode on either side.</li>
<li>In a standard fuel cell, gaseous fuels are fed continuously to the anode (negative electrode), while an oxidant (oxygen from the air) is fed continuously to the cathode (positive electrode). Electrochemical reactions take place at the electrodes to produce an electric current.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<p><a href="https://indianexpress.com/article/india/railways-plans-hydrogen-powered-engine-for-passenger-trains-by-end-of-2021-6203317/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: IE</strong> </a></p>',
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		'title' => 'Coronaviruses',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578903634_Coronaviruses-01.png" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578903634_Coronaviruses-01.png" width="344" height="921" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></a></p>',
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	(int) 1 => [
		'title' => 'States’ Prerogative to Provide 10% Reservation',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>Recently, the Centre informed the <a href="/important-institutions/drishti-specials-important-institutions-national-institutions/supreme-court-of-india" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Supreme Court</strong></a> that it would be the States&rsquo; prerogative to provide <strong>10% economic reservation</strong> in government jobs and admission to educational institutions.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The State governments concerned are to decide whether or not to provide reservation to the <strong>Economically Weaker Section (EWS)</strong> in appointment to State government jobs and admission to State government educational institutions, as per provisions of the newly inserted <strong>Articles 15(6) and 16(6) by the Constitution 103<sup>rd</sup> Amendment Act, 2019.</strong></li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Points</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>This comes as a response to a<a href="/to-the-points/Paper2/public-interest-litigation" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong> Public Interest Litigation</strong></a> <strong>(PIL)</strong> that seeks the Supreme Court&rsquo;s intervention to<strong> implement the 10% EWS quota in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka</strong> without disrupting the <a href="/to-the-points/Paper2/reservation-in-india" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>existing reservation framework</strong></a>, which covers the Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), Backward Classes (BC) and Most Backward Classes (MBC).</li>
<li>The 10% reservation prescribed by the Amendment Act is <strong>in addition to the existing reservation.</strong> It nowhere affects or infringes anybody&rsquo;s fundamental rights to equality instead gives rights of equal participation and representation to the EWS.</li>
<li>Centre informed the Supreme Court that it has <strong>no role in deciding the reservation policy of any state government.</strong> The concerned state governments have to decide the reservation under Articles 15(6) and 16(6).</li>
</ul>
<h3>Background</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>In 2019, SC issued a notice to the Centre on a PIL <strong>seeking direction to Karnataka and Tamil Nadu to implement 10% quota</strong> in jobs and education for EWS as per the mandate of the 103rd Constitutional (Amendment) Act, 2019.</li>
<li>The petition contended that <strong>neither Tamil Nadu nor Karnataka had implemented </strong>this amendment.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>It also highlighted that <strong>Tamil Nadu reserves 69%</strong> of its jobs and education seats for SCs, STs, BCs and MBCs, while the number stands at <strong>70% in Karnataka.</strong></li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Constitution (103<sup>rd</sup> Amendment) Act, 2019</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It introduced <strong>economic reservation</strong> by <strong>amending</strong> <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/lok-sabha-passes-the-constitution-124th-amendment-bill-2019" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Articles 15 and 16.</strong></a> It inserted <strong>Article 15 (6) and Article 16 (6)</strong> in the Constitution to allow reservation for the economically backward in the unreserved category.</li>
<li>It was enacted to promote the welfare of the poor not covered by the 50% reservation policy for SCs, STs and Socially and Educationally Backward Classes (SEBC).</li>
<li>It enables both Centre and the states to provide reservation to the EWSs of society.</li>
<li>Since this is a<strong> central law on subjects (employment, education) in the concurrent list (subjects on which states and the central government both have jurisdiction),</strong> the state governments need to ratify it before adopting it locally.</li>
</ul>
<p><a href="https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/it-is-up-to-states-to-provide-10-quota/article30506662.ece" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: TH</strong></a></p>',
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		'title' => 'Army’s GOCO Model for Improving Efficiency',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>Recently, the Indian Army has initiated the process of identifying potential industry partners to implement the <strong>Government Owned Contractor Operated (GOCO) model</strong> for its base workshops and ordnance depots.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>GOCO will improve the operational efficiency of the army.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Points</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The army issued a <strong>Request For Information (RFI)</strong> to shortlist service providers with experience in <strong>warehousing, logistics and supply chain management.</strong></li>
<li><strong>Criteria for Service Provider:</strong> It should be an <strong>Indian registered company</strong> with at <strong>least 10 years of working experience</strong> in related domains and have an <strong>average annual turnover of ₹50 crore</strong> for each of the last three financial years.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Government Owned Contractor Operated Model</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It was one of the recommendations of the <strong>Lt. Gen. DB Shekatkar (Retd.) committee to enhance combat capability and re-balancing defence expenditure.</strong></li>
<li>In GOCO model, the assets owned by government is operated by the private industries.</li>
<li>The private players are given full autonomy in implementing the vision set by the government, using their best practices.</li>
<li>The main advantage of the model is that it is efficient and will boost competitiveness among the private entities.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<p><a href="https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/army-gets-working-on-government-owned-contractor-operated-model-to-improve-efficiency/article30506622.ece" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: TH</strong></a></p>',
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	],
	(int) 3 => [
		'title' => 'Nalabana Bird Sanctuary',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>Recently, a record number of migratory birds have arrived at the Nalabana bird sanctuary in Odisha.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The <strong>dismantling of illegal prawn gherries inside the lake</strong> is being cited as the main <strong>reason</strong> behind the avian gathering. <strong>Gherries</strong> are areas encroached for illegal prawn cultivation inside the wetland area.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Points</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Nalabana bird sanctuary is located on <strong>Nalabana Island in the Chilika lagoon area in Odisha.</strong></li>
<li>The Nalabana Bird Sanctuary is the <strong>core area of Chilika.</strong></li>
<li>The large Nalabana Island <strong>(Forest of Reeds)</strong> covering about 16 sq km was declared a<strong> bird sanctuary</strong> in <strong>1987.</strong></li>
<li>The island <strong>disappears during the monsoon</strong> due to inundation, only to emerge again post-monsoon.</li>
<li>Nalabana and <strong>Mangalajodi</strong> (on the banks of Chilika lake) are the two major places in Chilika where the <strong>birds congregate.</strong></li>
<li>Migratory birds usually start arriving at Chilika in November as it is a comparatively hospitable alternate habitat compared to the extreme freezing conditions in their natural habitats in <strong>Siberia, China, Japan and other countries in the northern hemisphere.</strong></li>
<li>Few important migratory birds seen here are: Bar-headed geese, greater flamingos, herons, black-tailed godwits and rare Great Knot. The <strong>Great Knot</strong> was seen after five years.</li>
<li><a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/important-facts-for-prelims-27th-october-2018" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Chilika Lake</strong></a> <strong>is Asia's largest</strong> and <strong>world's second-largest lagoon</strong> after the<strong> New Caledonian barrier reef</strong> in <strong>New Caledonia.</strong></li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Great Knot (Calidris tenuirostris)<a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578651485_image3.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578651485_image3.jpg" style="float: right;" width="250" caption="false" /></a></strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Great Knot is an <strong>international migratory bird</strong> that travels vast distances between the northern hemisphere breeding grounds and southern hemisphere summer feeding grounds around.</li>
<li>It is distributed in far northeast Russia, coastal Australia, southeast Asia, India, Bangladesh, Pakistan and eastern Arabian Peninsula.</li>
<li>It is listed as <strong>Endangered</strong> under the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/iucn-red-list" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List.</strong></a></li>
</ul>
</div>
<p><a href="https://www.thehindu.com/life-and-style/travel/the-birds-of-nalabana/article26192823.ece" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: TH</strong></a></p>',
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	],
	(int) 4 => [
		'title' => 'Panel Approves Scheme to Trade in Forests',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>Recently, the <strong>Forest Advisory Committee (FAC)</strong> has approved the <strong>Green Credit Scheme.</strong> It will allow the Forest Department to outsource the responsibility of reforesting to non-government agencies, if implemented.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Currently, in the case of the loss of forest, the industry needs to find appropriate non-forest land and pay <strong>Net Present Value</strong> (current economic equivalent) to the State Forest Department. Then it is the Forest Department&rsquo;s responsibility to grow appropriate vegetation which would grow into forests over time.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Points</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Green Credit Scheme allows agencies (private companies, village forest communities etc.) to identify land and grow plantations. After three years, the land would be eligible to be considered as compensatory forest land if it meets the criteria set by the Forest Department. An industry needing forest land could then approach the agency and pay it for parcels of such forested land and this would then be transferred to the Forest Department and be recorded as forest land. In simpler words, it will allow forests to be traded as a commodity.</li>
<li>This scheme will encourage plantation by individuals outside the traditional forest area and will help in meeting international commitments such as <strong>Sustainable Development Goals </strong>and<a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/co2-level-hit-record-high" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong> Nationally Determined Contributions.</strong></a></li>
<li>It will also help in solving various industries&rsquo; complain that they find it hard to acquire appropriate non-forest land, which has to be contiguous to existing forest.</li>
<li>The scheme will also supplement the<strong> Green India Mission,</strong> which is one of India&rsquo;s initiatives to combat climate change.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>It aims to sequester 2.523 billion tonnes of carbon by 2020-30 and this involves adding 30 million hectares in addition to an existing forest.</li>
<li>However, it does not solve the core problems of compensatory afforestation and creates problems of privatising multi-use forest areas as monoculture plantation plots.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Earlier in 2015, a &lsquo;Green Credit Scheme&rsquo; for degraded forest land with public-private participation was recommended but it was not approved.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Forest Advisory Committee</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It is a statutory body which was constituted by the Forest (Conservation) Act 1980.</li>
<li>It comes under the Ministry of Environment, Forests &amp; Climate Change (MoEF&amp;CC).</li>
<li>It considers questions on the diversion of forest land for non-forest uses such as mining, industrial projects, townships and advises the government on the issue of granting forest clearances. However, its role is advisory.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<p><a href="https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/forest-committee-approves-scheme-to-trade-in-forests/article30527065.ece" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: TH</strong></a></p>',
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		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/panel-approves-scheme-to-trade-in-forests'
	],
	(int) 5 => [
		'title' => 'Annual Crimes in India Report 2018: NCRB',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>The <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/crime-in-india-ncrb" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB)</strong></a> published the <strong>annual Crime in India Report 2018.</strong> It shows the <strong>crime statistics in the country</strong> between 2017 and 2018.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>NCRB has also released <strong>Accidental Death and Suicides in India 2018 report</strong> which outlines death and suicide statistics of the country.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Points</h3>
<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578644164_image2.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578644164_image2.jpg" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" caption="false" width="615" height="413" /></a></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The report shows an <strong>increase of 1.3% in the registration of cases.</strong></li>
<li>The<strong> crime rate per lakh population has come down</strong> from 388.6 in 2017 to 383.5.</li>
<li><strong>Crime Against Women:</strong> The <strong>rise</strong> has been observed in 2018 compared to 2017.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>Uttar Pradesh topped</strong> the list followed by <strong>Maharashtra and West Bengal.</strong></li>
<li><strong>Delhi tops</strong> the list among the <strong>metropolitan cities.</strong></li>
<li>Cruelty by husband or his relatives (31.9%) followed by an assault on women with intent to outrage her modesty (27.6%) constituted the major share of crimes against women.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Suicides:</strong> The total number of people who committed suicide in 2018 has <strong>increased</strong> from 2017.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The <strong>highest</strong> number of suicide victims were <strong>daily wage earners</strong> comprising<strong> 22.4%</strong> of such deaths.</li>
<li><strong>Maximum</strong> of the suicides were reported from <strong>Maharashtra</strong> followed by Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka.</li>
<li>Farm sector workers accounted for<strong> 7.7 % of the total number of suicides</strong> in the country.</li>
<li>West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha, Uttarakhand, Meghalaya, Goa, Chandigarh, Daman &amp; Diu, Delhi, Lakshadweep and Puducherry <strong>reported zero suicides by farmers/cultivators and agricultural labourers.</strong></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Economic Offences:</strong> It includes criminal breach of trust, forgery, cheating, fraud and counterfeiting, etc. <strong>Higher</strong> economic offences were observed in 2018 as compared to 2017.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>Uttar Pradesh</strong> accounted for the <strong>maximum number</strong> of economic offences followed by Telangana and Bihar.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Violence due to Riots:</strong> Riot cases due to communal, political, agrarian and student issues <strong>declined</strong> but riots arising out of <strong>industrial and water disputes rose sharply.</strong></li>
<li><strong>SC/ST related crimes:</strong> The incidents registered under the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes related Acts observed a <strong>decline</strong> in 2018 from 2017.</li>
<li><strong>Cyber Crimes:</strong> An <strong>increase in cybercrimes</strong> has been observed in 2018 compared to 2017.</li>
</ul>
<p><a href="https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/uttar-pradesh-tops-in-crimes-against-women/article30526919.ece" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: TH</strong></a></p>',
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	(int) 6 => [
		'title' => 'Miyawaki Method in Kerala ',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<h3>Why in news?</h3>
<p>Kerala has decided to use the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/miyawaki-method" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Japanese Miyawaki method</strong></a> of afforestation.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Earlier, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Telangana and some other states adopted this method.</li>
<li>The replication of the model across Kerala, which <a href="/loksabha-rajyasabha-discussions/the-big-picture-floods-and-dam-management" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>has suffered floods, landslides and soil erosion</strong></a>, assumes significance with the <strong>Rebuild Kerala</strong> initiative on.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Points</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Miyawaki method has revolutionised the concept of <strong>urban afforestation by turning backyards into mini-forests.</strong></li>
<li>Regardless of soil and climatic conditions it has helped create <strong>more than 3,000 forests all over the world.</strong></li>
<li>It creates a <strong>dense forest in just 20 to 30 years,</strong> while through conventional methods it takes anywhere between 200 to 300 years.</li>
<li>Forests grow <strong>10 times faster and 30 times denser.</strong></li>
<li>The saplings become <strong>self-sustainable after the first three years.</strong></li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Miyawaki Process</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The native trees of the region are identified and divided into <strong>four layers &mdash; shrub, sub-tree, tree, and canopy.</strong></li>
<li>The quality of soil is analysed and biomass which would help enhance the perforation capacity, water retention capacity, and nutrients in it, is mixed with it.</li>
<li>A mound is built with the soil and the seeds are<strong> planted at a very high density.</strong> The ground is covered with a thick layer of mulch.</li>
<li>Multi-layered saplings are planted close to each other. This blocks sunlight from reaching the ground and <strong>prevents weeds</strong> from growing, thus <strong>keeping the soil moist.</strong> The close cropping further ensures that the plants <strong>receive sunlight only from the top</strong> thus enabling them to <strong>grow upwards rather than sideways.</strong></li>
<li>This is one of the reasons why the saplings grow tall in a short span of time.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>Concerns</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Such forests lack some qualities of natural forests, such as<strong> medicinal properties and the ability to bring rain.</strong></li>
<li>Such fast-growing plantations are <strong>actually wood lots</strong> (a parcel of a woodland or forest capable of small-scale production of forest products (such as wood fuel, sap for maple syrup, sawlogs, and pulpwood) and <strong>cannot be termed as forests.</strong></li>
<li>Several environmentalists have questioned the efficacy of the method that accelerates the growth of trees and claims to match a forest&rsquo;s complex ecosystem (as it is <strong>not a</strong> <strong>good idea to force plants to photosynthesize fast).</strong></li>
<li>Environmentalists also pointed out that the<strong> technique was started by the Japanese considering the climate in Japan</strong> and the regular occurrence of natural calamities like earthquakes. But, the method is <strong>not good for a tropical country like India.</strong></li>
</ul>
<p><a href="https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Thiruvananthapuram/kerala-to-take-more-cover-under-miyawaki-forests/article30479463.ece" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: TH</strong></a></p>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/miyawaki-method-in-kerala'
	],
	(int) 7 => [
		'title' => 'Issues Related to Persons with Disability',
		'catname' => 'Paper 2',
		'desc' => '<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1582722872_Issues%20Related to Persons with Disability (Mind Map)_Artboard 1.png" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1582722872_Issues Related to Persons with Disability (Mind Map)_Artboard 1.png" width="563" height="2331" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></a></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="/to-the-points/Paper2/issues-related-to-persons-with-disability" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>For TTP</em></a></p>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/mind-map/gs-paper2/issues-related-to-persons-with-disability-mind-map'
	],
	(int) 8 => [
		'title' => 'Issues Related to Persons with Disability',
		'catname' => 'Paper 2',
		'desc' => '<h3>Introduction</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Disabilities is an umbrella term, covering impairments, activity limitations, and participation restrictions. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>An<strong> impairment</strong> is a problem in body function or structure;</li>
<li>An <strong>activity limitation</strong> is a difficulty encountered by an individual in executing a task or action;</li>
<li>A <strong>participation restriction</strong> is a problem experienced by an individual in involvement in life situations.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>As per Census 2011, in India, out of the total population of 121 crore, about 2.68 Cr persons are &lsquo;Disabled&rsquo; (2.21% of the total population)<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Out of 2.68 crore, 1.5 crore are males and 1.18 crore are females</li>
<li>Majority (69%) of the disabled population resided in rural areas</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578574066_image1.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578574066_image1.jpg" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" caption="false" width="630" height="473" /></a></p>
<h3>Constitutional Frameworks for Disabled in India</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Article 41</strong> of the Directive Principles of State Policy (DPSP) states that State shall make effective provision for securing right to work, to education and to public assistance in cases of unemployment, old age, sickness and disablement, within the limits of its economic capacity and development.</li>
<li>The subject of <strong>&lsquo;relief of the disabled and unemployable&rsquo;</strong> is specified in <strong>state list of the Seventh Schedule of the constitution.</strong></li>
</ul>
<h3>Legislations for Disabled</h3>
<p><strong>Right of Persons with Disabilities Act 2016</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Act replaces the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995.</li>
<li><strong>"Person with disability"</strong> means a person with long term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairments which, in interaction with barriers, hinders his full and effective participation in society equally with others.</li>
<li><strong>"Person with benchmark disability"</strong> means a person with not less than 40% of a specified disability where specified disability has not been defined in measurable terms and includes a person with a disability where specified disability has been defined in measurable terms, as certified by the certifying authority.</li>
<li>Disability has been defined based on an evolving and dynamic concept.</li>
<li>Principles stated to be implemented for empowerment of persons with disabilities (PWD) are respect for the inherent dignity, individual autonomy including the freedom to make one's own choices, and independence of persons.The principle reflects a paradigm shift in thinking about disability from a social welfare concern to a human rights issue.</li>
<li>The types of disabilities have been increased from 7 to 21. The act added mental illness, autism, spectrum disorder, cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, chronic neurological conditions, speech and language disability, thalassemia, hemophilia, sickle cell disease, multiple disabilities including deaf blindness, acid attack victims and Parkinson&rsquo;s disease which were largely ignored in earlier act. In addition, the Government has been authorized to notify any other category of specified disability.</li>
</ul>
<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578574126_image2.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578574126_image2.jpg" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="630" caption="false" /></a></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It increases the quantum of reservation for people suffering from disabilities from 3% to 4% in government jobs and from 3% to 5% in higher education institutes.</li>
<li>Every child with benchmark disability between the age group of 6 and 18 years shall have the right to free education. Government funded educational institutions as well as the government recognized institutions will have to provide inclusive education.</li>
<li>Stress has been given to ensure accessibility in public buildings in a prescribed time frame along with Accessible India Campaign.</li>
<li>The Chief Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities and the State Commissioners will act as regulatory bodies and Grievance Redressal agencies, monitoring implementation of the Act.</li>
<li>A separate National and State Fund be created to provide financial support to persons with disabilities.</li>
<li>The Bill provides for grant of guardianship by District Court under which there will be joint decision &ndash; making between the guardian and the persons with disabilities.</li>
<li>The Chief Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities and the State Commissioners will act as regulatory bodies and Grievance Redressal agencies and also monitor implementation of the Act.</li>
<li>The Bill provides for penalties for offences committed against persons with disabilities and also violation of the provisions of the new law.</li>
<li>Special Courts will be designated in each district to handle cases concerning violation of rights of PwDs.</li>
<li>The New Act will bring our law in line with the United National Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), to which India is a signatory.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Programmes/initiatives for Disabled in India</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Accessible India Campaign : Creation of Accessible Environment for PwDs:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>A nation-wide flagship campaign for achieving universal accessibility that will enable persons with disabilities to gain access for equal opportunity and live independently and participate fully in all aspects of life in an inclusive society.</li>
<li>The campaign targets at enhancing the accessibility of built environment, transport system and Information &amp; communication ecosystem.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>DeenDayal Disabled Rehabilitation Scheme:</strong> Under the scheme financial assistance is provided to NGOs for providing various services to Persons with Disabilities, like special schools, vocational training centres, community based rehabilitation, pre-school and early intervention etc</li>
<li><strong>Assistance to Disabled Persons for Purchase / fitting of Aids and Appliances (ADIP):</strong> The Scheme aims at helping the disabled persons by bringing suitable, durable, scientifically-manufactured, modern, standard aids and appliances within their reach.</li>
<li><strong>National Fellowship for Students with Disabilities (RGMF)</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The scheme aims to increase opportunities to students with disabilities for pursuing higher education.</li>
<li>Under the Scheme, 200 Fellowships per year are granted to students with disability.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Schemes of the National Trust for the Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Issues and Challenges</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Health:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>A large number of disabilities are preventable, including those arising from medical issues during birth, maternal conditions, malnutrition, as well as accidents and injuries.</li>
<li>However, the health sector especially in rural India has failed to react proactively to disability</li>
<li>Further there are lack of affordable access to proper health care, aids and appliances</li>
<li>Healthcare facilities and poorly trained health-workers in rehabilitation centres is another concern.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Education:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The education system is not inclusive. Inclusion of children with mild to moderate disabilities in regular schools has remained a major challenge.</li>
<li>There are various issues such as availability special schools, access to schools, trained teachers, and availability of educational materials for the disabled.</li>
<li>Further, reservations for the disabled in higher educational institutions has not been fulfilled in many instances</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Employment:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Even though many disabled adults are capable of productive work, disabled adults have far lower employment rates than the general population.</li>
<li>The situation is even worse in the private sector, where much less disabled are employed</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Accessibility:</strong> Physical accessibility in buildings, transportation, access to services etc still remain a major challenge.</li>
<li><strong>Discrimination/Social Exclusion:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Negative attitudes held by the families of the disabled, and often the disabled themselves, hinder disabled persons from taking an active part in the family, community or workforce.</li>
<li>Differently-abled people face discrimination in everyday life. People suffering from mental illness or mental retardation face the worst stigma and are subject to severe social exclusion.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Inadequate data and statistics:&nbsp;</strong>The lack of rigorous and comparable data and statics further hinders inclusion of persons with disabilities. The major issues with collection of data and measuring disability are:<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Difficult to define disability</li>
<li>Coverage: Different purposes require different disability data</li>
<li>Reluctance in reporting disability as disability is considered to be a stigma in many places/societies</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Poor implementation of policies and schemes</strong> hinders the inclusion of disabled persons. Though various acts and schemes have been laid down with an aim to empower the disabled, their enforcement face many challenges.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Prevention:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Preventive health programs need to be strengthened and all children need to be screened at a young age.</li>
<li>Kerala has already started an early prevention programme. Comprehensive Newborn Screening (CNS) programme seeks early identification of deficits in infants and reduce the state's burden of disability.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Awareness:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>People with disabilities need to be better integrated into society by overcoming stigma</li>
<li>There should be awareness campaigns to educate and aware people about different kinds of disability</li>
<li>Success stories of people with disabilities can be showcased to inculcate positive attitude among people</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Employment:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Disabled adults need to be empowered with employable skills</li>
<li>The private sector needs to be encouraged to employ them.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Better measurement:</strong> The scale of disability in India needs to be better understood by improving the measurement of disability.</li>
<li><strong>Education:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>State-wise strategies on education for children with special needs need to be devised.</li>
<li>There should be proper teacher training to address the needs of differently-abled children and facilitate their inclusion in regular schools</li>
<li>Further there should be more special schools and ensure educational material for differently-abled children</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Access:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Safety measures like road safety, safety in residential areas, public transport system etc, should be taken up</li>
<li>Further, it should be made legally binding to make buildings disabled-friendly</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Policy Interventions:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>More budgetary allocation for welfare of the disabled. There should be a disability budgeting on line of gender budget.</li>
<li>Proper implementation of schemes should be ensured. There should be proper monitoring mechanisms and accountability of public funds.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<p><a href="/mind-map/gs-paper2/issues-related-to-persons-with-disability-mind-map" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>For Mind Map</em></a></p>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/to-the-points/Paper2/issues-related-to-persons-with-disability'
	],
	(int) 9 => [
		'title' => 'New Space Policy for New Space Age',
		'catname' => 'News Editorials',
		'desc' => '<div class="border">
<p>This article is based on <a href="https://www.livemint.com/opinion/online-views/let-s-go-further-in-our-tryst-with-outer-space-11577897343817.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Let&rsquo;s go further in our tryst with outer space</strong></a>, <a href="https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/editorial/soaring-to-the-moon/article28660484.ece" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>A home in space, Soaring to the moon</strong></a>. It talks about the need for India&rsquo;s Space programme to evolve into a space power and develop its space private sector.</p>
</div>
<p>Recently, the <a href="/important-institutions/drishti-specials-important-institutions-national-institutions/indian-space-research-organisation-isro" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Indian Space Research Organisation</strong></a> (ISRO) had announced that nearly 20 space missions will be launched in the near future like <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/chandrayaan-3-and-gaganyaan" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Chandrayaan-3</strong></a>, <a href="/to-the-points/paper3/to-the-point-paper3-mission-gaganyaan" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Gaganyaan</strong></a> etc. For four decades since its inception in the 1969 ISRO apart from building its capacities, focused primarily on harnessing space technologies for societal and scientific benefits.</p>
<p>However, as developments in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and big data analytics have led to the emergence of the<a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/isro-challenges-and-opportunities" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong> new space age</strong></a>, India&rsquo;s space programme needs to take two additional leaps i.e. foster a private space industry and start work on a space force.</p>
<h3>Planned Space Projects of ISRO</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>After the mission to Moon (Chandrayaan 1 and 2) and Mars (Mangalyaan), the government has proposed a manned space flight (Gaganyaan) before 2022.</li>
<li>ISRO would be undertaking many prolonged space exploration projects and sending many astronauts into space. In this pursuit, ISRO has declared its intention to build a permanent space station for itself, possibly in the next five to seven years.</li>
<li>Aditya-I will be India's first solar mission scheduled to be launched in 2020. Similar project is planned for Venus.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Need to Develop Private Capacity in Space</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Space tourism</strong> is one among several opportunities that Indian businesses may be keen to explore.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>A policy framework to enable private participation in this sector, of course, would have to be formulated by the government.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Small satellite revolution</strong> is underway, globally, 17,000 small satellites are expected to be launched between 2020 and 2030.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>A strong private sector in space will help India to tap into this lucrative commercial space launch market.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Increasing space competitiveness</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Singapore is offering itself as a hub for space entrepreneurship based on its legal environment, availability of skilled manpower and equatorial location.</li>
<li>New Zealand is positioning itself as a location for private rocket launches.</li>
<li>China, too, has changed its rules to allow private commercial space activity.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>ISRO has been a genuine <strong>global pioneer of aerospatial cost compression</strong> on several fronts. Cost-effectiveness has given the agency a distinct edge in the commercial arena of satellite launch services.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>With such a valuable base of expertise within the country, it is only natural to expect the emergence of a private space industry that could prove globally competitive.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Significance of Becoming a Space Power</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Space is emerging as a <strong>potential fourth arm of the country&rsquo;s defence setup.</strong></li>
<li>With US, Russia and China already in pursuit of becoming a Space power, India will need to equip itself appropriately to meet emerging security challenges.</li>
<li>Space power has the ability to use space while denying reliable use to any foe.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>India already has significant ability to use space. But it's ability to deny space use to an adversary is, understandably, negligible.</li>
<li>When it comes to satellites, India has a handful of military satellites in operation, compared to over 40 civilian ones. Our first dedicated military satellite was launched only in 2013.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>However, India has made some progress in pursuit of becoming a space power.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Recently conducted Mission Shakti has demonstrated India's capability to target enemy satellite.</li>
<li>Newly instituted <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/defence-space-research-agency-dsra" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>DSA (defence space agency)</strong></a> will be supported by a defence space research organization (DSRO) has the mandate to create weapons to &ldquo;degrade, disrupt, destroy or deceive an adversary&rsquo;s space capability".</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>India needs to structurally separate the regulatory, commercial and scientific research elements of the space programme.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>Funding on Space Research and development</strong> must be enlarged and ISRO &amp; private research institutions should work be encouraged to work in tandem.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>India needs a <strong>new space policy&mdash;</strong>one that aims to harness space as a growth sector for the economy, attracts private investment and creates jobs, even as it promotes scientific breakthroughs and helps leapfrog developmental challenges.</li>
<li>There is need to establish an<strong> independent regulator</strong> that governs both ISRO and new space operators on a level playing field.</li>
<li>In order to <strong>effectively defend our space assets,</strong> India must have reliable and accurate capabilities to track space objects, from debris and spacecraft to celestial bodies.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Since <strong>accurate tracking</strong> forms the basis of almost every conceivable action in space, therefore, this crucial capability must be developed indigenously.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>For space defence to be effective, India must acquire a <strong>minimum, credible capacity</strong> across the various types of space weapons, physical, electronic and cyber.</li>
</ul>
<p>Failures of the space missions can build an overall perception about wastage of money and time. Losses in space missions can seriously impact the future of cooperation between space powers. Therefore, in the new space age, India's space policy must acquire a new seriousness that can tap into the creative energies of private entrepreneurs and bolster India into a space power.</p>
<table border="1" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 508px; border-style: dotted; border-color: #5e84ff; background-color: #ece6ff;"><span style="color: #ff0000;"><em><strong>Drishti Mains Question</strong></em></span><br /><br />Discuss the significance of space power for India.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p></p>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/new-space-policy-for-new-space-age'
	],
	(int) 10 => [
		'title' => 'TOI 700 d',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<h3>Why in News<a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578561807_image1.png" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578561807_image1.png" style="float: right;" width="427" height="163" /></a></h3>
<p>The <a href="/important-institutions/drishti-specials-important-institutions-international-institution/national-aeronautics-and-space-administration-nasa" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)</strong></a> has reported the discovery of an <strong>Earth-size planet</strong>, named <strong>TOI 700 d</strong>.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The planet was found by <strong>NASA&rsquo;s <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/toi-270-system" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS)</a></strong> <strong>mission</strong>, which was launched in 2018. With TOI 700 d, TESS has discovered its first Earth-size planet in its star&rsquo;s habitable zone.</li>
<li><strong>In comparison to the Earth:</strong> TOI 700 d measures <strong>20% larger than Earth</strong>. It <strong>orbits its star, TOI 700, once every 37 days</strong>.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The star, TOI 700, is an <strong>"M dwarf"</strong> located just over 100 light-years away in the southern constellation Dorado. It is roughly 40% of the Sun's mass and size, and has about half its surface temperature.</li>
<li>Two other planets orbit the star:<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>TOI 700 b, which is almost exactly Earth-size, probably rocky, and which completes an orbit every 10 days.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>TOI 700 c, the middle planet, which is 2.6 times larger than Earth, is probably gas-dominated, and orbits every 16 days.</li>
<li><strong>Orbits in Habitable Zone:</strong> TOI 700 d is the outermost planet, and the only one in the TOI 700&rsquo;s habitable zone.</li>
<li>A habitable zone, also called the <strong>"Goldilocks zone"&nbsp;</strong>is the area around a star where it is not too hot and not too cold for liquid water to exist on the surface of surrounding planets.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>Earth is in the Sun&rsquo;s Goldilocks zone.</strong> If Earth were where the dwarf planet Pluto is, all its water would freeze; on the other hand, if Earth were where Mercury is, all its water would boil off.</li>
<li>Goldilock Zone is always defined with <strong>reference to a particular star</strong>. It can be different for different stars.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>M-dwarf Star</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>M dwarf or M-type star, also called Red Dwarf Star are the most numerous type of star in the universe and the smallest type of hydrogen-burning star.</li>
<li>These have masses from about 0.08 to 0.6 times that of the Sun.</li>
<li>In the Milky Way Galaxy, about three-fourths of the stars are red dwarfs.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<p><a href="https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/this-word-means-goldilocks-zone-6206998/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: IE</strong></a></p>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/toi-700-d'
	],
	(int) 11 => [
		'title' => 'Mandatory Re-grassing After Mining: SC',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>Recently, the <a href="/important-institutions/drishti-specials-important-institutions-national-institutions/supreme-court-of-india" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Supreme Court of India</strong></a> ordered the government to <strong>include re-grassing of mined areas</strong> as a mandatory condition in every mining lease, environmental clearance and mining.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It also held that mining leaseholders should take responsibility for re-grassing mined areas so that biodiversity can flourish in such areas.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Points from the Order</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The SC ordered the government to <strong>file a report in three weeks after taking appropriate actions</strong> and directed it to devise methods to ensure compliance by mining leaseholders.</li>
<li>The <strong>cost of re-grassing</strong> the mined area and wherever damage was caused, would be entirely <strong>borne by the licence holder</strong>.</li>
<li><strong>Mine closure plan</strong> imposes conditions on the licence holder to restore biodiversity. The mandatory re-grassing would be in addition to these conditions.</li>
<li>The apex court held that mined areas result in the complete elimination of grass and denies fodder to herbivores.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Re-grassing of such mined areas is the only solution so that grass and other vegetation, including trees, can grow in the mining area for the benefits of animals and the land is restored to a condition which is fit for the growth of fodder, flora, fauna, etc.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Environmental Issues Caused by Mining</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Erosion.</li>
<li>Formation of sinkholes.</li>
<li>Loss of biodiversity.</li>
<li>Contamination of soil, groundwater and surface water by chemicals from mining processes.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Mine Closure Plan</strong></p>
<p>It involves effective planning of the after-mining landscape of a mine after its operating life has ended. These activities include <strong>Water Quality Management, Air Quality Management, Waste Management, Top Soil Management, Disaster Management and Risk Assessment, Safety and Security etc.</strong></p>
</div>
<p><a href="https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/re-grassing-is-mandatory-after-mining-rules-sc/article30518853.ece" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: TH</strong></a></p>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/mandatory-re-grassing-after-mining-sc'
	],
	(int) 12 => [
		'title' => 'Sea Guardians',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>The <strong>sixth joint naval exercise between China and Pakistan</strong> started on 6<sup>th</sup> January, 2019. It is being held in the <strong>Arabian Sea</strong>.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>For the first time, the exercise has been named as <strong>'Sea Guardians'</strong>.</li>
<li>'Sea Guardians' is expected to become a series of naval exercises between China and Pakistan, similar to:<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>Warrior:</strong> Series of joint land exercises</li>
<li><strong>Shaheen:</strong> Series of joint air exercises.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Note:</strong> <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/exercise-dharma-guardian-2019" target="_blank" rel="noopener">'Dharma Guardian'</a> is the joint military exercise between <strong>India and Japan</strong>.</p>
</div>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/sea-guardians'
	],
	(int) 13 => [
		'title' => 'Revised Norms for Data-led Probes',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>The <strong>Ministry of Home Affairs</strong> has issued revised guidelines to streamline the process of seeking <strong>legal assistance from foreign countries in criminal matters</strong>. The revised guidelines will direct how data requests are processed in any criminal investigations.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The revised guidelines also include the process for <strong>issuing directives on drafting and processing letters of request, mutual legal assistance requests and service of summons, notices and other judicial documents</strong>.</li>
<li>Most intermediaries and social media platforms such as Facebook, WhatsApp, Google, Yahoo!, Twitter and YouTube have their servers outside India. And thus Indian investigation agencies need to follow a particular procedure to access the data from these platforms.</li>
<li>The revised norms have come in the backdrop of recently tabled <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/personal-data-protection-bill-2019" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019</strong></a> in the parliament.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Points</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Criteria to seek information from foreign countries:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Before seeking information about a person&rsquo;s e-mail account hosted on servers in foreign countries, <strong>investigating agencies will have to establish that it is linked to a crime</strong>.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Data Preservation:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Data preservation is the key to the <strong>investigation of cyber-offences and those involving digital evidence</strong>.</li>
<li>Accessing the internet through an Internet Service Provider (ISP) creates <strong>important records and other information</strong> such as customer records, connection information and stored data.</li>
<li>These are very <strong>important evidence</strong> to prove the guilt intention of the accused.</li>
<li>Since this type of evidence <strong>can disappear quickly</strong>, it is important to get the data preserved through appropriate channels.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Place for Data Preservation:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The <strong>G-8 24/7 Network</strong> allows law enforcement agencies to make urgent preservation requests of the digital data before it perishes.</li>
<li>The request for data may be sent to the service provider or to the <strong><a href="/important-institutions/drishti-specials-important-institutions-national-institutions/central-bureau-of-investigation-cbi" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)</a> &mdash; the contact point for India with respect to G-8 24/7 Network</strong>.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Time Period:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The requested country has to be informed about the time period for <strong>which the data is required</strong>.</li>
<li>Such period shall be consented by the requested country.</li>
<li>The transferred data shall be kept for no longer than the period required for the purpose for which it has been received and shall be returned to the requested country or deleted at the end of the period specified.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>G-8 24/7 Network</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The G8 24/7 provides for investigations involving electronic evidence that require urgent assistance from foreign law enforcement.</li>
<li>Therefore, to enhance and supplement (but not replace) traditional methods of obtaining assistance, the G8 has created the network.</li>
<li>It is a new mechanism to expedite contacts between the Participating States or other autonomous law enforcement jurisdictions of a State.</li>
<li>It is a point to point network for urgent assistance in cybercrime matters.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>G7</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/g7-summit" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Group of Seven (G7)</a> is a forum of the world's seven largest developed economies whose government leaders meet annually to discuss international economic and monetary issues.</li>
<li>The G-7 has its roots in an informal meeting of the finance ministers of France, West Germany, the U.S, Great Britain, and Japan (the Group of Five) in the wake of the 1973 oil crisis.</li>
<li>The 45th G7 summit was hosted by France from August 24-26, 2019, in Biarritz in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France.\</li>
<li>The G7 members are recognized as the seven wealthiest and most advanced nations in the world. The members are:<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>France</li>
<li>Germany</li>
<li>The United Kingdom</li>
<li>Italy</li>
<li>The United States of America</li>
<li>Canada</li>
<li>Japan</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The <a href="/important-institutions/drishti-specials-important-institutions-international-institution/european-union" target="_blank" rel="noopener">European Union</a> is sometimes considered an eighth member of the G-7 since it holds all the rights and responsibilities of full members except to chair or host the meeting.</li>
<li>In 1998, after urging from leaders including U.S. President, <strong>Russia</strong> was added to the G-7 group as a full-time member, <strong>creating a formal G-8</strong>. However, in <strong>2014</strong>, <strong>Russia was suspended from the group after the annexation of Crimea and tensions in Ukraine.</strong></li>
</ul>
</div>
<p><a href="https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/home-ministry-issues-norms-to-seek-legal-aid-from-abroad/article30518873.ece" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: TH</strong></a></p>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/revised-norms-for-data-led-probes'
	],
	(int) 14 => [
		'title' => 'Investment in Coal Mining',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>The <strong>Union Cabinet</strong> has approved an <strong>ordinance</strong> to attract <strong>investment in coal mining</strong>.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The ordinance amends the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957 and the Coal Mines (Special Provisions) Act, 2015.</li>
<li>The <strong>Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957</strong> regulates the mining sector in India and specifies the requirement for obtaining and granting mining leases for mining operations.</li>
<li>The <strong>Coal Mines (Special Provisions) Act, 2015</strong> is an Act that provides for allocation of coal mines and vesting of the right, title and interest in and over the land and mine infrastructure together with mining leases to successful bidders with a view to ensure continuity in coal mining operations and production of coal.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Points</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The amendment opens up <strong>coal mining to any firm whose office is registered in India</strong>.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>Open To All:</strong> <strong>Earlier,</strong> the government used to auction coal and lignite mining licences only to companies <strong>engaged in iron and steel</strong>, power coal washing sectors. By opening to everyone, the government seeks to democratize the coal mining sector.</li>
<li><strong>Foreign Direct Investment:</strong> The move will <strong>promote <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/revised-fdi-norms" target="_blank" rel="noopener">foreign direct investment</a> in the sector</strong>. This will help India gain access to sophisticated technology for underground mining used by global miners. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>This may also bring an <strong>end to state-run Coal India Ltd&rsquo;s</strong> (a Maharatna company) <strong>monopoly</strong> in the sector.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Coal Production:</strong> With this move, the government aims at greater participation in commercial mining of coal and targets <strong>1000 Million Tonnes (MT) coal production by Financial Year (FY) 2023 -24</strong>.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>The country produced 730 million tonne of coal in 2018-19.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Import Substitution:</strong> The move will boost both production and mining efficiency besides <strong>substituting import of coal worth Rs 30,000 crore.</strong> <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>Despite having the world&rsquo;s fifth largest coal reserves, India imported 235 million tonnes (mt) of coal in 2019.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Enhanced Competitiveness:</strong> The <strong>steel industry would get cheaper inputs,</strong> leading to an increase in &lsquo;competitiveness&rsquo;.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The amendment <strong>extends the policy of composite mining licence to the coal sector</strong>.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Composite Mining Licence</strong> is a prospecting license which is followed by a grant of Mining Lease.</li>
<li>Earlier, the policy of composite mining licence was in force for unexplored blocks of most non-coal minerals.</li>
<li>This move will add to the <strong>certainty of tenure from the prospecting to the production stages</strong>.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Coal in India</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Coal is the <strong>main source of energy</strong> in India. This fossil fuel is found in a form of <strong>sedimentary</strong> rocks and is often known as <strong>'Black Gold'</strong>.</li>
<li><strong>Formation:</strong> It originates from <strong>organic matter wood</strong>. When large tracts of forests are buried under sediments, wood is burnt and decomposed due to heat from below and pressure from above. The phenomenon makes coal but takes centuries to complete.</li>
<li><strong>Classification:</strong> Coal can be classified on the <strong>basis of carbon content</strong> as follows:<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>Anthracite:</strong> It is the best quality of coal which <strong>carries 80 to 95% carbon content</strong>. It has the highest calorific value. It is found in small quantity in <strong>Jammu and Kashmir</strong>.</li>
<li><strong>Bituminous:</strong> It <strong>carries 60 to 80% of carbon content</strong> and a low level of moisture content. It is widely used and has high calorific value. It is found in Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh.</li>
<li><strong>Lignite:</strong> It is often brown in colour. It carries 40 to 55% carbon content. It has high moisture content so it gives smoke when burnt. It is found in Rajasthan, Lakhimpur (Assam), and Tamil Nadu.</li>
<li><strong>Peat:</strong> It has less than 40% carbon content. It has low calorific value and burns like wood.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Regulation</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>Ownership of Mineral</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>The State Governments are the owners of minerals located within the boundary of the State concerned.</li>
<li>The Central Government is the owner of the minerals underlying the ocean within the territorial waters or the Exclusive Economic Zone of India.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Granting Mineral Concessions</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>The State Governments grant mineral concessions for all the minerals located within the boundary of the State, under the provisions of the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957 and Mineral Concession Rules, 1960.</li>
<li>However, for <strong>minerals specified in the First Schedule</strong> to the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957 <strong>approval of the Central Government is necessary. Schedule I</strong> contains minerals such as coal and lignite, minerals of the &ldquo;rare earths&rdquo; group containing Uranium and Thorium.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Also, the <strong>Central Government notifies certain minerals as 'minor' minerals</strong> from time to time for which the absolute powers for deciding on procedures of seeking applications for and <strong>granting mineral concessions</strong>, fixing rates of royalty, dead rent, and power to revise orders rest only with the <strong>State Government. Example of minor minerals include</strong> building stones, gravel, ordinary clay, ordinary sand.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<p><a href="https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/cabinet-nod-for-ordinance-enabling-fdi-in-coal-mining/article30515236.ece" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: TH</strong></a></p>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/investment-in-coal-mining'
	],
	(int) 15 => [
		'title' => 'Assassination of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani',
		'catname' => 'News Editorials',
		'desc' => '<div class="border">
<p>This article is based on <a href="https://www.hindustantimes.com/analysis/us-iran-new-delhi-must-weigh-its-options-carefully/story-9Y2vNP8x0fCd64S37eGrZP.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>US-Iran: New Delhi must weigh its options carefully</strong></a>, <a href="https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/the-us-is-weakened-by-soleimanis-killing/article30496111.ece" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>The U.S. is weakened by Soleimani&rsquo;s killing</strong></a>, <a href="https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/qassem-soleimani-quds-iran-us-donald-trump-india-6203258/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>West Asia after Soleimani</strong></a>, <a href="https://www.business-standard.com/article/opinion/preparing-the-response-120010700025_1.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Preparing the response</strong></a>. It talks about the implications of assassination of top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani on West Asia and India.</p>
</div>
<p>Recently, the top Iranian general Qassem Soleimani (the commander of the Al-Quds Force of Iran&rsquo;s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, IRGC) was assassinated by the US during his visit to Iraq.</p>
<p>The assassination of Qassem Soleimani may spark a full-blown war between the US and Iran as self-preservation or protecting the lives of the top leaders is the primary objective of any regime. The spiralling of the US-Iran tensions also puts India in a difficult spot.</p>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Chronology of US-Iran relations</strong></p>
<p><strong>1953: Overthrow of Mossadeq</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The US and British intelligence agencies planned a coup to oust Iran's democratically elected Prime Minister, Mohammad Mossadeq.</li>
<li>Mohammad Mossadeq sought to nationalise Iran's oil industry, which was against the USA's capitalist interests.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>1979: Iranian Revolution</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>The US-backed Shah of Iran, Mohammed Reza Pahlevi, is forced to leave the country</strong> in 1979, following months of demonstrations and strikes against his rule by secular and religious opponents.</li>
<li>This led to the return of Islamic religious leader Ayatollah Khomeini from exile and following a referendum, the Islamic Republic of Iran is proclaimed on 1 April 1979.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>1979-81: US Embassy Hostage Crisis</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The US embassy in Tehran is seized by protesters in November 1979 and American hostages are held inside for 444 days.</li>
<li><strong>The final 52 hostages were freed in January 1981,</strong> the day of US President Ronald Reagan's inauguration.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>2002-13: Nuclear Fears and Sanctions</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>In 2002 an Iranian opposition group reveals that Iran is developing nuclear facilities including a uranium enrichment plant.</li>
<li>In pursuance of this, several sanctions are imposed by the UN, the US and the EU against Iran.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>US President George Bush denounces Iran as part of an "axis of evil" with Iraq and North Korea.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>This causes Iran's currency to lose two-thirds of its value in two years.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>2013-2016: Closer ties, and a nuclear deal</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>In September 2013, Iran's new moderate President Hassan Rouhani takes office.</li>
<li>In 2015, after a flurry of diplomatic activity, <strong>Iran agrees on a long-term deal on its nuclear programme-</strong> <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/india-cuts-iranian-oil-imports-ahead-of-us-sanctions" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA)</strong></a> with a group of world powers known as the P5+1 - the US, UK, France, China, Russia and Germany.</li>
<li>Under the accord, Iran agrees to limit its sensitive nuclear activities and allow in international inspectors in return for the lifting of crippling economic sanctions.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>US-Iran Tensions in current times</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>The policy of maximum pressure:</strong> In May 2018, US President Donald Trump <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/us-reimposes-sanctions-on-iran" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>abandons the nuclear deal</strong></a> and reinstated economic sanctions against Iran and threatening to do the same to countries and firms that continue buying its oil.</li>
<li><strong>The policy of strategic patience:</strong> Iran acted with restraint, with thinking that abiding by the nuclear deal it could get economic favour from EU. However, this policy failed to work for Iran and thereby it began a counter-pressure campaign.</li>
<li>In June 2019, <strong>Iranian forces shoot down a US military drone over the Strait of Hormuz</strong> and then began the cycle of response and escalation between the two countries.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Possible Impact of US-Iran Conflict</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Destabilisation of West Asia:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>West Asia has already been ravaged by past conflicts like the Syrian civil war, War against ISIS.</li>
<li>Possibility of war between the US and Iran can further lead the region into destabilisation.</li>
<li>Further, this may enhance the sectarian divide in the region like in Iraq.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Shock in Oil Supplies</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Instability in the region can impact global oil supplies which in turn can affect the global production and trade.</li>
<li>Global oil prices have already seen a 4% rise within hours of the assassination of Qassem Soleimani.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Disruption in Afghan Peace Process</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Afghan Peace Process is already in jeopardy due to hasty American withdrawal from Afghanistan.</li>
<li>US-Iran conflict can also hamper connectivity to Afghanistan (via Iran).</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Intensification of Regional Rivalries</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Saudi Arabia and Israel are strategic allies of the US, the rising tension between the US and Iran will mean other regional players will also be involved.</li>
<li>As these countries are engaged in competition for influence, a war between these two nations can spread to a larger region.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Impact on India</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Oil Supply:</strong> The conflict can affect oil supplies in the country. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>India imports 84% of the oil</strong> it needs. Thus, a spike in the price of oil makes a big difference not just to domestic cost conditions but also to the <strong>balance of payments.</strong></li>
<li><strong>India&rsquo;s foreign exchange reserves</strong> are relatively comfortable, at over $450 billion, and can easily cover 9-10 months&rsquo; imports at current prices. An increase in the price of oil would have to be both sharp and sustained in order to erode this buffer</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Diaspora: Large Indian diaspora</strong> in West Asia, and particularly the Persian Gulf might be affected due to the tension in the region.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Their safety will have to be a priority. India has in the past organised big evacuations &mdash; famously from Kuwait at the time of the first Gulf War, and more recently from Libya.</li>
<li>However, the scale of any evacuation from the Gulf would on this occasion be even larger even if it remains relatively unlikely.</li>
<li>A downturn caused by tensions might cause a large number of guest workers to return to India &mdash; and to stop remitting money.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Connectivity: Strategic connectivity interests</strong> of India might be affected. This includes the port of Chabahar in Iran, linking India to Afghanistan and Central Asia.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The project which received a rare exemption from US sanctions, but in the event of an escalation of tensions the viability of other connectivity projects will also get compromised.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Last but not least, after Iran, India has perhaps the largest number of the world&rsquo;s Shia population and the possibility of some of them being radicalised by this event cannot be ruled out.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Conclusion</h3>
<p>Lord Krishna in Bhagwat Gita held that <strong>War shall be the last option,</strong> therefore, both the US and Iran must act with <strong>strategic restraint</strong> as any crisis in West Asia will not only affect the region as a whole but will have a detrimental impact on global affairs as well.</p>
<table border="1" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 100%; border-style: dotted; border-color: #6c3bff; background-color: #eae3fc;"><span style="color: #000080;"><em><strong>Drishti Mains Question</strong></em></span><br /><br />Discuss the impact of rising US-Iran conflict on India and its international relations.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/assassination-of-iranian-general-qassem-soleimani'
	],
	(int) 16 => [
		'title' => '2nd National GST Conference',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>The <strong>2<sup>nd</sup> National GST Conference</strong> of the Commissioners of State Tax and Chief Commissioners of Central Tax was held recently.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The conference was focused on streamlining Goods and Services Tax (GST) system and plugging revenue leakages.</li>
<li>The conference was aimed to build synergy and to share their knowledge and best practices with the intent to bring about uniformity in tax administrations.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Points</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The government has decided <strong>to constitute a panel of centre and state officials</strong> for designing a detailed Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) to <strong>check fraudulent GST refund claims and evasion of GST.</strong></li>
<li>A memorandum of understanding would be signed among the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/farm-in-expenditure" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT)</strong></a>, the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) and the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/important-facts-for-prelims-27th-september-2018" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>GST Network</strong></a> <strong>to exchange data through the application program interface.</strong> <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The data would be shared on a <strong>quarterly</strong> basis, instead of being shared on a yearly basis.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>It was also decided to make the <strong>GST system aligned with the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU)</strong> for the purpose of getting bank account details and transactions and also PAN-based banking transaction.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Financial Intelligence Unit</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) was constituted in November 2004. The organization is in the process of seeking membership of the Egmont Group of FIUs which is an umbrella group of FIUs of various countries.</li>
<li>FIU is <strong>not a regulatory </strong>body. Its task is to gather and share financial intelligence in close cooperation with regulatory bodies like RBI, SEBI and IRDA.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<p><a href="https://pib.gov.in/PressReleseDetail.aspx?PRID=1598653" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source:PIB</strong></a></p>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/2nd-national-gst-conference'
	],
	(int) 17 => [
		'title' => 'New Energy Performance Standards for Air Conditioners',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>The Central Government in consultation with the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) has notified new energy performance standards for Room Air Conditioner (RACs).</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The 24<sup>0</sup>C default setting has been made mandatory from 1<sup>st</sup> January, 2020 for all room air conditioners covered under the ambit of BEE star-labelling program. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>BEE launched the voluntary star labelling program for fixed-speed room air conditioners (RACs) in 2006, and this program became mandatory on 12<sup>th</sup> January 2009. Thereafter, in 2015, voluntary star labelling program for inverter room air conditioners was launched and was made mandatory with effect from 1<sup>st</sup> January 2018.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE)</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>BEE is a statutory body under the <strong>Ministry of Power,</strong> Government of India.</li>
<li>It assists in developing policies and strategies with the primary objective of reducing the energy intensity of the Indian economy.</li>
<li>BEE coordinates with designated consumers, designated agencies, and other organizations to identify and utilize the existing resources and infrastructure, in performing the functions assigned to it under the energy conservation act.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<p><a href="https://pib.gov.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=197279" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: PIB</strong></a></p>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/new-energy-performance-standards-for-air-conditioners'
	],
	(int) 18 => [
		'title' => 'Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary</strong> is located in North Goa District, Sanguem taluka near the town of Valpoi. Owing to the presence of Bengal Tigers, it can be declared as a tiger reserve under <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/status-of-conservation-of-tigers" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Project Tiger.</strong></a><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>It has been declared an International Bird Area because of the presence of the Nilgiri wood-pigeon, Malabar parakeet, Malabar grey hornbill, Grey-headed Bulbul, Rufous babbler, White-bellied blue-flycatcher and Crimson-backed sunbird.</li>
<li>The sanctuary is a huge attraction for herpetologists( Study of amphibians and reptiles). since it contains a large variety of snakes including all of the &lsquo;big four&rsquo; of Indian venomous snakes which are Indian krait, Russell&rsquo;s viper, Saw-scaled viper and Spectacled cobra.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>This sanctuary was formed in 1999. The formation of this sanctuary has made Goa the only state in India that has completely protected the Western Ghats that are located within its boundaries.</li>
<li>The three highest peaks in Goa are situated in the hill ranges of the sanctuary. They are Sonsogod (1027 mts), Talavche Sada (812 mts) and Vageri (725 mts). Vageri means &lsquo;the abode of the tiger&rsquo;.</li>
<li>The <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/mhadei-river" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Mhadei River</strong></a>, known downstream as the Mandovi River, the lifeline of the state of Goa, originates in Karnataka, passes through the Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary and meets the Arabian Sea at Panaji in Goa.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The whole sanctuary acts as a catchment for the river. Most of the area has succumbed to the biotic pressure with agriculture and human interference replacing the rich natural vegetation of the past by cashew / kumeri cultivation.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578475484_image4.png" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578475484_image4.png" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" caption="false" width="391" height="252" /></a></p>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/mhadei-wildlife-sanctuary'
	],
	(int) 19 => [
		'title' => 'Railways Plans Hydrogen-Powered Engine by 2021',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<h3>Why in News</h3>
<p>During the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/107th-indian-science-congress" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>107<sup>th</sup> Indian Science Congress,</strong></a> the Indian Railways has announced that it will <strong>build a hydrogen-powered rail engine by the end of 2021.</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Indian Railways Organisation for Alternate Fuels (IROAF) will be developing a <strong>hydrogen-powered rail engine &mdash;</strong> a technology that has been demonstrated successfully <strong>only in Germany so far.</strong></li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Points</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The proposed train will have<strong> four passenger coaches</strong> operating at <strong>75 km/hr speed.</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>One coach will carry the hydrogen gas cylinders, fuel cells, supercapacitors and DC converters.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Hydrogen</strong> will be the <strong>input to the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/selenium-graphene-based-catalyst-in-fuel-cell" target="_blank" rel="noopener">fuel cell</a></strong> and the power output of the fuel cell will drive the train.</li>
<li>The<strong> next phase</strong> is to generate hydrogen on board the train from water. This means that water will be converted into hydrogen through water splitting technologies and hydrogen will then be used as the input for fuel cells.</li>
<li>Hydrogen-powered rail engine will help <strong>to reduce reliance on fossil fuel-based energy</strong> sources like diesel and electricity and to find alternative sources of fuel to power its trains.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Fuel Cell<a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578474834_image2.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578474834_image2.jpg" style="float: right;" caption="false" width="500" /></a></strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Fuel cells are electrochemical devices that convert chemical energy from the reactants directly into electricity and heat.</li>
<li>The device consists of an electrolyte layer in contact with a porous anode and cathode on either side.</li>
<li>In a standard fuel cell, gaseous fuels are fed continuously to the anode (negative electrode), while an oxidant (oxygen from the air) is fed continuously to the cathode (positive electrode). Electrochemical reactions take place at the electrodes to produce an electric current.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<p><a href="https://indianexpress.com/article/india/railways-plans-hydrogen-powered-engine-for-passenger-trains-by-end-of-2021-6203317/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Source: IE</strong> </a></p>',
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		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/railways-plans-hydrogen-powered-engine-by-2021'
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