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The Government rolled out an ‘import management system’ for IT hardware, including laptops and computers, modifying its initial stance of imposing physical restrictions.
The notification comes just days after concerns were raised by US, China, South Korea and Taiwan at a recent World Trade Organisation meeting.
Under the proposed system, IT hardware companies will be required to register and disclose data related to their imports, and countries from which they import, among other things.
This comes as a big relief to the industry which feared that the previous licensing notification would lead to a kind of quota system.
The key idea behind the measure is to check imports of laptops and computers, especially since a majority of them come from China, which has New Delhi worried.
There are carve outs for imports by Special Economic Zones (SEZs) along with imports of spares, parts, assemblies, sub-assemblies, components, and notified IT hardware items essential for capital goods.
There will be no restrictions on imports under baggage rules, and import of one laptop, tablet, personal computer or ultra-small form factor computer, including those purchased from e-commerce portals through post or courier, will also be exempted.
Govt & Politics
Hold digital crop survey from July 2024, Centre tells states (Page no. 7)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
Highlighting that the present system of estimation of crop area and production is “completely manual”, resulting in “delay” and “manual errors”, the Centre has asked states and Union Territories to digitise the process by adopting the Digital Crop Survey system from July next year.
According to sources, the Economics, Statistics and Evaluation Division (ESED), which comes under the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, has finalised the guidelines coming up with agricultural production estimates, and has shared them with states and UTs.
All states/ UTs shall automate/digitise the process of area enumeration/girdawari of crops at field level, i.e. Digital Crop Survey, from 2024-25 Agricultural Year.
Express Network
India friend of Palestine, Israel: Hoping for positive role (Page no. 9)
(GS Paper 2, International Relation)
Palestinian Ambassador to India, Adnan Abu Alhaija, called on the international community to find a solution to the ongoing conflict.
What I have heard from the Israelis themselves, and let me say what I have seen of the Americans and some European countries like Britain and France, when they use veto in the United Nations, it means they are covering Israel’s crimes and they don’t want this war to end.
We are looking for a ceasefire as soon as possible. We are looking to stop the siege of Gaza. Humanitarian aid should reach people as soon as possible, especially medicines, oxygen, water, electricity and food.
We are working hard with all our friends to stop this war as soon as possible. Our President (Mahmoud Abbas) is working 24 hours a day. Some of our friends like Russia, China, Qatar, Egypt, Jordan and Turkey are working together to stop it.
Editorial
Caste census plus (Page no. 12)
(GS Paper 2, Social Justice)
Publication of initial statistics from the Bihar caste census has evoked cynicism, anxiety and excitement. All three are predictable responses and manifest the limitations of our public sphere.
The cynical response comes from the ruling party at the Centre. While occasionally flaunting its OBC credentials, it has consistently opposed a caste census (though in Bihar, it has taken a somewhat different position).
In its opposition, the party seeks to hide behind the convenient fig leaf that such a census will undermine (Hindu) unity.
In any case, a government that postponed the basic task of conducting a census cannot be expected to employ sound information as the basis for public policy.
Anxiety over the caste census is witnessed among self-appointed cosmopolitans who think that by not counting caste, we can make it disappear.
This group includes well-meaning critics who think that a caste census will encourage sharper caste identities and the politicisation of caste. Such anxiety represents the thinking of the Indian state in the matter of social justice.
Ideas Page
Agents of prosperity (Page no. 13)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
The government has sought to fulfil its vision of enhancing farmers’ income by adopting a multi-pronged strategy — enhancing productivity, reducing costs, improving marketability, crop diversification, risk mitigation and adopting climate resilient technologies. Fragmented holdings are one of the major challenges faced by this sector. They prevent economies of scale and discourage investment in agriculture. In recent years, Farmer Producers’ Organisations (or Companies) have countered this challenge. An FPO is a collective of farmers who have holdings or work in a geographical cluster. It can be registered under the Companies Act or as a cooperative under the Societies Registration Act. FPOs have demonstrated their potential to trigger cluster-based farming, bringing in economies of scale in input management facilitating agri-extension, enabling technology adoption, providing quality assurance and helping farmers market their produce.
Explained
Safety test for Gaganyaan (Page no. 15)
(GS Paper 3, Science and Technology)
On Saturday, less than two months after the Chandrayaan-3 Moon landing, ISRO will carry out the first of a series of tests of systems and procedures with the aim to ultimately launch an Indian astronaut into space, perhaps in 2025.
The Flight Test Vehicle Abort Mission-1 (TV-D1) will demonstrate the performance of the Crew Escape System of the Gaganyaan project.
The flight will be the first of two abort missions to test the safety mechanisms that will allow the Gaganyaan crew to leave the spacecraft in an emergency.
The test exercise will see the rocket rise to an altitude of almost 17 km before an abort signal is triggered, leading to the separation of the crew module, which will descend using a parachute for a splashdown in the Bay of Bengal.
The test mission will last a total 532 seconds from liftoff at 8 am to the crew module splashdown about 10 km from the Sriharikota coast.
The rocket, ISRO’s new, low-cost Test Vehicle, will reach a peak relative velocity of 363 metres/ second (about 1307 km/ hr) during the flight. The crew module will be empty for the test.
Economy
Broad based uptick in overall economy says RBI report (Page no. 17)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
The Reserve Bank of India's state of the economy report has flagged the relentless strengthening of the US dollar as a global risk, tightening already stringent financial conditions, even as India's foreign exchange reserves swelled the most among major foreign exchange reserves-holding countries.
"Even as energy importers reel under the impact of soaring crude oil prices that resurrect the spectre of inflation alongside external vulnerabilities, the US dollar gets ever stronger on the heft of surging treasury yields, creating a pernicious feedback loop," the report authored by Reserve Bank of India staffer including deputy governor MD Patra said.
The report does not necessarily reflect the view of the Reserve Bank of India.