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Mar 01, 2022

SAUDI ARABIA TO GET FIRST WOMEN TRAIN DRIVER: WHAT IT MEANS Recently, Saudi Arabia declared to get its 1st women train drivers.  What will women train drivers do?
  • Successful candidates will drive high-speed bullet trains between the holy cities of Mecca and Medina after a year of training.
  • Renfe, the Spanish train company operating the service, said it was eager to create opportunities for women in its local business.
  • It currently employs 80 male drivers and is training 50 more.
  • Saudi Arabia has had one of the world’s lowest female workforce participation rates.
  • Until recently, women in Saudi could work only in altruistic roles, like teachers and medical workers.
  • Even then, they had to observe strict gender segregation rules.
  • But over the last five years, female participation in the workforce has nearly doubled to 33 per cent following a drive to open up the kingdom and diversify the economy.
  • So, this has opened up more opportunities for women, who are now taking up jobs once restricted to men and migrant workers.
  • If Renfe hires 30 women, its new recruits will still be a fringe player in the public sector.
Is this a placatory move to cover up Saudi Arabia’s rights record, particularly its clampdown on women activists?
  • This apparent gender-neutral approach has been seen by some as an attempt by Saudi Arabia to repair its image in the Western democracies, particularly when its human rights are under scrutiny.
  • Country is hoping to claim leadership of the sustainable energy economy by peddling Saudi Arabia’s renewable energy potential to the West, now that fossil fuels are rapidly depleting.
  • Country is making the right reformist noises by projecting a modern Saudi Arabia in sync with the rest of the world.
  • The lifting of the driving ban for women is part of a project to modernise some aspects of Saudi society and draw in trust and belief in his Vision 2030 programme to steer the economy away from oil.
  • It has, therefore, set a goal of 30 per cent women’s participation in the workforce by 2030.
Ground reality?
  • Despite these reforms, the proportion of women working in the kingdom was still about half that of men, at 34.1 per cent, and female unemployment was more than three times higher than for men, at 21.9 per cent, according to a study by the US-based Brookings Institute.
  • Saudi women must still obtain a male guardian’s approval to get married or access certain kinds of healthcare.
  • Women are heavily discriminated against and disadvantaged when it comes to their role in family structures, divorce and custody of children.
  • Much of the women’s rights come more as a dole from existing patriarchal hierarchies. It is still the men who decide and appear as concessionaires of women’s rights.
  • That said, there has been a gradual societal adjustment, like accepting young men and women working together and meeting in public; women wearing colorful abayas and studying abroad on their own.
Why are women being allowed into what Saudis would consider unconventional jobs?
  • That’s because Saudi Arabia, challenged by a dipping oil economy, wants its citizens to take up jobs in the service sector.
  • Opening jobs for women, the authorities believe, would help expand the country’s workforce and perk up the country’s economy.
Saudi’s Vision 2030 Programme?
  • Vision 2030 is a national socio-political and economic reform to reduce Saudi Arabia’s reliance on crude oil through economic diversification and a series of public services’ development.
  • Vision 2030, aiming to diversify its economy, modernise its administration and introduce bold reforms in many sectors.
  • The primary goal is to increase the portion of non-oil business sectors, such as tourism, banking and the IT sector, and showcase an open-minded and secular national image on the global stage.
  • Actual goals of the plan include afforestation, increasing the range of protected areas, reducing emissions, economic diversification and establishing a futuristic city with 100% renewable energy use.
  • Vision 2030 advocates supporting sustainable business sectors to increase job opportunities for future younger generations.
  • Saudi Arabia’s need to transition its economy is exacerbated by climate change, which will also incur severe economic consequences.
  • The Kingdom’s e-government initiative is building capacities among government institutions to become more efficient, transparent, and accountable.
  • The Kingdom is supporting a digitally-enabled industrial revolution for projects in mining, manufacturing, logistics, and energy through a $453 billion fund.
  • The Line project and the Neom, Red Sea, and Qiddiya projects are expanding the innovation portfolio.
  • Three main pillars of Vision 2030
  • To reinforce the Kingdom as the “heart of the Arab and Islamic worlds”
  • To become a global investment powerhouse
  • To utilise the Kingdom’s geographical advantage to connect Asia, Europe and Africa
  • Three objectives to be achieved by 2030: a vibrant society, a thriving economy and revealing an ambitious nation to the world.
  • The first theme emphasizes a better quality of life in the future, promoting Saudi Arabia’s cultural heritage, beautiful environment and religious history.
  • The second theme, to achieve a thriving economy, promises to build a comprehensive education system to enhance non-energy economic sectors with limitless potential and diversify the Kingdom’s economy with various investment tools.
  • The third theme focuses on the progressiveness of Saudi’s government by increasing the portion of non-oil revenues and improving overall government effectiveness.
Climate Impacts to Saudi Arabia
  • The Climate and Atmosphere Research Centre predicted that approximately 600 million people in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) will be exposed to ultra-extreme heat waves by the end of the century.
  • More vulnerable inhabitants will suffer from heat exhaustion and heart attacks if heat waves continue in the future.
  • Saudi Arabia’s absolute water scarcity level is 500 cubic meters per capita per year due to overconsumption and a lack of reliable renewable water sources.
  • The impact of water scarcity exacerbates desertification, thus leading to a potential threat of long-term habitability of ecosystems for both humans and wildlife.
  • A rising sea level is another concern for Saudi’s future as most of the country’s refining facilities are in coastal areas.
Impact of Saudi Arabia’s reforms on India and Saudi Arabia Relations?
  • Saudi Arabia has valued India as a close friend and strategic partner.
  • Our dynamic cultural, socio-economic, and political partnership is based on mutual respect and shared values and interests and shall continue to thrive for the interests of our two friendly people and the people of the region.
  • The domestic defence industry will be built up to account for as much as 50 percent of military spending, from two percent at present.
  • In addition, there would be efforts to raise the effectiveness of the Saudi security and military services while reducing the overall military spending.
  • The vision 2030 will lead to an opening up of Saudi Arabia, not only to foreign investment, but to the world at large.
  • India is also seeking Saudi investment in a planned 1.2 million bpd refinery on India’s west coast, the expansion of the Bina refinery and a petrochemical plant at Dahej.
  • As Saudi Arabia moves its economy away from its dependency on oil, India would look to move their bilateral relations from being centred on hydrocarbons.
  • India would like to partner Saudi Arabia in improving its public services, job creation, skill development, education and training.
  • It would allow India to use its soft power in the region more effectively.
Road Ahead:
  • As the plan foresees social change in one of the world’s most conservative societies there would be trickle-down effect to labour regulations, working conditions and better appreciation of the contribution of the Indian expatriates, numbering nearly three million, not just towards providing services but also to the future economic agenda of Saudi Arabia.
'ONE WHO INSPIRED COUNTLESS IN HIS WAKE': REMEMBERING CHANDRA SHEKHAR AZAD ON HIS 91ST DEATH ANNIVERSARY Recently, India remembered the sacrifice of Chandrashekhar Azad on his 91st death anniversary who inspired many to join the freedom movement and was known for his exceptional leadership skills and organizational ability. Chandrashekhar Azad
  • The freedom fighter was born Chandrashekhar Tiwari on 23 July 1906 in Bhambri village, Alirajpur district, in what is now Madhya Pradesh.
  • It is believed that his mother Jagrani Devi wanted him to become a Sanskrit scholar but the Jallianwala Bagh massacre in 1919 greatly affected him and he chose to join the freedom struggle.
  • When a 15-year-old Tiwari was arrested for participation in the non-cooperation movement, and produced before a judge, he mentioned his name as Azad and his father’s as Swatantra (Independence). That’s how, perhaps, Chandrashekhar Tiwari came to be known as Chandrashekhar Azad.
HSRA & Azad
  • Hindustan Republican Association (HRA) - renamed in 1928 as the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association (HSRA)- a revolutionary organisation that was set up in 1923, founded by Ram Prasad Bismil, Ashfaqulla Khan, Sachindra Nath Bakshi, Sachindranath Sanyal and Jogesh Chandra Chatterjee.
  • Azad was disappointed by Gandhi’s suspension of the non-cooperation movement in February 1922, after several policemen had been murdered by a revolutionary mob at Chauri Chaura.  Though, he joined the Hindustan Republican Association (HRA).
  • As Kama Maclean notes in her book, A Revolutionary History of Interwar India, one of the HRA’s most daring acts was to attack “a train transporting a cache of government funds in Kakori (near Lucknow) on 9 August 1925, in which Rs 4,500 was stolen and a passenger on the train killed”.
  • Four members of the HRA — Ashfaqallah Khan, Ramprasad Bismil, Roshan Singh and Rajendra Lahiri — were sentenced to death for the incident. Azad, who was also charged in the case, managed to evade the police.
  • The HRA was later revamped under the leadership of Azad and Bhagat Singh and rechristened as the Hindustan Socialist Republican Army (HSRA).
  • Azad was the All-India coordinator of the newly-formed group while Bhagat Singh was its general secretary. The group was greatly influenced by the trade unionism and communism of its times. 
  • One of the first and most famous acts of the HSRA occurred in December 1928. The Congress had organised protests against the Simon Commission — “the all-white parliamentary delegation that had come to determine India’s suitability for legislative reforms”.
  • During the protests, the senior superintendent of police in Lahore, ordered a lathi-charge in which Lala Lajpat Rai got severely injured and succumbed to his injuries a few days later.
  • The HSRA decided to avenge his death. Even though the plan was to target Scott, the group ended up killing the 21-year-old assistant superintendent of police J.P. Saunders.
  • As they were fleeing, Azad shot an Indian constable, Channan Singh, who had decided to chase them. 
  • Azad, was known as quicksilver within HSRA for his ability to move between bases undetected.
Assistance to Azad from Motilal Nehru
  • Azad had a close relationship with Motilal Nehru, the father of India’s first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru. S.K. Mittal and Irfan Habib recall in their paper The Congress and the Revolutionaries in the 1920s, that Motilal regularly handed over money to Azad.
  • Rajendrapal Singh, “a peripheral member of the HSRA who later served as a member of the Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee”, who told her in an oral interview that Motilal had once given Rs 500 to Azad.
End of Azad & the HSRA
  • On 27 February 1931, Azad was killed in a gunbattle with two police officers at Allahabad’s Alfred Park (the park has since been renamed Chandrashekhar Azad Park in his honour).
  • After his death, many Congress leaders organised events as a tribute to the freedom fighter. Purushottamdas Tandon, the president of the UP-Congress Committee, “collected Azad’s ashes and organised a procession through Allahabad, culminating in a public meeting”.
  • Similarly, she writes, in another meeting chaired by the president of the Delhi Congress Committee, a motion was passed congratulating Azad on his “brave martyrdom” and appreciating his “great patriotism, sincere bravery and selfless sacrifice”.
  • The end of Azad, however, also led to the beginning of the end of the HSRA. Less than a month later, on 23 March 1931, Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev were hanged by the British. The loss of all these leaders hit the HSRA hard from which it could never recover.
  • Maclean describes HSRA’s state at that point as follows, “the loss of their [Azad and Bhagat Singh’s] organisational skills removed a vital element of focus and restraint that had informed HSRA actions.
  • “These factors, combined with the multifaceted repression of absconding revolutionaries that slowly culminated in the arrests of much of the HSRA, substantially limited the scope for organised revolutionary activity in north India after 1932.”
Additional Information Kakori Train Robbery
  • Kakori Conspiracy, also called Kakori Train Robbery, armed robbery on August 9, 1925, of a train in what is now central Uttar Pradesh state, north-central India, and the subsequent court trial instituted by the government of British India against more than two dozen men accused of involvement, directly or otherwise, in the crime.
  • The robbery took place at the town of Kakori, about 10 miles (16 km) northwest of Lucknow, the train’s final destination.
  • In a well-planned operation, Ramprasad Bismil led a band of 10 revolutionary activists who stopped the train, subdued the train’s guard and passengers, and forced open the safe in the guard’s quarters before fleeing with the cash found within it.
  • The raiders were members of the newly established Hindustan Republican Association (HRA), a militant organization dedicated to freeing India from British rule through revolution, including armed rebellion. To fund their activities, the HRA carried out raids such as the train robbery.
  • Within a month of the attack, more than two dozen HRA members had been arrested for conspiracy and for having perpetrated the act. More arrests followed, and in all, some 40 people were rounded up.
  • Eventually, 29 individuals were put on trial before the special magistrate at Lucknow. Of those, three—including Chandrasekhar Azad, a leader of the HRA—remained at large, and two others became witnesses for the prosecution in return for lighter sentences.
  • The final judgments were pronounced on April 6, 1927. Three (later four) men were sentenced to death, and one was given life imprisonment.
  • Most of the remaining defendants were given prison sentences of up to 14 years, although two were acquitted, and two more were pardoned. Azad remained Un apprehended and was killed in an encounter with police in February 1931.
  • The severity of the sentences—particularly of capital punishment—provoked considerable outcry among the general Indian populace.
  • Several attempts were made to save the four who were sentenced to die, including passage of a motion in the legislative council of the United Provinces and a petition to the British viceroy, but they were rejected. The four men were executed in December 1927.
‘DISTURBED’ INDIA ABSTAINS FROM VOTE AGAINST RUSSIA AT UNSC India decided to abstain from voting at the UN Security Council against Russia’s war on Ukraine that sought to condemn Russian aggression and called for the immediate cessation of violence and withdrawal of Russian military from Ukraine. About the resolution?
  • The Council’s resolution reaffirmed its commitment to the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of Ukraine within its internationally recognised borders.
  • The resolution “deplores in the strongest terms Russia’s aggression against Ukraine” and decides that Russia “shall immediately cease its use of force against Ukraine and shall refrain from any further unlawful threat or use of force against any UN member state”.
  • The resolution added that Russia “shall immediately, completely, and unconditionally withdraw all of its military forces from the territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognised borders”.
  • It also asked Moscow to “immediately and unconditionally reverse the decision related to the status of certain areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine”.
Why did India abstain?
  • India did not endorse the harsh language used in the resolution condemning Russia’s actions.
  • It wants to maintain a balance between the Western bloc led by the US, and Russia, since it has strategic partners on both sides.
Did India Abstained for the First Time?
  • India’s past record has been maintaining balance between the West and Russia.
  • India abstained on a procedural vote on whether to discuss the issue of Ukraine.
  • New Delhi had then articulated its position on “legitimate security interests” that echoed with a nuanced tilt towards the Russian position, and had abstained along with Kenya and Gabon.
How did India explain its vote?
  • India said that it is “deeply disturbed”, but did not name Russia at all. “India is deeply disturbed by the recent turn of developments in Ukraine”.
  • India reiterated its appeal for “cessation of violence”. All efforts are made for the immediate cessation of violence and hostilities. No solution can ever be found at the cost of human lives.
  • India flagged its core concern about Indian nationals in Ukraine, most of whom are students. The country is deeply concerned about the welfare and security of the Indian community.
  • India touched upon “territorial integrity and sovereignty”. “The contemporary global order has been built on the UN Charter, international law, and respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states. All member states need to honour these principles in finding a constructive way forward.
  • India advocated diplomacy. Dialogue is the only answer to settling differences and disputes, however daunting that may appear at this moment. It is a matter of regret that the path of diplomacy was given up.
Is this good for India’s diplomatic space?
  • Sources said that India maintained its “consistent, steadfast and balanced position on the matter”.
  • India has been in touch with all sides, urging the parties concerned to return to the negotiating table.
  • By abstaining, India retained the option of reaching out to relevant sides in an effort to bridge the gap and find a middle ground with an aim to foster dialogue and diplomacy.
About UNSC
  • The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations (UN), charged with ensuring international peace and security, recommending the admission of new UN members to the General Assembly, and approving any changes to the UN Charter.
  • Its powers include establishing peacekeeping operations, enacting international sanctions, and authorizing military action.
  • The Security Council, the United Nations’ principal crisis-management body, is empowered to impose binding obligations on the 193 UN member states to maintain peace. The UNSC is the only UN body with the authority to issue binding resolutions on member states.
  • The council’s five permanent and ten elected members meet regularly to assess threats to international security, including civil wars, natural disasters, arms proliferation, and terrorism.
  • Structurally, the council has remained largely unchanged since its founding in 1946, stirring debate among members about the need for reforms.
  • In recent years, members’ competing interests have often stymied the council’s ability to respond to major conflicts and crises, such as Syria’s civil war, Russia’s annexation of Crimea, and the coronavirus pandemic.
What is the Security Council’s structure?
  • The Security Council has five permanent members—China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States collectively known as the P5. Any one of them can veto a resolution.
  • The council’s ten elected members, which serve two-year, non-consecutive terms, are not afforded veto power.
  • The P5’s privileged status has its roots in the United Nations’ founding in the aftermath of World War II.
  • The members of the P5 have exercised the veto power to varying degrees. Counting the years when the Soviet Union held its seat, Russia has been the most frequent user of the veto, blocking more than one hundred resolutions since the council’s founding. The United States is second, last using the veto in 2020 to reject a resolution that called for the prosecution, rehabilitation, and reintegration of those engaged in terrorism-related activities.
  • The council’s presidency rotates on a monthly basis, ensuring some agenda-setting influence for its ten non-permanent members, which are elected by a two-thirds vote of the UN General Assembly.
  • The main criterion for eligibility is contribution “to the maintenance of international peace and security,” often defined by financial or troop contributions to peacekeeping operations or leadership on matters of regional security likely to appear before the council.
  • Subsidiary organs that support the council’s mission include ad hoc committees on sanctions, counterterrorism, and nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons, as well as the international criminal tribunals for Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia.
  • Within the UN Secretariat, the Department of Peacekeeping Operations and the Department of Operational Support manage field operations.
  • The Peacebuilding Commission, established in 2005 as a repository of institutional memory and best practices, serves an advisory role.
What is the role of UNSC?
  • The UN's role in international collective security is defined by the UN Charter, which authorizes the Security Council to investigate any situation threatening international peace; recommend procedures for peaceful resolution of a dispute; call upon other member nations to completely or partially interrupt economic relations as well as sea, air, postal and radio communications, or to sever diplomatic relations; and enforce its decisions militarily, or by any means necessary.
  • The Security Council also recommends the new Secretary-General to the General Assembly and recommends new states for admission as member states of the United Nations.
  • The Security Council has traditionally interpreted its mandate as covering only military security, though US Ambassador Richard Holbrooke controversially persuaded the body to pass a resolution on HIV/AIDS in Africa in 2000.
  • The Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court recognizes that the Security Council has authority to refer cases to the Court in which the Court could not otherwise exercise jurisdiction.
  • The UN Charter gives all three powers of the legislative, executive and judiciary branches to the Security Council.
Challenges Associated with UNSC Functioning
  • The UN rules don’t apply to the UNSC deliberations and no records are kept of its meetings. Additionally, there is no “text” of the meeting to discuss, understand, amend or object.
  • The main problem with the current system is the capturing of governing capacity of international security relations by the elite class of countries. The veto powers that UNSC P5 enjoy is an anachronism.
  • The elite decision-making structure does not suit the current global security needs.
  • The existing gaps in terms of the under-representation of Africa, Asia and Latin America is crippling the UNSC as a global institution governing international peace and security.
  • There is an imbalance in power relationships among P5 and the rest of the world.
What can be done to reform the global organisation?
  • There should be an accurate balance between P5 and the rest of the world.
  • There is a need to democratize UNSC and give greater legitimacy to govern, ensuring principles of international peace, security and order to be respected globally.
  • There should be an expansion of permanent and non- permanent seats. So that more countries can get opportunities for giving a hand in policy making.
  • Equitable representation from all regions should be ensured for decentralizing its governing power and authority over nations.
  • The decentralization of UNSC’s decision-making processes will enable its transformation into a more representative, participatory body.
Road Ahead:
  • India needs to revitalize its engagement with its traditional partners in the global south by articulating their peace and security concerns in the UNSC. New Delhi should certainly continue to demand that the UNSC becomes more representative of the changing world, but it would be wiser to spend its limited diplomatic capital on issues that have a direct bearing on Indian interests.
  • Indian diplomacy should be geared towards making India powerful – in terms of capabilities, institutions and ideational underpinnings. That alone will ensure making India the critical node of global governance architecture.
HYDROPOWER IN INDIA: BALANCING GLOBAL CARBON BENEFITS WITH LOCAL ENVIRONMENTAL COSTS In 2022, hydropower capacity of 46,512 MW (megawatts) accounted for roughly 11.7 percent of total capacity. By 2026, roughly 12,340 MW of hydropower capacity addition is planned. Statistics Related to Hydropower in India
  • In 1947, hydropower capacity in India was about 37 percent of the total power generating capacity and over 53 percent of power generation.
  • In the late 1960s, growth in coal-based power generation initiated the decline in hydropower’s share in both capacity and generation.
  • In the first two decades since independence (1947-67), hydropower capacity addition grew by over 13 percent and power generation from hydro stations grew by 11.8 percent.
  • In the following two decades (1967-1987) hydropower generation capacity grew by over 18 percent but hydro power generation grew only by 5.6 percent.
  • The decline continued in the following decade (1987-2007) with both capacity addition and hydro-power generation growth falling to just over 3 percent.
  • In 2007-2019, hydropower capacity addition grew by just over 1 percent and power generation from hydro-stations grew by under 1 percent.
  • Specific generation or power generated per unit of capacity (a measure of economic efficiency) declined from over 4.4 in the 1960s to less than 2.5 in the early 2000s. Specific generation has improved since then reaching 3.4 in 2019-20.
  • Roughly 12 percent of power generation in 2020-21 was from hydropower.
Hydropower
  • Hydropower, or hydroelectric power, is one of the oldest and largest sources of renewable energy, which uses the natural flow of moving water to generate electricity.
  • This is achieved by converting the gravitational potential or kinetic energy of a water source to produce power.
  • Hydropower is a method of sustainable energy production.
  • Hydropower is much easier to obtain and more widely used than most people realize.
  • Hydropower technologies generate power by using the elevation difference, created by a dam or diversion structure, of water flowing in on one side and out, far below, on the other.
Types of Hydropower Run-of-river hydropower:
  • A facility that channels flowing water from a river through a canal or penstock to spin a turbine.
  • Typically, a run-of-river project will have little or no storage facility.
  • Run-of-river provides a continuous supply of electricity (base load), with some flexibility of operation for daily fluctuations in demand through water flow that is regulated by the facility.
Storage hydropower:
  • Typically, a large system that uses a dam to store water in a reservoir.
  • Electricity is produced by releasing water from the reservoir through a turbine, which activates a generator.
  • Storage hydropower provides base load as well as the ability to be shut down and started up at short notice according the demands of the system (peak load).
  • It can offer enough storage capacity to operate independently of the hydrological inflow for many weeks or even months.
Pumped storage hydropower:
  • It provides peak-load supply, harnessing water which is cycled between a lower and upper reservoir by pumps which use surplus energy from the system at times of low demand.
  • When electricity demand is high, water is released back to the lower reservoir through turbines to produce electricity.
Offshore hydropower:
  • A less established but growing group of technologies that use tidal currents or the power of waves to generate electricity from seawater.
  Benefits of Hydropower?
  • Hydropower is an affordable source of electricity that costs less than most. Compared to other electricity sources, hydropower also has relatively low costs throughout the duration of a full project lifetime in terms of maintenance, operations, and fuel.
  • The equipment used at hydropower facilities often operates for longer periods of time without needing replacements or repairs, saving money in the long term.
  • Hydropower plants can provide power to the grid immediately, serving as a flexible and reliable form of backup power during major electricity outages or disruptions.
  • Hydropower also produces a number of benefits outside of electricity generation, such as flood control, irrigation support, and water supply.
  • Renewable hydropower is a clean, reliable, versatile and low-cost source of electricity generation and responsible water management.
  • Many hydropower plants can ramp their electricity generation up and down very rapidly as compared with other power plants such as nuclear, coal, and natural gas.
  • Hydropower plants can also be stopped and restarted relatively smoothly. This high degree of flexibility enables them to adjust quickly to shifts in demand and to compensate for fluctuations in supply from RE sources.
  • Hydropower has the ability to generate electricity without emitting greenhouse gases.
Challenges Associated with Hydropower
  • Many of India’s newer hydro-power projects on the Himalayan rivers have been damaged by floods and landslides. 
  • In some cases, people trapped in project sites have lost their lives or severely injured.
  • Studies also point out that though recurrent floods are a natural phenomenon, they can be aggravated by anthropogenic interventions.
  • High precipitation in the Himalayas, coupled with the sudden fall in altitude in the mountains of that region results in a large volume of water gushing down river channels.  Construction of hydro projects and related infrastructure such as roads often aggravate this phenomenon.
  • High sediment load reduces productive life of power stations through heavy siltation. 
  • It can also cause environmental and social threats, such as damaged wildlife habitat, harmed water quality, obstructed fish migration, and diminished recreational benefits of rivers.
Road Ahead:
  • The enthusiasm for hydropower given its technical capabilities in addressing the challenge of intermittency from the growing share of RE in the grid and in reducing global carbon emissions is understandable. This does not mean local environmental compromises can be dismissed as environmental fundamentalism or anti-developmentalism. 
  • The trade-off between the local and global environmental benefits of hydropower is real.  The costs are local, and the benefits are global and to some extent national. It is important that government policy, in its enthusiasm to contribute to the global public good of carbon reduction, does not ignore the cost imposed on the local environment and populations dependent on it.
NEW SUGAR MILL AT U.P. WILL PRODUCE NO SUGAR, ONLY ETHANOL Uttar Pradesh’s Gonda district will have a new sugar mill with a difference — it will convert the entire cane juice produced to ethanol for blending with petrol. Genesis:
  • In order to promote biofuels in the country, a National Policy on Biofuels was made by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy during the year 2009.
  • Globally, biofuels have caught attention in the last decade and it is imperative to keep up with the pace of developments in the field of biofuels.
  • Biofuels in India are of strategic importance as its augers well with the ongoing initiatives of the Government such as Make in India, Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, Skill Development and offers great opportunity to integrate with the ambitious targets of doubling of Farmers Income, Import Reduction, Employment Generation, Waste to Wealth Creation.
  • Biofuels programme in India has been largely impacted due to the sustained and quantum non-availability of domestic feedstock for biofuel production which needs to be addressed.
  Ethanol Blending
  • Ethanol, an anhydrous ethyl alcohol having chemical formula of C2H5OH, can be produced from sugarcane, maize, wheat, etc which have high starch content. In India, ethanol is mainly produced from sugarcane molasses by fermentation process.
  • Ethanol is an agro-based product, mainly produced from a by-product of the sugar industry, namely molasses.
  • An ethanol blend is defined as a blended motor fuel containing ethyl alcohol that is at least 99% pure, derived from agricultural products, and blended exclusively with gasoline.
  • As the ethanol molecule contains oxygen, it allows the engine to more completely combust the fuel, resulting in fewer emissions and thereby reducing the occurrence of environmental pollution.
  • Since ethanol is produced from plants that harness the power of the sun, ethanol is also considered as renewable fuel.
How is Ethanol Transformed into Fuel?
  • The process starts by grinding up the crops or plants meant for production. After this, the ground up substance is refined to get sugar, cellulose or starch.
  • Sugar from plant material is converted into ethanol and carbon dioxide by fermentation.
  • Yeast is normally added to speed up the fermentation process.
  • Once the ethanol is distilled and purified, it is ready for use. Having a four-step process like this allows the production to be comparatively cost-effective, which is one big reason for the use of Ethanol fuel in our current economy.
Ethanol Blending Programme
  • The Ethanol Blended Petrol Programme was launched in 2003.
  • Starting with 5% blending, the government has set a target of 10% ethanol blending by 2022 and 20% blending (E20) by 2030.
  • The programme is implemented in accordance with the National Policy on Biofuels.
  • Till 2018, only sugarcane was used to derive ethanol. Now, the government has extended the ambit of the scheme to include food grains like maize, bajra, fruit and vegetable waste, etc. to produce ethanol.
  • Government has been implementing Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) Programme throughout the country except Union Territories of Andaman and Nicobar and Lakshadweep, wherein OMCs sell petrol blended with 10% ethanol.
  • The Ethanol Blending Programme (EBP) seeks to achieve blending of Ethanol with motor sprit with a view to reducing pollution, conserving foreign exchange and increasing value addition in the sugar industry enabling them to clear cane price arrears of farmers.
  • The procedure of procurement of ethanol under the EBP has been simplified to streamline the entire ethanol supply chain and remunerative ex-depot price of ethanol has been fixed.
  • To facilitate achieving of new blending targets, a "grid” which networks distilleries to OMC depots and details quantities to be supplied has been worked out. State-wise demand profile has also been projected, keeping in view distances, capacities and other sectoral demands.
Benefits of Ethanol Blending
  • Use of ethanol-blended petrol decreases emissions such as carbon monoxide (CO), hydrocarbons (HC) and nitrogen oxides (NOx).
  • The blended fuel burns more efficiently with a more homogenous mixture, which leads to a decrease in CO2 emissions compared with pure petrol.
  • This intervention also seeks to reduce import dependence for energy requirements and give a boost to the agriculture sector.
  • Ethanol fuel is the least expensive energy source since virtually every country has the capability to produce it.
  • Since ethanol is a biofuel, it is easily accessible to virtually everyone. Biofuel means energy derived from plants like sugarcane, grains, and corn.
  • Harnessing of fuel from corn or biomass is an economical way to sustain any economy and prevent it from over-reliance on the importation of fossil fuels like oil, and gas.
  • When the use of ethanol fuel increases, it means more plantations of sugarcane, corn, and grains. It also means more ethanol fuel processing plants and that translates to job opportunities. It will help in Doubling Farmer’s income.
  • The fact that ethanol fuel production relies mainly on agricultural produce, individuals will be shoved into the untapped agricultural sector, and this will uplift a country's economy.
  • It’s classified as a renewable resource because it’s mainly as a consequence of the conversion of energy from the sun into useful energy.
Disadvantages of Ethanol Blending
  • Ethanol is produced from corn, sugarcane, and grains. This, essentially, means that these very crops will have to be grown on a large scale, which requires vast acres of land.
  • The process of distilling fermented corn or grain takes a long time and involves a lot of heat expenditure. The source of heat for distillation is mostly fossil fuel, which is detrimental to the environment.
  • If the demand for ethanol fuel skyrockets, the price of agro-based products would also shoot up, and that would affect the cost of ethanol production.
  • Pure ethanol has a high affinity for water, and it’s able to absorb any trace around it or from the atmosphere. This is especially dangerous for marine users than regular road car users.
  • When water finds a way into a storage or fuel tank, it goes to the bottom of the tank since water is denser than fuel. This will lead to a plethora of small and big engine problems for your vehicle.
  • The water attraction property of ethanol is the reason why it’s transported by railroad or auto transport. It further increases the transportation cost.
  • Pure ethanol is hard to vaporize. This makes starting a car in cold conditions almost difficult, which is why a number of vehicle owners make a point to retain a little petrol, for instance, E85 cars that use 15% petroleum and 85% ethanol.
Road Ahead
  • Ethanol fuel is not a trend that has come in recently and will die out soon. Governments and automobile manufacturers have recognized the benefits of using it and are working towards integrating it into everyday use. A number of vehicles now come designed with engines that can work with the standard gasoline-ethanol blend. All of this because there are many known benefits of using this form of fuel.
Additional Information National Biofuel Policy
  • The Policy categorizes biofuels as "Basic Biofuels" viz. First Generation (1G) bioethanol & biodiesel and "Advanced Biofuels" - Second Generation (2G) ethanol, Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) to drop-in fuels, Third Generation (3G) biofuels, bio-CNG etc. to enable the extension of appropriate financial and fiscal incentives under each category.
  • The Policy expands the scope of raw material for ethanol production by allowing use of Sugarcane Juice, Sugar containing materials like Sugar Beet, Sweet Sorghum, Starch containing materials like Corn, Cassava, Damaged food grains like wheat, broken rice, Rotten Potatoes, unfit for human consumption for ethanol production.
  • Farmers are at a risk of not getting an appropriate price for their produce during the surplus production phase. Taking this into account, the Policy allows use of surplus food grains for production of ethanol for blending with petrol with the approval of the National Biofuel Coordination Committee.
  • With a thrust on Advanced Biofuels, the Policy indicates a viability gap funding scheme for 2G ethanol Bio refineries of Rs.5000 crore in 6 years in addition to additional tax incentives, higher purchase price as compared to 1G biofuels.
  • The Policy encourages setting up supply chain mechanisms for biodiesel production from non-edible oilseeds, Used Cooking Oil, short gestation crops.
  • Roles and responsibilities of all the Ministries/Departments concerned with respect to biofuels have been captured in the Policy document to synergize efforts.
SINGAPORE GROUP DEPICTS INDIAN INFLUENCE ON SOUTHEAST ASIAN ART, CULTURAL THROUGH BHARATANATYAM ROUTINE Apsaras Arts Dance Company showcased the beauty of temple architecture in the dance as part of 'Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav' celebrations by the Indian High Commission in Singapore in the run up to India's 75 years of Independence. Genesis:
  • By the 1st century CE, demand in the West, particularly from the Roman world, stimulated an expansion of Indian trade with Southeast Asia. Journeys between India and Southeast Asian ports were made in accordance with the prevailing summer and winter monsoon winds.
  • Missionary activity on the part of Indian Buddhists resulted in the establishment of Buddhist monasteries and communities.
  • However, one of the characteristics of Hinduism and Buddhism in Southeast Asia is their peaceful coexistence and the blending of these religions with preexisting ancestral cults. This would indicate that those responsible for bringing Indian culture to Southeast Asia had a wider mission than religious conversion.
  • The impact of Indian culture was profound, especially in parts of Burma (Myanmar), Thailand, Cambodia, and the Indonesian archipelago. Local rulers adopted concepts of state and kingship as well as urban development and hydraulic engineering.
  • They also embraced a script and literature in the Sanskrit language. Indic elements were integrated and authenticated by both Hindu and Buddhist metaphysical ideologies.
  • The blending of foreign and indigenous styles transformed Southeast Asia’s art during the rise of Hindu and Buddhist states in the beginning of the 1st century CE. Indian deities were readily identified with local spirits.
  • There are, however, a large number of Neolithic stone implements and prehistoric stone monuments (megaliths) as well as bronzes, which provide a solid archaeological basis for interpretation of Southeast Asia’s earliest art traditions.
  • After 600 CE the earliest surviving Hindu temples were built. About 770 the Shailendra dynasty began its long series of superb stone-cut monuments, both Hindu and Buddhist, which culminated in two enormous symbolic architectural complexes: the Mahayana Buddhist Borobudur (c. 800) and the Hindu Lara Jonggrang, at Prambanam (c. 900–930). These monuments were decorated in an individual and exceptionally accomplished style of full-round and relief sculpture.
  • In Vietnam about the 2nd century CE the predominantly Hindu kingdom of Champa was founded.
  • In Cambodia the Khmer empire succeeded to the old territories of Funan-Chenla. About 790 the first major Khmer ruler, Jayavarman II, who was related to the old Funan royal family, went to Cambodia from the Shailendra court in Java.
  • It was Indravarman I (877–889) who laid the foundations of the fabulous temple complex known as Angkor. His plan was based on a rectangular grid of reservoirs, canals, and irrigation channels to control the waters of the river system.
  • In the late 20th century, some parts of Southeast Asia witnessed the emergence of a dynamic contemporary art market, characterized by a rapid rise in international sales and supported by a burgeoning gallery scene.
Why Indian Influence in South-East Asian Art and Culture?
  • Geographic proximity and Southeast Asia’s substantial wealth attracted Indians, and references in Indian classical literature to Southeast Asia.
  • The Ramayana, Pali Nidesa and other classical texts include descriptors such as “land of gold” (suvarnadvipa), “island of gold” (suvarnabhumi), “island of coconuts” (narikeladvipa), “island of camphor” (karpuradvipa) and “island of barley” (yavadvipa).
  • According to the seventh century Chinese source, Liang shu, P’an-p’an was a tiny kingdom located in the Malay Peninsula, where a number of Indian Brahmins migrated to in search of wealth.
  • Indianization is the term generally used for Indian cultural influence upon Southeast Asia and Indian cultural penetration was generally peaceful and non-political. Southeast Asians voluntarily accepted the Indian cultural elements they liked.
  • Buddhist missionaries played important roles in disseminating the message of Buddha. Buddhist missionary activities also resulted in large number of Indians settling in the region.
  • Indian religion, political thought, literature, mythology, artistic motifs and style, were absorbed deeply into local culture as greater interaction with Indians who settled in the courts of South East Asia took place.
  • Southeast Asia was particularly attractive to Indian mercantile class and they named the faraway lands Swarnabhumi or land of gold, Tokola or land of cardamoms or Narikeldeep , land of coconuts.
  • India during Gupta period was a land of riches and people possessed great skills at weaving textiles, crafting gold jewellery, metal, sculpture and beautiful objects. There was much demand for Indian goods and trade between India and Southeast Asia which was seen as a land of spices and rice growing fertile lands, flourished.
  • Traders were also accompanied by Shudras (the lowest caste according to the Hindu caste hierarchy) who migrated in search of a better life from India and many settled in Bali. The caste system was modified when adopted by Southeast Asians as they had a class system of their own.
  • Indian herbal medicines also reached Southeast Asia from ancient times and are used even today in many countries.
Borobudur Temple
  • It is a 7th-century Mahayana Buddhist temple in Magelang Regency, not far from the town of Muntilan, in Central Java, Indonesia. It is the world's largest Buddhist temple.
  • The temple consists of nine stacked platforms, six square and three circulars, topped by a central dome. It is decorated with 2,672 relief panels and 504 Buddha statues. The central dome is surrounded by 72 Buddha statues, each seated inside a perforated stupa.
  • Built in the 9th century during the reign of the Sailendra Dynasty, the temple design follows Javanese Buddhist architecture, which blends the Indonesian indigenous tradition of ancestor worship and the Buddhist concept of attaining Nirvana.
  • The temple demonstrates the influences of Gupta art that reflects India's influence on the region, yet there are enough indigenous scenes and elements incorporated to make Borobudur uniquely Indonesian.
  • The monument is a shrine to the Buddha and a place for Buddhist pilgrimage.
  • The pilgrim journey begins at the base of the monument and follows a path around the monument, ascending to the top through three levels symbolic of Buddhist cosmology: Kamadhatu (the world of desire), Rupadhatu (the world of forms) and Arupadhatu (the world of formlessness).
  • The monument guides pilgrims through an extensive system of stairways and corridors with 1,460 narrative relief panels on the walls and the balustrades.
  • Borobudur has one of the largest and most complete ensembles of Buddhist reliefs in the world. The largest restoration project was undertaken between 1975 and 1982 by the Indonesian government and UNESCO, followed by the monument's listing as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
  • Borobudur is built as a single large stupa and, when viewed from above, takes the form of a giant tantric Buddhist mandala, simultaneously representing the Buddhist cosmology and the nature of mind.
  • The design of Borobudur took the form of a step pyramid. Previously, the prehistoric Austronesian megalithic culture in Indonesia had constructed several earth mounds and stone step pyramid structures called punden berundak as discovered in Pangguyangan site near Cisolok and in Cipari near Kuningan.
  • The construction of stone pyramids is based on native beliefs that mountains and high places are the abode of ancestral spirits or hyangs.
  • The monument is equipped with a good drainage system to cater to the area's high stormwater run-off. To prevent flooding, 100 spouts are installed at each corner, each with a unique carved gargoyle in the shape of a giant or makara.
Road Ahead:
  • The Government of India’s ‘Act East policy’ aims at improving economic and political relations with the Southeast Asian region which has had close contacts with India for centuries and is linked culturally and geographically with it.
  • India has been able to make inroads in trade and investments with members of the ASEAN by signing a Free Trade Agreement in 2009 which will aim at increasing business between the two and renew the partnership and contact with member countries with similar culture, artistic tradition, family values and customs. Closer links with the Southeast Asian region is thus a natural outcome for India and its ‘Act East policy’.
PM MODI PAYS HOMAGE TO MORARJI DESAI ON HIS BIRTH ANNIVERSARY Recently, the Prime Minister paid homage to former Prime Minister Morarji Desai on his birth anniversary. He is widely respected for his monumental contribution to nation-building and made extensive efforts to make India more prosperous and his emphasis on probity in public life. About Morarji Desai
  • Shri Morarji Desai was born on February 29, 1896 in Bhadeli village, now in the Bulsar district of Gujarat.
  • His father was a school teacher and a strict disciplinarian. From his childhood, young Morarji learnt from his father the value of hard work and truthfulness under all circumstances.
  • After graduating from the Wilson Civil Service of the then Bombay Province in 1918, he served as a Deputy Collector for twelve years.
  • In 1930, when India was in the midst of the freedom struggle launched by Mahatma Gandhi, Shri Desai, having lost his confidence in the British sense of justice, decided to resign from Government service and to plunge into the struggle.
  • Shri Desai was imprisoned thrice during the freedom struggle. He became a Member of the All-India Congress Committee in 1931 and was Secretary of the Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee until 1937.
  • When the first Congress Government assumed office in 1937 Shri Desai became Minister for Revenue, Agriculture, Forest and Co-operatives in the Ministry headed by Shri B.G. Kher in the Bombay Province.
  • Shri Desai was detained in the individual Satyagraha launched by Mahatma Gandhi, released in October, 1941 and in August, 1942 at the time of the Quit India Movement. He was released in 1945.
  • After the elections to the State Assemblies in 1946, he became the Minister for Home and Revenue in Bombay. During his tenure, he launched far-reaching reforms in land revenue by providing security tenancy rights leading to the ‘land to the tiller’ proposition.  In police administration, he made the police administration more responsive to the needs of the people in the protection of life and property. In 1952, he became the Chief Minister of Bombay.
  • According to him, unless the poor and the underprivileged living in villages and towns enjoy a decent standard of life, the talk of socialism will not have much meaning.
  • After the reorganization of the States, Shri Desai joined the Union Cabinet as Minister for Commerce and Industry on November 14, 1956. Later, he took the Finance portfolio on March 22, 1958.
  • Shri Desai translated into action what he had professed in matters of economic planning and fiscal administration. In order to meet the needs of defense and development, he raised large revenues, reduced wasteful expenditure and promoted austerity in Government expenditure on administration. He kept deficit financing very low by enforcing financial discipline. He brought curbs on extravagant living of the privileged section of society.
  • In 1963, he resigned from the Union Cabinet under the Kamraj Plan. Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri, who succeeded Pt. Nehru as Prime Minister, persuaded him to become Chairman of the Administrative Reforms Commission for restructuring the administrative system.
  • Shri Desai was arrested and detained on June 26, 1975, when Emergency was declared. When he was released on January 18, 1977, he campaigned vigorously to achieve re-sounding victory of the Janata Party in the General Elections held in March, 1977 for the Sixth Lok Sabha.
  • Shri Desai was himself selected to the Lok Sabha from the Surat Constituency in Gujarat. He was later unanimously elected as Leader of the Janata Party in Parliament and was sworn in as the Prime Minister of India on March 24, 1977.
  • As Prime Minister, Shri Desai was keen that the people of India must be helped to become fearless to an extent where even if the highest in the land commits a wrong, the humblest should be able to point it out to him. “No one, not even the Prime Minister”, he was repeatedly said “should be above the law of the land”.
  • For him, truth was an article of faith and not an expediency. He seldom allowed his principles to be subordinated to the exigencies of the situation. As he himself observed, 'one should act in life according to truth and one’s faith’.
 About Probity in Public Life
  • Probity in public life are the standards that society expects elected or appointed to public office to observe and maintain in the conduct of the public affairs to which they have been entrusted.
  • These standards safeguard the nation from corruption by politicians and public officials who have been given almost unrestricted access to public resources together with the power to take decisions that impact on the lives of everyone.
  • The absence of probity in public life is manifested in corruption, which is a worldwide phenomenon. But its impact is strongest and most pervasive in small states that already suffer from all the known disadvantages that characterise smallness such as unfavorable economies of scale, high per capita cost of government, remoteness, and distance from large markets and centres of large populations among others.
  • In addition to all these, small States also tend to suffer from ineffective parliamentary oversight, weak and undeveloped systems of checks and balances like a strong and independent media as well as civil society groups with the capacity to investigate, challenge and call to account those in positions of power. Leaders who are corrupt will exploit these weaknesses to the fullest to enrich themselves and those closest to them at the expense of the country.
  • It cannot be assumed that all parliamentarians and other people in public life engage in corrupt practices; far from it. The vast majority of public officials both elected and appointed give sterling and dedicated service to the country. They keep alive and constantly seek to enrich the best traditions of selfless public service. These officials need to be encouraged and their contributions recognised.
  • Rooting out corruption needs a national objective in which all the citizens, agencies and institutions must play their part. This means that Government, political parties, the private sector, civil society, religious leaders and, most importantly, the media need to work together to ensure that nothing but the highest standard of behaviour, accountability and transparency are tolerated in governance across all aspects of society.
  • There needs to be something like a national crusade dedicated to the maintenance of a culture of decency and integrity in public life.
  • The giving and taking of bribes lead not only to personal enrichment but also to wrong decision-making with consequential misallocation of national resources into high profile "political" projects that will attract votes at the expense of less spectacular but economically and socially more useful ones.
  • Probity in public life demand that those elected or appointed to public office are themselves imbued with a sense of responsibility to the society that puts them there; that the decisions they take should always be solely in terms of the public interest and not to gain benefits for themselves, family, friends or associates; that they act with honesty and integrity by not allowing their private interests to conflict with their public responsibilities; and that the behaviour must always be able to stand up to the closest public scrutiny.
  • Similarly, civil society and institutions have a crucial role to play by calling to account those who will flout the rules and by refusing to tolerate any but the highest standard of behaviour in those who they elect or appoint to serve the public interest.
MARINE GOVERNANCE IN ASIA: A CASE FOR INDIA-ASEAN-SOUTH KOREA COOPERATION The outbreak of COVID-19 in early 2020 has rendered the task of achieving the SDGs even more difficult, exposing inadequacies in the approaches of individual countries.
  • India and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) adopted a plan of action (2021-25) for development and connectivity, and Japan has unveiled an ASEAN investment initiative.
Marine Governance in Asia?
  • Ocean governance is traditionally motivated by a need for positive transformation: boosting ocean-based economic development, reversing global biodiversity loss, and securing the rights of marginalised coastal communities.
  • In Southeast Asia, however, marine governance has been a casualty of strategic competition. The region is marked by jurisdictional overlap, with territorial claims in the South China Sea posing a constant threat to peace and stability.
  • Beyond military and militia operations in contested waters, Beijing has been militarising its artificial islands in the South China Sea—such as the reefs Subi, Fiery Cross, and Mischief in the Spratly Islands—causing significant damage to the marine environment.
  • Japan, Philippines, and South Korea—three countries that have stood in the way of China’s expansionist ambitions—have seen Beijing weaponize trade against them, targeting their valuable exports.
  • New Delhi is also keen to reduce its dependence on China-driven manufacturing supply chains, and is creating strategies for boosting domestic production and integrating local businesses with new or emerging global supply chains.
  • In an effort to reduce dependence on China, South Korean authorities are helping reshoring firms build smart factories and utilise industrial robots.
  • Indo-Pacific states have largely been willing to deepen security and economic ties and strengthen political engagement. 
Issues in Marine Governance
  • Compounded impact of all activities and pollution sources.
  • Fisheries management: there are less fish and they are of a smaller size, destructive fishing practices, overfishing, IUU.
  • Ship-source pollution: e.g., oil sludge on beaches.
  • Ocean pollution, including land-based pollution and plastic debris.
  • Offshore mining (incl. oil and gas): locally important pollution and risk of transboundary pollution.
  • Degradation of all marine habitats from combined impact of coastal development, aquaculture, marine tourism, destructive fisheries practices and climate change.
  • Lack of environmental management of areas subject to sovereignty and maritime boundaries disputes.
  • Increasing competition for marine resources as a source of political flashpoints.
ASEAN-South Korea Cooperation
  • A dialogue partner of ASEAN since 1991, Seoul has been a key contributor to development in Southeast Asia.
  • The two have a joint plan of action to promote political security, economic, social, and cultural cooperation, and to support the bloc’s goal for a fully integrated ASEAN community.
  • At the 1st ASEAN-ROK Infrastructure Ministers’ Meeting in 2018, Seoul and the Southeast Asian states agreed to strengthen cooperation in sustainable infrastructure and regional connectivity.
  • Both sides recognised the importance of developing smart infrastructure technologies related to, among others, transport and water resources.
  • ASEAN and South Korea have kept channels for cooperation open with all regional states. At the heart of these endeavours is a collective appreciation of the need to diversify partnerships in the Indo-Pacific.
  • The most promising cooperation has been in green finance, where Seoul has pledged USD 350 million for co-financing and USD 5 million in grants for technical assistance towards the ASEAN Catalytic Green Finance Facility, with a focus on projects to boost ocean health.
  • ASEAN and South Korea have sought an economic partnership aimed at creating growth avenues in the Western and Eastern Pacific.
  India-ASEAN Partnerships India’s Act East Policy
  • Under the ‘Act East’ policy, the Indian government is working to promote India-ASEAN connectivity.
  • For India—an aspiring stakeholder in the Indo-Pacific region—the notions of inclusiveness, openness, and ASEAN centrality and unity are intertwined.
Physical Connectivity
  • India has looked to partner with ASEAN in the Master Plan for ASEAN connectivity-2025 (MPAC-25) and the ASEAN comprehensive recovery framework.
  • India’s own connectivity projects in Southeast Asia include the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway (IMT) and the Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport Project (KMMTTP). An India-Myanmar-Thailand Motor Vehicle Agreement (IMT MVA) is set to spur seamless movement of passenger, personal and cargo vehicles along the roads linking the three countries.
  • New Delhi has plans to extend the highway to Cambodia, Lao PDR, and Vietnam—this could help open new vistas for enhanced trade, tourism, and people-to-people contacts between India and ASEAN.
  • The Bay of Bengal Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) grouping – of which India, Myanmar and Thailand are members – have endorsed an ambitious master plan for air, land, and sea connectivity.
  • There are also plans to encourage private-sector participation in developing roads and railways and logistics networks.
Digital connectivity
  • India and ASEAN have approved the Digital Work Plan-2022 aimed at strengthening regional digital cooperation.
  • The integrated blueprint for digital connectivity involves the setting up of a regional high-capacity fibre optic network, a National Rural Broadband Network, and Digital Villages in Remote Areas.
  • India and ASEAN have also been working to encourage startups in this domain.
Maritime Connectivity
  • ASEAN-India engagement in the maritime domain has been designated a key area of cooperation.
  • At the ASEAN-India Commemorative Summit on 25 January 2018, leaders of ASEAN countries and India outlined their vision for the future of the partnership.
  • India was only the third dialogue partner of ASEAN (after China and Japan) to initiate a meeting with the ASEAN Connectivity Coordinating Committee to establish maritime linkages.
  • India is looking to set up a maritime transport working group of Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam to explore the feasibility of shipping networks to build resilient supply chains.
Ocean Resources and Conservation
  • India and ASEAN realise that they share a common maritime domain, and that they both have stakes in the sustainable exploitation of the ocean’s resources.
  • The partners have designed an action plan to implement the Blue Economy Vision, with India considering extending technical and financial support to implement the plan.
  • ASEAN and India have also decided to come together to combat marine debris, particularly from land-based activities, and strengthen collaboration.
Blue Economy
  • With the establishment of the ASEAN-India Blue Economy Framework (AIBEF) announced at the Leaders’ Summit in Delhi in January 2018, BE is likely to be further strengthened at a regional level.
  • India will hope to garner cutting-edge technologies for strengthening the capacity to explore blue resources such as placer and marine minerals, deep-sea and ultradeep sea hydrocarbons (e.g., oil, natural gas and gas hydrates), renewable energy (e.g., wind, wave, current, thermal energy), freshwater desalination, and marine bio prospecting.
  • The promotion of tourism and people-to-people linkages is another priority area. At a connectivity summit in 2017, Indian officials unveiled plans to boost cruise tourism from 80 ships per year to 900, but progress in this area has been slow.
  • The Indian government’s IPOI is expected to build on the shared vision of a free and open Indo Pacific region, with the following pillars: maritime security; maritime ecology; maritime resources; capacity building and resource sharing; disaster risk reduction and management; science, technology and academic cooperation; and trade connectivity and maritime transport.
Economic Cooperation and Trade
  • Efforts are ongoing to make the ASEAN-India Free Trade Area (AIFTA) more effective in facilitating trade.
  • New Delhi has asked for a review of the ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement and ratification of the ASEAN-India Investment Agreement to facilitate further economic integration.
  • The developments suggest close coordination between India and ASEAN, and a growing desire on both sides for joint endeavours and greater cross-border investments.
  • The expectation in New Delhi is that ASEAN will share best practices in marine governance and promote greater business and investment flows, allowing Indian businesses to leverage Southeast Asia’s financial hubs.
India-South Korea Ties
  • Under its new Southbound Policy, Seoul has sought to elevate ties with India to the same level as those with China, Japan, Russia, and the United States.
  • The vision document highlights complementarities between India’s rapid economic growth and its highly-skilled workforce, and South Korea’s technological prowess.
  • It calls for the sharing of manufacturing expertise and developmental experience, proposing a joint endeavour for growth and for global economic development. 
  • Seoul has been willing to partner in India’s flagship initiatives such as ‘Make in India’, ‘Skill India’, ‘Digital India’, ‘Start-up India’, and ‘Smart Cities’.
  • The two have also expressed a desire to expand bilateral trade, and upgrade the South Korea-India Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). They announced an early “Harvest Package” that could lead towards an upgraded CEPA.
  • New Delhi and Seoul will promote extensive business-to-business interactions on trade and investment. The aim is to get the business community in both countries to leverage opportunities arising from complementarities, enhance investment, promote joint ventures, and work towards raising bilateral trade to USD 50 billion by 2030.
  • India’s ‘Korea Plus’ platform is positioned to facilitate Korean investments while promoting greater bilateral economic collaboration.
A Shared Developmental Agenda
  • A trilateral partnership in the maritime and developmental arenas would need a higher level of commitment and investment from all sides; it is an onerous proposition, given their evolving individual priorities.
  • India, is focused on connectivity, marine governance, and the environment, and among its priorities will likely be enhancing maritime and air connectivity with ASEAN countries.
  • India will also want to prioritise the Indo-Pacific Ocean’s Initiative, which recognises marine conservation, biodiversity, and the Blue Economy (BE) as primary areas of cooperation.
  • India, ASEAN, and South Korea could cooperate to promote smart, sustainable and inclusive growth, with a focus on maximising employment opportunities. This will necessarily need cooperation between small and medium enterprises.
  • Strengthening maritime safety at the operational level, will be priority, not least as it would help realise India’s Indo-Pacific Oceans’ Initiative.
  • Seoul has partnered with ASEAN countries through Infrastructure Asia, an outfit that brings together stakeholders to develop, finance, and implement bankable projects in the region.
  • With the country’s high innovation density, South Korean industries have valuable technological expertise that can help build smart cities in Asia.
  • An enhanced infrastructure partnership between ASEAN, India, and South Korea would help “connect the connectivity’s”, by integrating India into a Smart Cities Network.
  • New-age technology and solutions will help India embrace efficiency, effectiveness, and sustainability dimensions in public infrastructure.
  • In the arena of blue growth, ASEAN and India have undertaken to explore potential cooperation between the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo Pacific (AOIP) and the Indo-Pacific Ocean’s initiative, including in the four areas of maritime domain: maritime cooperation, connectivity, SDGs, and the economy.
  • Clean energy is likely to be another area of common focus. India, ASEAN, and South Korea have displayed remarkable commitment for the idea of green growth, undertaking to increase their share of renewable energy sources and phase-out polluting hydrocarbon fuels from the energy mix.
Road Ahead:
  • Any endeavour involving select members will need to be a subset of a larger, more comprehensive plan to establish a ‘rules-based’ and ‘human-security-centred’ order. That makes it imperative for India to work with partners like Japan, Indonesia, Singapore, Australia and the United States. Even so, for a viable governance architecture to evolve, India, ASEAN and South Korea need to play a key role.
  • Beyond infrastructure and connectivity, each country will look to focus on areas that help improve the quality of people’s lives; smart, sustainable, inclusive growth that transcends geographical and physical realms, measures that open new avenues for revitalising civilisational and people-to-people contacts.
  • Cooperation between the Asian powerhouses is an essential prerequisite to realise an Asian century. Going forward, the mantras should be “commerce, connectivity, culture, creativity, and sustainability”. Such an approach will also help realise the SDG agenda, helping regional states achieve a wider set of development objectives.
NATIONAL SCIENCE DAY 2022: ‘INTEGRATED APPROACH IN SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY FOR SUSTAINABLE FUTURE’ The day is celebrated every year on 28th February to commemorate the discovery of the ‘Raman Effect’. This year the theme of the National Science Day is- Integrated Approach in Science and Technology for Sustainable Future. National Science Day
  • In 1986, Government of India designated 28 February as National Science Day. On this day, Indian Physicist Sir C.V. Raman announced the discovery of the 'Raman Effect' for which he was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1930.
Objectives
  • The day is aimed at spreading the message of importance of science and its application in human life.
  • To display all the activities, efforts and achievements in the field of science for human welfare.
  • It is celebrated to discuss all the issues and implement new technologies for the development in the field of science.
  • To give an opportunity to the scientific minded citizens in India.
  • To encourage the people as well as popularize science and technology.
About C.V.Raman.
  • C. V. Raman was born in Tiruchirapalli, Madras Presidency, British Raj (now Tiruchirapalli, Tamil Nadu), to Hindu Tamil Brahmin parents.
  • Sir Chandrasekhara Venkata Raman FRS was an Indian physicist known for his work in the field of light scattering.
  • Using a spectrograph that he developed, he and his student K. S. Krishnan discovered that when light traverses a transparent material, the deflected light changes its wavelength and frequency.
  • This phenomenon, a hitherto unknown type of scattering of light, which they called "modified scattering" was subsequently termed the Raman effect or Raman scattering.
  • Raman received the 1930 Nobel Prize in Physics for the discovery and was the first Asian to receive a Nobel Prize in any branch of science.
  • In 1954, the Government of India honoured him with the first Bharat Ratna, its highest civilian award. 
Scientific Contributions of C.V.Raman Musical Sound
  • One of Raman's interests was on the scientific basis of musical sounds. He was inspired by Hermann von Helmholtz's The Sensations of Tone, the book he came across when he joined IACS. He published his findings prolifically between 1916 and 1921. He worked out the theory of transverse vibration of bowed string instruments based on superposition of velocities.
  • One of his earliest studies was on the wolf tone in violins and cellos. He studied the acoustics of various violin and related instruments, including Indian stringed instruments, and water splashes. He even performed what he called "Experiments with mechanically-played violins."
Blue colour of the sea
  • Raman, in his broadening venture on optics, started to investigate scattering of light starting in 1919. His first phenomenal discovery of the physics of light was the blue colour of seawater of the Mediterranean Sea. Using simple optical equipment, a pocket-sized spectroscope and a Nicol prism in hand, he studied the seawater.
  • Of several hypotheses on the colour of the sea propounded at the time, the best explanation had been that of Lord Rayleigh's in 1910, according to which, "The much-admired dark blue of the deep sea has nothing to do with the colour of water, but is simply the blue of the sky seen by reflection".
About Blue colour of the sea
  • Raman effect, change in the wavelength of light that occurs when a light beam is deflected by molecules. When a beam of light traverses a dust-free, transparent sample of a chemical compound, a small fraction of the light emerges in directions other than that of the incident (incoming) beam. Most of this scattered light is of unchanged wavelength.
  • A small part, however, has wavelengths different from that of the incident light; its presence is a result of the Raman effect.
  • Raman scattering is perhaps most easily understandable if the incident light is considered as consisting of particles, or photons (with energy proportional to frequency), that strike the molecules of the sample.
  • Most of the encounters are elastic, and the photons are scattered with unchanged energy and frequency.
  • On some occasions, however, the molecule takes up energy from or gives up energy to the photons, which are thereby scattered with diminished or increased energy, hence with lower or higher frequency.
  • The frequency shifts are thus measures of the amounts of energy involved in the transition between initial and final states of the scattering molecule.
  • The pattern of the Raman lines is characteristic of the particular molecular species, and its intensity is proportional to the number of scattering molecules in the path of the light. Thus, Raman spectra are used in qualitative and quantitative analysis.
  • Most Raman work is concerned with vibrational transitions, which give larger shifts observable for gases, liquids, and solids.
  • Gases have low molecular concentration at ordinary pressures and therefore produce very faint Raman effects; thus, liquids and solids are more frequently studied.
WILL NEW AIRSTRIP IN KERALA’S IDUKKI BE A PERMANENT THREAT TO PERIYAR TIGER RESERVE Recently, an airstrip runway passed at Sathram near Vandiperiyar in Kerala’s hill district Idukki which is likely to affect the wildlife and ecology of Periyar Tiger Reserve. Airstrip Runway in Idukki
  • The airstrip runway is located hardly 600 meters from the boundary of the Periyar Tiger Reserve.
  • The airstrip has been constructed mainly for use by the National Cadet Corps (NCC).
  • The district is in need of an airstrip, especially during climate emergencies like floods and landslides which occur during monsoons.
  • NCC is also open to the state government operating small flights during emergencies from the airstrip.
  • According to NCC officials, the state government can use the airstrip for disaster management and immediate rescue actions.
Impact of Airstrip runway on Biodiversity
  • The whole project would turn detrimental to both wildlife and the forest ecosystem as it will lead to various forms of pollution pre and post completion of projects.
  • The private holding purchased by the government for the airstrip was part of the eco-sensitive zone of the reserve.
  • Construction activities and operation of flights would come in conflict with the conservation efforts at the reserve.
Periyar Tiger Reserve
  • Periyar National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary (PNP) is a protected area located in the districts of Idukki and Pathanamthitta in Kerala, India.
  • It is notable as an elephant reserve and a tiger reserve.
  • Periyar is one among the 39 serial sites of the Western Ghats, which UNESCO had designated as a World Heritage Site.
  • The park is a repository of rare, endemic, and endangered flora and fauna and forms the major watershed of two important rivers of Kerala: The Periyar and the Pamba.
  • The park is located high in the Cardamom Hills and Pandalam Hills of the south Western Ghats along the border with Tamil Nadu.
  • The Periyar and Pamba Rivers originate in the forests of the reserve, both in Mlappara.
  • The topography consists of steep and rolling hills which are thickly wooded.
  • The park is made up of tropical evergreen and moist deciduous forests, grasslands, stands of eucalyptus, and lake and river ecosystems.
  • There are many hundreds of flowering plant taxa, including about 171 species of grass and 140 species of orchids.
  • The grasses are found in the open grasslands found on the edges of the water body where fire resistant vegetation grows and dense grasses like elephant grass are found. This is the common dining hall of various herbivores.
  • The forests contain deciduous and semi evergreen trees like teak, rosewoods, terminalias, sandalwoods, jacarandas, mangoes, jamun, tamarind, banyans, sacred fig, plumerias, royal poinciana, kino tree, bamboos and the only south Indian conifer, nageian wallichiana.
  • The medicinal glorious lily grows in the park. The endemic flora includes Habenaria periyarensis and Syzygium periyarensis.
  • The park is surrounded by agricultural regions, especially plantations of such crops as tea, cardamom, and coffee.
  • It is estimated that the Periyar Tiger Reserve (PTR) provides flow benefits worth 17.6 billion annually.
  • Important ecosystem services included gene-pool protection, water provisioning to districts of Tamil Nadu, habitat and refugia for wildlife, employment generation for local communities, water purification services to nearby towns and districts and recreation value.
Other Issues faced by Periyar Tiger Reserve
  • Sabarimala pilgrimage causes ecological disturbance and a lot of littering.
  • Managing and regulating tourism is also one of the challenges.
  • Lengthy inter-state boundary with many entry points is a persistent protection problem.
  • Fringe area cattle population and wild fires are other threats.
  • The weed invasion is a major challenge for the park which may reduce the habitat quality.
Steps Taken for Protection of Periyar Tiger Reserve
  • The conversion of poachers to protectors is a well lauded achievement.
  • The “Periyar model” in community participation has been widely acclaimed; the reserve is acknowledged as one of the Field Learning Centres under the World Bank aided BCRLI Project.
  • PTR is the first tiger reserve in the country which has registered Tiger Conservation Foundation and the model has been emulated by others.
  • The SAPP EDCs formulated for the management of the Pilgrims route is another success in the community participation and community control on damage due to visitation.
  • PTR has developed its own protocol for the monitoring of tigers with the support of the PTCF and has successfully documented the Tiger population through Camera Trap technology.
  • The field officers are self-contained in the method and directly involved in tiger population monitoring.
  • The implementation of Real Time Monitoring, in-house technical ability that was deployed for protection 24x7 protection and wildlife monitoring.
  • The wildlife monitoring is done 24x7 at prime location identified such as vayal (Marshy grassland) which helps understand wildlife behaviour.


POSTED ON 01-03-2022 BY ADMIN
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