3 October 2024, The Hindu
Package launched for scheme saturation in ST-majority villages
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GS 2: Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday launched the Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan, a package for basic scheme saturation in tribal-majority villages across 550 districts, at an event in Jharkhand’s Hazaribag district, where he also laid the foundation stones for a host of other projects intended to benefit tribal people across the country.
- The package, originally coined as the PM Janjatiya Unnat Gram Abhiyan (PM-JUGA), was cleared by the Union Cabinet last month as an umbrella package to implement existing schemes in 63,000 Scheduled Tribe-majority villages.
A case of nothing but patent censorship
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GS 2: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation
- On September 20, 2024, Justice A.S. Chandurkar of the Bombay High Court broke a tie that emanated out of a previously split verdict and delivered a ruling in defence of the right to free speech. He declared unconstitutional an amendment made to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 (IT Rules). This law, had it been allowed to stand, would have given the Union government an Orwellian carte blanche to decide for us how any news about its operations ought to be carried on the Internet.
- The provision in question, Rule 3(1)(b)(v), casts an onerous obligation on intermediaries — companies that facilitate the use of the Internet, ranging from our service providers to social media platforms. If the Union government’s “Fact Check Unit” (FCU), which had been created under the amendment, identified any reporting on the government’s business as fake, false, or misleading, intermediaries were required to make reasonable efforts not to host, display, upload, or publish such information. Should they choose to ignore a directive they stood to lose their “safe harbour” — an immunity from liability which is integral to the design of the Information Technology (IT) Act, 2000 and the protections it offers both to businesses and to the larger public’s right to free expression.
The net result will be poor doctoral research
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GS 2: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Education
- The use of the National Eligibility Test (NET) as a primary criterion for PhD admissions in India has sparked significant debate within the academic community. Traditionally, the NET has served as a qualifying examination for Junior Research Fellowships (JRF) and in determining eligibility for assistant professorships. However, its growing role in determining PhD admissions raises hard questions about its efficacy in identifying true research potential. The nature of the test, which is entirely multiple-choice question based (MCQs), predominantly assesses lower-order cognitive abilities such as memory and recall. This approach, while useful in certain contexts, falls short in evaluating the critical thinking and analytical skills essential for successful doctoral research.
- PhD research demands a deep engagement with complex ideas, the ability to critique existing knowledge, and the creativity to contribute to original research. These skills, crucial for academic success, are largely overlooked in the NET’s current format. In disciplines such as literature, social sciences and the humanities, where interpretation and analysis are key, the emphasis on factual recall through MCQs reduces intricate subject matter to trivial questions. For instance, asking candidates to identify specific details from literary texts or historical events does little to gauge their ability to engage with broader theoretical concepts or develop nuanced arguments.
China-Vietnam red diplomacy
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GS 2: International Relations
- Vietnamese President To Lam’s recent visit to China aims to revive red connections and Mao Zedong-Ho Chi Minh comradeship to strategically infuse political trust in the bilateral relationship. For a Beijing that is frustrated with the Western alliance salvo, the communist breeze from the South China Sea felt like a soothing balm. The visit comes against the backdrop of the U.S. and the Philippines wooing Vietnam to pressure and corner China in the South China Sea.
- President Lam, after assuming the role of general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV), strategically chose China as his first foreign visit destination, starting in Guangzhou, the birthplace of the CPV.
What special status is Ladakh seeking?
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GS 2: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation
- Climate activist Sonam Wangchuk was detained on the Delhi border on Monday night as he led a group of protesters to petition the Central government for the inclusion of Ladakh in the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution among other demands for autonomy to the region. Similar demands have been raised in Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur. These discussions relate to special provisions for various ethnic groups in the Constitution.
- The Indian Constitution follows ‘asymmetrical’ federalism. Asymmetrical federalism is where some States and areas have more autonomy than others. A classical federation like the U.S. or Australia is a symmetrical federation as all States enjoy the same set of powers and autonomy. In India, there are a few States/ areas that enjoy more autonomy or have special provisions under the Constitution than others.
‘Include persons with disabilities in AB-PMJAY scheme’
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GS 2: Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre
- The National Disability Network (NDN), a cohort of organisations and federations of persons with disabilities, has approached the Central government seeking inclusion of persons with disabilities without any income as well as age criteria in the Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY) health insurance scheme, which aims at providing a health cover of ₹5 lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalisation to over 12 crore poor and vulnerable families (approximately 55 crore beneficiaries) that form the bottom 40% of the Indian population.
- The group noted that with very poor and inaccessible private and public insurance coverage and minimal financial support from the government as well double premiums, the healthcare expenses are pushing individuals with disabilities into heavy debts and poverty due to rising out-of-pocket expenditures.
Modi says toilet coverage reached 100% after launch of Swachh Bharat Mission
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GS 2: Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday (October 2, 2024) said that more than 12 crore toilets have been built and the scope of toilet coverage reached 100% from previously less than 40% in the country since the launch of the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) 10 years ago.
- Addressing an event to mark the completion of 10 years of the SBM, Mr. Modi said that more than 60% of India’s population was compelled to defecate in the open due to a lack of toilets until 10 years ago.
‘Surplus rains to help reduce food inflation, raise demand’
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GS 3: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment
- With Kharif crop sowing up 1.5% over last year’s levels by late September, and the healthy Southwest monsoon boosting reservoir levels as well as Rabi crop prospects, food inflation is expected to recede and rural demand is likely to see a steady rebound in the second half of 2024-25.
- As of September 30, the monsoon had yielded an 8% surplus over the long-period average, and reservoir levels stood at 87% capacity by September 26, Bank of Baroda economist Sonal Badhan said in a note. Barring the northern region, where reservoir levels are 68% of capacity compared with 86% last year, all other parts of the country have more water stocked up than a year ago as well as their normal levels.
Gold cools, oil surges amid escalating tensions in West Asia
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GS 3: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment
- Gold eased on Wednesday, taking a breather after rallying in the last session on an escalation in the conflict in West Asia, but oil prices rose again.
- Spot gold prices were down 0.5% at $2,650.89 per ounce by 11:46 GMT, after a jump of more than 1% on Tuesday after Iran launched missile strikes across Israel.
