Daily Current Affairs

3,700 Indian dams will lose 26% storage capacity by 2050: UN study (GS Paper 3, Environment)

Why in news?

• Around 3,700 dams in India will lose 26 per cent of their total storage by 2050 due to accumulation of sediments which can undermine water security, irrigation and power generation in future, warns a new study by the United Nations.

 

Background:

• The Central Water Commission, had in 2015, reported that among 141 large reservoirs which are over 50-years-old, one quarter had lost at least 30 per cent of their initial storage capacity.
• Trapped sediment has already robbed roughly 50,000 large dams worldwide of an estimated 13 to 19 per cent of their combined original storage capacity.

 

Details:

• The study by the United Nations University Institute on Water, Environment and Health (UNU-INWEH), also known as the UN's think tank on water, shows that 6,316 billion cubic metre of initial global storage in 47,403 large dams in 150 countries will decline to 4,665 billion cubic metre, causing 26 per cent storage loss by 2050.
• The loss of 1,650 billion cubic metre storage capacity is roughly equal to the annual water use of India, China, Indonesia, France and Canada combined.

 

Asia-Pacific region:

• In 2022, the Asia-Pacific region, the world's most heavily dammed region, is estimated to have lost 13 per cent of its initial dam storage capacity. It will have lost nearly a quarter (23 per cent) of initial storage capacity by mid-century.
• The region is home to 60 per cent of the world's population and water storage is crucial for sustaining water and food security.
• China, meanwhile, the world's most heavily dammed nation, has lost about 10 per cent of its storage and will lose a further 10 per cent by 2050.

 

Water storage:

• Water storage infrastructure is critical for development. Large dams and reservoirs provide hydroelectricity, flood control, irrigation, and drinking water and often perform multiple functions simultaneously.
• Accumulation of sediments decreases a reservoir's capacity over the years and determines a reservoir's life expectancy.
• A dam is considered large if it is higher than 15 m or between 5 and 15 m high, but impounds over 3 million cubic metres.

 

Ozone layer to recover in 4 decades but aerosol injection may undo gains: UNEP

(GS Paper 3, Environment)

 

Why in news?

• The successful phasing out of banned substances as envisioned by the Montreal Protocol has set the stage for a complete recovery of the ozone layer by the 2060s, a United Nations-backed panel of experts said.
• While this is an achievement, the scientists warned of the detrimental effects of geoengineering technologies such as stratospheric aerosol injection on the ozone layer.

First ozone hole:

• The first ozone hole was discovered in the stratospheric layers over the Antarctic in 1985, which allowed harmful ultraviolet (UV) radiation to pass into the lowest layer of the Earth’s atmosphere (troposphere) where humans live.
• UV radiation is linked with health hazards such as skin cancer, cataracts and other conditions in the eye and reduced immunity.

 

Outcome of Montreal Protocol:

• The Montreal Protocol enforced in 1989 called for a ban on the use and trade of 100 ozone-depleting substances (ODS), and 99 per cent of these have been successfully phased out.
• If current policies remain in place, the ozone layer is expected to recover to 1980 values (before the appearance of the ozone hole) by around 2066 over the Antarctic, by 2045 over the Arctic and by 2040 for the rest of the world.
• The concentration of most of these substances in the atmosphere peaked in the 1990s and has been on a decline in the decades since the Montreal Protocol was brought into force.
• In August 2022, the global concentration of ODS reverted to the 1980s level, a major milestone in the ozone layer recovery efforts.
• But, once released, these substances linger in the atmosphere for a long time and continue to deplete the stratospheric ozone layer. Also, the reduction of ODS concentration over the Antarctic has been slow. Thus, it will still take almost four decades for the ozone layer to fully recover.

 

SAI:

• For the first time, the Scientific Assessment Panel examined the potential effects on ozone of the intentional addition of aerosols into the stratosphere, known as stratospheric aerosol injection (SAI),” the panel noted during the meeting.
• SAI can increase sunlight reflection, thereby lowering the amount of heat that enters the troposphere. But this method “could also affect stratospheric temperatures, circulation and ozone production and destruction rates and transport”.
• Injection of sulphuric acid into the stratosphere, for example, would damage the ozone layer.
• Aerosol sprays, like other commonly used substances such as dry cleaning solvents, refrigerants and fumigants, contain ODS.

A step towards fighting corruption

(GS Paper 2, Governance)

Context:

• In a judgment in December 2022, Neeraj Dutta v. State (Govt. of NCT of Delhi) the Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court came down heavily on corruption among public servants in the country and lowered the bar for the quantum of evidence required to convict persons charged with corruption.
• This verdict was hailed by those who desire probity in public administration and demand deterrent penalties for criminal activities.
• This was not the first time that the Supreme Court was speaking on endemic corruption in system; but in spite of its unequivocal stand, the extent of corruption in public life remains undiminished.

Judgement:

• Through its ruling, the Supreme Court debunks the myth that absolute proof of guilt alone can help convict an offender. The court has now laid down that even if prosecution witnesses turn hostile, a conviction would be in order if all the circumstantial evidence marshalled by the prosecution and produced before the court points unmistakably to the guilt of the accused.
• This is a great step towards ensuring integrity in public services, especially in the ‘superior’ services such as the Indian Administrative Service and Indian Police Service.
• There are two aspects to the fight against corruption: the severity of the law and its application; and the strength of public opinion that would help carry forward the campaign for a clean public life.

 

Preponderance of probability:

• The Supreme Court has set the standard of ‘preponderance of probability’, a yardstick that is usually not acceptable to sustain conviction in criminal trials. Earlier, the belief was that only conclusive proof, namely, proof that does not leave an iota of doubt in the minds of the courts, was required. This has now been diluted.
• The court has directed that infirmities such as non-availability of the complainant, either because he is dead or otherwise not traceable, should not stand in the way of accepting the story of the prosecution.
• The same liberal application of the law of evidence will now apply to cases where prosecution witnesses turn hostile, either because of inducement or intimidation.
• It is well known that some powerful people are accused of ‘buying’ prosecution witnesses. Some lawyers have also been part of this, bringing shame to the criminal justice system and to the bar. The apex court is aware of this and believes it can no longer be a mute spectator.

 

Will this judgment alter the face of corruption?

• The corrupt public servants will find other means of covering up their misdeeds. This is because many are willing to offer bribes to public servants, either on their own or on demand. This nexus between offender and victim has become a part of our ethos.
• It is undeniable that the misdeeds of public servants are partly attributable to political corruption. The current situation in many States has become so bad that no service to which a citizen is entitled as a fundamental right can be obtained without greasing the palm of someone in the administrative or political hierarchy.
• Jobs are often sold at a price. Many applicants are prepared to pay without a complaint as there is acute unemployment. No approval for construction of a building or for registration of a property is possible without payment of a bribe. This situation has only worsened in many States.
• Several public servants involved in this racket cite illegal and rapacious demands from the political hierarchy as the reason for such bribes. Whether this is really the case or not, many corrupt officials in the administration are willing conduits and avail themselves of the opportunity to line their pockets.

 

Way Forward:

• The latest Supreme Court judgment may not deter people from corruption. However, that is no reason to give up the fight. It is here lies the need for enlightened opinion leaders who are not scared of taking on powerful elements in politics or in administration.