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Successful Test Firing of Agni V

India successfully tested its nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), Agni V which has a strike range of 5,000 km, from Dr. Abdul...

11 Dec 2018 News Analysis
Brick Temple at Bhitargaon

The temple at Bhitargaon in Kanpur (Uttar Pradesh) is one of the earliest surviving brick temples of India. It was built in the 5th century A.D...

11 Dec 2018 News Analysis
Rethinking Disaster Management

(This editorial is based on the article “Rethinking Disaster Management” which appears in The Hindu.) Disaster management broadly...

11 Dec 2018 News Editorials
Prompt Corrective Action (PCA)

Why in News? The Central government and the RBI are in conflict over the application of the Prompt Corrective Action (PCA). What is Prompt...

10 Dec 2018 Paper 3
Prompt Corrective Action (PCA)

10 Dec 2018 Paper 3
International Human Rights Day

On December 10, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) observes Human Rights Day. The day is celebrated every year to commemorate the Universal...

10 Dec 2018 News Analysis
Bioplastics Have Less Positive Effect than Expected: Study

A recent study from the University of Bonn suggests that shifting to bioplastics may have less positive effects than previously expected. The...

10 Dec 2018 News Analysis
Important Facts for Prelims (10th December 2018)

Sonepur Fair The Sonepur Mela also known as Malegaon Mela or Harihar Kshetra Mela is held on Kartik Poornima (full moon day) in the month of...

10 Dec 2018 News Analysis
Quick Fix for the Farmer

(This editorial is based on the article “Quick Fix for the Farmer” which appears in The Indian Express on 10th December...

10 Dec 2018 News Editorials
The Big Picture - International Convention on Terrorism

The date 26/11 has gone down in the history as a day that saw the most heinous attack carried on the Indian soil. The attack claimed 164 lives;...

08 Dec 2018 Lok Sabha & Rajya Sabha Discussions
Global Status Report on Road Safety: WHO

World Health Organization (WHO) has released the Global Status Report on Road Safety 2018. Key Points The report highlights that road traffic...

08 Dec 2018 News Analysis
Important Facts for Prelims (8th December 2018)

CAD Widens to 2.9% of GDP India's Current Account Deficit (CAD) widened to 2.9% of the gross domestic product in the Q2 (quarter which ended in...

08 Dec 2018 News Analysis
An Invitation To Corruption?

(This editorial is based on the article “An Invitation To Corruption?” which appears in The Hindu on 8th December 2018.) In order to...

08 Dec 2018 News Editorials
2023 is the International Year of Millets- FAO

India's proposal to observe an International Year of Millets in 2023 has been approved at the by the Food and Agriculture Organisation...

08 Dec 2018 News Analysis
Climate Finance

Why in News? Ahead of the United Nations Conference of Parties (COP24), the BASIC (Brazil, South Africa, China and India) countries said that they...

07 Dec 2018 Paper 3
Climate Finance

07 Dec 2018 Paper 3
National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical Systems

The Union Cabinet has approved the launching of National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical Systems (NM-ICPS) to be implemented by...

07 Dec 2018 News Analysis
Agriculture Export Policy 2018

The Union Cabinet has approved the Agriculture Export Policy, 2018. The policy would help the government in achieving the target of doubling...

07 Dec 2018 News Analysis
Important Facts for Prelims (7th December 2018)

Exercise Hand-In-Hand Exercise Hand-in-Hand is annual military exercise conducted between India and China. The joint exercise for the year 2018...

07 Dec 2018 News Analysis
Is Social Media Polarising Society?

(This editorial is based on the article “Is Social Media Polarising Society?” which appears in The Hindu on 6th December 2018.) We...

07 Dec 2018 News Editorials

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			'title' => 'Successful Test Firing of Agni V',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>India successfully tested its <strong>nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM)</strong>, Agni V which has a strike range of 5,000 km, from <strong>Dr. Abdul Kalam Island (formerly the Wheeler Island) in Odisha.</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>This is the third successful launch of Agni-V this year (2018) and the fifth launch of the missile in a <strong>canisterised form.</strong></li>
<li>Agni-V is the most advanced <strong>surface-to-surface indigenously built ballistic missile</strong>.</li>
<li>It is a<strong> three-stage, solid fuel 17-metre tall</strong>, and is capable of carrying a<strong> nuclear warhead</strong> of about 1.5 tonnes.</li>
<li>Agni-V is a<strong> fire and forget missile,</strong> which once fired cannot be stopped, except by an interceptor missile.</li>
<li>It has been developed under the <strong>Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP).</strong></li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>IGMDP (Integrated Guided Missile Development Program)</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It was conceived by<strong> Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam</strong> to enable India attain self-sufficiency in field of missile technology. It was approved by <strong>Government of India in 1983 </strong>and&nbsp;<strong>completed in March 2012.</strong></li>
<li>The <strong>5 missiles (P-A-T-N-A)</strong> developed under this program are:
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>P</strong>rithvi: Short range <strong>surface to surface</strong> ballistic missile.</li>
<li><strong>A</strong>gni: <strong>Ballistic missiles</strong> with different ranges, i.e. Agni (1,2,3,4,5)</li>
<li><strong>T</strong>rishul: Short range low level <strong>surface to air missile.</strong></li>
<li><strong>N</strong>ag: 3rd generation <strong>anti-tank missile.</strong></li>
<li><strong>A</strong>kash: Medium range <strong>surface to air missile.</strong></li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</div>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The launch operations were carried out and monitored by the<strong> Strategic Forces Command (SFC).</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>SFC is a part of <strong>India&rsquo;s Nuclear Command Authority (NCA)</strong> which was <strong>created in 2003</strong> to manage India&rsquo;s nuclear arsenal.</li>
<li>NCA is India&rsquo;s nodal authority responsible for command, control and operational decisions regarding India&rsquo;s nuclear weapons programme. It has an <strong>Executive Council (headed by National Security Advisor)</strong> which gives input to the <strong>Political Council (headed by the Prime Minister).</strong> The Political Council, authorizes a <strong>nuclear attack if need be.</strong></li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Canister Based Launch System</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Canister based launch system- serves as a<strong> container for transportation</strong>; a housing <strong>during storage</strong> aboard a vessel; provides <strong>operational flexibility.</strong></li>
<li>A canister launch system can be either<strong> hot launch,</strong> where the missile ignites in the cell, or<strong> cold launch</strong>, where the missile is expelled by gas produced by a gas generator which is not part of the missile itself, and then the missile ignites.</li>
<li><strong>Cold launch is safer</strong> than hot launch as the ejection system will eject the missile by itself even if there is a missile failure. In case of <strong>Agni V, it will be a cold launch.</strong></li>
<li>In case of hot launches the problem is the heat produced by the missile at the time of launch. The hot launch is better for small missiles as the ejection part itself will be done by using missiles own engine.</li>
<li>In addition to this technology, India is also working to master the<strong> Multiple Independent Re-entry Vehicle (MIRV) technology</strong> which is also considered as India&rsquo;s technological solution for Minimum Nuclear Deterrence.
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The fundamental characteristic of deploying MIRVs is its ability to<strong> deliver several warheads</strong> along<strong> separate trajectories</strong>, which confers it <strong>flexibility of multiple targeting.</strong></li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</div>',
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		(int) 1 => [
			'title' => 'Brick Temple at Bhitargaon',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>The temple at Bhitargaon in Kanpur (Uttar Pradesh) is one of the earliest surviving<strong> brick</strong> temples of India.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It was built in the 5th century A.D during the <strong>Gupta Empire</strong>.</li>
<li>It is the oldest remaining terracotta Hindu shrine with a roof and a high Shikhara (spire) which paved the way for elaborate Nagara style of temple architecture in North India.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Brief History of Temple Architecture</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>There is no evidence of the existence of temple architecture during the Vedic period.</li>
<li>Over generations, worshipping was systematised and paved the way for the evolution of temple structures.</li>
<li>Rock-cut architecture began to develop from the 3rd century BCE. Though the earliest rock-cut architecture is from the Mauryan dynasty, the Ajanta caves which belong to post Mauryan period are among the earliest rock-cut temples.</li>
<li>As man progressed and learnt new techniques, rock-cut temples gave way to stone temples and as <g class="gr_ gr_83 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins doubleReplace replaceWithoutSep" id="83" data-gr-id="83">stone</g> was not easily available everywhere, it gave way to brick temples.</li>
<li>In the Gangetic plains, which have alluvial soil and <g class="gr_ gr_73 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins doubleReplace replaceWithoutSep" id="73" data-gr-id="73">paucity</g> of stones and rocks, many brick structures came up.</li>
<li>Though rock-cut and stone temples withstood the vagaries of time, brick temples could not survive. That is what makes the brick temple of Bhitargaon so special.</li>
</ul>
<h3><g class="gr_ gr_63 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="63" data-gr-id="63">Architecture</g> of Bhitargaon Temple</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The entrance into the sanctum shows one of the first uses of a <strong>semi-circular doorway</strong>.</li>
<li><strong>Alexander Cunningham</strong> (First Director General of the Archaeological Survey of India, 1871) called this as the &lsquo;Hindu arch&rsquo; which was peculiar to India.</li>
<li>The temple has a tall pyramidical spire (shikhara) above the inner sanctum (<g class="gr_ gr_66 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling" id="66" data-gr-id="66">garbha</g> <g class="gr_ gr_69 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling" id="69" data-gr-id="69">griha</g>). This shikhara became the standard feature of the<strong> Nagara temple architecture</strong> of India.</li>
<li>The walls of the temple are decorated with terracotta sculptures of God and Goddesses like Shiva, Parvati, Ganesha, Vishnu etc. on panels separated by bold ornamental pilasters (<g class="gr_ gr_77 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins doubleReplace replaceWithoutSep" id="77" data-gr-id="77">rectangular</g> column that projects slightly beyond the wall).</li>
<li>According to Cunningham, because of the Varaha incarnation at the back of the temple, it was probably a <strong>Vishnu temple</strong>.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>NAGARA, DRAVIDA &amp; <g class="gr_ gr_80 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="80" data-gr-id="80">VESARA</g> TEMPLES</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Temple architecture evolved slightly differently in different regions, such as the distinct features of Orissa, Kashmir and Bengal temples, but it can be generally classified under three categories- <strong>Nagara (North)</strong>, <strong>Dravida (South)</strong> and <strong>Vesara</strong> styles.</li>
<li>The <strong>shikhara</strong> tower in Nagara temples has a <strong>sloping</strong> <strong>curve</strong> as they rise and are topped by an <strong>amalaka</strong> (a large fluted disk) and also a small spherical pot known as the <strong>kalash</strong>.<img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/650drishti_ias_temple.jpg" /></li>
<li>The Nagara style of temples <g class="gr_ gr_59 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="59" data-gr-id="59">were</g> generally built on upraised platforms.</li>
<li><strong>Kandariya Mahadeva temple</strong> at Khajuraho in Madhya Pradesh is one of the best expression of Nagara temple architecture.</li>
<li>In contrast, <strong>Dravida</strong> towers (known separately as <strong>vimana</strong>) are in the form of a <strong>stepped pyramid</strong> that rises up linearly rather than curved.</li>
<li>There is only one vimana in the Dravidian architecture on top of the main temple. The subsidiary shrines do not have vimanas, unlike in Nagara architecture.</li>
<li>The <strong>presence of water tank</strong> inside the temple enclosure is a <strong>unique feature of the Dravidian style</strong>.</li>
<li>Southern Indian temples are typically enclosed within a walled courtyard with a gate (<strong>gopuram</strong>) which over time had become even more massive and ornate than the temple itself.</li>
<li>The 11th century A.D. <strong>Brihadishwara Temple</strong> complex (built by Rajaraja I of Imperial Cholas) at Tanjavur is a wonderful example of Dravida temple which incorporates all of these features.</li>
<li>Vesara style of temple architecture flourished under the later Chalukya rulers in the 7th century A.D.</li>
<li><strong><g class="gr_ gr_64 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="64" data-gr-id="64">Vesara</g> style</strong> had <strong>combined features of both Nagara school and Dravidian school</strong> and resulted in a hybridised style.</li>
<li><strong>Durga temple at Aihole</strong>, Karnataka is a prominent example of Vesara style temple.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
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		(int) 2 => [
			'title' => 'Rethinking Disaster Management',
			'catname' => 'News Editorials',
			'desc' => '<div class="border">
<p>(This editorial is based on the article &ldquo;Rethinking Disaster Management&rdquo; which appears in The Hindu.)</p>
</div>
<p>Disaster management broadly encompasses the management (i.e of prevention, relief, rebuilding etc.) before, during and after a disaster, either man-made or natural. Of the two, natural disasters are generally more devastating and reoccurring.</p>
<p><strong>The scale of damage from any natural disaster can never really be measured because of the long-term ecological and psychological effects.</strong> For example, post-flood effects include the spread of diseases, such as cholera, malaria, and leptospirosis (swamp fever), and may impact flood-hit communities for years to come.</p>
<p><strong>Weather-related disasters are being affected by climate change that is caused by humans.</strong> The devastation is worsened by the collective failure of governments and businesses to invest in building resilience despite all the evidence on runaway climate change.</p>
<p>India faces numerous such perils and needs to be better prepared. In 2017, Swiss Re (Swiss Reinsurance Company Ltd) counted 183 natural catastrophes and 118 man-made disasters across the globe.</p>
<p><strong>India alone is projected to have seven megacities</strong>&mdash;defined by a population of more than 10 million&mdash;by 2030, according to the World Economic Forum. The confluence of climate change, natural disasters, and human density could lead to more Kerala-like disasters. The task before the government is, therefore, to move from a reactive stance to a proactive one, by preparing for such natural disasters ahead of their occurrence.</p>
<h3>Challenges to Disaster Management</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>India is the 10th most disaster-prone country in the world</strong> with 27 out of 29 States and all of the seven Union Territories being most vulnerable.</li>
<li><strong>About 60% of the landmass is prone to earthquakes of various intensities, over 40 million hectares is prone to floods, about 8% of the total area is prone to cyclones, and 68% of the area is susceptible to drought.</strong></li>
<li>An absence of an institutional framework at the Center/State/District level, poor intersectoral coordination, lack of an early warning system, slow response from relief agencies, lack of trained/dedicated search and rescue teams, and poor community empowerment are the standard challenges.</li>
<li><strong>Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) are virtually non-existent</strong> and even where such SOPs exists, the authorities concerned are unfamiliar with it.</li>
<li>The States also suffers from inadequate coordination among various government departments and other stakeholders.</li>
</ul>
<h3>What is Disaster Risk Insurance?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Disaster risk insurance is one of the financial tools available as a mitigation measure.</li>
<li>It triggers a pay-out by the insurer when a disaster occurs, e.g. when a tsunami hits or rainfall falls below a certain threshold.</li>
<li>At its most basic level, insurance commits an individual or entity to pay a fixed amount at regular intervals (premium) into a common fund (the scheme), from which money is retrieved (pay-out) to compensate for losses arising from a predefined event (coverage).</li>
<li><strong>Disaster risk insurance covers hazards arising from geological, meteorological, hydrological, climatological, oceanic, biological, and technological/man-made events, or a combination of them.</strong></li>
<li>Natural hazards include earthquakes, floods, storms, tsunamis, droughts, and freezes.</li>
<li>Man-made hazards can also be insured against, including air/water/soil pollution, nuclear radiation, toxic waste, dam failures, transport accidents, factory explosions, fires, and chemical.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Stakeholders in Disaster Risk Insurance</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Beneficiaries/insured entity/party:</strong> Individuals, households or companies receive the insurance payout after the occurrence of a certain disaster event.</li>
<li><strong>Government/regulators:</strong> Other than being the insurer of last resort, governments can promote (and incentivize) public and private insurance schemes. They are also responsible for providing the legal framework and oversight over the insurance industry.</li>
<li><strong>Insurance/reinsurance industry</strong> (e.g. banks, credit unions, development finance institutions): Insurers offer insurance solutions to the consumer market while the reinsurers (e.g. Re-Swiss, Munich Reinsurance Company) offer financial products to the insurers themselves. Reinsurers cover an estimated 55&ndash;65% of insured losses in natural catastrophes, while the rest is credited to insurers and the insured, depending on the insurance policy.</li>
<li><strong>Donors/facilitators:</strong> Provide technical assistance and official development assistance to raise awareness for and implement disaster-related insurance schemes.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Pros of Disaster Risk Insurance</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Insurance provides reliable and timely financial relief for the recovery of livelihoods and reconstruction, providing security in the post-disaster period.</strong> As a result, it can prevent people from falling into poverty and destitution, or provide the liquidity necessary to restore livelihoods.</li>
<li><strong>Insurance helps create a space of certainty and stability for the individual, institutions, and government within which investments and planning can be undertaken.</strong> This allows, for example, for climate-resilient investments in climate-sensitive sectors such as tourism and agriculture as well as in job creation and market development. Outreach towards poor and vulnerable communities can also be secured in a relatively short period of time.</li>
<li><strong>Technological innovations, such as satellite imaging and mobile phones, have substantially lowered the costs of evaluating claims in remote and poor regions and thus of insurance products.</strong> This has increased substantially the number of people who can be covered under such insurance.</li>
<li><strong>Pooling risks over a wide geographical spectrum allow risk diversification:</strong> as a result risk premiums can be reduced considerably, thus ensuring affordability for many countries (like India, for example) that otherwise might not be able to access insurance coverage.</li>
<li><strong>The temporary loss of tax revenues and the sudden increase in public expenditures for reconstruction can easily condemn vulnerable countries to a downward fiscal and macroeconomic spiral.</strong> Disaster risk insurance&mdash;especially pooled mechanisms&mdash;can help countries cope with these macroeconomic shocks.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Cons of Disaster Risk Insurance</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Insurance can help individuals and countries to recover from disasters and incentivize preparedness, but cannot prevent risks as such nor the loss of lives and assets.</strong></li>
<li>On its own, insurance will thus not be sufficient. Insurance schemes need to be complemented with other disaster-risk reduction strategies, such as integrating disaster risks into development planning, a collection of data, setting up early warning systems, awareness raising, contingency planning, etc.</li>
<li>Disaster risk insurance can be comparatively costly compared with other disaster risk reduction measures.</li>
<li>In some cases, insurance premiums may be set too high for the poor or the poorest countries. Affordability will be determined by the availability of public incentives or depend on grants from donors.</li>
<li>Maintaining the affordability of insurance schemes in light of more frequent and impactful extreme weather events might become unrealistic. For example, traditional insurance schemes might become unsuitable due to sea-level rise and desertification.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Risks associated with Disaster Risk Insurance</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Access to reliable information:</strong> Risk assessment requires reliable data and institutional risk assessment capabilities, which is still limited in many countries.</li>
<li><strong>Accessibility:</strong> It is important that insurance schemes address the needs of all beneficiaries and stakeholders involved so that coverage is maximized.</li>
<li><strong>Affordability:</strong> Premiums may not be affordable for low-income households.</li>
<li><strong>Financial sustainability of the scheme:</strong> Direct insurance schemes can only be commercially viable if there is a steady stream of premium income at scale to cover future payouts.</li>
<li><strong>Un-insurability associated with increasing frequency and magnitude of extreme weather events:</strong> insurers may withdraw from markets as the risks become too high for the pool of premiums available.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Disaster management approaches require administrative support and medical intervention, apart from psychosocial intervention.</li>
<li>Improvement in government policy frameworks to better manage risk and mitigate economic and social costs is the foremost necessity. Governments also have to frame good macroeconomic policies before and after disaster shocks.</li>
<li>We should be able to estimate the probability of such shocks and identify local vulnerabilities and integrate these into plans for contingencies, invest in risk reduction, insurance, self-insurance, and disaster response.</li>
<li>There must be a provision in the budget for emergency spending that helps in crisis mitigation, resolution and insurance coverage. A low public debt can bolster government spending and increase its flexibility for relief work especially if reconstruction needs arise.</li>
<li>There should be public investment in risk reduction. Tax and spending policies need to be flexible, to allow rapid redeployment of spending when needed.</li>
<li>Coordination with foreign partners before disaster strikes could mobilize external assistance for risk reduction, which is likely to earn a higher return than emergency help after the fact.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>A proactive stance to reduce the toll of disasters in the country requires a more comprehensive approach that comprises both pre-disaster risk reduction and post-disaster recovery. Such an approach should involve the following set of activities:</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Risk analysis to identify the kinds of risks faced by people and development investments as well as their magnitude;</li>
<li>Prevention and mitigation to address the structural sources of vulnerability;</li>
<li>Risk transfer to spread financial risks over time and among different actors;</li>
<li>Emergency preparedness and response to enhance a country&rsquo;s readiness to cope quickly and effectively with an emergency;</li>
<li>Post-disaster rehabilitation and reconstruction to support effective recovery and to safeguard against future disasters.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>India needs a strong disaster management agency. Disaster preparedness should be focussed on meeting the immediate contingency, implementing a conceptual, long-term rehabilitation strategy while maintaining an ethnographic understanding. It must be built on anticipatory governance, emphasizing studies that embed foresight and foster citizen awareness.</li>
<li>The NDRF (National Disaster Relief Force) must fill its vacant specialist positions while being given better control over transfers and deployment of its personnel. Without such reforms, only the Indian Army and paramilitary forces can remain first responders, and States will continue to cry out for relief.</li>
<li>It is, therefore, time to move on from being focussed only on managing natural disaster emergencies to improving resilience.</li>
</ul>
<h3><span style="color: #ff0000;"><span style="color: #000000;">Read More...</span><br /></span></h3>
<p><a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/our-understanding-of-the-dynamics-of-risks-of-disasters-is-still-far-from-comprehensive" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Our Understanding of the Dynamics of Risks of Disasters is Still Far from Comprehensive</a></p>
<p><a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/what-is-a-national-disaster" target="_blank" rel="noopener">What is a &lsquo;National Disaster&rsquo;?</a></p>
<p><a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/catastrophe-bonds" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Catastrophe Bonds</a></p>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/rethinking-disaster-management'
		],
		(int) 3 => [
			'title' => 'Prompt Corrective Action (PCA)',
			'catname' => 'Paper 3',
			'desc' => '<h3>Why in News?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Central government and the RBI are in conflict over the application of the Prompt Corrective Action (PCA).</li>
</ul>
<h3>What is Prompt Corrective Action (PCA)?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>PCA is a framework under which banks with weak financial metrics are put under watch by the RBI.</li>
<li>The RBI introduced the PCA framework in 2002 as a structured early-intervention mechanism for banks that become undercapitalised due to poor asset quality, or vulnerable due to loss of profitability.</li>
<li>It aims to check the problem of Non-Performing Assets (NPAs) in the Indian banking sector.</li>
<li>The framework was reviewed in 2017 based on the recommendations of the working group of the Financial Stability and Development Council on Resolution Regimes for Financial Institutions in India and the Financial Sector Legislative Reforms Commission.</li>
<li>PCA is intended to help alert the regulator as well as investors and depositors if a bank is heading for trouble.</li>
<li>The idea is to head off problems before they attain crisis proportions.</li>
<li>Essentially PCA helps RBI monitor key performance indicators of banks, and taking corrective measures, to restore the financial health of a bank.</li>
<li>The PCA framework deems banks as risky if they slip some trigger points - <strong>capital to risk weighted assets ratio (CRAR), net NPA, Return on Assets (RoA) and Tier 1 Leverage ratio</strong>.</li>
<li>Certain structured and discretionary actions are initiated in respect of banks hitting such trigger points.</li>
<li>The PCA framework is applicable only to commercial banks and not to co-operative banks and non-banking financial companies (NBFCs).</li>
<li>It may be noted that of the 21 state-run banks, 11 are under the PCA framework.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Non Performing Asset</strong></p>
<p>A non performing asset (NPA) is a loan or advance for which the principal or interest payment remained overdue for a period of 90 days. Banks are required to classify NPAs further into Substandard, Doubtful and Loss assets.</p>
<p><strong>Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR)</strong></p>
<p>The <strong>CAR</strong> is a measure of a bank's available capital expressed as a percentage of a bank's risk-weighted credit exposures. The Capital Adequacy Ratio, also known as capital-to-risk weighted assets ratio (CRAR), is used to protect depositors and promote the stability and efficiency of financial systems around the world.</p>
</div>
<h3>PCA Measures</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>RBI can place restrictions on dividend distribution, branch expansion, and management compensation.</li>
<li>Only in an extreme situation, would a bank be a likely candidate for resolution through amalgamation, reconstruction or winding up.</li>
<li>RBI may place restrictions on credit by PCA banks to unrated borrowers or those with high risks, but it doesn&rsquo;t invoke a complete ban on their lending.</li>
<li>RBI may also impose restrictions on the bank on borrowings from interbank market.</li>
<li>Banks may also not be allowed to enter into new lines of business.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Challenges and Issues</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>PCA is an exceptional action and impacts the rating of the bank as well as consumer confidence. This is detrimental in the long run as it impacts the credit history of the bank and raises questions about its management.</li>
<li>PCA can accelerate the loss of market share and cause further decline of the position of the public sector banks in the financial system in favour of private banks and foreign banks.</li>
<li>PCA is seen by government as hindering economic growth therefore is arguing for easier lending policies by relaxing the PCA norms and aligning them to global norms.</li>
<li>The tussle between RBI and government can negatively impact the image of India as an investment destination.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Narasimham Committee (1998) on structural reforms recommended the merger of Indian banks; consolidated banking industry will be able to better deal with NPA crisis.</li>
<li>Government should address the core issue of Governance impacting the Banking Sector.</li>
<li>A formal agency such as Public Sector Asset Rehabilitation Agency (PARA), can be instituted to resolve the large bad debt cases; this step was taken by East Asian countries after they were hit by severe TBS problems in the 1990s.</li>
<li>The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) mechanism needs to be strengthened to meet global standards with active involvement of the government, regulators, lenders, borrowers and the judiciary.</li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/to-the-points/paper3/prompt-corrective-action-pca'
		],
		(int) 4 => [
			'title' => 'Prompt Corrective Action (PCA)',
			'catname' => 'Paper 3',
			'desc' => '<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/977Drishti_ias_PCA.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/977Drishti_ias_PCA.jpg" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></a></p>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/mind-map/gs-paper3/prompt-corrective-action-pca-mind-map'
		],
		(int) 5 => [
			'title' => 'International Human Rights Day',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>On <strong>December 10,</strong> the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) observes Human Rights Day. The day is celebrated every year to commemorate the <strong>Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), which was adopted and proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in 1948</strong> as the shared standard yardstick to protect human rights across the globe. This year marks the <strong>70<sup>th</sup> anniversary of adoption of UDHR.</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The five-yearly <strong>"United Nations Prize in the field of Human Rights"</strong>, constituted in 1966, is also awarded on this day.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Universal Declaration of Human Rights</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Proclaimed under <strong>UNGA resolution 217 A in Paris</strong>, the declaration sets out, for the first time, fundamental human rights to be universally protected.</li>
<li>It states that <strong>&lsquo;All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.&rsquo;</strong></li>
<li>It entitles everyone to all the rights and freedoms and prohibits slavery and slave trade in all forms.</li>
<li>Other rights recognized under the declaration are right to a nationality, right against arbitrary arrest, detention or exile, right to seek asylum from prosecution, right to freedom of movement and residence, etc.</li>
<li>The Universal Declaration is<strong> not a treaty,</strong> so it does <strong>not directly create legal obligations</strong> for countries. However, it is an <strong>expression of the fundamental values</strong> which are shared by all members of the International community.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Human rights are at the heart of the<strong> Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)</strong>, as in the absence of human dignity, sustainable development cannot be achieved. Human Rights are driven by progress on all SDGs, and the SDGs are driven by advancements on human rights.</li>
<li>Most of the rights listed in the <strong>Constitution of India are in two parts</strong>: The <strong>Fundamental Rights </strong>and the<strong> Directive Principles of State Policy.</strong></li>
</ul>
<h3>National Human Rights Commission (NHRC)</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The NHRC was established in 1993 under the statute of <strong>Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993.</strong></li>
<li>The Commission consists of:
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>A Chairperson</strong> who has been a <strong>Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.</strong></li>
<li>One Member who is or has been, a <strong>Judge of the Supreme Court.</strong></li>
<li>One Member who is, or has been, the <strong>Chief Justice of a High Court.</strong></li>
<li><strong>Two Members</strong> to be appointed from amongst persons having knowledge of, or practical experience in, matters relating to human rights.</li>
<li><strong>The Chairpersons of four National Commissions (Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Women and Minorities) serve as ex officio members.</strong></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>As per the act, NHRC is a<strong> recommendatory body</strong> vested with the powers of a civil court trying a suit under the <strong>Code of Civil Procedure, 1908.</strong></li>
<li>Though it is <strong>empowered to take suo moto</strong> cognizance of the human rights violation cases, it <strong>cannot entertain cases that are older than 1 year.</strong></li>
<li>Apart from looking into the complaints of the human rights violations, it reviews safeguards provided under the Constitution or any Law, makes recommendations for effective implementation of International Conventions/ Covenants, undertakes research and organises seminars and discussion programmes on human rights issues.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Protection of Human Rights (Amendment) Bill, 2018</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Recently, the <strong>Protection of Human Rights (Amendment) Bill, 2018</strong> was introduced in Lok Sabha which seeks to amend the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993. The salient features of 2018 amendment Bill are:
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Not only a person who has been Chief Justice of India, but <strong>also a Judge of the Supreme Court</strong> can be the chairperson of the NHRC. This will <strong>enlarge the scope of eligibility and scope of selection</strong> of Chairperson, National Human Rights Commission.</li>
<li><strong>Three members</strong> to be appointed (from two), of which at <strong>least one will be a woman.</strong> It also seeks to include the chairpersons of the <strong>National Commission for Backward Classes, the National Commission for the Protection of Child Rights, and the Chief Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities as members of the NHRC.</strong></li>
<li>The Bill<strong> reduces the term of office to three years (from five years)</strong> or till the age of seventy years, whichever is earlier.</li>
<li>The Act provides for a <strong>Secretary-General of the NHRC and a Secretary of a SHRC,</strong> who exercise powers as may be delegated to them. The Bill allows the Secretary-General and Secretary to exercise all administrative and financial powers (except judicial functions), subject to the respective chairperson&rsquo;s control.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The Amendment will <strong>strengthen the Human Rights Institutions of India</strong> further for effective discharge of their mandates, roles and responsibilities. Moreover, the amendment will make National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) more<strong> compliant with agreed global standards and benchmarks</strong> concerning its autonomy, independence, pluralism and wide-ranging functions in order to effectively protect and promote human rights.</li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/international-human-rights-day'
		],
		(int) 6 => [
			'title' => 'Bioplastics Have Less Positive Effect than Expected: Study',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>A recent study from the <strong>University of Bonn</strong> suggests that shifting to bioplastics may have less positive effects than previously expected.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The study also found that it will take a lot of time to switch to bioplastics from single-use plastics.</li>
</ul>
<h3>What is Bioplastic?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Bioplastic refers to plastic made from plants like maize, wheat or sugarcane or other biological material instead of petroleum.</strong> Bio-plastics are biodegradable and compostable plastic materials.</li>
<li>It can be made by extracting sugar from plants like corn and sugarcane and converting it into polylactic acids (PLA). It can also be made from polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) from microorganisms.</li>
<li>PLA plastic is commonly used in food packaging, while PHA is often used in medical devices like sutures and cardiovascular patches.</li>
</ul>
<h3>How it is better than Single-Use Plastics?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Bioplastics, or plant-based plastics, are promoted as a<strong> climate-friendly alternative to petroleum-based plastics.</strong></li>
<li>Plastics are usually made from petroleum. They have impacts in terms of<strong> fossil fuel depletion and climate change.</strong></li>
<li>It is estimated that by 2050, plastics will be responsible for 15% of the global CO<sub>2</sub> emissions.</li>
<li>Plants get carbon dioxide from the air through their leaves; producing bioplastics from plants, therefore, consumes carbon dioxide, which compensates for the amount that is later released when bioplastic is decomposed. Overall, the net greenhouse gas balance of bioplastic is assumed to be zero.</li>
<li>The carbon embodied in petroleum-based plastic is suddenly released into the atmosphere by degradation or burning, contributing to global warming. Bioplastics, on the other hand, are climate-neutral.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Impact of Bioplastics</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Cropland Expansion:</strong> Increase in use of bioplastics may trigger cropland expansion on the global scale, which will further increase greenhouse gas emissions.</li>
<li><strong>Deforestation:</strong> The production of bioplastics in large amounts might change land use globally. This could lead to an increase in the conversion of forest areas to arable land for agriculture. As forests absorb more carbon dioxide than maize or sugar cane field annually.</li>
<li><strong>Food Scarcity:</strong> Using a substance like corn for plastic instead of food may cause food constraints in an increasingly food-scarce world.</li>
<li><strong>Industrial composting required:</strong> Industrial composting is necessary to heat the bioplastic to a high enough temperature that allows microbes to break it down. Without that intense heat, bioplastics will not degrade on their own either in landfills or in the compost heap. If they end up in marine environments, they'll function similarly to petroleum-based plastic.
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Thus, establishing large-scale plants for Industrial composting of bioplastics may not be economically and environmentally feasible.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Environment Day 2018</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The theme of United Nations Environment Day 2018 celebrated on June 5 was <strong>Beat Plastic Pollution.</strong></li>
<li>UN Environment Day in 2018 was hosted by India.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Greenwashing</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Greenwashing is the practice of making an <strong>unsubstantiated or misleading claim about the environmental benefits of a product</strong>, service, technology or company practice. Greenwashing can make a company appear to be more environmentally friendly than it really is.<br /><a href="/loksabha-rajyasabha-discussions/the-big-picture-world-environment-day-identify-the-dangers-of-the-plastic-era" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More About Plastic Pollution</a></li>
</ul>
</div>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/bioplastics-have-less-positive-effect-than-expected-study'
		],
		(int) 7 => [
			'title' => 'Important Facts for Prelims (10th December 2018)',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<h3>Sonepur Fair</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Sonepur Mela also known as Malegaon Mela or Harihar Kshetra Mela is held on Kartik Poornima (full moon day) in the month of November in <strong>Sonepur</strong>, <strong>Bihar</strong>, on the <strong>confluence of river</strong> <strong>Ganga and Gandak</strong>.</li>
<li>It is the <strong>biggest cattle fair of Asia</strong> and stretches on from fifteen days to one month.</li>
<li>It has its origins during ancient times. The fair used to attract traders from places as distant as Central Asia.</li>
<li>The famous Harihar Nath temple in Sonpur was built by Raja Ram Narain, an influential person during the late Mughal period.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Yellow Vest Protest</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>France</strong> has witnessed four consecutive weekends of <strong>demonstrations against fuel tax rises</strong>, high living costs and other issues.</li>
<li>The protest became known as the "<strong>yellow vest</strong>" or "<strong>gilets jaunes</strong>" movement because protesters took to the streets wearing the high-visibility yellow jackets that are required to be carried in every vehicle by French law.</li>
<li>The original &ldquo;Yellow Vest&rdquo; protests were dominated by working-class people who were upset over fuel tax increase and their declining living standards.</li>
<li>Protests have also erupted over other issues, including calls for higher wages, lower taxes, better pensions and easier university entry requirements.</li>
<li>The widely supported movement's core aim is to highlight the economic frustration and political distrust of poorer working families.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Exercise Aviaindra 2018: India-Russia</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Exercise Aviaindra is being held at Air Force Station Jodhpur from 10-21 Dec 2018.</li>
<li>Exercise Aviaindra is an Air Force level exercise between India and Russia was conducted for the first time in 2014.</li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/important-facts-for-prelims-10th-december-2018'
		],
		(int) 8 => [
			'title' => 'Quick Fix for the Farmer',
			'catname' => 'News Editorials',
			'desc' => '<div class="border">
<p>(This editorial is based on the article &ldquo;Quick Fix for the Farmer&rdquo; which appears in The Indian Express on 10th December 2018.)</p>
</div>
<p><strong>Thousands of farmers from different parts of India marched to Delhi in November this year to register their protest against the Central government&rsquo;s perceived apathy and neglect of farmers&rsquo; demands.</strong></p>
<p>They were basically demanding three things:</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The debate in Parliament to discuss farm distress;</li>
<li>One-time loan waiver;</li>
<li>Raising<a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/msp-agrarian-crisis-and-reform" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> minimum support prices (MSPs)</a> to 50 percent above the comprehensive cost of production, and making <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/give-legal-backing-to-msp-capc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MSPs legally binding on private traders</a> - that is, if any trader buys below MSP, he should be put in prison for three years.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Already, from April 2017 to July 2018, several states (Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab, Rajasthan, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh) have announced loan waivers that together amount to Rs 1,82,802 crore.</strong> The remaining states are also likely to be added to this list during the run-up to parliamentary elections in April/May 2019. Although it is well known that loan waivers will not permanently solve the problems of farmers, yet this demand is likely to be met for political if not economic considerations.<strong> Farm loan waivers have now become a standard demand across the country.</strong></p>
<p>However, it is interesting to note that of the states that have already announced loan waivers, only a few budgeted them while many others have done just lip service so far. For example, Punjab announced a loan waiver of Rs 10,000 crore, but so far has budgeted less than Rs 600 crore. Further, it may be noted that it is the better ones in the peasantry which will benefit the most from this move (as they have better access to the judicial and bureaucratic systems of the country).</p>
<h3>Why Farm Loan Waiver is Always in Demand?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Farm loan waivers have become a permanent poll promise by all political parties.</strong></li>
<li>Farm income growth has been subdued in recent years due to poor monsoon, failing prices etc. and, the loan waiver appears as a quick solution for the farm distress.</li>
<li><strong>Also, farm loan waivers are easy to get.</strong> If elections are around it goes without asking. If not, all it takes is an agitation to bring the government to its knees.</li>
<li><strong>Governments have figured out that loan waivers are easy to give as well.</strong> To reduce farm distress, there are better long-term alternatives to loan waivers. But building irrigation systems or warehouses, electrifying villages or creating markets takes time and effort. A loan waiver is quick and returns are instant.<a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/701drishti_ias_loan%20waivers.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/701drishti_ias_loan waivers.jpg" width="280" height="623" style="float: right;" caption="false" /></a></li>
</ul>
<h3>Farm Loan Waiver is No Answer to India&rsquo;s Farmers</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Farm loan waivers lead to faulty targeting of beneficiaries and result in discrimination.</strong> It also incentivizes wilful defaulters and erodes credit discipline.</li>
<li><strong>Loan waivers not only impact bank balance sheets but also increase government spending</strong> which is then financed by additional market borrowings, pushing up the interest rates.</li>
<li>The ultimate goal of farm loan waiver is to lessen the debt burden of distressed and vulnerable farmers and help them qualify for fresh loans. The success of the loan waiver lies on the extent to which the benefits reach the needy farmers.<strong> Loan waivers suffer from several drawbacks in this respect. It covers only a tiny fraction of farmers. According to 2012-13 NSS-SAS, 48% of the agricultural households did not have any outstanding loan.</strong></li>
<li>Further, out of the indebted agricultural households, about 39% borrowed only from non-institutional sources. The farmers investing from their own savings and those borrowing from non-institutional sources are equally vulnerable to weather and market risks. But all such households are outside the purview of loan waivers.</li>
<li><strong>It provides only a partial relief</strong> to the indebted farmers as about half of the institutional borrowing of a cultivator is for non-farm purposes.</li>
<li>One household has multiple loans either from different sources or in the name of different family members, which entitles it to multiple loan waiving.</li>
<li><strong>Loan waiving excludes agricultural (wage) </strong>labourers<strong> who are even economically, politically and socially weaker</strong> than cultivators in bearing the consequences of economic distress.</li>
<li>It severely erodes the credit culture, with dire long-run consequences to the banking business.</li>
<li>The scheme is prone to serious exclusion and inclusion errors, as evidenced by the Comptroller and Auditor General&rsquo;s (CAG) findings in the Agricultural Debt Waiver and Debt Relief Scheme.</li>
<li>Loan waivers have serious implications for other developmental expenditure, having a much larger multiplier effect on the economy. For instance, loan waiver may cost Uttar Pradesh at least ₹36,000 crore, which is 4.4 times the State&rsquo;s capital expenditure of ₹8,191 crore (Budget estimate) in agriculture, including irrigation and flood management, in 2016-17. A similar amount spent on improvement of agriculture infrastructure and other developmental activities would create a base for future growth and development of the sector.</li>
<li><strong>Ultimately loan waivers involve a transfer of resources from taxpayers to borrowers which can crimp consumption redistribution.</strong></li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Measures taken to improve farmers&rsquo; access to institutional credit and reduce their dependence on informal credit:</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>As informal sources of credit are mostly usurious, the government has improved the flow of adequate credit through the nationalization of commercial banks, and the establishment of Regional Rural Banks and the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development.</li>
<li>It has also launched various farm credit programmes over the years such as the Kisan Credit Card scheme in 1998, the Agricultural Debt Waiver and Debt Relief Scheme in 2008, the Interest Subvention Scheme in 2010-11, and the Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana in 2014.</li>
<li>There is the increase in institutional credit from ₹8 lakh crore in 2014-15 to ₹10 lakh crore in 2017-18. Of this, ₹3.15 lakh crore is meant for capital investment, while the remaining is for crop loans, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare. Actual credit flow has considerably exceeded the target.</li>
<li>The result is that the share of institutional credit to the agricultural gross domestic product has increased from 10% in 1999-2000 to nearly 41% in 2015-16.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It appears that loan waiving can provide a short-term relief to a limited section of farmers; <strong>it has a meager chance of bringing farmers out of the vicious cycle of indebtedness.</strong></li>
<li>There is no concrete evidence on reduction in agrarian distress following the first spell of all-India farm loan waiver in 2008. In the longer run, strengthening the repayment capacity of the farmers by improving and stabilizing their income is the only way to keep them out of distress.</li>
<li><strong>Lasting solutions like building irrigation capabilities and cold storage chains, increased crop insurance coverage, farm infrastructure building, tech-enabled productivity improvement and opening the sector to market forces and open trade can help the farmers in long run as a better option.</strong></li>
<li>Agrarian distress and farmers&rsquo; income will be addressed much better if States undertake and sincerely implement long-pending reforms in the agriculture sector with urgency.</li>
<li><strong>Alternatively, waiving only a portion of the loan instead of placing a cap on the quantum of loan waiver will be an improvement towards averting moral hazards.</strong></li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/quick-fix-for-the-farmer'
		],
		(int) 9 => [
			'title' => 'The Big Picture - International Convention on Terrorism',
			'catname' => 'Lok Sabha & Rajya Sabha Discussions',
			'desc' => '<p style="text-align: center;"><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/eN3BHWhi2-E" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p>
<p style="text-align: left;">The date 26/11 has gone down in the history as a day that saw the most heinous attack carried on the Indian soil. The attack claimed 164 lives; leftover 300 injured and sent shock waves around the world. Terrorism has reared its ugly head every now and then and has devastated the world like nothing else. It is an issue which has affected millions of lives from Asia to the Americas but till date, there is no consensus on an international convention on terrorism. Several efforts have been made to address the problem but negotiations have not borne out results to address the issue.</p>
<div class="border-bg">
<p>DRISHTI INPUT</p>
<p><strong>Origin and Status of Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT)</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>New Delhi has pushed for an intergovernmental convention to enhance prosecution and extradition of terrorists since 1996. In 2018, even after two decades, there is still a lack of consensus.</li>
<li>Although consensus eludes towards the adoption of the terrorism convention, discussions have yielded three separate protocols that aim to tackle terrorism:
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>International Convention for the Suppression of Terrorist Bombings, adopted on 15 December 1997;</li>
<li>International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism, adopted on 9 December 1999;</li>
<li>International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism, adopted on 13 April 2005.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>Why the Lack of Consensus?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Sixth Committee, the primary forum for the consideration of legal questions in the General Assembly had created an ad hoc group which is still debating the draft for Comprehensive Convention for Countering International Terrorism. There are several issues but the most important of them is &ldquo;defining the terms related to terrorism&rdquo;. Multiple groups have contentious claims over what should and what should not be regarded as terrorism.</li>
<li>For instance, Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) has denied inclusion of liberation movement activities as terrorism, keeping in mind the Israel- Palestine conflict.</li>
<li>On the other hand, the US and the allied countries who are involved in many counter-terrorism activities in various countries wanted the draft to exclude acts committed by military forces of states during peacetime. The Latin American countries want exactly the opposite.</li>
<li>Hence, for the committee prescribing an overarching definition that satisfies all the parties is a bone of contention.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Geopolitics and the Act of terror</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Geopolitics is one of the most important determinants that has played the invisible hand in protecting the agents of terror. Masood Azhar is a case in point.</li>
<li>Time and again China has been reluctant in declaring Azhar a terrorist. China, being a veto-wielding permanent member of the UN Security Council, has repeatedly blocked India's move to do so. The US, Britain <g class="gr_ gr_112 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="112" data-gr-id="112">and</g> France all back India to designate Masood Azhar a terrorist under the Al-Qaida Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council.</li>
<li>China, in its statement, said that since Pakistan didn't agree with India on this issue, there is no "consensus" between the two directly affected parties. Beijing made it clear that China will support the issue only if Pakistan agrees with India.</li>
<li>Pakistan government has been proven toothless when it comes to curbing nefarious activities emanating from her soil. There are scores of terrorist camps along the border, aided and funded either by the army (clandestinely) or terrorist groups like Jaish e Mohammad.</li>
<li>The motive of the Pakistani administration has always been to support the fringe elements tacitly, in order to fulfill its policy to &ldquo;bleed India with thousand cuts&rdquo;.</li>
<li>Adoption of the convention would not only force Pakistan to withdraw any tacit state support to the terrorist groups but would also enable India to extradite culprits who are responsible for designing terrorist acts from foreign soil.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT)</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The CCIT will provide <g class="gr_ gr_118 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="118" data-gr-id="118">legal</g> framework which will make it binding on all signatories to deny funds and safe havens to terrorist groups. The original draft that was tabled in 1996 and discussed until April 2013 included the following major objectives:
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>To have a universal definition of terrorism that all 193-members of the UNGA will adopt into their own criminal law.</li>
<li>To ban all terror groups and shut down terror camps.</li>
<li>Deny safe haven to those who finance, plan, support, or commit terrorist acts.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>To prosecute all terrorists under a special law.</li>
<li>Exchange information in accordance with international and domestic law and cooperate on administrative and judicial matters to prevent the commission of terrorist acts.</li>
<li>To make cross-border terrorism an extraditable <g class="gr_ gr_95 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling multiReplace" id="95" data-gr-id="95">offence</g> worldwide.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Measures to Tackle Terrorism</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>India should play a proactive role to neutralize any threat of terrorism.</li>
<li>Addressing UN High-Level conference on Heads of Counter Terrorism, Indian Special Secretary, Internal Security) extended a five-point formula &ndash;
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Exchange of timely and actionable intelligence.</li>
<li>Prevention of misuse of modern communication through collaboration with the private sector.</li>
<li>Building capacities for improved border controls.</li>
<li>Sharing of info related to the movement of passengers.</li>
<li>Designation of Counter-Terror focal points to fight global terror.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>In addition, there should be a concerted effort from the countries affected by the scourge of terrorism to pressurize countries who engage in state-sponsored terrorism.</li>
<li>It is believed that the Indian intelligence agencies did have actionable intelligence from its Israeli and the US counterpart regarding 26/11. So, intelligence gathering and sharing are not enough, timely &amp; appropriate action is required on the intelligence received. Consequently, the Indian intelligence agencies have to be empowered both monetarily and through modern infrastructure to be able to respond in time.</li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/loksabha-rajyasabha-discussions/the-big-picture-international-convention-on-terrorism'
		],
		(int) 10 => [
			'title' => 'Global Status Report on Road Safety: WHO ',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>World Health Organization (WHO) has released the Global Status Report on Road Safety 2018.</p>
<h3>Key Points</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The report highlights that road traffic deaths are rising, with 1.35 million deaths in 2016 globally.</li>
<li>Road Accidents are the eighth leading cause of death for all age groups surpassing HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and diarrhoeal diseases.</li>
<li>The road traffic deaths rates are highest in Africa (26.6 per 100 000 population) and lowest in Europe (9.3 per 100 000 population).</li>
<li>However, the rates of death relative to the size of the world&rsquo;s population has stabilized in recent years.</li>
<li>Progress is attributed to better legislation around key risks such as<strong> speeding, drinking and driving, and failing to use seat-belts, motorcycle helmets and child restraints, safer infrastructure like sidewalks, dedicated lanes for cyclists, motorcyclists, and improved vehicle standards.</strong></li>
<li>The progress has not occurred at a pace fast enough to compensate for the rising population and rapid motorization of transport taking place in many parts of the world.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Road Accidents in India</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The trend in India shows that deaths have been increasing since 2007 even though India has put in place most of the rules needed to protect people.</li>
<li>The report highlights India as an example of the implementation of seven or eight of the priority United Nations vehicle safety standards.</li>
<li>Cities in India have reduced traffic crashes, and through media campaigns and stronger enforcement, more cities have cut drink driving.</li>
<li>Despite this, India reported more than 150,000 deaths in 2016.</li>
<li>There is a need to take a multi-sectoral approach to tackle road crashes and deaths.<strong> Better infrastructure that can allow safer travel, better vehicles, improved intervention and enforcement of laws and a health system that can take care of accident victims are the need of the hour.&nbsp;</strong></li>
<li><strong>Vehicle Safety Standards in India</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>In 2014, crash tests carried out by the Global New Car Assessment Programme (NCAP) revealed that some of India&rsquo;s top-selling car models have failed the UN&rsquo;s frontal impact crash test.</li>
<li>Global NCAP tests at a higher speed resulted in zero-star ratings for Indian cars indicating a high risk of fatal or serious injury.</li>
<li>In 2015 the Indian government announced the application of new regulations consistent with the UN standards for front and side impact and also pedestrian protection.</li>
<li>For new car models, the use of front and side crash tests came into force from October 2017 and will apply to all new cars from October 2019.</li>
<li>The pedestrian protection regulation for new models came into force from October 2018 and will apply to all new cars from October 2020.</li>
<li>In addition, new cars are required to have airbags fitted as standard and to have a speed warning device above 80 km/h.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Recommendations</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Safe Roads:</strong> Safety consideration during the planning, design, and operation of roads, contributes to reducing road traffic deaths and injuries</li>
<li><strong>Safe Vehicles:</strong> Vehicle safety features such as electronic stability control and advanced braking make a substantial contribution to reducing road traffic deaths and injuries.</li>
<li><strong>Behavioral Changes:&nbsp;</strong>Increasing motorcycle helmet use, increasing seat-belt uses and increasing child restraint use.</li>
<li><strong>Post Crash Care:</strong>&nbsp;Simple and affordable post-crash care interventions can save lives. Effective care for the injured requires timely care at the scene, prompt transport to appropriate emergency and surgical care at the hospital, and early access to rehabilitation services.</li>
<li><strong>Role of bystanders:</strong> Bystanders play a major role in post-crash care. They contribute by activating the emergency care system and taking simple, potentially life-saving actions until professional help is available.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Brasilia Declaration on Road Safety</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The declaration was signed at the Second Global High-Level conference on Road Safety held in Brazil.</li>
<li>Through the Brasilia Declaration Countries plan to achieve <strong>the Sustainable Development Goal 3.6: By 2020, halve the number of global deaths and injuries from road traffic accidents.</strong></li>
<li>United Nations has also declared <strong>2010-2020 as the decade of action for Road Safety.</strong></li>
<li>The main points of the Brasilia Declaration are:
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Countries should form transport policies in order to favor more sustainable modes of transport such as walking, cycling and using public transport.</li>
<li>It highlights strategies to ensure the safety of all road users,
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>by improving laws and enforcement;</li>
<li>making roads safer through infrastructural modifications;</li>
<li>ensuring that vehicles are equipped with life-saving technologies;</li>
<li>and enhancing emergency trauma care systems.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>The International Road Assessment Programme(iRAP)</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The International Road Assessment Programme (iRAP) is a registered charity dedicated to saving lives through safer roads.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Justice K.S. Radhakrishnan Committee</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Supreme Court had set up the three-member KS Radhakrishnan panel on road safety in April 2014.</li>
<li>The main recommendation of the committee was
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Ban on the sale of alcohol on highways (both state and national) to restrain drunk driving.</li>
<li>The states were directed to implement laws on wearing helmets.</li>
<li>Audit of road safety to be implemented by states to ensure the safety standards in the design, construction, and maintenance of roads.</li>
<li>The committee stressed the importance of creating awareness among people on road safety rules.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2016</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It proposes to create a National Register for Driving Licence and a National Register for Vehicle registration through <strong>&ldquo;Vahan&rdquo; and &ldquo;Sarathi&rdquo; web portals.</strong> This is in order to smoothen the process of registration and licensing.</li>
<li>It proposes alterations in vehicles, in order to make them suitable for specially-abled people.</li>
<li>It provides for a <strong>Motor Vehicle Accident Fund,</strong> which would provide compulsory insurance cover to all road users in India for certain types of accidents.</li>
<li>It provides for a <strong>National Road Safety Board,</strong> to be created by the Central Government through a notification. The Board will provide advice to the Central and State Governments on all aspects of road safety and traffic management.</li>
<li>Contractors, consultants, and civic agencies will be accountable for faulty design, construction or poor maintenance of roads leading to accidents. Those found guilty would be penalized up to Rs 1 lakh.</li>
<li>The bill also provides for the protection of good samaritans.</li>
</ul>
<p><a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/ministrys-report-on-road-accidents-in-india" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ministry&rsquo;s Report on Road Accidents in India</a></p>
</div>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/global-status-report-on-road-safety-who'
		],
		(int) 11 => [
			'title' => 'Important Facts for Prelims (8th December 2018)',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<h3>CAD Widens to 2.9% of GDP</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>India's Current Account Deficit (CAD) widened to <strong>2.9% of the gross domestic product</strong> in the Q2 (quarter which ended in September) compared with 1.1% in the year-ago period.</li>
<li>Major reasons for rising CAD was <strong>sharp rise in oil prices</strong>, and<strong> weakening rupee (imports become costlier).</strong> However both these factors are<strong> not that severe now</strong> and therefore CAD is projected to <strong>come down later in the year.</strong></li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Current Account Deficit (CAD)</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>CAD, is the difference between th<strong>e inflow and outflow of foreign exchange.</strong> It reflects that the imports of goods, services and investment incomes into the economy outstripped the value of its exports.</li>
<li>Current Account Deficit and Fiscal Deficit ( also known as "budget deficit", it is a situation when a nation's expenditure exceeds its revenues) are t<strong>ogether are known as twin deficits</strong> and often both reinforce each other i.e. High fiscal deficit leads to higher CAD and vice versa.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>Global Hackathon On Artificial Intelligence</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>NITI Aayog</strong> in partnership with <strong>Perlin, a Singapore-based Artificial Intelligence (AI) startup</strong> has launched the &lsquo;<strong>AI 4 All Global Hackathon&rsquo;.</strong></li>
<li>Hackathon will invite developers, students, start-ups and companies to develop <strong>AI applications to make significant positive social and economic impact for India.</strong></li>
<li>With the vision to further expand the idea of <strong>&lsquo;Artificial Intelligence, AI for All&rsquo; articulated in the National AI Strategy,</strong> NITI Aayog organises hackathons to source sustainable, innovative and technologically-enabled solutions to address various challenges in the development space.</li>
<li>Earlier it had also organised <strong>&lsquo;MoveHack&rsquo; ,</strong> on the sidelines of the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/global-mobility-summit-move" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Global Mobility Summit 2018</a></li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/important-facts-for-prelims-8th-december-2018'
		],
		(int) 12 => [
			'title' => 'An Invitation To Corruption?',
			'catname' => 'News Editorials',
			'desc' => '<div class="border">
<p>(This editorial is based on the article &ldquo;An Invitation To Corruption?&rdquo; which appears in The Hindu on 8th December 2018.)</p>
</div>
<p>In order to<strong> &ldquo;cleanse the system of political funding in the country</strong>&rdquo; and in keeping with the government&rsquo;s desire to move to a cashless economy, electoral bonds scheme was introduced.<strong> The scheme, announced during the 2017 Budget, aimed to account the donations made to all major political parties.</strong></p>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Electoral Bonds Scheme</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Electoral Bond is a financial instrument (similar to a promissory note) for making donations to political parties.</strong></li>
<li>These are issued by Scheduled Commercial banks upon authorization from the Central Government to intending donors, but only against cheque and digital payments (it cannot be purchased by paying cash).</li>
<li>These bonds shall be redeemable in the designated account of a registered political party within the prescribed time limit from the issuance of the bond.</li>
<li><strong>The bonds will be issued in multiples of ₹1,000, ₹10,000, ₹1 lakh, ₹10 lakh, and ₹1 crore and will be available at specified banks.</strong></li>
<li>They can be bought by the donor with a KYC-compliant account. Donors can donate the bonds to their party of choice which can then be cashed in via the party's verified account within 15 days.</li>
<li>In its present form, the scheme permits not only individuals and body corporates but also &ldquo;every artificial juridical person,&rdquo; to purchase bonds.</li>
<li><strong>Every party that is registered under section 29A of the Representation of the Peoples Act, 1951 (43 of 1951) and has secured at least one percent of the votes polled in the most recent Lok Sabha or State election will be allotted a verified account by the Election Commission of India.</strong> Electoral bond transactions can be made only via this account.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>Why Electoral Bonds are Necessary?<img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/348drishti-ias_an invitation to corruption.png" style="float: right;" width="244" height="377" /></h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The conventional system of political funding is to rely on donations. These donations, big or small, come from a range of sources from political workers, sympathizers, small business people, and even large industrialists. The conventional practice of funding the political system was to take donations in cash and undertake these expenditures in cash. The sources are anonymous or pseudonymous. <strong>The quantum of money was never disclosed. The present system ensures unclean money coming from unidentifiable sources.</strong></li>
<li>Donations made online or through cheques remain an ideal method of donating to political parties. However, these have not become very popular in India since they involve disclosure of the donor&rsquo;s identity. However, the electoral bond scheme envisages total clean money and substantial transparency coming into the system of political funding. A donor can purchase electoral bonds from a specified bank only by a banking instrument. He would have to disclose in his accounts the number of political bonds that he has purchased. A bond can only be encased in a pre-declared account of a political party.</li>
</ul>
<p>But the<strong> scheme&rsquo;s failings have become so blindingly obvious,</strong> and its consequences so utterly devastating, that criticisms are coming in from a multitude of places like High Court judges, former Election Commissioners, journalists etc.</p>
<h3>Drawbacks</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>There are many grey areas in this scheme because there is no ceiling on party expenditure and the EC (Election Commission) cannot monitor it. It cannot be sure that what is coming in is not black money as there is a secrecy of the donor.</strong></li>
<li>Even foreign money can come and even a dying company can give money. So, prima facie it appears the scheme cannot really deliver whatever it was intended to.</li>
<li>The fact that the scheme allows for complete anonymity of the donor and neither the purchaser of the bond nor the political party receiving the donation is mandated to disclose the donor&rsquo;s identity. Therefore, not only will say, the shareholders of a corporation be unaware of the company&rsquo;s contributions, but the voters too will have no idea of how, and through whom, a political party has been funded.</li>
<li><strong>For instance, the programme removes an existing condition that had prohibited companies from donating anything more than 7.5% of their average net-profit over the previous three years. This now means that even loss-making entities can make unlimited contributions.</strong></li>
<li>Additionally, the requirement that a corporation ought to have been in existence for at least three years before it could make donations &mdash; a system that was meant to stop shell companies from being created with a view purely to <g class="gr_ gr_94 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling multiReplace" id="94" data-gr-id="94">syphoning</g> money into politics &mdash; has also been removed.</li>
<li>The scheme also suffers from at least two foundational defects. One, that it was incorporated on the back of a series of amendments made to legislation, including the Representation of the People Act, the Income Tax Act, and the Companies Act, which were introduced in the form of a money bill. And two, that the scheme flouts a number of fundamental rights. The Finance Act, through which these amendments were introduced, therefore did not deal with only those matters contained in Article 110.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Two Judgements</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Even as early as in 1957, in a pair of judgments outstanding in their lucidity and prescience, the Bombay and the Calcutta High Courts warned Parliament of the perils in allowing companies to freely add to party coffers.</li>
<li>Bombay High Court said it is something which is likely to &ldquo;grow apace and which may ultimately overwhelm and even throttle democracy in the country&rdquo;.</li>
<li>The court was conscious that, given the circumscriptions of the law, it could scarcely deny, in the case before it, permission sought by Tata Iron and Steel Co. Ltd. to amend its memorandum of association, to allow the company to make contributions to different political interests.</li>
<li>The Calcutta High Court had made an almost identical appeal. &ldquo;To the cynic it appears to be a plea of the company to have a legal sanction to bribe the Government of the day, to induce policies that will help the company in its business&rdquo;.</li>
<li>If amendments of this kind were allowed, and if joint stock companies serve as adjuncts to political parties, the Court added, the &ldquo;man who pays the piper will then call the tune&rdquo;.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>There&rsquo;s no doubt that the Constitution does not contain an explicitly enforceable right to vote. But implicit in its guarantees of equality and free speech is a right to knowledge and information. Our courts have nearly consistently seen &ldquo;freedom of voting&rdquo; as distinct from the right to vote, as a facet of the right to freedom of expression and as an essential condition of political equality. In the absence of complete knowledge about the identities of those funding the various different parties, it&rsquo;s difficult to conceive how a citizen can meaningfully participate in political and public life.</li>
<li><strong>The electoral bonds scheme, therefore, suggests two possibilities: one, that the government doesn&rsquo;t understand the Constitution; or, two, it does, and has expressly set out to transgress it.</strong></li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/an-invitation-to-corruption'
		],
		(int) 13 => [
			'title' => '2023 is the International Year of Millets- FAO',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>India's proposal to observe an <strong>International Year of Millets in 2023</strong> has been approved at the by the <strong>Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO)</strong>.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>India is celebrating <strong>2018 as the national year of millets</strong>.</li>
</ul>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Millet is a collective term referring to a number of small-seeded annual grasses that are cultivated as grain crops, primarily on marginal lands in dry areas in temperate, subtropical and tropical regions.</li>
<li>Some of the common millets available in India are Ragi (Finger millet), Jowar (Sorghum), Sama (Little millet), Bajra (Pearl millet), and Variga (Proso millet).</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>Millets as Smart Food</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Millets are <strong>less expensive and nutritionally superior</strong> to wheat &amp; rice owing to their high <strong>protein</strong>, <strong>fibre</strong>, <strong>vitamins</strong> and minerals like <strong>iron</strong> content.</li>
<li>Millets are also rich in <strong>calcium</strong> and <strong>magnesium</strong>. For example, <strong>Ragi</strong> is known to have the highest calcium content among all the food grains.</li>
<li>Millets can provide <strong>nutritional</strong> <strong>security</strong> and act as a shield against nutritional deficiency, especially among <strong>children</strong> and <strong>women</strong>. Its high iron content can fight <g class="gr_ gr_62 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="62" data-gr-id="62">high</g> prevalence of <strong>anaemia</strong> in India women of reproductive age and infants.</li>
<li>Millets are rich in <strong>antioxidants</strong>.</li>
<li>Millets can help tackle <strong>lifestyle</strong> <strong>problems</strong> and health challenges such as <strong>obesity</strong> and <strong>diabetes</strong> as they are <strong>gluten-free</strong> and have a <strong>low glycemic index</strong> (a relative ranking of carbohydrate in foods according to how they affect blood glucose levels).</li>
</ul>
<h3>Millets as Smart Crop</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Millets are <strong>Photo-insensitive</strong> (do not require a specific photoperiod for flowering) &amp; <strong>resilient to climate change</strong>.</li>
<li>Millets <strong>can grow on poor soils</strong> with little or no external inputs.</li>
<li>Millets are less water <g class="gr_ gr_63 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling" id="63" data-gr-id="63">consuming</g> and are <strong>capable of growing under drought conditions</strong>, under non-irrigated conditions even in very low rainfall regimes</li>
<li>Millets have <strong>low carbon and water footprint</strong> (rice plant needs at least 3 times more water to grow in comparison to millets).</li>
<li>Millets can <strong>withstand high temperature</strong>. In times of climate change Millets are often the last crop standing and, thus, are a good risk management strategy for resource-poor marginal farmers.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Since India, which supports more than 15% of the world&rsquo;s population, but only has 4% of its water resources, promotion of millets could be helpful.</li>
<li>To efficiently feed the growing population, increase in the production of and demand for millets is need of the hour.</li>
<li>Policy changes need to address infrastructure development in regions growing millets.</li>
<li>Cultivation of several varieties of millets should be encouraged and practised.</li>
<li>The government should include millets in Public Distribution System (PDS) and nutrition programmes.
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>For example, Odisha has planned to introduce millets in PDS, mid-day meal scheme (MDM) and the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS).</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The government should incentivise farmers growing millets and practising mixed cropping, besides providing financial support for their processing, storage and marketing.</li>
<li>Specific value addition practices, like grading, sorting, cleaning, processing and packaging should also be supported.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Additional Information</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>FAO (specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger) Council approved <strong>India&rsquo;s membership</strong> to the Executive Board of the United Nations<strong> World Food Program (WFP)</strong> for 2020 and 2021.</li>
<li>World Food Programme is the <strong>UN agency focused on hunger alleviation and food security</strong>.</li>
<li>Globally, it responds to emergencies making sure food reaches where it is needed, especially in times of civil strife and natural disasters.</li>
<li>In India, WFP has moved from providing direct food aid to providing technical assistance and capacity building services to the Government of India.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/2023-is-the-international-year-of-millets-fao'
		],
		(int) 14 => [
			'title' => 'Climate Finance',
			'catname' => 'Paper 3',
			'desc' => '<h3>Why in News?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Ahead of the United Nations Conference of Parties (COP24), the BASIC (Brazil, South Africa, China and India) countries said that they would push developed countries on their commitment to providing $100 billion annually from 2020.</li>
<li>However, countries till now haven&rsquo;t even agreed on what constitutes climate finance.</li>
</ul>
<h3>What is Climate Finance?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Climate finance refers to local, national or transnational financing&mdash;drawn from public, private and alternative sources of financing.</li>
<li>It seeks to support mitigation and adaptation actions that will address climate change.</li>
<li>The UNFCCC, the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement call for financial assistance from countries with more financial resources to those that are less endowed and more vulnerable.</li>
<li>It is in accordance with the principle of &ldquo;common but differentiated responsibility and respective capabilities&rdquo;.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Background</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Through the Cancun Agreements in 2010 developed countries committed to a goal of mobilizing jointly USD 100 billion per year by 2020 to address the needs of developing countries.</li>
<li>The Green Climate Fund (GCF) was established in Cancun Agreement and designated it as an operating entity of the financial mechanism.</li>
<li>Under the Paris Agreement in 2015, developed countries confirmed this goal and agreed that prior to 2025 a new collective quantified goal from a floor of USD 100 billion per year shall be set.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Need for Climate Finance</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Globally the scale of needed investment:</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The World Economic Forum projects that by 2020, about $5.7 trillion will need to be invested annually in green infrastructure.</li>
<li>The current commitment of $100 billion annually is only a small piece of the $5.7 trillion puzzle.</li>
<li>Therefore funding is needed to meet the investment needs in 2020 and beyond.</li>
<li>Mitigation &ndash; Large-scale investments are required to significantly reduce emissions.</li>
<li>Adaptation &ndash; Significant financial resources are needed to adapt to the adverse effects and reduce the impacts of a changing climate.</li>
<li>It is also critical to support developing countries to build resilience to worsening climate impacts and to catalyzing private sector climate investment.</li>
<li>Climate Finance is needed to transition the world&rsquo;s economy to a low-carbon path, as direct government funding is scarce in these countries.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>The scale of needed investment in India:</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Under Paris Accord, India has planned to reduce its carbon emission intensity &ndash; emission per unit of GDP &ndash; by 33-35%. To achieve these targets and build its renewable capacity India needs climate finance.</li>
<li>India&rsquo;s Green Bond market is in growth stage, first green bonds were issued in 2015 - indicating the need to explore more options for climate financing.</li>
<li>In India, banks and non-banking financial companies have a limited appetite for long-term debt due to asset-liability mismatch.</li>
<li>Along with problems arising out of climate change, India also face traditional problems like poverty, pollution, education and skill gaps etc.Hence there is a greater need for climate finance.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Global Climate Financing</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Green Climate Fund (GCF)</strong> was established to limit or reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in developing countries and to help vulnerable societies adapt to the unavoidable impacts of climate change.</li>
<li><strong>Adaptation Fund (AF)</strong> was established under the Kyoto Protocol in 2001 and has committed US$ 532 million to climate adaptation and resilience activities.</li>
<li><strong>Global Environment Fund (GEF) </strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>GEF has served as an operating entity of the financial mechanism since the Convention came into force in 1994.</li>
<li>It is a private equity fund focused on seeking long term financial returns by investments in clean energy under climate change.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>In addition to providing guidance to the GEF and the GCF, parties have established two special funds:
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The Special Climate Change Fund (SCCF) and the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF).</li>
<li>Both funds are managed by the GEF.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<p><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/424Climate Finance_drishtiias.png" width="680" height="413" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" alt="Climate Finance" caption="false" /></p>
<h3>Climate Financing in India</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs)</strong> are nationally binding targets adopted under UNFCCC. India has to reduce GHG emissions under this, which requires climate financing.</li>
<li><strong>National Clean Energy Fund:</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The Fund was created to promote clean energy, funded through an initial carbon tax on use of coal by industries.</li>
<li>Governed by an Inter-Ministerial Group with the Finance Secretary as the Chairman.</li>
<li>Its mandate is to fund research and development of innovative clean energy technology in the fossil and non fossil fuel based sectors.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>National Adaptation Fund:</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The fund was established in 2014 with a corpus of Rs. 100 crore with the aim of bridging the gap between the need and the available funds.</li>
<li>The fund is operated under Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEF&amp;CC).</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Clean Development Mechanism (CDM):</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>It allows emission-reduction projects in developing countries to earn certified emission reduction (CER) credits, each equivalent to one tonne of CO2.</li>
<li>The CDM is the main source of income for the UNFCCC Adaptation Fund.</li>
<li>The Adaptation Fund is financed by a 2% levy on CERs issued by the CDM.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Internal Programmes:</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA),</strong> Disaster Management Fund etc.</li>
<li>A Climate Change Finance Unit was set up by Department of Economics in the Ministry of Finance to advise and guide the MoEF&amp;CC as well as to lead on global climate finance issues.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Principles of Climate Finance</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Polluter Pays</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The 'polluters pays' principle is the commonly accepted practice according to which those who produce pollution should bear the costs of managing it to prevent damage to human health or the environment.</li>
<li>This principle underpins most of the regulation of pollution affecting land, water and air formally known as the 1992 Rio Declaration.</li>
<li>It has also been applied more specifically to emissions of greenhouse gases which cause climate change.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Common but Differentiated Responsibility and Respective Capability (CBDR&ndash;RC)</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>CBDR&ndash;RC is a principle within the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).</li>
<li>It acknowledges the different capabilities and differing responsibilities of individual countries in addressing climate change.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Additionality</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Climate finance should be additional to existing commitments to avoid the diversion of funding for development needs to climate change actions.</li>
<li>This includes use of public climate finance and investments by private sector.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Adequacy &amp; Precaution</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>In order to take precautionary measures to prevent or minimise the causes of climate change as a stated goal under UNFCCC, the level of funding needs to be sufficient to keep a global temperature with in limits as possible.</li>
<li>A better level of adequacy might be increased in the national estimates of the needed climate funds, this will help build planned investments with respect to INDC.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Predictability</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Climate finance must be predictable to ensure sustained flow of climate finance.</li>
<li>It can be done through multi-year, medium-term funding cycles (3 &ndash; 5 years).</li>
<li>This allows for adequate investment program to scale up country&rsquo;s national adaptation and mitigation priorities.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Challenges</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>At global levels:</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>There is a gap between national needs and climate finance under Nationally Determined Contribution there is need for additional international financial support.</li>
<li>Least Developed Countries receive much less approved funding in per-capita terms from the multilateral climate funds.</li>
<li>The rate of approvals is time taking, due to which the drawee nation has insufficient funds to complete its target and leads to stalling of projects.</li>
<li>The uncertainties such as, the recent refusal of US to pay $2 billion of its pledge this has created shortage of funds at available GCF.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>At National levels:</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>In India the local market to climate finance are insufficiently involved in financial products that support climate change adaptation.</li>
<li>Their is imminent failure in securing viability-gap funding either from governments, or multilateral development banks.</li>
<li>Projects in climate change has longer gestation period which deter financial institutions from investing in them.</li>
<li>Shortage of funds due to insufficient budget allocation are often interfered due to any excess or additional grants which leads to stalling of green projects.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>An analytical framework is necessary to combine potential climate risks with a systematic cost-benefit analysis.</li>
<li>Favourable policy and institutional actions are important for successful introduction or scaling up of financial instruments.</li>
<li>Such actions, through public-private partnership (PPP) and PPP People (PPPP) can help improving climate finance.</li>
<li>Climate finance should be equipped with non institutional financial services such as market funds, private etc.</li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/to-the-points/paper3/climate-finance-1'
		],
		(int) 15 => [
			'title' => 'Climate Finance',
			'catname' => 'Paper 3',
			'desc' => '<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/149Drishti_ias_Climate%20Finance.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/149Drishti_ias_Climate Finance.jpg" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></a></p>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/mind-map/gs-paper3/climate-finance-paper-3'
		],
		(int) 16 => [
			'title' => 'National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical Systems',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>The Union Cabinet has approved the launching of<strong> National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical Systems (NM-ICPS)</strong> to be implemented by<strong> Department of Science &amp; Technology</strong> for a period of<strong> five years.</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>NM-ICPS covers entire India which includes Central Ministries, State Governments, Industry and Academia.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Cyber-Physical Systems</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Cyber-physical systems <strong>integrate</strong> sensing, computation, control and networking<strong> into physical objects and infrastructure,</strong> connecting them to the Internet and to each other.</li>
<li>Few Potential applications: <strong>Driverless cars</strong> that communicate securely with each other<strong> on smart roads</strong>, Sensors in the home to <strong>detect changing health conditions,</strong> improving <strong>agricultural practices</strong> and enabling scientists to address issues arising out of climate change,etc.</li>
<li>Advances in cyber-physical systems will enable capability, adaptability, scalability, resiliency, safety, security and usability that will far exceed the simple embedded systems of today.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>Objective</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The NM-ICPS is a comprehensive Mission which would address technology development, application development, human resource development &amp; skill enhancement, entrepreneurship and start-up development in Cyber Physical System (CPS) and associated technologies.</li>
<li>The Mission aims at establishment of <strong>15 Technology Innovation Hubs (TIH)</strong>, <strong>six Application Innovation Hubs (AIH)</strong> and <strong>four Technology Translation Research Parks (TTRP).</strong></li>
<li>These Hubs &amp; TTRPs will connect to<strong> Academics, Industry, Central Ministries and State Government</strong> in developing solutions at reputed academic, R&amp;D and other organizations across the country in a hub and spoke model.</li>
<li>The Hubs &amp; TTRPs have<strong> four focused areas</strong> along which the Mission implementation would proceed, namely:
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Technology Development,</li>
<li>HRD &amp; Skill Development,</li>
<li>Innovation, Entrepreneurship &amp; Start-ups Ecosystem Development, and</li>
<li>International Collaborations.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Background</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>CPS and its associated technologies, like Artificial Intelligence (Al), Internet of Things (loT), Machine Learning (ML), Deep Learning (DP), Big Data Analytics, etc. have pervaded and is playing a transformative role in almost every field of human endeavour all most in all sectors.</li>
<li>Therefore, It has become imperative for government and industries to be <strong>prepared to adopt these emerging and disruptive technologies in order to remain competitive</strong>, drive societal progress, generate employment, foster economic growth and to improve the overall quality of life and sustainability of the environment.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Impact</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>CPS technologies provide a <strong>cutting edge to a Nation's scientific, engineering, and technological innovative capabilities;</strong> support other missions of the government, provide industrial and economic competitiveness and have truly <strong>became a Strategic Resource</strong>.</li>
<li>The proposed Mission would act as an <strong>engine of growth that would benefit national initiatives</strong> in health, education, energy, environment, agriculture, strategic cum security, and industrial sectors, Industry 4.0, SMART Cities, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) etc.</li>
<li>CPS is an integrated system of upcoming technology, which in turn is being taken up on priority basis by countries in the race for development. CPS will indeed bring a paradigm shift in entire skill sets requirement.</li>
<li>The <strong>job opportunities will be enhanced</strong> through the Mission by imparting advanced skills and generating skilled manpower as per the requirement of the industry/ society. Accordingly, it is estimated that, about 40,000 jobs will be created in the short term and about 2,00,000 in long term.</li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/national-mission-on-interdisciplinary-cyber-physical-systems'
		],
		(int) 17 => [
			'title' => 'Agriculture Export Policy 2018',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>The Union Cabinet has approved the Agriculture Export Policy, 2018.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The policy would help the government in achieving the target of doubling farmers income.</li>
<li>The vision of Agriculture Export Policy is to<strong> harness the export potential of Indian agriculture, through suitable policy instruments, to make India global power in agriculture and raise farmers income.</strong></li>
<li><strong>Objectives of the Policy</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>To double agricultural exports from present ~US$ 30+ Billion to ~US$ 60+ Billion by 2022 and reach US$ 100 Billion in the next few years thereafter, with a stable trade policy regime.</li>
<li>To diversify the export basket, destinations and boost high value and value-added agricultural exports including a focus on perishables.</li>
<li>To promote novel, indigenous, organic, ethnic, traditional and non-traditional Agri products exports.</li>
<li>To provide an institutional mechanism for pursuing market access, tackling barriers and deal with sanitary and phytosanitary issues.</li>
<li>Enable farmers to get the benefit of export opportunities in the overseas market.<strong></strong></li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Need For Export Policy</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The policy can&nbsp;<strong>address challenges to exporting agricultural products</strong> from India like low farm productivity, poor infrastructure, global price volatility to market access.</li>
<li><strong>India&rsquo;s share in global exports of agriculture products was merely 2.2 % in 2016.</strong></li>
<li>India has remained at the lower end of the global agriculture export value chain given that the <strong>majority of its exports are low value, semi-processed and marketed in bulk.</strong> The share of<strong> India&rsquo;s high value and value-added agriculture produce in its agri-export basket is less than 15% compared to 25% in the US and 49% in China.</strong></li>
<li>India is <strong>unable to export its vast horticultural produce due to lack of uniformity in quality, standardization and its inability to curtail losses across the value chain.</strong> Given the globalization of value chains, it is imperative that the country make concerted efforts to boost exports of high margin, value-added and branded processed products.</li>
<li>The<strong> vision of doubling farmers income by 2022</strong> will require a series of interventions to improve production and productivity along with economizing the cost of production. Th<strong>is would also require India to augment its exports to the global market. Hence, it is necessary to have an agriculture export policy in place.</strong></li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Recommendations of Agricultural Export Policy 2018<strong></strong></h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;"></ul>
<table border="1" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 16px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 91px;" rowspan="4">
<p style="text-align: center;"><strong>Strategic</strong></p>
</td>
<td style="width: 50%; height: 16px;">Policy Measures</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 25px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 25px;">Infrastructure and Logistics Boost</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 25px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 25px;">Whole Government Approach to boost exports</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 25px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 25px;">
<p>Greater involvement of State Governments in Agri Exports</p>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p></p>
<table border="1" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 152px;" rowspan="8">
<p style="text-align: center;"></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><strong>Operational</strong></p>
<p></p>
<p></p>
</td>
<td style="width: 50%; height: 19px;">Focus on Clusters</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 19px;">Promoting Value-added exports</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 19px;">Marketing and promotion of &ldquo;Produce of India&rdquo;</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 19px;">Infrastructure and Logistics to support agricultural exports</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 19px;">Establishment of Strong Quality Regimen</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 19px;">Self-sufficiency and export-centric production</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 19px;">Research &amp; Development</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 19px;">
<p>Miscellaneous</p>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong></strong><strong>Stable Trade Policy Measures&nbsp;</strong>to ensure&nbsp;recommends providing an assurance that the processed agricultural products and all kinds of organic products <strong>will not be brought under the ambit of any kind of export restriction.</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li style="list-style-type: none;">
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>The&nbsp;Model Agricultural produce market committee (APMC) act must be adopted by all states and E-NAM must be established.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong> Liberalizing Land Leasing Norms&nbsp;</strong>and&nbsp;adoption of the Model Contract Farming Act by state governments in order to promote agricultural exports.
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li style="list-style-type: none;">
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>Contract farming is expected to bring in large-scale private investments in agriculture thus leading to large-scale mechanization. This will further produce surplus volumes of the standardized, exportable quality of agricultural products.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Infrastructure and Logistics Boost&nbsp;</strong>by identifying ports for the export of agricultural products. Development in port infrastructure like dedicated perishable berths.</li>
<li><strong>Whole Government approach</strong>&nbsp;which will ensure all government department and ministries like Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Food Processing Industries, Ministry of Shipping &amp; Transport, Ministry of Railways and Ministry of Consumer Affairs involved in agricultural production, processing, transportation <g class="gr_ gr_101 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="101" data-gr-id="101">and</g> export should work together to address bottlenecks at every level.</li>
<li><strong>State government involvement:</strong> As Agriculture is a state subject it is necessary to bring on board the state governments for positive agricultural reforms. Each state has its own agricultural nuances, like one state may be experiencing a drought while another may be dealing with floods. Thus it is necessary to align state agricultural policies with the nation&rsquo;s overarching goals.
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>State governments must identify the government department for the promotion of <g class="gr_ gr_95 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-del replaceWithoutSep" id="95" data-gr-id="95">the agricultural</g> export.</li>
<li>The states must include agriculture export in state export policy and build infrastructure and logistics to facilitate agricultural export.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Focus on Export centric Clusters&nbsp;</strong>for&nbsp;pre- and post-harvest management of the production as well as in upgrading the supply chain to attain much higher levels of export from those clusters.</li>
<li><strong>Promoting Value Added Exports of</strong>&nbsp;indigenous and tribal products.
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Through the National Programme on Organic Production (NPOP), organic food parks and by the uniform quality and packaging standards India can tap the potential for increasing organic exports.</li>
<li>Promotion of Research &amp; Development (R&amp;D) activities, promoting &ldquo;produce in India&rdquo; through the constitution of separate funds dedicated to organic, value-added, ethnic, GI and branded products.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Post-Harvest Infrastructure</strong> that can support the smooth logistical movement of agri-produce exports. This will have a direct co-relationship in increasing export volumes, assuring quality &amp; ensuring better price realization per unit.</li>
<li style="list-style-type: none;">
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Digitization of land records, geo-mapping of lands, registration of farmers and farm producer organizations (FPOs) is critical to smooth agricultural exports.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Establishment of Strong Quality Regimen&nbsp;</strong>with the focus on strong R&amp;D, new varieties, state of the art lab and a lab networking process for effective accreditation and monitoring.
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>An institutional mechanism should be provided that would pursue market access, tackle barriers and deal with sanitary and phytosanitary issues against India&rsquo;s agricultural exports that come up from time to time.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Research and Development&nbsp;</strong>led by private industry along with higher infrastructure <g class="gr_ gr_97 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="97" data-gr-id="97">spend</g> by the government will be the key to boosting agricultural exports.
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Along with this, innovations in packaging, improving the shelf life of products and greater R &amp; D in developing products to suit the palates of importing countries should be a priority.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The policy has recommended setting up of <strong>an agri-startup fund.</strong></li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/agriculture-export-policy-2018'
		],
		(int) 18 => [
			'title' => 'Important Facts for Prelims (7th December 2018)',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<h3>Exercise Hand-In-Hand</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Exercise Hand-in-Hand is <strong>annual military exercise</strong> conducted between <strong>India and China.</strong></li>
<li>The joint exercise for the <strong>year 2018</strong> will be conducted from 10 to 23 December 2018 at<strong> Chengdu, China.</strong></li>
<li>The aim of the exercise is to build and promote close relations between armies of both the countries and to enhance ability of joint exercise commander to take military contingents of both nations under command.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Ideate for India - Creative Solutions using Technology</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The <strong>National e-Governance Division of Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY)</strong> in collaboration with <strong>Intel India</strong> has launched a National Challenge for Youths, <strong>&ldquo;Ideate for India - Creative Solutions using Technology&rdquo;.</strong></li>
<li>The aim of this National Challenge is to give <strong>school students</strong> across the country a platform and opportunity to become solution creators for the problems they see around them and their communities.</li>
<li>It is open to students of <strong>classes 6 - 12 all across the country - all 29 States and 7 Union Territories</strong> and aims to reach out to at least 1 million youth over the next 3 months.</li>
<li>There are <strong>11 core theme areas</strong> on which students can share their ideas- healthcare services, education services, digital services, environment, women safety, traffic, infrastructure, agriculture, social welfare, disability and tourism.</li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/important-facts-for-prelims-7th-december-2018'
		],
		(int) 19 => [
			'title' => 'Is Social Media Polarising Society?',
			'catname' => 'News Editorials',
			'desc' => '<div class="border">
<p>(This editorial is based on the article &ldquo;Is Social Media Polarising Society?&rdquo; which appears in The Hindu on 6th December 2018.)</p>
</div>
<p><strong>We live in a world where we aren&rsquo;t only consumers of information but creators as well, which gives us a misplaced sense of control.</strong></p>
<p>Almost 1.49 billion people on average log onto Facebook daily; every second, on average, around 6,000 tweets are tweeted on Twitter; and since its inception, over 40 billion photographs have been posted on Instagram.</p>
<p><strong>As we approach the end of the second decade of this century, social media and the Internet have drifted from their promise of closing distances and exposing us to the views of those who existed beyond our personal networks.</strong></p>
<p>Because of extensive social media usage, we find ourselves to be more rigid versions of our former selves. Fake news is an industry today and finds great resonance with people. Its rise corresponds with a growing distrust in the mainstream media. Fake news has now even slipped into traditional media outlets and is often circulated by prominent individuals. This has contributed to the echo chamber phenomenon*.</p>
<div class="border-bg">
<p>&ldquo;<strong>Echo chamber</strong>&rdquo; is a term widely used in today's lexicon, that describes a situation where certain ideas, beliefs or data points are reinforced through repetition of a closed system that does not allow for the free movement of alternative or competing ideas or concepts.</p>
</div>
<h3>How Social Media is Polarising Society?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>In the 1950s, a series of psychological experiments called the Asch Conformity Experiments were carried out by the social psychologist Solomon Asch, to determine the extent to which a person&rsquo;s opinion is influenced by a group. Asch found through a series of trials that an individual was willing to go to the extent of giving a wrong answer just to conform to the majority view.</li>
<li><strong>The respondents gave wrong answers either because they did not want to be ridiculed or thought of as &ldquo;peculiar&rdquo;, or because they believed that the group was better informed than them.</strong> Although means of communication and engagement have evolved since the 1950s, the human instinct to fit in hasn&rsquo;t changed. To some extent, this also explains the impact of fake news online, which is said to contribute to a polarised society.</li>
<li>A study carried out by Aalto University, Finland, on increasing polarisation on social media found that factors like user homophily (users in a social system tend to bond more with ones who are similar to them than to ones who are dissimilar) and algorithmic filtering have created the cycle of enforcing and reinforcing belief systems and ensuring that we don&rsquo;t open our minds to diverse opinions.</li>
<li><strong>People seek &ldquo;informed&rdquo; opinions through filters only from people they trust and look for news that confirms their worldview.</strong> This results in people cultivating rigid opinions of issues.</li>
<li>Social media sites are more than willing to play abettors.<strong> Twitter, for example, will routinely prompt you to follow people who hold a viewpoint that is similar to yours.</strong></li>
<li>The features of openness, obscurity, and anonymity that once gave strength to marginalized communities are now giving room for mean intentions to grow.</li>
<li>Over the last couple of years, there has been a growing trend of misinformation (due to biases or human errors), disinformation (fake news created intentionally) and even &ldquo;fake accounts&rdquo;, the latter directly targeted at pushing a political agenda or harassing somebody online.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Social Media is not the only reason for polarization</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>The printing press was seen as trouble by the Ottomans</strong>. The speed at which books were printed and distributed aroused suspicion. Ironically, the first Greek printing house set up in 1627 printed a booklet targeting Jews. <strong>Books were only a medium, just like social media. Banning books and blaming social media are results of the same flawed logic.</strong></li>
<li><strong>If social media had an inherent bias towards evil, the #MeToo stories wouldn&rsquo;t have found an outlet.</strong> There are many stories of lost children being found, dogs being adopted, money being raised for various causes, and other similar stories of good being <g class="gr_ gr_93 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_disable_anim_appear Punctuation only-del replaceWithoutSep" id="93" data-gr-id="93">done,</g> is found on social media.</li>
<li><strong>According to the BI-2018 survey</strong> (Broadcast Audience Research Council of India - BARC - periodically conducts a research study to ascertain television viewing habits in India), the number of individuals with access to TV has gone up to 835 million; smartphone penetration in the country is at around 300 million. The number of daily active users on WhatsApp is 200 million; on Facebook, it is 194 million, and on Twitter, it is 7.83 million.<strong> By all accounts, social media in India is still a niche phenomenon.</strong></li>
<li>Social media is a mechanism comprising of multimedia and other platforms that are multilingual, multicultural and are inclusive, and allow equal opportunities for all, irrespective of class, creed, race, religion, sex, age or financial resources.<strong> Blaming social media for every (online and offline) misconduct doesn't seem to have any logical base to stand upon.</strong></li>
</ul>
<h3>Conclusion</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Because of the influence of social media, people are getting trapped in narrower worldviews that are seeping into not only voter </strong><g class="gr_ gr_108 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_disable_anim_appear ContextualSpelling multiReplace" id="108" data-gr-id="108">behaviour</g><strong> but everyday personal interactions.</strong> This is something we must be alarmed about. Log in or log out, the world is a far more opinionated place today but it need not be a rigid one.</li>
<li>It is true that social media was used to garner support for a man who burnt a Muslim man on video in Rajasthan, but it was the same social media that was also used to raise funds for the parents of a child who was gang-raped and murdered in Kathua in Jammu and Kashmir. This shows that social media is only just a tool, which on the hands of a user can easily do as much good as bad.</li>
<li><strong>Social media is a tool for empowerment, especially for a country like India where 70% of the population is yet to get online and leverage the opportunities it has to offer.</strong></li>
<li>While social media is definitely facing the global challenges of information bombardment (both factual and fake), it is also enabling communities to access their rights and voice their opinion.<strong> Hopefully, over time, people will learn to take more responsibility for what they share and social media platforms shall regain their lost trust.</strong></li>
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	(int) 0 => [
		'title' => 'Successful Test Firing of Agni V',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>India successfully tested its <strong>nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM)</strong>, Agni V which has a strike range of 5,000 km, from <strong>Dr. Abdul Kalam Island (formerly the Wheeler Island) in Odisha.</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>This is the third successful launch of Agni-V this year (2018) and the fifth launch of the missile in a <strong>canisterised form.</strong></li>
<li>Agni-V is the most advanced <strong>surface-to-surface indigenously built ballistic missile</strong>.</li>
<li>It is a<strong> three-stage, solid fuel 17-metre tall</strong>, and is capable of carrying a<strong> nuclear warhead</strong> of about 1.5 tonnes.</li>
<li>Agni-V is a<strong> fire and forget missile,</strong> which once fired cannot be stopped, except by an interceptor missile.</li>
<li>It has been developed under the <strong>Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP).</strong></li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>IGMDP (Integrated Guided Missile Development Program)</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It was conceived by<strong> Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam</strong> to enable India attain self-sufficiency in field of missile technology. It was approved by <strong>Government of India in 1983 </strong>and&nbsp;<strong>completed in March 2012.</strong></li>
<li>The <strong>5 missiles (P-A-T-N-A)</strong> developed under this program are:
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>P</strong>rithvi: Short range <strong>surface to surface</strong> ballistic missile.</li>
<li><strong>A</strong>gni: <strong>Ballistic missiles</strong> with different ranges, i.e. Agni (1,2,3,4,5)</li>
<li><strong>T</strong>rishul: Short range low level <strong>surface to air missile.</strong></li>
<li><strong>N</strong>ag: 3rd generation <strong>anti-tank missile.</strong></li>
<li><strong>A</strong>kash: Medium range <strong>surface to air missile.</strong></li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</div>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The launch operations were carried out and monitored by the<strong> Strategic Forces Command (SFC).</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>SFC is a part of <strong>India&rsquo;s Nuclear Command Authority (NCA)</strong> which was <strong>created in 2003</strong> to manage India&rsquo;s nuclear arsenal.</li>
<li>NCA is India&rsquo;s nodal authority responsible for command, control and operational decisions regarding India&rsquo;s nuclear weapons programme. It has an <strong>Executive Council (headed by National Security Advisor)</strong> which gives input to the <strong>Political Council (headed by the Prime Minister).</strong> The Political Council, authorizes a <strong>nuclear attack if need be.</strong></li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Canister Based Launch System</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Canister based launch system- serves as a<strong> container for transportation</strong>; a housing <strong>during storage</strong> aboard a vessel; provides <strong>operational flexibility.</strong></li>
<li>A canister launch system can be either<strong> hot launch,</strong> where the missile ignites in the cell, or<strong> cold launch</strong>, where the missile is expelled by gas produced by a gas generator which is not part of the missile itself, and then the missile ignites.</li>
<li><strong>Cold launch is safer</strong> than hot launch as the ejection system will eject the missile by itself even if there is a missile failure. In case of <strong>Agni V, it will be a cold launch.</strong></li>
<li>In case of hot launches the problem is the heat produced by the missile at the time of launch. The hot launch is better for small missiles as the ejection part itself will be done by using missiles own engine.</li>
<li>In addition to this technology, India is also working to master the<strong> Multiple Independent Re-entry Vehicle (MIRV) technology</strong> which is also considered as India&rsquo;s technological solution for Minimum Nuclear Deterrence.
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The fundamental characteristic of deploying MIRVs is its ability to<strong> deliver several warheads</strong> along<strong> separate trajectories</strong>, which confers it <strong>flexibility of multiple targeting.</strong></li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
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	(int) 1 => [
		'title' => 'Brick Temple at Bhitargaon',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>The temple at Bhitargaon in Kanpur (Uttar Pradesh) is one of the earliest surviving<strong> brick</strong> temples of India.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It was built in the 5th century A.D during the <strong>Gupta Empire</strong>.</li>
<li>It is the oldest remaining terracotta Hindu shrine with a roof and a high Shikhara (spire) which paved the way for elaborate Nagara style of temple architecture in North India.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Brief History of Temple Architecture</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>There is no evidence of the existence of temple architecture during the Vedic period.</li>
<li>Over generations, worshipping was systematised and paved the way for the evolution of temple structures.</li>
<li>Rock-cut architecture began to develop from the 3rd century BCE. Though the earliest rock-cut architecture is from the Mauryan dynasty, the Ajanta caves which belong to post Mauryan period are among the earliest rock-cut temples.</li>
<li>As man progressed and learnt new techniques, rock-cut temples gave way to stone temples and as <g class="gr_ gr_83 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins doubleReplace replaceWithoutSep" id="83" data-gr-id="83">stone</g> was not easily available everywhere, it gave way to brick temples.</li>
<li>In the Gangetic plains, which have alluvial soil and <g class="gr_ gr_73 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins doubleReplace replaceWithoutSep" id="73" data-gr-id="73">paucity</g> of stones and rocks, many brick structures came up.</li>
<li>Though rock-cut and stone temples withstood the vagaries of time, brick temples could not survive. That is what makes the brick temple of Bhitargaon so special.</li>
</ul>
<h3><g class="gr_ gr_63 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="63" data-gr-id="63">Architecture</g> of Bhitargaon Temple</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The entrance into the sanctum shows one of the first uses of a <strong>semi-circular doorway</strong>.</li>
<li><strong>Alexander Cunningham</strong> (First Director General of the Archaeological Survey of India, 1871) called this as the &lsquo;Hindu arch&rsquo; which was peculiar to India.</li>
<li>The temple has a tall pyramidical spire (shikhara) above the inner sanctum (<g class="gr_ gr_66 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling" id="66" data-gr-id="66">garbha</g> <g class="gr_ gr_69 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling" id="69" data-gr-id="69">griha</g>). This shikhara became the standard feature of the<strong> Nagara temple architecture</strong> of India.</li>
<li>The walls of the temple are decorated with terracotta sculptures of God and Goddesses like Shiva, Parvati, Ganesha, Vishnu etc. on panels separated by bold ornamental pilasters (<g class="gr_ gr_77 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins doubleReplace replaceWithoutSep" id="77" data-gr-id="77">rectangular</g> column that projects slightly beyond the wall).</li>
<li>According to Cunningham, because of the Varaha incarnation at the back of the temple, it was probably a <strong>Vishnu temple</strong>.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>NAGARA, DRAVIDA &amp; <g class="gr_ gr_80 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="80" data-gr-id="80">VESARA</g> TEMPLES</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Temple architecture evolved slightly differently in different regions, such as the distinct features of Orissa, Kashmir and Bengal temples, but it can be generally classified under three categories- <strong>Nagara (North)</strong>, <strong>Dravida (South)</strong> and <strong>Vesara</strong> styles.</li>
<li>The <strong>shikhara</strong> tower in Nagara temples has a <strong>sloping</strong> <strong>curve</strong> as they rise and are topped by an <strong>amalaka</strong> (a large fluted disk) and also a small spherical pot known as the <strong>kalash</strong>.<img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/650drishti_ias_temple.jpg" /></li>
<li>The Nagara style of temples <g class="gr_ gr_59 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="59" data-gr-id="59">were</g> generally built on upraised platforms.</li>
<li><strong>Kandariya Mahadeva temple</strong> at Khajuraho in Madhya Pradesh is one of the best expression of Nagara temple architecture.</li>
<li>In contrast, <strong>Dravida</strong> towers (known separately as <strong>vimana</strong>) are in the form of a <strong>stepped pyramid</strong> that rises up linearly rather than curved.</li>
<li>There is only one vimana in the Dravidian architecture on top of the main temple. The subsidiary shrines do not have vimanas, unlike in Nagara architecture.</li>
<li>The <strong>presence of water tank</strong> inside the temple enclosure is a <strong>unique feature of the Dravidian style</strong>.</li>
<li>Southern Indian temples are typically enclosed within a walled courtyard with a gate (<strong>gopuram</strong>) which over time had become even more massive and ornate than the temple itself.</li>
<li>The 11th century A.D. <strong>Brihadishwara Temple</strong> complex (built by Rajaraja I of Imperial Cholas) at Tanjavur is a wonderful example of Dravida temple which incorporates all of these features.</li>
<li>Vesara style of temple architecture flourished under the later Chalukya rulers in the 7th century A.D.</li>
<li><strong><g class="gr_ gr_64 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="64" data-gr-id="64">Vesara</g> style</strong> had <strong>combined features of both Nagara school and Dravidian school</strong> and resulted in a hybridised style.</li>
<li><strong>Durga temple at Aihole</strong>, Karnataka is a prominent example of Vesara style temple.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
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	(int) 2 => [
		'title' => 'Rethinking Disaster Management',
		'catname' => 'News Editorials',
		'desc' => '<div class="border">
<p>(This editorial is based on the article &ldquo;Rethinking Disaster Management&rdquo; which appears in The Hindu.)</p>
</div>
<p>Disaster management broadly encompasses the management (i.e of prevention, relief, rebuilding etc.) before, during and after a disaster, either man-made or natural. Of the two, natural disasters are generally more devastating and reoccurring.</p>
<p><strong>The scale of damage from any natural disaster can never really be measured because of the long-term ecological and psychological effects.</strong> For example, post-flood effects include the spread of diseases, such as cholera, malaria, and leptospirosis (swamp fever), and may impact flood-hit communities for years to come.</p>
<p><strong>Weather-related disasters are being affected by climate change that is caused by humans.</strong> The devastation is worsened by the collective failure of governments and businesses to invest in building resilience despite all the evidence on runaway climate change.</p>
<p>India faces numerous such perils and needs to be better prepared. In 2017, Swiss Re (Swiss Reinsurance Company Ltd) counted 183 natural catastrophes and 118 man-made disasters across the globe.</p>
<p><strong>India alone is projected to have seven megacities</strong>&mdash;defined by a population of more than 10 million&mdash;by 2030, according to the World Economic Forum. The confluence of climate change, natural disasters, and human density could lead to more Kerala-like disasters. The task before the government is, therefore, to move from a reactive stance to a proactive one, by preparing for such natural disasters ahead of their occurrence.</p>
<h3>Challenges to Disaster Management</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>India is the 10th most disaster-prone country in the world</strong> with 27 out of 29 States and all of the seven Union Territories being most vulnerable.</li>
<li><strong>About 60% of the landmass is prone to earthquakes of various intensities, over 40 million hectares is prone to floods, about 8% of the total area is prone to cyclones, and 68% of the area is susceptible to drought.</strong></li>
<li>An absence of an institutional framework at the Center/State/District level, poor intersectoral coordination, lack of an early warning system, slow response from relief agencies, lack of trained/dedicated search and rescue teams, and poor community empowerment are the standard challenges.</li>
<li><strong>Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) are virtually non-existent</strong> and even where such SOPs exists, the authorities concerned are unfamiliar with it.</li>
<li>The States also suffers from inadequate coordination among various government departments and other stakeholders.</li>
</ul>
<h3>What is Disaster Risk Insurance?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Disaster risk insurance is one of the financial tools available as a mitigation measure.</li>
<li>It triggers a pay-out by the insurer when a disaster occurs, e.g. when a tsunami hits or rainfall falls below a certain threshold.</li>
<li>At its most basic level, insurance commits an individual or entity to pay a fixed amount at regular intervals (premium) into a common fund (the scheme), from which money is retrieved (pay-out) to compensate for losses arising from a predefined event (coverage).</li>
<li><strong>Disaster risk insurance covers hazards arising from geological, meteorological, hydrological, climatological, oceanic, biological, and technological/man-made events, or a combination of them.</strong></li>
<li>Natural hazards include earthquakes, floods, storms, tsunamis, droughts, and freezes.</li>
<li>Man-made hazards can also be insured against, including air/water/soil pollution, nuclear radiation, toxic waste, dam failures, transport accidents, factory explosions, fires, and chemical.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Stakeholders in Disaster Risk Insurance</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Beneficiaries/insured entity/party:</strong> Individuals, households or companies receive the insurance payout after the occurrence of a certain disaster event.</li>
<li><strong>Government/regulators:</strong> Other than being the insurer of last resort, governments can promote (and incentivize) public and private insurance schemes. They are also responsible for providing the legal framework and oversight over the insurance industry.</li>
<li><strong>Insurance/reinsurance industry</strong> (e.g. banks, credit unions, development finance institutions): Insurers offer insurance solutions to the consumer market while the reinsurers (e.g. Re-Swiss, Munich Reinsurance Company) offer financial products to the insurers themselves. Reinsurers cover an estimated 55&ndash;65% of insured losses in natural catastrophes, while the rest is credited to insurers and the insured, depending on the insurance policy.</li>
<li><strong>Donors/facilitators:</strong> Provide technical assistance and official development assistance to raise awareness for and implement disaster-related insurance schemes.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Pros of Disaster Risk Insurance</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Insurance provides reliable and timely financial relief for the recovery of livelihoods and reconstruction, providing security in the post-disaster period.</strong> As a result, it can prevent people from falling into poverty and destitution, or provide the liquidity necessary to restore livelihoods.</li>
<li><strong>Insurance helps create a space of certainty and stability for the individual, institutions, and government within which investments and planning can be undertaken.</strong> This allows, for example, for climate-resilient investments in climate-sensitive sectors such as tourism and agriculture as well as in job creation and market development. Outreach towards poor and vulnerable communities can also be secured in a relatively short period of time.</li>
<li><strong>Technological innovations, such as satellite imaging and mobile phones, have substantially lowered the costs of evaluating claims in remote and poor regions and thus of insurance products.</strong> This has increased substantially the number of people who can be covered under such insurance.</li>
<li><strong>Pooling risks over a wide geographical spectrum allow risk diversification:</strong> as a result risk premiums can be reduced considerably, thus ensuring affordability for many countries (like India, for example) that otherwise might not be able to access insurance coverage.</li>
<li><strong>The temporary loss of tax revenues and the sudden increase in public expenditures for reconstruction can easily condemn vulnerable countries to a downward fiscal and macroeconomic spiral.</strong> Disaster risk insurance&mdash;especially pooled mechanisms&mdash;can help countries cope with these macroeconomic shocks.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Cons of Disaster Risk Insurance</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Insurance can help individuals and countries to recover from disasters and incentivize preparedness, but cannot prevent risks as such nor the loss of lives and assets.</strong></li>
<li>On its own, insurance will thus not be sufficient. Insurance schemes need to be complemented with other disaster-risk reduction strategies, such as integrating disaster risks into development planning, a collection of data, setting up early warning systems, awareness raising, contingency planning, etc.</li>
<li>Disaster risk insurance can be comparatively costly compared with other disaster risk reduction measures.</li>
<li>In some cases, insurance premiums may be set too high for the poor or the poorest countries. Affordability will be determined by the availability of public incentives or depend on grants from donors.</li>
<li>Maintaining the affordability of insurance schemes in light of more frequent and impactful extreme weather events might become unrealistic. For example, traditional insurance schemes might become unsuitable due to sea-level rise and desertification.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Risks associated with Disaster Risk Insurance</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Access to reliable information:</strong> Risk assessment requires reliable data and institutional risk assessment capabilities, which is still limited in many countries.</li>
<li><strong>Accessibility:</strong> It is important that insurance schemes address the needs of all beneficiaries and stakeholders involved so that coverage is maximized.</li>
<li><strong>Affordability:</strong> Premiums may not be affordable for low-income households.</li>
<li><strong>Financial sustainability of the scheme:</strong> Direct insurance schemes can only be commercially viable if there is a steady stream of premium income at scale to cover future payouts.</li>
<li><strong>Un-insurability associated with increasing frequency and magnitude of extreme weather events:</strong> insurers may withdraw from markets as the risks become too high for the pool of premiums available.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Disaster management approaches require administrative support and medical intervention, apart from psychosocial intervention.</li>
<li>Improvement in government policy frameworks to better manage risk and mitigate economic and social costs is the foremost necessity. Governments also have to frame good macroeconomic policies before and after disaster shocks.</li>
<li>We should be able to estimate the probability of such shocks and identify local vulnerabilities and integrate these into plans for contingencies, invest in risk reduction, insurance, self-insurance, and disaster response.</li>
<li>There must be a provision in the budget for emergency spending that helps in crisis mitigation, resolution and insurance coverage. A low public debt can bolster government spending and increase its flexibility for relief work especially if reconstruction needs arise.</li>
<li>There should be public investment in risk reduction. Tax and spending policies need to be flexible, to allow rapid redeployment of spending when needed.</li>
<li>Coordination with foreign partners before disaster strikes could mobilize external assistance for risk reduction, which is likely to earn a higher return than emergency help after the fact.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>A proactive stance to reduce the toll of disasters in the country requires a more comprehensive approach that comprises both pre-disaster risk reduction and post-disaster recovery. Such an approach should involve the following set of activities:</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Risk analysis to identify the kinds of risks faced by people and development investments as well as their magnitude;</li>
<li>Prevention and mitigation to address the structural sources of vulnerability;</li>
<li>Risk transfer to spread financial risks over time and among different actors;</li>
<li>Emergency preparedness and response to enhance a country&rsquo;s readiness to cope quickly and effectively with an emergency;</li>
<li>Post-disaster rehabilitation and reconstruction to support effective recovery and to safeguard against future disasters.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>India needs a strong disaster management agency. Disaster preparedness should be focussed on meeting the immediate contingency, implementing a conceptual, long-term rehabilitation strategy while maintaining an ethnographic understanding. It must be built on anticipatory governance, emphasizing studies that embed foresight and foster citizen awareness.</li>
<li>The NDRF (National Disaster Relief Force) must fill its vacant specialist positions while being given better control over transfers and deployment of its personnel. Without such reforms, only the Indian Army and paramilitary forces can remain first responders, and States will continue to cry out for relief.</li>
<li>It is, therefore, time to move on from being focussed only on managing natural disaster emergencies to improving resilience.</li>
</ul>
<h3><span style="color: #ff0000;"><span style="color: #000000;">Read More...</span><br /></span></h3>
<p><a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/our-understanding-of-the-dynamics-of-risks-of-disasters-is-still-far-from-comprehensive" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Our Understanding of the Dynamics of Risks of Disasters is Still Far from Comprehensive</a></p>
<p><a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/what-is-a-national-disaster" target="_blank" rel="noopener">What is a &lsquo;National Disaster&rsquo;?</a></p>
<p><a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/catastrophe-bonds" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Catastrophe Bonds</a></p>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/rethinking-disaster-management'
	],
	(int) 3 => [
		'title' => 'Prompt Corrective Action (PCA)',
		'catname' => 'Paper 3',
		'desc' => '<h3>Why in News?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Central government and the RBI are in conflict over the application of the Prompt Corrective Action (PCA).</li>
</ul>
<h3>What is Prompt Corrective Action (PCA)?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>PCA is a framework under which banks with weak financial metrics are put under watch by the RBI.</li>
<li>The RBI introduced the PCA framework in 2002 as a structured early-intervention mechanism for banks that become undercapitalised due to poor asset quality, or vulnerable due to loss of profitability.</li>
<li>It aims to check the problem of Non-Performing Assets (NPAs) in the Indian banking sector.</li>
<li>The framework was reviewed in 2017 based on the recommendations of the working group of the Financial Stability and Development Council on Resolution Regimes for Financial Institutions in India and the Financial Sector Legislative Reforms Commission.</li>
<li>PCA is intended to help alert the regulator as well as investors and depositors if a bank is heading for trouble.</li>
<li>The idea is to head off problems before they attain crisis proportions.</li>
<li>Essentially PCA helps RBI monitor key performance indicators of banks, and taking corrective measures, to restore the financial health of a bank.</li>
<li>The PCA framework deems banks as risky if they slip some trigger points - <strong>capital to risk weighted assets ratio (CRAR), net NPA, Return on Assets (RoA) and Tier 1 Leverage ratio</strong>.</li>
<li>Certain structured and discretionary actions are initiated in respect of banks hitting such trigger points.</li>
<li>The PCA framework is applicable only to commercial banks and not to co-operative banks and non-banking financial companies (NBFCs).</li>
<li>It may be noted that of the 21 state-run banks, 11 are under the PCA framework.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Non Performing Asset</strong></p>
<p>A non performing asset (NPA) is a loan or advance for which the principal or interest payment remained overdue for a period of 90 days. Banks are required to classify NPAs further into Substandard, Doubtful and Loss assets.</p>
<p><strong>Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR)</strong></p>
<p>The <strong>CAR</strong> is a measure of a bank's available capital expressed as a percentage of a bank's risk-weighted credit exposures. The Capital Adequacy Ratio, also known as capital-to-risk weighted assets ratio (CRAR), is used to protect depositors and promote the stability and efficiency of financial systems around the world.</p>
</div>
<h3>PCA Measures</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>RBI can place restrictions on dividend distribution, branch expansion, and management compensation.</li>
<li>Only in an extreme situation, would a bank be a likely candidate for resolution through amalgamation, reconstruction or winding up.</li>
<li>RBI may place restrictions on credit by PCA banks to unrated borrowers or those with high risks, but it doesn&rsquo;t invoke a complete ban on their lending.</li>
<li>RBI may also impose restrictions on the bank on borrowings from interbank market.</li>
<li>Banks may also not be allowed to enter into new lines of business.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Challenges and Issues</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>PCA is an exceptional action and impacts the rating of the bank as well as consumer confidence. This is detrimental in the long run as it impacts the credit history of the bank and raises questions about its management.</li>
<li>PCA can accelerate the loss of market share and cause further decline of the position of the public sector banks in the financial system in favour of private banks and foreign banks.</li>
<li>PCA is seen by government as hindering economic growth therefore is arguing for easier lending policies by relaxing the PCA norms and aligning them to global norms.</li>
<li>The tussle between RBI and government can negatively impact the image of India as an investment destination.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Narasimham Committee (1998) on structural reforms recommended the merger of Indian banks; consolidated banking industry will be able to better deal with NPA crisis.</li>
<li>Government should address the core issue of Governance impacting the Banking Sector.</li>
<li>A formal agency such as Public Sector Asset Rehabilitation Agency (PARA), can be instituted to resolve the large bad debt cases; this step was taken by East Asian countries after they were hit by severe TBS problems in the 1990s.</li>
<li>The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) mechanism needs to be strengthened to meet global standards with active involvement of the government, regulators, lenders, borrowers and the judiciary.</li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/to-the-points/paper3/prompt-corrective-action-pca'
	],
	(int) 4 => [
		'title' => 'Prompt Corrective Action (PCA)',
		'catname' => 'Paper 3',
		'desc' => '<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/977Drishti_ias_PCA.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/977Drishti_ias_PCA.jpg" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></a></p>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/mind-map/gs-paper3/prompt-corrective-action-pca-mind-map'
	],
	(int) 5 => [
		'title' => 'International Human Rights Day',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>On <strong>December 10,</strong> the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) observes Human Rights Day. The day is celebrated every year to commemorate the <strong>Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), which was adopted and proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in 1948</strong> as the shared standard yardstick to protect human rights across the globe. This year marks the <strong>70<sup>th</sup> anniversary of adoption of UDHR.</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The five-yearly <strong>"United Nations Prize in the field of Human Rights"</strong>, constituted in 1966, is also awarded on this day.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Universal Declaration of Human Rights</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Proclaimed under <strong>UNGA resolution 217 A in Paris</strong>, the declaration sets out, for the first time, fundamental human rights to be universally protected.</li>
<li>It states that <strong>&lsquo;All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.&rsquo;</strong></li>
<li>It entitles everyone to all the rights and freedoms and prohibits slavery and slave trade in all forms.</li>
<li>Other rights recognized under the declaration are right to a nationality, right against arbitrary arrest, detention or exile, right to seek asylum from prosecution, right to freedom of movement and residence, etc.</li>
<li>The Universal Declaration is<strong> not a treaty,</strong> so it does <strong>not directly create legal obligations</strong> for countries. However, it is an <strong>expression of the fundamental values</strong> which are shared by all members of the International community.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Human rights are at the heart of the<strong> Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)</strong>, as in the absence of human dignity, sustainable development cannot be achieved. Human Rights are driven by progress on all SDGs, and the SDGs are driven by advancements on human rights.</li>
<li>Most of the rights listed in the <strong>Constitution of India are in two parts</strong>: The <strong>Fundamental Rights </strong>and the<strong> Directive Principles of State Policy.</strong></li>
</ul>
<h3>National Human Rights Commission (NHRC)</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The NHRC was established in 1993 under the statute of <strong>Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993.</strong></li>
<li>The Commission consists of:
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>A Chairperson</strong> who has been a <strong>Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.</strong></li>
<li>One Member who is or has been, a <strong>Judge of the Supreme Court.</strong></li>
<li>One Member who is, or has been, the <strong>Chief Justice of a High Court.</strong></li>
<li><strong>Two Members</strong> to be appointed from amongst persons having knowledge of, or practical experience in, matters relating to human rights.</li>
<li><strong>The Chairpersons of four National Commissions (Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Women and Minorities) serve as ex officio members.</strong></li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>As per the act, NHRC is a<strong> recommendatory body</strong> vested with the powers of a civil court trying a suit under the <strong>Code of Civil Procedure, 1908.</strong></li>
<li>Though it is <strong>empowered to take suo moto</strong> cognizance of the human rights violation cases, it <strong>cannot entertain cases that are older than 1 year.</strong></li>
<li>Apart from looking into the complaints of the human rights violations, it reviews safeguards provided under the Constitution or any Law, makes recommendations for effective implementation of International Conventions/ Covenants, undertakes research and organises seminars and discussion programmes on human rights issues.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Protection of Human Rights (Amendment) Bill, 2018</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Recently, the <strong>Protection of Human Rights (Amendment) Bill, 2018</strong> was introduced in Lok Sabha which seeks to amend the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993. The salient features of 2018 amendment Bill are:
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Not only a person who has been Chief Justice of India, but <strong>also a Judge of the Supreme Court</strong> can be the chairperson of the NHRC. This will <strong>enlarge the scope of eligibility and scope of selection</strong> of Chairperson, National Human Rights Commission.</li>
<li><strong>Three members</strong> to be appointed (from two), of which at <strong>least one will be a woman.</strong> It also seeks to include the chairpersons of the <strong>National Commission for Backward Classes, the National Commission for the Protection of Child Rights, and the Chief Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities as members of the NHRC.</strong></li>
<li>The Bill<strong> reduces the term of office to three years (from five years)</strong> or till the age of seventy years, whichever is earlier.</li>
<li>The Act provides for a <strong>Secretary-General of the NHRC and a Secretary of a SHRC,</strong> who exercise powers as may be delegated to them. The Bill allows the Secretary-General and Secretary to exercise all administrative and financial powers (except judicial functions), subject to the respective chairperson&rsquo;s control.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The Amendment will <strong>strengthen the Human Rights Institutions of India</strong> further for effective discharge of their mandates, roles and responsibilities. Moreover, the amendment will make National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) more<strong> compliant with agreed global standards and benchmarks</strong> concerning its autonomy, independence, pluralism and wide-ranging functions in order to effectively protect and promote human rights.</li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/international-human-rights-day'
	],
	(int) 6 => [
		'title' => 'Bioplastics Have Less Positive Effect than Expected: Study',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>A recent study from the <strong>University of Bonn</strong> suggests that shifting to bioplastics may have less positive effects than previously expected.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The study also found that it will take a lot of time to switch to bioplastics from single-use plastics.</li>
</ul>
<h3>What is Bioplastic?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Bioplastic refers to plastic made from plants like maize, wheat or sugarcane or other biological material instead of petroleum.</strong> Bio-plastics are biodegradable and compostable plastic materials.</li>
<li>It can be made by extracting sugar from plants like corn and sugarcane and converting it into polylactic acids (PLA). It can also be made from polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHA) from microorganisms.</li>
<li>PLA plastic is commonly used in food packaging, while PHA is often used in medical devices like sutures and cardiovascular patches.</li>
</ul>
<h3>How it is better than Single-Use Plastics?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Bioplastics, or plant-based plastics, are promoted as a<strong> climate-friendly alternative to petroleum-based plastics.</strong></li>
<li>Plastics are usually made from petroleum. They have impacts in terms of<strong> fossil fuel depletion and climate change.</strong></li>
<li>It is estimated that by 2050, plastics will be responsible for 15% of the global CO<sub>2</sub> emissions.</li>
<li>Plants get carbon dioxide from the air through their leaves; producing bioplastics from plants, therefore, consumes carbon dioxide, which compensates for the amount that is later released when bioplastic is decomposed. Overall, the net greenhouse gas balance of bioplastic is assumed to be zero.</li>
<li>The carbon embodied in petroleum-based plastic is suddenly released into the atmosphere by degradation or burning, contributing to global warming. Bioplastics, on the other hand, are climate-neutral.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Impact of Bioplastics</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Cropland Expansion:</strong> Increase in use of bioplastics may trigger cropland expansion on the global scale, which will further increase greenhouse gas emissions.</li>
<li><strong>Deforestation:</strong> The production of bioplastics in large amounts might change land use globally. This could lead to an increase in the conversion of forest areas to arable land for agriculture. As forests absorb more carbon dioxide than maize or sugar cane field annually.</li>
<li><strong>Food Scarcity:</strong> Using a substance like corn for plastic instead of food may cause food constraints in an increasingly food-scarce world.</li>
<li><strong>Industrial composting required:</strong> Industrial composting is necessary to heat the bioplastic to a high enough temperature that allows microbes to break it down. Without that intense heat, bioplastics will not degrade on their own either in landfills or in the compost heap. If they end up in marine environments, they'll function similarly to petroleum-based plastic.
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Thus, establishing large-scale plants for Industrial composting of bioplastics may not be economically and environmentally feasible.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Environment Day 2018</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The theme of United Nations Environment Day 2018 celebrated on June 5 was <strong>Beat Plastic Pollution.</strong></li>
<li>UN Environment Day in 2018 was hosted by India.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Greenwashing</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Greenwashing is the practice of making an <strong>unsubstantiated or misleading claim about the environmental benefits of a product</strong>, service, technology or company practice. Greenwashing can make a company appear to be more environmentally friendly than it really is.<br /><a href="/loksabha-rajyasabha-discussions/the-big-picture-world-environment-day-identify-the-dangers-of-the-plastic-era" target="_blank" rel="noopener">More About Plastic Pollution</a></li>
</ul>
</div>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/bioplastics-have-less-positive-effect-than-expected-study'
	],
	(int) 7 => [
		'title' => 'Important Facts for Prelims (10th December 2018)',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<h3>Sonepur Fair</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Sonepur Mela also known as Malegaon Mela or Harihar Kshetra Mela is held on Kartik Poornima (full moon day) in the month of November in <strong>Sonepur</strong>, <strong>Bihar</strong>, on the <strong>confluence of river</strong> <strong>Ganga and Gandak</strong>.</li>
<li>It is the <strong>biggest cattle fair of Asia</strong> and stretches on from fifteen days to one month.</li>
<li>It has its origins during ancient times. The fair used to attract traders from places as distant as Central Asia.</li>
<li>The famous Harihar Nath temple in Sonpur was built by Raja Ram Narain, an influential person during the late Mughal period.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Yellow Vest Protest</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>France</strong> has witnessed four consecutive weekends of <strong>demonstrations against fuel tax rises</strong>, high living costs and other issues.</li>
<li>The protest became known as the "<strong>yellow vest</strong>" or "<strong>gilets jaunes</strong>" movement because protesters took to the streets wearing the high-visibility yellow jackets that are required to be carried in every vehicle by French law.</li>
<li>The original &ldquo;Yellow Vest&rdquo; protests were dominated by working-class people who were upset over fuel tax increase and their declining living standards.</li>
<li>Protests have also erupted over other issues, including calls for higher wages, lower taxes, better pensions and easier university entry requirements.</li>
<li>The widely supported movement's core aim is to highlight the economic frustration and political distrust of poorer working families.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Exercise Aviaindra 2018: India-Russia</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Exercise Aviaindra is being held at Air Force Station Jodhpur from 10-21 Dec 2018.</li>
<li>Exercise Aviaindra is an Air Force level exercise between India and Russia was conducted for the first time in 2014.</li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/important-facts-for-prelims-10th-december-2018'
	],
	(int) 8 => [
		'title' => 'Quick Fix for the Farmer',
		'catname' => 'News Editorials',
		'desc' => '<div class="border">
<p>(This editorial is based on the article &ldquo;Quick Fix for the Farmer&rdquo; which appears in The Indian Express on 10th December 2018.)</p>
</div>
<p><strong>Thousands of farmers from different parts of India marched to Delhi in November this year to register their protest against the Central government&rsquo;s perceived apathy and neglect of farmers&rsquo; demands.</strong></p>
<p>They were basically demanding three things:</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The debate in Parliament to discuss farm distress;</li>
<li>One-time loan waiver;</li>
<li>Raising<a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/msp-agrarian-crisis-and-reform" target="_blank" rel="noopener"> minimum support prices (MSPs)</a> to 50 percent above the comprehensive cost of production, and making <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/give-legal-backing-to-msp-capc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MSPs legally binding on private traders</a> - that is, if any trader buys below MSP, he should be put in prison for three years.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Already, from April 2017 to July 2018, several states (Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab, Rajasthan, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh) have announced loan waivers that together amount to Rs 1,82,802 crore.</strong> The remaining states are also likely to be added to this list during the run-up to parliamentary elections in April/May 2019. Although it is well known that loan waivers will not permanently solve the problems of farmers, yet this demand is likely to be met for political if not economic considerations.<strong> Farm loan waivers have now become a standard demand across the country.</strong></p>
<p>However, it is interesting to note that of the states that have already announced loan waivers, only a few budgeted them while many others have done just lip service so far. For example, Punjab announced a loan waiver of Rs 10,000 crore, but so far has budgeted less than Rs 600 crore. Further, it may be noted that it is the better ones in the peasantry which will benefit the most from this move (as they have better access to the judicial and bureaucratic systems of the country).</p>
<h3>Why Farm Loan Waiver is Always in Demand?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Farm loan waivers have become a permanent poll promise by all political parties.</strong></li>
<li>Farm income growth has been subdued in recent years due to poor monsoon, failing prices etc. and, the loan waiver appears as a quick solution for the farm distress.</li>
<li><strong>Also, farm loan waivers are easy to get.</strong> If elections are around it goes without asking. If not, all it takes is an agitation to bring the government to its knees.</li>
<li><strong>Governments have figured out that loan waivers are easy to give as well.</strong> To reduce farm distress, there are better long-term alternatives to loan waivers. But building irrigation systems or warehouses, electrifying villages or creating markets takes time and effort. A loan waiver is quick and returns are instant.<a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/701drishti_ias_loan%20waivers.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/701drishti_ias_loan waivers.jpg" width="280" height="623" style="float: right;" caption="false" /></a></li>
</ul>
<h3>Farm Loan Waiver is No Answer to India&rsquo;s Farmers</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Farm loan waivers lead to faulty targeting of beneficiaries and result in discrimination.</strong> It also incentivizes wilful defaulters and erodes credit discipline.</li>
<li><strong>Loan waivers not only impact bank balance sheets but also increase government spending</strong> which is then financed by additional market borrowings, pushing up the interest rates.</li>
<li>The ultimate goal of farm loan waiver is to lessen the debt burden of distressed and vulnerable farmers and help them qualify for fresh loans. The success of the loan waiver lies on the extent to which the benefits reach the needy farmers.<strong> Loan waivers suffer from several drawbacks in this respect. It covers only a tiny fraction of farmers. According to 2012-13 NSS-SAS, 48% of the agricultural households did not have any outstanding loan.</strong></li>
<li>Further, out of the indebted agricultural households, about 39% borrowed only from non-institutional sources. The farmers investing from their own savings and those borrowing from non-institutional sources are equally vulnerable to weather and market risks. But all such households are outside the purview of loan waivers.</li>
<li><strong>It provides only a partial relief</strong> to the indebted farmers as about half of the institutional borrowing of a cultivator is for non-farm purposes.</li>
<li>One household has multiple loans either from different sources or in the name of different family members, which entitles it to multiple loan waiving.</li>
<li><strong>Loan waiving excludes agricultural (wage) </strong>labourers<strong> who are even economically, politically and socially weaker</strong> than cultivators in bearing the consequences of economic distress.</li>
<li>It severely erodes the credit culture, with dire long-run consequences to the banking business.</li>
<li>The scheme is prone to serious exclusion and inclusion errors, as evidenced by the Comptroller and Auditor General&rsquo;s (CAG) findings in the Agricultural Debt Waiver and Debt Relief Scheme.</li>
<li>Loan waivers have serious implications for other developmental expenditure, having a much larger multiplier effect on the economy. For instance, loan waiver may cost Uttar Pradesh at least ₹36,000 crore, which is 4.4 times the State&rsquo;s capital expenditure of ₹8,191 crore (Budget estimate) in agriculture, including irrigation and flood management, in 2016-17. A similar amount spent on improvement of agriculture infrastructure and other developmental activities would create a base for future growth and development of the sector.</li>
<li><strong>Ultimately loan waivers involve a transfer of resources from taxpayers to borrowers which can crimp consumption redistribution.</strong></li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Measures taken to improve farmers&rsquo; access to institutional credit and reduce their dependence on informal credit:</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>As informal sources of credit are mostly usurious, the government has improved the flow of adequate credit through the nationalization of commercial banks, and the establishment of Regional Rural Banks and the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development.</li>
<li>It has also launched various farm credit programmes over the years such as the Kisan Credit Card scheme in 1998, the Agricultural Debt Waiver and Debt Relief Scheme in 2008, the Interest Subvention Scheme in 2010-11, and the Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana in 2014.</li>
<li>There is the increase in institutional credit from ₹8 lakh crore in 2014-15 to ₹10 lakh crore in 2017-18. Of this, ₹3.15 lakh crore is meant for capital investment, while the remaining is for crop loans, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare. Actual credit flow has considerably exceeded the target.</li>
<li>The result is that the share of institutional credit to the agricultural gross domestic product has increased from 10% in 1999-2000 to nearly 41% in 2015-16.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It appears that loan waiving can provide a short-term relief to a limited section of farmers; <strong>it has a meager chance of bringing farmers out of the vicious cycle of indebtedness.</strong></li>
<li>There is no concrete evidence on reduction in agrarian distress following the first spell of all-India farm loan waiver in 2008. In the longer run, strengthening the repayment capacity of the farmers by improving and stabilizing their income is the only way to keep them out of distress.</li>
<li><strong>Lasting solutions like building irrigation capabilities and cold storage chains, increased crop insurance coverage, farm infrastructure building, tech-enabled productivity improvement and opening the sector to market forces and open trade can help the farmers in long run as a better option.</strong></li>
<li>Agrarian distress and farmers&rsquo; income will be addressed much better if States undertake and sincerely implement long-pending reforms in the agriculture sector with urgency.</li>
<li><strong>Alternatively, waiving only a portion of the loan instead of placing a cap on the quantum of loan waiver will be an improvement towards averting moral hazards.</strong></li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/quick-fix-for-the-farmer'
	],
	(int) 9 => [
		'title' => 'The Big Picture - International Convention on Terrorism',
		'catname' => 'Lok Sabha & Rajya Sabha Discussions',
		'desc' => '<p style="text-align: center;"><iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/eN3BHWhi2-E" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p>
<p style="text-align: left;">The date 26/11 has gone down in the history as a day that saw the most heinous attack carried on the Indian soil. The attack claimed 164 lives; leftover 300 injured and sent shock waves around the world. Terrorism has reared its ugly head every now and then and has devastated the world like nothing else. It is an issue which has affected millions of lives from Asia to the Americas but till date, there is no consensus on an international convention on terrorism. Several efforts have been made to address the problem but negotiations have not borne out results to address the issue.</p>
<div class="border-bg">
<p>DRISHTI INPUT</p>
<p><strong>Origin and Status of Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT)</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>New Delhi has pushed for an intergovernmental convention to enhance prosecution and extradition of terrorists since 1996. In 2018, even after two decades, there is still a lack of consensus.</li>
<li>Although consensus eludes towards the adoption of the terrorism convention, discussions have yielded three separate protocols that aim to tackle terrorism:
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>International Convention for the Suppression of Terrorist Bombings, adopted on 15 December 1997;</li>
<li>International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism, adopted on 9 December 1999;</li>
<li>International Convention for the Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism, adopted on 13 April 2005.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>Why the Lack of Consensus?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Sixth Committee, the primary forum for the consideration of legal questions in the General Assembly had created an ad hoc group which is still debating the draft for Comprehensive Convention for Countering International Terrorism. There are several issues but the most important of them is &ldquo;defining the terms related to terrorism&rdquo;. Multiple groups have contentious claims over what should and what should not be regarded as terrorism.</li>
<li>For instance, Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) has denied inclusion of liberation movement activities as terrorism, keeping in mind the Israel- Palestine conflict.</li>
<li>On the other hand, the US and the allied countries who are involved in many counter-terrorism activities in various countries wanted the draft to exclude acts committed by military forces of states during peacetime. The Latin American countries want exactly the opposite.</li>
<li>Hence, for the committee prescribing an overarching definition that satisfies all the parties is a bone of contention.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Geopolitics and the Act of terror</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Geopolitics is one of the most important determinants that has played the invisible hand in protecting the agents of terror. Masood Azhar is a case in point.</li>
<li>Time and again China has been reluctant in declaring Azhar a terrorist. China, being a veto-wielding permanent member of the UN Security Council, has repeatedly blocked India's move to do so. The US, Britain <g class="gr_ gr_112 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="112" data-gr-id="112">and</g> France all back India to designate Masood Azhar a terrorist under the Al-Qaida Sanctions Committee of the UN Security Council.</li>
<li>China, in its statement, said that since Pakistan didn't agree with India on this issue, there is no "consensus" between the two directly affected parties. Beijing made it clear that China will support the issue only if Pakistan agrees with India.</li>
<li>Pakistan government has been proven toothless when it comes to curbing nefarious activities emanating from her soil. There are scores of terrorist camps along the border, aided and funded either by the army (clandestinely) or terrorist groups like Jaish e Mohammad.</li>
<li>The motive of the Pakistani administration has always been to support the fringe elements tacitly, in order to fulfill its policy to &ldquo;bleed India with thousand cuts&rdquo;.</li>
<li>Adoption of the convention would not only force Pakistan to withdraw any tacit state support to the terrorist groups but would also enable India to extradite culprits who are responsible for designing terrorist acts from foreign soil.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT)</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The CCIT will provide <g class="gr_ gr_118 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="118" data-gr-id="118">legal</g> framework which will make it binding on all signatories to deny funds and safe havens to terrorist groups. The original draft that was tabled in 1996 and discussed until April 2013 included the following major objectives:
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>To have a universal definition of terrorism that all 193-members of the UNGA will adopt into their own criminal law.</li>
<li>To ban all terror groups and shut down terror camps.</li>
<li>Deny safe haven to those who finance, plan, support, or commit terrorist acts.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>To prosecute all terrorists under a special law.</li>
<li>Exchange information in accordance with international and domestic law and cooperate on administrative and judicial matters to prevent the commission of terrorist acts.</li>
<li>To make cross-border terrorism an extraditable <g class="gr_ gr_95 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling multiReplace" id="95" data-gr-id="95">offence</g> worldwide.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Measures to Tackle Terrorism</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>India should play a proactive role to neutralize any threat of terrorism.</li>
<li>Addressing UN High-Level conference on Heads of Counter Terrorism, Indian Special Secretary, Internal Security) extended a five-point formula &ndash;
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Exchange of timely and actionable intelligence.</li>
<li>Prevention of misuse of modern communication through collaboration with the private sector.</li>
<li>Building capacities for improved border controls.</li>
<li>Sharing of info related to the movement of passengers.</li>
<li>Designation of Counter-Terror focal points to fight global terror.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>In addition, there should be a concerted effort from the countries affected by the scourge of terrorism to pressurize countries who engage in state-sponsored terrorism.</li>
<li>It is believed that the Indian intelligence agencies did have actionable intelligence from its Israeli and the US counterpart regarding 26/11. So, intelligence gathering and sharing are not enough, timely &amp; appropriate action is required on the intelligence received. Consequently, the Indian intelligence agencies have to be empowered both monetarily and through modern infrastructure to be able to respond in time.</li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/loksabha-rajyasabha-discussions/the-big-picture-international-convention-on-terrorism'
	],
	(int) 10 => [
		'title' => 'Global Status Report on Road Safety: WHO ',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>World Health Organization (WHO) has released the Global Status Report on Road Safety 2018.</p>
<h3>Key Points</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The report highlights that road traffic deaths are rising, with 1.35 million deaths in 2016 globally.</li>
<li>Road Accidents are the eighth leading cause of death for all age groups surpassing HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and diarrhoeal diseases.</li>
<li>The road traffic deaths rates are highest in Africa (26.6 per 100 000 population) and lowest in Europe (9.3 per 100 000 population).</li>
<li>However, the rates of death relative to the size of the world&rsquo;s population has stabilized in recent years.</li>
<li>Progress is attributed to better legislation around key risks such as<strong> speeding, drinking and driving, and failing to use seat-belts, motorcycle helmets and child restraints, safer infrastructure like sidewalks, dedicated lanes for cyclists, motorcyclists, and improved vehicle standards.</strong></li>
<li>The progress has not occurred at a pace fast enough to compensate for the rising population and rapid motorization of transport taking place in many parts of the world.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Road Accidents in India</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The trend in India shows that deaths have been increasing since 2007 even though India has put in place most of the rules needed to protect people.</li>
<li>The report highlights India as an example of the implementation of seven or eight of the priority United Nations vehicle safety standards.</li>
<li>Cities in India have reduced traffic crashes, and through media campaigns and stronger enforcement, more cities have cut drink driving.</li>
<li>Despite this, India reported more than 150,000 deaths in 2016.</li>
<li>There is a need to take a multi-sectoral approach to tackle road crashes and deaths.<strong> Better infrastructure that can allow safer travel, better vehicles, improved intervention and enforcement of laws and a health system that can take care of accident victims are the need of the hour.&nbsp;</strong></li>
<li><strong>Vehicle Safety Standards in India</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>In 2014, crash tests carried out by the Global New Car Assessment Programme (NCAP) revealed that some of India&rsquo;s top-selling car models have failed the UN&rsquo;s frontal impact crash test.</li>
<li>Global NCAP tests at a higher speed resulted in zero-star ratings for Indian cars indicating a high risk of fatal or serious injury.</li>
<li>In 2015 the Indian government announced the application of new regulations consistent with the UN standards for front and side impact and also pedestrian protection.</li>
<li>For new car models, the use of front and side crash tests came into force from October 2017 and will apply to all new cars from October 2019.</li>
<li>The pedestrian protection regulation for new models came into force from October 2018 and will apply to all new cars from October 2020.</li>
<li>In addition, new cars are required to have airbags fitted as standard and to have a speed warning device above 80 km/h.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Recommendations</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Safe Roads:</strong> Safety consideration during the planning, design, and operation of roads, contributes to reducing road traffic deaths and injuries</li>
<li><strong>Safe Vehicles:</strong> Vehicle safety features such as electronic stability control and advanced braking make a substantial contribution to reducing road traffic deaths and injuries.</li>
<li><strong>Behavioral Changes:&nbsp;</strong>Increasing motorcycle helmet use, increasing seat-belt uses and increasing child restraint use.</li>
<li><strong>Post Crash Care:</strong>&nbsp;Simple and affordable post-crash care interventions can save lives. Effective care for the injured requires timely care at the scene, prompt transport to appropriate emergency and surgical care at the hospital, and early access to rehabilitation services.</li>
<li><strong>Role of bystanders:</strong> Bystanders play a major role in post-crash care. They contribute by activating the emergency care system and taking simple, potentially life-saving actions until professional help is available.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Brasilia Declaration on Road Safety</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The declaration was signed at the Second Global High-Level conference on Road Safety held in Brazil.</li>
<li>Through the Brasilia Declaration Countries plan to achieve <strong>the Sustainable Development Goal 3.6: By 2020, halve the number of global deaths and injuries from road traffic accidents.</strong></li>
<li>United Nations has also declared <strong>2010-2020 as the decade of action for Road Safety.</strong></li>
<li>The main points of the Brasilia Declaration are:
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Countries should form transport policies in order to favor more sustainable modes of transport such as walking, cycling and using public transport.</li>
<li>It highlights strategies to ensure the safety of all road users,
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>by improving laws and enforcement;</li>
<li>making roads safer through infrastructural modifications;</li>
<li>ensuring that vehicles are equipped with life-saving technologies;</li>
<li>and enhancing emergency trauma care systems.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>The International Road Assessment Programme(iRAP)</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The International Road Assessment Programme (iRAP) is a registered charity dedicated to saving lives through safer roads.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Justice K.S. Radhakrishnan Committee</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Supreme Court had set up the three-member KS Radhakrishnan panel on road safety in April 2014.</li>
<li>The main recommendation of the committee was
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Ban on the sale of alcohol on highways (both state and national) to restrain drunk driving.</li>
<li>The states were directed to implement laws on wearing helmets.</li>
<li>Audit of road safety to be implemented by states to ensure the safety standards in the design, construction, and maintenance of roads.</li>
<li>The committee stressed the importance of creating awareness among people on road safety rules.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2016</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It proposes to create a National Register for Driving Licence and a National Register for Vehicle registration through <strong>&ldquo;Vahan&rdquo; and &ldquo;Sarathi&rdquo; web portals.</strong> This is in order to smoothen the process of registration and licensing.</li>
<li>It proposes alterations in vehicles, in order to make them suitable for specially-abled people.</li>
<li>It provides for a <strong>Motor Vehicle Accident Fund,</strong> which would provide compulsory insurance cover to all road users in India for certain types of accidents.</li>
<li>It provides for a <strong>National Road Safety Board,</strong> to be created by the Central Government through a notification. The Board will provide advice to the Central and State Governments on all aspects of road safety and traffic management.</li>
<li>Contractors, consultants, and civic agencies will be accountable for faulty design, construction or poor maintenance of roads leading to accidents. Those found guilty would be penalized up to Rs 1 lakh.</li>
<li>The bill also provides for the protection of good samaritans.</li>
</ul>
<p><a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/ministrys-report-on-road-accidents-in-india" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Ministry&rsquo;s Report on Road Accidents in India</a></p>
</div>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/global-status-report-on-road-safety-who'
	],
	(int) 11 => [
		'title' => 'Important Facts for Prelims (8th December 2018)',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<h3>CAD Widens to 2.9% of GDP</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>India's Current Account Deficit (CAD) widened to <strong>2.9% of the gross domestic product</strong> in the Q2 (quarter which ended in September) compared with 1.1% in the year-ago period.</li>
<li>Major reasons for rising CAD was <strong>sharp rise in oil prices</strong>, and<strong> weakening rupee (imports become costlier).</strong> However both these factors are<strong> not that severe now</strong> and therefore CAD is projected to <strong>come down later in the year.</strong></li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Current Account Deficit (CAD)</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>CAD, is the difference between th<strong>e inflow and outflow of foreign exchange.</strong> It reflects that the imports of goods, services and investment incomes into the economy outstripped the value of its exports.</li>
<li>Current Account Deficit and Fiscal Deficit ( also known as "budget deficit", it is a situation when a nation's expenditure exceeds its revenues) are t<strong>ogether are known as twin deficits</strong> and often both reinforce each other i.e. High fiscal deficit leads to higher CAD and vice versa.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>Global Hackathon On Artificial Intelligence</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>NITI Aayog</strong> in partnership with <strong>Perlin, a Singapore-based Artificial Intelligence (AI) startup</strong> has launched the &lsquo;<strong>AI 4 All Global Hackathon&rsquo;.</strong></li>
<li>Hackathon will invite developers, students, start-ups and companies to develop <strong>AI applications to make significant positive social and economic impact for India.</strong></li>
<li>With the vision to further expand the idea of <strong>&lsquo;Artificial Intelligence, AI for All&rsquo; articulated in the National AI Strategy,</strong> NITI Aayog organises hackathons to source sustainable, innovative and technologically-enabled solutions to address various challenges in the development space.</li>
<li>Earlier it had also organised <strong>&lsquo;MoveHack&rsquo; ,</strong> on the sidelines of the <a href="/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/global-mobility-summit-move" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Global Mobility Summit 2018</a></li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/important-facts-for-prelims-8th-december-2018'
	],
	(int) 12 => [
		'title' => 'An Invitation To Corruption?',
		'catname' => 'News Editorials',
		'desc' => '<div class="border">
<p>(This editorial is based on the article &ldquo;An Invitation To Corruption?&rdquo; which appears in The Hindu on 8th December 2018.)</p>
</div>
<p>In order to<strong> &ldquo;cleanse the system of political funding in the country</strong>&rdquo; and in keeping with the government&rsquo;s desire to move to a cashless economy, electoral bonds scheme was introduced.<strong> The scheme, announced during the 2017 Budget, aimed to account the donations made to all major political parties.</strong></p>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Electoral Bonds Scheme</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Electoral Bond is a financial instrument (similar to a promissory note) for making donations to political parties.</strong></li>
<li>These are issued by Scheduled Commercial banks upon authorization from the Central Government to intending donors, but only against cheque and digital payments (it cannot be purchased by paying cash).</li>
<li>These bonds shall be redeemable in the designated account of a registered political party within the prescribed time limit from the issuance of the bond.</li>
<li><strong>The bonds will be issued in multiples of ₹1,000, ₹10,000, ₹1 lakh, ₹10 lakh, and ₹1 crore and will be available at specified banks.</strong></li>
<li>They can be bought by the donor with a KYC-compliant account. Donors can donate the bonds to their party of choice which can then be cashed in via the party's verified account within 15 days.</li>
<li>In its present form, the scheme permits not only individuals and body corporates but also &ldquo;every artificial juridical person,&rdquo; to purchase bonds.</li>
<li><strong>Every party that is registered under section 29A of the Representation of the Peoples Act, 1951 (43 of 1951) and has secured at least one percent of the votes polled in the most recent Lok Sabha or State election will be allotted a verified account by the Election Commission of India.</strong> Electoral bond transactions can be made only via this account.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>Why Electoral Bonds are Necessary?<img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/348drishti-ias_an invitation to corruption.png" style="float: right;" width="244" height="377" /></h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The conventional system of political funding is to rely on donations. These donations, big or small, come from a range of sources from political workers, sympathizers, small business people, and even large industrialists. The conventional practice of funding the political system was to take donations in cash and undertake these expenditures in cash. The sources are anonymous or pseudonymous. <strong>The quantum of money was never disclosed. The present system ensures unclean money coming from unidentifiable sources.</strong></li>
<li>Donations made online or through cheques remain an ideal method of donating to political parties. However, these have not become very popular in India since they involve disclosure of the donor&rsquo;s identity. However, the electoral bond scheme envisages total clean money and substantial transparency coming into the system of political funding. A donor can purchase electoral bonds from a specified bank only by a banking instrument. He would have to disclose in his accounts the number of political bonds that he has purchased. A bond can only be encased in a pre-declared account of a political party.</li>
</ul>
<p>But the<strong> scheme&rsquo;s failings have become so blindingly obvious,</strong> and its consequences so utterly devastating, that criticisms are coming in from a multitude of places like High Court judges, former Election Commissioners, journalists etc.</p>
<h3>Drawbacks</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>There are many grey areas in this scheme because there is no ceiling on party expenditure and the EC (Election Commission) cannot monitor it. It cannot be sure that what is coming in is not black money as there is a secrecy of the donor.</strong></li>
<li>Even foreign money can come and even a dying company can give money. So, prima facie it appears the scheme cannot really deliver whatever it was intended to.</li>
<li>The fact that the scheme allows for complete anonymity of the donor and neither the purchaser of the bond nor the political party receiving the donation is mandated to disclose the donor&rsquo;s identity. Therefore, not only will say, the shareholders of a corporation be unaware of the company&rsquo;s contributions, but the voters too will have no idea of how, and through whom, a political party has been funded.</li>
<li><strong>For instance, the programme removes an existing condition that had prohibited companies from donating anything more than 7.5% of their average net-profit over the previous three years. This now means that even loss-making entities can make unlimited contributions.</strong></li>
<li>Additionally, the requirement that a corporation ought to have been in existence for at least three years before it could make donations &mdash; a system that was meant to stop shell companies from being created with a view purely to <g class="gr_ gr_94 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling multiReplace" id="94" data-gr-id="94">syphoning</g> money into politics &mdash; has also been removed.</li>
<li>The scheme also suffers from at least two foundational defects. One, that it was incorporated on the back of a series of amendments made to legislation, including the Representation of the People Act, the Income Tax Act, and the Companies Act, which were introduced in the form of a money bill. And two, that the scheme flouts a number of fundamental rights. The Finance Act, through which these amendments were introduced, therefore did not deal with only those matters contained in Article 110.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Two Judgements</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Even as early as in 1957, in a pair of judgments outstanding in their lucidity and prescience, the Bombay and the Calcutta High Courts warned Parliament of the perils in allowing companies to freely add to party coffers.</li>
<li>Bombay High Court said it is something which is likely to &ldquo;grow apace and which may ultimately overwhelm and even throttle democracy in the country&rdquo;.</li>
<li>The court was conscious that, given the circumscriptions of the law, it could scarcely deny, in the case before it, permission sought by Tata Iron and Steel Co. Ltd. to amend its memorandum of association, to allow the company to make contributions to different political interests.</li>
<li>The Calcutta High Court had made an almost identical appeal. &ldquo;To the cynic it appears to be a plea of the company to have a legal sanction to bribe the Government of the day, to induce policies that will help the company in its business&rdquo;.</li>
<li>If amendments of this kind were allowed, and if joint stock companies serve as adjuncts to political parties, the Court added, the &ldquo;man who pays the piper will then call the tune&rdquo;.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>There&rsquo;s no doubt that the Constitution does not contain an explicitly enforceable right to vote. But implicit in its guarantees of equality and free speech is a right to knowledge and information. Our courts have nearly consistently seen &ldquo;freedom of voting&rdquo; as distinct from the right to vote, as a facet of the right to freedom of expression and as an essential condition of political equality. In the absence of complete knowledge about the identities of those funding the various different parties, it&rsquo;s difficult to conceive how a citizen can meaningfully participate in political and public life.</li>
<li><strong>The electoral bonds scheme, therefore, suggests two possibilities: one, that the government doesn&rsquo;t understand the Constitution; or, two, it does, and has expressly set out to transgress it.</strong></li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/an-invitation-to-corruption'
	],
	(int) 13 => [
		'title' => '2023 is the International Year of Millets- FAO',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>India's proposal to observe an <strong>International Year of Millets in 2023</strong> has been approved at the by the <strong>Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO)</strong>.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>India is celebrating <strong>2018 as the national year of millets</strong>.</li>
</ul>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Millet is a collective term referring to a number of small-seeded annual grasses that are cultivated as grain crops, primarily on marginal lands in dry areas in temperate, subtropical and tropical regions.</li>
<li>Some of the common millets available in India are Ragi (Finger millet), Jowar (Sorghum), Sama (Little millet), Bajra (Pearl millet), and Variga (Proso millet).</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>Millets as Smart Food</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Millets are <strong>less expensive and nutritionally superior</strong> to wheat &amp; rice owing to their high <strong>protein</strong>, <strong>fibre</strong>, <strong>vitamins</strong> and minerals like <strong>iron</strong> content.</li>
<li>Millets are also rich in <strong>calcium</strong> and <strong>magnesium</strong>. For example, <strong>Ragi</strong> is known to have the highest calcium content among all the food grains.</li>
<li>Millets can provide <strong>nutritional</strong> <strong>security</strong> and act as a shield against nutritional deficiency, especially among <strong>children</strong> and <strong>women</strong>. Its high iron content can fight <g class="gr_ gr_62 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="62" data-gr-id="62">high</g> prevalence of <strong>anaemia</strong> in India women of reproductive age and infants.</li>
<li>Millets are rich in <strong>antioxidants</strong>.</li>
<li>Millets can help tackle <strong>lifestyle</strong> <strong>problems</strong> and health challenges such as <strong>obesity</strong> and <strong>diabetes</strong> as they are <strong>gluten-free</strong> and have a <strong>low glycemic index</strong> (a relative ranking of carbohydrate in foods according to how they affect blood glucose levels).</li>
</ul>
<h3>Millets as Smart Crop</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Millets are <strong>Photo-insensitive</strong> (do not require a specific photoperiod for flowering) &amp; <strong>resilient to climate change</strong>.</li>
<li>Millets <strong>can grow on poor soils</strong> with little or no external inputs.</li>
<li>Millets are less water <g class="gr_ gr_63 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling" id="63" data-gr-id="63">consuming</g> and are <strong>capable of growing under drought conditions</strong>, under non-irrigated conditions even in very low rainfall regimes</li>
<li>Millets have <strong>low carbon and water footprint</strong> (rice plant needs at least 3 times more water to grow in comparison to millets).</li>
<li>Millets can <strong>withstand high temperature</strong>. In times of climate change Millets are often the last crop standing and, thus, are a good risk management strategy for resource-poor marginal farmers.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Since India, which supports more than 15% of the world&rsquo;s population, but only has 4% of its water resources, promotion of millets could be helpful.</li>
<li>To efficiently feed the growing population, increase in the production of and demand for millets is need of the hour.</li>
<li>Policy changes need to address infrastructure development in regions growing millets.</li>
<li>Cultivation of several varieties of millets should be encouraged and practised.</li>
<li>The government should include millets in Public Distribution System (PDS) and nutrition programmes.
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>For example, Odisha has planned to introduce millets in PDS, mid-day meal scheme (MDM) and the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS).</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The government should incentivise farmers growing millets and practising mixed cropping, besides providing financial support for their processing, storage and marketing.</li>
<li>Specific value addition practices, like grading, sorting, cleaning, processing and packaging should also be supported.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Additional Information</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>FAO (specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger) Council approved <strong>India&rsquo;s membership</strong> to the Executive Board of the United Nations<strong> World Food Program (WFP)</strong> for 2020 and 2021.</li>
<li>World Food Programme is the <strong>UN agency focused on hunger alleviation and food security</strong>.</li>
<li>Globally, it responds to emergencies making sure food reaches where it is needed, especially in times of civil strife and natural disasters.</li>
<li>In India, WFP has moved from providing direct food aid to providing technical assistance and capacity building services to the Government of India.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/2023-is-the-international-year-of-millets-fao'
	],
	(int) 14 => [
		'title' => 'Climate Finance',
		'catname' => 'Paper 3',
		'desc' => '<h3>Why in News?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Ahead of the United Nations Conference of Parties (COP24), the BASIC (Brazil, South Africa, China and India) countries said that they would push developed countries on their commitment to providing $100 billion annually from 2020.</li>
<li>However, countries till now haven&rsquo;t even agreed on what constitutes climate finance.</li>
</ul>
<h3>What is Climate Finance?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Climate finance refers to local, national or transnational financing&mdash;drawn from public, private and alternative sources of financing.</li>
<li>It seeks to support mitigation and adaptation actions that will address climate change.</li>
<li>The UNFCCC, the Kyoto Protocol and the Paris Agreement call for financial assistance from countries with more financial resources to those that are less endowed and more vulnerable.</li>
<li>It is in accordance with the principle of &ldquo;common but differentiated responsibility and respective capabilities&rdquo;.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Background</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Through the Cancun Agreements in 2010 developed countries committed to a goal of mobilizing jointly USD 100 billion per year by 2020 to address the needs of developing countries.</li>
<li>The Green Climate Fund (GCF) was established in Cancun Agreement and designated it as an operating entity of the financial mechanism.</li>
<li>Under the Paris Agreement in 2015, developed countries confirmed this goal and agreed that prior to 2025 a new collective quantified goal from a floor of USD 100 billion per year shall be set.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Need for Climate Finance</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Globally the scale of needed investment:</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The World Economic Forum projects that by 2020, about $5.7 trillion will need to be invested annually in green infrastructure.</li>
<li>The current commitment of $100 billion annually is only a small piece of the $5.7 trillion puzzle.</li>
<li>Therefore funding is needed to meet the investment needs in 2020 and beyond.</li>
<li>Mitigation &ndash; Large-scale investments are required to significantly reduce emissions.</li>
<li>Adaptation &ndash; Significant financial resources are needed to adapt to the adverse effects and reduce the impacts of a changing climate.</li>
<li>It is also critical to support developing countries to build resilience to worsening climate impacts and to catalyzing private sector climate investment.</li>
<li>Climate Finance is needed to transition the world&rsquo;s economy to a low-carbon path, as direct government funding is scarce in these countries.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>The scale of needed investment in India:</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Under Paris Accord, India has planned to reduce its carbon emission intensity &ndash; emission per unit of GDP &ndash; by 33-35%. To achieve these targets and build its renewable capacity India needs climate finance.</li>
<li>India&rsquo;s Green Bond market is in growth stage, first green bonds were issued in 2015 - indicating the need to explore more options for climate financing.</li>
<li>In India, banks and non-banking financial companies have a limited appetite for long-term debt due to asset-liability mismatch.</li>
<li>Along with problems arising out of climate change, India also face traditional problems like poverty, pollution, education and skill gaps etc.Hence there is a greater need for climate finance.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Global Climate Financing</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Green Climate Fund (GCF)</strong> was established to limit or reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in developing countries and to help vulnerable societies adapt to the unavoidable impacts of climate change.</li>
<li><strong>Adaptation Fund (AF)</strong> was established under the Kyoto Protocol in 2001 and has committed US$ 532 million to climate adaptation and resilience activities.</li>
<li><strong>Global Environment Fund (GEF) </strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>GEF has served as an operating entity of the financial mechanism since the Convention came into force in 1994.</li>
<li>It is a private equity fund focused on seeking long term financial returns by investments in clean energy under climate change.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>In addition to providing guidance to the GEF and the GCF, parties have established two special funds:
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The Special Climate Change Fund (SCCF) and the Least Developed Countries Fund (LDCF).</li>
<li>Both funds are managed by the GEF.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<p><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/424Climate Finance_drishtiias.png" width="680" height="413" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" alt="Climate Finance" caption="false" /></p>
<h3>Climate Financing in India</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs)</strong> are nationally binding targets adopted under UNFCCC. India has to reduce GHG emissions under this, which requires climate financing.</li>
<li><strong>National Clean Energy Fund:</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The Fund was created to promote clean energy, funded through an initial carbon tax on use of coal by industries.</li>
<li>Governed by an Inter-Ministerial Group with the Finance Secretary as the Chairman.</li>
<li>Its mandate is to fund research and development of innovative clean energy technology in the fossil and non fossil fuel based sectors.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>National Adaptation Fund:</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The fund was established in 2014 with a corpus of Rs. 100 crore with the aim of bridging the gap between the need and the available funds.</li>
<li>The fund is operated under Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEF&amp;CC).</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Clean Development Mechanism (CDM):</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>It allows emission-reduction projects in developing countries to earn certified emission reduction (CER) credits, each equivalent to one tonne of CO2.</li>
<li>The CDM is the main source of income for the UNFCCC Adaptation Fund.</li>
<li>The Adaptation Fund is financed by a 2% levy on CERs issued by the CDM.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Internal Programmes:</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li><strong>Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA),</strong> Disaster Management Fund etc.</li>
<li>A Climate Change Finance Unit was set up by Department of Economics in the Ministry of Finance to advise and guide the MoEF&amp;CC as well as to lead on global climate finance issues.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Principles of Climate Finance</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Polluter Pays</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>The 'polluters pays' principle is the commonly accepted practice according to which those who produce pollution should bear the costs of managing it to prevent damage to human health or the environment.</li>
<li>This principle underpins most of the regulation of pollution affecting land, water and air formally known as the 1992 Rio Declaration.</li>
<li>It has also been applied more specifically to emissions of greenhouse gases which cause climate change.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Common but Differentiated Responsibility and Respective Capability (CBDR&ndash;RC)</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>CBDR&ndash;RC is a principle within the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).</li>
<li>It acknowledges the different capabilities and differing responsibilities of individual countries in addressing climate change.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Additionality</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Climate finance should be additional to existing commitments to avoid the diversion of funding for development needs to climate change actions.</li>
<li>This includes use of public climate finance and investments by private sector.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Adequacy &amp; Precaution</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>In order to take precautionary measures to prevent or minimise the causes of climate change as a stated goal under UNFCCC, the level of funding needs to be sufficient to keep a global temperature with in limits as possible.</li>
<li>A better level of adequacy might be increased in the national estimates of the needed climate funds, this will help build planned investments with respect to INDC.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Predictability</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Climate finance must be predictable to ensure sustained flow of climate finance.</li>
<li>It can be done through multi-year, medium-term funding cycles (3 &ndash; 5 years).</li>
<li>This allows for adequate investment program to scale up country&rsquo;s national adaptation and mitigation priorities.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Challenges</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>At global levels:</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>There is a gap between national needs and climate finance under Nationally Determined Contribution there is need for additional international financial support.</li>
<li>Least Developed Countries receive much less approved funding in per-capita terms from the multilateral climate funds.</li>
<li>The rate of approvals is time taking, due to which the drawee nation has insufficient funds to complete its target and leads to stalling of projects.</li>
<li>The uncertainties such as, the recent refusal of US to pay $2 billion of its pledge this has created shortage of funds at available GCF.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>At National levels:</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>In India the local market to climate finance are insufficiently involved in financial products that support climate change adaptation.</li>
<li>Their is imminent failure in securing viability-gap funding either from governments, or multilateral development banks.</li>
<li>Projects in climate change has longer gestation period which deter financial institutions from investing in them.</li>
<li>Shortage of funds due to insufficient budget allocation are often interfered due to any excess or additional grants which leads to stalling of green projects.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>An analytical framework is necessary to combine potential climate risks with a systematic cost-benefit analysis.</li>
<li>Favourable policy and institutional actions are important for successful introduction or scaling up of financial instruments.</li>
<li>Such actions, through public-private partnership (PPP) and PPP People (PPPP) can help improving climate finance.</li>
<li>Climate finance should be equipped with non institutional financial services such as market funds, private etc.</li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/to-the-points/paper3/climate-finance-1'
	],
	(int) 15 => [
		'title' => 'Climate Finance',
		'catname' => 'Paper 3',
		'desc' => '<p><a href="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/149Drishti_ias_Climate%20Finance.jpg" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img class="content-img" src="http://www.drishtiias.com/images/uploads/149Drishti_ias_Climate Finance.jpg" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" /></a></p>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/mind-map/gs-paper3/climate-finance-paper-3'
	],
	(int) 16 => [
		'title' => 'National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical Systems',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>The Union Cabinet has approved the launching of<strong> National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical Systems (NM-ICPS)</strong> to be implemented by<strong> Department of Science &amp; Technology</strong> for a period of<strong> five years.</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>NM-ICPS covers entire India which includes Central Ministries, State Governments, Industry and Academia.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Cyber-Physical Systems</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Cyber-physical systems <strong>integrate</strong> sensing, computation, control and networking<strong> into physical objects and infrastructure,</strong> connecting them to the Internet and to each other.</li>
<li>Few Potential applications: <strong>Driverless cars</strong> that communicate securely with each other<strong> on smart roads</strong>, Sensors in the home to <strong>detect changing health conditions,</strong> improving <strong>agricultural practices</strong> and enabling scientists to address issues arising out of climate change,etc.</li>
<li>Advances in cyber-physical systems will enable capability, adaptability, scalability, resiliency, safety, security and usability that will far exceed the simple embedded systems of today.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>Objective</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The NM-ICPS is a comprehensive Mission which would address technology development, application development, human resource development &amp; skill enhancement, entrepreneurship and start-up development in Cyber Physical System (CPS) and associated technologies.</li>
<li>The Mission aims at establishment of <strong>15 Technology Innovation Hubs (TIH)</strong>, <strong>six Application Innovation Hubs (AIH)</strong> and <strong>four Technology Translation Research Parks (TTRP).</strong></li>
<li>These Hubs &amp; TTRPs will connect to<strong> Academics, Industry, Central Ministries and State Government</strong> in developing solutions at reputed academic, R&amp;D and other organizations across the country in a hub and spoke model.</li>
<li>The Hubs &amp; TTRPs have<strong> four focused areas</strong> along which the Mission implementation would proceed, namely:
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Technology Development,</li>
<li>HRD &amp; Skill Development,</li>
<li>Innovation, Entrepreneurship &amp; Start-ups Ecosystem Development, and</li>
<li>International Collaborations.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Background</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>CPS and its associated technologies, like Artificial Intelligence (Al), Internet of Things (loT), Machine Learning (ML), Deep Learning (DP), Big Data Analytics, etc. have pervaded and is playing a transformative role in almost every field of human endeavour all most in all sectors.</li>
<li>Therefore, It has become imperative for government and industries to be <strong>prepared to adopt these emerging and disruptive technologies in order to remain competitive</strong>, drive societal progress, generate employment, foster economic growth and to improve the overall quality of life and sustainability of the environment.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Impact</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>CPS technologies provide a <strong>cutting edge to a Nation's scientific, engineering, and technological innovative capabilities;</strong> support other missions of the government, provide industrial and economic competitiveness and have truly <strong>became a Strategic Resource</strong>.</li>
<li>The proposed Mission would act as an <strong>engine of growth that would benefit national initiatives</strong> in health, education, energy, environment, agriculture, strategic cum security, and industrial sectors, Industry 4.0, SMART Cities, Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) etc.</li>
<li>CPS is an integrated system of upcoming technology, which in turn is being taken up on priority basis by countries in the race for development. CPS will indeed bring a paradigm shift in entire skill sets requirement.</li>
<li>The <strong>job opportunities will be enhanced</strong> through the Mission by imparting advanced skills and generating skilled manpower as per the requirement of the industry/ society. Accordingly, it is estimated that, about 40,000 jobs will be created in the short term and about 2,00,000 in long term.</li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/national-mission-on-interdisciplinary-cyber-physical-systems'
	],
	(int) 17 => [
		'title' => 'Agriculture Export Policy 2018',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>The Union Cabinet has approved the Agriculture Export Policy, 2018.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The policy would help the government in achieving the target of doubling farmers income.</li>
<li>The vision of Agriculture Export Policy is to<strong> harness the export potential of Indian agriculture, through suitable policy instruments, to make India global power in agriculture and raise farmers income.</strong></li>
<li><strong>Objectives of the Policy</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>To double agricultural exports from present ~US$ 30+ Billion to ~US$ 60+ Billion by 2022 and reach US$ 100 Billion in the next few years thereafter, with a stable trade policy regime.</li>
<li>To diversify the export basket, destinations and boost high value and value-added agricultural exports including a focus on perishables.</li>
<li>To promote novel, indigenous, organic, ethnic, traditional and non-traditional Agri products exports.</li>
<li>To provide an institutional mechanism for pursuing market access, tackling barriers and deal with sanitary and phytosanitary issues.</li>
<li>Enable farmers to get the benefit of export opportunities in the overseas market.<strong></strong></li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<h3>Need For Export Policy</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The policy can&nbsp;<strong>address challenges to exporting agricultural products</strong> from India like low farm productivity, poor infrastructure, global price volatility to market access.</li>
<li><strong>India&rsquo;s share in global exports of agriculture products was merely 2.2 % in 2016.</strong></li>
<li>India has remained at the lower end of the global agriculture export value chain given that the <strong>majority of its exports are low value, semi-processed and marketed in bulk.</strong> The share of<strong> India&rsquo;s high value and value-added agriculture produce in its agri-export basket is less than 15% compared to 25% in the US and 49% in China.</strong></li>
<li>India is <strong>unable to export its vast horticultural produce due to lack of uniformity in quality, standardization and its inability to curtail losses across the value chain.</strong> Given the globalization of value chains, it is imperative that the country make concerted efforts to boost exports of high margin, value-added and branded processed products.</li>
<li>The<strong> vision of doubling farmers income by 2022</strong> will require a series of interventions to improve production and productivity along with economizing the cost of production. Th<strong>is would also require India to augment its exports to the global market. Hence, it is necessary to have an agriculture export policy in place.</strong></li>
</ul>
<h3>Key Recommendations of Agricultural Export Policy 2018<strong></strong></h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;"></ul>
<table border="1" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 16px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 91px;" rowspan="4">
<p style="text-align: center;"><strong>Strategic</strong></p>
</td>
<td style="width: 50%; height: 16px;">Policy Measures</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 25px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 25px;">Infrastructure and Logistics Boost</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 25px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 25px;">Whole Government Approach to boost exports</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 25px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 25px;">
<p>Greater involvement of State Governments in Agri Exports</p>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p></p>
<table border="1" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 152px;" rowspan="8">
<p style="text-align: center;"></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"></p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><strong>Operational</strong></p>
<p></p>
<p></p>
</td>
<td style="width: 50%; height: 19px;">Focus on Clusters</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 19px;">Promoting Value-added exports</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 19px;">Marketing and promotion of &ldquo;Produce of India&rdquo;</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 19px;">Infrastructure and Logistics to support agricultural exports</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 19px;">Establishment of Strong Quality Regimen</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 19px;">Self-sufficiency and export-centric production</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 19px;">Research &amp; Development</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 50%; height: 19px;">
<p>Miscellaneous</p>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong></strong><strong>Stable Trade Policy Measures&nbsp;</strong>to ensure&nbsp;recommends providing an assurance that the processed agricultural products and all kinds of organic products <strong>will not be brought under the ambit of any kind of export restriction.</strong>
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li style="list-style-type: none;">
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>The&nbsp;Model Agricultural produce market committee (APMC) act must be adopted by all states and E-NAM must be established.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong> Liberalizing Land Leasing Norms&nbsp;</strong>and&nbsp;adoption of the Model Contract Farming Act by state governments in order to promote agricultural exports.
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li style="list-style-type: none;">
<ul style="list-style-type: disc;">
<li>Contract farming is expected to bring in large-scale private investments in agriculture thus leading to large-scale mechanization. This will further produce surplus volumes of the standardized, exportable quality of agricultural products.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Infrastructure and Logistics Boost&nbsp;</strong>by identifying ports for the export of agricultural products. Development in port infrastructure like dedicated perishable berths.</li>
<li><strong>Whole Government approach</strong>&nbsp;which will ensure all government department and ministries like Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Food Processing Industries, Ministry of Shipping &amp; Transport, Ministry of Railways and Ministry of Consumer Affairs involved in agricultural production, processing, transportation <g class="gr_ gr_101 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="101" data-gr-id="101">and</g> export should work together to address bottlenecks at every level.</li>
<li><strong>State government involvement:</strong> As Agriculture is a state subject it is necessary to bring on board the state governments for positive agricultural reforms. Each state has its own agricultural nuances, like one state may be experiencing a drought while another may be dealing with floods. Thus it is necessary to align state agricultural policies with the nation&rsquo;s overarching goals.
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>State governments must identify the government department for the promotion of <g class="gr_ gr_95 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-del replaceWithoutSep" id="95" data-gr-id="95">the agricultural</g> export.</li>
<li>The states must include agriculture export in state export policy and build infrastructure and logistics to facilitate agricultural export.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Focus on Export centric Clusters&nbsp;</strong>for&nbsp;pre- and post-harvest management of the production as well as in upgrading the supply chain to attain much higher levels of export from those clusters.</li>
<li><strong>Promoting Value Added Exports of</strong>&nbsp;indigenous and tribal products.
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Through the National Programme on Organic Production (NPOP), organic food parks and by the uniform quality and packaging standards India can tap the potential for increasing organic exports.</li>
<li>Promotion of Research &amp; Development (R&amp;D) activities, promoting &ldquo;produce in India&rdquo; through the constitution of separate funds dedicated to organic, value-added, ethnic, GI and branded products.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Post-Harvest Infrastructure</strong> that can support the smooth logistical movement of agri-produce exports. This will have a direct co-relationship in increasing export volumes, assuring quality &amp; ensuring better price realization per unit.</li>
<li style="list-style-type: none;">
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Digitization of land records, geo-mapping of lands, registration of farmers and farm producer organizations (FPOs) is critical to smooth agricultural exports.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Establishment of Strong Quality Regimen&nbsp;</strong>with the focus on strong R&amp;D, new varieties, state of the art lab and a lab networking process for effective accreditation and monitoring.
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>An institutional mechanism should be provided that would pursue market access, tackle barriers and deal with sanitary and phytosanitary issues against India&rsquo;s agricultural exports that come up from time to time.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><strong>Research and Development&nbsp;</strong>led by private industry along with higher infrastructure <g class="gr_ gr_97 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="97" data-gr-id="97">spend</g> by the government will be the key to boosting agricultural exports.
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Along with this, innovations in packaging, improving the shelf life of products and greater R &amp; D in developing products to suit the palates of importing countries should be a priority.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>The policy has recommended setting up of <strong>an agri-startup fund.</strong></li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/agriculture-export-policy-2018'
	],
	(int) 18 => [
		'title' => 'Important Facts for Prelims (7th December 2018)',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<h3>Exercise Hand-In-Hand</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Exercise Hand-in-Hand is <strong>annual military exercise</strong> conducted between <strong>India and China.</strong></li>
<li>The joint exercise for the <strong>year 2018</strong> will be conducted from 10 to 23 December 2018 at<strong> Chengdu, China.</strong></li>
<li>The aim of the exercise is to build and promote close relations between armies of both the countries and to enhance ability of joint exercise commander to take military contingents of both nations under command.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Ideate for India - Creative Solutions using Technology</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The <strong>National e-Governance Division of Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY)</strong> in collaboration with <strong>Intel India</strong> has launched a National Challenge for Youths, <strong>&ldquo;Ideate for India - Creative Solutions using Technology&rdquo;.</strong></li>
<li>The aim of this National Challenge is to give <strong>school students</strong> across the country a platform and opportunity to become solution creators for the problems they see around them and their communities.</li>
<li>It is open to students of <strong>classes 6 - 12 all across the country - all 29 States and 7 Union Territories</strong> and aims to reach out to at least 1 million youth over the next 3 months.</li>
<li>There are <strong>11 core theme areas</strong> on which students can share their ideas- healthcare services, education services, digital services, environment, women safety, traffic, infrastructure, agriculture, social welfare, disability and tourism.</li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/important-facts-for-prelims-7th-december-2018'
	],
	(int) 19 => [
		'title' => 'Is Social Media Polarising Society?',
		'catname' => 'News Editorials',
		'desc' => '<div class="border">
<p>(This editorial is based on the article &ldquo;Is Social Media Polarising Society?&rdquo; which appears in The Hindu on 6th December 2018.)</p>
</div>
<p><strong>We live in a world where we aren&rsquo;t only consumers of information but creators as well, which gives us a misplaced sense of control.</strong></p>
<p>Almost 1.49 billion people on average log onto Facebook daily; every second, on average, around 6,000 tweets are tweeted on Twitter; and since its inception, over 40 billion photographs have been posted on Instagram.</p>
<p><strong>As we approach the end of the second decade of this century, social media and the Internet have drifted from their promise of closing distances and exposing us to the views of those who existed beyond our personal networks.</strong></p>
<p>Because of extensive social media usage, we find ourselves to be more rigid versions of our former selves. Fake news is an industry today and finds great resonance with people. Its rise corresponds with a growing distrust in the mainstream media. Fake news has now even slipped into traditional media outlets and is often circulated by prominent individuals. This has contributed to the echo chamber phenomenon*.</p>
<div class="border-bg">
<p>&ldquo;<strong>Echo chamber</strong>&rdquo; is a term widely used in today's lexicon, that describes a situation where certain ideas, beliefs or data points are reinforced through repetition of a closed system that does not allow for the free movement of alternative or competing ideas or concepts.</p>
</div>
<h3>How Social Media is Polarising Society?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>In the 1950s, a series of psychological experiments called the Asch Conformity Experiments were carried out by the social psychologist Solomon Asch, to determine the extent to which a person&rsquo;s opinion is influenced by a group. Asch found through a series of trials that an individual was willing to go to the extent of giving a wrong answer just to conform to the majority view.</li>
<li><strong>The respondents gave wrong answers either because they did not want to be ridiculed or thought of as &ldquo;peculiar&rdquo;, or because they believed that the group was better informed than them.</strong> Although means of communication and engagement have evolved since the 1950s, the human instinct to fit in hasn&rsquo;t changed. To some extent, this also explains the impact of fake news online, which is said to contribute to a polarised society.</li>
<li>A study carried out by Aalto University, Finland, on increasing polarisation on social media found that factors like user homophily (users in a social system tend to bond more with ones who are similar to them than to ones who are dissimilar) and algorithmic filtering have created the cycle of enforcing and reinforcing belief systems and ensuring that we don&rsquo;t open our minds to diverse opinions.</li>
<li><strong>People seek &ldquo;informed&rdquo; opinions through filters only from people they trust and look for news that confirms their worldview.</strong> This results in people cultivating rigid opinions of issues.</li>
<li>Social media sites are more than willing to play abettors.<strong> Twitter, for example, will routinely prompt you to follow people who hold a viewpoint that is similar to yours.</strong></li>
<li>The features of openness, obscurity, and anonymity that once gave strength to marginalized communities are now giving room for mean intentions to grow.</li>
<li>Over the last couple of years, there has been a growing trend of misinformation (due to biases or human errors), disinformation (fake news created intentionally) and even &ldquo;fake accounts&rdquo;, the latter directly targeted at pushing a political agenda or harassing somebody online.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Social Media is not the only reason for polarization</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>The printing press was seen as trouble by the Ottomans</strong>. The speed at which books were printed and distributed aroused suspicion. Ironically, the first Greek printing house set up in 1627 printed a booklet targeting Jews. <strong>Books were only a medium, just like social media. Banning books and blaming social media are results of the same flawed logic.</strong></li>
<li><strong>If social media had an inherent bias towards evil, the #MeToo stories wouldn&rsquo;t have found an outlet.</strong> There are many stories of lost children being found, dogs being adopted, money being raised for various causes, and other similar stories of good being <g class="gr_ gr_93 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_disable_anim_appear Punctuation only-del replaceWithoutSep" id="93" data-gr-id="93">done,</g> is found on social media.</li>
<li><strong>According to the BI-2018 survey</strong> (Broadcast Audience Research Council of India - BARC - periodically conducts a research study to ascertain television viewing habits in India), the number of individuals with access to TV has gone up to 835 million; smartphone penetration in the country is at around 300 million. The number of daily active users on WhatsApp is 200 million; on Facebook, it is 194 million, and on Twitter, it is 7.83 million.<strong> By all accounts, social media in India is still a niche phenomenon.</strong></li>
<li>Social media is a mechanism comprising of multimedia and other platforms that are multilingual, multicultural and are inclusive, and allow equal opportunities for all, irrespective of class, creed, race, religion, sex, age or financial resources.<strong> Blaming social media for every (online and offline) misconduct doesn't seem to have any logical base to stand upon.</strong></li>
</ul>
<h3>Conclusion</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Because of the influence of social media, people are getting trapped in narrower worldviews that are seeping into not only voter </strong><g class="gr_ gr_108 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_disable_anim_appear ContextualSpelling multiReplace" id="108" data-gr-id="108">behaviour</g><strong> but everyday personal interactions.</strong> This is something we must be alarmed about. Log in or log out, the world is a far more opinionated place today but it need not be a rigid one.</li>
<li>It is true that social media was used to garner support for a man who burnt a Muslim man on video in Rajasthan, but it was the same social media that was also used to raise funds for the parents of a child who was gang-raped and murdered in Kathua in Jammu and Kashmir. This shows that social media is only just a tool, which on the hands of a user can easily do as much good as bad.</li>
<li><strong>Social media is a tool for empowerment, especially for a country like India where 70% of the population is yet to get online and leverage the opportunities it has to offer.</strong></li>
<li>While social media is definitely facing the global challenges of information bombardment (both factual and fake), it is also enabling communities to access their rights and voice their opinion.<strong> Hopefully, over time, people will learn to take more responsibility for what they share and social media platforms shall regain their lost trust.</strong></li>
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