Daily Current Affairs

Controversy around the Delhi excise policy (GS Paper 2, Governance)

Context:

• The New Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22, launched in November 2021, which sought to ensure optimum revenue for the State government, confront the sale of spurious or bootlegged liquor and transform consumer experience, ran into protests and widespread allegations of “procedural lapses”. This has forced the government to scrap it with effect from August 1, 2022.
• Recently, Delhi Lieutenant GovernorVinai Kumar Saxena recommended a CBI probe into the new policy, which culminated in raids on the premises of the Delhi Government’s Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, who holds the excise portfolio.

His role is under the scanner for allegedly providing “undue financial favours” to private liquor licensees, a charge denied by the AamAadmi Party (AAP) leadership.

 

What were some of the changes mooted in the new policy?

• The new policy marked the exit of the State government from liquor retail in the city. It sought to provide more choice to alcohol consumers by offering more variety of brands through opening more liquor vendors.
• It sought to provide a “better environment”, especially for female citizens, while shopping for liquor through dedicated alcohol vends.
• In addition to reducing the number of dry days in Delhi from over 20 to just three, it also sought to reduce the age of alcohol consumption in Delhi from 25 to 18, but did not proceed with the step as it would have required a legislative amendment.
• The new policy also sought to ensure equitable distribution of alcohol vends in the city by ensuring two liquor shops in each municipal ward to bridge the gap between “overserved” and “underserved” areas.
• Under the new policy, the number of liquor vends in Delhi would have increased from around 630 to 850 — all privately owned and operated. One person could hold more than one liquor retail licence and the “heavily regulated” excise regime under the previous policy was simplified for ease of doing business in the overall trade.
•  Another change in the policy was making wholesale licensees (L1) independent of manufacturers; the revamped policy allowed independent entities to set up wholesale stores and get franchisee from various manufacturers.
• The revamped policy was implemented on November 17, 2021 and remained in force till July 31, 2022.

 

Why and how did the revamped policy get mired in controversy?

• The revamped excise policy ran into controversy as soon as it was implemented with private liquor vends opening up across the capital.
• While protests against the opening of liquor shops in their neighbourhoods were led by citizens in some areas, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress led a slew of protests against the opening of liquor vends at locations nears schools, religious places and unauthorised areas.
• Many of these were sealed by the BJP-led Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) for various violations related to non-conforming areas, where certain businesses such as liquor retail are not allowed as per the provisions of the Master Plan for Delhi that governs urban planning, and implementation in the city.
• As many as 134 court cases, broadly about retail shops in unauthorised or non-conforming areas, issues related to discounts and schemes such as 1+1, rounding off duty and payment of licence fee were filed after the implementation of the policy.
• Only 468 of the around 850 liquor vends could actually open which led to many vendors surrendering their licences causing revenue losses for the government.
• On the other hand, vendors increasingly exiting the market effectively brought Delhi’s liquor trade back to square one, making windfall gain for existing players in business and cartelisation.

 

Why was the new policy abruptly withdrawn?

• In July, the Delhi Lieutenant Governor recommended a CBI probe into the new policy after receiving a report from the Chief Secretary, also sent to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, stating that the policy was rife with alleged violations and “deliberate and gross procedural lapses.”
• What began as an assessment of departures from administrative procedures led to bringing Mr. Sisodia, who holds the excise portfolio, under the lens for allegedly providing “undue financial favours” to liquor licensees.
• Around midnight on July 31, the LG received a proposal from the Delhi Cabinet to scrap the revamped policy and revert to the old policy for six months till the way forward could be figured out.
• The new policy, according to the proposal, has not been able to achieve its desired objective of “fetching greater revenue” and several issues in it had been flagged and were under detailed examination and investigation by agencies.

 

‘Kerala Savari’, India’s first online taxi service

(GS Paper 3, Economy)

Why in news?

• Kerala has soft launched ‘Kerala Savari’, the country’s first online taxi service owned by a State government, to ensure fair and decent service to passengers along with fair remuneration to auto-taxi workers.

Operated by the Motor Workers Welfare Board under the aegis of the Labour Department, the Kerala Savari ensures safe travel for the public at ‘government approved fares’ without any ‘surge pricing’.

Why has the State government decided to launch this initiative?

• The alleged unfair trade practices and violation of consumer rights by private app-based cab aggregators have come as a major concern for governments.
• Recently, the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) had issued notices to cab aggregators Ola and Uber for unfair trade practices and violation of consumer rights.
• Passengers often complain about the deficiency in services including charging exorbitant fares during peak hours, unprofessional behaviour from the part of drivers, lack of proper response from customer support, and undue levy of cancellation charges despite the cab driver refusing to accept the ride booked by the passenger etc.
• It is against this backdrop that the Kerala government has decided to come up with an app-based platform to offer auto-taxi service for the public.
• As private companies are purely focusing on profit making, the government-controlled online taxi service is a service-oriented scheme, a win-win situation for both passengers and taxi-auto drivers and owners.

 

What are the main attractions of ‘Kerala Savari’?

• Private cab aggregators used to make a killing with surge pricing during peak hours or in the event of rains. The passengers were often forced to pay through their nose during these critical times. Butthere will be no fluctuation in fares on Kerala Savariirrespective of day or night or rain.
• When private app-based taxi companies increase the charges for services up to two to three times during emergencies, neither passengers nor workers benefit from it. But Kerala Savari only charges an 8% service charge in addition to the rate set by the government, whereas the private cab aggregators charge up to 20 to 30% service charge.
• The taxi owner will get the approved fare on ‘Kerala Savari,’ while cab owners working for private online companies would often get a fare which is below the government-approved rate.
• Furthermore, of the 8% service charge collected from passengers, 6% will go to the technical partner, and the remaining 2% will go to the implementation of this scheme and for providing promotional incentives to passengers and drivers. The government will not be benefiting from this scheme.

 

What are the security-related features of ‘Kerala Savari’?

• One of the major issues that arise with app-based taxi services is that of the security of passengers. Kerala Savariis claimed as a safe and reliable online service for women, children, and senior citizens.
• This consideration has been given importance in app designing and driver registration. A police clearance certificate is mandatory for drivers joining the scheme apart from the required proper training.
• A panic button system has been introduced in the app. This button can be pressed in the event of a car accident or in cases of any other danger. One can do it completely privately. If the driver presses the panic button the passenger will not be alarmed and the same goes for when the passenger presses the panic button.
• When one presses the button, there is an option to select the Police, Fire Force, and Motor Vehicle Department numbers. If you are in such a dangerous situation that you cannot select any option, press the button for a few seconds and you will be directly connected to the police control room.
• It has also been decided to install GPS in vehicles at a subsidised rate. This will be implemented in a phased manner. A 24-hour call centre has been prepared for this purpose.
• A state-of-the-art call centre is functioning at the district office of the Motor Workers Welfare Board. The call centre works in such a way that all service-related issues can be resolved immediately.

 

Will the new government initiative end the monopoly of private cab aggregators?

• Kerala has over five lakh autorickshaws and one lakh cabs. The State government plans to bring all auto-taxi workers engaged in the sector under the new platform. Since smartphone literacy is high in Kerala, the State is hopeful of bringing them under the scheme in a short span of time.
• In addition, the Kerala government has also decided to provide fuel, insurance, and tyre subsidies for vehicle owners in the future and has already initiated talks with major companies in this regard.
• After the evaluation of the first phase of the project in Thiruvananthapuram, it will be extended to the entire State in a phased manner.
• Kerala Savariis expected to reach Kollam, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Kozhikode, and Kannur municipal limits within a month.

 

Naming heatwaves

(GS Paper 3, Climate Change)

 

Why in news?

• As the world reels under the impact of climate change and heatwaves wreak havoc in several countries, leading to wildfires, drying up of rivers, and unpredictable droughts, scientists have for the first time given it a name.
• Just as cyclones have a name, the Spanish heatwave has been named Joe.

proMETEO Project:

• The name has been bestowed to tie meteorological forecasts to health impacts under a pilot project by proMETEO that was officially launched a few months back to classify heatwaves, as they become more intense and more frequent the world over.
• Warm summer combined with a hot air front from North Africa have sent temperatures soaring across Spain in July 2022, with the highest recorded temperature climbing up to 43 degrees Celcius near Seville in southern Spain and in Badajoz, towards the west of the country.
• Scientists have named this heat spell 'Joe' under the pilot program that has been launched to test the feasibility of implementing a warning system for one year to alert of the arrival of a heat wave and its possible effects on health.

 

Categorization of heat waves:

• By categorizing heat waves according to their level of impact on health and naming those that may pose a greater risk, citizens will be able to take effective measures to protect themselves against extreme heat.
• The heatwaves will be categorized on a three-level scale and named in reverse alphabetical order.The first five will be called Zoe, Yago, Xenia, Wenceslao, and Vega.

 

Heatwave in Spain:

• In recent weeks, several wildfires have broken out in Spain, which registered its earliest heatwave in over 40 years with temperatures rising to 43 degrees in cities like Seville and Cordoba. A prolonged dry spell and the extreme heat made July the hottest month in Spain since at least 1961.
• Meanwhile, Spanish reservoirs are at just 40 per cent of capacity on average in early August, well below the ten-year average of around 60 per cent, official data shows.

 

Singapore decriminalises gay sex, a small step for LGBTQ in Asia-Pacific

(GS Paper 1, Social Issues)

 

Why in news?

• Singapore's decision to decriminalise sex between men is being hailed as a step in the right direction for LGBTQ rights in the Asia-Pacific region, a vast area of nearly 5 billion people with different laws and attitudes.
• Although many places have decriminalised sexual acts between people of the same sex, only a few allow same-sex marriage, partnerships or unions.

Many of the region's bans on sex between men were instituted under British colonial rule in the 19th and 20th centuries, and the laws describe such acts as violations against the order of nature.

Situation in the Asia-Pacific region: 

Australia:

• All states and territories repealed gay sex bans between 1975 and 1997, while Parliament legalised same-sex marriage throughout the country in 2017. The age of consent became equal for all sexual acts as of 2016.
• People convicted for consensual sexual acts that are no longer illegal can have their criminal records cleared.

 

China:

• Homosexuality is not criminalised by law, but same-sex marriage remains unlikely to be legalised in the near future.
• While the largest cities have vibrant LGBTQ scenes, the stigma remains strong in Chinese society.

 

India:

• The Supreme Court in 2018 struck down the section of the law that punished sexual intercourse by members of the same sex by up to 10 years in prison.
• Despite the landmark ruling, same-sex marriage remains illegal and multiple petitions seeking legal recognition have been met with resistance by the government.
• Over the past decade, the LGBTQ community has gained a degree of acceptance, especially in big cities, but the community generally remains stigmatised.

 

Indonesia:

• Sex between consenting adults of the same sex is not illegal in the world's most populous Muslim nation, except in conservative Aceh province.
• However, only marriages between a man and a woman are legal.
• The LGBTQ community in the country of 250 million people complains of regular harassment and persecution.

 

Japan:

• Support for sexual diversity has grown slowly, but legal protections are lacking for LGBTQ people, who often face discrimination at school, work and at home, causing many to hide their sexual identities.
• A number of same-sex couples have filed lawsuits demanding a right to legally marry, but court rulings have been divided. Same-sex couples cannot inherit a house or other shared assets and have no parental rights over each other's children.
• They are often barred from renting apartments together, from hospital visits and from services available to married couples.

 

Malaysia:

• Malaysia has strict laws against same-sex intercourse that can result in up to 20 years' imprisonment. A former deputy premier was jailed twice for sodomy. He was sentenced in 2000 and again in 2014, in cases that critics say were politically motivated.
• Malaysia has even tried to censor or ban movies which it deems to promote what it calls the LGBTQ lifestyle.
• New Zealand:
  New Zealand decriminalised gay sex in 1986. Sex between men was first made illegal in 1961, while sex between women was never specifically made illegal although was stigmatized.
• .
•  In 2013, New Zealand became the first nation in the Asia-Pacific region to legalize same-sex marriage.

 

Taiwan:

• Taiwan legalised gay marriage in 2019, but LGBTQ activists want the law to be made more inclusive. It currently says both partners must be from a place where such marriages are already legal.
• So couples cannot register their marriage in Taiwan if one partner is from a place like Japan or another place where their marriage would not be legal.
• Still, the island is a hotspot for LGBTQ life and its annual Pride parade attracts attendees from all over Asia. Taipei is known for having a vibrant gay community and nightlife.

 

Thailand:

• Thailand is also among the most liberal nations in Asia regarding LGBTQ issues. Four bills alternatively offering to legalize either marriage equality or civil partnerships for same-sex couples passed their first readings in the House of Representatives in June.

A committee is working to consolidate them into a package that lawmakers are expected to pass, which would make Thailand the first Southeast Asian country to legalize same-sex unions.