Search

Search list matched with tags “class”

India not making Promised Investments in Chabahar Port: Iran

Iran has criticized India for not fulfilling its promise of making investments in the expansion of the strategically located Chabahar port. It...

11 Jul 2018 News Analysis
‘New India’ will be Realised with the Vision of a ‘New North East’

At the concluding session of the 67th Plenary Session of the North East Council (NEC), the Union Home Minister said that the road to ‘New...

11 Jul 2018 News Analysis
Ease of Doing Business Index

The Central Government released the third edition of the annual ease of doing business rankings for states and Union territories. This annual...

11 Jul 2018 News Analysis
Formalization of the Economy is a Form of Coercion

Here we will analyze the importance of the informal sector in an economy and what should be the motives and methods of formalization. The growth...

10 Jul 2018 News Editorials
Important Facts for Prelims (July 10th, 2018)

Light ‘Sadmridangam’ gets a patent The Controller General of Patents, Designs, and Trademarks has given the patent for light...

10 Jul 2018 News Analysis
Long-term Financing in India

Recently the Union Finance Minister raised concerns over long-term financing in India. Long-term finance for industries includes those financial...

10 Jul 2018 News Analysis
Treat Gaming as a Disorder: WHO

The World Health Organization (WHO) has announced a plan to include “gaming disorder” as a mental health condition. The reclassification...

10 Jul 2018 News Analysis
Government Declares 6 Educational ‘Institutions of Eminence’

The Government has shortlisted Six Institutions of Eminence (IoEs) including 3 from Public Sector and 3 from Private Sector. Each public Institution...

10 Jul 2018 News Analysis
Free Treatment to EWS Patients

The Supreme Court ruled that private hospitals in Delhi, allotted land at subsidized rates, will have to provide free treatment to patients from the...

10 Jul 2018 News Analysis
Trade Monitoring Report Highlights Trade-Restrictive Measures of G20

Recently, the World Trade Organization released its Trade Monitoring Report. The report reveals a number of important trends in global trade...

10 Jul 2018 News Analysis
Nine Parties Oppose Proposal for Simultaneous Elections

Nine political parties have expressed their reservations on the issue of holding simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly elections during consultations...

09 Jul 2018 News Analysis
Six Bids to Supply 110 Fighters for IAF

Six global aircraft manufacturers have responded to a Request for Information (RFI) from the Indian Air Force to supply 110 fighter aircraft. Of...

09 Jul 2018 News Analysis
Telecom Firms Oppose TRAI’s Public Wi-Fi model

Telecom operators and internet service providers have opposed the public Wi-Fi model recommended by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India...

09 Jul 2018 News Analysis
Bitter Enemies Ethiopia, Eritrea Hold Historic Talks

The leaders of Ethiopia and Eritrea announced they would re-open their embassies, hailing a stunningly swift rapprochement between bitter regional...

09 Jul 2018 News Analysis
Mazhavillu- An App for Transgenders

The Kerala government has decided to roll out a mobile app- Mazhavillu, for transgenders in the State since very few have registered for the...

09 Jul 2018 News Analysis
Centre Plans Stronger Defences for Key Data

The Ministry of Home Affairs has directed the National Information Security Policy and Guidelines (NISPG) to upgrade and update its policies to...

09 Jul 2018 News Analysis
Action Plan for Biomass Management

Introduction The farm burning, specific to the paddy-wheat cultivation cycle in the rural regions of Northern and North-Westerns states of India,...

09 Jul 2018 Summary of Important Reports
Elders Compromise for Sake of Care from Family: Study

A study, released by Agewell Research and Advocacy Centre for the United Nations has revealed that majority of the elderly have to compromise with...

07 Jul 2018 News Analysis
Important Facts for Prelims (July 7th, 2018)

e-Tourist Visa Scheme In November, 2014 the Government launched e-Tourist Visa scheme in 44 countries. This e-Visa facility has now been extended to...

07 Jul 2018 News Analysis
Give Legal Backing to MSP: CAPC

Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CAPC) has recommended that the Centre bring out a legislation which would give the 'right to sell at...

06 Jul 2018 News Analysis

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

Code Context


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

$viewFile = '/var/www/drishtiias.com/public_html/plugins/Drishti/src/Template/Element/rightsection.ctp'
$dataForView = [
	'progress' => [],
	'bookmarks' => [],
	'notes' => [],
	'mynote' => [],
	'topdata' => [
		(int) 0 => object(Cake\ORM\Entity) {},
		(int) 1 => object(Cake\ORM\Entity) {},
		(int) 2 => object(Cake\ORM\Entity) {},
		(int) 3 => object(Cake\ORM\Entity) {}
	],
	'searchdata' => [],
	'searchlist' => [
		(int) 0 => [
			'title' => 'India not making Promised Investments in Chabahar Port: Iran',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Iran has criticized India for not fulfilling its promise of making investments in the expansion of the strategically located Chabahar port.</span></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It further said that India might also stand to lose &lsquo;special privileges&rsquo; if it cuts import of Iranian oil and instead tries to source oil from countries like Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, the US, and others to offset cuts in Iranian oil.</li>
<li>Iran is India&rsquo;s third-largest oil supplier after Iraq and Saudi Arabia.</li>
<li>The US recently told India and other countries to cut oil imports from Iran to &ldquo;zero&rdquo; by November 4 or face sanctions.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Background</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">In May 2016, India, Iran, and Afghanistan had inked a pact which entailed the establishment of Transit and Transport Corridor among the three countries using Chabahar port in Iran as one of the regional hubs for sea transportation.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">It was also to be used for multi-modal transport of goods and passengers across the three nations.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Chabahar port is being considered a gateway to golden opportunities for trade by India, Iran, and Afghanistan with Central Asian countries in the wake of Pakistan denying transit access to New Delhi.</span></li>
</ul>
<h3>Where is <g class="gr_ gr_35 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="35" data-gr-id="35">Chabahar</g> Port?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Chabahar port is located on the Gulf of Oman and is only 72 km away from the Gwadar port in Pakistan which is being developed by China.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">The port serves as the only oceanic port of Iran and consists of two separate ports named Shahid Beheshti and Shahid Kalantari.</span></li>
</ul>
<h3><g class="gr_ gr_39 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="39" data-gr-id="39">Significance</g> of the Chabahar Port for India</h3>
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">India&rsquo;s ambition to reach Afghanistan since Pakistan has blocked land transit and access through its territory fuelled the need for developing the strategic project of Chabahar.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">The development will provide India an alternative and reliable access into Afghanistan and a more direct sea-road access route into the central Asian region. </span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">China is aggressively pursuing its own Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) under the One Belt One Road (OBOR) project. The port can act as a counter to Pakistan&rsquo;s Gwadar Port, which is being developed with Chinese investment.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">The location of Chabahar port at the Arabian Sea would enable India to counter any challenges posed by developments in the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">In future, the Chabahar project and the International <g class="gr_ gr_34 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="34" data-gr-id="34">North South</g> Transport Corridor (INSTC) will complement each other by optimizing Indian connectivity with Russia and Eurasia.</span></li>
</ul>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: 400;"><img width="434" height="302" class="content-img" onload="pagespeed.CriticalImages.checkImageForCriticality(this);" src="http://drishtiias.com/images/uploads/383Chabahar Port.jpg" data-pagespeed-url-hash="2536473977" /></span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;"></span></p>
<p></p>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/india-not-making-promised-investments-in-chabahar-port-iran'
		],
		(int) 1 => [
			'title' => '‘New India’ will be Realised with the Vision of a ‘New North East’',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>At the concluding session of the 67th Plenary Session of the North East Council (NEC), the Union Home Minister said that the road to &lsquo;New India&rsquo; will go through a developed and peaceful &lsquo;New North East&rsquo;.</p>
<h3>Measures to Achieve a &lsquo;New North East&rsquo;</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Realising the economic potential of the region through <strong>better road connectivity and Information Technology. </strong></li>
<li><strong>Quality broadband services</strong> in the region to help the youth of the North East find the employment opportunities closer to their home.</li>
<li>Setting up the <strong>Regional Institute for Skill Development</strong> was suggested to the NEC.</li>
<li><strong>The impetus to employment and income generation</strong>&nbsp;</li>
<li>Creating a <strong>conducive environment for private investments</strong> to make the investors feel safe and that their problems are addressed - to give a big boost to investments</li>
<li>Focus on <strong>growing low volume-high value crops</strong> for export to accelerate the growth of agriculture.</li>
<li>Railway Ministry can help in <strong>exporting the perishable commodities</strong> and horticulture produce like kiwis and flowers through superfast AC wagons.</li>
<li><strong><g class="gr_ gr_29 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins doubleReplace replaceWithoutSep" id="29" data-gr-id="29">Revival</g> of North Eastern Regional Agricultural Marketing Corporation Limited</strong> (NERAMAC) for marketing of agriculture produce.</li>
<li>The North Eastern Region Community Resource Management Project (NERCORMP) with the Self Help Groups can extend help for increasing the income and employment generation in the region to help contain the problems like the insurgency in the North Eastern Region.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>North Eastern Region Community Resource Management Project (NERCORMP)</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>NERCORMP is a joint developmental initiative of the North Eastern Council, Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region and International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).</li>
<li>Its objective is to improve the livelihoods of vulnerable groups of the North East Region in a sustainable manner through improved management of their resource base.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/new-india-will-be-realised-with-the-vision-of-a-new-north-east'
		],
		(int) 2 => [
			'title' => 'Ease of Doing Business Index',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>The Central Government released the third edition of the annual ease of doing business rankings for states and Union territories.</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><img width="501" height="428" class="content-img" onload="pagespeed.CriticalImages.checkImageForCriticality(this);" src="http://drishtiias.com/images/uploads/404andrachart.jpg" data-pagespeed-url-hash="1318449733" /></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>This annual reform exercise for all states and Union territories is conducted by Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion( DIPP) in collaboration with the World Bank (WB) under the Business Reform Action Plan (BRAP).</li>
<li>The move is aimed at triggering competition among states to attract investments and improve business climate.</li>
<li>Most states see their performance as a key factor in helping companies select their investment destination.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Background</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Earlier in 2014, the Government of India had requested the World Bank Group to support India&rsquo;s efforts to enhance India&rsquo;s competitiveness and increase manufactured exports. &lrm;</li>
<li>DIPP then decided to start similar initiative to promote competitiveness among states by taking cue from World Bank&rsquo;s &ldquo;Ease of Doing Business Index&rdquo; and subsequently the ranking exercise for States was launched in 2015.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Business Reform Action Plan (BRAP)</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>The Ease of Doing Business Index is based on BRAP.</li>
<li>The BRAP-2017 included 405 recommendations for reforms on regulatory processes, policies, practices and &nbsp;procedures spread across 12 reform areas.</li>
<li>BRAP 2017 also included two new sectors i.e. Healthcare and Hospitality.</li>
<li>The current assessment under the BRAP 2017 is based on a combined score of:
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Reform evidence score - based on evidences uploaded by the States and UTs.</li>
<li>Feedback score - based on the feedback from the actual users of the services provided to the businesses, i.e. business-to-government (B2G) feedback.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>It is for the first time that DIPP has introduced taking feedback - to ensure that the reforms have actually reached ground level.</li>
<li>The next year&rsquo;s assessment, i.e BRAP-2018 will be entirely based on user feedback.</li>
<li>Another practice introduced in the current reform exercise was handholding support provided by the higher scoring States to mentor another State and UT to facilitate implementation of reforms in States and UTs needing support. E.g. Telangana and West Bengal held extensive workshops to support Tripura and Nagaland respectively. &nbsp;</li>
<li>Additionally, States have also provided their systems developed to other states so that everyone can benefit from this reform exercise.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/ease-of-doing-business-index'
		],
		(int) 3 => [
			'title' => 'Formalization of the Economy is a Form of Coercion',
			'catname' => 'News Editorials',
			'desc' => '<p><em>Here we will analyze the importance of the informal sector in an economy and what should be the motives and methods of formalization.</em></p>
<p>The growth curve of Indian economy has been essentially a dichotomous one, with the informal branch occupying more than 80% of the economy despite continued efforts to formalize it, while the other branch dominated by law-abiding big firms, seen as a source of revenue to the state and thus, nurtured and supported. In recent years, there has been increasing focus on a formalization of economy and financialization of savings. However, it is still debatable that how smooth this transition is going to be, given its coercive and compulsive nature.</p>
<table border="1" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 10px;">
<td style="width: 100%; text-align: justify; height: 10px;"><strong>Informal Sector:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="text-align: justify;">NSSO defines the informal sector enterprises as all unincorporated proprietary and partnership enterprises.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">National Accounts Statistics (NAS) defines the unorganised sector in addition to the unincorporated proprieties or partnership enterprises, includes enterprises run by cooperative societies, trust, private and limited companies. The informal sector can, therefore, be considered as a subset of the unorganised sector.</li>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<h3>The Problems Posed by Informal Economy</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Productivity:</strong> The informal sector basically comprises of MSMEs and household businesses which are not as big as firms like Reliance. They are unable to take advantage of economies of scale.
<table border="1" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 100%; text-align: justify;"><strong>Economy of scale:</strong> When more units of a good or a service can be produced on a larger scale, yet with (on average) fewer input costs, economies of scale are said to be achieved. Alternatively, this means that as a company grows and production units increase, a company will have a better chance to decrease its costs.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</li>
<li><strong>Inability to raise tax revenue:</strong> As the businesses of the informal economy are not directly regulated, they usually avoid one or more taxes by hiding incomes and expenses from the regulatory framework. This poses a challenge for the government as a major chunk of the economy remains out of the tax net.</li>
<li><strong>Lack of control and surveillance:</strong> The informal sector remains unmonitored by the government. Further, no official statistics are available representing the true state of the economy, which makes it difficult for the government to make policies regarding the informal sector in particular and whole economy in general.</li>
<li><strong> Low-quality products and less value-addition per employee:</strong> Although the informal sector employs more than 75% of the Indian population, the value-addition per employee is very low. This means that a major portion of our human resource is under-utilized.</li>
</ul>
<h3>The Problem with Formalization</h3>
<p>Although the informal sector is often blamed for competing unfairly with the formal sector, it needs to be seen as a characteristic of underdevelopment rather than the cause. In this light, we need to take a look at the issues faced by the informal sector.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong> Red-Tapism:</strong> According to a 2015 study by Centre for Civil society, starting an MSME requires 12 licenses, 27 construction permits and 7 property registration requirements. There are 44 central statutes and over 150 state statutes governing every aspect of the employee-employer relationship. The process of formalization is too burdensome and costly for small enterprises to remain competitive.</li>
<li><strong>GST:</strong> The imposition of Goods and Services Tax has added to the woes of small entrepreneurs. The aforementioned study says that almost 61.7% of the profit goes into taxes which is way beyond what is affordable for MSMEs. The complexity and the cost of adhering to it are very high. The required computational skills, frequent filing and navigating an impossible classification system lead the small businesses to fall into the trap of middlemen and incurs further costs.</li>
<li><strong>Demonetization:</strong> Demonetization proved to be a double-edged sword for the informal sector. One one side it pulled the customers away from the cash-reliant informal sector and on the other hand created a negative <strong>demand-side shock</strong> for the informal sector. It also pushed informal sector workers out of their jobs, the worst affected being the daily-wage earners. According to Economic Survey 2016-17, Demonetization triggered a rush for distressed labour under MGNREGA.</li>
<li>
<table border="1" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 51px;">
<td style="width: 100%; height: 65px; text-align: justify;"><strong>Demand Shock:</strong> A demand shock is a sudden surprise event that temporarily increases or decreases demand for goods or services. A positive demand shock increases demand while a negative demand shock decreases demand. Both a positive demand shock and a negative demand shock have an effect on the prices of goods and services.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<strong></strong></li>
<li><strong>Low level of human capital of the entrepreneurs:</strong> The informal sector suffers from the low level of human capital of its entrepreneurs and workers. Most of them are uneducated and unskilled.</li>
<li><strong>Compromising labour rights:</strong> The focus on making the economy competitive via formalization is often met with accusations of compromising with labour rights, discouraging unionization, and favouring the rich at the cost of poor. At the same time, the informal sector often employs workers on a contractual basis and a low-pay and the employer is not bound to not provide the workers with any social security. Outright formalization is therefore not a solution for the workers as well as the employers of the informal sector.</li>
</ul>
<h3>The Solution</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Simpler regulatory framework:</strong> The transition of the informal sector to the formal sector can only occur when the informal sector is given relief from the burden of regulatory compliance and is given enough time to adjust with the modern, digitized formal system.</li>
<li><strong>Skilling the labour:</strong> Unless the labour force is not skilled and educated, they will not be accommodated in the formal sector and the efforts to formalization will result in unemployment.</li>
<li><strong>Social security:</strong> Investing in social security schemes like Atal Pension Yojna, PM Jeevan Jyoti Yojana, Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana, Aam Aadmi Bima Yojana can help improve the condition of workers. The mention of Universal Basic Income in Economic Survey 2016-17 is a positive step in this direction.</li>
<li><strong>Financial support:</strong> Giving financial support to help small-scale industries stand on their own is a crucial step in bringing them to the organized sector. Schemes like MUDRA loans and Start-up India are helping the youth carve a niche in the organized sector.</li>
<li><strong> Policy reforms:</strong> The structural policies designed to promote formality should be implemented with caution, aimed at encouraging formalisation rather than explicitly discouraging informal activity.</li>
<li><strong>Labour law reforms:</strong> The archaic labour laws need to be dealt afresh so that they are more flexible. This should be done along with upkeeping the rights of the labourers and not allowing for their exploitation.</li>
</ul>
<p>It is important to highlight the fact that the <strong>informal sector employs the majority of the uneducated and unskilled labour force</strong> which, otherwise, may not find a place in the formal sector. So, any effort to formalize the informal economy coercively is fraught with serious socio-political ramifications and backlash. Therefore, it is important to ensure that the transition to formal economy is a smooth, encouraging process and not a process of vitiating or punishing the informal sector. The aim of formalization should not be surveillance but rather the growth of individuals and firms of the country.</p>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/formalization-of-the-economy-is-a-form-of-coercion'
		],
		(int) 4 => [
			'title' => 'Important Facts for Prelims (July 10th, 2018)',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p><strong>Light &lsquo;Sadmridangam&rsquo; gets a patent</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Controller General of Patents, Designs, and Trademarks has given the patent for light &lsquo;sadmridangam&rsquo; under the &lsquo;drum&rsquo; category.</li>
<li>The lightweight version of South Indian percussion instrument &lsquo;mridangam&rsquo; was developed by Kuzhalmannam Ramakrishnan.</li>
<li>The improvised instrument has all the features of a &lsquo;mridangam&rsquo; and ensures more mobility for artists.</li>
</ul>
<p><img width="283" height="184" class="content-img" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" onload="pagespeed.CriticalImages.checkImageForCriticality(this);" src="http://drishtiias.com/images/uploads/694Kuzhalmannam Ramakrishnan2 - Copy.jpg" data-pagespeed-url-hash="1323409215" /></p>
<p><strong>Note:</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>A Patent is a statutory right for an invention granted for a limited period of time to the patentee by the Government, in exchange of full disclosure of his invention for excluding others, from making, using, selling, importing the patented product or process for producing that product for those purposes without his consent.</li>
<li>The patent system in India is governed by the Patents Act, 1970 (No.39 of 1970) as amended by the Patents (Amendment) Act, 2005 and the Patents Rules, 2003.</li>
<li>Patent protection is a territorial right and therefore it is effective only within the territory of India. There is no concept of a global patent.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Seven new Wasp Species Discovered in the Amazon Forests</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Researchers have discovered seven new wasp species belonging to the genus Clistopyga from Peru, Venezuela and Colombia.</li>
<li>The most notable among them is Clistopyga <g class="gr_ gr_38 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling gr-progress" id="38" data-gr-id="38">crassicaudata</g>, named after its distinctly thickened ovipositor. The ovipositor is a tube-like organ present in many insects that <g class="gr_ gr_45 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="45" data-gr-id="45">helps</g> in laying eggs and also in injecting venom</li>
<li>The other new species include C.kalima, C. <g class="gr_ gr_37 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="37" data-gr-id="37">panchei</g> and C. <g class="gr_ gr_39 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling" id="39" data-gr-id="39">taironae</g>, named in honour of Kalimas, Panches and Toiranas, indigenous tribe groups of Colombo.</li>
<li>Another species was named C. <g class="gr_ gr_34 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling" id="34" data-gr-id="34">nigriventri</g>, indicating its entirely black body, and another C. <g class="gr_ gr_33 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="33" data-gr-id="33">splendida</g> because of its multicoloured body. The seventh species, named C.isayae has a white and brown body.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>First Quolls born in Australian Wild in 50 years</strong></p>
<p><img width="358" height="201" class="content-img" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" onload="pagespeed.CriticalImages.checkImageForCriticality(this);" src="http://drishtiias.com/images/uploads/772Quolls.jpg" data-pagespeed-url-hash="3608657011" /></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The first eastern Quolls in 50 years have been born in the wild on the Australian mainland.</li>
<li>This has raised hopes for the revival of the species of marsupial, which was devastated by foxes.</li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/important-facts-for-prelims-july-10th-2018'
		],
		(int) 5 => [
			'title' => 'Long-term Financing in India',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>Recently the Union Finance Minister raised concerns over long-term financing in India.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Long-term finance for industries includes those financial resources which are advanced to the industries for a period of more than a year.</li>
<li>Long-term finance is quite important for the expansion and modernization of industrial projects and also to meet its fixed capital expenditure requirement.</li>
<li>Long-term finance is mostly available from the sale of shares and debentures, and a loan from banks and financial institutions like etc.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Issues/Concerns</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The phenomenal growth in bank credit, at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 39.31% over the last 15 years, without the requisite due-diligence invited certain undesirable consequences, like high stressed assets.</li>
<li>Rising NPAs are forcing banks to resist from lending especially to major projects. Therefore, the need of the hour is to ensure assured and guaranteed long-term funding.</li>
<li>The projects needing long-term financing are often complex and involve a large number of parties. Secondly, these are subject to various risks including those due to changes in policies, delays in clearances, etc.</li>
<li>Thirdly, where debt financing is dominated by the banking system, the fundamental problem posed by the <strong>asset-liability mismatch</strong> is critical.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<h3>Asset-Liability Mismatch</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Providing longer duration loans from much shorter maturity funds is called an asset-liability mismatch.</li>
<li><strong>For example,&nbsp;</strong>Banks&rsquo; primary source of funds is deposited (their liabilities), typically having short- to medium-term maturities which need to be paid back to the investor in 3-5 years. In contrast, banks usually provide loans (their assets) for a longer period to borrowers. &nbsp;This could be a cause for payment crisis as the money is locked with the borrower.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>A sharp decline in public and private funding for key growth sectors and basic infrastructure are creating huge gaps in long-term finance for development.</li>
<li>Attracting private sector finance and investment is necessary to help India meet its development goals.</li>
<li>As per an estimate, India needs Rs 31 trillion (US$ 454.83 billion) to be spent on infrastructure development over the next five years.</li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/long-term-financing-in-India'
		],
		(int) 6 => [
			'title' => 'Treat Gaming as a Disorder: WHO',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>The World Health Organization (WHO) has announced a plan to include &ldquo;gaming disorder&rdquo; as a mental health condition. The reclassification is part of the WHO&rsquo;s 11th revision of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD- 11).</p>
<h3>Background</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><g class="gr_ gr_39 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="39" data-gr-id="39">ICD-11</g> draft defines gaming disorder as &ldquo;&hellip; a pattern of gaming <g class="gr_ gr_40 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling multiReplace" id="40" data-gr-id="40">behavior</g> (&lsquo;digital-gaming&rsquo; or &lsquo;video-gaming&rsquo;) characterized by impaired control over gaming, increasing priority given to gaming over other activities to the extent that gaming takes precedence over other interests and daily activities, and continuation or escalation of gaming despite the occurrence of negative consequences&rdquo;.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Should India be concerned?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>India has a fast-growing gaming population. A 2017 Google-KPMG study estimated that the Indian online gaming industry was worth $290 million, and projected it to hit $1 billion by 2021.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Opposition towards Classification</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The classification is intended to act as a set of guidelines and many countries in determining healthcare policies, diagnosis and treatment options. Hence, the detrimental effect this &ldquo;premature classification&rdquo; could have on treatment and policymaking.</li>
<li>Addiction to gaming as a phenomenon merits further study; hence a classification as a disorder could result in abuse of diagnosis.</li>
<li>The addiction could also be a symptom of a deeper issue such as depression. The new classification could result in a trend where clinicians treat the symptom instead of the underlying issue</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<h3>World Health Organisation</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The World Health Organisation (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that is concerned with international public health.</li>
<li>It is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland and the WHO&rsquo;s constitution came into force on April 7, 1948.</li>
<li>The World Health Assembly is the supreme decision-making body in WHO. The assembly meets annually and is attended by delegations from 194 member states.</li>
</ul>
<h3>International Classification of Diseases (ICD)</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The ICD is the foundation for identifying health trends and statistics worldwide and contains around 55000 unique codes for injuries, diseases, and causes of death.</li>
<li>It provides a common language that allows health professionals to share health information across the globe.</li>
<li>It helps in understanding what makes people get sick and die, and to take action to prevent suffering and save lives.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/treat-gaming-as-a-disorder-WHO'
		],
		(int) 7 => [
			'title' => 'Government Declares 6 Educational ‘Institutions of Eminence’',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>The Government has shortlisted Six Institutions of Eminence (IoEs) including 3 from Public Sector and 3 from Private Sector. Each public Institution selected as &lsquo;Institution of Eminence&rsquo; will get financial assistance up to Rs. 1000 Crore over the period of five years under this scheme. The government has also made it clear that it will offer no financial assistance to the private institutions under this scheme, though they will get autonomy to pursue academic excellence.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Public Sector</strong>: Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Karnataka; Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, Maharashtra; and Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi.</li>
<li><strong>Private Sector</strong>: Jio Institute (Reliance Foundation), Pune under Green Field Category; Birla Institute of Technology &amp; Sciences, Pilani, Rajasthan; and Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, Karnataka.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg"><strong>NOTE:&nbsp;</strong>The term greenfield was originally used in construction and development to reference land that has never been used, where there was no need to demolish or rebuild any existing structures. The term greenfield project&rsquo; generally refers to the initiation of a project without the need to consider any prior work. In contrast to this, the term brownfield project refers to the project based on prior work or to rebuild (engineer) a product from an existing one.</div>
<h3></h3>
<h3>Background</h3>
<p>The move is a part of government&rsquo;s scheme to provide the regulatory architecture for setting up or upgrading of 20 Institutions (10 from public sector &amp; 10 from the private sector) as a world-class teaching and research institutions called as &lsquo;Institutions of Eminence&rsquo;.</p>
<h3>Key points</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>This will ensure complete autonomy to the selected institutions and help them grow more rapidly.</li>
<li>The institutions will get more opportunity to scale up their operations with more skills and quality improvement so that they become World Class Institutions in the field of education.</li>
<li>It is expected that the above-selected Institutions will figure in the top 500 list of the major global rankings within 10 years and in top 100 of the world ranking eventually over time.</li>
<li>To achieve top global rankings, these Institutions shall be provided with greater autonomy to admit foreign students to 30% of admitted students.</li>
<li>The institutions can also recruit foreign faculty up to 25% of faculty strength and offer online courses up to 20% of its programmes.</li>
<li>The institutions can enter into academic collaboration with other top 500 rankers in the world ranking Institutions without permission of UGC.</li>
<li>The institutions will be free to fix and charge fees from foreign students without restriction.</li>
<li>They will have the flexibility to design course structure in terms of a number of credit hours and years to take a degree.</li>
</ul>
<p></p>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/government-declares-6-educational-institutions-of-eminence'
		],
		(int) 8 => [
			'title' => 'Free Treatment to EWS Patients',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>The Supreme Court ruled that private hospitals in Delhi, allotted land at subsidized rates, will have to provide free treatment to patients from the economically weaker sections (EWS) category.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The free treatment will be given to <strong>25 per cent Out Patient Department (OPD)</strong> and <strong>10 per cent Inpatient Department (IPD)</strong> patients belonging to EWS category.</li>
<li>Any violation <g class="gr_ gr_67 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="67" data-gr-id="67">in</g> the agreement between the hospitals and the government, according to which beds were to be reserved for patients of the EWS category, might lead to cancellation of the lease.</li>
<li>The SC bench reversed an earlier order of the Delhi High Court.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Background</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Earlier in 2014, the Delhi High Court had quashed the order of Ministry of Urban Development and the Delhi government that made it mandatory for hospitals to provide free treatment to persons from EWS category.</li>
<li>The High Court had lauded the intention of the Government to bring the <strong>Directive Principle</strong> (to provide free treatment to poor) to fruition, but questioned its execution and emphasized the<strong> need for a legislation</strong>.</li>
<li>The hospitals had argued that the government could not issue such orders since they had purchased the land at market rates and the original lease deeds for the land did not contain the freeship clause.</li>
<li>Moreover, they argued that the fundamental right of the hospitals to do business cannot be taken away by an executive order and it can be done only by enacting a law.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Issues</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The majority of patients visiting private hospitals in Delhi are from other states who are clueless about the availability of reserved free beds.</li>
<li>Therefore, for effective and efficient delivery of free health care for the EWS,<strong> robust information disbursal system</strong> is a prerequisite.</li>
<li>Though the Delhi Government introduced an online monitoring system and appointed patient welfare officers to assist EWS patients - these decisions were not properly implemented.</li>
<li>Once more, the Judiciary has taken a stand, but it's up to the executive to uphold the letter and spirit of Directive Principles of the Constitution by<strong> proper implementation of already existing mechanisms</strong>.</li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/free-treatment-to-ews-patients'
		],
		(int) 9 => [
			'title' => 'Trade Monitoring Report Highlights Trade-Restrictive Measures of G20',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>Recently, the World Trade Organization released its Trade Monitoring Report. The report reveals a number of important trends in global trade policy-making.</p>
<h3></h3>
<h3>Key findings</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>At a juncture where the global economy is finally beginning to generate sustained economic momentum following the global financial crisis, the uncertainty created by a proliferation of trade restrictive actions could place economic recovery in jeopardy.</li>
<li>The increase in trade-restrictive measures has come at a time of increasing trade tensions and associated rhetoric.</li>
<li>G20 economies have&nbsp;applied 39 new trade-restrictive measures including tariff increases, stricter customs procedures, the imposition of taxes and export duties.</li>
<li>G20 economies also implemented 47 measures aimed at facilitating trade, including eliminated or reduced tariffs, simplified import and export customs procedures and reduction of import taxes.</li>
<li>The estimated trade coverage of import-facilitating measures (US$ 82.7 billion) is higher than that of import-restrictive measures (Us$ 74.1 billion).</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<h3>Trade Monitoring Report</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Trade Monitoring Report is intended to be a purely factual and transparency exercise and has no legal effect on the rights and obligations of WTO Members.</li>
<li>The Report aims to shed light on the latest trends in the implementation of a broad range of policy measures that facilitate as well as restrict the flow of trade, and to provide an update on the state of global trade.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> Group of Twenty (G20)</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>G20 is an international forum that brings together the world's 20 leading industrialised and emerging economies</li>
<li>The G20 consists of Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States of America, China, South Africa and the European Union.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/trade-monitoring-report-highlights-trade-restrictive-measures-of-g20'
		],
		(int) 10 => [
			'title' => 'Nine Parties Oppose Proposal for Simultaneous Elections',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>Nine political parties have expressed their reservations on the issue of holding simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly elections during consultations with the Law Commission of India.</p>
<h3>What are simultaneous elections?</h3>
<ul>
<li>Simultaneous Elections broadly mean structuring the Indian election cycle in a manner that elections to Lok Sabha and State Assemblies are synchronized together.</li>
<li>In such a scenario, a voter would normally cast his/her vote for electing members of Lok Sabha and State Assembly on a single day and at the same time.</li>
<li>After the adoption of the Constitution, elections to Lok Sabha and all State Legislative Assemblies were held simultaneously over the period 1951 till 1967 when the cycle of synchronized elections got disrupted.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Advantages of Holding Simultaneous Elections</h3>
<ul>
<li>It will allow political parties to focus more on policy and governance. Frequent elections cause parties to devote more energy in winning elections.</li>
<li>The huge economic <strong>burden of frequent elections can be reduced</strong> if simultaneous elections are conducted.</li>
<li>Simultaneous elections would also <strong>reduce pressure on manpower and resource deployment</strong> necessary for <g class="gr_ gr_39 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="39" data-gr-id="39">conduct</g> of elections.</li>
<li>The <strong>79th Report of the Department related Parliamentary Committee</strong> has justified the simultaneous conduct of polls on several grounds, including a huge cut in expenditure incurred for <g class="gr_ gr_36 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="36" data-gr-id="36">conduct</g> of separate elections every year.</li>
<li>Frequent elections lead to <strong><g class="gr_ gr_42 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="42" data-gr-id="42">imposition</g> of Model Code of Conduct (MCC) over prolonged periods</strong> of time and puts on hold the entire development programme and activities of the Union and State Governments in the <g class="gr_ gr_34 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="34" data-gr-id="34">poll bound</g> State. <g class="gr_ gr_43 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins doubleReplace replaceWithoutSep" id="43" data-gr-id="43">Simultaneous</g> election will help in limiting <g class="gr_ gr_44 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="44" data-gr-id="44">amount</g> of time in electioneering.</li>
<li>The NITI Aayog has favoured conducting synchronised two-phase Lok Sabha and assembly elections from 2024 in <g class="gr_ gr_38 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="38" data-gr-id="38">national</g> interest.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Concerns Related Simultaneous Elections</h3>
<ul>
<li>Simultaneous elections enable people to vote at the adequate level of government, not having to vote in national elections for local issues, or for national issues in local elections.</li>
<li>The simultaneous elections may benefit larger national parties at the cost of state/regional parties in case of a national wave in <g class="gr_ gr_47 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling multiReplace" id="47" data-gr-id="47">favor</g> of large national parties.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<p>Simultaneous elections are <g class="gr_ gr_54 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="54" data-gr-id="54">desirable</g> provided they are juxtaposed with certain reforms that would require a prior political consensus to bring a constitutional amendment to curtail or raise term of some states to enable EC to synchronize poll schedule, raise necessary resources of EC such as EVMs, personnel, etc.<br /><br /></p>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/nine-parties-oppose-proposal-for-simultaneous-elections'
		],
		(int) 11 => [
			'title' => 'Six Bids to Supply 110 Fighters for IAF',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>Six global aircraft manufacturers have responded to a Request for Information (RFI) from the Indian Air Force to supply 110 fighter aircraft.</p>
<ul>
<li>Of the 110 fighter jets, 85% will have to be built in India under the &lsquo;Make in India&rsquo; programme in partnership with a &ldquo;Strategic Partner/Indian Production Agency.&rdquo;</li>
<li>The procurement will be processed through the Strategic Partnership (SP) model under the Defence Procurement Procedure.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Defence Procurement Procedure</h3>
<p></p>
<ul>
<li>Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP) came into effect in 2016. It focuses on institutionalizing, streamlining and simplifying defence procurement procedure to give a boost to &lsquo;Make in India&rsquo;.</li>
<li>The key feature of the revised DPP is to <strong>&lsquo;Buy (Indian)&rsquo; and &lsquo;Buy and Make (Indian)&rsquo;</strong>.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Strategic Partnership</h3>
<p></p>
<ul>
<li>The Strategic Partnerships in Defence sector was promulgated as part of the Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP).</li>
<li>The policy is intended to institutionalize a transparent, objective and functional mechanism to encourage broader participation of the private sector, in addition to&nbsp; DPSUs / OFB, in the manufacture of <g class="gr_ gr_26 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling multiReplace" id="26" data-gr-id="26">defense</g> platforms and equipment.</li>
<li>It will serve to enhance competition, increase efficiencies, facilitate faster and more significant absorption of technology and trigger innovation thereby leading to the reduction in dependence on imports and greater self-reliance in meeting national security objectives.</li>
<li>The following four segments have been identified for acquisition under Strategic Partnership (SP) route: Fighter Aircraft; Helicopters; Submarines and Armored Fighting Vehicles (AFVs) / Main Battle Tanks (MBTs).</li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/six-bids-to-supply-110-fighters-for-IAF'
		],
		(int) 12 => [
			'title' => 'Telecom Firms Oppose TRAI’s Public Wi-Fi model',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Telecom operators and internet service providers have opposed the public Wi-Fi model recommended by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI).</span></p>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">The reasons for opposition have varied from its adverse impact on the debt-ridden telecom industry, compromising national security to complete bypass of the present licensing framework, detrimental to massive investments already made in the spectrum, telecom infrastructure etc. </span></li>
</ul>
<h3>Background</h3>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;"></span></p>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has mooted a concept of open architecture-based public Wi-Fi grid to bring down the cost of the internet by 90 <g class="gr_ gr_42 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling multiReplace" id="42" data-gr-id="42">percent</g>.</span></li>
<li>It had recommended that a new set of players, called Pubic Data Office Aggregator (PDOA), should be allowed to resell internet services through yesteryears PCOs type of setup that will be called Public Data Offices.</li>
<li>Similar to cyber cafes, which provide internet access to the public after registering themselves, PDOA should be allowed to provide internet access services after registering themselves with the telecom department. For this purpose, a central registry to authenticate the service provider and service seekers would be established.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Why the Need for Proliferation of Internet?<span style="font-weight: 400;"><br /><br /></span></h3>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">India significantly lags behind other countries in terms of providing access to Broadband Internet, especially to people in rural areas.&nbsp;</span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Broadband has over a period of time, become a critical platform for economic growth, job creation, global competitiveness and improved way of life.&nbsp;</span><span style="font-weight: 400;">It is helping the emergence of new industries while unlocking vast new possibilities for existing ones.&nbsp;</span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">The World Bank&rsquo;s World Development Report recently observed that on an average a 10% increase in internet penetration, is likely to lead to a 1.4% growth in the GDP of an economy.</span></li>
</ul>
<h3>Benefits<span style="font-weight: 400;"><br /><br /></span></h3>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">By doing so, it will allow small entrepreneurs such as tea stalls, grocery shops, and vendors to set up and maintain access points. Device manufacturers, payment companies, ISPs/telcos and consumer internet companies can provide the remaining pieces to set up public data offices (PDOs).&nbsp;</span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">The proliferation of public Wi-Fi can provide $3 billion potential revenue opportunity for telecom operators, as it will help to add new customers and increasing data consumption by existing users.</span></li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Telecom Regulatory Authority of India</strong><span style="font-weight: 400;"></span></p>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Established by an Act of Parliament (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Act, 1997) to regulate telecom services, including fixation/revision of tariffs for telecom services.&nbsp;</span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">TRAI provides a fair and transparent policy environment which promotes a level playing field and facilitates fair competition.&nbsp;</span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">The TRAI Act was amended to establish a Telecommunications Dispute Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) to take over the adjudicatory and disputes functions from TRAI.&nbsp;</span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">TDSAT was set up to adjudicate any dispute between a licensor and a licensee, between two or more service providers, between a service provider and a group of consumers, and to hear and dispose of appeals against any direction, decision or order of TRAI.</span></li>
</ul>
</div>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/telecom-firms-oppose-trai’s-public-wi-fi-model'
		],
		(int) 13 => [
			'title' => 'Bitter Enemies Ethiopia, Eritrea Hold Historic Talks',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>The leaders of Ethiopia and Eritrea announced they would re-open their embassies, hailing a stunningly swift rapprochement between bitter regional enemies.</p>
<h3></h3>
<h3>Background</h3>
<ul>
<li>The meeting was the first of its kind between leaders of the two Horn of Africa <g class="gr_ gr_41 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling multiReplace" id="41" data-gr-id="41">neighbors</g> since their war from 1998-2000 in which around 80,000 people died.</li>
<li>Eritrea achieved independence from Ethiopia amicably in 1993 but the two countries swiftly became bitter enemies.</li>
<li>The war began on May 6, 1998, sparked by a battle for control of the border town of Badme. Both Eritrea and Ethiopia wanted it on their side of the border.</li>
<li>The war ended in June 2000, but it was another six months until a peace agreement was signed, establishing the Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission. It was meant to settle the dispute over Badme once and for all.</li>
<li>But its &lsquo;final and binding&rsquo; ruling 18 months later, awarding Badme to Eritrea, was not accepted by Ethiopia without the preconditions of further negotiations with Eritrea. Eritrea, in turn, refuses to talk to its former ally until the ruling is adhered to.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Horn of Africa: Why India should Care More?</h3>
<ul>
<li>Africa has been of growing interest to India for political, economic and security reasons, especially the sub-region - the Horn of Africa. The Horn of Africa comprises four countries &mdash; Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti, and Somalia.</li>
<li>The region is strategically important since it is close to the oil-producing region of the Middle East. Approximately 40% of the oil produced in the Middle East crosses through the shipping lanes of Red Sea. Djibouti is the choke point on this shipping route. It is due to this reason that countries like the United States, France, and China have a military base in Djibouti.</li>
<li>With the new reliance on the sea lines of communication for India&rsquo;s economic growth, Delhi declared that its national interests were no longer limited to the Subcontinent but stretched from the &ldquo;Aden to Malacca&rdquo;.</li>
<li>China is raising its strategic profile in the region. Under an accord signed last year, Beijing has secured the rights to a base in Djibouti that can host up to 10,000 soldiers until 2026 and also Beijing&rsquo;s infrastructure development in the region have put the Horn of Africa back in India&rsquo;s focus.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul>
<li>What happens in the region has a direct bearing on India&rsquo;s security and well-being and hence she should pay more attention to the prevailing conditions and power dynamics in the Horn of Africa.</li>
<li>India would be well advised to become more active in examining and discussing the complex problem in-depth with the governments in Eastern Africa, the African Union and others concerned so as to be able to make a meaningful contribution to its resolution.</li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/bitter-enemies-ethiopia-eritrea-hold-historic-talks'
		],
		(int) 14 => [
			'title' => 'Mazhavillu- An App for Transgenders',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>The Kerala government has decided to roll out a mobile app- Mazhavillu, for transgenders in the State since very few <g class="gr_ gr_37 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="37" data-gr-id="37">have</g> registered for the transgender ID card scheme.</p>
<ul>
<li>The app has been named Mazhavillu after the government&rsquo;s project for the transgender community.</li>
<li>The app will obviate the need for transgenders to visit government offices for registration; they can now do it on the app without any apprehension of their gender identity being revealed.</li>
<li>The app would be developed by the Centre for Development of Imaging Technology.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Need for the ID Card</h3>
<ul>
<li>The government has no clear data on the number of transgenders in the State. This is perceived to be a hurdle to the various benefits meant for transgenders.</li>
<li>To address the issues, the transgender community mooted the development of a mobile app where they could register.</li>
<li>So far, only 300-odd transgenders have registered for <g class="gr_ gr_36 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="36" data-gr-id="36">scheme</g> - due to reluctance to reveal their identity.</li>
<li>However, the ID cards had drawn flak for not carrying the emblem of the government and for identifying their gender as &lsquo;transgenders.&rsquo;</li>
</ul>
<h3>The App</h3>
<ul>
<li>Once they have registered on the app, the information will reach community-based organisations of transgenders for verification that the applicants are indeed transgenders. These organisations have grass-root level connections with the community members.</li>
<li>Once the verification is complete, the data will be registered on the app.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Short-Stay Homes</h3>
<ul>
<li>The government is also pressing ahead with setting up short-stay homes for transgenders in the districts.</li>
<li>The homes will aid rehabilitation of transgenders, a chunk of whom have been thrown out of their homes or have strained ties with their families.</li>
<li>A care home too will come up in the district to address the physical and mental challenges faced by transgenders who have undergone sex reassignment surgery. A maximum of 15 persons could stay in the home simultaneously during the treatment period.</li>
<li>The transgender 24x7 helpline functioning from the department office would also be shifted to the same facility, to be managed by non-government or community-based organisations working with the transgender community.</li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/mazhavillu-an-app-for-transgenders'
		],
		(int) 15 => [
			'title' => 'Centre Plans Stronger Defences for Key Data',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>The Ministry of Home Affairs has directed the National Information Security Policy and Guidelines (<g class="gr_ gr_30 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="30" data-gr-id="30">NISPG</g>) to upgrade and update its policies to secure government data and control access to it.</p>
<h3><br />Why there is a need for <g class="gr_ gr_29 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling" id="29" data-gr-id="29">upgradation</g> of <g class="gr_ gr_28 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="28" data-gr-id="28">NISPG</g>?</h3>
<ul>
<li>The sensitive information making its way into the Internet has added to the vulnerability of information sharing. Earlier the files were locked in a cupboard and accountability could be fixed, but with the advent of Digital India, a number of issues were in a grey area.</li>
<li>The new policy would take into account the evolving cyberspace and the overall policing system in the country.</li>
<li>The new policy would cover issues pertaining to the Official Secrets Act.</li>
<li>There are issues relating to <g class="gr_ gr_35 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="35" data-gr-id="35">physical</g> security of a computer, for <g class="gr_ gr_36 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="36" data-gr-id="36">example</g> whether the hard disk will be destroyed before a computer is discarded.</li>
<li>There are issues relating to the network as well. If <g class="gr_ gr_44 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="44" data-gr-id="44">information</g> is riding on own cyber cable, then everything can be encrypted, but if it is riding on a commercially available one, then one will have to make sure that guidelines are complied with.</li>
<li>The threats had to be recognised and the measures were to be updated accordingly.</li>
</ul>
<h3><br />Objectives of National Information Security Policy and Guidelines</h3>
<ul>
<li>These guidelines are based on the analysis of existing global security standards, and frameworks; and the emerging trends and discourse in the wake of persistent threats, and cyber-attacks on critical infrastructure of nations globally.</li>
<li>The scope of these guidelines encompasses Government and Public Sector organizations and associated entities and third parties, for protecting the information under their control or ownership during information&rsquo;s life-cycle including creation, storage, processing, accessing, transmission, destruction etc.</li>
<li>The objective of these guidelines is to improve the information security posture of an organization possessing any information, including classified <g class="gr_ gr_40 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-del replaceWithoutSep gr-progress" id="40" data-gr-id="40">information,</g> and does not restrict organizations from adopting additional stringent practices over and above these guidelines.</li>
<li>Organizations may evaluate various additional measures for the security of <g class="gr_ gr_32 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="32" data-gr-id="32">information</g> they possess for protecting their information depending upon the sensitivity, criticality and importance of such information in the overall Internal Security and National Security interest of the country.</li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/centre-plans-stronger-defences-for-key-data'
		],
		(int) 16 => [
			'title' => 'Action Plan for Biomass Management',
			'catname' => 'Summary of Important Reports',
			'desc' => '<h3>Introduction</h3>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The farm burning, specific to the paddy-wheat cultivation cycle in the rural regions of <strong>Northern and North-Westerns states</strong> of India, has been identified as a major source of air pollution. It not only affects the air-quality in rural areas but also causes an episodic rise in air-pollution during October and November in Delhi-NCR.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">CII-NITI Aayog <strong>&lsquo;Cleaner Air Better Life&rsquo;</strong> initiative aims to bring together all relevant stakeholders for designing a set of solutions to the identified sources of air pollution. For this initiative, the findings of <strong>IIT-K study</strong> are being considered as <strong>basis of designing</strong> the action plans.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Anchored by the <strong>Ministry of Environment Forests and Climate Change,</strong> the task force on Biomass Management has identified certain avenues for the alternate usage of paddy straw/crop residue</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The task force has suggested a two-pronged approach to tackle the issue:</span></p>
<h3>From the farmers&rsquo; end</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;"><strong>In-situ utilisation or soil incorporation of crop-residue</strong> (that remains standing in the field after combine harvesting) needs to be prioritised and popularised among the farmers. This is important, not only to ensure that crops are not burnt but for long-term conservation of <g class="gr_ gr_247 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del" id="247" data-gr-id="247">micro nutrients</g> in the soil. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;"><strong>In-situ utilisation of straw</strong> which remains rooted in the <g class="gr_ gr_236 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-del replaceWithoutSep" id="236" data-gr-id="236">soil,</g> requires a change in farming practices. For this purpose, <g class="gr_ gr_238 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling multiReplace" id="238" data-gr-id="238">specialised</g> machinery is required at different stages of farming.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Apart from directly <strong>ploughing and mixing (mulching)</strong> the residues back into the soil, on-farm management techniques <strong>(composting, pyrolysis or biochar)</strong> are effective in bringing the nutrients back to the soil </span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">There is increasing evidence that <strong>soil incorporation</strong> has long-term benefits for improving the quality of soil, increasing water-use efficiency and reducing the intensity of <g class="gr_ gr_244 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling multiReplace gr-progress" id="244" data-gr-id="244">fertilisers</g> being used.</span></li>
</ul>
<h3>From the government&rsquo;s end</h3>
<h4><strong>Table 1:</strong> Actions to combat air pollution by subtle burning<br /><br /></h4>
<table border="1" style="width: 100%; border-collapse: collapse;">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 35px;">
<td style="width: 16.736%; height: 35px;">
<p><strong>Immediate&nbsp;action</strong></p>
</td>
<td colspan="5" style="text-align: center; width: 83.1601%;"><strong>Medium and long-term actions</strong></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 16.736%;"><em>Financial support to farmers</em></td>
<td style="width: 19.5426%;"><em>Impact fund for Air-pollution</em></td>
<td style="width: 16.4241%;"><em>Upscale technologies</em></td>
<td style="width: 17.3597%;"><em>Reword and Monitor at local level</em></td>
<td style="width: 14.7609%;"><em>Regulatory support</em></td>
<td style="width: 15.0728%;"><em>Awareness tools</em></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top; width: 16.736%;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Incentives to farmers through Direct Benefits Transfers.</li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top; width: 19.5426%;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Set-up clean impact fund to support clean technologies and link it with the national clean Energy Fund</li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top; width: 16.4241%;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Service-based shared infrastructure (with 50% capital subsidy on select implements).</li>
<li>Process-based incentives.</li>
<li>Accelerated depreciation for farm implements.</li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top; width: 17.3597%;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><g class="gr_ gr_233 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del" id="233" data-gr-id="233">Reword</g> for panchayats INR 1 Lakh per panchayats with zero burning.</li>
<li>Monitoring through advanced remote sensing data and mobile base app for <g class="gr_ gr_226 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="226" data-gr-id="226">general</g> public.</li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top; width: 14.7609%;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Reassessing fuel for criteria for briquettes/<br />pellets From paddy-straw.</li>
<li>Directive to thermal power plants to produce paddy-straw briquette/<br />pellets</li>
<li>Removing the size limitation for bio-power captive generation</li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top; width: 15.0728%;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Awareness campaign for farmers.</li>
<li>Farmer recognition programme.</li>
<li>Manuals and information tool for in-situ mulching and <g class="gr_ gr_213 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="213" data-gr-id="213">on farm</g> management</li>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p><br /><span style="font-weight: 400;"><strong>Table 2:</strong> Solutions and technologies for <g class="gr_ gr_234 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_disable_anim_appear ContextualSpelling multiReplace" id="234" data-gr-id="234">utilisation</g> of farm waste </span></p>
<table border="1" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 5.86279%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"><strong>S. No</strong></td>
<td style="width: 13.7631%; height: 19px;"><strong>Utilisation Methods</strong></td>
<td style="width: 26.6526%; height: 19px;"><strong>Applications</strong></td>
<td style="width: 28.2121%; height: 19px;"><strong>Barriers</strong></td>
<td style="width: 25.5094%; height: 19px;"><strong>Enablers</strong></td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 5.86279%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;">1</td>
<td style="width: 13.7631%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Biochar</span></td>
<td style="width: 26.6526%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Soil conditioner</span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;"><g class="gr_ gr_221 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del gr-progress" id="221" data-gr-id="221">Bio remediation</g> </span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">For making <g class="gr_ gr_223 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="223" data-gr-id="223">value added</g> products</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 28.2121%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Lack of financial support</span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Lack of <g class="gr_ gr_231 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="231" data-gr-id="231">equipments</g></span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 25.5094%; height: 19px;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Awareness on benefits </span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Market development for biochar products</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Research and development</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 5.86279%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;">2</td>
<td style="width: 13.7631%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Briquetting</span></td>
<td style="width: 26.6526%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Fuel in gasification furnace, heaters, hot-water boilers, industrial boilers</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;"> It is a very good substitute for furnace oil, coal or direct wood.</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 28.2121%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Lack of availability of dry biomass because of dew in <g class="gr_ gr_230 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins doubleReplace replaceWithoutSep" id="230" data-gr-id="230">winter</g> season.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Lack of transportation facilities</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 25.5094%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Proper recognition for industry and those using briquettes.</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 5.86279%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;">3</td>
<td style="width: 13.7631%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Pelletisation</span></td>
<td style="width: 26.6526%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">It has good potential for being used as fuel in cooking stoves and heating applications in domestic as well as industry.</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 28.2121%; height: 19px;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Availability of raw materials crucial for <g class="gr_ gr_219 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins doubleReplace replaceWithoutSep" id="219" data-gr-id="219">business</g> model.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Often has a large size that leads to a high storage and transportation cost.</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 25.5094%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Subsidy on <g class="gr_ gr_214 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del" id="214" data-gr-id="214">cook stoves</g> targeting specific users for replacing wood or coal usage.</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 5.86279%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;">4</td>
<td style="width: 13.7631%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">BioCNG</span></p>
</td>
<td style="width: 26.6526%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Commercial&ndash;hotels, canteens, bakeries, resorts, residential clusters.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Industrial-glass and ceramic, cement, metal process, textiles, food processing,</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 28.2121%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Lack of financing.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Organized supply chain-Transportation of raw material from farmer to biogas plant needs to be streamlined.</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 25.5094%; height: 19px;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Funding support to entrepreneurs willing to establish 2G biogas/ Bio CNG units under NABARD soft loan scheme.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Exemption of GST on Biogas/Bio CNG and capital equipment and installation</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Tax breaks</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 5.86279%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;">5</td>
<td style="width: 13.7631%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Liquid fuels</span></td>
<td style="width: 26.6526%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">The petrol and diesel produced through this method will conform to Bharat VI norms and can be used directly in cars, trucks, engines etc</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 28.2121%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Varying feedstock costs (collection and transportation costs might vary).</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Storage and transportation</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 25.5094%; height: 19px;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Effectiveness and efficiency needs to be proven</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Monetize urban/rural wastes (assigns economic value to wastes)</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 5.86279%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;">6</td>
<td style="width: 13.7631%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Bio-ethanol</span></td>
<td style="width: 26.6526%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">It could pave a way in the future for <g class="gr_ gr_217 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="217" data-gr-id="217">second generation</g> biofuels derived from crop-residues</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 28.2121%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Lack of investments</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 25.5094%; height: 19px;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Pre-treatment of paddy straw is being deployed at commercial scale and viability gap funding can be explored for such projects</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p></p>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/summary-of-important-reports/action-plan-for-biomass-management'
		],
		(int) 17 => [
			'title' => 'Elders Compromise for Sake of Care from Family: Study',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>A study, released by Agewell Research and Advocacy Centre for the United Nations has revealed that majority of the elderly have to compromise with their life circumstances for the sake of care and support from their family members, and over 50% face abuse and mistreatment.</p>
<h3>Key Findings</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The elderly have to compromise and make adjustments in their lifestyle according to the wishes of the younger members of their families to ensure they are cared for.</li>
<li>Over 75% of respondents had to<strong> limit their personal social interactions</strong> as their family members direct them to do so, otherwise, their family members can avoid providing their basic needs for food and medicines.</li>
<li><strong>Breaking up of the joint family system</strong> is one of the biggest factors for the challenges they face in getting long-term, palliative care.</li>
<li>Though most of the elderly enjoyed their independence, a majority were <strong>financially dependent on others</strong> in their old age.</li>
<li>The elderly <strong>need healthcare services</strong> to ensure their independence in old age. Most of them need a social support system and recreational facilities to enable them to lead more enjoyable lives.</li>
<li>Most of the respondents were <strong>not getting any long-term palliative care</strong>. A majority of this needed traditional family support. While some sought maintenance to meet their old age requirements, others demanded better healthcare facilities and caregiving services in old age. Some of the respondents also spoke of the need for care and support such as housing and counselling as their most important needs.</li>
<li>The financial health of the elderly usually determined the nature and quality of palliative care they received. Though providing long-term and palliative care to the elderly comes under family responsibilities in India, it is observed that senior citizens who are financially independent and have a high net worth, or who hold property entitlements, are treated comparatively better by their family.</li>
<li>Many of the elderly were found to be <strong>unaware <g class="gr_ gr_81 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="81" data-gr-id="81">about</g> the status of the policy framework</strong> and support and services for them.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Challenges</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Older people in India often face problems such as <strong>disability, restricted mobility, loneliness, poverty and lack of awareness on accessing old-term care.</strong> A fast-growing population of older people, the ever-increasing gap between generations and the fast and demanding lifestyle of young people contribute towards the major challenges faced by a majority of older people.</li>
<li>Managing home care for the elderly is a massive challenge to <strong>multiple service providers, nursing agencies, physiotherapists and medical suppliers, are small scale and unorganized</strong> and, therefore, <strong>provide incomplete care.</strong></li>
<li>In India, health insurance coverage is essentially limited to hospitalization. The concept of geriatric care has remained a neglected area of medicine so far in the country.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>There is an urgent need to make every elderly financially independent in old age. The provisions for ensuring independence in old age and long-term palliative care be made at all levels: family, community and government.</li>
<li>Healthcare equipment such as wheelchairs, relief material such as adult diapers and caregiving service should be provided on a regular basis to destitute older people, who are bedridden and suffering from acute mobility issues.<br /><br /></li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/elders-compromise-for-sake-of-care-from-family-study'
		],
		(int) 18 => [
			'title' => 'Important Facts for Prelims (July 7th, 2018)',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<h3>e-Tourist Visa Scheme</h3>
<ul>
<li>In <g class="gr_ gr_19 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-del replaceWithoutSep" id="19" data-gr-id="19">November,</g> 2014 the Government launched e-Tourist Visa scheme in 44 countries. This e-Visa facility has now been extended to 165 countries.</li>
<li>Under the e-visa scheme, foreigners do not have to meet any Indian official before their arrival at the landing port.<br />The government has installed e-Visa processing facilities at 25 airports and 5 seaports in the country. The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) is now working to extend the e-Visa scheme to more countries in a planned manner after consulting all the stakeholders.</li>
<li>The extension of <g class="gr_ gr_16 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins doubleReplace replaceWithoutSep" id="16" data-gr-id="16">e-Visa</g> scheme is aimed at encouraging tourism, business travel and health tourism in the country.</li>
<li>The government has done away with Embarkation and Disembarkation cards for Indian citizens and foreigners to streamline the immigration process.</li>
<li>MHA has also introduced e-FRRO services for those foreigners who are staying in India and who need services like visa extension, visa conversion, exit permit, registration, change of passport details, change of address and others.</li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/important-facts-for-prelims-july-7th-2018'
		],
		(int) 19 => [
			'title' => 'Give Legal Backing to MSP: CAPC',
			'catname' => 'News Analysis',
			'desc' => '<p>Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CAPC) has recommended that the Centre bring out a legislation which would give the 'right to sell at MSP' some legal teeth by giving farmers the right to sell their produce at those prices.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The CACP highlighted that the procurement mechanism is broken for most crops and for most farmers.</li>
<li>Often farmers of remote areas do not have sufficient access to APMCs (Agricultural Produce Market Committees) and their potential market is local haats where their produce is sold below MSP.</li>
<li>Strong procurement operations need to be expanded to neglected regions, particularly eastern and northeastern regions.</li>
<li>Therefore, the CAPC wants the Centre to bring in a legislation conferring the &ldquo;right to sell at MSP&rdquo;, which will give legal backing to the exercise, ensure that crops are not purchased below fixed price and &ldquo;instil confidence among farmers&rdquo;.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It is a statutory panel under the Ministry of Agriculture which makes the recommendations for MSPs for 23 <g class="gr_ gr_18 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling" id="18" data-gr-id="18">kharif</g> and rabi crops.</li>
<li>Its suggestions are not binding on the government.</li>
</ul>',
			'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
			'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/give-legal-backing-to-msp-capc'
		]
	],
	'updates' => object(Cake\ORM\Query) {

		'(help)' => 'This is a Query object, to get the results execute or iterate it.',
		'sql' => 'SELECT articles.article_id AS `articles__article_id`, articles.category_id AS `articles__category_id`, articles.title AS `articles__title`, articles.description AS `articles__description`, articles.shortdescription AS `articles__shortdescription`, articles.featuredimage AS `articles__featuredimage`, articles.tag_id AS `articles__tag_id`, articles.secondary_tag AS `articles__secondary_tag`, articles.type AS `articles__type`, articles.publishon AS `articles__publishon`, articles.posturl AS `articles__posturl`, articles.metatitle AS `articles__metatitle`, articles.metadescription AS `articles__metadescription`, articles.metakeyword AS `articles__metakeyword`, articles.status AS `articles__status`, articles.sort_order AS `articles__sort_order`, articles.addedby AS `articles__addedby`, articles.updatedby AS `articles__updatedby`, articles.added AS `articles__added`, articles.modified AS `articles__modified`, articles.whatsnewid AS `articles__whatsnewid`, articles.display_printpdf AS `articles__display_printpdf`, articles.display_comments AS `articles__display_comments`, articles.pdf_name AS `articles__pdf_name`, articles.display_archive AS `articles__display_archive` FROM articles articles WHERE status = :c0 ORDER BY publishon desc LIMIT 10',
		'params' => [
			[maximum depth reached]
		],
		'defaultTypes' => [
			[maximum depth reached]
		],
		'decorators' => (int) 0,
		'executed' => false,
		'hydrate' => true,
		'buffered' => true,
		'formatters' => (int) 0,
		'mapReducers' => (int) 0,
		'contain' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'matching' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'extraOptions' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'repository' => object(App\Model\Table\ArticlesTable) {}
	
	},
	'page' => (int) 277,
	'search' => 'class',
	'totalPages' => (float) 288,
	'title' => 'Search'
]
$progress = []
$bookmarks = []
$notes = []
$mynote = []
$topdata = [
	(int) 0 => object(Cake\ORM\Entity) {

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

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

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

		'url' => 'https://bit.ly/joindrishti',
		'title' => 'Click here for Online Inquiry form to join Drishti IAS programmes',
		'type' => (int) 1,
		'date' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenDate) {},
		'[new]' => false,
		'[accessible]' => [
			[maximum depth reached]
		],
		'[dirty]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[original]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[virtual]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[errors]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[invalid]' => [[maximum depth reached]],
		'[repository]' => 'news'
	
	}
]
$searchdata = []
$searchlist = [
	(int) 0 => [
		'title' => 'India not making Promised Investments in Chabahar Port: Iran',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Iran has criticized India for not fulfilling its promise of making investments in the expansion of the strategically located Chabahar port.</span></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It further said that India might also stand to lose &lsquo;special privileges&rsquo; if it cuts import of Iranian oil and instead tries to source oil from countries like Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, the US, and others to offset cuts in Iranian oil.</li>
<li>Iran is India&rsquo;s third-largest oil supplier after Iraq and Saudi Arabia.</li>
<li>The US recently told India and other countries to cut oil imports from Iran to &ldquo;zero&rdquo; by November 4 or face sanctions.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Background</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">In May 2016, India, Iran, and Afghanistan had inked a pact which entailed the establishment of Transit and Transport Corridor among the three countries using Chabahar port in Iran as one of the regional hubs for sea transportation.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">It was also to be used for multi-modal transport of goods and passengers across the three nations.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Chabahar port is being considered a gateway to golden opportunities for trade by India, Iran, and Afghanistan with Central Asian countries in the wake of Pakistan denying transit access to New Delhi.</span></li>
</ul>
<h3>Where is <g class="gr_ gr_35 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="35" data-gr-id="35">Chabahar</g> Port?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Chabahar port is located on the Gulf of Oman and is only 72 km away from the Gwadar port in Pakistan which is being developed by China.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">The port serves as the only oceanic port of Iran and consists of two separate ports named Shahid Beheshti and Shahid Kalantari.</span></li>
</ul>
<h3><g class="gr_ gr_39 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="39" data-gr-id="39">Significance</g> of the Chabahar Port for India</h3>
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">India&rsquo;s ambition to reach Afghanistan since Pakistan has blocked land transit and access through its territory fuelled the need for developing the strategic project of Chabahar.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">The development will provide India an alternative and reliable access into Afghanistan and a more direct sea-road access route into the central Asian region. </span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">China is aggressively pursuing its own Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) under the One Belt One Road (OBOR) project. The port can act as a counter to Pakistan&rsquo;s Gwadar Port, which is being developed with Chinese investment.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">The location of Chabahar port at the Arabian Sea would enable India to counter any challenges posed by developments in the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">In future, the Chabahar project and the International <g class="gr_ gr_34 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="34" data-gr-id="34">North South</g> Transport Corridor (INSTC) will complement each other by optimizing Indian connectivity with Russia and Eurasia.</span></li>
</ul>
<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: 400;"><img width="434" height="302" class="content-img" onload="pagespeed.CriticalImages.checkImageForCriticality(this);" src="http://drishtiias.com/images/uploads/383Chabahar Port.jpg" data-pagespeed-url-hash="2536473977" /></span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;"></span></p>
<p></p>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/india-not-making-promised-investments-in-chabahar-port-iran'
	],
	(int) 1 => [
		'title' => '‘New India’ will be Realised with the Vision of a ‘New North East’',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>At the concluding session of the 67th Plenary Session of the North East Council (NEC), the Union Home Minister said that the road to &lsquo;New India&rsquo; will go through a developed and peaceful &lsquo;New North East&rsquo;.</p>
<h3>Measures to Achieve a &lsquo;New North East&rsquo;</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Realising the economic potential of the region through <strong>better road connectivity and Information Technology. </strong></li>
<li><strong>Quality broadband services</strong> in the region to help the youth of the North East find the employment opportunities closer to their home.</li>
<li>Setting up the <strong>Regional Institute for Skill Development</strong> was suggested to the NEC.</li>
<li><strong>The impetus to employment and income generation</strong>&nbsp;</li>
<li>Creating a <strong>conducive environment for private investments</strong> to make the investors feel safe and that their problems are addressed - to give a big boost to investments</li>
<li>Focus on <strong>growing low volume-high value crops</strong> for export to accelerate the growth of agriculture.</li>
<li>Railway Ministry can help in <strong>exporting the perishable commodities</strong> and horticulture produce like kiwis and flowers through superfast AC wagons.</li>
<li><strong><g class="gr_ gr_29 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins doubleReplace replaceWithoutSep" id="29" data-gr-id="29">Revival</g> of North Eastern Regional Agricultural Marketing Corporation Limited</strong> (NERAMAC) for marketing of agriculture produce.</li>
<li>The North Eastern Region Community Resource Management Project (NERCORMP) with the Self Help Groups can extend help for increasing the income and employment generation in the region to help contain the problems like the insurgency in the North Eastern Region.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>North Eastern Region Community Resource Management Project (NERCORMP)</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>NERCORMP is a joint developmental initiative of the North Eastern Council, Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region and International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).</li>
<li>Its objective is to improve the livelihoods of vulnerable groups of the North East Region in a sustainable manner through improved management of their resource base.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/new-india-will-be-realised-with-the-vision-of-a-new-north-east'
	],
	(int) 2 => [
		'title' => 'Ease of Doing Business Index',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>The Central Government released the third edition of the annual ease of doing business rankings for states and Union territories.</p>
<p style="text-align: center;"><img width="501" height="428" class="content-img" onload="pagespeed.CriticalImages.checkImageForCriticality(this);" src="http://drishtiias.com/images/uploads/404andrachart.jpg" data-pagespeed-url-hash="1318449733" /></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>This annual reform exercise for all states and Union territories is conducted by Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion( DIPP) in collaboration with the World Bank (WB) under the Business Reform Action Plan (BRAP).</li>
<li>The move is aimed at triggering competition among states to attract investments and improve business climate.</li>
<li>Most states see their performance as a key factor in helping companies select their investment destination.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Background</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Earlier in 2014, the Government of India had requested the World Bank Group to support India&rsquo;s efforts to enhance India&rsquo;s competitiveness and increase manufactured exports. &lrm;</li>
<li>DIPP then decided to start similar initiative to promote competitiveness among states by taking cue from World Bank&rsquo;s &ldquo;Ease of Doing Business Index&rdquo; and subsequently the ranking exercise for States was launched in 2015.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Business Reform Action Plan (BRAP)</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>The Ease of Doing Business Index is based on BRAP.</li>
<li>The BRAP-2017 included 405 recommendations for reforms on regulatory processes, policies, practices and &nbsp;procedures spread across 12 reform areas.</li>
<li>BRAP 2017 also included two new sectors i.e. Healthcare and Hospitality.</li>
<li>The current assessment under the BRAP 2017 is based on a combined score of:
<ul style="list-style-type: circle;">
<li>Reform evidence score - based on evidences uploaded by the States and UTs.</li>
<li>Feedback score - based on the feedback from the actual users of the services provided to the businesses, i.e. business-to-government (B2G) feedback.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li>It is for the first time that DIPP has introduced taking feedback - to ensure that the reforms have actually reached ground level.</li>
<li>The next year&rsquo;s assessment, i.e BRAP-2018 will be entirely based on user feedback.</li>
<li>Another practice introduced in the current reform exercise was handholding support provided by the higher scoring States to mentor another State and UT to facilitate implementation of reforms in States and UTs needing support. E.g. Telangana and West Bengal held extensive workshops to support Tripura and Nagaland respectively. &nbsp;</li>
<li>Additionally, States have also provided their systems developed to other states so that everyone can benefit from this reform exercise.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/ease-of-doing-business-index'
	],
	(int) 3 => [
		'title' => 'Formalization of the Economy is a Form of Coercion',
		'catname' => 'News Editorials',
		'desc' => '<p><em>Here we will analyze the importance of the informal sector in an economy and what should be the motives and methods of formalization.</em></p>
<p>The growth curve of Indian economy has been essentially a dichotomous one, with the informal branch occupying more than 80% of the economy despite continued efforts to formalize it, while the other branch dominated by law-abiding big firms, seen as a source of revenue to the state and thus, nurtured and supported. In recent years, there has been increasing focus on a formalization of economy and financialization of savings. However, it is still debatable that how smooth this transition is going to be, given its coercive and compulsive nature.</p>
<table border="1" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 10px;">
<td style="width: 100%; text-align: justify; height: 10px;"><strong>Informal Sector:</strong><br />
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="text-align: justify;">NSSO defines the informal sector enterprises as all unincorporated proprietary and partnership enterprises.</li>
<li style="text-align: justify;">National Accounts Statistics (NAS) defines the unorganised sector in addition to the unincorporated proprieties or partnership enterprises, includes enterprises run by cooperative societies, trust, private and limited companies. The informal sector can, therefore, be considered as a subset of the unorganised sector.</li>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<h3>The Problems Posed by Informal Economy</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Productivity:</strong> The informal sector basically comprises of MSMEs and household businesses which are not as big as firms like Reliance. They are unable to take advantage of economies of scale.
<table border="1" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="width: 100%; text-align: justify;"><strong>Economy of scale:</strong> When more units of a good or a service can be produced on a larger scale, yet with (on average) fewer input costs, economies of scale are said to be achieved. Alternatively, this means that as a company grows and production units increase, a company will have a better chance to decrease its costs.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
</li>
<li><strong>Inability to raise tax revenue:</strong> As the businesses of the informal economy are not directly regulated, they usually avoid one or more taxes by hiding incomes and expenses from the regulatory framework. This poses a challenge for the government as a major chunk of the economy remains out of the tax net.</li>
<li><strong>Lack of control and surveillance:</strong> The informal sector remains unmonitored by the government. Further, no official statistics are available representing the true state of the economy, which makes it difficult for the government to make policies regarding the informal sector in particular and whole economy in general.</li>
<li><strong> Low-quality products and less value-addition per employee:</strong> Although the informal sector employs more than 75% of the Indian population, the value-addition per employee is very low. This means that a major portion of our human resource is under-utilized.</li>
</ul>
<h3>The Problem with Formalization</h3>
<p>Although the informal sector is often blamed for competing unfairly with the formal sector, it needs to be seen as a characteristic of underdevelopment rather than the cause. In this light, we need to take a look at the issues faced by the informal sector.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong> Red-Tapism:</strong> According to a 2015 study by Centre for Civil society, starting an MSME requires 12 licenses, 27 construction permits and 7 property registration requirements. There are 44 central statutes and over 150 state statutes governing every aspect of the employee-employer relationship. The process of formalization is too burdensome and costly for small enterprises to remain competitive.</li>
<li><strong>GST:</strong> The imposition of Goods and Services Tax has added to the woes of small entrepreneurs. The aforementioned study says that almost 61.7% of the profit goes into taxes which is way beyond what is affordable for MSMEs. The complexity and the cost of adhering to it are very high. The required computational skills, frequent filing and navigating an impossible classification system lead the small businesses to fall into the trap of middlemen and incurs further costs.</li>
<li><strong>Demonetization:</strong> Demonetization proved to be a double-edged sword for the informal sector. One one side it pulled the customers away from the cash-reliant informal sector and on the other hand created a negative <strong>demand-side shock</strong> for the informal sector. It also pushed informal sector workers out of their jobs, the worst affected being the daily-wage earners. According to Economic Survey 2016-17, Demonetization triggered a rush for distressed labour under MGNREGA.</li>
<li>
<table border="1" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 51px;">
<td style="width: 100%; height: 65px; text-align: justify;"><strong>Demand Shock:</strong> A demand shock is a sudden surprise event that temporarily increases or decreases demand for goods or services. A positive demand shock increases demand while a negative demand shock decreases demand. Both a positive demand shock and a negative demand shock have an effect on the prices of goods and services.</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<strong></strong></li>
<li><strong>Low level of human capital of the entrepreneurs:</strong> The informal sector suffers from the low level of human capital of its entrepreneurs and workers. Most of them are uneducated and unskilled.</li>
<li><strong>Compromising labour rights:</strong> The focus on making the economy competitive via formalization is often met with accusations of compromising with labour rights, discouraging unionization, and favouring the rich at the cost of poor. At the same time, the informal sector often employs workers on a contractual basis and a low-pay and the employer is not bound to not provide the workers with any social security. Outright formalization is therefore not a solution for the workers as well as the employers of the informal sector.</li>
</ul>
<h3>The Solution</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Simpler regulatory framework:</strong> The transition of the informal sector to the formal sector can only occur when the informal sector is given relief from the burden of regulatory compliance and is given enough time to adjust with the modern, digitized formal system.</li>
<li><strong>Skilling the labour:</strong> Unless the labour force is not skilled and educated, they will not be accommodated in the formal sector and the efforts to formalization will result in unemployment.</li>
<li><strong>Social security:</strong> Investing in social security schemes like Atal Pension Yojna, PM Jeevan Jyoti Yojana, Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana, Aam Aadmi Bima Yojana can help improve the condition of workers. The mention of Universal Basic Income in Economic Survey 2016-17 is a positive step in this direction.</li>
<li><strong>Financial support:</strong> Giving financial support to help small-scale industries stand on their own is a crucial step in bringing them to the organized sector. Schemes like MUDRA loans and Start-up India are helping the youth carve a niche in the organized sector.</li>
<li><strong> Policy reforms:</strong> The structural policies designed to promote formality should be implemented with caution, aimed at encouraging formalisation rather than explicitly discouraging informal activity.</li>
<li><strong>Labour law reforms:</strong> The archaic labour laws need to be dealt afresh so that they are more flexible. This should be done along with upkeeping the rights of the labourers and not allowing for their exploitation.</li>
</ul>
<p>It is important to highlight the fact that the <strong>informal sector employs the majority of the uneducated and unskilled labour force</strong> which, otherwise, may not find a place in the formal sector. So, any effort to formalize the informal economy coercively is fraught with serious socio-political ramifications and backlash. Therefore, it is important to ensure that the transition to formal economy is a smooth, encouraging process and not a process of vitiating or punishing the informal sector. The aim of formalization should not be surveillance but rather the growth of individuals and firms of the country.</p>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-editorials/formalization-of-the-economy-is-a-form-of-coercion'
	],
	(int) 4 => [
		'title' => 'Important Facts for Prelims (July 10th, 2018)',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p><strong>Light &lsquo;Sadmridangam&rsquo; gets a patent</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The Controller General of Patents, Designs, and Trademarks has given the patent for light &lsquo;sadmridangam&rsquo; under the &lsquo;drum&rsquo; category.</li>
<li>The lightweight version of South Indian percussion instrument &lsquo;mridangam&rsquo; was developed by Kuzhalmannam Ramakrishnan.</li>
<li>The improvised instrument has all the features of a &lsquo;mridangam&rsquo; and ensures more mobility for artists.</li>
</ul>
<p><img width="283" height="184" class="content-img" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" onload="pagespeed.CriticalImages.checkImageForCriticality(this);" src="http://drishtiias.com/images/uploads/694Kuzhalmannam Ramakrishnan2 - Copy.jpg" data-pagespeed-url-hash="1323409215" /></p>
<p><strong>Note:</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>A Patent is a statutory right for an invention granted for a limited period of time to the patentee by the Government, in exchange of full disclosure of his invention for excluding others, from making, using, selling, importing the patented product or process for producing that product for those purposes without his consent.</li>
<li>The patent system in India is governed by the Patents Act, 1970 (No.39 of 1970) as amended by the Patents (Amendment) Act, 2005 and the Patents Rules, 2003.</li>
<li>Patent protection is a territorial right and therefore it is effective only within the territory of India. There is no concept of a global patent.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>Seven new Wasp Species Discovered in the Amazon Forests</strong></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Researchers have discovered seven new wasp species belonging to the genus Clistopyga from Peru, Venezuela and Colombia.</li>
<li>The most notable among them is Clistopyga <g class="gr_ gr_38 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling gr-progress" id="38" data-gr-id="38">crassicaudata</g>, named after its distinctly thickened ovipositor. The ovipositor is a tube-like organ present in many insects that <g class="gr_ gr_45 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="45" data-gr-id="45">helps</g> in laying eggs and also in injecting venom</li>
<li>The other new species include C.kalima, C. <g class="gr_ gr_37 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="37" data-gr-id="37">panchei</g> and C. <g class="gr_ gr_39 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling" id="39" data-gr-id="39">taironae</g>, named in honour of Kalimas, Panches and Toiranas, indigenous tribe groups of Colombo.</li>
<li>Another species was named C. <g class="gr_ gr_34 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling" id="34" data-gr-id="34">nigriventri</g>, indicating its entirely black body, and another C. <g class="gr_ gr_33 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="33" data-gr-id="33">splendida</g> because of its multicoloured body. The seventh species, named C.isayae has a white and brown body.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>First Quolls born in Australian Wild in 50 years</strong></p>
<p><img width="358" height="201" class="content-img" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" onload="pagespeed.CriticalImages.checkImageForCriticality(this);" src="http://drishtiias.com/images/uploads/772Quolls.jpg" data-pagespeed-url-hash="3608657011" /></p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The first eastern Quolls in 50 years have been born in the wild on the Australian mainland.</li>
<li>This has raised hopes for the revival of the species of marsupial, which was devastated by foxes.</li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/important-facts-for-prelims-july-10th-2018'
	],
	(int) 5 => [
		'title' => 'Long-term Financing in India',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>Recently the Union Finance Minister raised concerns over long-term financing in India.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Long-term finance for industries includes those financial resources which are advanced to the industries for a period of more than a year.</li>
<li>Long-term finance is quite important for the expansion and modernization of industrial projects and also to meet its fixed capital expenditure requirement.</li>
<li>Long-term finance is mostly available from the sale of shares and debentures, and a loan from banks and financial institutions like etc.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Issues/Concerns</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The phenomenal growth in bank credit, at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 39.31% over the last 15 years, without the requisite due-diligence invited certain undesirable consequences, like high stressed assets.</li>
<li>Rising NPAs are forcing banks to resist from lending especially to major projects. Therefore, the need of the hour is to ensure assured and guaranteed long-term funding.</li>
<li>The projects needing long-term financing are often complex and involve a large number of parties. Secondly, these are subject to various risks including those due to changes in policies, delays in clearances, etc.</li>
<li>Thirdly, where debt financing is dominated by the banking system, the fundamental problem posed by the <strong>asset-liability mismatch</strong> is critical.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<h3>Asset-Liability Mismatch</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Providing longer duration loans from much shorter maturity funds is called an asset-liability mismatch.</li>
<li><strong>For example,&nbsp;</strong>Banks&rsquo; primary source of funds is deposited (their liabilities), typically having short- to medium-term maturities which need to be paid back to the investor in 3-5 years. In contrast, banks usually provide loans (their assets) for a longer period to borrowers. &nbsp;This could be a cause for payment crisis as the money is locked with the borrower.</li>
</ul>
</div>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>A sharp decline in public and private funding for key growth sectors and basic infrastructure are creating huge gaps in long-term finance for development.</li>
<li>Attracting private sector finance and investment is necessary to help India meet its development goals.</li>
<li>As per an estimate, India needs Rs 31 trillion (US$ 454.83 billion) to be spent on infrastructure development over the next five years.</li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/long-term-financing-in-India'
	],
	(int) 6 => [
		'title' => 'Treat Gaming as a Disorder: WHO',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>The World Health Organization (WHO) has announced a plan to include &ldquo;gaming disorder&rdquo; as a mental health condition. The reclassification is part of the WHO&rsquo;s 11th revision of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD- 11).</p>
<h3>Background</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><g class="gr_ gr_39 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="39" data-gr-id="39">ICD-11</g> draft defines gaming disorder as &ldquo;&hellip; a pattern of gaming <g class="gr_ gr_40 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling multiReplace" id="40" data-gr-id="40">behavior</g> (&lsquo;digital-gaming&rsquo; or &lsquo;video-gaming&rsquo;) characterized by impaired control over gaming, increasing priority given to gaming over other activities to the extent that gaming takes precedence over other interests and daily activities, and continuation or escalation of gaming despite the occurrence of negative consequences&rdquo;.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Should India be concerned?</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>India has a fast-growing gaming population. A 2017 Google-KPMG study estimated that the Indian online gaming industry was worth $290 million, and projected it to hit $1 billion by 2021.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Opposition towards Classification</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The classification is intended to act as a set of guidelines and many countries in determining healthcare policies, diagnosis and treatment options. Hence, the detrimental effect this &ldquo;premature classification&rdquo; could have on treatment and policymaking.</li>
<li>Addiction to gaming as a phenomenon merits further study; hence a classification as a disorder could result in abuse of diagnosis.</li>
<li>The addiction could also be a symptom of a deeper issue such as depression. The new classification could result in a trend where clinicians treat the symptom instead of the underlying issue</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<h3>World Health Organisation</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The World Health Organisation (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations that is concerned with international public health.</li>
<li>It is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland and the WHO&rsquo;s constitution came into force on April 7, 1948.</li>
<li>The World Health Assembly is the supreme decision-making body in WHO. The assembly meets annually and is attended by delegations from 194 member states.</li>
</ul>
<h3>International Classification of Diseases (ICD)</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The ICD is the foundation for identifying health trends and statistics worldwide and contains around 55000 unique codes for injuries, diseases, and causes of death.</li>
<li>It provides a common language that allows health professionals to share health information across the globe.</li>
<li>It helps in understanding what makes people get sick and die, and to take action to prevent suffering and save lives.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/treat-gaming-as-a-disorder-WHO'
	],
	(int) 7 => [
		'title' => 'Government Declares 6 Educational ‘Institutions of Eminence’',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>The Government has shortlisted Six Institutions of Eminence (IoEs) including 3 from Public Sector and 3 from Private Sector. Each public Institution selected as &lsquo;Institution of Eminence&rsquo; will get financial assistance up to Rs. 1000 Crore over the period of five years under this scheme. The government has also made it clear that it will offer no financial assistance to the private institutions under this scheme, though they will get autonomy to pursue academic excellence.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><strong>Public Sector</strong>: Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, Karnataka; Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, Maharashtra; and Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi.</li>
<li><strong>Private Sector</strong>: Jio Institute (Reliance Foundation), Pune under Green Field Category; Birla Institute of Technology &amp; Sciences, Pilani, Rajasthan; and Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, Karnataka.</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg"><strong>NOTE:&nbsp;</strong>The term greenfield was originally used in construction and development to reference land that has never been used, where there was no need to demolish or rebuild any existing structures. The term greenfield project&rsquo; generally refers to the initiation of a project without the need to consider any prior work. In contrast to this, the term brownfield project refers to the project based on prior work or to rebuild (engineer) a product from an existing one.</div>
<h3></h3>
<h3>Background</h3>
<p>The move is a part of government&rsquo;s scheme to provide the regulatory architecture for setting up or upgrading of 20 Institutions (10 from public sector &amp; 10 from the private sector) as a world-class teaching and research institutions called as &lsquo;Institutions of Eminence&rsquo;.</p>
<h3>Key points</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>This will ensure complete autonomy to the selected institutions and help them grow more rapidly.</li>
<li>The institutions will get more opportunity to scale up their operations with more skills and quality improvement so that they become World Class Institutions in the field of education.</li>
<li>It is expected that the above-selected Institutions will figure in the top 500 list of the major global rankings within 10 years and in top 100 of the world ranking eventually over time.</li>
<li>To achieve top global rankings, these Institutions shall be provided with greater autonomy to admit foreign students to 30% of admitted students.</li>
<li>The institutions can also recruit foreign faculty up to 25% of faculty strength and offer online courses up to 20% of its programmes.</li>
<li>The institutions can enter into academic collaboration with other top 500 rankers in the world ranking Institutions without permission of UGC.</li>
<li>The institutions will be free to fix and charge fees from foreign students without restriction.</li>
<li>They will have the flexibility to design course structure in terms of a number of credit hours and years to take a degree.</li>
</ul>
<p></p>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/government-declares-6-educational-institutions-of-eminence'
	],
	(int) 8 => [
		'title' => 'Free Treatment to EWS Patients',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>The Supreme Court ruled that private hospitals in Delhi, allotted land at subsidized rates, will have to provide free treatment to patients from the economically weaker sections (EWS) category.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The free treatment will be given to <strong>25 per cent Out Patient Department (OPD)</strong> and <strong>10 per cent Inpatient Department (IPD)</strong> patients belonging to EWS category.</li>
<li>Any violation <g class="gr_ gr_67 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="67" data-gr-id="67">in</g> the agreement between the hospitals and the government, according to which beds were to be reserved for patients of the EWS category, might lead to cancellation of the lease.</li>
<li>The SC bench reversed an earlier order of the Delhi High Court.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Background</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Earlier in 2014, the Delhi High Court had quashed the order of Ministry of Urban Development and the Delhi government that made it mandatory for hospitals to provide free treatment to persons from EWS category.</li>
<li>The High Court had lauded the intention of the Government to bring the <strong>Directive Principle</strong> (to provide free treatment to poor) to fruition, but questioned its execution and emphasized the<strong> need for a legislation</strong>.</li>
<li>The hospitals had argued that the government could not issue such orders since they had purchased the land at market rates and the original lease deeds for the land did not contain the freeship clause.</li>
<li>Moreover, they argued that the fundamental right of the hospitals to do business cannot be taken away by an executive order and it can be done only by enacting a law.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Issues</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The majority of patients visiting private hospitals in Delhi are from other states who are clueless about the availability of reserved free beds.</li>
<li>Therefore, for effective and efficient delivery of free health care for the EWS,<strong> robust information disbursal system</strong> is a prerequisite.</li>
<li>Though the Delhi Government introduced an online monitoring system and appointed patient welfare officers to assist EWS patients - these decisions were not properly implemented.</li>
<li>Once more, the Judiciary has taken a stand, but it's up to the executive to uphold the letter and spirit of Directive Principles of the Constitution by<strong> proper implementation of already existing mechanisms</strong>.</li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/free-treatment-to-ews-patients'
	],
	(int) 9 => [
		'title' => 'Trade Monitoring Report Highlights Trade-Restrictive Measures of G20',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>Recently, the World Trade Organization released its Trade Monitoring Report. The report reveals a number of important trends in global trade policy-making.</p>
<h3></h3>
<h3>Key findings</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>At a juncture where the global economy is finally beginning to generate sustained economic momentum following the global financial crisis, the uncertainty created by a proliferation of trade restrictive actions could place economic recovery in jeopardy.</li>
<li>The increase in trade-restrictive measures has come at a time of increasing trade tensions and associated rhetoric.</li>
<li>G20 economies have&nbsp;applied 39 new trade-restrictive measures including tariff increases, stricter customs procedures, the imposition of taxes and export duties.</li>
<li>G20 economies also implemented 47 measures aimed at facilitating trade, including eliminated or reduced tariffs, simplified import and export customs procedures and reduction of import taxes.</li>
<li>The estimated trade coverage of import-facilitating measures (US$ 82.7 billion) is higher than that of import-restrictive measures (Us$ 74.1 billion).</li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<h3>Trade Monitoring Report</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Trade Monitoring Report is intended to be a purely factual and transparency exercise and has no legal effect on the rights and obligations of WTO Members.</li>
<li>The Report aims to shed light on the latest trends in the implementation of a broad range of policy measures that facilitate as well as restrict the flow of trade, and to provide an update on the state of global trade.</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>NOTE:</strong> Group of Twenty (G20)</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>G20 is an international forum that brings together the world's 20 leading industrialised and emerging economies</li>
<li>The G20 consists of Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States of America, China, South Africa and the European Union.</li>
</ul>
</div>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/trade-monitoring-report-highlights-trade-restrictive-measures-of-g20'
	],
	(int) 10 => [
		'title' => 'Nine Parties Oppose Proposal for Simultaneous Elections',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>Nine political parties have expressed their reservations on the issue of holding simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly elections during consultations with the Law Commission of India.</p>
<h3>What are simultaneous elections?</h3>
<ul>
<li>Simultaneous Elections broadly mean structuring the Indian election cycle in a manner that elections to Lok Sabha and State Assemblies are synchronized together.</li>
<li>In such a scenario, a voter would normally cast his/her vote for electing members of Lok Sabha and State Assembly on a single day and at the same time.</li>
<li>After the adoption of the Constitution, elections to Lok Sabha and all State Legislative Assemblies were held simultaneously over the period 1951 till 1967 when the cycle of synchronized elections got disrupted.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Advantages of Holding Simultaneous Elections</h3>
<ul>
<li>It will allow political parties to focus more on policy and governance. Frequent elections cause parties to devote more energy in winning elections.</li>
<li>The huge economic <strong>burden of frequent elections can be reduced</strong> if simultaneous elections are conducted.</li>
<li>Simultaneous elections would also <strong>reduce pressure on manpower and resource deployment</strong> necessary for <g class="gr_ gr_39 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="39" data-gr-id="39">conduct</g> of elections.</li>
<li>The <strong>79th Report of the Department related Parliamentary Committee</strong> has justified the simultaneous conduct of polls on several grounds, including a huge cut in expenditure incurred for <g class="gr_ gr_36 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="36" data-gr-id="36">conduct</g> of separate elections every year.</li>
<li>Frequent elections lead to <strong><g class="gr_ gr_42 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="42" data-gr-id="42">imposition</g> of Model Code of Conduct (MCC) over prolonged periods</strong> of time and puts on hold the entire development programme and activities of the Union and State Governments in the <g class="gr_ gr_34 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="34" data-gr-id="34">poll bound</g> State. <g class="gr_ gr_43 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins doubleReplace replaceWithoutSep" id="43" data-gr-id="43">Simultaneous</g> election will help in limiting <g class="gr_ gr_44 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="44" data-gr-id="44">amount</g> of time in electioneering.</li>
<li>The NITI Aayog has favoured conducting synchronised two-phase Lok Sabha and assembly elections from 2024 in <g class="gr_ gr_38 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="38" data-gr-id="38">national</g> interest.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Concerns Related Simultaneous Elections</h3>
<ul>
<li>Simultaneous elections enable people to vote at the adequate level of government, not having to vote in national elections for local issues, or for national issues in local elections.</li>
<li>The simultaneous elections may benefit larger national parties at the cost of state/regional parties in case of a national wave in <g class="gr_ gr_47 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling multiReplace" id="47" data-gr-id="47">favor</g> of large national parties.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<p>Simultaneous elections are <g class="gr_ gr_54 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="54" data-gr-id="54">desirable</g> provided they are juxtaposed with certain reforms that would require a prior political consensus to bring a constitutional amendment to curtail or raise term of some states to enable EC to synchronize poll schedule, raise necessary resources of EC such as EVMs, personnel, etc.<br /><br /></p>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/nine-parties-oppose-proposal-for-simultaneous-elections'
	],
	(int) 11 => [
		'title' => 'Six Bids to Supply 110 Fighters for IAF',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>Six global aircraft manufacturers have responded to a Request for Information (RFI) from the Indian Air Force to supply 110 fighter aircraft.</p>
<ul>
<li>Of the 110 fighter jets, 85% will have to be built in India under the &lsquo;Make in India&rsquo; programme in partnership with a &ldquo;Strategic Partner/Indian Production Agency.&rdquo;</li>
<li>The procurement will be processed through the Strategic Partnership (SP) model under the Defence Procurement Procedure.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Defence Procurement Procedure</h3>
<p></p>
<ul>
<li>Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP) came into effect in 2016. It focuses on institutionalizing, streamlining and simplifying defence procurement procedure to give a boost to &lsquo;Make in India&rsquo;.</li>
<li>The key feature of the revised DPP is to <strong>&lsquo;Buy (Indian)&rsquo; and &lsquo;Buy and Make (Indian)&rsquo;</strong>.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Strategic Partnership</h3>
<p></p>
<ul>
<li>The Strategic Partnerships in Defence sector was promulgated as part of the Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP).</li>
<li>The policy is intended to institutionalize a transparent, objective and functional mechanism to encourage broader participation of the private sector, in addition to&nbsp; DPSUs / OFB, in the manufacture of <g class="gr_ gr_26 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling multiReplace" id="26" data-gr-id="26">defense</g> platforms and equipment.</li>
<li>It will serve to enhance competition, increase efficiencies, facilitate faster and more significant absorption of technology and trigger innovation thereby leading to the reduction in dependence on imports and greater self-reliance in meeting national security objectives.</li>
<li>The following four segments have been identified for acquisition under Strategic Partnership (SP) route: Fighter Aircraft; Helicopters; Submarines and Armored Fighting Vehicles (AFVs) / Main Battle Tanks (MBTs).</li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/six-bids-to-supply-110-fighters-for-IAF'
	],
	(int) 12 => [
		'title' => 'Telecom Firms Oppose TRAI’s Public Wi-Fi model',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Telecom operators and internet service providers have opposed the public Wi-Fi model recommended by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI).</span></p>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">The reasons for opposition have varied from its adverse impact on the debt-ridden telecom industry, compromising national security to complete bypass of the present licensing framework, detrimental to massive investments already made in the spectrum, telecom infrastructure etc. </span></li>
</ul>
<h3>Background</h3>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;"></span></p>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has mooted a concept of open architecture-based public Wi-Fi grid to bring down the cost of the internet by 90 <g class="gr_ gr_42 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling multiReplace" id="42" data-gr-id="42">percent</g>.</span></li>
<li>It had recommended that a new set of players, called Pubic Data Office Aggregator (PDOA), should be allowed to resell internet services through yesteryears PCOs type of setup that will be called Public Data Offices.</li>
<li>Similar to cyber cafes, which provide internet access to the public after registering themselves, PDOA should be allowed to provide internet access services after registering themselves with the telecom department. For this purpose, a central registry to authenticate the service provider and service seekers would be established.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Why the Need for Proliferation of Internet?<span style="font-weight: 400;"><br /><br /></span></h3>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">India significantly lags behind other countries in terms of providing access to Broadband Internet, especially to people in rural areas.&nbsp;</span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Broadband has over a period of time, become a critical platform for economic growth, job creation, global competitiveness and improved way of life.&nbsp;</span><span style="font-weight: 400;">It is helping the emergence of new industries while unlocking vast new possibilities for existing ones.&nbsp;</span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">The World Bank&rsquo;s World Development Report recently observed that on an average a 10% increase in internet penetration, is likely to lead to a 1.4% growth in the GDP of an economy.</span></li>
</ul>
<h3>Benefits<span style="font-weight: 400;"><br /><br /></span></h3>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">By doing so, it will allow small entrepreneurs such as tea stalls, grocery shops, and vendors to set up and maintain access points. Device manufacturers, payment companies, ISPs/telcos and consumer internet companies can provide the remaining pieces to set up public data offices (PDOs).&nbsp;</span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">The proliferation of public Wi-Fi can provide $3 billion potential revenue opportunity for telecom operators, as it will help to add new customers and increasing data consumption by existing users.</span></li>
</ul>
<div class="border-bg">
<p><strong>Telecom Regulatory Authority of India</strong><span style="font-weight: 400;"></span></p>
<ul>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Established by an Act of Parliament (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Act, 1997) to regulate telecom services, including fixation/revision of tariffs for telecom services.&nbsp;</span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">TRAI provides a fair and transparent policy environment which promotes a level playing field and facilitates fair competition.&nbsp;</span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">The TRAI Act was amended to establish a Telecommunications Dispute Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) to take over the adjudicatory and disputes functions from TRAI.&nbsp;</span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">TDSAT was set up to adjudicate any dispute between a licensor and a licensee, between two or more service providers, between a service provider and a group of consumers, and to hear and dispose of appeals against any direction, decision or order of TRAI.</span></li>
</ul>
</div>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/telecom-firms-oppose-trai’s-public-wi-fi-model'
	],
	(int) 13 => [
		'title' => 'Bitter Enemies Ethiopia, Eritrea Hold Historic Talks',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>The leaders of Ethiopia and Eritrea announced they would re-open their embassies, hailing a stunningly swift rapprochement between bitter regional enemies.</p>
<h3></h3>
<h3>Background</h3>
<ul>
<li>The meeting was the first of its kind between leaders of the two Horn of Africa <g class="gr_ gr_41 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling multiReplace" id="41" data-gr-id="41">neighbors</g> since their war from 1998-2000 in which around 80,000 people died.</li>
<li>Eritrea achieved independence from Ethiopia amicably in 1993 but the two countries swiftly became bitter enemies.</li>
<li>The war began on May 6, 1998, sparked by a battle for control of the border town of Badme. Both Eritrea and Ethiopia wanted it on their side of the border.</li>
<li>The war ended in June 2000, but it was another six months until a peace agreement was signed, establishing the Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission. It was meant to settle the dispute over Badme once and for all.</li>
<li>But its &lsquo;final and binding&rsquo; ruling 18 months later, awarding Badme to Eritrea, was not accepted by Ethiopia without the preconditions of further negotiations with Eritrea. Eritrea, in turn, refuses to talk to its former ally until the ruling is adhered to.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Horn of Africa: Why India should Care More?</h3>
<ul>
<li>Africa has been of growing interest to India for political, economic and security reasons, especially the sub-region - the Horn of Africa. The Horn of Africa comprises four countries &mdash; Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti, and Somalia.</li>
<li>The region is strategically important since it is close to the oil-producing region of the Middle East. Approximately 40% of the oil produced in the Middle East crosses through the shipping lanes of Red Sea. Djibouti is the choke point on this shipping route. It is due to this reason that countries like the United States, France, and China have a military base in Djibouti.</li>
<li>With the new reliance on the sea lines of communication for India&rsquo;s economic growth, Delhi declared that its national interests were no longer limited to the Subcontinent but stretched from the &ldquo;Aden to Malacca&rdquo;.</li>
<li>China is raising its strategic profile in the region. Under an accord signed last year, Beijing has secured the rights to a base in Djibouti that can host up to 10,000 soldiers until 2026 and also Beijing&rsquo;s infrastructure development in the region have put the Horn of Africa back in India&rsquo;s focus.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way Forward</h3>
<ul>
<li>What happens in the region has a direct bearing on India&rsquo;s security and well-being and hence she should pay more attention to the prevailing conditions and power dynamics in the Horn of Africa.</li>
<li>India would be well advised to become more active in examining and discussing the complex problem in-depth with the governments in Eastern Africa, the African Union and others concerned so as to be able to make a meaningful contribution to its resolution.</li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/bitter-enemies-ethiopia-eritrea-hold-historic-talks'
	],
	(int) 14 => [
		'title' => 'Mazhavillu- An App for Transgenders',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>The Kerala government has decided to roll out a mobile app- Mazhavillu, for transgenders in the State since very few <g class="gr_ gr_37 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="37" data-gr-id="37">have</g> registered for the transgender ID card scheme.</p>
<ul>
<li>The app has been named Mazhavillu after the government&rsquo;s project for the transgender community.</li>
<li>The app will obviate the need for transgenders to visit government offices for registration; they can now do it on the app without any apprehension of their gender identity being revealed.</li>
<li>The app would be developed by the Centre for Development of Imaging Technology.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Need for the ID Card</h3>
<ul>
<li>The government has no clear data on the number of transgenders in the State. This is perceived to be a hurdle to the various benefits meant for transgenders.</li>
<li>To address the issues, the transgender community mooted the development of a mobile app where they could register.</li>
<li>So far, only 300-odd transgenders have registered for <g class="gr_ gr_36 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="36" data-gr-id="36">scheme</g> - due to reluctance to reveal their identity.</li>
<li>However, the ID cards had drawn flak for not carrying the emblem of the government and for identifying their gender as &lsquo;transgenders.&rsquo;</li>
</ul>
<h3>The App</h3>
<ul>
<li>Once they have registered on the app, the information will reach community-based organisations of transgenders for verification that the applicants are indeed transgenders. These organisations have grass-root level connections with the community members.</li>
<li>Once the verification is complete, the data will be registered on the app.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Short-Stay Homes</h3>
<ul>
<li>The government is also pressing ahead with setting up short-stay homes for transgenders in the districts.</li>
<li>The homes will aid rehabilitation of transgenders, a chunk of whom have been thrown out of their homes or have strained ties with their families.</li>
<li>A care home too will come up in the district to address the physical and mental challenges faced by transgenders who have undergone sex reassignment surgery. A maximum of 15 persons could stay in the home simultaneously during the treatment period.</li>
<li>The transgender 24x7 helpline functioning from the department office would also be shifted to the same facility, to be managed by non-government or community-based organisations working with the transgender community.</li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/mazhavillu-an-app-for-transgenders'
	],
	(int) 15 => [
		'title' => 'Centre Plans Stronger Defences for Key Data',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>The Ministry of Home Affairs has directed the National Information Security Policy and Guidelines (<g class="gr_ gr_30 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="30" data-gr-id="30">NISPG</g>) to upgrade and update its policies to secure government data and control access to it.</p>
<h3><br />Why there is a need for <g class="gr_ gr_29 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling" id="29" data-gr-id="29">upgradation</g> of <g class="gr_ gr_28 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="28" data-gr-id="28">NISPG</g>?</h3>
<ul>
<li>The sensitive information making its way into the Internet has added to the vulnerability of information sharing. Earlier the files were locked in a cupboard and accountability could be fixed, but with the advent of Digital India, a number of issues were in a grey area.</li>
<li>The new policy would take into account the evolving cyberspace and the overall policing system in the country.</li>
<li>The new policy would cover issues pertaining to the Official Secrets Act.</li>
<li>There are issues relating to <g class="gr_ gr_35 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="35" data-gr-id="35">physical</g> security of a computer, for <g class="gr_ gr_36 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="36" data-gr-id="36">example</g> whether the hard disk will be destroyed before a computer is discarded.</li>
<li>There are issues relating to the network as well. If <g class="gr_ gr_44 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="44" data-gr-id="44">information</g> is riding on own cyber cable, then everything can be encrypted, but if it is riding on a commercially available one, then one will have to make sure that guidelines are complied with.</li>
<li>The threats had to be recognised and the measures were to be updated accordingly.</li>
</ul>
<h3><br />Objectives of National Information Security Policy and Guidelines</h3>
<ul>
<li>These guidelines are based on the analysis of existing global security standards, and frameworks; and the emerging trends and discourse in the wake of persistent threats, and cyber-attacks on critical infrastructure of nations globally.</li>
<li>The scope of these guidelines encompasses Government and Public Sector organizations and associated entities and third parties, for protecting the information under their control or ownership during information&rsquo;s life-cycle including creation, storage, processing, accessing, transmission, destruction etc.</li>
<li>The objective of these guidelines is to improve the information security posture of an organization possessing any information, including classified <g class="gr_ gr_40 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-del replaceWithoutSep gr-progress" id="40" data-gr-id="40">information,</g> and does not restrict organizations from adopting additional stringent practices over and above these guidelines.</li>
<li>Organizations may evaluate various additional measures for the security of <g class="gr_ gr_32 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="32" data-gr-id="32">information</g> they possess for protecting their information depending upon the sensitivity, criticality and importance of such information in the overall Internal Security and National Security interest of the country.</li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/centre-plans-stronger-defences-for-key-data'
	],
	(int) 16 => [
		'title' => 'Action Plan for Biomass Management',
		'catname' => 'Summary of Important Reports',
		'desc' => '<h3>Introduction</h3>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The farm burning, specific to the paddy-wheat cultivation cycle in the rural regions of <strong>Northern and North-Westerns states</strong> of India, has been identified as a major source of air pollution. It not only affects the air-quality in rural areas but also causes an episodic rise in air-pollution during October and November in Delhi-NCR.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">CII-NITI Aayog <strong>&lsquo;Cleaner Air Better Life&rsquo;</strong> initiative aims to bring together all relevant stakeholders for designing a set of solutions to the identified sources of air pollution. For this initiative, the findings of <strong>IIT-K study</strong> are being considered as <strong>basis of designing</strong> the action plans.</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Anchored by the <strong>Ministry of Environment Forests and Climate Change,</strong> the task force on Biomass Management has identified certain avenues for the alternate usage of paddy straw/crop residue</span></p>
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The task force has suggested a two-pronged approach to tackle the issue:</span></p>
<h3>From the farmers&rsquo; end</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;"><strong>In-situ utilisation or soil incorporation of crop-residue</strong> (that remains standing in the field after combine harvesting) needs to be prioritised and popularised among the farmers. This is important, not only to ensure that crops are not burnt but for long-term conservation of <g class="gr_ gr_247 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del" id="247" data-gr-id="247">micro nutrients</g> in the soil. </span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;"><strong>In-situ utilisation of straw</strong> which remains rooted in the <g class="gr_ gr_236 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-del replaceWithoutSep" id="236" data-gr-id="236">soil,</g> requires a change in farming practices. For this purpose, <g class="gr_ gr_238 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling multiReplace" id="238" data-gr-id="238">specialised</g> machinery is required at different stages of farming.</span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Apart from directly <strong>ploughing and mixing (mulching)</strong> the residues back into the soil, on-farm management techniques <strong>(composting, pyrolysis or biochar)</strong> are effective in bringing the nutrients back to the soil </span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">There is increasing evidence that <strong>soil incorporation</strong> has long-term benefits for improving the quality of soil, increasing water-use efficiency and reducing the intensity of <g class="gr_ gr_244 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling multiReplace gr-progress" id="244" data-gr-id="244">fertilisers</g> being used.</span></li>
</ul>
<h3>From the government&rsquo;s end</h3>
<h4><strong>Table 1:</strong> Actions to combat air pollution by subtle burning<br /><br /></h4>
<table border="1" style="width: 100%; border-collapse: collapse;">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 35px;">
<td style="width: 16.736%; height: 35px;">
<p><strong>Immediate&nbsp;action</strong></p>
</td>
<td colspan="5" style="text-align: center; width: 83.1601%;"><strong>Medium and long-term actions</strong></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 16.736%;"><em>Financial support to farmers</em></td>
<td style="width: 19.5426%;"><em>Impact fund for Air-pollution</em></td>
<td style="width: 16.4241%;"><em>Upscale technologies</em></td>
<td style="width: 17.3597%;"><em>Reword and Monitor at local level</em></td>
<td style="width: 14.7609%;"><em>Regulatory support</em></td>
<td style="width: 15.0728%;"><em>Awareness tools</em></td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="vertical-align: top; width: 16.736%;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Incentives to farmers through Direct Benefits Transfers.</li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top; width: 19.5426%;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Set-up clean impact fund to support clean technologies and link it with the national clean Energy Fund</li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top; width: 16.4241%;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Service-based shared infrastructure (with 50% capital subsidy on select implements).</li>
<li>Process-based incentives.</li>
<li>Accelerated depreciation for farm implements.</li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top; width: 17.3597%;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><g class="gr_ gr_233 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del" id="233" data-gr-id="233">Reword</g> for panchayats INR 1 Lakh per panchayats with zero burning.</li>
<li>Monitoring through advanced remote sensing data and mobile base app for <g class="gr_ gr_226 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins replaceWithoutSep" id="226" data-gr-id="226">general</g> public.</li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top; width: 14.7609%;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Reassessing fuel for criteria for briquettes/<br />pellets From paddy-straw.</li>
<li>Directive to thermal power plants to produce paddy-straw briquette/<br />pellets</li>
<li>Removing the size limitation for bio-power captive generation</li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="vertical-align: top; width: 15.0728%;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Awareness campaign for farmers.</li>
<li>Farmer recognition programme.</li>
<li>Manuals and information tool for in-situ mulching and <g class="gr_ gr_213 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="213" data-gr-id="213">on farm</g> management</li>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p><br /><span style="font-weight: 400;"><strong>Table 2:</strong> Solutions and technologies for <g class="gr_ gr_234 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_disable_anim_appear ContextualSpelling multiReplace" id="234" data-gr-id="234">utilisation</g> of farm waste </span></p>
<table border="1" style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%;">
<tbody>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 5.86279%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;"><strong>S. No</strong></td>
<td style="width: 13.7631%; height: 19px;"><strong>Utilisation Methods</strong></td>
<td style="width: 26.6526%; height: 19px;"><strong>Applications</strong></td>
<td style="width: 28.2121%; height: 19px;"><strong>Barriers</strong></td>
<td style="width: 25.5094%; height: 19px;"><strong>Enablers</strong></td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 5.86279%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;">1</td>
<td style="width: 13.7631%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Biochar</span></td>
<td style="width: 26.6526%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Soil conditioner</span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;"><g class="gr_ gr_221 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del gr-progress" id="221" data-gr-id="221">Bio remediation</g> </span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">For making <g class="gr_ gr_223 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="223" data-gr-id="223">value added</g> products</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 28.2121%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Lack of financial support</span></li>
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Lack of <g class="gr_ gr_231 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="231" data-gr-id="231">equipments</g></span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 25.5094%; height: 19px;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Awareness on benefits </span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Market development for biochar products</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Research and development</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 5.86279%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;">2</td>
<td style="width: 13.7631%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Briquetting</span></td>
<td style="width: 26.6526%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Fuel in gasification furnace, heaters, hot-water boilers, industrial boilers</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;"> It is a very good substitute for furnace oil, coal or direct wood.</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 28.2121%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Lack of availability of dry biomass because of dew in <g class="gr_ gr_230 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins doubleReplace replaceWithoutSep" id="230" data-gr-id="230">winter</g> season.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Lack of transportation facilities</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 25.5094%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Proper recognition for industry and those using briquettes.</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 5.86279%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;">3</td>
<td style="width: 13.7631%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Pelletisation</span></td>
<td style="width: 26.6526%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">It has good potential for being used as fuel in cooking stoves and heating applications in domestic as well as industry.</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 28.2121%; height: 19px;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Availability of raw materials crucial for <g class="gr_ gr_219 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins doubleReplace replaceWithoutSep" id="219" data-gr-id="219">business</g> model.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Often has a large size that leads to a high storage and transportation cost.</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 25.5094%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Subsidy on <g class="gr_ gr_214 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del" id="214" data-gr-id="214">cook stoves</g> targeting specific users for replacing wood or coal usage.</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 5.86279%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;">4</td>
<td style="width: 13.7631%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">BioCNG</span></p>
</td>
<td style="width: 26.6526%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Commercial&ndash;hotels, canteens, bakeries, resorts, residential clusters.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Industrial-glass and ceramic, cement, metal process, textiles, food processing,</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 28.2121%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Lack of financing.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Organized supply chain-Transportation of raw material from farmer to biogas plant needs to be streamlined.</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 25.5094%; height: 19px;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Funding support to entrepreneurs willing to establish 2G biogas/ Bio CNG units under NABARD soft loan scheme.</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;"> Exemption of GST on Biogas/Bio CNG and capital equipment and installation</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Tax breaks</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 5.86279%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;">5</td>
<td style="width: 13.7631%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Liquid fuels</span></td>
<td style="width: 26.6526%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">The petrol and diesel produced through this method will conform to Bharat VI norms and can be used directly in cars, trucks, engines etc</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 28.2121%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Varying feedstock costs (collection and transportation costs might vary).</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Storage and transportation</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 25.5094%; height: 19px;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Effectiveness and efficiency needs to be proven</span></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Monetize urban/rural wastes (assigns economic value to wastes)</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 19px;">
<td style="width: 5.86279%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top; text-align: center;">6</td>
<td style="width: 13.7631%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Bio-ethanol</span></td>
<td style="width: 26.6526%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">It could pave a way in the future for <g class="gr_ gr_217 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="217" data-gr-id="217">second generation</g> biofuels derived from crop-residues</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 28.2121%; height: 19px; vertical-align: top;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Lack of investments</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
<td style="width: 25.5094%; height: 19px;">
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li><span style="font-weight: 400;">Pre-treatment of paddy straw is being deployed at commercial scale and viability gap funding can be explored for such projects</span></li>
</ul>
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<p></p>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/summary-of-important-reports/action-plan-for-biomass-management'
	],
	(int) 17 => [
		'title' => 'Elders Compromise for Sake of Care from Family: Study',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>A study, released by Agewell Research and Advocacy Centre for the United Nations has revealed that majority of the elderly have to compromise with their life circumstances for the sake of care and support from their family members, and over 50% face abuse and mistreatment.</p>
<h3>Key Findings</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The elderly have to compromise and make adjustments in their lifestyle according to the wishes of the younger members of their families to ensure they are cared for.</li>
<li>Over 75% of respondents had to<strong> limit their personal social interactions</strong> as their family members direct them to do so, otherwise, their family members can avoid providing their basic needs for food and medicines.</li>
<li><strong>Breaking up of the joint family system</strong> is one of the biggest factors for the challenges they face in getting long-term, palliative care.</li>
<li>Though most of the elderly enjoyed their independence, a majority were <strong>financially dependent on others</strong> in their old age.</li>
<li>The elderly <strong>need healthcare services</strong> to ensure their independence in old age. Most of them need a social support system and recreational facilities to enable them to lead more enjoyable lives.</li>
<li>Most of the respondents were <strong>not getting any long-term palliative care</strong>. A majority of this needed traditional family support. While some sought maintenance to meet their old age requirements, others demanded better healthcare facilities and caregiving services in old age. Some of the respondents also spoke of the need for care and support such as housing and counselling as their most important needs.</li>
<li>The financial health of the elderly usually determined the nature and quality of palliative care they received. Though providing long-term and palliative care to the elderly comes under family responsibilities in India, it is observed that senior citizens who are financially independent and have a high net worth, or who hold property entitlements, are treated comparatively better by their family.</li>
<li>Many of the elderly were found to be <strong>unaware <g class="gr_ gr_81 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar multiReplace" id="81" data-gr-id="81">about</g> the status of the policy framework</strong> and support and services for them.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Challenges</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>Older people in India often face problems such as <strong>disability, restricted mobility, loneliness, poverty and lack of awareness on accessing old-term care.</strong> A fast-growing population of older people, the ever-increasing gap between generations and the fast and demanding lifestyle of young people contribute towards the major challenges faced by a majority of older people.</li>
<li>Managing home care for the elderly is a massive challenge to <strong>multiple service providers, nursing agencies, physiotherapists and medical suppliers, are small scale and unorganized</strong> and, therefore, <strong>provide incomplete care.</strong></li>
<li>In India, health insurance coverage is essentially limited to hospitalization. The concept of geriatric care has remained a neglected area of medicine so far in the country.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Way forward</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>There is an urgent need to make every elderly financially independent in old age. The provisions for ensuring independence in old age and long-term palliative care be made at all levels: family, community and government.</li>
<li>Healthcare equipment such as wheelchairs, relief material such as adult diapers and caregiving service should be provided on a regular basis to destitute older people, who are bedridden and suffering from acute mobility issues.<br /><br /></li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/elders-compromise-for-sake-of-care-from-family-study'
	],
	(int) 18 => [
		'title' => 'Important Facts for Prelims (July 7th, 2018)',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<h3>e-Tourist Visa Scheme</h3>
<ul>
<li>In <g class="gr_ gr_19 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Punctuation only-del replaceWithoutSep" id="19" data-gr-id="19">November,</g> 2014 the Government launched e-Tourist Visa scheme in 44 countries. This e-Visa facility has now been extended to 165 countries.</li>
<li>Under the e-visa scheme, foreigners do not have to meet any Indian official before their arrival at the landing port.<br />The government has installed e-Visa processing facilities at 25 airports and 5 seaports in the country. The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) is now working to extend the e-Visa scheme to more countries in a planned manner after consulting all the stakeholders.</li>
<li>The extension of <g class="gr_ gr_16 gr-alert gr_gramm gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim Grammar only-ins doubleReplace replaceWithoutSep" id="16" data-gr-id="16">e-Visa</g> scheme is aimed at encouraging tourism, business travel and health tourism in the country.</li>
<li>The government has done away with Embarkation and Disembarkation cards for Indian citizens and foreigners to streamline the immigration process.</li>
<li>MHA has also introduced e-FRRO services for those foreigners who are staying in India and who need services like visa extension, visa conversion, exit permit, registration, change of passport details, change of address and others.</li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/important-facts-for-prelims-july-7th-2018'
	],
	(int) 19 => [
		'title' => 'Give Legal Backing to MSP: CAPC',
		'catname' => 'News Analysis',
		'desc' => '<p>Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CAPC) has recommended that the Centre bring out a legislation which would give the 'right to sell at MSP' some legal teeth by giving farmers the right to sell their produce at those prices.</p>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>The CACP highlighted that the procurement mechanism is broken for most crops and for most farmers.</li>
<li>Often farmers of remote areas do not have sufficient access to APMCs (Agricultural Produce Market Committees) and their potential market is local haats where their produce is sold below MSP.</li>
<li>Strong procurement operations need to be expanded to neglected regions, particularly eastern and northeastern regions.</li>
<li>Therefore, the CAPC wants the Centre to bring in a legislation conferring the &ldquo;right to sell at MSP&rdquo;, which will give legal backing to the exercise, ensure that crops are not purchased below fixed price and &ldquo;instil confidence among farmers&rdquo;.</li>
</ul>
<h3>Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices</h3>
<ul style="list-style-type: square;">
<li>It is a statutory panel under the Ministry of Agriculture which makes the recommendations for MSPs for 23 <g class="gr_ gr_18 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_run_anim ContextualSpelling" id="18" data-gr-id="18">kharif</g> and rabi crops.</li>
<li>Its suggestions are not binding on the government.</li>
</ul>',
		'postdate' => object(Cake\I18n\FrozenTime) {},
		'url' => 'https://www.drishtiias.com/daily-updates/daily-news-analysis/give-legal-backing-to-msp-capc'
	]
]
$updates = object(Cake\ORM\Query) {

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

}
$page = (int) 277
$search = 'class'
$totalPages = (float) 288
$title = 'Search'
$lastyear = (int) 2018
$year = '2021'
$i = (int) 2017
$selected = ''
$m = (int) 13
$month = 'December'

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

Achievers Corner

Prelims

Mains & Interview

Current Affairs

Drishti Specials

Free Downloads

Test Series

Videos

Search

Search list matched with tags “class”