Search

Search list matched with tags “class”

El-Nino Threatens Monsoon

According to the India Meteorological Department, the deficiency in rainfall in June was 33%. With the El-Nino phenomenon being observed since the...

03 Jul 2019 News Analysis
Non-Communicable Diseases in India

According to Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) report titled “India: Health of the Nation’s States”, contribution of...

03 Jul 2019 News Analysis
Credit Cards for Fishermen

Recently the Minister of State for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying announced the extension of the facility of Kisan Credit Card (KCC) to...

03 Jul 2019 News Analysis
Tamil Yeoman

Tamil Nadu has declared the Tamil Yeoman butterfly species (endemic to western ghats) as the state butterfly. Tamil Yeoman (Cirrochroa thais) is...

03 Jul 2019 News Analysis
Food Processing in India

Why In News? With farm distress making headlines, the state government of Tamil Nadu unveiled its own food processing policy keeping an eye on...

03 Jul 2019 Paper 3
Importance of Africa in Indo-Pacific Strategy

This article is based on “Reimagining India and Africa” that appeared in Indian Express on 2 July 2019. It talks about the need for...

02 Jul 2019 News Editorials
NASA’s Punch Mission

Dipankar Banerjee, a solar physicist from Indian Institute of Astrophysics is a co-investigator of NASA's PUNCH mission. PUNCH, which stands for...

02 Jul 2019 News Analysis
INS Viraat to be Scrapped

The Union Ministry of Defence has decided to scrap INS Virat after consultation with Indian Navy. The Navy has been incurring expenditure on its...

02 Jul 2019 News Analysis
European Heatwave

France has recorded the hottest temperature of 45.9°C amid European heatwaves. The heatwave in Europe has caused flash floods and forest...

02 Jul 2019 News Analysis
One Nation One Ration Card Scheme

Recently the Food Minister announced One Nation One Ration Card Scheme, which all states needs to implement by July 2020. One Nation One Ration...

02 Jul 2019 News Analysis
National Mission on Libraries

The Union Ministry of Culture has declared financial assistance under National Mission on Libraries (NML) to develop libraries in each...

02 Jul 2019 News Analysis
STRIDE

The University Grants Commission (UGC) has approved a new initiative, Scheme for Trans-Disciplinary Research for India’s Developing Economy...

02 Jul 2019 News Analysis
India International Cooperatives Trade Fair

First ever India International Cooperatives Trade Fair (IICTF) to be held at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi. IICTF is a unique initiative for taking...

02 Jul 2019 News Analysis
Panchayati Raj Institution (PRI)

When the panchayat raj is established, public opinion will do what violence can never do. — Mahatma Gandhi Context Panchayati...

02 Jul 2019 National Institutions
LIBRA: Facebook’s Currency

This article is based on the editorial “Why policymakers worldwide should fear the launch of Libra” which appeared in Live mint...

01 Jul 2019 News Editorials
Delhi Butterfly Corridors

As per Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) report, the creation of butterfly corridors in Delhi with close to 100 hotspots is underway. At...

01 Jul 2019 News Analysis
Puducherry Water Rich Model

It is a model for desilting the urban drains and rural canals with the cooperation of the general public with the Puducherry administration. This...

01 Jul 2019 News Analysis
Quality of Free Legal Aid

The National Law University, Delhi (NLUD) in a report titled ‘Quality of Legal Representation: An Empirical Analysis of Free Legal Aid Services...

01 Jul 2019 News Analysis
Airplane Contrails and Global Warming

According to a recent study, the airplanes contrails contribute more to global warming than the CO2 emitted by an aircraft. Moreover, the...

01 Jul 2019 News Analysis
Japanese Encephalitis (JE)

The Central government has sent a team to Assam to review the situation after Japanese Encephalitis (JE) cases were reported from the...

01 Jul 2019 News Analysis

Warning (2): count(): Parameter must be an array or an object that implements Countable [ROOT/plugins/Drishti/src/Template/Element/rightsection.ctp, line 100]

Code Context


<?php if(count($updates)>0){?>
  <div class="updates">

$viewFile = '/var/www/drishtiias.com/public_html/plugins/Drishti/src/Template/Element/rightsection.ctp'
$dataForView = [
	'progress' => [],
	'bookmarks' => [],
	'notes' => [],
	'mynote' => [],
	'topdata' => [
		(int) 0 => object(Cake\ORM\Entity) {},
		(int) 1 => object(Cake\ORM\Entity) {},
		(int) 2 => object(Cake\ORM\Entity) {},
		(int) 3 => object(Cake\ORM\Entity) {}
	],
	'searchdata' => [],
	'searchlist' => [
		(int) 0 => [
			'title' => 'El-Nino Threatens Monsoon',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>According to the<a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/cyclone-fani" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong> India Meteorological Department</strong></a>, the deficiency in rainfall in June was 33%.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>With the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/near-normal-monsoon-in-2019-imd" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>El-Nino</strong></a> phenomenon being observed since the beginning of 2019, there are fears that this might lead to a deficient monsoon.</li>
</ul>
<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/368image7.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/368image7.jpg" width="589" height="514" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" caption="false" /></a></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Deficient rainfall in June is devastating for farmers in large reaches of the country who have sown in expectation of rains.</li>
<li>This shortfall is observed not only in aggregate but also across regions.</li>
<li>Although a direct correlation between the two (rainfall deficiency &amp; El-Nino) has not been established, rainfall data from 2000 onwards shows that monsoon rainfall is heavily impacted in the El-Nino years.</li>
<li>In five of these six El-Nino years (2002,2004,2006,2009,2014,2015), the monsoon rainfall was lower than the long-term average by 12% to 23%.</li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/el-nino-threatens-monsoon'
		],
		(int) 1 => [
			'title' => 'Non-Communicable Diseases in India',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>According to Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) report titled <strong>&ldquo;India: Health of the Nation&rsquo;s States&rdquo;,</strong> contribution of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) to total death in the Country was 61.8% in 2016, as compared to 37.9% in 1990.</li>
<li>Some examples of common NCDs, i.e. diabetes, hypertension and cancers (Oral, Breast and Cervical cancer) are on the rise in India.</li>
<li>Risk factors for NCDs inter alia include ageing, unhealthy diet, lack of physical activity, high blood pressure, high blood sugar, high cholesterol and overweight</li>
<li>Also In the States of Kerala, Goa and Tamil Nadu, due to <strong>epidemiological transition</strong>, fewer deaths are recorded for communicable, maternal, neonatal and nutritional diseases, thereby raising the share of NCDs in total deaths</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Epidemiologic Transition</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The epidemiologic transition is that process by which the pattern of mortality and disease is transformed from one of high mortality among infants and children to one of degenerative and man-made diseases (such as those attributed to smoking) affecting principally the elderly.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Though public health is a State subject, Central Government supplements the efforts of the State Governments. For example:<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>National Programme for Prevention and Control of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascular Diseases and Stroke (NPCDCS) is being implemented under the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/national-health-mission-and-janani-suraksha-yojana" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>National Health Mission (NHM)</strong></a>.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>The objectives of the programme include health promotion activities and opportunistic screening for common Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) including cancer</li>
<li>Key components of population-based screening include community-based risk assessment, screening, referral, and follow up of all individuals of 30 years and above for common NCDs</li>
<li>The initiative will help in early diagnosis and will generate awareness on risk factors of NCDs.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Citing growing occurrence of cancer in India, the Union government sought to enhance the facilities for tertiary care of cancer.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>The Central Government is implementing Strengthening of Tertiary Care Cancer facilities scheme to support setting up of State Cancer Institutes (SCI) and Tertiary Care Centres (TCCC) in different parts of the country.</li>
<li>Oncology in its various aspects has a focus in case of new AIIMS and many upgraded institutions under <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/punjab-seeks-special-category-status" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY).</strong></a></li>
<li>Affordable Medicines and Reliable Implants for Treatment (AMRIT) Deendayal outlets have been opened at 159 Institutions/Hospitals with an objective to make available Cancer and Cardiovascular Diseases drugs and implants at discounted prices to the patients.</li>
<li>Jan Aushadhi stores are set up by the Department of Pharmaceuticals to provide generic medicines at affordable prices.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/non-communicable-diseases-in-india'
		],
		(int) 2 => [
			'title' => 'Credit Cards for Fishermen',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>Recently the Minister of State for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying announced the extension of the facility of Kisan Credit Card (KCC) to fisheries and animal husbandry farmers to help them meet their working capital needs</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>This will help fisheries and animal husbandry farmers to meet their short term credit requirements of rearing of animals, poultry birds, fish, shrimp, other aquatic organisms and capture of fish.</li>
<li>Fish, Poultry &amp; Dairy Farmers (individual &amp; groups/partners/sharecroppers/tenant farmers), Self Help Groups, Joint Liability Groups and Woman group are eligible under extended KCC scheme.</li>
<li>Under KCC facility, Interest subvention is available for animal husbandry and fisheries farmers @ 2% per annum at the time of disbursal of loan and additional interest subvention @ 3 % per annum in case of prompt repayment as Prompt Repayment Incentive (repayment of the loan within a period of one year from the date of advance).</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Kisan Credit Card</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Kisan Credit Card (KCC) scheme was introduced in 1998 for providing adequate and timely credit support from the banking system under a single window with flexible and simplified procedure to the farmers for their cultivation and other needs like purchase of agriculture inputs such as seeds, fertilizers, pesticides etc. and draw cash for their production needs.</li>
<li>The scheme was further extended for the investment credit requirement of farmers viz. allied and non-farm activities in the year 2004.</li>
<li>KCC covers Post-harvest expenses; Produce marketing loan; Consumption requirements of farmer household; Working capital for maintenance of farm assets and activities allied to agriculture; Investment credit requirement for agriculture and allied activities.</li>
<li>The Kisan Credit Card Scheme is implemented by Commercial Banks, RRBs, Small Finance Banks and Cooperatives.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Interest Subvention Scheme</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The interest subvention scheme for farmers aims at providing short term credit to farmers at the <strong>subsidised interest rate.</strong></li>
<li>The policy came into force with effect from 2006-07</li>
<li>The Interest Subvention Scheme is being implemented by <a href="/important-institutions/drishti-specials-important-institutions-national-institutions/national-bank-for-agriculture-and-rural-development-nabard" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>NABARD</strong></a> and <a href="/important-institutions/drishti-specials-important-institutions-national-institutions/important-institutions-national-institution-reserve-bank-of-india" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>RBI</strong></a>.</li>
<li>In case farmers do not repay the short term crop loan in time they would be eligible for interest subvention of 2% as against 5% available.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/credit-cards-for-fishermen'
		],
		(int) 3 => [
			'title' => 'Tamil Yeoman',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>Tamil Nadu has declared the Tamil Yeoman butterfly species (endemic to western ghats) as the <strong>state butterfly.</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Tamil Yeoman <strong>(Cirrochroa thais)</strong> is uniformly orange in colour with a dark brown outer ring.<a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/933image4.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/933image4.jpg" width="232" height="181" style="float: right;" caption="false" /></a></li>
<li>Also known as <strong>tamil maravan</strong> which means warrior.</li>
<li>Tamil Yeoman butterfly species moves in groups in <strong>large numbers</strong>, but at few places and are found mainly in hilly areas.</li>
<li>Butterflies are significant for environment as they play the main role in <strong>pollination</strong> and <strong>food chain.</strong> <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>For many other species like birds and reptiles, butterflies become a prey.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Tamil Nadu is the<strong> fifth state</strong> in the country to announce its state butterfly and <strong>Maharashtra</strong> was the first in the country to announce its state butterfly <strong>(Blue Mormon)</strong> followed by Uttarakhand <strong>(Common Peacock)</strong>, Karnataka <strong>(the Southern Birdwing)</strong> and Kerala <strong>(Malabar banded peacock or <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/important-facts-for-prelims-19th-november-2018" target="_blank" rel="noopener">buddha butterfly</a>).</strong></li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/tamil-yeoman'
		],
		(int) 4 => [
			'title' => 'Food Processing in India',
			'catname' => 'Paper 3',
			'desc' => '<h3>Why In News?</h3>
<p>With farm distress making headlines, the state government of <strong>Tamil Nadu unveiled its own food processing policy</strong> keeping an eye on increasing farmers&rsquo; income, reducing wastage of food products and value addition of farm products, to ensure a healthy food processing industry.</p>
<p>The objective is to encourage setting up of food processing industries by agro-entrepreneurs, availing financial assistance from Union.</p>
<h3>What is Food Processing</h3>
<p><strong>Food Processing</strong> includes process under which any raw product of agriculture, dairy, animal husbandry, meat, poultry or fishing is transformed through a process (involving employees, power, machines or money) in such a way that its original physical properties undergo a change and the transformed product has commercial value and is suitable for human and animal consumption.</p>
<p>It also includes the <strong>process of value addition</strong> to produce products through methods such as preservation, addition of food additives, drying etc. with a view to preserve food substances in an effective manner, enhance their shelf life and quality.</p>
<h3>Significance</h3>
<p>The <strong>Food Processing Industry (FPI)</strong> is of enormous significance as it provides vital linkages and synergies that it promotes between the two pillars of the economy, i.e. agriculture and industry.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Employment Generation:</strong> It provides direct and indirect employment opportunities, because it acts as a bridge between Agriculture and Manufacturing.</li>
<li><strong>Doubling of farmers&rsquo; income:</strong> With the rise in demand for agri-products there will be commensurate rise in the price paid to the farmer, thereby increasing the income.</li>
<li><strong>Reduce malnutrition:</strong> Processed foods when fortified with vitamins and minerals can reduce the nutritional gap in the population.</li>
<li><strong>Reduce food wastage:</strong> UN estimates that 40% of production is wasted. Similarly, NITI Aayog estimated annual post-harvest losses of close to Rs 90,000 crore. With greater thrust on proper sorting and grading close to the farm gate, and diverting extra produce to FPI, this wastage could also be reduced, leading to better price realisation for farmers.</li>
<li><strong>Boosts Trade and Earns Foreign exchange:</strong> It is an important source of foreign exchange. For e.g. Indian Basmati rice is in great demand in Middle Eastern countries.</li>
<li><strong>Curbing Migration:</strong> Food Processing being a labour intensive industry will provide localized employment opportunities and thus will reduce the push factor in source regions of migration.</li>
<li><strong>Curbing Food Inflation:</strong> Processing increases the shelf life of the food thus keeping supplies in tune with the demand thereby controlling food-inflation. <strong>For e.g. Frozen Safal peas are available throughout the year.</strong></li>
<li><strong>Crop-diversification:</strong> Food processing will require different types of inputs thus creating an incentive for the farmer to grow and diversify crops.</li>
<li><strong>Preserve the nutritive quality of food and prolongs the shelf life</strong> by preventing them from spoilage due to microbes and other spoilage agents,</li>
<li><strong>Enhances the quality and taste of food</strong> thereby bringing more choices in food basket</li>
<li><strong>Enhances consumer choices:</strong> Today, food processing allows food from other parts of the world to be transported to our local market and vice versa.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Status of Food Processing In India</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>India is the world's second largest producer of fruits &amp; vegetables after China but hardly 2% of the produce is processed.</li>
<li>In spite of a large production base, the level of processing is low (less than 10%). Approximately 2% of fruits and vegetables, 8% marine, 35% milk, 6% poultry are processed. Lack of adequate processable varieties continues to pose a significant challenge to this sector.</li>
</ul>
<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578481753_image19.png" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578481753_image19.png" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="700" caption="false" /></a></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>India's livestock population is largest in the world with 50% of the world's buffaloes and 20% of cattle, but only about 1% of total meat production is converted to value added products.</li>
<li>More than 75% of the industry is in unorganized sector.</li>
<li>Processing can be delineated into primary and secondary processing. Rice, sugar, edible oil and flour mills are examples of primary processing. Secondary processing includes the processing of fruits and vegetables, dairy, bakery, chocolates and other items.</li>
<li>Most processing in India can be classified as <strong>primary processing</strong>, which has lower value-addition compared to secondary processing. There is a need to move up the value chain in processed food products to boost farmer incomes. For instance, horticulture products, such as fruits and vegetables, carry the potential for higher value-addition when compared to cereal crops.</li>
<li>At present, India&rsquo;s agricultural exports predominantly consist of raw materials, which are then processed in other countries, again indicating the space to move up the value chain.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Food processing industry in India can be segmented as follows</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Cereal/ pulse milling</li>
<li>Fruit &amp; vegetable processing</li>
<li>Milk &amp; milk products</li>
<li>Beverages like coffee, tea &amp; cocoa</li>
<li>Fish, poultry, eggs &amp; products</li>
<li>Meat &amp; meat products</li>
<li>Aerated waters/soft drinks 8. Beer/alcoholic beverages</li>
<li>Bread, biscuits &amp; other bakery products</li>
<li>Edible oil/fats.</li>
<li>Confectioneries</li>
<li>Breakfast cereals, malt protein, weaning, extruded food products</li>
</ul>
<h3>Problems in Food Processing Industries</h3>
<p>At present most of the industries are in unorganized sectors. So, number of problems are arising from different sections of the industries. Some of the basic problems encountered by Indian food industries at different levels are given below.&nbsp;</p>
<p><strong>Farm level problems</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Poor yield of farm produce and therefore low returns.</li>
<li>Lack of material resources necessary for development.</li>
<li>Primitive methods of farming.</li>
<li>No control on the quality of inputs and lack of finance to manage.</li>
<li>Vagaries of weather.</li>
<li>Unavailability of reliable handling and transportation system.</li>
<li>Lack of storage facilities at farm.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Objectives of Draft National Food Processing Policy 2017</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>To reduce wastages, increase value addition, ensure better prices for farmers while ensuring availability of affordable and quality produce to consumers</li>
<li>To address the challenges of malnourishment and malnutrition by ensuring availability of nutritionally balanced foods</li>
<li>To make food processing more competitive and future ready through creation of adequate infrastructure facilities along the supply chain, use of modern technology and innovation, promoting traceability, food safety, encouraging optimum capacity utilization of assets and resources.</li>
<li>To position India as the most preferred investment destination for the agribusiness and food processing.</li>
<li>To generate more opportunities for the development of the agribusiness and Food Processing Industry, and create employment.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<p><strong>Distributors&rsquo; problems</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Lack of modern transportation facilities and high cost</li>
<li>Inadequate cold storage faculties</li>
<li>Irregular quality and quantity of farm produce</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Processing industries problem</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Financing</li>
<li>Higher import duties</li>
<li>Higher cost of raw material and packaging</li>
<li>Inadequate transport and cold storage facilities</li>
<li>Infrequent availability of refrigerated containers</li>
<li>Staggering advertising costs</li>
<li>Limited domestic market</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Consumer discontent</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Does not get value for money</li>
<li>The price variation is a day to day affair</li>
<li>Continued dependence on seasonal products</li>
<li>Lack of variety of semi processed or prepared convenience food at affordable prices.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Reasons for slow growth of processed foods in India</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Majority of the population has low-income levels and cannot afford processed foods.</li>
<li>The high cost of packaging pushes up the cost of the processed items and thereby makes them out of reach of the common man.</li>
<li>Indians traditionally prefer fresh foods that are cooked rather than use preserved foods.</li>
<li>There is also no national character for food habits and these keep changing from region to region.</li>
<li>However, the scenario is changing with some foods, especially fast food, acquiring the national character. Also some foods such as idli, dosa, some Punjabi foods like chhole, alu mutter etc., some Chinese foods and now the western foods like burgers and pizza are fast gaining national popularity.</li>
<li>Transport (both road and railways) and communication are poor.</li>
<li>There are no reliable cold chains, which are necessary for temperature sensitive foods like fruits &amp; vegetables, ice creams etc.</li>
<li>Modernization is unaffordable for small-scale manufacturer but the large companies do not find investment justifiable due to small size of the market.</li>
<li>Supermarkets are not yet popular although a few are making an appearance.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Challenges</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Extensive use of fertilizers, pesticides</strong> and other chemicals has raised concerns about the quality of food which should be looked into. Further, protection is needed from unfair and hazardous practices such adulteration.</li>
<li>Care should be taken as processed foods <strong>may not be nutritionally balanced</strong> and may pose a health risk especially for children unless fortified. This could trigger a negative perception regarding processed foods and could likely impact the economic gains made by this sector.</li>
<li><strong>Low value-added in processing:</strong> There is major fragmentation of food processing capacity, with a large unorganized segment and widespread use of primitive processing. This results in lower value-addition at the processing stage, especially from a nutritional point of view.</li>
<li><strong>Limited ability to control quality and safety:</strong> The sheer number of players, especially in the large unorganized segment, involved in the food value-chain, makes implementation of quality and safety norms difficult. This has led to practices such as milk adulteration and use of carbide for fruit ripening becoming more widespread.</li>
<li><strong>Low consumer awareness:</strong> Consumer awareness is a critical aspect of an improved nutritional situation in the country. Consumers currently lack awareness of several nutritional and food safety and quality aspects.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Suggestions</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Storage capacities and infrastructure</strong> should be increased.</li>
<li>Develop the <strong>agricultural facility</strong> with good agricultural practice which leads to the transition from staple food crops to diversification of crops.</li>
<li>Backward linkages to farmers need to be made more robust. <strong>Contract farming</strong> can be promoted. According to the <strong>Model Contract Farming Act, 2018,</strong> the contract will specify the quantity, quality and price of produce being supplied. This would shield farmers from price volatility, subject to quality commitments.</li>
<li><strong>Skilling is required at two levels.</strong> First at the farm gate in promoting agricultural best practices and in processing activities.</li>
<li><strong>Public investment and connectivity</strong> should be increased.</li>
<li><strong>Slaughter animal rules</strong> should be framed in a comprehensive policy framework.</li>
<li><strong>Farm pattern diversification</strong> which leads to a production of variety of crops other than constant set of crops which creates lot of job opportunities.</li>
<li><strong>Second Green Revolution</strong> should be updated with the diversified technologies.</li>
<li>We have to <strong>encourage the domestic startups and industry</strong> than the international companies.</li>
<li>There should be a <strong>Centre of Excellence</strong> between centre and state.</li>
<li>Should have more training institutes for upcoming entrepreneurs and it should be in all states.Scholarship should be given to the upcoming entrepreneurs.</li>
<li><strong>New technology should be updated</strong> in the training institutes and skill development should be given the top most priority.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Government&rsquo;s Initiative</h3>
<p>It has been the endeavor of the Government to promote food processing industry in the country to reduce wastage of agricultural produce and minimize post- harvest losses.</p>
<p>According to<strong> &ldquo;Assessment of Quantitative Harvest and Post-Harvest Losses of Major Crops and Commodities in India&rdquo;</strong> by ICAR the percentage of post-harvest losses as assessed by the study is as under:</p>
<table border="1" style="height: 181px; width: 60.3302%; border-collapse: collapse; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" height="181">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 17px;">
<td style="width: 16.0648%; height: 17px; background-color: #0f27ff;"><span style="color: #ffffff;"><strong>Crops</strong></span></td>
<td style="width: 11.8745%; height: 17px; background-color: #0f27ff;"><span style="color: #ffffff;"><strong>Cumulative wastage (%)</strong></span></td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;">
<td style="width: 16.0648%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">Cereals</td>
<td style="width: 11.8745%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">4.65 &ndash; 5.99</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;">
<td style="width: 16.0648%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">Pulses</td>
<td style="width: 11.8745%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">6.36 &ndash; 8.41</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;">
<td style="width: 16.0648%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">Oil Seeds</td>
<td style="width: 11.8745%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">3.08 &ndash; 9.96</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;">
<td style="width: 16.0648%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">Fruits &amp; Vegetables</td>
<td style="width: 11.8745%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">4.58 &ndash; 15.88</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;">
<td style="width: 16.0648%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">Milk</td>
<td style="width: 11.8745%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">0.92</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;">
<td style="width: 16.0648%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">Fisheries (Inland)</td>
<td style="width: 11.8745%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">5.23</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;">
<td style="width: 16.0648%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">Fisheries (Marine)</td>
<td style="width: 11.8745%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">10.52</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;">
<td style="width: 16.0648%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">Meat</td>
<td style="width: 11.8745%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">2.71</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;">
<td style="width: 16.0648%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">Poultry</td>
<td style="width: 11.8745%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">6.74</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>With the above in view, the Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI) is implementing <strong>PMKSY (Pradhan Mantri Kisan SAMPADA Yojana)</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The objective of PMKSY is to supplement agriculture, modernize processing and decrease agri-waste.</li>
<li>It is an umbrella scheme incorporating ongoing schemes</li>
<li>Under PMKSY the following schemes are to be implemented.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>Mega Food Parks.</li>
<li>Integrated Cold Chain, Value Addition and Preservation Infrastructure.</li>
<li>Creation/Expansion of Food Processing/Preservation Capacities.</li>
<li>Infrastructure for Agro Processing Clusters.</li>
<li>Scheme for Creation of Backward and Forward Linkages.</li>
<li>Food Safety &amp; Quality Assurance Infrastructure.</li>
<li>Human Resources and Institutions.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy:</strong> FDI up to 100%, under the automatic route is allowed in food processing industries.</li>
<li><strong>Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA)&ndash;</strong> an apex organization under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry &ndash; focusses on &lsquo;export&rsquo; of scheduled products.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Food processing has numerous advantages which are specific to Indian context. It has capacity to lift millions out of poverty and malnutrition. Government should develop industry in a way keeping in mind the interests of small scale industry along with attracting big ticket domestic and foreign investments.</li>
<li>The entire food value chain in India is controlled by multiple ministries, departments and laws. A comprehensive policy will ensure that various initiatives across the departments are aligned to the overall goal of ensuring availability, awareness, affordability, access, quality and safety of food.</li>
<li>The target of ensuring food security for more than a billion people requires a concerted effort by all stakeholders including government and the food processing industry. In addition to private players and government, industry bodies and academia will also have a crucial role in the success of these initiatives.</li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/to-the-points/paper3/food-processing-in-india'
		],
		(int) 5 => [
			'title' => 'Importance of Africa in Indo-Pacific Strategy',
			'catname' => 'News Editorials',
			'desc' => '<div class="border">
<p>This article is based on <a href="https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/re-imagining-india-and-africa-policy-narendra-modi-government-5809769/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">&ldquo;Reimagining India and Africa&rdquo;</a> that appeared in Indian Express on 2 July 2019. It talks about the need for India to integrate Africa into its Indo-Pacific policy.</p>
</div>
<p>Geographically, Indo-Pacific refers to the Indian and the Pacific Oceans between the east coast of Africa and the American west coast and their several littoral countries. Though the term Indo-pacific has been in global strategic writings and speeches from the start of the 21st century but envisions of Indo-pacific by US President Trump (to check the rise of China) at the 2017 APEC Summit in Vietnam has changed geopolitical contours of the region.</p>
<p>Since then every major power in the Indo-pacific region has formulated their versions of Indo-pacific. For example, recently Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has adopted the &lsquo;ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific&rsquo; after more than a year of negotiations. But the strategy for Indo-Pacific neglects the importance of Africa and India is no exception to this fallacy.</p>
<h3>What is the importance of Africa in the Indo-Pacific equation especially for India</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Envision of Indo-pacific seemed to have elevated India to a position of prominence in the region which can be reflected by:
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>Strategic convergence with the US</strong> that would help to contain China&rsquo;s dominance.</li>
<li>In pursuance to the above aim, India appeared to be a <strong>member of Quad</strong> (strategic talks and military exercises between the US, Japan, Australia and India)</li>
<li>But India must not forget Africa is the route through which India's global power aspirations pass.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Importance of Africa for India can be seen in the following dimensions:
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Africa has turned from <strong>"The Hopeless Continent"</strong> to <strong>"A Hopeful Continent"</strong> given its demography, resources, market etc.</li>
<li>Also, India and Africa share historical ties, the 1955 Bandung Conference was not just about Asia or non-alignment but promoting Afro-Asian solidarity.</li>
<li>Africa assumes strategic importance for India in relation to:
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li><strong>Geopolitical interest:</strong> South-South cooperation, UNSC reforms, Competition with China, Cooperation in global issues such as climate change and WTO reforms.</li>
<li><strong>Geo-economic interest:</strong> Energy security - Oil (Nigeria), the supply of Uranium (South Africa), huge mineral resources of Africa, growing population of Africa provides for new opportunities for goods and services exports from India.</li>
<li><strong>Geostrategic interest:</strong> Maritime security - East coast countries are important for peace and prosperity of the Indian Ocean region, trade relations across and beyond Africa and interests of Indian diaspora in Africa.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Since the rise of Asia and Africa, these continents are reconstituting the geographies of the eastern hemisphere and breaking down the artificial mental maps that emerged in the 20th century. Thus, India must recognise the growing importance of Africa for the security and prosperity of the Indo-Pacific.</li>
<li>However, there are several issues that impede India's engagement with Africa</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>The New African Scramble</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Africa is witnessing a phenomenon called the <strong>&ldquo;New Scramble for Africa"</strong>.
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>If Europe and North America dominated Africa&rsquo;s economic relationship in the past, China, India, Japan, South Korea and the ASEAN share the geopolitical space today with the US and EU. China, Japan, Korea and India are also major investors in Africa as well as providers of development assistance</li>
<li>China&rsquo;s maritime silk road is about connecting China&rsquo;s eastern seaboard with the Indian Ocean littoral.</li>
<li>China is involved in the development of 47 ports in sub-Saharan Africa.</li>
<li>China&rsquo;s expanding defence and security engagement in Africa. Over the last few years, China has emerged as the largest major arms supplier to Sub-Saharan Africa.</li>
<li>The US, which was focused on terrorism and other non-military threats after 9/11, is paying attention to Africa&rsquo;s new geopolitics.</li>
<li>Russia, which seemed to turn its back on Africa after the collapse of the Soviet Union, is now returning with some vigour.</li>
<li>Also, many regional actors like Iran, UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey are taking a growing interest in African security affairs.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>India lacks diplomatic presence in Africa as India has an embassy only in 29 out of 54 African countries.</li>
<li>A lot of African countries are suffering from political instability.</li>
<li>Thus pan African strategy is not working as Africa is not homogenous</li>
<li>Also, there is a saying that - "India promises and China delivers". India's implementation and delivery have been flawed.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>India should focus on its comparative advantages like services sector, pharma and private sector relationship.</li>
<li>India has leverage over China as the latter's investments are perceived as neocolonial whereas India is engaged in partnership based on mutual benefit and capacity building</li>
<li>Africa is too big for both India and China, so they both must cooperate and wherever there is competition it must be constructive.</li>
<li>India elevated the engagement with Africa by hosting a summit in Delhi for all the African leaders, unveiling sustained high-level political contact, expanding India&rsquo;s diplomatic footprint, strengthening economic engagement and boosting military diplomacy.</li>
<li>But the scale and speed of Africa&rsquo;s current transformation need to be a priority on India's strategic map.</li>
</ul>
<p>Indian foreign policy has always envisaged a rules-based order anchored upon international law, openness, transparency, inclusivity and commitment to advancing economic engagement in the region. In this regard India can focus on four areas of cooperation with Africa i.e. maritime cooperation; connectivity; UN Sustainable Development Goals 2030; and economic development.</p>
<table border="1" style="border-collapse: collapse; background-color: #fcd4db; border-color: #c40a2c;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 1256px;"><em><strong>Drishti input:</strong></em><br /><br />Indi&rsquo;s Indo-pacific strategy reflects the neglect of strategically important Africa. Comment.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p></p>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/importance-of-africa-in-indo-pacific-strategy'
		],
		(int) 6 => [
			'title' => 'NASA’s Punch Mission',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>Dipankar Banerjee, a solar physicist from Indian Institute of Astrophysics is a<strong> co-investigator of NASA's PUNCH mission.</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>PUNCH, which stands for <strong>&ldquo;Polarimeter to Unify the Corona and Heliosphere,&rdquo;</strong> is focused on understanding the transition of particles from the Sun&rsquo;s outer corona to the solar wind that fills interplanetary space.</li>
<li>PUNCH will consist of a <strong>constellation of four suitcase-sized microsats</strong> that will orbit the Earth and study how the corona, which is the atmosphere of the Sun, connects with the interplanetary medium.</li>
<li>The mission will also image and track the solar wind and coronal mass ejections, which are huge masses of plasma that get thrown out of the Sun&rsquo;s atmosphere. The coronal mass ejections can affect and drive space weather events near the Earth.</li>
<li>There is also a plan to observe the Sun using joint observations from PUNCH and Indian mission Aditya, which is underway. India is planning to send up its own satellite Aditya-L1 with an aim to study the Sun&rsquo;s corona.</li>
<li>The mission is expected to be<strong> launched in the year 2022.</strong></li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Note</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Corona:</strong> It is the outermost region of the Sun&rsquo;s atmosphere, consisting of plasma (hot ionized gas).</li>
<li><strong>Solar Wind:</strong> It is the constant stream of solar coronal material that flows off the sun.</li>
<li><strong>Interplanetary Medium:</strong> It refers to thinly scattered matter that exists between the planets and other bodies of the solar system, as well as the forces (e.g., magnetic and electric) that pervade this region of space. The material components of the interplanetary medium consist of neutral hydrogen, plasma gas comprising electrically charged particles from the Sun, cosmic rays, and dust particles.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/nasas-punch-mission'
		],
		(int) 7 => [
			'title' => 'INS Viraat to be Scrapped',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>The Union Ministry of Defence has decided to scrap<strong> INS Virat</strong> after consultation with Indian Navy.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Navy has been incurring expenditure on its upkeep such as the provision of electricity and water, and repairs till date.</li>
<li>The Navy has stated that it cannot keep Viraat indefinitely as it would block space in the already crowded Mumbai dockyard.</li>
<li>Efforts to keep it intact by converting it into a museum or other means have not been successful.</li>
<li>Ministry stated that INS Viraat could not be handed over to any State Government because of non-receipt of a self-sustaining financially complete proposal.</li>
<li>There had been demands from various quarters to not let Viraat go the INS Vikrant way, India&rsquo;s first carrier that was eventually scrapped.</li>
<li><strong>INS Vikrant, a Centaur class,</strong> was maintained by the Navy in Mumbai for 17 years as various proposals to convert it into a museum went back and forth unsuccessfully before the ship was eventually sent to a scrapyard in 2014.
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Andhra Pradesh submitted a proposal in 2016 for the conversion of Viraat as an aircraft museum, including tourist and hospitality components on a commercial basis through a joint venture with the Union government.</li>
<li>But the Defence Ministry rejected the proposal.</li>
<li>In 2018, the Maharashtra Cabinet approved a proposal to convert the carrier into a museum and hospitality center on a public-private partnership (PPP) basis, but there were no takers.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>INS Viraat</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Viraat, a Centaur class aircraft carrier weighing 27,800 tonnes, had served in the<strong> British Navy as HMS Hermes</strong> for 25 years from 1959 to 1984.</li>
<li>The Centaur class was the light fleet carrier designs built for the Royal Navy (British Navy) in the closing years of the Second World War.</li>
<li>After refurbishment, it was commissioned into the Indian Navy in May 1987.</li>
<li>It was decommissioned from the Navy in March 2017 at Naval Dockyard, Mumbai.</li>
<li>It is the <strong>longest serving warship in the world</strong>. It holds the Guinness Books of record for this.</li>
<li>Viraat has played a major role in Operation Jupiter in 1989 in the Sri Lankan peacekeeping operation.</li>
<li>It has been instrumental in sharpening the art of flying operations from a carrier deck in the Navy, which resulted in the seamless induction of INS Vikramaditya.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/ins-viraat-to-be-scrapped'
		],
		(int) 8 => [
			'title' => 'European Heatwave',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p><strong>France</strong> has recorded the hottest temperature of 45.9&deg;C amid European heatwaves.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/heat-wave-warning" target="_blank" rel="noopener">heatwave</a> in Europe has caused <strong>flash floods</strong> and <strong>forest fires</strong>.</li>
</ul>
<h3>European heatwave</h3>
<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/768image1.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/768image1.jpg" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" caption="false" width="640" height="598" /></a></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>According to the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/state-of-the-global-climate-wmo" target="_blank" rel="noopener">World Meteorological Organization</a> (WMO), heatwaves in Europe are the result of warm air masses from Africa and extreme heat condition in <strong>India, Pakistan, parts of the Middle East and Australia</strong>.</li>
<li>According to weather experts, heatwaves are being amplified by a rise in <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/global-warming-of-1-5-c-ipcc-report" target="_blank" rel="noopener">global temperature</a>.</li>
<li>A scientific study on Europe-wide heatwave by the World Weather Attribution group concluded that high temperatures in the region were made more likely by <strong>human activities</strong> that contributed to <a href="/loksabha-rajyasabha-discussions/in-depth-melting-himalayas" target="_blank" rel="noopener">climate change</a>.</li>
<li>If the current trend were to continue, heatwaves across Europe could occur as often as every other year by the <strong>2040&rsquo;s</strong>, with the possibility that <strong>temperatures may rise</strong> by 3-5 degree Celsius by 2100.</li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/european-heatwave'
		],
		(int) 9 => [
			'title' => 'One Nation One Ration Card Scheme',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Recently the Food Minister announced One Nation One Ration Card Scheme, which all states needs to implement by July 2020.</li>
<li>One Nation One Ration Card&rsquo; scheme seeks to provide <strong>portability of food security benefits</strong> all across the nation.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Features</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The poor migrant workers will be able to buy subsidised rice and wheat from any ration shop in the country but for that their <strong>ration cards must be linked to Aadhaar</strong>.</li>
<li>Migrants would only be eligible for the subsidies supported by the Centre, which include rice sold at Rs. 3/kg and wheat at Rs. 2/kg, It would not include subsidies given by their respective state government in some other state.</li>
<li>This scheme will ensure that no poor person is deprived of subsidised grains.</li>
<li>The scheme can be implemented as already 77% of the ration shops across the country have PoS machines and more than 85% of people covered under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) have their cards linked to Aadhaar.</li>
<li>For remaining beneficiaries, all the States have been given one more year to use point of sale (PoS) machines in the ration shops and implement the scheme.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>National Food Security Act</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The basic concept of food security globally is to ensure that all people, at all times, should get access to the basic food for their active and healthy life and is characterized by availability, access, utilization and stability of food.</li>
<li>Food security can also be derived from the fundamental right to life enshrined in Article 21 of the Constitution, as it may be interpreted to include right to live with human dignity, which may include the right to food and other basic necessities.</li>
<li>In pursuance of this, the enactment of the National Food Security Act, (NFSA) 2013 marks a paradigm shift in the approach to food security from welfare to the rights-based approach.</li>
<li>The Act legally entitles up to 75% of the rural population and 50% of the urban population to receive subsidized foodgrains under the Targeted Public Distribution System.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/one-nation-one-ration-card-scheme'
		],
		(int) 10 => [
			'title' => 'National Mission on Libraries',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>The Union Ministry of Culture has declared financial assistance under National Mission on Libraries (NML) to develop libraries in each States/UT.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>As per scheme, it will provide financial assistance for upgradation of infrastructure of one State Central Library and one District Library in each State/UT as NML Model Library.</li>
<li>Public libraries as being a State Subject, function under the administrative control of the respective State/UT library authority.</li>
<li>There are six Public Libraries under administrative control of Union Ministry of Culture namely National Library, Kolkata; Central Reference Library, Kolkata; Central Secretariat Library, New Delhi; Delhi Public Library, Delhi; Khuda Bakhsh Oriental Public Library, Patna and Rampur Raza Library, Rampur.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>National Mission on Libraries (NML)</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Union Ministry of Culture in 2012 formulated the NML scheme in pursuance of National Knowledge Commission recommendations for sustained attention for development of Libraries and Information Science Sector.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The National Knowledge Commission was constituted in 2005 to prepare a blueprint for reform of knowledge related institutions and infrastructure which would enable India to meet the challenges of the future.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The scheme consists of four components:<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Creation of<strong> National Virtual Library of India (NVLI)</strong></li>
<li>Setting up of NML Model Libraries</li>
<li>Quantitative &amp; Qualitative Survey of Libraries</li>
<li>Capacity Building</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The setting up on NML Model Libraries would develop 6 Libraries under Ministry of Culture, 35 State Central Libraries and 35 District Libraries with particular emphasis on economically backward districts, as model Libraries. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>In addition, 629 district libraries across the states would be provided network connectivity.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The Quantitative &amp; Qualitative Survey of Libraries would be undertaken to prepare a baseline data of libraries in India through a survey of 5000 Libraries.</li>
<li>The Capacity Building would be undertaken to enhance the professional competence of library personnel.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>National Virtual Library of India (NVLI)</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The objective of the NVLI is to facilitate the creation of a comprehensive database on digital resources of India on information about India in an open access environment.</li>
<li>Salient features of NVLI are:<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Federated searching through multilingual user interfaces.</li>
<li>Virtual learning environment.</li>
<li>E-Governance platform facilitating data analytics</li>
<li>Multilingual searching and retrieval on ontology/thesaurus based.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The project of creation of NVLI costing Rs.72.34 crore had been entrusted to IIT Bombay (in collaboration with C-DAC, Pune and IGNOU, Delhi).</li>
</ul>
</div>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/national-mission-on-libraries'
		],
		(int) 11 => [
			'title' => 'STRIDE',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>The <strong>University Grants Commission (UGC)</strong> has approved a new initiative, <strong>Scheme for Trans-Disciplinary Research for India&rsquo;s Developing Economy (STRIDE),</strong> to support socially relevant, local need-based, nationally important and globally significant research projects.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The UGC has set up an advisory committee under its Vice Chairman Bhushan Patwardhan, to oversee the entire scheme.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Components of the Scheme</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Component 1:</strong> The Scheme will provide for <strong>research capacity building in diverse disciplines</strong> by mentoring, nurturing and supporting young talents to innovate pragmatic solutions for local, regional, national and global problems. Grant available is upto Rs. 1 crore.</li>
<li><strong>Component 2:</strong> It will mainly focus on <strong>enhancing problem solving skills</strong> with the help of social innovation and action research to improve wellbeing of people and contribute for India&rsquo;s developing economy. Grant upto Rs. 50 lakh to 1 crore is available for projects under this component.</li>
<li><strong>Component-3</strong> will fund high impact research projects <strong>in the identified thrust areas in humanities and human sciences</strong> through national network of eminent scientists from leading institutions. Grant available under this component is upto Rs. 1 crore for one Higher Educational Institution and upto Rs. 5 crores for a multi institutional network.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Expected Benefits from the Scheme</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It will help strengthen <strong>transdisciplinary research</strong> culture in colleges and universities.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Trans-disciplinary research is a <strong>team effort of investigators from different disciplines</strong> to create new conceptual, theoretical, methodological innovations that integrates and transcends beyond discipline-specific approaches <strong>to address a common problem</strong>.</li>
<li>It goes beyond mere production of knowledge and extends to the <strong>practical use of the knowledge</strong> outside academic endeavour.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>It will provide opportunity to build multi sectoral linkages between <strong>university-government-community-industry</strong> for national development and wellbeing of people.</li>
<li>It will give major impetus to <strong>high impact research in Humanities</strong> and Human Sciences.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>University Grants Commission (UGC)</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The University Grants Commission (UGC) came into existence on 28th December, 1953 and became a <strong>statutory organization of the Government of India</strong> by an Act of Parliament in 1956, for the coordination, determination and maintenance of standards of teaching, examination and research in university education.</li>
<li>The <strong>head office</strong> of the UGC is located in <strong>New Delhi</strong>.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/stride'
		],
		(int) 12 => [
			'title' => 'India International Cooperatives Trade Fair',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>First ever India International Cooperatives Trade Fair (IICTF) to be held at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>IICTF is a unique initiative for taking <strong>farmers, artisans</strong> &amp; other members of <strong>cooperatives</strong> directly to the global trade platform.</li>
<li>Trade Fair is being conducted by <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/Scheme%20to%20Promote%20Young%20Entrepreneurs%20in%20Cooperatives" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC)</strong></a> with the support of <strong>Network for the Development of Agricultural Cooperatives</strong> (NEDAC), Ministries, State Governments and several apex level Indian cooperative organizations.</li>
<li>Focus sectors of India International Cooperatives Trade Fair are:<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>Textile:</strong> ginning spinning, power loom, textile processing.</li>
<li><strong>Agribusiness and food processing:</strong> cold chain, packaging, climate-smart agriculture.</li>
<li><strong>Fast Moving Consumer Goods</strong> (FMCG), Health and hospitality</li>
<li><strong>Trade and marketing:</strong> agriculture produce marketing, transport and marketing infrastructure.</li>
<li><strong>Credit service and finance:</strong> insurance, cooperative banking.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Significance</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Cooperative sector has a big role to play in <strong>doubling agriculture exports</strong> (from present US $ 30 billion to US$ 60 billion) by <strong>2022</strong> as envisaged in the <a href="/to-the-points/paper3/agriculture-export-policy-2018-1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Agriculture Export Policy 2018</a>.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>94% of the Indian farmers are members of at least one cooperative institution.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>IICTF would be a major platform to promote exports by cooperatives with direct benefits to their members who are mainly farmers, artisans, women, SC /ST etc.</li>
<li>Promotion of exports of <strong>key commodities</strong>/value chain products that have <strong>high potential</strong>, and are backed by specific promotional initiatives (including the involvement of stakeholder entities) would definitely actualize the target of <a href="/to-the-points/paper3/doubling-farmers-income-a-promise-to-be-fulfilled-by-2022" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Doubling the Farmers Income</a> and will achieve the goals set under the Agri-Exports Policy 2018.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>NEDAC</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Network for the Development of Agricultural Cooperatives in <strong>Asia and the Pacific</strong> is a unique regional forum linking 21 apex cooperative organizations in 12 countries.</li>
<li>It was set up in 1991 by the <strong>United Nations</strong> <a href="/important-institutions/drishti-specials-important-institutions-international-institution/united-nations-1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Food and Agriculture Organization</a> (FAO)&rsquo;s Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, the <strong>International Cooperative Alliance</strong> (ICA) and the <strong>International Labour Organization</strong> (ILO).</li>
<li>The NEDAC member organizations in Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Nepal, Philippines, Republic of Korea, Sri Lanka and Thailand represent <strong>three million agricultural cooperatives</strong> which play a crucial role in improving the livelihoods of 150 million rural households.</li>
<li>NEDAC sensitizes governments in the region to the need for a key role for <strong>agricultural cooperatives</strong> in promoting agricultural and rural development to ensure <strong>rural food</strong> and <strong>livelihood security</strong> for hundreds of millions of people in Asia and the Pacific.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/india-international-cooperatives-trade-fair'
		],
		(int) 13 => [
			'title' => 'Panchayati Raj Institution (PRI)',
			'catname' => 'National Institutions',
			'desc' => '<p><em>When the panchayat raj is established, public opinion will do what violence can never do.&nbsp; &nbsp;<strong>&mdash; Mahatma Gandhi</strong></em></p>
<h3>Context</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Panchayati Raj Institution (PRI) is a system of <strong>rural local self-government</strong> in India.</li>
<li>Local Self Government is the management of local affairs by such local bodies who have been <strong>elected by the local people</strong>.</li>
<li>PRI was constitutionalized through the <strong>73<sup>rd</sup> Constitutional Amendment Act, 1992</strong> to build democracy at the grass roots level and was entrusted with the task of rural development in the country.</li>
<li>In its present form and structure <strong>PRI has completed 26 years of existence</strong>. However, a lot remains to be done in order to further decentralization and strengthen democracy at the grass root level.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Evolution of Panchayati Raj in India</h3>
<p>The history of Panchayat Raj in India can be divided into the following periods from the analytical point of view:</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Vedic Era:</strong> In the old Sanskrit scriptures, word &lsquo;Panchayatan&rsquo; has been mentioned which means a group of five persons, including a spiritual man.</li>
<li>Gradually the concept of the inclusion of a spiritual man in such groups vanished.</li>
<li>In the Rigveda, there is a mention of <strong>Sabha, Samiti and Vidatha as local self-units</strong>. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>These were the democratic bodies at the local level. The king used to get the approval of these bodies regarding certain functions and decisions.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Epic Era</strong> indicates the two great epic periods of India, that is, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata.</li>
<li>The study of Ramayana indicates that the administration was divided into two parts - Pur and Janpad or city and village. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>In the whole of the state, there was also a Caste Panchayat and one person elected by the Caste Panchayat was a member of the king's Council of Ministers.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Self-government of a village finds ample expression in the &lsquo;Shanti Parva&rsquo; of the Mahabharata; in the Manu Smriti as well as in Kautilya&rsquo;s Arthashastra.</li>
<li>As per the Mahabharata, over and above the village, there were units of 10, 20, 100, and 1,000 village groups. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>&lsquo;Gramik&rsquo;</strong> was the chief official of the village, <strong>&lsquo;Dashap&rsquo;</strong> was the chief of ten villages, <strong>Vinshya Adhipati, Shat Gram Adhyaksha</strong> and <strong>Shat Gram Pati</strong> were the chiefs of 20, 100, and 1,000 villages, respectively.</li>
<li>They collected the local taxes and were responsible for the defense of their villages.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Ancient Period:</strong> There is a mention of village panchayats in Kautilya&rsquo;s Arthashastra.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The town was referred to as Pur and its chief was the Nagarik.</li>
<li>Local bodies were free from any royal interference.</li>
<li><strong>During the Mauryan and Post-Mauryan periods too, the headman, assisted by a council of elders, continued to play a prominent role in the village life.</strong></li>
<li>The system <strong>continued through the Gupta period,</strong> though there were certain changes in the nomenclature, as the <strong>district official was known as the vishya pati</strong> and the <strong>village headman was referred to as the grampati</strong>.</li>
<li>Thus, in ancient India, there existed a well established system of local government which was run on a set pattern of traditions and customs.</li>
<li>However, it is significant to note that there is <strong>no reference of women heading the panchayat</strong> or even participating as a member in the panchayat.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Medieval Period:</strong> During the Sultanate period, the Sultans of Delhi divided their kingdom into <strong>provinces called &lsquo;Vilayat&rsquo;</strong>.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>For the governance of a village, there were three important officials - <strong>Mukkaddam for administration, Patwari for collection of revenues, and Choudhrie for settling disputes with the help of the Panch</strong>.</li>
<li>The villages had sufficient powers as regards self governance in their territory.</li>
<li>Casteism and feudalistic system of governance under the Mughal rule in the medieval period slowly eroded the self-government in villages.</li>
<li>It is again noteworthy to note that even in the medieval period there is no mention of women participation in the local village administration.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>British Period:</strong> Under the British regime, <strong>village panchayats lost their autonomy</strong> and became weak.</li>
<li>It is only from the year 1870 that India saw the dawn of representative local institutions.</li>
<li>The famous <strong>Mayo&rsquo;s resolution of 1870 gave impetus to the development of local institutions</strong> by enlarging their powers and responsibilities.</li>
<li>The year 1870, introduced the concept of elected representatives, in urban municipalities.</li>
<li>The revolt of 1857 had put the imperial finances under considerable strain and it was found necessary to finance local service out of local taxation. Therefore it was out of fiscal compulsion that Lord Mayo&rsquo;s resolution on decentralization came to be adopted.</li>
<li>Following the footsteps of Mayo, <strong>Lord Rippon in 1882 provided the much needed democratic framework to these institutions</strong>. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>All boards (then existing) were mandated to have a two-thirds majority of non-officials who had to be elected and the chairman of these bodies had to be from among the elected non-officials.</li>
<li>This is considered to be the <strong>Magna Carta of local democracy in India</strong>.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Local self-government institutions received a boost with the appointment of the <strong>Royal Commission on centralisation in 1907 under the Chairmanship of C.E.H. Hobhouse</strong>. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The commission recognized the importance of panchayats at the village level.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>It is in this backdrop that the <strong>Montagu Chelmsford reforms of 1919</strong> transferred the subject of local government to the domain of the provinces. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The reform also recommended that as far as possible there should be a complete control in local bodies and complete possible independence for them from external control.</li>
<li>These panchayats covered only a limited number of villages with limited functions and due to <strong>organisational and fiscal constraints</strong> they did not become democratic and vibrant institutions of local self government at the village level.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>However, by 1925, eight provinces had passed the Panchayat Acts and by 1926, six native States had also passed panchayat laws. Local bodies were given more powers and functions to impose taxes were reduced. But, the position of the local self-government institutions remained unaffected.</li>
<li><strong>Post&ndash;Independence Period:</strong> After the Constitution came into force, <strong>Article 40</strong> made a mention of panchayats and <strong>Article 246</strong> empowers the state legislature to legislate with respect to any subject relating to local self-government.</li>
<li>However, this inclusion of panchayats into the Constitution was not unanimously agreed upon by the then decision-makers, with the major opposition having come from the framer of the Constitution himself i.e. B.R.Ambedkar. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>It was after much discussion among the supporters and opponents of the village panchayat that the panchayats finally got a place for themselves in the Constitution as <strong>Article 40 of the Directive Principles of State Policy</strong>.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Since the Directive Principles are not binding principles, the result was the absence of a uniform structure of these bodies throughout the country.</li>
<li>After independence, as a development initiative, India had implemented the Community Development Programmes (CDP) on the eve of Gandhi Jayanti, the 2nd October, 1952 under the major influence of the <strong>Etawah Project</strong> undertaken by the American expert, Albert Mayer. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>It encompassed almost all activities of rural development which were to be implemented with the help of village panchayats along with the participation of people.</li>
<li>In 1953, the <strong>National Extension Service</strong> was also introduced as a prologue to CDP. But the programme did not yield much result.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>There were various reasons for the failure of CDP like bureaucracy and <strong>excessive politics, lack of people participation, lack of trained and qualified staff, and lack of local bodies interest in implementing the CDP</strong> especially the village panchayats.</li>
<li>In 1957, the National Development Council constituted a <strong>committee headed by Balwant Rai Mehta</strong> to look into the working of community development programme.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The team observed that the major reason for the failure of the CDP was the <strong>lack of people&rsquo;s participation</strong>.</li>
<li>The committee suggested a three-tier PRIs, namely, Grama Panchayats (GPs) at the village level, Panchayat Samiti (PSs) at the block level, and Zilla Parishad (ZPs) at the district level.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>As a result of this scheme of democratic decentralization was launched in Rajasthan on October 2, 1959.</strong></li>
<li>In Andhra Pradesh, the scheme was introduced on 1st November, 1959. The necessary legislation had also been passed and implemented in Assam, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa, and Punjab etc.</li>
<li>The appointment of the <strong>Ashok Mehta Committee in 1977</strong> did bring new thinking in the concepts and practice of the Panchayat Raj. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The committee <strong>recommended a two-tier Panchayat Raj institutional</strong> structure consisting of <strong>Zilla Parishad and Mandal Panchayat</strong>.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>In order to use planning expertise and to secure administrative support, the district was suggested as the first point of decentralization below the state level.</li>
<li>Based on its recommendation, some of the states like Karnataka incorporated them effectively.</li>
<li>In subsequent years in order to revive and give a new lease of life to the panchayats, the Government of India had appointed various committees.</li>
<li>The most important among them are the <strong>Hanumantha Rao Committee (1983), G.V.K. Rao Committee (1985), L.M.Singhvi Committee (1986) and the Sarkaria Commission on Centre-State relations (1988), P.K. Thungan Committee (1989) and Harlal Singh Kharra Committee (1990)</strong>.</li>
<li>The <strong>G.V.K. Rao Committee (1985)</strong> recommended making the <strong>&ldquo;district&rdquo; as the basic unit of planning</strong> and also holding regular elections while the <strong>L.M.Singhvi committee</strong> recommended <strong>providing more financial resources and constitutional status to the panchayats</strong> to strengthen them.</li>
<li>The Amendment phase began with the 64th Amendment Bill (1989) which was introduced by Rajiv Gandhi seeking to strengthen the PRIs but the Bill was not passed in the Rajya Sabha.</li>
<li>The Constitution (74th Amendment) Bill (a combined bill for the PRIs and municipalities) was introduced in 1990, but was never taken up for discussion.</li>
<li>It was during the Prime Ministership of P.V.Narasimha Rao that a comprehensive amendment was introduced in the form of the Constitution 72nd Amendment Bill in September 1991.</li>
<li><strong>73<sup>rd</sup> and 74<sup>th</sup> Constitutional Amendments were passed by Parliament in December, 1992. Through these amendments local self-governance was introduced in rural and urban India.</strong></li>
<li>The Acts came into force as the Constitution (73<sup>rd</sup> Amendment) Act, 1992 on April 24, 1993 and the Constitution (74<sup>th</sup> Amendment) Act, 1992 on June 1, 1993.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Salient Features of the Constitution 73<sup>rd</sup> and 74<sup>th</sup> Amendments</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>These amendments <strong>added two new parts to the Constitution,</strong> namely, added <strong>Part IX titled &ldquo;The Panchayats&rdquo;</strong> (added by 73rd Amendment) and <strong>Part IXA titled &ldquo;The Municipalities&rdquo;</strong> (added by 74<sup>th</sup> Amendment).</li>
<li>Basic units of democratic system-<strong>Gram Sabhas (villages) and Ward Committees (Municipalities)</strong> comprising all the adult members registered as voters.</li>
<li><strong>Three-tier system</strong> of panchayats at village, intermediate block/taluk/mandal and district levels except in States with population is below 20 lakhs (Article 243B).</li>
<li>Seats at all levels to be filled by direct elections <strong>Article 243C (2)</strong>.</li>
<li>Seats reserved for Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) and the chairpersons of the Panchayats at all levels also shall be reserved for SCs and STs in proportion to their population.</li>
<li>One-third of the total number of seats to be reserved for women.</li>
<li>One third of the seats reserved for SCs and STs also reserved for women.</li>
<li>One-third offices of chairpersons at all levels reserved for women <strong>(Article 243D)</strong>.</li>
<li><strong>Uniform five year term</strong> and elections to constitute new bodies to be completed before the expiry of the term.</li>
<li>In the event of dissolution, elections compulsorily within six months (Article 243E).</li>
<li><strong>Independent Election Commission in each State</strong> for superintendence, direction and control of the electoral rolls (Article 243K).</li>
<li><strong>Panchayats to prepare plans for economic development</strong> and social justice in respect of subjects as devolved by law to the various levels of Panchayats including the subjects as illustrated in Eleventh Schedule (Article 243G).</li>
<li>74th Amendment provides for a <strong>District Planning Committee</strong> to consolidate the plans prepared by Panchayats and Municipalities (Article 243ZD).</li>
<li>Budgetary allocation from State Governments, share of revenue of certain taxes, collection and retention of the revenue it raises, Central Government programmes and grants, Union Finance Commission grants (Article 243H).</li>
<li>Establish a <strong>Finance Commission in each State</strong> to determine the principles on the basis of which adequate financial resources would be ensured for panchayats and municipalities (Article 243I).</li>
<li>The Eleventh Scheduled of the Constitution places as many as 29 functions within the purview of the Panchayati Raj bodies.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The following areas have been exempted from the operation of the Act because of the socio-cultural and administrative considerations: <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Scheduled <strong>areas listed under the V Schedule</strong> in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa and Rajasthan.</li>
<li>The states of <strong>Nagaland, Meghalaya and Mizoram</strong>.</li>
<li>The hill areas of district of <strong>Darjeeling in the state of West Bengal</strong> for which Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council exists.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>In conformity with provisions in the Constitution Amendment Act, an Act called the <strong>Provisions of Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996</strong> passed by the Government of India.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Evaluating the Panchayati Raj Institutions at 26</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>PRIs has witnessed simultaneously a remarkable success and a staggering failure in the journey of 26 years depending on the goalposts against which they are evaluated.</li>
<li>While the PRI has <strong>succeeded in creating another layer of government and political representation</strong> at the grass-roots level, it has <strong>failed to provide better governance</strong>.</li>
<li>There are about 250,000 PRIs and urban local bodies, and over three million elected local government representatives.</li>
<li>The 73rd and 74th Amendments required that no less than one-third of the total seats in local bodies should be reserved for women. At 1.4 million, India has the most women in elected positions. Seats and sarpanch/pradhan positions were also reserved for SC/ST candidates.</li>
<li>Research using PRIs has shown that having <strong>female political representation in local governments</strong> makes women more likely to come forward and report crimes. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>In districts with female sarpanchs, significantly greater investments are made in drinking water, public goods.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Moreover, the states have also provided the <strong>statutory safeguards for many devolution provisions</strong>, which have considerably empowered local governments.</li>
<li>Successive (central) Finance Commissions have, so substantially, <strong>increased fund allocations for local bodies</strong> and also the grants have been increased.</li>
<li>15th Finance Commission is also considering to further increase the allocations for local governments to match the international standards.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Issues</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The grey area is the <strong>lack of adequate funds</strong>. There is a need to enlarge the domain of panchayats to be able to raise their own funds.</li>
<li>The <strong>interference of area MPs and MLAs in the functioning of panchayats</strong> also adversely affected their performance.</li>
<li>The 73rd amendment only mandated the creation of local self-governing bodies, and left the decision to delegate powers, functions, and finances to the state legislatures, therein lies the failure of PRIs.</li>
<li>The transfer of various governance functions&mdash;like the provision of education, health, sanitation, and water was not mandated. Instead the amendment listed the functions that could be transferred, and left it to the state legislature to actually devolve functions.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>There has been very little devolution of authority and functions in the last 26 years.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Because these functions were never devolved, state executive authorities have proliferated to carry out these functions. The most common example is the terrible state water boards.</li>
<li>The major failure of the Amendment is the <strong>lack of finances for PRIs</strong>. Local governments can either raise their own revenue through local taxes or receive intergovernmental transfers.</li>
<li><strong>The power to tax, even for subjects falling within the purview of PRIs, has to be specifically authorized by the state legislature.</strong> The 73rd Amendment let this be a choice open to the state legislatures&mdash;a choice that most states have not exercised.</li>
<li>A second avenue of revenue generation is <strong>intergovernmental transfers,</strong> where state governments devolve a certain percentage of their revenue to PRIs. The constitutional amendment created provisions for State Finance Commissions to recommend the revenue share between state and local governments. However, these are merely recommendations and the state governments are not bound by them.</li>
<li>Though finance commissions, at every level, have advocated for greater devolution of funds, there has been <strong>little action by states to devolve funds</strong>.</li>
<li>PRIs are reluctant to take on projects that require any meaningful financial outlay, and are often unable to solve even the most basic local governance needs.</li>
<li>PRIs also <strong>suffer from structural deficiencies</strong> i.e. no secretarial support and lower levels of technical knowledge which restricted the aggregation of bottom up planning .</li>
<li>There is a <strong>presence of adhocism</strong> i.e. lack of clear setting of agenda in gram sabha, gram samiti meetings and no proper structure.</li>
<li>Though women and SC/STs has got representation in PRIs through reservation mandated by 73rd amendment but there is a <strong>presence of Panch-Pati and Proxy representation in case of women and SC/STs representatives respectively</strong>.</li>
<li><strong>Accountability arrangements remain very weak</strong> even after 26 years of PRIs constitutional arrangement.</li>
<li>The issue of <strong>ambiguity in the division of functions and funds has allowed concentration of powers with the states</strong> and thereby restraining the elective representatives who are more aware and sensitive to the ground level issues to take control.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Suggestions</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Genuine fiscal federalism</strong> i.e. fiscal autonomy accompanied by fiscal responsibility can provide a long term solution without this PRIs will only be an expensive failure.</li>
<li><strong>6th report of 2nd ARC, &lsquo;Local Governance- An inspiring journey into the future&rsquo;&rsquo;, had recommended that there should be a clear-cut demarcation of functions of each tier of the government.</strong></li>
<li>States should <strong>adopt the concept of &lsquo;activity mapping&rsquo;</strong>, wherein each state clearly delineates the responsibilities and roles for the different tiers of the government in respect to the subjects listed in the Schedule XI.</li>
<li>The subjects should divided and assigned to the different tiers on the basis of accountability to the public.</li>
<li>States like Karnataka and Kerala have taken some steps in this direction but overall progress has been highly uneven.</li>
<li>There is <strong>need for bottom up planning</strong> especially at the district level, based on grassroots inputs received from Gram Sabha.</li>
<li><strong>Karnataka has created a separate bureaucratic cadre for Panchayat</strong>s to get away from the practice of deputation of officials who often overpowered the elected representatives.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Such practices needs to be replicated in other states for strengthening the true character of local self governance.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The center also needs to <strong>financially incentivize states</strong> to encourage effective devolution to the panchayats in functions, finances, and functionaries.</li>
<li><strong>Training should be provided to local representatives</strong> to develop expertise so that they contribute more in planning and implementation of policies and programmes.</li>
<li>To solve the problem of proxy representation <strong>social empowerment must precede the political empowerment</strong>.</li>
<li>Recently states like Rajasthan and Haryana have set certain minimum qualification standards for Panchayat elections. Such necessary eligibility can help in improving effectiveness of governance mechanism.</li>
<li>These standards should apply for MLAs and MPs also and in this direction government should speeden up efforts for universal education.</li>
<li>There should be clear mechanisms to ensure that States comply with the constitutional provisions, particularly in the appointment and implementation of the recommendations of the State Finance Commissions (SFCs).</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The need of the hour is to bring about a holistic change in the lives of beneficiaries among the villagers by uplifting their socioeconomic and health status through effective linkages through community, governmental and other developmental agencies.</li>
<li>Government should take remedial action in the interest of democracy, social inclusion and cooperative federalism.</li>
<li>People&rsquo;s demands for the sustainable decentralisation and advocacy should focus on a decentralisation agenda. The framework needs to be evolved to accommodate the demand for decentralisation.</li>
<li>It is important to have <strong>clarity in the assignment of functions</strong> and the local governments should have <strong>clear and independent sources of finance</strong>.</li>
</ul>
<table border="1" style="border-collapse: collapse; background-color: #9becf2; border-style: none;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 899px;">
<p><em>If we would see our dream of Panchayat Raj, i.e., true democracy realized, we would regard the humblest and lowest Indian as being equally the ruler of India with the tallest in the land.</em></p>
<p style="text-align: right;"><em>&mdash; Mahatma Gandhi</em></p>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p style="text-align: right;"></p>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/important-institutions/drishti-specials-important-institutions-national-institutions/panchayati-raj-institution-pri'
		],
		(int) 14 => [
			'title' => 'LIBRA: Facebook’s Currency',
			'catname' => 'News Editorials',
			'desc' => '<div class="border">
<p>This article is based on the editorial <a href="https://www.livemint.com/opinion/online-views/opinion-why-policymakers-worldwide-should-fear-the-launch-of-libra-1561910021098.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>&ldquo;Why policymakers worldwide should fear the launch of Libra&rdquo;</strong></a> which appeared in Live mint newspaper on 1 July 2019. It talks about the issues pertaining to roll out of Facebook&rsquo;s cryptocurrency: LIBRA</p>
</div>
<p>Facebook on June 18 announced that it will launch a global cryptocurrency called LIBRA in 2020, alongside the underlying blockchain-based network &mdash; a secure, transparent and decentralized digital lender &mdash; that will support it.</p>
<p>In the first quarter of 2019, Facebook had 2.38 billion monthly active users. If even a fraction of them begin to use Libra to carry out financial transactions, buy and sell products, and transfer money, the new currency would quickly gain wide acceptance. This could dramatically change global monetary policymaking, but the policymakers all around the world are quite apprehensive about the role of LIBRA</p>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">What is LIBRA currency?&nbsp;<a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/297image1.webp" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/297image1.webp" width="336" height="600" caption="false" style="float: right;" /></a></h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Libra is the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/cryptocurrencies-will-boost-illegal-transactions-rbi" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>cryptocurrency</strong></a> to be launched by Facebook.
<h3 style="text-align: right;"><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/456image1.webp" target="_blank" rel="noopener"></a></h3>
</li>
<li>Libra framework comprises of the Libra Blockchain, the Libra currency and Calibra(which is a cryptocurrency wallet that lets users send and receive Libra coins)</li>
<li>Calibra is built and maintained by Facebook, and it will be integrated into WhatsApp and Messenger to be managed by the Libra Association.</li>
<li>The Libra Association, a Geneva-based not-for-profit group that will operate the digital currency, counts companies such as Uber, eBay, Lyft, Mastercard and PayPal among its founding members.</li>
<li>Libra project promises to address many of the fundamental barriers that have stopped the widespread adoption of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Libra is designed to hold a stable value. Libra is backed by a financial reserve that mixes the world&rsquo;s major stable currencies. This stability promises to make Libra a stable currency for consumers rather than an attractive gamble for investors like Bitcoin.</li>
<li>Bitcoin and its competitors have market-driven valuations, meaning that the price of a Bitcoin is determined solely by market demand for Bitcoin. This creates a market fueled by speculation and subjects it to enormous volatility</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Libra comes with a new programming language called Move<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The move is a new language, meaning developers will have to adapt to a new programming environment. Facebook says it's designed with "safety and security&rdquo; as the highest priorities.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>What are the issues emerging out of Libra cryptocurrency?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Libra, with given active users of Facebook in the world, could become a dominant global currency&mdash;but one run by a corporation, not a central bank.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Since Libra is not controlled by any central bank, the monetary policymakers may find it much harder to control issues like unemployment and inflation(as when inflation rises, the central banks take action to control it) in a world dominated by global currency like Libra.</li>
<li>That's why French Finance Minister held that Facebook's digital money can never be a sovereign currency.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Mostly all the modes of exchange of money like barter trade, banking, paper money, financial markets etc.&mdash;emerged through slow and evolutionary processes. Deliberate attempts to establish entirely new systems have usually given rise to unanticipated challenges. for example bitcoins.</li>
<li>If Libra becomes popular, people will exchange their national currencies&mdash;dollars, euros, renminbi and rupees&mdash;for the new digital coin in order to buy and sell the many products that will be priced in it. Many users may then choose to keep Libra instead of exchanging it back for their own currencies.</li>
<li>Facebook or the Libra Association will, therefore, continue to hold their national money and earn income on it by investing Libra users&rsquo; money. In this case Facebook will also be tempted to issue extra Libra.</li>
<li>Facebook through Calibra plays a facilitation role in the management of currency, this allows Facebook to penetrate that veil of privacy. While Facebook promises that they won&rsquo;t access information from the currency&rsquo;s digital wallets without customer&rsquo;s consent but there are no technical barriers to stop any such attempt<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Further, the past record of Facebook is poor when it comes to protecting the privacy of individuals: For instance, Cambridge Analytica case</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Cambridge Analytica case</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Facebook-Cambridge Analytica data scandal was a major political scandal in early 2018 when it was revealed that Cambridge Analytica had harvested the personal data of millions of people's Facebook profiles without their consent and used it for political advertising purposes.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Libra will increase US influence in many parts of the world and it may give rise to a scenario where companies like Tencent/WeChat issue their cryptocurrency, triggering a battle in the crypto-space arena.</li>
<li>Cryptocurrency is a policy-trailing technology(Laws cannot keep pace with the fast changing technology). So it&rsquo;s regulation is not a cake walk.</li>
</ul>
<p>But in spite of all these issues, in a globalized world, a country that rejects Libra can find itself gradually isolated by others who take on. Therefore policymakers must immediately consider what type of world-specific digital money can be created. For that, there is a need for new laws and global treaties to mitigate potential negative fallout and limit the power of the organizations that run these new currencies.</p>
<p>In this scenario, the world&rsquo;s central bankers have begun to discuss the idea of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), and now even the International Monetary Fund is talking openly about the pros and cons of the idea which is a step in the right direction.<br /><br /></p>
<table border="1" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 51px;">
<td style="width: 551.111px; background-color: #faecd4; height: 51px;"><span style="color: #ff0000;"><em><strong>Drishti input<br /></strong></em></span><br />Highlight the issues related to cryptocurrencies like LIBRA and also examine how will it be different from other cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/libra-facebook-s-currency'
		],
		(int) 15 => [
			'title' => 'Delhi Butterfly Corridors',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>As per Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) report, the creation of butterfly corridors in Delhi with close to 100 hotspots is underway.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>At present, there are 17 hotspots where butterfly parks or gardens have been created in the last few years.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>A variety of host plants will be grown at such parks and gardens in the green corridor to attract more butterflies.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/515butterfly.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/515butterfly.jpg" width="642" height="546" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" caption="false" /></a></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>At most locations there are already some native trees and plant species that are hosts to butterflies, but additional plantation is being undertaken to ensure a diversity of species arrive there.</li>
<li>The closer the green areas, the easier it will be for butterflies to move from one location to another.</li>
<li>A large butterfly garden exists at Asola Bhatti Wildlife Sanctuary and Garden of Five Senses. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>There are many parks in the surrounding of these locations attracting more butterflies.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>In September, 2017, the first butterfly month was observed in Delhi by BNHS and Delhi forest department, culminating in a record species count.</li>
<li>In 2018, 75 species were recorded in urban and forested locations. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Among the rare species recorded were the common redeye, common short silverline, dingy swift, common blue line, Balkan pierrot and spotted pierrot, among others.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The survey over the past two years has shown that diversity of butterfly species was very low at new parks that have ornamental and exotic plants.</li>
<li>The diversity is higher at places like the Ridge, which has native species of plants and trees.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>The Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS)</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The BNHS, a pan-India wildlife research organization, has been promoting the cause of nature conservation since 1883.</li>
<li>BNHS Mission: Conservation of nature, primarily biological diversity through action based on research, education and public awareness</li>
<li>BNHS Vision: Premier independent scientific organization with a broad based constituency, excelling in the conservation of threatened species and habitats.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/delhi-butterfly-corridors'
		],
		(int) 16 => [
			'title' => 'Puducherry Water Rich Model',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>It is a model for desilting the urban drains and rural canals with the cooperation of the general public with the Puducherry administration.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>This model is fulfilling the need of water in rural areas for irrigation and preventing the overflowing of drains in urban areas. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Ensuring regular flow prevents the diseases like malaria and dengue.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The practice of community involvement in desilting of canals and maintaining them goes back centuries in Puducherry, to the reign of the Pallavas. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The Cholas and French also adapted it seriously.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>All contributors under this model were awarded Swachta Hi Sewa Awards by administration.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Puducherry Water Rich Model</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It ensures mapping and bring under watch all water bodies and drains by using technology.</li>
<li>To use MNREGA where machinery is not required and human contact is safe. It empowers people and provides livelihood.</li>
<li>Linking the local community for shramdaan and monitoring water bodies. It encourages participation as they are the real stakeholders.</li>
<li>Linking with the nearest donor support &mdash; any industry or institution.</li>
<li>It let the supporter and the service provider decide on the contractual cost. Government officials should only be facilitators, not in any way negotiate or deal with their money.</li>
<li>It allows farmers to take the silt away, as it is their soil which got washed away. It is rich in nutrients. The farmers are not to be charged for it.</li>
<li>Accountability lies with the collectors and municipal commissioners.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/puducherry-water-rich-model'
		],
		(int) 17 => [
			'title' => 'Quality of Free Legal Aid',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>The National Law University, Delhi (NLUD) in a report titled <strong>&lsquo;Quality of Legal Representation: An Empirical Analysis of Free Legal Aid Services in India&rsquo;</strong> has revealed that people don&rsquo;t have faith over the services of legal aid counsel (LAC) under the free legal aid services.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>A majority of the people who are entitled to the free legal aid system see the service as an option only when they cannot afford a private lawyer.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Legal Services Authorities (LSA) Act</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>In 1987, the Legal Services Authorities (LSA) Act was enacted to give free and competent legal services to the poor and paved the way for constitution of <strong><a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/national-legal-services-day" target="_blank" rel="noopener">National Legal Service Authority (NALSA)</a></strong> and other legal service institutions at the State, district and taluka level.</li>
<li>Free legal services under LSA Act are available to a person belonging to <strong>Schedule Tribe and Schedule Caste, woman, child, victim of human trafficking, differently abled person, industrial workman,</strong> and person in custody in a protective home and the poor.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Facts</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>According to the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative&rsquo;s (CHRI) report:<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>India&rsquo;s per capita lawyer ratio is better than most countries in the world.</li>
<li>There are about 1.8 million lawyers in India which means there is one lawyer for every 736 people.</li>
<li>There are 61,593 panel lawyers in the country, which translates to just one legal aid lawyer per 18,609 population or five legal aid lawyers per 1,00,000 population.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>According to NALSA, about 8.22 lakh people across India benefited through legal aid services from April 2017 to June 2018.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>Key Findings</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>About <strong>75%</strong> of beneficiaries responded that they opted for free legal aid because they had no means and resources to hire a paid private practitioner.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>They would never have approached for the legal aid services if they had the resources to engage private legal practitioners.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>22.6%</strong> of the beneficiaries responded that they won&rsquo;t opt for free legal aid services for the <strong>second time</strong>.</li>
<li><strong>60% of women,</strong> who were aware of the free legal aid services, chose to opt for the private legal practitioner because they could have better control over their lawyer and they lack faith and confidence over the quality of services offered under the legal aid system.</li>
<li><strong>56% of LAC</strong> (Legal Aid Counsel) spends an average of 1 to 10 hours per week on legal aid cases. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>On the contrary, around 58% LAC spend on an average of <strong>20 hours</strong> and above per week on <strong>private cases</strong>.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Around <strong>33%</strong> of the judicial officers claim that complaints were received against LACs for <strong>demanding money</strong> from beneficiaries.</li>
<li>Majority of judicial officers (52%) rated the <strong>overall skill</strong> set of a private legal practitioner as of fairly good quality and that of LAC as of moderately low quality.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Constitutional Provision</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Article 39A</strong> of the <strong>Constitution</strong> <strong>of India</strong> provides that State shall secure that the operation of the <strong>legal</strong> system promotes justice on a basis of equal opportunity, and shall, in particular, provide <strong>free legal aid,</strong> by suitable legislation or schemes or in any other way, to ensure that opportunities for securing justice are not denied to any citizen by reason of economic or other disability.</li>
<li><strong>Articles 14 and 22(1)</strong> also make it obligatory for the State to ensure equality before the law and a <strong>legal system</strong> which promotes justice on a basis of equal opportunity to all.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>NALSA&rsquo;s Efforts</h3>
<p><strong>Front offices</strong> at the district level are being upgraded to make them one-stop centers for legal aid seekers.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Updating</strong> the record of legal aided cases.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>This way, the legal aid seekers are kept updated about the progress of their cases and better monitoring of cases takes place.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>NALSA&rsquo;s outreach programmes (like door to door campaigns) have made people aware of the legal advice and other forms of legal services such as drafting of applications etc.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Full-time empanelment:</strong> Currently, the engagement of LAC is usually on an ad-hoc basis. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Around 45% of the regulators opined that making them full time will definitely improve the level of commitment among the LAC.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Honorarium:</strong> Study recommended that making honorarium (a payment is given for professional services that are rendered nominally without charge) for a legal aided case at par with private cases, will compel LAC to not withdraw or deny aided cases in middle.</li>
<li><strong>Remuneration:</strong> Remuneration towards the empanelled lawyers should be increased every year. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>This is important for those who are serving in juvenile courts as they are not allowed to have their own private practice.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/quality-of-free-legal-aid'
		],
		(int) 18 => [
			'title' => 'Airplane Contrails and Global Warming',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>According to a recent study, the airplanes contrails contribute more to global warming than the CO<sub>2</sub> emitted by an aircraft.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Moreover, the contrails&rsquo; impact on climate change will triple by 2050 than it was in 2006 because of following reasons: <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Modern planes flying slightly higher than their predecessors, which is likely to lead to more contrail cloud formation over the tropics.</li>
<li>Increase in air traffic.</li>
<li>Improvements in fuel efficiency.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The study also suggested that the impact on the atmosphere due to contrail cirrus clouds will be stronger over Northern America and Europe which are the busiest air traffic areas on the globe. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>However, the impact will also increase in Asia as the air travel is also growing in the region.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The warming effect of cirrus clouds is also short-lived, and because it occurs in the upper atmosphere, it&rsquo;s not clear how much of a difference it actually makes for temperatures at Earth&rsquo;s surface.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Contrails</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The hot, humid exhaust from jet engines mixes with the atmosphere, which at high altitude is of much lower vapor pressure and temperature than the exhaust gas.</li>
<li>The water vapor contained in the jet exhaust condenses and may freeze, and this mixing process forms clouds.</li>
<li>Most of these contrail cirrus clouds dissipate quickly, but under the right conditions they can remain for hours, and when that happens they warm the atmosphere by absorbing thermal radiation emitted by the Earth.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>Impacts</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Jet engine exhaust contains carbon dioxide, oxides of sulfur and nitrogen, unburned fuel, soot and metal particles, as well as water vapor.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The soot provides condensation sites for water vapor. Any particles present in the air provide additional sites.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Depending on a plane's altitude, and the temperature and humidity of the atmosphere, contrails may vary in their thickness, extent and duration.</li>
<li>The nature and persistence of jet contrails can be used to predict the weather. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>A thin, short-lived contrail indicates low-humidity air at high altitude, a sign of fair weather, whereas a thick, long-lasting contrail reflects humid air at high altitudes and can be an early indicator of a storm.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Significance</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Aviation already has a sizable influence on the climate. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>In 2005, air traffic contributed about 5 percent of humans&rsquo; influence on climate change.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Air traffic roughly doubles every 15 years. And contrails are the aviation industry&rsquo;s biggest climate influencer, even more than CO<sub>2</sub> emissions from planes. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>But policies to lower aviation&rsquo;s influence on climate change focus on CO<sub>2</sub> emissions, all but ignoring the impact of contrails.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The study suggests that contrails are a major factor that climate policies should take into account.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>It is important to recognise the significant impact of non-CO<sub>2</sub> emissions, such as contrail cirrus, on climate and to take those effects into consideration when setting up emission trading systems or schemes like the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/important-facts-for-prelims-25th-january-2019" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CORSIA Agreement</a>.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Solution</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Cleaner aircraft emissions would solve the issue, as the reduction of the number of soot particles emitted by aircraft engines decreases the number of ice crystals in contrails and that means climate impact of contrail cirrus will also be reduced.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>However, soot would have to be decreased a lot to have a significant effect&ndash;even if it was reduced by 90 percent, the contrail cirrus clouds will produce more warming in 2050 than they did in 2006.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Therefore, the best option for reducing this effect and aviation&rsquo;s carbon footprint is to fly less.</li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/airplane-contrails-and-global-warming'
		],
		(int) 19 => [
			'title' => 'Japanese Encephalitis (JE)',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>The Central government has sent a team to Assam to review the situation after Japanese Encephalitis (JE) cases were reported from the state.</p>
<h3>Japanese Encephalitis (JE)</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Japanese encephalitis is a disease <strong>caused by a flavi virus</strong> that affects the membranes around the brain. Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) is also a major cause of <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/acute-encephalitis-syndrome" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES)</strong></a> in India.</li>
<li><strong>Transmission:</strong> The disease is transmitted to humans through bites from infected <strong>mosquitoes of the Culex species</strong>. These mosquitoes breed mainly in rice fields and large water bodies rich in aquatic vegetations. Migratory birds along with pigs in the community also play an important role in the transmission of JE from one area to other areas.</li>
<li><strong>Symptoms:</strong> Most people infected with JE do not have symptoms or have only mild symptoms. However, a small percentage of infected people develop inflammation of the brain (encephalitis), with symptoms including sudden onset of headache, high fever, disorientation, coma, tremors and convulsions.</li>
<li><strong>Treatment:</strong> There is <strong>no antiviral treatment</strong> for patients with JE. Treatment, available, is supportive to relieve symptoms and stabilize the patient.</li>
<li><strong>Prevention:</strong> Safe and effective <strong>JE vaccines</strong> are available to prevent the disease.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>In India,</strong> mass vaccination with JE vaccine was started in a phased manner subsequent to the major outbreak in 2005.</li>
<li>JE vaccination is also <strong>included under the Universal Immunization Program</strong> of the Government of India.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Universal Immunization Program</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Immunization</strong> is the process whereby a person is made immune or resistant to an infectious disease, typically by the administration of a vaccine. Vaccines are substances that stimulate the body&rsquo;s own immune system to protect the person against subsequent infection or disease.</li>
<li>Immunization Programme in India was <strong>introduced in the year 1978</strong> as &lsquo;Expanded Programme of Immunization (EPI)&rsquo; by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.</li>
<li>In the year <strong>1985</strong>, the programme was modified as <strong>&lsquo;Universal Immunization Programme (UIP)&rsquo;</strong>.</li>
<li>Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India provides <strong>several vaccines to infants, children and pregnant women</strong> through the Universal Immunisation Programme.</li>
<li>Through this programme, the government provides several vaccines to infants, children and pregnant women.</li>
<li>Vaccines included in the programme are for diseases including <strong>Tuberculosis, Diphtheria, Pertussis, Tetanus, Polio, Hepatitis B, Pneumonia and Meningitis due to Haemophilus Influenzae type b (Hib), Measles, Rubella, Japanese Encephalitis (JE) and Rotavirus diarrhoea</strong>.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/japanese-encephalitis-je'
		]
	],
	'updates' => object(Cake\ORM\Query) {

		'(help)' => 'This is a Query object, to get the results execute or iterate it.',
		'sql' => 'SELECT articles.article_id AS `articles__article_id`, articles.category_id AS `articles__category_id`, articles.title AS `articles__title`, articles.description AS `articles__description`, articles.shortdescription AS `articles__shortdescription`, articles.featuredimage AS `articles__featuredimage`, articles.tag_id AS `articles__tag_id`, articles.secondary_tag AS `articles__secondary_tag`, articles.type AS `articles__type`, articles.publishon AS `articles__publishon`, articles.posturl AS `articles__posturl`, articles.metatitle AS `articles__metatitle`, articles.metadescription AS `articles__metadescription`, articles.metakeyword AS `articles__metakeyword`, articles.status AS `articles__status`, articles.sort_order AS `articles__sort_order`, articles.addedby AS `articles__addedby`, articles.updatedby AS `articles__updatedby`, articles.added AS `articles__added`, articles.modified AS `articles__modified`, articles.whatsnewid AS `articles__whatsnewid`, articles.display_printpdf AS `articles__display_printpdf`, articles.display_comments AS `articles__display_comments`, articles.pdf_name AS `articles__pdf_name`, articles.display_archive AS `articles__display_archive` FROM articles articles WHERE status = :c0 ORDER BY publishon desc LIMIT 10',
		'params' => [
			[maximum depth reached]
		],
		'defaultTypes' => [
			[maximum depth reached]
		],
		'decorators' => (int) 0,
		'executed' => false,
		'hydrate' => true,
		'buffered' => true,
		'formatters' => (int) 0,
		'mapReducers' => (int) 0,
		'contain' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'matching' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'extraOptions' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'repository' => object(App\Model\Table\ArticlesTable) {}
	
	},
	'page' => (int) 182,
	'search' => 'class',
	'totalPages' => (float) 277,
	'title' => 'Search'
]
$progress = []
$bookmarks = []
$notes = []
$mynote = []
$topdata = [
	(int) 0 => object(Cake\ORM\Entity) {

		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/estore/test-series-en/upsc-mains-english/sociology-optional-mains-online-en',
		'title' => 'Sociology Mains Test Series 2020 - Join Now',
		'type' => (int) 1,
		'date' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenDate) {},
		'[new]' => false,
		'[accessible]' => [
			[maximum depth reached]
		],
		'[dirty]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[original]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[virtual]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[errors]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[invalid]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[repository]' => 'news'
	
	},
	(int) 1 => object(Cake\ORM\Entity) {

		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/estore/test-series-en/upsc-prelims-english/prelims-test-series-2021-online',
		'title' => 'Prelims Test Series 2021 (Online) - Join Now',
		'type' => (int) 1,
		'date' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenDate) {},
		'[new]' => false,
		'[accessible]' => [
			[maximum depth reached]
		],
		'[dirty]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[original]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[virtual]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[errors]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[invalid]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[repository]' => 'news'
	
	},
	(int) 2 => object(Cake\ORM\Entity) {

		'url' => 'https://bit.ly/drishtibooks',
		'title' => 'Get Drishti Publications books & magazines on Amazon - click here!',
		'type' => (int) 1,
		'date' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenDate) {},
		'[new]' => false,
		'[accessible]' => [
			[maximum depth reached]
		],
		'[dirty]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[original]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[virtual]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[errors]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[invalid]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[repository]' => 'news'
	
	},
	(int) 3 => object(Cake\ORM\Entity) {

		'url' => 'https://bit.ly/joindrishti',
		'title' => 'Click here for Online Inquiry form to join Drishti IAS programmes',
		'type' => (int) 1,
		'date' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenDate) {},
		'[new]' => false,
		'[accessible]' => [
			[maximum depth reached]
		],
		'[dirty]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[original]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[virtual]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[errors]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[invalid]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[repository]' => 'news'
	
	}
]
$searchdata = []
$searchlist = [
	(int) 0 => [
		'title' => 'El-Nino Threatens Monsoon',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>According to the<a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/cyclone-fani" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong> India Meteorological Department</strong></a>, the deficiency in rainfall in June was 33%.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>With the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/near-normal-monsoon-in-2019-imd" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>El-Nino</strong></a> phenomenon being observed since the beginning of 2019, there are fears that this might lead to a deficient monsoon.</li>
</ul>
<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/368image7.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/368image7.jpg" width="589" height="514" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" caption="false" /></a></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Deficient rainfall in June is devastating for farmers in large reaches of the country who have sown in expectation of rains.</li>
<li>This shortfall is observed not only in aggregate but also across regions.</li>
<li>Although a direct correlation between the two (rainfall deficiency &amp; El-Nino) has not been established, rainfall data from 2000 onwards shows that monsoon rainfall is heavily impacted in the El-Nino years.</li>
<li>In five of these six El-Nino years (2002,2004,2006,2009,2014,2015), the monsoon rainfall was lower than the long-term average by 12% to 23%.</li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/el-nino-threatens-monsoon'
	],
	(int) 1 => [
		'title' => 'Non-Communicable Diseases in India',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>According to Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) report titled <strong>&ldquo;India: Health of the Nation&rsquo;s States&rdquo;,</strong> contribution of Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) to total death in the Country was 61.8% in 2016, as compared to 37.9% in 1990.</li>
<li>Some examples of common NCDs, i.e. diabetes, hypertension and cancers (Oral, Breast and Cervical cancer) are on the rise in India.</li>
<li>Risk factors for NCDs inter alia include ageing, unhealthy diet, lack of physical activity, high blood pressure, high blood sugar, high cholesterol and overweight</li>
<li>Also In the States of Kerala, Goa and Tamil Nadu, due to <strong>epidemiological transition</strong>, fewer deaths are recorded for communicable, maternal, neonatal and nutritional diseases, thereby raising the share of NCDs in total deaths</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Epidemiologic Transition</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The epidemiologic transition is that process by which the pattern of mortality and disease is transformed from one of high mortality among infants and children to one of degenerative and man-made diseases (such as those attributed to smoking) affecting principally the elderly.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Though public health is a State subject, Central Government supplements the efforts of the State Governments. For example:<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>National Programme for Prevention and Control of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascular Diseases and Stroke (NPCDCS) is being implemented under the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/national-health-mission-and-janani-suraksha-yojana" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>National Health Mission (NHM)</strong></a>.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>The objectives of the programme include health promotion activities and opportunistic screening for common Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) including cancer</li>
<li>Key components of population-based screening include community-based risk assessment, screening, referral, and follow up of all individuals of 30 years and above for common NCDs</li>
<li>The initiative will help in early diagnosis and will generate awareness on risk factors of NCDs.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Citing growing occurrence of cancer in India, the Union government sought to enhance the facilities for tertiary care of cancer.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>The Central Government is implementing Strengthening of Tertiary Care Cancer facilities scheme to support setting up of State Cancer Institutes (SCI) and Tertiary Care Centres (TCCC) in different parts of the country.</li>
<li>Oncology in its various aspects has a focus in case of new AIIMS and many upgraded institutions under <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/punjab-seeks-special-category-status" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY).</strong></a></li>
<li>Affordable Medicines and Reliable Implants for Treatment (AMRIT) Deendayal outlets have been opened at 159 Institutions/Hospitals with an objective to make available Cancer and Cardiovascular Diseases drugs and implants at discounted prices to the patients.</li>
<li>Jan Aushadhi stores are set up by the Department of Pharmaceuticals to provide generic medicines at affordable prices.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/non-communicable-diseases-in-india'
	],
	(int) 2 => [
		'title' => 'Credit Cards for Fishermen',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>Recently the Minister of State for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying announced the extension of the facility of Kisan Credit Card (KCC) to fisheries and animal husbandry farmers to help them meet their working capital needs</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>This will help fisheries and animal husbandry farmers to meet their short term credit requirements of rearing of animals, poultry birds, fish, shrimp, other aquatic organisms and capture of fish.</li>
<li>Fish, Poultry &amp; Dairy Farmers (individual &amp; groups/partners/sharecroppers/tenant farmers), Self Help Groups, Joint Liability Groups and Woman group are eligible under extended KCC scheme.</li>
<li>Under KCC facility, Interest subvention is available for animal husbandry and fisheries farmers @ 2% per annum at the time of disbursal of loan and additional interest subvention @ 3 % per annum in case of prompt repayment as Prompt Repayment Incentive (repayment of the loan within a period of one year from the date of advance).</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Kisan Credit Card</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Kisan Credit Card (KCC) scheme was introduced in 1998 for providing adequate and timely credit support from the banking system under a single window with flexible and simplified procedure to the farmers for their cultivation and other needs like purchase of agriculture inputs such as seeds, fertilizers, pesticides etc. and draw cash for their production needs.</li>
<li>The scheme was further extended for the investment credit requirement of farmers viz. allied and non-farm activities in the year 2004.</li>
<li>KCC covers Post-harvest expenses; Produce marketing loan; Consumption requirements of farmer household; Working capital for maintenance of farm assets and activities allied to agriculture; Investment credit requirement for agriculture and allied activities.</li>
<li>The Kisan Credit Card Scheme is implemented by Commercial Banks, RRBs, Small Finance Banks and Cooperatives.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Interest Subvention Scheme</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The interest subvention scheme for farmers aims at providing short term credit to farmers at the <strong>subsidised interest rate.</strong></li>
<li>The policy came into force with effect from 2006-07</li>
<li>The Interest Subvention Scheme is being implemented by <a href="/important-institutions/drishti-specials-important-institutions-national-institutions/national-bank-for-agriculture-and-rural-development-nabard" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>NABARD</strong></a> and <a href="/important-institutions/drishti-specials-important-institutions-national-institutions/important-institutions-national-institution-reserve-bank-of-india" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>RBI</strong></a>.</li>
<li>In case farmers do not repay the short term crop loan in time they would be eligible for interest subvention of 2% as against 5% available.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/credit-cards-for-fishermen'
	],
	(int) 3 => [
		'title' => 'Tamil Yeoman',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>Tamil Nadu has declared the Tamil Yeoman butterfly species (endemic to western ghats) as the <strong>state butterfly.</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Tamil Yeoman <strong>(Cirrochroa thais)</strong> is uniformly orange in colour with a dark brown outer ring.<a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/933image4.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/933image4.jpg" width="232" height="181" style="float: right;" caption="false" /></a></li>
<li>Also known as <strong>tamil maravan</strong> which means warrior.</li>
<li>Tamil Yeoman butterfly species moves in groups in <strong>large numbers</strong>, but at few places and are found mainly in hilly areas.</li>
<li>Butterflies are significant for environment as they play the main role in <strong>pollination</strong> and <strong>food chain.</strong> <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>For many other species like birds and reptiles, butterflies become a prey.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Tamil Nadu is the<strong> fifth state</strong> in the country to announce its state butterfly and <strong>Maharashtra</strong> was the first in the country to announce its state butterfly <strong>(Blue Mormon)</strong> followed by Uttarakhand <strong>(Common Peacock)</strong>, Karnataka <strong>(the Southern Birdwing)</strong> and Kerala <strong>(Malabar banded peacock or <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/important-facts-for-prelims-19th-november-2018" target="_blank" rel="noopener">buddha butterfly</a>).</strong></li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/tamil-yeoman'
	],
	(int) 4 => [
		'title' => 'Food Processing in India',
		'catname' => 'Paper 3',
		'desc' => '<h3>Why In News?</h3>
<p>With farm distress making headlines, the state government of <strong>Tamil Nadu unveiled its own food processing policy</strong> keeping an eye on increasing farmers&rsquo; income, reducing wastage of food products and value addition of farm products, to ensure a healthy food processing industry.</p>
<p>The objective is to encourage setting up of food processing industries by agro-entrepreneurs, availing financial assistance from Union.</p>
<h3>What is Food Processing</h3>
<p><strong>Food Processing</strong> includes process under which any raw product of agriculture, dairy, animal husbandry, meat, poultry or fishing is transformed through a process (involving employees, power, machines or money) in such a way that its original physical properties undergo a change and the transformed product has commercial value and is suitable for human and animal consumption.</p>
<p>It also includes the <strong>process of value addition</strong> to produce products through methods such as preservation, addition of food additives, drying etc. with a view to preserve food substances in an effective manner, enhance their shelf life and quality.</p>
<h3>Significance</h3>
<p>The <strong>Food Processing Industry (FPI)</strong> is of enormous significance as it provides vital linkages and synergies that it promotes between the two pillars of the economy, i.e. agriculture and industry.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Employment Generation:</strong> It provides direct and indirect employment opportunities, because it acts as a bridge between Agriculture and Manufacturing.</li>
<li><strong>Doubling of farmers&rsquo; income:</strong> With the rise in demand for agri-products there will be commensurate rise in the price paid to the farmer, thereby increasing the income.</li>
<li><strong>Reduce malnutrition:</strong> Processed foods when fortified with vitamins and minerals can reduce the nutritional gap in the population.</li>
<li><strong>Reduce food wastage:</strong> UN estimates that 40% of production is wasted. Similarly, NITI Aayog estimated annual post-harvest losses of close to Rs 90,000 crore. With greater thrust on proper sorting and grading close to the farm gate, and diverting extra produce to FPI, this wastage could also be reduced, leading to better price realisation for farmers.</li>
<li><strong>Boosts Trade and Earns Foreign exchange:</strong> It is an important source of foreign exchange. For e.g. Indian Basmati rice is in great demand in Middle Eastern countries.</li>
<li><strong>Curbing Migration:</strong> Food Processing being a labour intensive industry will provide localized employment opportunities and thus will reduce the push factor in source regions of migration.</li>
<li><strong>Curbing Food Inflation:</strong> Processing increases the shelf life of the food thus keeping supplies in tune with the demand thereby controlling food-inflation. <strong>For e.g. Frozen Safal peas are available throughout the year.</strong></li>
<li><strong>Crop-diversification:</strong> Food processing will require different types of inputs thus creating an incentive for the farmer to grow and diversify crops.</li>
<li><strong>Preserve the nutritive quality of food and prolongs the shelf life</strong> by preventing them from spoilage due to microbes and other spoilage agents,</li>
<li><strong>Enhances the quality and taste of food</strong> thereby bringing more choices in food basket</li>
<li><strong>Enhances consumer choices:</strong> Today, food processing allows food from other parts of the world to be transported to our local market and vice versa.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Status of Food Processing In India</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>India is the world's second largest producer of fruits &amp; vegetables after China but hardly 2% of the produce is processed.</li>
<li>In spite of a large production base, the level of processing is low (less than 10%). Approximately 2% of fruits and vegetables, 8% marine, 35% milk, 6% poultry are processed. Lack of adequate processable varieties continues to pose a significant challenge to this sector.</li>
</ul>
<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578481753_image19.png" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/1578481753_image19.png" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="700" caption="false" /></a></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>India's livestock population is largest in the world with 50% of the world's buffaloes and 20% of cattle, but only about 1% of total meat production is converted to value added products.</li>
<li>More than 75% of the industry is in unorganized sector.</li>
<li>Processing can be delineated into primary and secondary processing. Rice, sugar, edible oil and flour mills are examples of primary processing. Secondary processing includes the processing of fruits and vegetables, dairy, bakery, chocolates and other items.</li>
<li>Most processing in India can be classified as <strong>primary processing</strong>, which has lower value-addition compared to secondary processing. There is a need to move up the value chain in processed food products to boost farmer incomes. For instance, horticulture products, such as fruits and vegetables, carry the potential for higher value-addition when compared to cereal crops.</li>
<li>At present, India&rsquo;s agricultural exports predominantly consist of raw materials, which are then processed in other countries, again indicating the space to move up the value chain.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Food processing industry in India can be segmented as follows</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Cereal/ pulse milling</li>
<li>Fruit &amp; vegetable processing</li>
<li>Milk &amp; milk products</li>
<li>Beverages like coffee, tea &amp; cocoa</li>
<li>Fish, poultry, eggs &amp; products</li>
<li>Meat &amp; meat products</li>
<li>Aerated waters/soft drinks 8. Beer/alcoholic beverages</li>
<li>Bread, biscuits &amp; other bakery products</li>
<li>Edible oil/fats.</li>
<li>Confectioneries</li>
<li>Breakfast cereals, malt protein, weaning, extruded food products</li>
</ul>
<h3>Problems in Food Processing Industries</h3>
<p>At present most of the industries are in unorganized sectors. So, number of problems are arising from different sections of the industries. Some of the basic problems encountered by Indian food industries at different levels are given below.&nbsp;</p>
<p><strong>Farm level problems</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Poor yield of farm produce and therefore low returns.</li>
<li>Lack of material resources necessary for development.</li>
<li>Primitive methods of farming.</li>
<li>No control on the quality of inputs and lack of finance to manage.</li>
<li>Vagaries of weather.</li>
<li>Unavailability of reliable handling and transportation system.</li>
<li>Lack of storage facilities at farm.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Objectives of Draft National Food Processing Policy 2017</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>To reduce wastages, increase value addition, ensure better prices for farmers while ensuring availability of affordable and quality produce to consumers</li>
<li>To address the challenges of malnourishment and malnutrition by ensuring availability of nutritionally balanced foods</li>
<li>To make food processing more competitive and future ready through creation of adequate infrastructure facilities along the supply chain, use of modern technology and innovation, promoting traceability, food safety, encouraging optimum capacity utilization of assets and resources.</li>
<li>To position India as the most preferred investment destination for the agribusiness and food processing.</li>
<li>To generate more opportunities for the development of the agribusiness and Food Processing Industry, and create employment.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<p><strong>Distributors&rsquo; problems</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Lack of modern transportation facilities and high cost</li>
<li>Inadequate cold storage faculties</li>
<li>Irregular quality and quantity of farm produce</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Processing industries problem</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Financing</li>
<li>Higher import duties</li>
<li>Higher cost of raw material and packaging</li>
<li>Inadequate transport and cold storage facilities</li>
<li>Infrequent availability of refrigerated containers</li>
<li>Staggering advertising costs</li>
<li>Limited domestic market</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Consumer discontent</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Does not get value for money</li>
<li>The price variation is a day to day affair</li>
<li>Continued dependence on seasonal products</li>
<li>Lack of variety of semi processed or prepared convenience food at affordable prices.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Reasons for slow growth of processed foods in India</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Majority of the population has low-income levels and cannot afford processed foods.</li>
<li>The high cost of packaging pushes up the cost of the processed items and thereby makes them out of reach of the common man.</li>
<li>Indians traditionally prefer fresh foods that are cooked rather than use preserved foods.</li>
<li>There is also no national character for food habits and these keep changing from region to region.</li>
<li>However, the scenario is changing with some foods, especially fast food, acquiring the national character. Also some foods such as idli, dosa, some Punjabi foods like chhole, alu mutter etc., some Chinese foods and now the western foods like burgers and pizza are fast gaining national popularity.</li>
<li>Transport (both road and railways) and communication are poor.</li>
<li>There are no reliable cold chains, which are necessary for temperature sensitive foods like fruits &amp; vegetables, ice creams etc.</li>
<li>Modernization is unaffordable for small-scale manufacturer but the large companies do not find investment justifiable due to small size of the market.</li>
<li>Supermarkets are not yet popular although a few are making an appearance.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Challenges</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Extensive use of fertilizers, pesticides</strong> and other chemicals has raised concerns about the quality of food which should be looked into. Further, protection is needed from unfair and hazardous practices such adulteration.</li>
<li>Care should be taken as processed foods <strong>may not be nutritionally balanced</strong> and may pose a health risk especially for children unless fortified. This could trigger a negative perception regarding processed foods and could likely impact the economic gains made by this sector.</li>
<li><strong>Low value-added in processing:</strong> There is major fragmentation of food processing capacity, with a large unorganized segment and widespread use of primitive processing. This results in lower value-addition at the processing stage, especially from a nutritional point of view.</li>
<li><strong>Limited ability to control quality and safety:</strong> The sheer number of players, especially in the large unorganized segment, involved in the food value-chain, makes implementation of quality and safety norms difficult. This has led to practices such as milk adulteration and use of carbide for fruit ripening becoming more widespread.</li>
<li><strong>Low consumer awareness:</strong> Consumer awareness is a critical aspect of an improved nutritional situation in the country. Consumers currently lack awareness of several nutritional and food safety and quality aspects.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Suggestions</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Storage capacities and infrastructure</strong> should be increased.</li>
<li>Develop the <strong>agricultural facility</strong> with good agricultural practice which leads to the transition from staple food crops to diversification of crops.</li>
<li>Backward linkages to farmers need to be made more robust. <strong>Contract farming</strong> can be promoted. According to the <strong>Model Contract Farming Act, 2018,</strong> the contract will specify the quantity, quality and price of produce being supplied. This would shield farmers from price volatility, subject to quality commitments.</li>
<li><strong>Skilling is required at two levels.</strong> First at the farm gate in promoting agricultural best practices and in processing activities.</li>
<li><strong>Public investment and connectivity</strong> should be increased.</li>
<li><strong>Slaughter animal rules</strong> should be framed in a comprehensive policy framework.</li>
<li><strong>Farm pattern diversification</strong> which leads to a production of variety of crops other than constant set of crops which creates lot of job opportunities.</li>
<li><strong>Second Green Revolution</strong> should be updated with the diversified technologies.</li>
<li>We have to <strong>encourage the domestic startups and industry</strong> than the international companies.</li>
<li>There should be a <strong>Centre of Excellence</strong> between centre and state.</li>
<li>Should have more training institutes for upcoming entrepreneurs and it should be in all states.Scholarship should be given to the upcoming entrepreneurs.</li>
<li><strong>New technology should be updated</strong> in the training institutes and skill development should be given the top most priority.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Government&rsquo;s Initiative</h3>
<p>It has been the endeavor of the Government to promote food processing industry in the country to reduce wastage of agricultural produce and minimize post- harvest losses.</p>
<p>According to<strong> &ldquo;Assessment of Quantitative Harvest and Post-Harvest Losses of Major Crops and Commodities in India&rdquo;</strong> by ICAR the percentage of post-harvest losses as assessed by the study is as under:</p>
<table border="1" style="height: 181px; width: 60.3302%; border-collapse: collapse; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" height="181">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 17px;">
<td style="width: 16.0648%; height: 17px; background-color: #0f27ff;"><span style="color: #ffffff;"><strong>Crops</strong></span></td>
<td style="width: 11.8745%; height: 17px; background-color: #0f27ff;"><span style="color: #ffffff;"><strong>Cumulative wastage (%)</strong></span></td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;">
<td style="width: 16.0648%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">Cereals</td>
<td style="width: 11.8745%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">4.65 &ndash; 5.99</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;">
<td style="width: 16.0648%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">Pulses</td>
<td style="width: 11.8745%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">6.36 &ndash; 8.41</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;">
<td style="width: 16.0648%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">Oil Seeds</td>
<td style="width: 11.8745%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">3.08 &ndash; 9.96</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;">
<td style="width: 16.0648%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">Fruits &amp; Vegetables</td>
<td style="width: 11.8745%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">4.58 &ndash; 15.88</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;">
<td style="width: 16.0648%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">Milk</td>
<td style="width: 11.8745%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">0.92</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;">
<td style="width: 16.0648%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">Fisheries (Inland)</td>
<td style="width: 11.8745%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">5.23</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;">
<td style="width: 16.0648%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">Fisheries (Marine)</td>
<td style="width: 11.8745%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">10.52</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;">
<td style="width: 16.0648%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">Meat</td>
<td style="width: 11.8745%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">2.71</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 17px;">
<td style="width: 16.0648%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">Poultry</td>
<td style="width: 11.8745%; height: 17px; background-color: #d3eaf0;">6.74</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>With the above in view, the Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI) is implementing <strong>PMKSY (Pradhan Mantri Kisan SAMPADA Yojana)</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The objective of PMKSY is to supplement agriculture, modernize processing and decrease agri-waste.</li>
<li>It is an umbrella scheme incorporating ongoing schemes</li>
<li>Under PMKSY the following schemes are to be implemented.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>Mega Food Parks.</li>
<li>Integrated Cold Chain, Value Addition and Preservation Infrastructure.</li>
<li>Creation/Expansion of Food Processing/Preservation Capacities.</li>
<li>Infrastructure for Agro Processing Clusters.</li>
<li>Scheme for Creation of Backward and Forward Linkages.</li>
<li>Food Safety &amp; Quality Assurance Infrastructure.</li>
<li>Human Resources and Institutions.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy:</strong> FDI up to 100%, under the automatic route is allowed in food processing industries.</li>
<li><strong>Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA)&ndash;</strong> an apex organization under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry &ndash; focusses on &lsquo;export&rsquo; of scheduled products.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Food processing has numerous advantages which are specific to Indian context. It has capacity to lift millions out of poverty and malnutrition. Government should develop industry in a way keeping in mind the interests of small scale industry along with attracting big ticket domestic and foreign investments.</li>
<li>The entire food value chain in India is controlled by multiple ministries, departments and laws. A comprehensive policy will ensure that various initiatives across the departments are aligned to the overall goal of ensuring availability, awareness, affordability, access, quality and safety of food.</li>
<li>The target of ensuring food security for more than a billion people requires a concerted effort by all stakeholders including government and the food processing industry. In addition to private players and government, industry bodies and academia will also have a crucial role in the success of these initiatives.</li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/to-the-points/paper3/food-processing-in-india'
	],
	(int) 5 => [
		'title' => 'Importance of Africa in Indo-Pacific Strategy',
		'catname' => 'News Editorials',
		'desc' => '<div class="border">
<p>This article is based on <a href="https://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/re-imagining-india-and-africa-policy-narendra-modi-government-5809769/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">&ldquo;Reimagining India and Africa&rdquo;</a> that appeared in Indian Express on 2 July 2019. It talks about the need for India to integrate Africa into its Indo-Pacific policy.</p>
</div>
<p>Geographically, Indo-Pacific refers to the Indian and the Pacific Oceans between the east coast of Africa and the American west coast and their several littoral countries. Though the term Indo-pacific has been in global strategic writings and speeches from the start of the 21st century but envisions of Indo-pacific by US President Trump (to check the rise of China) at the 2017 APEC Summit in Vietnam has changed geopolitical contours of the region.</p>
<p>Since then every major power in the Indo-pacific region has formulated their versions of Indo-pacific. For example, recently Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has adopted the &lsquo;ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific&rsquo; after more than a year of negotiations. But the strategy for Indo-Pacific neglects the importance of Africa and India is no exception to this fallacy.</p>
<h3>What is the importance of Africa in the Indo-Pacific equation especially for India</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Envision of Indo-pacific seemed to have elevated India to a position of prominence in the region which can be reflected by:
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>Strategic convergence with the US</strong> that would help to contain China&rsquo;s dominance.</li>
<li>In pursuance to the above aim, India appeared to be a <strong>member of Quad</strong> (strategic talks and military exercises between the US, Japan, Australia and India)</li>
<li>But India must not forget Africa is the route through which India's global power aspirations pass.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Importance of Africa for India can be seen in the following dimensions:
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Africa has turned from <strong>"The Hopeless Continent"</strong> to <strong>"A Hopeful Continent"</strong> given its demography, resources, market etc.</li>
<li>Also, India and Africa share historical ties, the 1955 Bandung Conference was not just about Asia or non-alignment but promoting Afro-Asian solidarity.</li>
<li>Africa assumes strategic importance for India in relation to:
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li><strong>Geopolitical interest:</strong> South-South cooperation, UNSC reforms, Competition with China, Cooperation in global issues such as climate change and WTO reforms.</li>
<li><strong>Geo-economic interest:</strong> Energy security - Oil (Nigeria), the supply of Uranium (South Africa), huge mineral resources of Africa, growing population of Africa provides for new opportunities for goods and services exports from India.</li>
<li><strong>Geostrategic interest:</strong> Maritime security - East coast countries are important for peace and prosperity of the Indian Ocean region, trade relations across and beyond Africa and interests of Indian diaspora in Africa.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Since the rise of Asia and Africa, these continents are reconstituting the geographies of the eastern hemisphere and breaking down the artificial mental maps that emerged in the 20th century. Thus, India must recognise the growing importance of Africa for the security and prosperity of the Indo-Pacific.</li>
<li>However, there are several issues that impede India's engagement with Africa</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>The New African Scramble</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Africa is witnessing a phenomenon called the <strong>&ldquo;New Scramble for Africa"</strong>.
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>If Europe and North America dominated Africa&rsquo;s economic relationship in the past, China, India, Japan, South Korea and the ASEAN share the geopolitical space today with the US and EU. China, Japan, Korea and India are also major investors in Africa as well as providers of development assistance</li>
<li>China&rsquo;s maritime silk road is about connecting China&rsquo;s eastern seaboard with the Indian Ocean littoral.</li>
<li>China is involved in the development of 47 ports in sub-Saharan Africa.</li>
<li>China&rsquo;s expanding defence and security engagement in Africa. Over the last few years, China has emerged as the largest major arms supplier to Sub-Saharan Africa.</li>
<li>The US, which was focused on terrorism and other non-military threats after 9/11, is paying attention to Africa&rsquo;s new geopolitics.</li>
<li>Russia, which seemed to turn its back on Africa after the collapse of the Soviet Union, is now returning with some vigour.</li>
<li>Also, many regional actors like Iran, UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey are taking a growing interest in African security affairs.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>India lacks diplomatic presence in Africa as India has an embassy only in 29 out of 54 African countries.</li>
<li>A lot of African countries are suffering from political instability.</li>
<li>Thus pan African strategy is not working as Africa is not homogenous</li>
<li>Also, there is a saying that - "India promises and China delivers". India's implementation and delivery have been flawed.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>India should focus on its comparative advantages like services sector, pharma and private sector relationship.</li>
<li>India has leverage over China as the latter's investments are perceived as neocolonial whereas India is engaged in partnership based on mutual benefit and capacity building</li>
<li>Africa is too big for both India and China, so they both must cooperate and wherever there is competition it must be constructive.</li>
<li>India elevated the engagement with Africa by hosting a summit in Delhi for all the African leaders, unveiling sustained high-level political contact, expanding India&rsquo;s diplomatic footprint, strengthening economic engagement and boosting military diplomacy.</li>
<li>But the scale and speed of Africa&rsquo;s current transformation need to be a priority on India's strategic map.</li>
</ul>
<p>Indian foreign policy has always envisaged a rules-based order anchored upon international law, openness, transparency, inclusivity and commitment to advancing economic engagement in the region. In this regard India can focus on four areas of cooperation with Africa i.e. maritime cooperation; connectivity; UN Sustainable Development Goals 2030; and economic development.</p>
<table border="1" style="border-collapse: collapse; background-color: #fcd4db; border-color: #c40a2c;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 1256px;"><em><strong>Drishti input:</strong></em><br /><br />Indi&rsquo;s Indo-pacific strategy reflects the neglect of strategically important Africa. Comment.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p></p>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/importance-of-africa-in-indo-pacific-strategy'
	],
	(int) 6 => [
		'title' => 'NASA’s Punch Mission',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>Dipankar Banerjee, a solar physicist from Indian Institute of Astrophysics is a<strong> co-investigator of NASA's PUNCH mission.</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>PUNCH, which stands for <strong>&ldquo;Polarimeter to Unify the Corona and Heliosphere,&rdquo;</strong> is focused on understanding the transition of particles from the Sun&rsquo;s outer corona to the solar wind that fills interplanetary space.</li>
<li>PUNCH will consist of a <strong>constellation of four suitcase-sized microsats</strong> that will orbit the Earth and study how the corona, which is the atmosphere of the Sun, connects with the interplanetary medium.</li>
<li>The mission will also image and track the solar wind and coronal mass ejections, which are huge masses of plasma that get thrown out of the Sun&rsquo;s atmosphere. The coronal mass ejections can affect and drive space weather events near the Earth.</li>
<li>There is also a plan to observe the Sun using joint observations from PUNCH and Indian mission Aditya, which is underway. India is planning to send up its own satellite Aditya-L1 with an aim to study the Sun&rsquo;s corona.</li>
<li>The mission is expected to be<strong> launched in the year 2022.</strong></li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Note</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Corona:</strong> It is the outermost region of the Sun&rsquo;s atmosphere, consisting of plasma (hot ionized gas).</li>
<li><strong>Solar Wind:</strong> It is the constant stream of solar coronal material that flows off the sun.</li>
<li><strong>Interplanetary Medium:</strong> It refers to thinly scattered matter that exists between the planets and other bodies of the solar system, as well as the forces (e.g., magnetic and electric) that pervade this region of space. The material components of the interplanetary medium consist of neutral hydrogen, plasma gas comprising electrically charged particles from the Sun, cosmic rays, and dust particles.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/nasas-punch-mission'
	],
	(int) 7 => [
		'title' => 'INS Viraat to be Scrapped',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>The Union Ministry of Defence has decided to scrap<strong> INS Virat</strong> after consultation with Indian Navy.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Navy has been incurring expenditure on its upkeep such as the provision of electricity and water, and repairs till date.</li>
<li>The Navy has stated that it cannot keep Viraat indefinitely as it would block space in the already crowded Mumbai dockyard.</li>
<li>Efforts to keep it intact by converting it into a museum or other means have not been successful.</li>
<li>Ministry stated that INS Viraat could not be handed over to any State Government because of non-receipt of a self-sustaining financially complete proposal.</li>
<li>There had been demands from various quarters to not let Viraat go the INS Vikrant way, India&rsquo;s first carrier that was eventually scrapped.</li>
<li><strong>INS Vikrant, a Centaur class,</strong> was maintained by the Navy in Mumbai for 17 years as various proposals to convert it into a museum went back and forth unsuccessfully before the ship was eventually sent to a scrapyard in 2014.
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Andhra Pradesh submitted a proposal in 2016 for the conversion of Viraat as an aircraft museum, including tourist and hospitality components on a commercial basis through a joint venture with the Union government.</li>
<li>But the Defence Ministry rejected the proposal.</li>
<li>In 2018, the Maharashtra Cabinet approved a proposal to convert the carrier into a museum and hospitality center on a public-private partnership (PPP) basis, but there were no takers.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>INS Viraat</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Viraat, a Centaur class aircraft carrier weighing 27,800 tonnes, had served in the<strong> British Navy as HMS Hermes</strong> for 25 years from 1959 to 1984.</li>
<li>The Centaur class was the light fleet carrier designs built for the Royal Navy (British Navy) in the closing years of the Second World War.</li>
<li>After refurbishment, it was commissioned into the Indian Navy in May 1987.</li>
<li>It was decommissioned from the Navy in March 2017 at Naval Dockyard, Mumbai.</li>
<li>It is the <strong>longest serving warship in the world</strong>. It holds the Guinness Books of record for this.</li>
<li>Viraat has played a major role in Operation Jupiter in 1989 in the Sri Lankan peacekeeping operation.</li>
<li>It has been instrumental in sharpening the art of flying operations from a carrier deck in the Navy, which resulted in the seamless induction of INS Vikramaditya.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/ins-viraat-to-be-scrapped'
	],
	(int) 8 => [
		'title' => 'European Heatwave',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p><strong>France</strong> has recorded the hottest temperature of 45.9&deg;C amid European heatwaves.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/heat-wave-warning" target="_blank" rel="noopener">heatwave</a> in Europe has caused <strong>flash floods</strong> and <strong>forest fires</strong>.</li>
</ul>
<h3>European heatwave</h3>
<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/768image1.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/768image1.jpg" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" caption="false" width="640" height="598" /></a></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>According to the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/state-of-the-global-climate-wmo" target="_blank" rel="noopener">World Meteorological Organization</a> (WMO), heatwaves in Europe are the result of warm air masses from Africa and extreme heat condition in <strong>India, Pakistan, parts of the Middle East and Australia</strong>.</li>
<li>According to weather experts, heatwaves are being amplified by a rise in <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/global-warming-of-1-5-c-ipcc-report" target="_blank" rel="noopener">global temperature</a>.</li>
<li>A scientific study on Europe-wide heatwave by the World Weather Attribution group concluded that high temperatures in the region were made more likely by <strong>human activities</strong> that contributed to <a href="/loksabha-rajyasabha-discussions/in-depth-melting-himalayas" target="_blank" rel="noopener">climate change</a>.</li>
<li>If the current trend were to continue, heatwaves across Europe could occur as often as every other year by the <strong>2040&rsquo;s</strong>, with the possibility that <strong>temperatures may rise</strong> by 3-5 degree Celsius by 2100.</li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/european-heatwave'
	],
	(int) 9 => [
		'title' => 'One Nation One Ration Card Scheme',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Recently the Food Minister announced One Nation One Ration Card Scheme, which all states needs to implement by July 2020.</li>
<li>One Nation One Ration Card&rsquo; scheme seeks to provide <strong>portability of food security benefits</strong> all across the nation.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Features</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The poor migrant workers will be able to buy subsidised rice and wheat from any ration shop in the country but for that their <strong>ration cards must be linked to Aadhaar</strong>.</li>
<li>Migrants would only be eligible for the subsidies supported by the Centre, which include rice sold at Rs. 3/kg and wheat at Rs. 2/kg, It would not include subsidies given by their respective state government in some other state.</li>
<li>This scheme will ensure that no poor person is deprived of subsidised grains.</li>
<li>The scheme can be implemented as already 77% of the ration shops across the country have PoS machines and more than 85% of people covered under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) have their cards linked to Aadhaar.</li>
<li>For remaining beneficiaries, all the States have been given one more year to use point of sale (PoS) machines in the ration shops and implement the scheme.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>National Food Security Act</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The basic concept of food security globally is to ensure that all people, at all times, should get access to the basic food for their active and healthy life and is characterized by availability, access, utilization and stability of food.</li>
<li>Food security can also be derived from the fundamental right to life enshrined in Article 21 of the Constitution, as it may be interpreted to include right to live with human dignity, which may include the right to food and other basic necessities.</li>
<li>In pursuance of this, the enactment of the National Food Security Act, (NFSA) 2013 marks a paradigm shift in the approach to food security from welfare to the rights-based approach.</li>
<li>The Act legally entitles up to 75% of the rural population and 50% of the urban population to receive subsidized foodgrains under the Targeted Public Distribution System.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/one-nation-one-ration-card-scheme'
	],
	(int) 10 => [
		'title' => 'National Mission on Libraries',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>The Union Ministry of Culture has declared financial assistance under National Mission on Libraries (NML) to develop libraries in each States/UT.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>As per scheme, it will provide financial assistance for upgradation of infrastructure of one State Central Library and one District Library in each State/UT as NML Model Library.</li>
<li>Public libraries as being a State Subject, function under the administrative control of the respective State/UT library authority.</li>
<li>There are six Public Libraries under administrative control of Union Ministry of Culture namely National Library, Kolkata; Central Reference Library, Kolkata; Central Secretariat Library, New Delhi; Delhi Public Library, Delhi; Khuda Bakhsh Oriental Public Library, Patna and Rampur Raza Library, Rampur.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>National Mission on Libraries (NML)</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Union Ministry of Culture in 2012 formulated the NML scheme in pursuance of National Knowledge Commission recommendations for sustained attention for development of Libraries and Information Science Sector.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The National Knowledge Commission was constituted in 2005 to prepare a blueprint for reform of knowledge related institutions and infrastructure which would enable India to meet the challenges of the future.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The scheme consists of four components:<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Creation of<strong> National Virtual Library of India (NVLI)</strong></li>
<li>Setting up of NML Model Libraries</li>
<li>Quantitative &amp; Qualitative Survey of Libraries</li>
<li>Capacity Building</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The setting up on NML Model Libraries would develop 6 Libraries under Ministry of Culture, 35 State Central Libraries and 35 District Libraries with particular emphasis on economically backward districts, as model Libraries. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>In addition, 629 district libraries across the states would be provided network connectivity.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The Quantitative &amp; Qualitative Survey of Libraries would be undertaken to prepare a baseline data of libraries in India through a survey of 5000 Libraries.</li>
<li>The Capacity Building would be undertaken to enhance the professional competence of library personnel.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>National Virtual Library of India (NVLI)</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The objective of the NVLI is to facilitate the creation of a comprehensive database on digital resources of India on information about India in an open access environment.</li>
<li>Salient features of NVLI are:<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Federated searching through multilingual user interfaces.</li>
<li>Virtual learning environment.</li>
<li>E-Governance platform facilitating data analytics</li>
<li>Multilingual searching and retrieval on ontology/thesaurus based.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The project of creation of NVLI costing Rs.72.34 crore had been entrusted to IIT Bombay (in collaboration with C-DAC, Pune and IGNOU, Delhi).</li>
</ul>
</div>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/national-mission-on-libraries'
	],
	(int) 11 => [
		'title' => 'STRIDE',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>The <strong>University Grants Commission (UGC)</strong> has approved a new initiative, <strong>Scheme for Trans-Disciplinary Research for India&rsquo;s Developing Economy (STRIDE),</strong> to support socially relevant, local need-based, nationally important and globally significant research projects.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The UGC has set up an advisory committee under its Vice Chairman Bhushan Patwardhan, to oversee the entire scheme.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Components of the Scheme</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Component 1:</strong> The Scheme will provide for <strong>research capacity building in diverse disciplines</strong> by mentoring, nurturing and supporting young talents to innovate pragmatic solutions for local, regional, national and global problems. Grant available is upto Rs. 1 crore.</li>
<li><strong>Component 2:</strong> It will mainly focus on <strong>enhancing problem solving skills</strong> with the help of social innovation and action research to improve wellbeing of people and contribute for India&rsquo;s developing economy. Grant upto Rs. 50 lakh to 1 crore is available for projects under this component.</li>
<li><strong>Component-3</strong> will fund high impact research projects <strong>in the identified thrust areas in humanities and human sciences</strong> through national network of eminent scientists from leading institutions. Grant available under this component is upto Rs. 1 crore for one Higher Educational Institution and upto Rs. 5 crores for a multi institutional network.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Expected Benefits from the Scheme</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It will help strengthen <strong>transdisciplinary research</strong> culture in colleges and universities.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Trans-disciplinary research is a <strong>team effort of investigators from different disciplines</strong> to create new conceptual, theoretical, methodological innovations that integrates and transcends beyond discipline-specific approaches <strong>to address a common problem</strong>.</li>
<li>It goes beyond mere production of knowledge and extends to the <strong>practical use of the knowledge</strong> outside academic endeavour.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>It will provide opportunity to build multi sectoral linkages between <strong>university-government-community-industry</strong> for national development and wellbeing of people.</li>
<li>It will give major impetus to <strong>high impact research in Humanities</strong> and Human Sciences.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>University Grants Commission (UGC)</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The University Grants Commission (UGC) came into existence on 28th December, 1953 and became a <strong>statutory organization of the Government of India</strong> by an Act of Parliament in 1956, for the coordination, determination and maintenance of standards of teaching, examination and research in university education.</li>
<li>The <strong>head office</strong> of the UGC is located in <strong>New Delhi</strong>.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/stride'
	],
	(int) 12 => [
		'title' => 'India International Cooperatives Trade Fair',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>First ever India International Cooperatives Trade Fair (IICTF) to be held at Pragati Maidan, New Delhi.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>IICTF is a unique initiative for taking <strong>farmers, artisans</strong> &amp; other members of <strong>cooperatives</strong> directly to the global trade platform.</li>
<li>Trade Fair is being conducted by <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/Scheme%20to%20Promote%20Young%20Entrepreneurs%20in%20Cooperatives" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC)</strong></a> with the support of <strong>Network for the Development of Agricultural Cooperatives</strong> (NEDAC), Ministries, State Governments and several apex level Indian cooperative organizations.</li>
<li>Focus sectors of India International Cooperatives Trade Fair are:<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>Textile:</strong> ginning spinning, power loom, textile processing.</li>
<li><strong>Agribusiness and food processing:</strong> cold chain, packaging, climate-smart agriculture.</li>
<li><strong>Fast Moving Consumer Goods</strong> (FMCG), Health and hospitality</li>
<li><strong>Trade and marketing:</strong> agriculture produce marketing, transport and marketing infrastructure.</li>
<li><strong>Credit service and finance:</strong> insurance, cooperative banking.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Significance</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Cooperative sector has a big role to play in <strong>doubling agriculture exports</strong> (from present US $ 30 billion to US$ 60 billion) by <strong>2022</strong> as envisaged in the <a href="/to-the-points/paper3/agriculture-export-policy-2018-1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Agriculture Export Policy 2018</a>.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>94% of the Indian farmers are members of at least one cooperative institution.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>IICTF would be a major platform to promote exports by cooperatives with direct benefits to their members who are mainly farmers, artisans, women, SC /ST etc.</li>
<li>Promotion of exports of <strong>key commodities</strong>/value chain products that have <strong>high potential</strong>, and are backed by specific promotional initiatives (including the involvement of stakeholder entities) would definitely actualize the target of <a href="/to-the-points/paper3/doubling-farmers-income-a-promise-to-be-fulfilled-by-2022" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Doubling the Farmers Income</a> and will achieve the goals set under the Agri-Exports Policy 2018.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>NEDAC</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Network for the Development of Agricultural Cooperatives in <strong>Asia and the Pacific</strong> is a unique regional forum linking 21 apex cooperative organizations in 12 countries.</li>
<li>It was set up in 1991 by the <strong>United Nations</strong> <a href="/important-institutions/drishti-specials-important-institutions-international-institution/united-nations-1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Food and Agriculture Organization</a> (FAO)&rsquo;s Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, the <strong>International Cooperative Alliance</strong> (ICA) and the <strong>International Labour Organization</strong> (ILO).</li>
<li>The NEDAC member organizations in Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Nepal, Philippines, Republic of Korea, Sri Lanka and Thailand represent <strong>three million agricultural cooperatives</strong> which play a crucial role in improving the livelihoods of 150 million rural households.</li>
<li>NEDAC sensitizes governments in the region to the need for a key role for <strong>agricultural cooperatives</strong> in promoting agricultural and rural development to ensure <strong>rural food</strong> and <strong>livelihood security</strong> for hundreds of millions of people in Asia and the Pacific.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/india-international-cooperatives-trade-fair'
	],
	(int) 13 => [
		'title' => 'Panchayati Raj Institution (PRI)',
		'catname' => 'National Institutions',
		'desc' => '<p><em>When the panchayat raj is established, public opinion will do what violence can never do.&nbsp; &nbsp;<strong>&mdash; Mahatma Gandhi</strong></em></p>
<h3>Context</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Panchayati Raj Institution (PRI) is a system of <strong>rural local self-government</strong> in India.</li>
<li>Local Self Government is the management of local affairs by such local bodies who have been <strong>elected by the local people</strong>.</li>
<li>PRI was constitutionalized through the <strong>73<sup>rd</sup> Constitutional Amendment Act, 1992</strong> to build democracy at the grass roots level and was entrusted with the task of rural development in the country.</li>
<li>In its present form and structure <strong>PRI has completed 26 years of existence</strong>. However, a lot remains to be done in order to further decentralization and strengthen democracy at the grass root level.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Evolution of Panchayati Raj in India</h3>
<p>The history of Panchayat Raj in India can be divided into the following periods from the analytical point of view:</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Vedic Era:</strong> In the old Sanskrit scriptures, word &lsquo;Panchayatan&rsquo; has been mentioned which means a group of five persons, including a spiritual man.</li>
<li>Gradually the concept of the inclusion of a spiritual man in such groups vanished.</li>
<li>In the Rigveda, there is a mention of <strong>Sabha, Samiti and Vidatha as local self-units</strong>. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>These were the democratic bodies at the local level. The king used to get the approval of these bodies regarding certain functions and decisions.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Epic Era</strong> indicates the two great epic periods of India, that is, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata.</li>
<li>The study of Ramayana indicates that the administration was divided into two parts - Pur and Janpad or city and village. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>In the whole of the state, there was also a Caste Panchayat and one person elected by the Caste Panchayat was a member of the king's Council of Ministers.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Self-government of a village finds ample expression in the &lsquo;Shanti Parva&rsquo; of the Mahabharata; in the Manu Smriti as well as in Kautilya&rsquo;s Arthashastra.</li>
<li>As per the Mahabharata, over and above the village, there were units of 10, 20, 100, and 1,000 village groups. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>&lsquo;Gramik&rsquo;</strong> was the chief official of the village, <strong>&lsquo;Dashap&rsquo;</strong> was the chief of ten villages, <strong>Vinshya Adhipati, Shat Gram Adhyaksha</strong> and <strong>Shat Gram Pati</strong> were the chiefs of 20, 100, and 1,000 villages, respectively.</li>
<li>They collected the local taxes and were responsible for the defense of their villages.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Ancient Period:</strong> There is a mention of village panchayats in Kautilya&rsquo;s Arthashastra.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The town was referred to as Pur and its chief was the Nagarik.</li>
<li>Local bodies were free from any royal interference.</li>
<li><strong>During the Mauryan and Post-Mauryan periods too, the headman, assisted by a council of elders, continued to play a prominent role in the village life.</strong></li>
<li>The system <strong>continued through the Gupta period,</strong> though there were certain changes in the nomenclature, as the <strong>district official was known as the vishya pati</strong> and the <strong>village headman was referred to as the grampati</strong>.</li>
<li>Thus, in ancient India, there existed a well established system of local government which was run on a set pattern of traditions and customs.</li>
<li>However, it is significant to note that there is <strong>no reference of women heading the panchayat</strong> or even participating as a member in the panchayat.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Medieval Period:</strong> During the Sultanate period, the Sultans of Delhi divided their kingdom into <strong>provinces called &lsquo;Vilayat&rsquo;</strong>.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>For the governance of a village, there were three important officials - <strong>Mukkaddam for administration, Patwari for collection of revenues, and Choudhrie for settling disputes with the help of the Panch</strong>.</li>
<li>The villages had sufficient powers as regards self governance in their territory.</li>
<li>Casteism and feudalistic system of governance under the Mughal rule in the medieval period slowly eroded the self-government in villages.</li>
<li>It is again noteworthy to note that even in the medieval period there is no mention of women participation in the local village administration.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>British Period:</strong> Under the British regime, <strong>village panchayats lost their autonomy</strong> and became weak.</li>
<li>It is only from the year 1870 that India saw the dawn of representative local institutions.</li>
<li>The famous <strong>Mayo&rsquo;s resolution of 1870 gave impetus to the development of local institutions</strong> by enlarging their powers and responsibilities.</li>
<li>The year 1870, introduced the concept of elected representatives, in urban municipalities.</li>
<li>The revolt of 1857 had put the imperial finances under considerable strain and it was found necessary to finance local service out of local taxation. Therefore it was out of fiscal compulsion that Lord Mayo&rsquo;s resolution on decentralization came to be adopted.</li>
<li>Following the footsteps of Mayo, <strong>Lord Rippon in 1882 provided the much needed democratic framework to these institutions</strong>. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>All boards (then existing) were mandated to have a two-thirds majority of non-officials who had to be elected and the chairman of these bodies had to be from among the elected non-officials.</li>
<li>This is considered to be the <strong>Magna Carta of local democracy in India</strong>.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Local self-government institutions received a boost with the appointment of the <strong>Royal Commission on centralisation in 1907 under the Chairmanship of C.E.H. Hobhouse</strong>. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The commission recognized the importance of panchayats at the village level.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>It is in this backdrop that the <strong>Montagu Chelmsford reforms of 1919</strong> transferred the subject of local government to the domain of the provinces. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The reform also recommended that as far as possible there should be a complete control in local bodies and complete possible independence for them from external control.</li>
<li>These panchayats covered only a limited number of villages with limited functions and due to <strong>organisational and fiscal constraints</strong> they did not become democratic and vibrant institutions of local self government at the village level.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>However, by 1925, eight provinces had passed the Panchayat Acts and by 1926, six native States had also passed panchayat laws. Local bodies were given more powers and functions to impose taxes were reduced. But, the position of the local self-government institutions remained unaffected.</li>
<li><strong>Post&ndash;Independence Period:</strong> After the Constitution came into force, <strong>Article 40</strong> made a mention of panchayats and <strong>Article 246</strong> empowers the state legislature to legislate with respect to any subject relating to local self-government.</li>
<li>However, this inclusion of panchayats into the Constitution was not unanimously agreed upon by the then decision-makers, with the major opposition having come from the framer of the Constitution himself i.e. B.R.Ambedkar. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>It was after much discussion among the supporters and opponents of the village panchayat that the panchayats finally got a place for themselves in the Constitution as <strong>Article 40 of the Directive Principles of State Policy</strong>.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Since the Directive Principles are not binding principles, the result was the absence of a uniform structure of these bodies throughout the country.</li>
<li>After independence, as a development initiative, India had implemented the Community Development Programmes (CDP) on the eve of Gandhi Jayanti, the 2nd October, 1952 under the major influence of the <strong>Etawah Project</strong> undertaken by the American expert, Albert Mayer. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>It encompassed almost all activities of rural development which were to be implemented with the help of village panchayats along with the participation of people.</li>
<li>In 1953, the <strong>National Extension Service</strong> was also introduced as a prologue to CDP. But the programme did not yield much result.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>There were various reasons for the failure of CDP like bureaucracy and <strong>excessive politics, lack of people participation, lack of trained and qualified staff, and lack of local bodies interest in implementing the CDP</strong> especially the village panchayats.</li>
<li>In 1957, the National Development Council constituted a <strong>committee headed by Balwant Rai Mehta</strong> to look into the working of community development programme.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The team observed that the major reason for the failure of the CDP was the <strong>lack of people&rsquo;s participation</strong>.</li>
<li>The committee suggested a three-tier PRIs, namely, Grama Panchayats (GPs) at the village level, Panchayat Samiti (PSs) at the block level, and Zilla Parishad (ZPs) at the district level.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>As a result of this scheme of democratic decentralization was launched in Rajasthan on October 2, 1959.</strong></li>
<li>In Andhra Pradesh, the scheme was introduced on 1st November, 1959. The necessary legislation had also been passed and implemented in Assam, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa, and Punjab etc.</li>
<li>The appointment of the <strong>Ashok Mehta Committee in 1977</strong> did bring new thinking in the concepts and practice of the Panchayat Raj. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The committee <strong>recommended a two-tier Panchayat Raj institutional</strong> structure consisting of <strong>Zilla Parishad and Mandal Panchayat</strong>.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>In order to use planning expertise and to secure administrative support, the district was suggested as the first point of decentralization below the state level.</li>
<li>Based on its recommendation, some of the states like Karnataka incorporated them effectively.</li>
<li>In subsequent years in order to revive and give a new lease of life to the panchayats, the Government of India had appointed various committees.</li>
<li>The most important among them are the <strong>Hanumantha Rao Committee (1983), G.V.K. Rao Committee (1985), L.M.Singhvi Committee (1986) and the Sarkaria Commission on Centre-State relations (1988), P.K. Thungan Committee (1989) and Harlal Singh Kharra Committee (1990)</strong>.</li>
<li>The <strong>G.V.K. Rao Committee (1985)</strong> recommended making the <strong>&ldquo;district&rdquo; as the basic unit of planning</strong> and also holding regular elections while the <strong>L.M.Singhvi committee</strong> recommended <strong>providing more financial resources and constitutional status to the panchayats</strong> to strengthen them.</li>
<li>The Amendment phase began with the 64th Amendment Bill (1989) which was introduced by Rajiv Gandhi seeking to strengthen the PRIs but the Bill was not passed in the Rajya Sabha.</li>
<li>The Constitution (74th Amendment) Bill (a combined bill for the PRIs and municipalities) was introduced in 1990, but was never taken up for discussion.</li>
<li>It was during the Prime Ministership of P.V.Narasimha Rao that a comprehensive amendment was introduced in the form of the Constitution 72nd Amendment Bill in September 1991.</li>
<li><strong>73<sup>rd</sup> and 74<sup>th</sup> Constitutional Amendments were passed by Parliament in December, 1992. Through these amendments local self-governance was introduced in rural and urban India.</strong></li>
<li>The Acts came into force as the Constitution (73<sup>rd</sup> Amendment) Act, 1992 on April 24, 1993 and the Constitution (74<sup>th</sup> Amendment) Act, 1992 on June 1, 1993.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Salient Features of the Constitution 73<sup>rd</sup> and 74<sup>th</sup> Amendments</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>These amendments <strong>added two new parts to the Constitution,</strong> namely, added <strong>Part IX titled &ldquo;The Panchayats&rdquo;</strong> (added by 73rd Amendment) and <strong>Part IXA titled &ldquo;The Municipalities&rdquo;</strong> (added by 74<sup>th</sup> Amendment).</li>
<li>Basic units of democratic system-<strong>Gram Sabhas (villages) and Ward Committees (Municipalities)</strong> comprising all the adult members registered as voters.</li>
<li><strong>Three-tier system</strong> of panchayats at village, intermediate block/taluk/mandal and district levels except in States with population is below 20 lakhs (Article 243B).</li>
<li>Seats at all levels to be filled by direct elections <strong>Article 243C (2)</strong>.</li>
<li>Seats reserved for Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) and the chairpersons of the Panchayats at all levels also shall be reserved for SCs and STs in proportion to their population.</li>
<li>One-third of the total number of seats to be reserved for women.</li>
<li>One third of the seats reserved for SCs and STs also reserved for women.</li>
<li>One-third offices of chairpersons at all levels reserved for women <strong>(Article 243D)</strong>.</li>
<li><strong>Uniform five year term</strong> and elections to constitute new bodies to be completed before the expiry of the term.</li>
<li>In the event of dissolution, elections compulsorily within six months (Article 243E).</li>
<li><strong>Independent Election Commission in each State</strong> for superintendence, direction and control of the electoral rolls (Article 243K).</li>
<li><strong>Panchayats to prepare plans for economic development</strong> and social justice in respect of subjects as devolved by law to the various levels of Panchayats including the subjects as illustrated in Eleventh Schedule (Article 243G).</li>
<li>74th Amendment provides for a <strong>District Planning Committee</strong> to consolidate the plans prepared by Panchayats and Municipalities (Article 243ZD).</li>
<li>Budgetary allocation from State Governments, share of revenue of certain taxes, collection and retention of the revenue it raises, Central Government programmes and grants, Union Finance Commission grants (Article 243H).</li>
<li>Establish a <strong>Finance Commission in each State</strong> to determine the principles on the basis of which adequate financial resources would be ensured for panchayats and municipalities (Article 243I).</li>
<li>The Eleventh Scheduled of the Constitution places as many as 29 functions within the purview of the Panchayati Raj bodies.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The following areas have been exempted from the operation of the Act because of the socio-cultural and administrative considerations: <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Scheduled <strong>areas listed under the V Schedule</strong> in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa and Rajasthan.</li>
<li>The states of <strong>Nagaland, Meghalaya and Mizoram</strong>.</li>
<li>The hill areas of district of <strong>Darjeeling in the state of West Bengal</strong> for which Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council exists.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>In conformity with provisions in the Constitution Amendment Act, an Act called the <strong>Provisions of Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996</strong> passed by the Government of India.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Evaluating the Panchayati Raj Institutions at 26</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>PRIs has witnessed simultaneously a remarkable success and a staggering failure in the journey of 26 years depending on the goalposts against which they are evaluated.</li>
<li>While the PRI has <strong>succeeded in creating another layer of government and political representation</strong> at the grass-roots level, it has <strong>failed to provide better governance</strong>.</li>
<li>There are about 250,000 PRIs and urban local bodies, and over three million elected local government representatives.</li>
<li>The 73rd and 74th Amendments required that no less than one-third of the total seats in local bodies should be reserved for women. At 1.4 million, India has the most women in elected positions. Seats and sarpanch/pradhan positions were also reserved for SC/ST candidates.</li>
<li>Research using PRIs has shown that having <strong>female political representation in local governments</strong> makes women more likely to come forward and report crimes. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>In districts with female sarpanchs, significantly greater investments are made in drinking water, public goods.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Moreover, the states have also provided the <strong>statutory safeguards for many devolution provisions</strong>, which have considerably empowered local governments.</li>
<li>Successive (central) Finance Commissions have, so substantially, <strong>increased fund allocations for local bodies</strong> and also the grants have been increased.</li>
<li>15th Finance Commission is also considering to further increase the allocations for local governments to match the international standards.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Issues</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The grey area is the <strong>lack of adequate funds</strong>. There is a need to enlarge the domain of panchayats to be able to raise their own funds.</li>
<li>The <strong>interference of area MPs and MLAs in the functioning of panchayats</strong> also adversely affected their performance.</li>
<li>The 73rd amendment only mandated the creation of local self-governing bodies, and left the decision to delegate powers, functions, and finances to the state legislatures, therein lies the failure of PRIs.</li>
<li>The transfer of various governance functions&mdash;like the provision of education, health, sanitation, and water was not mandated. Instead the amendment listed the functions that could be transferred, and left it to the state legislature to actually devolve functions.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>There has been very little devolution of authority and functions in the last 26 years.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Because these functions were never devolved, state executive authorities have proliferated to carry out these functions. The most common example is the terrible state water boards.</li>
<li>The major failure of the Amendment is the <strong>lack of finances for PRIs</strong>. Local governments can either raise their own revenue through local taxes or receive intergovernmental transfers.</li>
<li><strong>The power to tax, even for subjects falling within the purview of PRIs, has to be specifically authorized by the state legislature.</strong> The 73rd Amendment let this be a choice open to the state legislatures&mdash;a choice that most states have not exercised.</li>
<li>A second avenue of revenue generation is <strong>intergovernmental transfers,</strong> where state governments devolve a certain percentage of their revenue to PRIs. The constitutional amendment created provisions for State Finance Commissions to recommend the revenue share between state and local governments. However, these are merely recommendations and the state governments are not bound by them.</li>
<li>Though finance commissions, at every level, have advocated for greater devolution of funds, there has been <strong>little action by states to devolve funds</strong>.</li>
<li>PRIs are reluctant to take on projects that require any meaningful financial outlay, and are often unable to solve even the most basic local governance needs.</li>
<li>PRIs also <strong>suffer from structural deficiencies</strong> i.e. no secretarial support and lower levels of technical knowledge which restricted the aggregation of bottom up planning .</li>
<li>There is a <strong>presence of adhocism</strong> i.e. lack of clear setting of agenda in gram sabha, gram samiti meetings and no proper structure.</li>
<li>Though women and SC/STs has got representation in PRIs through reservation mandated by 73rd amendment but there is a <strong>presence of Panch-Pati and Proxy representation in case of women and SC/STs representatives respectively</strong>.</li>
<li><strong>Accountability arrangements remain very weak</strong> even after 26 years of PRIs constitutional arrangement.</li>
<li>The issue of <strong>ambiguity in the division of functions and funds has allowed concentration of powers with the states</strong> and thereby restraining the elective representatives who are more aware and sensitive to the ground level issues to take control.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Suggestions</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Genuine fiscal federalism</strong> i.e. fiscal autonomy accompanied by fiscal responsibility can provide a long term solution without this PRIs will only be an expensive failure.</li>
<li><strong>6th report of 2nd ARC, &lsquo;Local Governance- An inspiring journey into the future&rsquo;&rsquo;, had recommended that there should be a clear-cut demarcation of functions of each tier of the government.</strong></li>
<li>States should <strong>adopt the concept of &lsquo;activity mapping&rsquo;</strong>, wherein each state clearly delineates the responsibilities and roles for the different tiers of the government in respect to the subjects listed in the Schedule XI.</li>
<li>The subjects should divided and assigned to the different tiers on the basis of accountability to the public.</li>
<li>States like Karnataka and Kerala have taken some steps in this direction but overall progress has been highly uneven.</li>
<li>There is <strong>need for bottom up planning</strong> especially at the district level, based on grassroots inputs received from Gram Sabha.</li>
<li><strong>Karnataka has created a separate bureaucratic cadre for Panchayat</strong>s to get away from the practice of deputation of officials who often overpowered the elected representatives.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Such practices needs to be replicated in other states for strengthening the true character of local self governance.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The center also needs to <strong>financially incentivize states</strong> to encourage effective devolution to the panchayats in functions, finances, and functionaries.</li>
<li><strong>Training should be provided to local representatives</strong> to develop expertise so that they contribute more in planning and implementation of policies and programmes.</li>
<li>To solve the problem of proxy representation <strong>social empowerment must precede the political empowerment</strong>.</li>
<li>Recently states like Rajasthan and Haryana have set certain minimum qualification standards for Panchayat elections. Such necessary eligibility can help in improving effectiveness of governance mechanism.</li>
<li>These standards should apply for MLAs and MPs also and in this direction government should speeden up efforts for universal education.</li>
<li>There should be clear mechanisms to ensure that States comply with the constitutional provisions, particularly in the appointment and implementation of the recommendations of the State Finance Commissions (SFCs).</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The need of the hour is to bring about a holistic change in the lives of beneficiaries among the villagers by uplifting their socioeconomic and health status through effective linkages through community, governmental and other developmental agencies.</li>
<li>Government should take remedial action in the interest of democracy, social inclusion and cooperative federalism.</li>
<li>People&rsquo;s demands for the sustainable decentralisation and advocacy should focus on a decentralisation agenda. The framework needs to be evolved to accommodate the demand for decentralisation.</li>
<li>It is important to have <strong>clarity in the assignment of functions</strong> and the local governments should have <strong>clear and independent sources of finance</strong>.</li>
</ul>
<table border="1" style="border-collapse: collapse; background-color: #9becf2; border-style: none;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 899px;">
<p><em>If we would see our dream of Panchayat Raj, i.e., true democracy realized, we would regard the humblest and lowest Indian as being equally the ruler of India with the tallest in the land.</em></p>
<p style="text-align: right;"><em>&mdash; Mahatma Gandhi</em></p>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p style="text-align: right;"></p>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/important-institutions/drishti-specials-important-institutions-national-institutions/panchayati-raj-institution-pri'
	],
	(int) 14 => [
		'title' => 'LIBRA: Facebook’s Currency',
		'catname' => 'News Editorials',
		'desc' => '<div class="border">
<p>This article is based on the editorial <a href="https://www.livemint.com/opinion/online-views/opinion-why-policymakers-worldwide-should-fear-the-launch-of-libra-1561910021098.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>&ldquo;Why policymakers worldwide should fear the launch of Libra&rdquo;</strong></a> which appeared in Live mint newspaper on 1 July 2019. It talks about the issues pertaining to roll out of Facebook&rsquo;s cryptocurrency: LIBRA</p>
</div>
<p>Facebook on June 18 announced that it will launch a global cryptocurrency called LIBRA in 2020, alongside the underlying blockchain-based network &mdash; a secure, transparent and decentralized digital lender &mdash; that will support it.</p>
<p>In the first quarter of 2019, Facebook had 2.38 billion monthly active users. If even a fraction of them begin to use Libra to carry out financial transactions, buy and sell products, and transfer money, the new currency would quickly gain wide acceptance. This could dramatically change global monetary policymaking, but the policymakers all around the world are quite apprehensive about the role of LIBRA</p>
<h3 style="text-align: left;">What is LIBRA currency?&nbsp;<a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/297image1.webp" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/297image1.webp" width="336" height="600" caption="false" style="float: right;" /></a></h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Libra is the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/cryptocurrencies-will-boost-illegal-transactions-rbi" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>cryptocurrency</strong></a> to be launched by Facebook.
<h3 style="text-align: right;"><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/456image1.webp" target="_blank" rel="noopener"></a></h3>
</li>
<li>Libra framework comprises of the Libra Blockchain, the Libra currency and Calibra(which is a cryptocurrency wallet that lets users send and receive Libra coins)</li>
<li>Calibra is built and maintained by Facebook, and it will be integrated into WhatsApp and Messenger to be managed by the Libra Association.</li>
<li>The Libra Association, a Geneva-based not-for-profit group that will operate the digital currency, counts companies such as Uber, eBay, Lyft, Mastercard and PayPal among its founding members.</li>
<li>Libra project promises to address many of the fundamental barriers that have stopped the widespread adoption of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Libra is designed to hold a stable value. Libra is backed by a financial reserve that mixes the world&rsquo;s major stable currencies. This stability promises to make Libra a stable currency for consumers rather than an attractive gamble for investors like Bitcoin.</li>
<li>Bitcoin and its competitors have market-driven valuations, meaning that the price of a Bitcoin is determined solely by market demand for Bitcoin. This creates a market fueled by speculation and subjects it to enormous volatility</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Libra comes with a new programming language called Move<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The move is a new language, meaning developers will have to adapt to a new programming environment. Facebook says it's designed with "safety and security&rdquo; as the highest priorities.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>What are the issues emerging out of Libra cryptocurrency?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Libra, with given active users of Facebook in the world, could become a dominant global currency&mdash;but one run by a corporation, not a central bank.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Since Libra is not controlled by any central bank, the monetary policymakers may find it much harder to control issues like unemployment and inflation(as when inflation rises, the central banks take action to control it) in a world dominated by global currency like Libra.</li>
<li>That's why French Finance Minister held that Facebook's digital money can never be a sovereign currency.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Mostly all the modes of exchange of money like barter trade, banking, paper money, financial markets etc.&mdash;emerged through slow and evolutionary processes. Deliberate attempts to establish entirely new systems have usually given rise to unanticipated challenges. for example bitcoins.</li>
<li>If Libra becomes popular, people will exchange their national currencies&mdash;dollars, euros, renminbi and rupees&mdash;for the new digital coin in order to buy and sell the many products that will be priced in it. Many users may then choose to keep Libra instead of exchanging it back for their own currencies.</li>
<li>Facebook or the Libra Association will, therefore, continue to hold their national money and earn income on it by investing Libra users&rsquo; money. In this case Facebook will also be tempted to issue extra Libra.</li>
<li>Facebook through Calibra plays a facilitation role in the management of currency, this allows Facebook to penetrate that veil of privacy. While Facebook promises that they won&rsquo;t access information from the currency&rsquo;s digital wallets without customer&rsquo;s consent but there are no technical barriers to stop any such attempt<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Further, the past record of Facebook is poor when it comes to protecting the privacy of individuals: For instance, Cambridge Analytica case</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Cambridge Analytica case</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Facebook-Cambridge Analytica data scandal was a major political scandal in early 2018 when it was revealed that Cambridge Analytica had harvested the personal data of millions of people's Facebook profiles without their consent and used it for political advertising purposes.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Libra will increase US influence in many parts of the world and it may give rise to a scenario where companies like Tencent/WeChat issue their cryptocurrency, triggering a battle in the crypto-space arena.</li>
<li>Cryptocurrency is a policy-trailing technology(Laws cannot keep pace with the fast changing technology). So it&rsquo;s regulation is not a cake walk.</li>
</ul>
<p>But in spite of all these issues, in a globalized world, a country that rejects Libra can find itself gradually isolated by others who take on. Therefore policymakers must immediately consider what type of world-specific digital money can be created. For that, there is a need for new laws and global treaties to mitigate potential negative fallout and limit the power of the organizations that run these new currencies.</p>
<p>In this scenario, the world&rsquo;s central bankers have begun to discuss the idea of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), and now even the International Monetary Fund is talking openly about the pros and cons of the idea which is a step in the right direction.<br /><br /></p>
<table border="1" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 51px;">
<td style="width: 551.111px; background-color: #faecd4; height: 51px;"><span style="color: #ff0000;"><em><strong>Drishti input<br /></strong></em></span><br />Highlight the issues related to cryptocurrencies like LIBRA and also examine how will it be different from other cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/libra-facebook-s-currency'
	],
	(int) 15 => [
		'title' => 'Delhi Butterfly Corridors',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>As per Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) report, the creation of butterfly corridors in Delhi with close to 100 hotspots is underway.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>At present, there are 17 hotspots where butterfly parks or gardens have been created in the last few years.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>A variety of host plants will be grown at such parks and gardens in the green corridor to attract more butterflies.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/515butterfly.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/515butterfly.jpg" width="642" height="546" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" caption="false" /></a></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>At most locations there are already some native trees and plant species that are hosts to butterflies, but additional plantation is being undertaken to ensure a diversity of species arrive there.</li>
<li>The closer the green areas, the easier it will be for butterflies to move from one location to another.</li>
<li>A large butterfly garden exists at Asola Bhatti Wildlife Sanctuary and Garden of Five Senses. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>There are many parks in the surrounding of these locations attracting more butterflies.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>In September, 2017, the first butterfly month was observed in Delhi by BNHS and Delhi forest department, culminating in a record species count.</li>
<li>In 2018, 75 species were recorded in urban and forested locations. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Among the rare species recorded were the common redeye, common short silverline, dingy swift, common blue line, Balkan pierrot and spotted pierrot, among others.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The survey over the past two years has shown that diversity of butterfly species was very low at new parks that have ornamental and exotic plants.</li>
<li>The diversity is higher at places like the Ridge, which has native species of plants and trees.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>The Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS)</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The BNHS, a pan-India wildlife research organization, has been promoting the cause of nature conservation since 1883.</li>
<li>BNHS Mission: Conservation of nature, primarily biological diversity through action based on research, education and public awareness</li>
<li>BNHS Vision: Premier independent scientific organization with a broad based constituency, excelling in the conservation of threatened species and habitats.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/delhi-butterfly-corridors'
	],
	(int) 16 => [
		'title' => 'Puducherry Water Rich Model',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>It is a model for desilting the urban drains and rural canals with the cooperation of the general public with the Puducherry administration.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>This model is fulfilling the need of water in rural areas for irrigation and preventing the overflowing of drains in urban areas. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Ensuring regular flow prevents the diseases like malaria and dengue.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The practice of community involvement in desilting of canals and maintaining them goes back centuries in Puducherry, to the reign of the Pallavas. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The Cholas and French also adapted it seriously.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>All contributors under this model were awarded Swachta Hi Sewa Awards by administration.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Puducherry Water Rich Model</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It ensures mapping and bring under watch all water bodies and drains by using technology.</li>
<li>To use MNREGA where machinery is not required and human contact is safe. It empowers people and provides livelihood.</li>
<li>Linking the local community for shramdaan and monitoring water bodies. It encourages participation as they are the real stakeholders.</li>
<li>Linking with the nearest donor support &mdash; any industry or institution.</li>
<li>It let the supporter and the service provider decide on the contractual cost. Government officials should only be facilitators, not in any way negotiate or deal with their money.</li>
<li>It allows farmers to take the silt away, as it is their soil which got washed away. It is rich in nutrients. The farmers are not to be charged for it.</li>
<li>Accountability lies with the collectors and municipal commissioners.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/puducherry-water-rich-model'
	],
	(int) 17 => [
		'title' => 'Quality of Free Legal Aid',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>The National Law University, Delhi (NLUD) in a report titled <strong>&lsquo;Quality of Legal Representation: An Empirical Analysis of Free Legal Aid Services in India&rsquo;</strong> has revealed that people don&rsquo;t have faith over the services of legal aid counsel (LAC) under the free legal aid services.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>A majority of the people who are entitled to the free legal aid system see the service as an option only when they cannot afford a private lawyer.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Legal Services Authorities (LSA) Act</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>In 1987, the Legal Services Authorities (LSA) Act was enacted to give free and competent legal services to the poor and paved the way for constitution of <strong><a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/national-legal-services-day" target="_blank" rel="noopener">National Legal Service Authority (NALSA)</a></strong> and other legal service institutions at the State, district and taluka level.</li>
<li>Free legal services under LSA Act are available to a person belonging to <strong>Schedule Tribe and Schedule Caste, woman, child, victim of human trafficking, differently abled person, industrial workman,</strong> and person in custody in a protective home and the poor.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Facts</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>According to the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative&rsquo;s (CHRI) report:<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>India&rsquo;s per capita lawyer ratio is better than most countries in the world.</li>
<li>There are about 1.8 million lawyers in India which means there is one lawyer for every 736 people.</li>
<li>There are 61,593 panel lawyers in the country, which translates to just one legal aid lawyer per 18,609 population or five legal aid lawyers per 1,00,000 population.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>According to NALSA, about 8.22 lakh people across India benefited through legal aid services from April 2017 to June 2018.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>Key Findings</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>About <strong>75%</strong> of beneficiaries responded that they opted for free legal aid because they had no means and resources to hire a paid private practitioner.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>They would never have approached for the legal aid services if they had the resources to engage private legal practitioners.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>22.6%</strong> of the beneficiaries responded that they won&rsquo;t opt for free legal aid services for the <strong>second time</strong>.</li>
<li><strong>60% of women,</strong> who were aware of the free legal aid services, chose to opt for the private legal practitioner because they could have better control over their lawyer and they lack faith and confidence over the quality of services offered under the legal aid system.</li>
<li><strong>56% of LAC</strong> (Legal Aid Counsel) spends an average of 1 to 10 hours per week on legal aid cases. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>On the contrary, around 58% LAC spend on an average of <strong>20 hours</strong> and above per week on <strong>private cases</strong>.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Around <strong>33%</strong> of the judicial officers claim that complaints were received against LACs for <strong>demanding money</strong> from beneficiaries.</li>
<li>Majority of judicial officers (52%) rated the <strong>overall skill</strong> set of a private legal practitioner as of fairly good quality and that of LAC as of moderately low quality.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Constitutional Provision</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Article 39A</strong> of the <strong>Constitution</strong> <strong>of India</strong> provides that State shall secure that the operation of the <strong>legal</strong> system promotes justice on a basis of equal opportunity, and shall, in particular, provide <strong>free legal aid,</strong> by suitable legislation or schemes or in any other way, to ensure that opportunities for securing justice are not denied to any citizen by reason of economic or other disability.</li>
<li><strong>Articles 14 and 22(1)</strong> also make it obligatory for the State to ensure equality before the law and a <strong>legal system</strong> which promotes justice on a basis of equal opportunity to all.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>NALSA&rsquo;s Efforts</h3>
<p><strong>Front offices</strong> at the district level are being upgraded to make them one-stop centers for legal aid seekers.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Updating</strong> the record of legal aided cases.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>This way, the legal aid seekers are kept updated about the progress of their cases and better monitoring of cases takes place.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>NALSA&rsquo;s outreach programmes (like door to door campaigns) have made people aware of the legal advice and other forms of legal services such as drafting of applications etc.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Full-time empanelment:</strong> Currently, the engagement of LAC is usually on an ad-hoc basis. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Around 45% of the regulators opined that making them full time will definitely improve the level of commitment among the LAC.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Honorarium:</strong> Study recommended that making honorarium (a payment is given for professional services that are rendered nominally without charge) for a legal aided case at par with private cases, will compel LAC to not withdraw or deny aided cases in middle.</li>
<li><strong>Remuneration:</strong> Remuneration towards the empanelled lawyers should be increased every year. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>This is important for those who are serving in juvenile courts as they are not allowed to have their own private practice.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/quality-of-free-legal-aid'
	],
	(int) 18 => [
		'title' => 'Airplane Contrails and Global Warming',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>According to a recent study, the airplanes contrails contribute more to global warming than the CO<sub>2</sub> emitted by an aircraft.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Moreover, the contrails&rsquo; impact on climate change will triple by 2050 than it was in 2006 because of following reasons: <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Modern planes flying slightly higher than their predecessors, which is likely to lead to more contrail cloud formation over the tropics.</li>
<li>Increase in air traffic.</li>
<li>Improvements in fuel efficiency.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The study also suggested that the impact on the atmosphere due to contrail cirrus clouds will be stronger over Northern America and Europe which are the busiest air traffic areas on the globe. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>However, the impact will also increase in Asia as the air travel is also growing in the region.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The warming effect of cirrus clouds is also short-lived, and because it occurs in the upper atmosphere, it&rsquo;s not clear how much of a difference it actually makes for temperatures at Earth&rsquo;s surface.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Contrails</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The hot, humid exhaust from jet engines mixes with the atmosphere, which at high altitude is of much lower vapor pressure and temperature than the exhaust gas.</li>
<li>The water vapor contained in the jet exhaust condenses and may freeze, and this mixing process forms clouds.</li>
<li>Most of these contrail cirrus clouds dissipate quickly, but under the right conditions they can remain for hours, and when that happens they warm the atmosphere by absorbing thermal radiation emitted by the Earth.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>Impacts</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Jet engine exhaust contains carbon dioxide, oxides of sulfur and nitrogen, unburned fuel, soot and metal particles, as well as water vapor.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The soot provides condensation sites for water vapor. Any particles present in the air provide additional sites.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Depending on a plane's altitude, and the temperature and humidity of the atmosphere, contrails may vary in their thickness, extent and duration.</li>
<li>The nature and persistence of jet contrails can be used to predict the weather. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>A thin, short-lived contrail indicates low-humidity air at high altitude, a sign of fair weather, whereas a thick, long-lasting contrail reflects humid air at high altitudes and can be an early indicator of a storm.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Significance</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Aviation already has a sizable influence on the climate. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>In 2005, air traffic contributed about 5 percent of humans&rsquo; influence on climate change.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Air traffic roughly doubles every 15 years. And contrails are the aviation industry&rsquo;s biggest climate influencer, even more than CO<sub>2</sub> emissions from planes. <br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>But policies to lower aviation&rsquo;s influence on climate change focus on CO<sub>2</sub> emissions, all but ignoring the impact of contrails.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The study suggests that contrails are a major factor that climate policies should take into account.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>It is important to recognise the significant impact of non-CO<sub>2</sub> emissions, such as contrail cirrus, on climate and to take those effects into consideration when setting up emission trading systems or schemes like the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/important-facts-for-prelims-25th-january-2019" target="_blank" rel="noopener">CORSIA Agreement</a>.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Solution</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Cleaner aircraft emissions would solve the issue, as the reduction of the number of soot particles emitted by aircraft engines decreases the number of ice crystals in contrails and that means climate impact of contrail cirrus will also be reduced.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>However, soot would have to be decreased a lot to have a significant effect&ndash;even if it was reduced by 90 percent, the contrail cirrus clouds will produce more warming in 2050 than they did in 2006.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>Therefore, the best option for reducing this effect and aviation&rsquo;s carbon footprint is to fly less.</li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/airplane-contrails-and-global-warming'
	],
	(int) 19 => [
		'title' => 'Japanese Encephalitis (JE)',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>The Central government has sent a team to Assam to review the situation after Japanese Encephalitis (JE) cases were reported from the state.</p>
<h3>Japanese Encephalitis (JE)</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Japanese encephalitis is a disease <strong>caused by a flavi virus</strong> that affects the membranes around the brain. Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) is also a major cause of <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/acute-encephalitis-syndrome" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES)</strong></a> in India.</li>
<li><strong>Transmission:</strong> The disease is transmitted to humans through bites from infected <strong>mosquitoes of the Culex species</strong>. These mosquitoes breed mainly in rice fields and large water bodies rich in aquatic vegetations. Migratory birds along with pigs in the community also play an important role in the transmission of JE from one area to other areas.</li>
<li><strong>Symptoms:</strong> Most people infected with JE do not have symptoms or have only mild symptoms. However, a small percentage of infected people develop inflammation of the brain (encephalitis), with symptoms including sudden onset of headache, high fever, disorientation, coma, tremors and convulsions.</li>
<li><strong>Treatment:</strong> There is <strong>no antiviral treatment</strong> for patients with JE. Treatment, available, is supportive to relieve symptoms and stabilize the patient.</li>
<li><strong>Prevention:</strong> Safe and effective <strong>JE vaccines</strong> are available to prevent the disease.<br />
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>In India,</strong> mass vaccination with JE vaccine was started in a phased manner subsequent to the major outbreak in 2005.</li>
<li>JE vaccination is also <strong>included under the Universal Immunization Program</strong> of the Government of India.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Universal Immunization Program</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Immunization</strong> is the process whereby a person is made immune or resistant to an infectious disease, typically by the administration of a vaccine. Vaccines are substances that stimulate the body&rsquo;s own immune system to protect the person against subsequent infection or disease.</li>
<li>Immunization Programme in India was <strong>introduced in the year 1978</strong> as &lsquo;Expanded Programme of Immunization (EPI)&rsquo; by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.</li>
<li>In the year <strong>1985</strong>, the programme was modified as <strong>&lsquo;Universal Immunization Programme (UIP)&rsquo;</strong>.</li>
<li>Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India provides <strong>several vaccines to infants, children and pregnant women</strong> through the Universal Immunisation Programme.</li>
<li>Through this programme, the government provides several vaccines to infants, children and pregnant women.</li>
<li>Vaccines included in the programme are for diseases including <strong>Tuberculosis, Diphtheria, Pertussis, Tetanus, Polio, Hepatitis B, Pneumonia and Meningitis due to Haemophilus Influenzae type b (Hib), Measles, Rubella, Japanese Encephalitis (JE) and Rotavirus diarrhoea</strong>.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/japanese-encephalitis-je'
	]
]
$updates = object(Cake\ORM\Query) {

	'(help)' => 'This is a Query object, to get the results execute or iterate it.',
	'sql' => 'SELECT articles.article_id AS `articles__article_id`, articles.category_id AS `articles__category_id`, articles.title AS `articles__title`, articles.description AS `articles__description`, articles.shortdescription AS `articles__shortdescription`, articles.featuredimage AS `articles__featuredimage`, articles.tag_id AS `articles__tag_id`, articles.secondary_tag AS `articles__secondary_tag`, articles.type AS `articles__type`, articles.publishon AS `articles__publishon`, articles.posturl AS `articles__posturl`, articles.metatitle AS `articles__metatitle`, articles.metadescription AS `articles__metadescription`, articles.metakeyword AS `articles__metakeyword`, articles.status AS `articles__status`, articles.sort_order AS `articles__sort_order`, articles.addedby AS `articles__addedby`, articles.updatedby AS `articles__updatedby`, articles.added AS `articles__added`, articles.modified AS `articles__modified`, articles.whatsnewid AS `articles__whatsnewid`, articles.display_printpdf AS `articles__display_printpdf`, articles.display_comments AS `articles__display_comments`, articles.pdf_name AS `articles__pdf_name`, articles.display_archive AS `articles__display_archive` FROM articles articles WHERE status = :c0 ORDER BY publishon desc LIMIT 10',
	'params' => [
		':c0' => [
			[maximum depth reached]
		]
	],
	'defaultTypes' => [
		'articles__article_id' => 'integer',
		'articles.article_id' => 'integer',
		'article_id' => 'integer',
		'articles__category_id' => 'integer',
		'articles.category_id' => 'integer',
		'category_id' => 'integer',
		'articles__title' => 'string',
		'articles.title' => 'string',
		'title' => 'string',
		'articles__description' => 'text',
		'articles.description' => 'text',
		'description' => 'text',
		'articles__shortdescription' => 'string',
		'articles.shortdescription' => 'string',
		'shortdescription' => 'string',
		'articles__featuredimage' => 'string',
		'articles.featuredimage' => 'string',
		'featuredimage' => 'string',
		'articles__tag_id' => 'integer',
		'articles.tag_id' => 'integer',
		'tag_id' => 'integer',
		'articles__secondary_tag' => 'text',
		'articles.secondary_tag' => 'text',
		'secondary_tag' => 'text',
		'articles__type' => 'integer',
		'articles.type' => 'integer',
		'type' => 'integer',
		'articles__publishon' => 'datetime',
		'articles.publishon' => 'datetime',
		'publishon' => 'datetime',
		'articles__posturl' => 'string',
		'articles.posturl' => 'string',
		'posturl' => 'string',
		'articles__metatitle' => 'string',
		'articles.metatitle' => 'string',
		'metatitle' => 'string',
		'articles__metadescription' => 'string',
		'articles.metadescription' => 'string',
		'metadescription' => 'string',
		'articles__metakeyword' => 'text',
		'articles.metakeyword' => 'text',
		'metakeyword' => 'text',
		'articles__status' => 'integer',
		'articles.status' => 'integer',
		'status' => 'integer',
		'articles__sort_order' => 'integer',
		'articles.sort_order' => 'integer',
		'sort_order' => 'integer',
		'articles__addedby' => 'integer',
		'articles.addedby' => 'integer',
		'addedby' => 'integer',
		'articles__updatedby' => 'integer',
		'articles.updatedby' => 'integer',
		'updatedby' => 'integer',
		'articles__added' => 'timestamp',
		'articles.added' => 'timestamp',
		'added' => 'timestamp',
		'articles__modified' => 'timestamp',
		'articles.modified' => 'timestamp',
		'modified' => 'timestamp',
		'articles__whatsnewid' => 'integer',
		'articles.whatsnewid' => 'integer',
		'whatsnewid' => 'integer',
		'articles__display_printpdf' => 'integer',
		'articles.display_printpdf' => 'integer',
		'display_printpdf' => 'integer',
		'articles__display_comments' => 'integer',
		'articles.display_comments' => 'integer',
		'display_comments' => 'integer',
		'articles__pdf_name' => 'string',
		'articles.pdf_name' => 'string',
		'pdf_name' => 'string',
		'articles__display_archive' => 'integer',
		'articles.display_archive' => 'integer',
		'display_archive' => 'integer'
	],
	'decorators' => (int) 0,
	'executed' => false,
	'hydrate' => true,
	'buffered' => true,
	'formatters' => (int) 0,
	'mapReducers' => (int) 0,
	'contain' => [],
	'matching' => [],
	'extraOptions' => [],
	'repository' => object(App\Model\Table\ArticlesTable) {}

}
$page = (int) 182
$search = 'class'
$totalPages = (float) 277
$title = 'Search'
$lastyear = (int) 2018
$year = '2021'
$i = (int) 2017
$selected = ''
$m = (int) 13
$month = 'December'

include - ROOT/plugins/Drishti/src/Template/Element/rightsection.ctp, line 100
Cake\View\View::_evaluate() - CORE/src/View/View.php, line 1196
Cake\View\View::_render() - CORE/src/View/View.php, line 1157
Cake\View\View::_renderElement() - CORE/src/View/View.php, line 1554
Cake\View\View::element() - CORE/src/View/View.php, line 668
include - ROOT/plugins/Drishti/src/Template/Element/articlebox.ctp, line 5
Cake\View\View::_evaluate() - CORE/src/View/View.php, line 1196
Cake\View\View::_render() - CORE/src/View/View.php, line 1157
Cake\View\View::_renderElement() - CORE/src/View/View.php, line 1554
Cake\View\View::element() - CORE/src/View/View.php, line 668
include - ROOT/plugins/Drishti/src/Template/Search/index.ctp, line 85
Cake\View\View::_evaluate() - CORE/src/View/View.php, line 1196
Cake\View\View::_render() - CORE/src/View/View.php, line 1157
Cake\View\View::render() - CORE/src/View/View.php, line 765
Cake\Controller\Controller::render() - CORE/src/Controller/Controller.php, line 623
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 125
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 93

Achievers Corner

Prelims

Mains & Interview

Current Affairs

Drishti Specials

Free Downloads

Test Series

Videos

Search

Search list matched with tags “class”