2 hours ago
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Iran to clasp atomic talks with European powers successful Geneva
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: Current events of nationalist and planetary importance.
Main Examination: General Studies II: Effect of policies and authorities of developed and processing countries connected India’s interests
What’s the ongoing story: Iran volition clasp talks astir its disputed atomic programme with 3 European powers connected Nov. 29 , the Iranian overseas ministry said connected Sunday, days aft the UN atomic watchdog passed a solution against Tehran.
Key Points to Ponder:
• Discuss the relation of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) successful ensuring planetary atomic security.
• Examine the cardinal issues surrounding Iran’s atomic programme and its implications for determination and planetary security.
• Highlight the relation of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and the IAEA successful addressing Iran’s atomic program.
• Critically analyse the value of the 2023 IAEA solution connected Iran’s atomic program.
• Discuss the interrelationship betwixt vigor diplomacy and atomic non-proliferation successful the discourse of Iran’s planetary engagements.
Key Takeaways:
• Iran is scheduled to prosecute successful discussions with France, Germany, and Britain connected November 29 successful Geneva, focusing connected its disputed atomic program. This gathering follows a solution by the U.N. atomic watchdog criticizing Iran, starring Tehran to activate caller precocious centrifuges for uranium enrichment.
• Deputy overseas ministers from Iran, France, Germany, and Britain volition participate, addressing some the atomic contented and determination matters specified arsenic Palestine and Lebanon.
• The talks are acceptable up of U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration, with hopes of resolving the atomic deadlock exacerbated since the U.S. withdrawal from the 2015 atomic pact and the reimposition of sanctions successful 2018.
• Iran emphasizes its content successful resolving the atomic contented done diplomacy, stating it has ne'er abandoned the talks.
• Indirect negotiations to revive the 2015 atomic pact person truthful acold been unsuccessful, but Trump emphasized the necessity of reaching a woody during his campaign.
Do You Know:
• The U.N. atomic watchdog’s 35-nation Board of Governors passed a solution connected Thursday again ordering Iran to urgently amended practice with the bureau and requesting a “comprehensive” study aimed astatine pressuring Iran into caller atomic talks.
• Britain, France, Germany and the United States, which projected the resolution, dismissed arsenic insufficient and insincere a last-minute Iranian determination to headdress its banal of uranium that is adjacent to weapons-grade. Diplomats said Iran’s determination was conditional connected scrapping the resolution.
• The IAEA and Iran person agelong been locked successful standoffs connected a scope of issues including Tehran’s nonaccomplishment to explicate uranium traces recovered astatine undeclared sites, its barring past twelvemonth of astir of the agency’s apical uranium-enrichment experts connected the Iran inspection team, and its refusal to grow IAEA monitoring.
• In 2018, the then-Trump medication exited Iran’s 2015 atomic pact with six large powers and reimposed harsh sanctions connected Iran, prompting Tehran to interruption the pact’s atomic limits, with moves specified arsenic rebuilding stockpiles of enriched uranium, refining it to higher fissile purity and installing precocious centrifuges to velocity up output.
• Indirect talks betwixt President Joe Biden’s medication and Tehran to effort to revive the pact person failed, but Trump said during his predetermination run successful September: “We person to marque a deal, due to the fact that the consequences are impossible. We person to marque a deal”.
Other Important Articles Covering the aforesaid topic:
📍Explained: Behind Iran’s atomic defiance
Previous twelvemonth UPSC Prelims Question Covering akin theme:
1. In the Indian context, what is the accusation of ratifying the ‘Additional Protocol’ with the ‘International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)’? (UPSC CSE, 2018)
(a) The civilian atomic reactors travel nether IAEA safeguards.
(b) The subject atomic installations travel nether the inspection of IAEA.
(c) The state volition person the privilege to bargain uranium from the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG).
(d) The state automatically becomes a subordinate of the NSG.
FRONT PAGE
Three changeable dormant successful Sambhal clashes, squad astatine mosque for 2nd survey
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: Current events of nationalist and planetary importance.
Main Examination: General Studies I: Secularism
What’s the ongoing story: The decease toll owing to convulsive clashes successful occidental Uttar Pradesh’s Sambhal aft a survey squad showed up astatine a mosque successful the country went up to 4 arsenic the constabulary confirmed that a 19-year-old lad passed distant due to the fact that of gunshot wounds.
Key Points to Ponder:
• Who has filed the case?
• What does the petition say?
• The Jama Masjid successful Sambhal-What you cognize astir the same?
• Why Sambhal holds spiritual value for Hindus?
• Why Court ordered survey astatine Sambhal shahi Jama masjid
• Discuss the socio-political and economical factors starring to communal unit successful India, with peculiar notation to the caller Sambhal clashes. How tin specified incidents beryllium efficaciously managed and prevented?
• Communal unit not lone disrupts instrumentality and bid but besides tears isolated the societal cloth of the nation. Critically analyse the relation of instrumentality enforcement agencies successful controlling and preventing incidents specified arsenic the Sambhal clashes.
• What is Section 144? Does the Constitution of India provides the State with powers to enforce curfews and Section 144 during communal violence?
• “Misinformation and mediocre governance often escalate communal tensions successful India.” Analyze this connection successful the discourse of the Sambhal clashes and suggest measures to code these issues.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of the existing ineligible model successful addressing communal unit successful India. Suggest reforms successful airy of caller events specified arsenic the Sambhal clashes.
• How tin community-driven initiatives and civilian nine organizations play a relation successful restoring bid and spot aft incidents similar the Sambhal clashes? Illustrate with examples.
• You are the District Magistrate of a portion wherever communal clashes person erupted, starring to casualties and spot damage. Media reports are escalating tensions further by spreading unverified claims. Discuss the ethical dilemmas you whitethorn look successful specified a concern and outline a step-by-step program to reconstruct bid and guarantee justness for the victims.
Key Takeaways:
• Three individuals were changeable dormant during clashes successful Sambhal, highlighting the strength of the ongoing tensions successful the region. The convulsive confrontation occurred adjacent a mosque, which was cardinal to the unfolding events.
• The struggle is linked to a delicate survey being conducted astatine the mosque, which escalated into violence. Authorities had to instrumentality for a 2nd survey astatine the mosque owed to unresolved disputes from the archetypal attempt.
• Three radical mislaid their lives successful the clashes, and it is unclear if others were injured. The incidental has apt exacerbated tensions betwixt assorted groups successful the area.
• A heightened information beingness is expected successful the portion to forestall further violence. Investigation and Accountability: Authorities are expected to analyse the circumstances that led to the fatalities and instrumentality due measures.
• The survey astatine the mosque whitethorn beryllium tied to larger, ongoing disputes implicit spiritual and humanities claims. This incidental could hinder dialog and bid efforts betwixt progressive parties.
Do You Know:
• The Jama Masjid “is a protected monument”, notified connected December 22, 1920 nether Section 3, sub-section (3) of Ancient Monuments Preservation Act, 1904. It has been “declared arsenic Monument of National value and figures connected the website of ASI, Agra ellipse Moradabad division” successful the database of centrally protected monuments.
• The plea claims determination is simply a “centuries aged Shri Hari Har Temple dedicated to Lord Kalki successful the bosom of metropolis of Sambhal which is being utilized forcibly and unlawfully” by the Jama Masjid Committee.
The petition says that “Sambhal is simply a humanities metropolis and holds unsocial value profoundly rooted successful Hindu Shastras, according to which it is ineffable tract wherever an incarnation of Lord Vishnu known arsenic Kalki manifest successful the future, a Divine fig yet to marque an appearance”.
• “Kalki is believed to beryllium tenth and past incarnation of Lord Vishnu, destined to get successful Kalyuga. His descent is believed to herald the extremity of the acheronian and tumultuous Kalyuga ushering successful the adjacent age, known arsenic Satyuga,” says the plea nether the heading “historical facts”.
• The petition says that that “Hindu scriptures corroborate that successful past times a unsocial ‘Vigrah’ consisting of Lord Vishnu and Lord Shiva emerged and owed to this reason, it is called ‘Shri Hari Har’ temple. It says that “Shri Hari Har temple of Sambhal was made by Lord Vishwakarma Himself successful the opening of the universe”.
• It further says that Babar invaded India successful 1526 AD and “destroyed a fig of Hindu temples to amusement the mightiness of Islam to marque the Hindus consciousness that they are subjects of Islamic ruler”.
• The plea says that “in 1527-28 Hindu Beg, the Lieutenant of Babar Army partially demolished Shri Hari Har temple astatine Sambhal” and that “the Muslims occupied the temple gathering to usage the aforesaid arsenic mosque”.
• The petitioners accidental that the monument is protected nether the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958 and nether conception 18 of the Act, the nationalist has the “right of entree to protected monument”.
• It says that the nationalist “has close of entree to the taxable spot successful accordance with Rule 5 of The Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Rules,1959.
Other Important Articles Covering the aforesaid topic:
📍UP Sambhal violence: what is the enactment astir the Shahi Jama Masjid
Previous twelvemonth UPSC Prelims Question Covering akin theme:
2. Which of the pursuing ineligible provisions successful India are astir commonly invoked during communal clashes?
(a) Section 375 of the IPC
(b) Section 144 of the CrPC
(c) Article 370 of the Constitution
(d) Article 356 of the Constitution
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: Current events of nationalist and planetary importance.
Main Examination:
• General Studies II: Effect of policies and authorities of developed and processing countries connected India’s interests, Indian diaspora.
• General Studies IV: Corporate governance.
What’s the ongoing story: With US prosecutors indicting Adani Group president Gautam S Adani and 7 others for allegedly offering bribes to Indian authorities officials, Bangladesh has decided to prosecute a “reputed ineligible and investigative firm” to assistance its “review” of large powerfulness procreation contracts including the Adani power trading pact.
Key Points to Ponder:
• Discuss the geopolitical and economical value of Adani powerfulness projects successful South Asia, peculiarly successful Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.
• Examine the challenges faced by South Asian countries similar Bangladesh and Sri Lanka successful balancing vigor demands with overseas investments successful large-scale powerfulness projects.
• Examine the implications of US prosecutors indicting a salient Indian concern person connected the India-US bilateral relationship. How tin some countries negociate imaginable diplomatic and economical fallout?
• Discuss the relation of regulatory transparency and firm governance successful maintaining India’s planetary economical reputation. How tin allegations against Indian companies impact India’s brushed powerfulness and overseas policy?
• You are an Indian diplomat posted successful the United States erstwhile a salient Indian concern person is indicted by US authorities, starring to important media scrutiny and nationalist discourse. Your big country’s officials rise concerns astir firm governance successful India. How would you code these concerns portion safeguarding India’s diplomatic and economical interests? Outline your attack and ethical considerations successful handling the situation.
Key Takeaways:
• The ongoing ineligible issues and governmental reviews successful Bangladesh and Sri Lanka whitethorn interaction the advancement and viability of Adani’s powerfulness projects successful these countries.
—The Bangladeshi authorities has established a committee led by Judge Moyeenul Islam Chowdhury to reassess powerfulness procreation contracts, including the 1 with Adani Power.
—The committee has recommended that the interim authorities prosecute an planetary ineligible steadfast to thoroughly analyse these agreements, aiming to guarantee adherence to planetary arbitration standards.
—The reappraisal encompasses contracts signed betwixt 2009 and 2024, scrutinizing some solicited and unsolicited agreements for financial, environmental, and sustainability concerns.
• Sri Lanka’s authorities has deferred the last determination connected the Adani powerfulness task to the Cabinet, indicating a cautious attack successful airy of caller developments.
• Adani Green Energy is acceptable to put $442 cardinal successful a upwind powerfulness task successful Mannar and Pooneryn, aiming to make 484 megawatts of upwind powerfulness implicit 20 years.
• Gautam Adani and 7 others person been indicted by a U.S. national tribunal connected charges of fraud and corruption, accused of paying important bribes to unafraid favourable contracts successful India’s star vigor sector.
• The U.S. International Development Finance Corporation is reassessing its engagement successful Adani’s Sri Lanka project, reflecting the broader implications of the ineligible challenges connected Adani’s planetary ventures.
Do You Know:
• The Bangladesh interim government, nether Prof Muhammad Yunus, had formed a high-level enquiry committee, consisting of vigor and ineligible experts, to re-examine the country’s powerfulness acquisition statement (PPA) with the Adani Group signed successful 2017. This was successful enactment with the absorption of the Bangladesh precocious court.
—On November 19, a two-judge bench, comprising Justice Farah Mahbub and Justice Debasish Roy Chowdhury, asked the authorities to taxable the committee’s study wrong 2 months, Bangladesh’s quality bureau UNB had reported.
—Additionally, the HC had ordered the authorities to taxable each documents related to the 25-year woody betwixt the powerfulness part and Adani Group successful a month’s time.
• In November 2017, Adani Power (Jharkhand) Ltd (APJL) signed a 25-year 1,496 MW (net) Power Purchase Agreement with the Bangladesh Power Development Board. Under this, Bangladesh would bargain 100 per cent energy produced by AJPL’s Godda plant. The unit, which runs connected 100 per cent imported coal, was declared a Special Economic Zone by the Indian authorities successful March 2019.
—The Godda plant, afloat commercially operational during April-June 2023, supplies 7-10 per cent of Bangladesh’s basal load. In 2023-24, it exported astir 7,508 cardinal units of power, oregon astir 63 per cent of India’s full powerfulness exports of 11,934 cardinal units to Bangladesh.
—In worth terms, India’s powerfulness exports to Bangladesh had crossed $1 billion, astir 10 per cent of India’s full exports to its neighbour.
• In the lawsuit of Sri Lanka, the caller authorities led by Anura Kumara Dissanayake is yet to instrumentality a last determination regarding the Adani Green Energy Ltd. (AGEL) upwind powerfulness task successful Mannar and Pooneryn, among different ongoing investments successful the country.
Other Important Articles Covering the aforesaid topic:
📍 Adani indictment successful US damages planetary credibility of India Inc
Previous twelvemonth UPSC Prelims Question Covering akin theme:
3. Which of the pursuing is simply a large origin influencing Bangladesh’s determination to prosecute a steadfast to reappraisal Adani’s powerfulness project?
(a) Growing energy surplus successful Bangladesh
(b) Concerns implicit tariff rates and fiscal agreements
(c) Disputes implicit task location
(d) Political absorption to overseas investments
Abysmally low: India slams developed world’s concern woody astatine Baku
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: Current events of nationalist and planetary importance.
Main Examination: General Studies II: Bilateral, determination and planetary groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests.
What’s the ongoing story: Completely ignoring the demands of the processing nations for mobilisation of astatine slightest 1.3 trillion dollars a twelvemonth successful clime finance, the developed countries managed to unit an statement astatine the COP29 gathering successful Baku, promising to enactment unneurotic conscionable 300 cardinal dollars a year, that excessively from 2035.
Key Points to Ponder:
• Discuss the value of clime concern successful addressing planetary clime alteration challenges. Why has India expressed disappointment with the outcomes of COP29?
• Evaluate the rule of Common but Differentiated Responsibilities and Respective Capabilities (CBDR-RC) successful the discourse of India’s presumption connected the accrued clime concern commitments astatine COP29.
• “India’s disagreement astatine COP29 reflects the concerns of galore processing nations regarding the inequity successful clime negotiations.” Analyse this connection with notation to humanities emissions and fiscal commitments of developed countries.
• What are the implications of tripling clime concern to $300 cardinal annually for processing countries? How tin India guarantee its concerns are addressed successful aboriginal clime negotiations?
• Critically analyse the challenges faced by processing countries successful accessing and utilizing clime finance. Suggest measures to heighten the transparency and effectiveness of clime backing mechanisms.
Key Takeaways:
• India has formally opposed the clime concern statement reached astatine the COP29 acme successful Baku, Azerbaijan, labelling it an “optical illusion” that fails to code the important challenges posed by clime change.
• The Indian delegation criticized the $300 cardinal yearly concern people arsenic insufficient, emphasizing that it does not conscionable the needs of processing nations.
• Several processing countries, including Nigeria, Malawi, and Bolivia, person expressed dissatisfaction with the agreement, arguing that the fiscal commitments autumn abbreviated of the $1.3 trillion they deem indispensable to efficaciously combat clime change. These nations are acrophobic that the agreed-upon funds whitethorn not beryllium capable to enactment their modulation to renewable vigor and to code the impacts of clime change.
• The statement sets a people of mobilizing astatine slightest $300 cardinal annually by 2035 to assistance processing countries successful their clime efforts. The funds are intended to enactment the modulation from fossil fuels, adaptation to clime impacts, and compensation for losses owed to climate-related events.
• The statement lacks wide commitments to signifier retired fossil fuels, with absorption from large oil-producing nations similar Saudi Arabia and Russia. Discussions highlighted the request for wealthier processing nations, specified arsenic China and Gulf states, to lend to clime finance, a constituent of contention among negotiators.
• The outcomes of COP29 acceptable the signifier for further negotiations astatine the COP30 acme successful Brazil, wherever nations purpose to physique upon the existent statement and code existing shortcomings. There is simply a recognized request for accrued fiscal commitments and much decisive enactment to conscionable the accelerating challenges of clime change.
Do You Know:
• The 2015 Paris Agreement had asked that a caller extremity connected concern (called New Cumulative Quantitative Goal oregon NCQG) beryllium decided upon earlier 2025. It does not accidental from which twelvemonth the caller magnitude has to beryllium mobilised. Based connected a fewer assessments of their requirements, the processing countries had been asking for the NCQG to beryllium acceptable astatine 1.3 trillion dollars each year.
• India’s objections bash not mean it has rejected the agreement. Stopping abbreviated of dissociating itself from it, India is inactive a portion of the statement agreement. Its objections were directed astatine the process followed for adopting the agreement, and to the 300-billion dollar figure.
• The main docket of COP29 was to finalise this NCQG. After keeping their cards adjacent to their thorax done astir of the two-week league — and during the 3 twelvemonth negotiations preceding that — the developed countries yet offered to rise the 100 cardinal dollar fig to conscionable 250 cardinal dollars, a connection that prompted aggravated responses from the processing countries, including a walk-out from the gathering by immoderate of them connected Friday. It had led to the suspension of talks astatine COP29, and pushed it into the other day.
• Apart from agreeing, aft overmuch haggling, to rise the connection to 300 cardinal dollars and nary more, the developed countries besides rejected the different associated demands of the processing countries — for the magnitude to beryllium mostly financed from nationalist sources and disbursed chiefly successful the signifier of grants oregon concessionary loans.
• The last statement said the 300 cardinal dollars would beryllium raised done a “variety of sources, nationalist and private, bilateral and multilateral, including alternate sources”. There is nary circumstantial assurance the wealth would beryllium disbursed successful the signifier of grants oregon concessionary loans.
• The COP29 gathering finalised a fewer different agreements, astir notably the 1 connected the rules governing c markets. It paves the mode for the operationalisation of c markets, allowing countries to commercialized successful c credits.
Other Important Articles Covering the aforesaid topic:
Previous twelvemonth UPSC Prelims Question Covering akin theme:
4. With notation to the Agreement astatine the UNFCCC Meeting successful Paris successful 2015, which of the pursuing statements is/are correct? (2016)’
1. The Agreement was signed by each the subordinate countries of the UN, and it volition spell into effect successful 2017.
2. The Agreement aims to bounds the greenhouse state emissions truthful that the emergence successful mean planetary somesthesia by the extremity of this period does not transcend 2ºC oregon adjacent 1.5ºC supra pre-industrial levels.
3. Developed countries acknowledged their humanities work successful planetary warming and committed to donate $ 1000 cardinal a twelvemonth from 2020 to assistance processing countries to header with clime change.
Select the close reply utilizing the codification fixed below:
(a) 1 and 3 only
(b) 2 only
(c) 2 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
THE IDEAS PAGE
Three solutions for cleanable air
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: Current events of nationalist and planetary importance.
Main Examination: General Studies III: Conservation, biology contamination and degradation, biology interaction assessment.
What’s the ongoing story: Ashok Gulati, Reena Singh Writes: Better inducement for harvest diversification, greater concern successful power to electrical vehicles and different innovative technologies are needed to code the contamination situation successful Delhi. This is simply a substance of survival.
Key Points to Ponder:
• Discuss the relation of cultivation practices successful contributing to aerial contamination successful North India?
• Analyse the economical and biology implications of transitioning from paddy cultivation to little water-intensive crops successful Haryana and Punjab, based connected the recommendations successful the article.
• Critically measure the feasibility of the cardinal and authorities governments sharing the costs of harvest diversification to trim stubble burning, arsenic suggested by the authors.
• Examine the imaginable challenges successful implementing the “new deal” for farmers projected by Ashok Gulati and Reena Singh to code aerial pollution.
• How tin gathering spot among farmers lend to the palmy adoption of sustainable cultivation practices aimed astatine improving aerial quality, according to the article?
Key Takeaways:
• According to the University of Chicago’s Air Quality Life Index Report 2023, prolonged vulnerability to terrible aerial contamination could trim the beingness expectancy of Delhi residents by an alarming 11.9 years. In the meantime, our elected leaders are engaged successful a blasted crippled alternatively than uncovering a sustainable solution.
• The strategical measures to combat aerial contamination successful India is to code cultivation residue burning. Stubble burning successful states similar Punjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh importantly contributes to aerial pollution, particularly successful the National Capital Region (NCR).
• Promote the usage of machines similar the Happy Seeder, which allows farmers to sow wheat without removing paddy stubble, thereby reducing the request for burning. Encourage the postulation and utilization of harvest residue for producing bioenergy oregon arsenic earthy worldly successful industries, providing farmers with an further income stream.
• Rapid urbanization has led to accrued vehicular emissions, contributing to deteriorating aerial prime successful cities. Expand and modernize nationalist proscription systems to connection businesslike and affordable alternatives to backstage vehicles. Develop infrastructure for walking and cycling to trim reliance connected motorized transport. Encourage the usage of electrical vehicles (EVs) and instrumentality stricter emanation norms for accepted vehicles.
• Despite having biology regulations, enforcement remains weak, starring to continued contamination from industries and different sources. Engage citizens successful monitoring aerial prime and reporting violations, fostering a civilization of accountability. Provide incentives for industries and businesses that follow cleaner technologies and adhere to biology standards.
Do You Know:
• As wintertime sets in, the upwind velocity slows down successful the Himalayan shade, and pollutants (PM 2.5) bent successful the air. As per the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune, during the archetypal fractional of November 2024, the comparative publication from stubble burning (particularly from Punjab and Haryana) peaked astatine astir 35.18 per cent connected November 1 (Figure 1). This was followed by Delhi’s transport sector, contributing astir 19 per cent. Other sources impacting particulate substance (PM 2.5) included residential areas (3.9 per cent), industries (4.6 per cent), operation (2.4 per cent), roadworthy particulate (1.4 per cent), and different sources (1.2 per cent).
• A quarter-century ago, implicit 200 scientists from the US, Europe, the Maldives, and India came unneurotic to survey the haze implicit the Indian Ocean. Led by atmospheric idiosyncratic V Ramanathan of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography successful California, the Indian Ocean Experiment (INDOEX) undertook intensive tract observations utilizing aircraft, ships, aboveground stations, and satellites.
—They discovered a elephantine brownish furniture of unreality hanging implicit overmuch of the Indian Subcontinent and the Indian Ocean betwixt October and February, which they termed the Indian Ocean Brown Cloud oregon Asian Brown Cloud.
—INDOEX revealed that this furniture was chiefly created by the burning of biomass successful fields and homes, arsenic good arsenic fossil fuels similar ember successful industries, and that it travelled thousands of kilometres.
—The survey besides recovered that the haze importantly affected determination temperatures, precipitation patterns, and ground-level pollution, reducing cultivation productivity and causing wide respiratory and cardiovascular diseases.
Other Important Articles Covering the aforesaid topic:
📍 We knew what caused aerial contamination 25 years agone – but governments inactive won’t act
Previous twelvemonth UPSC Mains Question Covering akin theme:
📍Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata are the 3 megacities of the state but the aerial contamination is overmuch much superior occupation successful Delhi arsenic compared to the different two. Why is this so? (2015)
ECONOMY
‘Weak concern activity, sluggish municipality depletion whitethorn resistance Q2 GDP to 6.5%’
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: Current events of nationalist and planetary importance.
Main Examination: General Studies III: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, improvement and employment.
What’s the ongoing story: Slow gait of concern activity, particularly successful manufacturing, mining and energy sectors, amid prolonged rainfall on with tepid depletion growth, chiefly successful municipality areas, is apt to person resulted successful a slower economical maturation complaint successful the July-September quarter.
Key Points to Ponder:
• Examine the relation of concern enactment and municipality depletion successful driving India’s economical growth.
• What are the cardinal factors affecting India’s GDP maturation successful the 2nd 4th of the fiscal twelvemonth 2024?
• Evaluate the interaction of subdued municipality depletion connected India’s wide economical performance.
• How tin the authorities and policymakers stimulate municipality request successful the abbreviated and agelong term?
• “Weak concern enactment is often a reflection of deeper structural issues wrong the economy.” Critically measure this connection successful airy of the caller GDP projections.
• Discuss the value of balanced maturation crossed the industrial, agricultural, and work sectors for sustaining India’s economical momentum.
Key Takeaways:
• India’s GDP maturation for the July-September 4th of 2024 is expected to alteration to 6.5%, marking the slowest gait successful 1 and a fractional years. Elevated nutrient prices person reduced household spending, importantly impacting backstage consumption, which constitutes astir 60% of India’s GDP.
• Sales crossed assorted sectors, including automobiles and user goods, person declined. Notably, rider conveyance income recorded their archetypal driblet successful 10 quarters. The manufacturing and mining sectors person shown slower growth, contributing to the wide economical deceleration.
• The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) projects a rebound to 7.6% maturation successful the existent quarter, driven by festival-related consumption. However, economists see this forecast overly optimistic.
Economists person adjusted the maturation forecast for the fiscal twelvemonth to 6.8%, with the adjacent year’s projection lowered to 6.6%
• Sustained economical maturation supra 8% is deemed indispensable to make capable employment for India’s increasing younker population. The existent slowdown raises concerns astir gathering this employment demand.
• The anticipated diminution successful GDP maturation to 6.5% successful Q2 reflects challenges specified arsenic precocious nutrient inflation, reduced user spending, and weakened concern activity. Addressing these issues is important to revitalize economical maturation and conscionable employment needs.
Do You Know:
• The GDP information for July-September is scheduled to beryllium released by the National Statistical Office (NSO) connected November 29 astatine 1600 IST. The GDP maturation estimates scope betwixt 6.2 to 6.9 per cent for July-September.
• While 1 of the biggest concerns is regarding the dilatory gait of capex by some states and Centre, a pickup successful agrarian request and cultivation maturation is seen supporting maturation going ahead.
• The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation came into beingness arsenic an Independent Ministry connected 15th Oct 1999, aft the merger of the Department of Statistics and the Department of Programme Implementation.
—The Ministry has 2 wings, 1 relating to Statistics and the different Programme Implementation.
—The Statistics Wing called the National Statistical Office (NSO) consists of the Central Statistical Office (CSO), the Computer centre and the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO).
—The Programme Implementation Wing has 3 Divisions, namely, (i) Twenty Point Programme (ii) Infrastructure Monitoring and Project Monitoring and (iii) Member of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme.
—Besides these 2 wings, determination is National Statistical Commission created done a Resolution of Government of India (MOSPI) and 1 autonomous Institute, viz., Indian Statistical Institute declared arsenic an institute of National value by an Act of Parliament.
Other Important Articles Covering the aforesaid topic:
📍India’s maturation outlook supported by robust home engines: RBI article
EXPLAINED
Why Shia vs Sunni clashes proceed successful Pakistan’s Kurram
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: Current events of nationalist and planetary importance.
Main Examination: General Studies II: Effect of policies and authorities of developed and processing countries connected India’s interests,
What’s the ongoing story: Sectarian unit is sweeping done the picturesque Kurram territory successful Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province after much than 45 Shia travellers were massacred by militants in Bagan municipality connected November 21.
Key Points to Ponder:
• Map Work- Kurram district, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province
• Shia and Sunni-Know successful detail
• “Sectarian unit is not conscionable a spiritual contented but a geopolitical and socio-political challenge.” Discuss this connection successful the discourse of Shia-Sunni conflicts successful Pakistan, with a absorption connected the Kurram district.
• Examine the humanities and geopolitical factors that person intensified Shia-Sunni sectarian unit successful Pakistan.
• Discuss the relation of outer actors successful fuelling sectarian unit successful regions similar Kurram.
• How bash Iran and Saudi Arabia’s interests power Shia-Sunni dynamics successful Pakistan?
• Analyze the interaction of sectarian unit connected societal cohesion and economical improvement successful conflict-prone regions similar Pakistan’s Kurram district.
• The Kurram territory successful Pakistan has been a flashpoint for sectarian unit for decades. Discuss the socio-political and geographical reasons for its vulnerability to conflict.
Key Takeaways:
• Kurram district, situated successful Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, shares a borderline with Afghanistan, making it geopolitically significant. Unlike overmuch of Pakistan, Kurram has a important Shia Muslim population, starring to a unsocial sectarian dynamic wrong the region.
• More than 99% of Kurram’s 7.85 lakh colonisation (2023 census) are Pashtuns belonging to the Turi, Bangash, Zaimusht, Mangal, Muqbal, Masuzai, and Parachamkani tribes. The Turi and immoderate Bangash are Shia, the remainder are Sunni.
• The territory has a past of sectarian violence, with periodic clashes betwixt Shia and Sunni communities implicit the years. Proximity to Afghanistan has exposed Kurram to spill implicit effects from determination conflicts, exacerbating section sectarian tensions.
• In November 2024, a deadly onslaught connected a convoy of Shia Muslims resulted successful important casualties, marking 1 of the deadliest sectarian incidents successful caller years. The archetypal onslaught led to retaliatory unit betwixt Shia and Sunni groups, further escalating the struggle and resulting successful further deaths and injuries.
• Long-standing onshore disputes betwixt tribal groups person often served arsenic flashpoints for sectarian unit successful the region. The beingness of militant groups exploiting sectarian divides has intensified conflicts, with outer actors sometimes providing enactment to these factions.
Do You Know:
• According to a presumption made earlier Pakistan’s Election Commission successful 2018, Shias marque up astir 45% of the district’s population, much than thrice their 10-15% stock successful Pakistan’s colonisation arsenic a whole. The bulk of Shias unrecorded successful Upper Kurram tehsil; Sunnis predominate Lower and Central Kurram.
• Upper Kurram has acold amended literacy and economical improvement indicators than the Sunni-dominated tehsils. Bagan, connected the way from the territory office of Parachinar to the Peshawar provincial headquarters, is successful Lower Kurram.
• The Shia Turi erstwhile controlled overmuch of the onshore successful what is present Upper and Lower Kurram, but are present mostly restricted to Upper Kurram. According to immoderate estimates, arsenic overmuch arsenic 83% of the tehsil’s colonisation is Shia (Turi and immoderate Bangash).
• Sectarian tensions are often an hold of persistent tribal rivalries and contention for resources successful a portion not blessed with abundance. The usage of patronage and bribery by the British to “control” the north-western frontier benefitted definite tribes and clans astatine the outgo of others, which led to deep-seated grievances that proceed to aboveground successful the signifier of onshore disputes.
• Even aft the British left, not overmuch changed successful the mode the portion was ruled. Kurram became portion of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA), wherever aboriginal 20th period laws applied until arsenic precocious arsenic 2018, erstwhile FATA was merged with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Other Important Articles Covering the aforesaid topic:
📍Rather than shoring up nationalist identity, religion creates schisms
Treaty to tackle integrative pollution
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: Current events of nationalist and planetary importance.
Main Examination: General Studies III: Conservation, biology contamination and degradation, biology interaction assessment.
What’s the ongoing story: Starting Monday, much than 170 countries volition converge successful Busan, Republic of Korea, to negociate a caller legally binding planetary pact to extremity integrative pollution, including marine pollution. This is the 5th (and final) circular of talks since 2022, erstwhile the UN Environmental Assembly (UNEA) agreed to make specified a by the extremity of 2024.
Key Points to Ponder:
• Why is simply a planetary integrative pact required?
• What is connected the negotiating table?
• What is India’s position?
• Discuss the challenges faced by planetary leaders successful drafting a legally binding pact to code plastic pollution.
• What is the relation of large petrochemical-producing countries successful the Global Plastic Treaty negotiations?
• Evaluate the value of the Global Plastic Treaty successful the discourse of planetary biology agreements.
• Examine the perspectives of consumer-facing companies successful the Global Plastic Treaty discussions.
Key Takeaways:
• Plastic accumulation has surged from 2 cardinal tonnes successful 1950 to 348 cardinal tonnes successful 2017, with projections indicating a imaginable doubling by 2040. The proliferation of integrative discarded has led to important biology challenges, including marine contamination and adverse effects connected wildlife.
• In March 2022, the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) adopted a solution to make a legally binding pact addressing integrative contamination crossed its full lifecycle. The projected pact aims to encompass measures from integrative accumulation and plan to discarded management, emphasizing a broad attack to tackling pollution.
• Developing countries advocator for fiscal and method enactment to negociate integrative waste, portion developed nations stress reducing integrative accumulation and promoting recycling. Some corporations enactment the treaty, focusing connected recycling and discarded management, whereas others explicit concerns astir imaginable economical impacts and regulatory constraints.
Do You Know:
• India contributes to a 5th of planetary integrative pollution, according to a survey published successful the diary Nature successful September. It accounts for 20% of the world’s planetary integrative contamination with emissions of 9.3 mt, which is importantly much than the countries adjacent successful the database — Nigeria (3.5 mt), Indonesia (3.4 mt) and China (2.8 mt), the survey said.
• India has made it wide that it does not enactment immoderate restrictions connected the accumulation of polymers. Any restrictions are beyond the mandate of the UNEA’s solution adopted astatine Nairobi successful 2022, according to India. The state has besides sought the inclusion of fiscal and method assistance, and exertion transportation successful the substantive provisions of immoderate last treaty.
• On the exclusion of harmful chemicals utilized for integrative production, India has said that immoderate determination should beryllium based connected technological studies, and the regularisation of specified chemicals should beryllium regulated domestically.
• India banned the usage of single-use plastics covering 19 categories successful 2022. However, the state has said that a determination connected the contented of including definite integrative items for phase-out successful the last pact should beryllium “pragmatic” and “regulation should beryllium nationally driven taking into relationship nationalist circumstances.”
Other Important Articles Covering the aforesaid topic:
📍India generates highest integrative contamination successful world: what a caller survey found
Previous twelvemonth UPSC Prelims Question Covering akin theme:
5. Why is determination a large interest astir the ‘microbeads’ that are released into environment? (2019)
(a) They are considered harmful to marine ecosystems.
(b) They are considered to origin tegument cancer successful children.
(c) They are tiny capable to beryllium absorbed by harvest plants successful irrigated fields.
(d) They are often recovered to beryllium utilized arsenic nutrient adulterants.
WHY SATELLITE SPACE JUNK MAY BE BAD NEWS FOR THE ENVIRONMENT
Syllabus:
Preliminary Examination: Current events of nationalist and planetary importance.
Main Examination: General Studies III: Awareness successful the fields of IT, Space, Computers, robotics, nano-technology, biotechnology and issues relating to intelligence spot rights.
What’s the ongoing story: More than 10,000 progressive satellites are successful orbit astir the satellite today. This fig is estimated to sprout up to much than 100,000 by the 2030s, and perchance fractional a cardinal successful the decades to follow.
Key Points to Ponder:
• Discuss the biology concerns associated with outer abstraction junk, with a absorption connected the pollutants released during atmospheric re-entry. Suggest measures to code this issue.
• The expanding fig of satellites successful Earth’s orbit has raised concerns astir biology contamination owed to abstraction debris. Critically measure the implications and suggest argumentation interventions for sustainable abstraction exploration.
• Analyse the relation of planetary collaboration successful addressing the challenges posed by outer abstraction junk. How tin planetary efforts guarantee some the information of abstraction operations and biology protection?
Key Takeaways:
• When satellites re-enter Earth’s atmosphere, they pain up, releasing assorted materials. This process tin present pollutants into the atmosphere, perchance affecting aerial prime and contributing to ozone furniture depletion.
• The accumulation of debris successful orbit increases the hazard of collisions, starring to much fragments and exacerbating the abstraction junk problem. This tin hinder aboriginal abstraction missions and airs threats to existing satellites.
• While astir debris burns up upon re-entry, larger fragments tin scope the Earth’s surface, posing risks to quality beingness and property. Incidents of abstraction debris crashing into inhabited areas, though rare, person been documented.
• Monitoring smaller debris is challenging, making collision avoidance and debris absorption complex. Addressing abstraction debris requires planetary cooperation, arsenic debris from 1 nation’s satellites tin impact others. Establishing and enforcing planetary guidelines is indispensable for effectual mitigation.
• Technologies specified arsenic laser brooms and outer nets are being explored to actively region debris from orbit. These methods purpose to trim the magnitude of abstraction junk and forestall aboriginal collisions.
Do You Know:
• Daniel Murphy, an atmospheric idiosyncratic astatine the US National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and others presented definitive grounds that “10% of the aerosol particles successful the stratosphere incorporate aluminium and different metals that originated from the burn-up of satellites, and rocket stages during re-entry”(‘Metals from spacecraft re-entry successful stratospheric aerosol particles’, 2023).
• Connor Barker, an atmospheric chemist from the University College of London, and others recovered that emissions of aluminium and nitrogen oxides from outer re-entries importantly accrued from 3.3 cardinal grams successful 2020 to 5.6 cardinal grams successful 2022.
• Scientists are peculiarly acrophobic astir the interaction of this contamination connected the ozone furniture successful Earth’s stratosphere. This furniture absorbs up to 99% of ultraviolet rays from the Sun, which would different harm surviving organisms connected Earth’s surface.
Other Important Articles Covering the aforesaid topic:
📍Burnt-up rockets, satellites are polluting Earth’s atmosphere, with chartless consequences
| PRELIMS ANSWER KEY |
| 1. (a) 2. (b) 3. (d) 4. (b) 5. (a) |
For immoderate queries and feedback, interaction priya.shukla@indianexpress.com
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