Mekedatu project

• The Mekedatu project is a multipurpose project involving the construction of a balancing reservoir near Kanakapura in Ramanagara district, Karnataka.
• Mekedatu, meaning goat’s leap, is a deep gorge situated at the confluence of the rivers Cauvery and its tributary Arkavathi.
• Its primary objectives are to provide drinking water to Bengaluru and neighbouring areas, totalling 4.75 TMC, and generate 400 MW of power.

Issues surrounding Mekedatu project: 

• The project aims to store and supply water for drinking purposes for the Bengaluru city. Around 400 megawatts (MW) of power is also proposed to be generated through the project. 
• However, Tamil Nadu objected saying that the project would affect the flow of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu. Tamil Nadu also argues that the project is against the final order of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal (CWDT) in which the SC held that no state can claim exclusive ownership or assert rights to deprive other states of the waters of inter-state rivers. 

Way forward

• The Mekedatu Dam dispute is a complex and sensitive issue that involves legal, technical and political aspects. The dispute reflects the competing demands and interests of two states over a shared natural resource that is vital for their development and livelihoods.
• The dispute also poses a challenge to cooperative federalism and inter-state relations in India. The resolution of this dispute requires dialogue, negotiation and compromise among all stakeholders, based on scientific data, legal principles and equitable distribution of water.

  River Cauvery (Kaveri) It is known as ‘Ponni’ in Tamil, and it is the fourth largest river in southern India. It is a sacred river of southern India. It rises on Brahmagiri Hill of the Western Ghats in southwestern Karnataka state, flows in a south easterly direction through the states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, and descends the Eastern Ghats in a series of great falls and drains into Bay of Bengal through  Left Bank Tributary: Arkavathi, Hemavathi, Shimsa, and Harangi. Right Bank Tributary:Lakshmantirtha, Suvarnavati, Noyil, Bhavani, Kabini, and Amaravathi.

Brain-Eating Amoeba: Naegleria fowleri

• Naegleria fowleri, commonly known as the brain-eating amoeba, is a free-living microscopic amoeba that can cause a rare and devastating brain infection called primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM).
• It is a microscopic organism that can only be seen with a microscope.

At-risk Individuals:

• While the human body is generally vulnerable to Naegleria fowleri, infections are extremely rare.
• Certain factors can increase vulnerability, such as a weakened immune system, a history of nasal or sinus issues, or activities involving exposure to warm freshwater.

Symptoms:

• As per the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the first signs of it start showing within one to 12 days after the infection. 
• In the initial stages, they might be similar to symptoms of meningitis, which are headache, nausea and fever. 
• In the later stages, one can suffer from a stiff neck, seizures, hallucinations, and even coma.

Treatment:

• Treatment includes a combination of drugs.
• The drug Miltefosine has shown efficacy in killing Naegleria fowleri in laboratory settings and has been used successfully in the treatment of some survivors.
• Even with treatment, the chances of surviving Naegleria fowleri infection remain low with a recorded death rate of 97 per cent.

Prevention

• Avoidance of Warm Freshwater: Especially in warm seasons when the amoeba is more likely to thrive.
• Nasal Protection: Using nose clips or avoiding putting the head underwater in freshwater bodies can reduce the risk.
• Water Safety: Ensuring swimming pools and other recreational water venues are properly maintained and chlorinated.

Defence Acquisition Council

What is the Defence Acquisition Council?

• The DAC is the highest decision-making body in the Defence Ministry for deciding on new policies and capital acquisitions for the three services (Army, Navy and Air Force) and the Indian Coast Guard.
• The Minister of Defence is the Chairman of the Council.
• It was formed, after the Group of Ministers recommendations on ''Reforming the National Security System'', in 2001, post Kargil War (1999).

Composition

• Chaired by the Defence Minister of India, the DAC includes members from the armed forces, Ministry of Defence, and other relevant departments. The Chief of Defence Staff and the three Service Chiefs are also part of the council.

Objective:

• The main objective of the defence acquisition procedure is to provide the military with the products or weapons according to their needs. The products have to be specific to increase their mission capabilities.
• Another objective of introducing DAP is to ease the business proceedings. And to promote the making of weaponry and military equipment in India. Supporting domestic defence manufacturing will not only provide us security it will also be beneficial for our economy. So, our government wants to decrease the import of weapons and military platforms in our country. The military products which will come under the Defence Acquisition procedure are light tanks, communication equipment, airborne stand-off jammers, stimulators, etc.

Functions:

• Give in-principle approval of a 15-year Long Term Integrated Perspective Plan (LTIPP) for defence forces.
• Accord of acceptance of necessity to acquisition proposals.
• Categorization of the acquisition proposals relating to ‘Buy’, ‘Buy & Make’, and ‘Make’.
• Look into issues relating to single vendor clearance.
• Take decisions regarding ‘offset’ provisions in respect of acquisition proposals above Rs 300 crore.
• Take decisions regarding the transfer of technology under the ‘Buy & Make’ category of acquisition proposals.
• Field trial evaluation.

Project Tiger:

• It is a tiger conservation programme (a Centrally Sponsored Scheme of the MoEF&CC) launched in 1973 by the Government of India and administered by the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA).

It aims at

• Ensuring a viable population of the Bengal tiger (‘endangered’) in its natural habitats,
• Protecting it from extinction,
• Preserving areas of biological importance as a natural heritage that represent the diversity of ecosystems across the tiger''s range in the country. 

Growth Rate in Tiger Population:

• The first tiger census, in 1972, used the unreliable pug-mark method to count 1,827 tigers.
• As of 2022, the tiger population is estimated at 3,167-3,925, showcasing a growth rate of 6.1% per year.
• India is now home to three-quarters of the world’s tigers.

Developments After the Launch of the Project Tiger

• In 2005, the then PM appointed a 5-member ‘Tiger Task Force’ after a public outcry that India’s tigers existed only on paper and not in the forests of Sariska in Rajasthan.

In Sariska, the government had spent Rs 2 crore per tiger in 2002-2003 for their upkeep and safety, versus Rs 24 lakh per tiger elsewhere.

• The Task Force found that the increasing conflict between the forest/wildlife bureaucracy and those who coexist with the tigers was a recipe for disaster.
• So, the Parliament amended WLPA in 2006 to create the National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) and a tiger conservation plan.

   From an administrative category arbitrarily constituted and administered by the forest  bureaucracy, Tiger Reserves became a statutory category in 2006.

• Later, the government also enacted the Forest Rights Act (FRA) 2006, which recognised all customary and traditional forest rights - individual as well as community - on all forest land, including in Tiger Reserves.

1. Under the Act, the habitation-level Gram Sabha was to democratically determine and demarcate the forest rights that FRA recognised and vested in them.
2. As a result, FRA secured the livelihoods of at least 20 crore Indians – about half of them tribal – in 1.79 lakh villages.
3. Importantly, FRA introduced a ‘Critical Wildlife Habitat’ (CWH), akin to the CTH, with one difference: once a CWH had been notified, it couldn’t be diverted for non-forestry purposes.

Anti-conversion laws

• Anti-conversion laws refer to laws that are designed to prevent or prohibit the conversion of one religion to another. These laws may be used to prevent individuals from leaving a particular religion or to prevent religious groups from proselytizing or recruiting members from other religious groups.
• The specific provisions of anti-conversion laws vary from place to place and may be enforced through criminal or civil penalties. In some cases, anticonversion laws are used to protect the dominant religion in a particular society or to suppress minority religions.

Need for Anti-Conversion Laws

• Protection of cultural and social cohesion: Some people believe that these laws are necessary to prevent conflicts and divisions within a community that can arise from religious conversions.
• Preservation of traditions and beliefs: Supporters argue that anti-conversion laws help safeguard the influence and power of a particular religion by preventing erosion due to conversions.
• Prevention of coercion and deception: Advocates claim that these laws are essential to protect individuals from being forced or deceived into converting to another religion.
• Instances of fraudulent marriages: There have been cases where individuals were forced to convert after marrying someone from a different religion, leading to concerns about deceitful practices.
• Judicial recognition: The Supreme Court has acknowledged incidents of forced conversion, highlighting their violation of an individual’s right to freedom of religion, as well as their impact on the secular foundation of society.

Challenges of conversion laws:

• Freedom of conscience – The petitioners argued that restrictions on conversion contravened their fundamental rights since Article 25(1) of the Constitution should include the right to convert under the word ‘propogation’.
• However, the court held that Article 25 does not give the right to convert but only “to transmit or spread one’s religion by an exposition of its tenets”.
• Judicial criticisms: In 1977, a five-judge upheld the constitutionality of India’s first two anti-conversion laws: the Orissa Freedom of Religion Act, 1967 and Madhya Pradesh’s MP Dharma Swatantrya Adhiniyam, 1968.
• But the verdict in this case, Stainislaus vs State of Madhya Pradesh, has been criticised by constitutional experts because the court held that this right does not include voluntary conversions.
• Burden of proving that the conversion was ‘lawful’ lies on the person who ‘caused’ the conversion. This provision ignores the opinion of those who converted and the focuses only on the “converter.
• Substance over form:It is also difficult to ascertain whether a religious conversion is truly conducted solely for the purpose of marriage.
• Watering down provisions: In 2021, both the Gujarat and Allahabad High Courts have watered down the provisions relating to inter-faith marriages in the anti-conversion laws of their states.
• Pending matters:The constitutional validity of the anti-conversion laws in at least four states – Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh – has been pending before the Supreme Court since February 2021.
• Vagueness in laws:The UP-ordinance law is criticised for the ambiguous terms used like “undue influence”, “coercion”, “allurement or marriage” for specifying the grounds for criminalising conversions.
• Human rights: Several petitions have been filed before several High Courts challenging anti-conversion laws.

Way Forward

• Reviewing the existing laws:The current anti-conversion laws in India should be reviewed to ensure that they are consistent with international human rights standards and the Indian Constitution. This review should be carried out by experts in the field of human rights and religious freedom and should consider the views and concerns of all relevant stakeholders.
• Limiting the scope of the laws:The scope of anti-conversion laws should be limited to prohibit only forced or fraudulent conversions while allowing genuine and voluntary conversions. This would help to ensure that the laws are not used to violate the right to freedom of religion or to discriminate against certain religious groups.
• Prioritize dialogue and education:There should be more efforts made to promote dialogue and understanding between different religious groups, with a focus on education and awareness-raising about different religions. This could help to reduce tensions and conflicts between religious groups and promote greater respect for diversity and freedom of religion.
• Monitoring and Reporting:To ensure that the laws are not being misused, there should be an independent body that will monitor the law’s implementation and take complaints, to ensure that they are being implemented fairly and with transparency and also to report any abuses to the authorities.