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The Election Commission of India has approached the Union government proposing amendments to the Representation of the People Act, 1950, and voter enrolment forms, to delete the provision that compels a voter to provide reasons for her decision not to seed her Aadhaar number with the voter ID card.
The proposal, however, is learned to have been turned down by the Union Law Ministry on the ground that the Supreme Court gave no specific directions to amend the RP Act, 1950. It has, instead, suggested that the poll panel issue clarificatory guidelines reiterating its position that providing Aadhaar details is voluntary and that no name of any voter be deleted from or denied inclusion in the voters’ list for want of Aadhaar number.
The exchange between the EC and the Law Ministry comes amidst complaints and a recent writ petition in the Supreme Court, where the petitioner argued that Form 6 (for new voter enrolment), Form 6B (for collecting Aadhaar number of enrolled voters), and other related forms lacked options for electors to abstain from providing Aadhaar, offering only two choices: either provide the Aadhaar number or declare, “I am not able to furnish my Aadhaar because I don’t have Aadhaar number.”
World recognising India as robust, economically sound, no doubt says SC (Page no. 1)
(GS Paper 2, Judiciary)
While hearing the suit filed by Kerala’s government accusing the Centre of not allowing it to borrow more money to meet its needs, the Supreme Court said the world is recognising India “as a robust economically sound country”, adding this was not based on mere perceptions.
The remarks came from Justice Surya Kant while presiding over a two-judge bench also comprising Justice K V Viswanathan.
The entire world is recognising India as a robust economically sound country. There is no doubt about it. Even when we go out of the country on judicial platforms, we find this kind of feeling there.
And it’s not a feeling based on perception. It’s based on correct facts and figures and the strong pillar on which the economy is thriving and surviving both.
Justice Kant said this while intervening in a passionate exchange of words between Attorney General R Venkataramani, Additional Solicitor General N Venkataraman, appearing for the Centre, and Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal who represented the Kerala government.
Editorial
An antidote called empathy (Page no. 12)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
It is that time of the year again — when every company, college canteen, CSR initiative, social media influencer, judge, and politician will offer empty platitudes for the category of “woman”. All of us in the Indian elite will enthusiastically participate in this charade.
We will display our well-meaning outrage at news stories about violence against women, enjoy our Women’s Day discounts while opining on Twitter Pradesh or at conferences.
We will all pretend to celebrate femininity and women’s bodies while being fearful of them and for them. In public, we will encourage our communities to respect all women. In private, what we will actually mean is that you must respect women who are “respectable” — dutiful-beautiful caregivers, worthy pliant wives of rich respectable men or women who have achieved accolades by self-presenting like rich respectable men.
Technocrats will offer useful advice to a policy-making elite who doesn’t like independent uncontrolled femininity all that much. My snark here is as horribly cliched as the celebration of Women’s Day.
Perhaps, it is time to shed some cynicism, become earnest and ask — what would it take to credibly feminise the institutions of our society? Can we feminise India? Let us draw on feminist first principles and try to pave a path.
Ideas Page
The thin fat Indian (Page no. 13)
(GS Paper 2, Health)
We read about the Global Burden of Disease study in The Lancet which focuses on the simultaneous double burden of undernutrition and obesity worldwide.
Most reports are cross-sectional but Indian data provides a unique insight into the evolution of diabetes and obesity in individuals born small and undernourished. India has double trouble: Of early life undernutrition and diabetes and obesity.
There is a long legacy of undernutrition — whereas Europeans gained 15 cm in height in the last two centuries (1830-1980), Indians gained nothing.
However, the current generation of children are 5 cm taller than their parents. Long deprivation followed by rapid development is a recipe for malnutrition. Is there a solution? Yes, learn from nature’s wisdom.
It is lost on us that “obesity day” and “women’s day” are juxtaposed. We have failed to understand that early life undernutrition, diabetes and obesity are the price we pay for neglecting the nutrition and health of our young mothers for centuries.
Research suggests that improving the nutrition and health of young women and their babies when they are in the womb can curtail these epidemics.
Trying to douse the fire later in life is like closing the door after the horse has bolted.
Express Network
Law commission recommends new law to protect trade secrets (Page no. 17)
(GS Paper 2, Polity and Constitution)
The 22nd Law Commission headed by Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi recommended that new legislation be introduced to protect trade secrets with exceptions relating to whistleblower protection, compulsory licensing, government use, and public interest.
Trade secrets are intellectual property rights on confidential information that may be sold or licensed. They derive their value from being kept secret.
However, unlike other forms of intellectual property, which are limited in duration, trade secrets can be protected indefinitely.
Currently, India lacks a specific law for the protection of trade secrets. Instead, they are safeguarded under the general laws governing contracts, common law, criminal law, and principles of breach of confidence and equity.
However, the 289th Law Commission Report, published on Tuesday on ‘Trade Secrets and Economic Espionage’, states that the reference to the commission arose after deliberations in the government, where the need for legislation on the subject was felt.
Subsequently, the Department of Legal Affairs and the Legislative Department examined the issue of enacting the Economic Espionage Act and Trade Secrets Protection Act and prepared a concept paper along with a draft cabinet note and a draft Bill, the report states.
Defence ministry denotifies civil areas of 10 cantonments (Page no. 17)
(GS Paper 3, Defence)
The Centre on Tuesday issued a gazette notification to denotify civil areas of 10 cantonments (out of 58) in the country.
These areas will now be merged with the state municipalities (local bodies) concerned. The process to remove civil areas from other cantonments, including six of Himachal Pradesh, is underway.
The 10 include Dehradun and Clement Town Cantonments in Uttarakhand; Fatehgarh, Babina, Shahjahanpur and Mathura Cantonments in UP; Deolali Cantonment in Maharashtra; Ramgarh Cantonment in Jharkhand; Ajmer and Nasirabad Cantonments in Rajasthan.
In the notification, a copy of which is with The Indian Express, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has given a time of eight weeks to raise objections, if any, in this regard.
The MoD notification to denotify civil areas from the control of the cantonment boards stated, “The central government, after consulting the state governments and cantonment boards, hereby declares its intention to exclude certain areas of the said cantonments and the merger of such areas with the state local bodies.
Any objection by any inhabitant of a cantonment may be submitted to the central government through the General Officer Commanding in Chief within eight weeks from the publication of the notification.”
Economy
India to become upper middle – income country by 2031 : CRISIL (Page no. 21)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
India's economy is on the rise, set to grow by 6.8 per cent in the next financial year, predicts ratings agency Crisil, adding the country may achieve upper middle-income status by 2031.
The projection is backed by domestic reforms and cyclical factors, with a potential to surpass expectations, aiming for the world's third-largest economy.
After a better-than-expected 7.6 per cent growth this fiscal, India's GDP will likely moderate to 6.8 per cent in fiscal 2025," says Crisil's India Outlook report.
Over the next seven years, from 2025 to 2031, the economy is expected to exceed $5 trillion, inching closer to $7 trillion.
The ratings agency even goes on to say that India could potentially surpass its growth prospects as it aims to become the world's third-largest economy in the next seven years.
"An average expansion of 6.7 per cent during this period will make India the third-largest economy globally, lifting per capita income to the upper-middle-income category by 2031," according to Crisil.
Explained
Ladakh, Article 371 ad the sixth schedule of the constitution (Page no. 22)
(GS Paper 2, Polity and Constitution)
In a meeting with representatives from Ladakh, which has been witnessing protests recently, Union Home Minister Amit Shah offered to extend Article 371-like protections to the region.
Shah is learnt to have told the Leh Apex Body (ABL) and the Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) that their concerns related to jobs, land, and culture would be taken care of, but the government would not go as far as to include Ladakh in the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution.
Following the repeal of Article 370 in August 2019 and the subsequent enactment of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, Ladakh has been recognised as a separate Union Territory “without legislature”. UTs like New Delhi and Pondicherry have their own Legislative Assemblies.
Ever since the separation, organisations like the ABL and the KDA have demanded that Ladakh be included under the Sixth Schedule.
This Schedule contains provisions regarding the administration of tribal areas in the states of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram.
Express Network
SC allows tiger safari in Jim Corbett buffer zone (Page no. 23)
(GS Paper 3, Environment)
The Supreme Court passed a judgment allowing a proposed tiger safari project in Jim Corbett Tiger Reserve to go through, but with certain conditions that include displaying only orphaned, injured, or tigers that have been involved in human-animal conflict.
In response to a petition filed in 2022 by lawyer and environmental activist Gaurav Bansal, the Supreme Court directed that the tiger safari proposed in Corbett in Uttarakhand should only come up in the buffer zone, and cannot have animals from other zoos being brought to be displayed in enclosures.
The proposed tiger safari in question is different from the jungle safari already functioning within the reserve.
Kerala Cabinet declares man-animal conflict state specific disaster to step up monitoring (Page no. 23)
(GS Paper 3, Disaster Management)
In a significant move, the Kerala cabinet on Wednesday declared instances of man-animal conflict as a state-specific disaster.
The decision was taken considering the recurring incidents of loss of lives in human settlements due to attacks by wild animals, especially elephants.
The decision comes at a time when people in several parts of the state are on a warpath, demanding a perennial solution to instances of man-animal conflict. In Kerala, man-animal conflicts have already claimed nine lives this year.
An official communication from the Chief Minister’s Office said the state disaster management authority will be roped in to mitigate the increasing instances of man-animal conflict.
The Kerala government will form a control room at the state Forest department headquarters on the lines of the control rooms formed during natural disasters.