Jahangirpuri Eviction Drive

What is the issue?Recently, a fleet of bulldozers descended on Jahangirpuri in Delhi to demolish buildings, petty shops,and the entrance gate of a mosque.

What is the Jahangirpuri eviction drive?Communal violence had broken out in the Jahangirpuri area on April 16 when a HanumanJayanti Shobha Yatra, which did not have police permission, clashed with Muslims as it wentalongside the mosque.The demolition drive was initiated after a petition was given to North Delhi MunicipalCorporation (NDMC) to demolish the illegal constructions of the rioters in Jahangirpuri.Soon after the demolitions started, the Supreme Court in an urgent hearing ordered that“status quo” be maintained until further orders.But the demolition continued for over an hour after the order was passed.

The Jahangirpuri drive comes in the backdrop of demolition drives carried out by theState governments in Khargone and Anand where bulldozers were used to razeencroached properties.

What are the major legal concerns of citing “illegalencroachment”?

The actions of state and local authorities to bulldoze shops and homes in riot-hit Muslimneighbourhoods citing “illegal encroachment” raises major legal concerns

Such actions show a disregard for the due process of law and established judicial1.precedents regarding evictions.It conveys the use of brute state power for collective punishment undermining the basic2.tenets of criminal law.

What is the case of illegal encroachment in Delhi?According to the Delhi Economic Survey 2008-09, about 24% of the city lived in plannedcolonies and the rest lived in informal or unplanned areas.

The Draft Master Plan of Delhi, 2041 also acknowledges the informality that characterisesDelhi.Since the 1970s, there have been many waves of regularisation of unauthorised coloniesinitiated by the state.The Union Government launched the PM-UDAY (Unauthorised Colonies in Delhi Awas AdhikarYojana) scheme which confers property rights to residents of unauthorised colonies.

What protections are in place against eviction?

Section 343 of the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act, 1957, which allows the corporationto order the demolition of buildings, states that “no order of demolition shall be madeunless a notice is served to the affected person for a reasonable opportunity”.

Irrespective of the legal status of the settlement, no public authority can demolish buildingswithout giving the affected parties a chance to be heard.The Delhi High Court, in Sudama Singh vs Government of Delhi (2010), mandated that thestate should comply with fair procedure before undertaking any eviction.This got crystalised in the Delhi Slum & JJ Rehabilitation and Relocation Policy, 2015.In Ajay Maken vs Union of India (2019), the Delhi High Court held that no authority shall carryout eviction without conducting a survey, consulting the population that it seeks to evict andproviding adequate rehabilitation for those eligible.The court invoked the idea of the “Right to the City” and the “Right to Adequate Housing”from international law and held that slum-dwellers possess the right to housing and should beprotected from forced and unannounced eviction.Given these precedents, before a public authority undertakes any action in Jahangirpuri, itshould not only serve notice but also consult those that it seeks to evict.

What does this action signify?Threat to minorities- The bulldozer itself has now become a symbol of brute state power anda revolting mascot to intimidate minorities.It raises alarms on the establishment of a bulldozer state that dispenses majoritarian justice.Authoritarian state- The demolition activities seem to be purposefully done under full mediaglare to convey the unbridled power.Arbitrary actions- Under the new bulldozer state, even before any charges are framed, theexecutive arbitrarily imposes a form of collective punishment upon a whole neighbourhood.In the midst of such a majoritarian upsurge, the rule of law cannot be saved purely throughjudicial intervention and would need broader political struggles.

References

https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/demolishing-the-rule-of-law/article65350805.ece1.https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Delhi/supreme-court-halts-eviction-drive-in-delhis-jahan2.girpuri/article65337761.ece

WHO’s Approach on Excess Deaths during the Pandemic

What is the issue?The WHO report estimates excess deaths during the pandemic period for which India has raised itsobjection.

What are the findings by the WHO?The WHO report (not yet released) is expected to show at least 4 million excess deaths inIndia, the highest such tally for any country in the world.The excess deaths approach considers the difference between the registered deaths before thepandemic and those during the pandemic period.This gives a robust estimate of the true impact of the pandemic.The findings are based on the estimates on all-cause mortality data from 17 States and oneUnion Territory in India.It uses mortality figures directly obtained from Tier I set of countries and uses a mathematicalmodelling process for Tier II countries (which includes India).

How are excess deaths measured?In most developed countries, death registration is full or nearly full and therefore, calculatingexcess deaths is relatively easier as deaths data are reliable and readily available.Countries such as the U.S., the U.K., Italy and Germany have near 100% registration of deathswith the cause of mortality known in every case.India’s case- In India, registration of deaths stands at 92% (as per the Annual Report on VitalStatistics of India based on Civil Registration System-2019) and only 20.7% of the deaths aremedically certified.Besides India witnesses several variations

Variation in registration and certification across StatesVariation in the online availability of death registration numbersVariation in the delay in registration of deaths across States

The best way to calculate excess deaths in India is to individually calculate excess deaths forStates with near 100% registration and to use suitable models to predict deaths from limiteddata in others.

Why is the Indian government dismissive of the WHOfindings?

India’s basic objection has not been with the result but rather the methodology adopted forcalculating COVID-19 toll.One-size-fits-all approach- The concern includes on how the models which are true forsmaller countries like Tunisia is applicable to India.Different estimates- It also said that the model gives two highly different sets of excessmortality estimates when using the data from Tier I countries and when using unverified datafrom 18 Indian States.Validity- It raised concerns about validity and accuracy of such a modelling exercise.Lack of scientific backing- The model assumes an inverse relationship between monthlytemperature and monthly average deaths, which does not have any scientific backing to

establish such peculiar empirical relationship.Variations- Also, the variation in covid-19 positivity rate within the India was not consideredfor modeling purposes.Quantification of containment measures- Quantifying various measures of containment isnearly impossible as the strictness of such measures have varied widely even among the Statesand Districts of India.Unverified data- The Health Ministry also claims that the data published in the newspaperswere unverified, though these were data that was accessed through Right to Informationrequests.WHO’s stand- The authors of the WHO report emphasise that for India the global predictivecovariate model is not used and so the estimates of excess mortality are based on data fromIndia only.

References

https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/chennai/chen-health/explained-why-is-india-concerned-a1.bout-who-approach-on-excess-deaths-during-the-pandemic/article65348027.ece?homepage=truehttps://www.thehindu.com/news/national/india-objects-to-who-methodology-for-calculating-covi2.d-19-toll/article65327583.ecehttps://www.livemint.com/news/india/india-objects-to-who-s-methodology-to-calculate-covid-19-3.death-toll-11650153706480.html

Moving away from Coal

Why in news?Decline in coal stocks and the resulting power outages in several States have spurred queries ofrenewable energy’s potential to fill in for the conventional resource.

What is the issue?Earlier this week, coal stocks in more than 100 thermal power plants in India fell below thecritical mark (less than 25% of the required stock).Tamil Nadu Chief Minister wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, requesting him to ensureadequate supply of coal to the power-generating units in the State.In Maharashtra, Deputy Chief Minister said the State government planned to import coal tocope with the power crisis. The other top power-consuming State in the country, Gujarat, is also planning to import coal.

Is there a coal crisis?

Coal accounts for 55% of the country’s energy needs.

Demand- The India Energy Outlook 2021 report of the International Energy Agency (IEA) said

energy use in India has doubled since 2000, with 80% of demand still being met by coal, oiland solid biomass.Reasons for high consumption of coal

Abundant availabilityHas shorter gestation periodsHave lower capital costs than hydel and nuclear plantsStability in energy productionMost viable enabler of energy security

Reasons for the current crisisPandemic-related disruptions prevented the mining and stock-up of coal.Monsoons hampered the mining operations and delayed the arrival of stocks.With household demand for power picking up and the arrival of summer, combined withthe sudden acceleration in economic activity, it has resulted in a demand-supplymismatch.

The IEA estimates that despite the shock from COVID-19, India’s demand is expected to growby almost 5% a year till 2040.

To know more about the coal shortage in India, click here

Where does India stand on renewable energy sources?A total of 152.90 GW of renewable energy capacity has been installed in the country as onFebruary 2022.In accordance with the Prime Minister’s announcement at COP26, the Ministry of New andRenewable Energy aspires to install 500 GW of electricity capacity from non-fossil fuel sourcesby 2030.In 2020-21, as per the Central Electricity Authority (CEA), renewable energy sources’ sharerepresents 21.5% of the overall generation and is expected to reach 40% by 2029-30.

What are the challenges?Losses- The capacity of a plant does not necessarily translate into the actual power itgenerates for the grid as some of it may be lost due to external factors such as heat ortransmission losses.Variability- Solar and wind energy are variable resources.

Seasonal variability- In monsoons, solar energy is barely available with wind energyavailable in abundance creating a seasonal variation.Spatial variability- Regions near coastal areas like Gujarat possess greater ability toproduce wind energy, in comparison to States like Rajasthan which are drier.

The duck curve issue- Solar energy is abundantly available during daytime in summers.However, the domestic consumption peaks in the evenings when we turn on the air-conditioner after returning from work.This discrepancy results in a net demand curve that takes the shape of a duck, and the duckcurve gets more pronounced each year

What is the need of the hour?Energy-efficient behaviour- Transition to renewable energy would depend a lot oninculcating energy-efficient behaviour such as operating ACs more flexibly through the dayand opting for energy-efficient products.Lifestyle changes- Models such as Japan’s ‘Cool Biz Campaign’ permitting employees towear light and casual clothes at work instead of the conventional jackets and tie in order toreduce the need for air-conditioning can be inculcated.

References

https://www.thehindu.com/business/Industry/explained-how-quickly-can-india-move-away-from1.-coal/article65347728.ece?homepage=truehttps://elements.visualcapitalist.com/the-solar-power-duck-curve-explained/2.

Prelim Bits 24-04-2022 & 25-04-2022 | UPSC Daily Current

Affairs

NASA’s Space Equity Action PlanThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has released an equity action plan to“make space more accessible”.

The Space Equity Action Plan is NASA’s response to the U.S. government’s 2021 executiveorder aimed at “advancing racial equity and support for underserved communities”.This plan deepens NASA’s commitment to further identify and remove the systemicbarriers that limit opportunity in underserved and underrepresented communities, andensure representation.It anchors fairness as a core component in every NASA mission to make the work thatNASA does in space & beyond more accessible to all.Focus Areas - The space equity action plan lists four focus areas for underservedcommunities.

Increasing integration and utilization of contractors and businesses from underserved1.communities and expanding equity in NASA’s procurement process,Enhancing grants and cooperative agreements to advance opportunities, access, and2.representation for underserved communities,Leveraging Earth Science and socioeconomic data to help mitigate environmental3.challenges in underserved communities, andAdvancing external civil rights compliance and expanding access to limited English4.proficient populations within underserved communities.

Targets

By the fiscal year 2029, NASA aims to increase the number of outreach events for underservedcommunities by 50%.Using earth science and other data to help mitigate environmental challenges:

To make information on earth science easily available to all, NASA will make its 50 most-1.requested environmental data sets of last year available on the internet, andThe full transfer of NASA Earth science data to the cloud will be complete by 2025.2.

NASA will also train around 2,700 users on how to use the agency’s data effectively to addressenvironmental parameters like air quality and water resource management.NASA plans to increase its civil rights compliance reviews to 10% by the financial year 2024.By January 2023, NASA will publish an updated language access plan.

Reference

https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/explained-what-is-nasas-space-equity-action-plan1./article65348438.ece?homepage=truehttps://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-releases-equity-action-plan-to-make-space-more-acce2.ssible-to-allhttps://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/NASA-EO13985-equity-summary.pdf3.

Blue Straggler StarsBengaluru-based Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIAP) has found support for one way to understandthe aberrant behavior of blue stragglers, a particular type of star seen in clusters and also,sometimes, alone.

For this, the IIAP made use of the observations by the Ultra Violet Imaging Telescope(UVIT) instrument of ASTROSAT, India’s first science observatory in space.

Stellar ageing

To know what blue stragglers are, it is necessary to understand how stars are classified andtheir evolution, studied.A main sequence star (for example, our Sun), given its mass and age, is expected that once ithas converted all its hydrogen into helium, its core will get denser.As the outer layers expand, it will swell into a red giant.After this phase, its fuel spent, it will shrink, becoming a smaller, cooling star called a whitedwarf star at the end of its life.To study the behaviour of the star, a colour-magnitude diagram can be drawn, in which, weof

The colour of the star, which is an indication of its surface temperature, is plotted in a1.graph againstThe magnitude of the star, which is related to the total energy given off by it.2.

In a globular cluster of stars, a large number of stars are seen to find a place within a bandknown as the main sequence.The expectation is that all main sequence stars follow a similar pattern of evolution. But theblue straggler stars violate standard theories of stellar evolution.

Blue stragglers

There are few stars, just at the stage of their lives, when they are expected to expand in sizeand cooling down, do just the opposite.They grow brighter and hotter as indicated by their blue colour, thus standing out from thecooler red stars in their vicinity.As they are blue in colour, and lag behind their peers in the evolution they are called bluestragglers.Blue stragglers are a class of star observed in old, dense stellar systems such as globularclusters, and also, sometimes, alone.They stand out because old stellar populations are expected to be devoid of blue (high-mass)stars which possess very short lifespans.The blue stragglers in an old stellar population must therefore have formed long after thesystem as a whole.The IIAP researchers have found why a blue straggler is more massive, and energetic, than itis expected to be.They have shown evidence that the straggler draws matter from the giant companion star andgrows more massive, hot and blue, and the red giant to end up as a normal or smaller whitedwarf.

Reference

https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/science/what-makes-blue-straggler-stars-tick/article6534471.66.ecehttps://astronomy.swin.edu.au/cosmos/B/Blue+Stragglers2.https://dst.gov.in/blue-straggler-bigger-and-bluer-star-formed-when-one-star-eats-another3.

Hermes StarLinerIsrael becomes the first-ever country to allow drones in civilian airspace.

The Israeli Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has issued certification to the Hermes Starlinerdrones.This is Israel's first certification for unmanned aircraft vehicles (UAVs) to operate in civilianairspace for the benefit of agriculture, environment, fight against crime, the people and theeconomy.Hermes Starliner was manufactured and developed by Elbit Systems, an Israeli defenseelectronics company.It can fly for up to 36 hours at an altitude of around 7600 m, and can carry an additional 450kg of thermal, electro-optical, radar and other payloads.Uses - Hermes Starliner will also be able to

Participate in anti-terror and border security operations,1.Perform maritime rescue and search,2.Take part in securing public events, and3.Take part in environmental inspection and commercial aviation missions.4.

There are two variants - Hermes 450 and Hermes 900.For safety reasons, international aviation regulations prohibit uncertified aircraft from flyingin civilian airspace, limiting the operation of UAVs to unsegregated airspace.

Reference

https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/travel/travel-news/israel-becomes-first-ever-country-to-allo1.w-drone-flights-in-civilian-airspace/as89507358.cmshttps://www.business-standard.com/article/international/israel-becomes-first-country-allowing-2.drones-in-civilian-airspace-minister-122021000160_1.htmlhttps://elbitsystems.com/landing/starliner/3.

Pyramid Schemes and MLM ModelThe Enforcement Directorate (ED) attached ₹757.77 crore worth of assets of direct-selling companyAmway India Enterprises Private Limited, accusing it of running a Multi-level Marketing (MLM)pyramid scam.

Pyramid Scheme

A pyramid scheme is an unsustainable business model in which original investors make moneyby recruiting others rather than by selling actual products or services.In a pyramid scheme, an entity promises participants payment or services primarily forenrolling other people into the scheme, rather than supplying a product or service to thepublic.As the new participants rope in fresh recruits, money keeps flowing up the chain eventuallymaking an ever-increasing pyramid or hierarchy.These are also called money circulation schemes.This scheme becomes unsustainable after a sizable number of people have been roped in, asprofits minimise when the acquired money is being circulated amongst the group.

MLM Model

There is a thin line between a pyramid scheme and an MLM model.MLMs are similar in nature to pyramid schemes but differ in that they involve the sale oftangible goods.The focus on the sale of more products as a compensation model rather than commissionsfor recruiting more members is what differentiates an MLM model from a pyramid scheme.Unlike indirect sales companies that use a network of wholesalers, distributors, and retailersto sell their products, MLM companies rope in members of the public to directly sell theirproducts.These members, while not being employees of the company, recruit more people to join theproduct selling network, thus putting in place a mechanism that expands this web andrevenue.

Laws governing these schemes in India

In 2021, the Centre released new guidelines for direct selling companies like Tupperware,Amway, and Oriflame, banning them from promoting pyramid or money circulation schemes.With the Consumer Protection (Direct Selling) Rules, 2021, direct selling companies werefor the first time brought under the ambit of the Consumer Protection Act.The new Rules were introduced to make these companies liable for the grievances arising outof the sale of goods or services by its direct sellers.The rules said that direct selling entities and direct sellers would be prohibited from

Promoting a pyramid scheme or1.Enrolling any person on such scheme or2.Participating in such arrangement in any manner whatsoever in the garb of doing direct3.selling business.

Another legislation banning such activities is the Prize Chits and Money CirculationSchemes (Banning) Act, 1978.This bans prize chits and money circulation schemes or enrolment as members or participationtherein.

Reference

https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/eds-case-against-amway-explained/article6533847ece1.?homepage=truehttps://www.investopedia.com/insights/what-is-a-pyramid-scheme/2.https://corporatefinanceinstitute.com/resources/knowledge/other/pyramid-scheme/3.

Desert National ParkA green agriculture project, funded by the Food FAO’s Global Environment Facility, will act as alifeline for the Desert National Park (DNP) Rajasthan with the conservation of critical biodiversityand forest landscapes.

Desert National Park is an excellent example of the Thar desert's ecosystem.It is situated on the western border of India within Jaisalmer & Barmer in Rajasthan.It is only place where Rajasthan State Bird (Great Indian Bustard), State animal (Chinkara)and State tree (Khejri) and State flower (Rohida) are found naturally.Desert monitors, deadly vipers, spiny-tailed lizards, Krait, and sandfish are the prominentmembers of the wildlife family.In winter, the park hosts an incredible variety of migratory raptors such Himalayan and

Eurasian Griffon Vultures, Eastern Imperial Eagle, and the Saker Falcon.The Desert National Park also has a collection of fossils of animals and plants of 180 millionyears old.The Park is formed of undulating sand dunes, jagged rocks, dense salt lake bottoms and inter-medial areas.Desert National Park (DNP) Timeline:

1980 - UNESCO World Heritage Site1.1992 - National Park2.

Reference

https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/green-project-to-act-as-lifeline-for-desert-n1.ational-park/article6532835ecehttps://www.rajras.in/rajasthan/wildlife/pa/national-parks/desert/2.https://whc.unesco.org/en/tentativelists/5448/3.https://www.thrillophilia.com/attractions/desert-national-park-jaisalmer4.