NEWS_23 DEC - Vedhik IAS Academy

VEDHIK

2 3 - D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 1

FOREWORD

We, at Team Vedhik is happy to introduce a new initiative - "Daily Current Affairs_The Hindu" compilations to help you with UPSC Civil Services Examination preparation. We believe this initiative - "Daily Current Affairs_The Hindu" would help students, especially beginners save time and streamline their preparations with regard to Current Affairs. A content page and an Appendix has been added segregating and mapping the content to the syllabus.It is an appreciable efforts by Vedhik IAS Academy helping aspirants of UPSC Civil Services Examinations. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Dr. Babu Sebastian, former VC - MG University in extending all support to this endeavour. Finally I also extend my thanks to thank Ms. Shilpa Sasidharan and Mr. Shahul Hameed for their assistance in the preparing the compilations. We welcome your valuable comments so that further improvement may be made in the forthcoming material. We look forward to feedback, comments and suggestions on how to improve and add value for students. Every care has been taken to avoid typing errors and if any reader comes across any such error, the authors shall feel obliged if they are informed at their Email ID.

CONTENTS

Editorials - As a regional leader, not a victim of circumstance GSP 02 AEditorials - Troubled waters GSP 02 A News - India gives 1 mn doses to Myanmar GSP 02 ANews-UNSC adopts resolution to ease Afghanassistance GSP 02 BNews- UNSC adopts resolution to ease Afghan assistance Part II GSP 02 B News - China endorses Hong Kong’s elections GSP 02 C News - Israel PM meets U.S. National SecurityAdviser over Iran GSP 02 C Editorials - Why the electoral reforms Bill is aproblem GSP 02 HNews - Changes to marriage age will contradict other laws GSP 02 HNews - Debate on anti-conversion Bill today GSP 02 H

CONTENTS

News - House performed much below its

potential, says Venkaiah

GSP 02 H

News - Karnataka’s anti-conversion legislation

GSP 02 H

News - Maharashtra govt.’s Shakti Bill seeks

death sentence for rape

GSP 02 H

Editorials - Looking beyond the Forest

Rights Act

GSP 02 M

Editorials - Warning bells

GSP 02 T

News - Das pitched for continued policy

support to aid revival

GSP 03 A

News - India adds 33 unicorns in one year,

displaces U.K.

GSP 03 B

News - The suspension of futures trading in

agri products

GSP 03 B

News - Indian Army inducts indigenously

built AERVs

GSP 03 K

C O U R T E S Y T H E H I N D U

DAILY NEWS ANALYSIS

Addressing an Indian OceanConference this month, Ex-ternal A�airs Minister S.

Jaishankar listed two “trend lines”that have most in�uenced the“evolution” of Indian Ocean coun-tries: a greater caution in powerprojection by the United States,and the rise of China that has per-meated many spheres but also re-sulted in territorial tensions. He al-so listed two developments thathave the most heightened uncer-tainties in the region: the Ameri-can pull-out from Afghanistan andthe novel coronavirus pandemic.While challenges to India and itsneighbourhood were quite cor-rectly identi�ed, it is on these veryfactors that Indian leadership inthe region has been challenged themost, and has fallen short.

Handling the Afghan issueTo begin with, there is the chal-lenge that the situation in Afghan-istan has thrown up, triggered bythe U.S. decision to pull out alltroops.

Four months after the Talibantakeover of Kabul, it is clear thatNew Delhi has failed to e�ect out-comes in a country where it hashad a role historically, and is nowleft studying the threats that willemanate from Afghanistan — fromterror groups, narcotics, and massmigration to �ee the growing hu-manitarian crisis there. Three fai-lures mark the Narendra Modi go-vernment’s e�orts on Afghanistanthus far: the past, the present andthe future.

The �rst is a failure to recognisewhere U.S. policy was leading, es-pecially after it signed the DohaAgreement of February 2020, thatmade the Taliban a legitimate in-terlocutor, and did not impose acease�re with the Afghan securityforces as a pre-condition. That the

Government continued to insistthat it was “on the same page”with the U.S. merely ensured itwas blindsided when the U.S., inconjunction with its Troika Plus-mates (Russia, China and Pakis-tan), paved the way for the fall ofthe Afghan republic.

The second is one that New Del-hi persists in today: the failure tosecure its friends in Afghanistan. Astubborn resistance to allowing Af-ghans needing shelter — this in-cludes students, artists and wo-men activists, Afghan NationalDefense and Security Forces(ANDSF) and National Directorateof Security (NDS) o�cials who arein particular danger because theytrained in India, and members ofAfghan minorities that are notSikh or Hindu (Hazaras, Tajiks, Ah-madis and Shi’as) — has left thou-sands of Afghans feeling betrayedby a country they once considered“second home”. The cancellationof all visas that had been grantedprior to August has only streng-thened the belief that the Govern-ment has closed its doors to the ve-ry Afghan “brothers and sisters” inAfghanistan, Prime Minister Na-rendra Modi reportedly promisedto stand by during a Cabinet Com-mittee on Security (CCS) meetingon August 17.

The third, is a failure to sow theseeds today for a better future forAfghanistan tomorrow, one whichhas a strong Indian presence in it.Among all the Afghan friends NewDelhi has chosen to shun are mem-bers of opposition groups, includ-ing the “Resistance Front” led byAhmad Massoud and former Vice-President Amrullah Saleh. The wa-riness to meet, support or hostthose who pose a counter to theTaliban regime today — even toprovide a platform for them tospeak — is in sharp contrast to the1990s when New Delhi kept up itscontacts with the Northern Al-liance, supported their families inIndia, and admitted thousands ofother Afghan refugees, an act thatheld it in good stead for two de-cades, after the Taliban was de-feated in 2001. The Modi govern-ment’s moves thus far, building

furtive links with the Taliban, withplans to send a small amount offood and aid through Pakistan (notits independently built route viaChabahar), and convening a confe-rence of National Security Advis-ers of Central Asian countries,while proactive, will hardly ful�lthat purpose in the future. Aboveall, India cannot be seen as toeinga line laid out by “western pow-ers” that have themselves been de-feated in the country on whetheror not to re-establish its presencein Kabul or rebuild connectivityinitiatives. Nor can it be seen ascomplicit in actions by the Russia-China combine that have protect-ed the Taliban in Kabul and theTatmadaw in Naypyitaw to subverttwo of the world’s newestdemocracies.

Dealing with ChinaThe next big challenge India hasfaced is from Chinese aggression,quite directly. Regardless of the In-dian Prime Minister’s statement inJune 2020 that “neither hasanyone come in, nor is anyone in-side” Indian territory, it is clearfrom a number of ground sources,satellite maps and o�cial releasesthat the People’s Liberation Army(PLA) has amassed along the Lineof Actual Control (LAC) in unpre-cedented numbers for “peace-time”, built villages and settledpopulations inside disputed terri-tory claimed by India; it has alsodug trenches, brought in heavy ar-tillery and prepared road and hel-icopter and aircraft landing infras-tructure for its forces right up tothe boundary with India.

The Government’s reticence in

acknowledging the Chinese ac-tions is no longer seen as being“discretion over valour”. It is seen,particularly in the region, as delib-erate di�dence on India’s part,particularly given the brutal killingof 20 Indian soldiers at Galwan lastyear.

More surprising is the oft-re-peated o�cial statement that des-pite dozens of rounds of militaryand ministerial talks, the Govern-ment is unaware of the reasons forthe Chinese action, which is disin-genuous or exposes a lack of stra-tegic thinking.

Those who have analysed thesituation more closely have point-ed to �ve decided objectives be-hind China’s aggression at theLAC: apart from the obvious hege-monistic line Beijing has adoptedto “reclaim” territory it claims ithas lost over hundreds of yearsfrom the South China Sea to Tibet,the PLA plan is: to restrict India’srecent e�orts at building borderinfrastructure, bridges, and roadsright up to the LAC; to restrict anypossible perceived threat to Xin-jiang and Tibet; to restrict India’sability to threaten China’s key Beltand Road project, the China-Pakis-tan Economic Corridor (CPEC), in-cluding a second link highway itplans from the Mustagh pass in oc-cupied Gilgit-Baltistan to Pakistan,and to blunt any plans as outlinedby the Home Minister in 2019 forIndia to reclaim Aksai Chin and Pa-kistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK)militarily.

Impact of some bad movesIn the face of such a clear-cut stra-tegy, New Delhi must not onlycounter China more vocally androbustly but also be seen to pro-vide leadership to the region thatoutpowers Beijing’s in�uence.

The �rst is to resolve not tomake spaces for China in the man-ner that the Modi government hasduring the coronavirus pandemic.By failing to keep its promises toprovide vaccines, even those thathad been paid for by countriessuch as Bangladesh and Nepal,and to send the paltry number re-quired by Bhutan and the Mal-

dives, India has left an indeliblescar in the region.

Second, India cannot cast itselfas a counter to China by invokingits democratic system unless it isprepared to adhere to the veryprinciples the Indian Republic’sfounders committed to: as a plu-ralistic, representative, inclusivepower that respects the rights ofeach citizen, the media, and civilsociety. While neighbours may notemulate India, they admire thesevery qualities that di�erentiateNew Delhi from Beijing.

The third imperative, whichwould promote India’s leadershipin the region, is to stop seeing col-laborations with other countriesfor projects in South Asia as a“win-win”. In fact, recent surveysby think tanks Carnegie (https://bit.ly/32iRy9h) and the Centre forSocial and Economic Progress(https://bit.ly/3soXRCX) havefound that while India is a pre-ferred strategic partner for most ofthe countries in the neighbour-hood (with the obvious exceptionof Pakistan), possible Indian col-laborations with the U.S., Japan,Europe, etc. are not as popular, es-pecially as they are seen as “anti-China” rival platforms, whichthese countries would want toavoid. These partnerships alsohamper India’s ability to stand upfor its neighbours when required,as some in Dhaka had hoped itmight, when the U.S. chose to slapsanctions on Bangladesh’s multi-agency anti-terror Rapid ActionBattalion (RAB) force right as thenation’s 50th anniversary celebra-tions began.

As a result, New Delhi mustblock all external attempts to re-cast India as a “middle power”,one which looks to the example ofothers to decide its best interestsand needs the support of otherpowers to chart its course of ac-tion in its neighbourhood. Morethan anything else, India’s res-ponse to neighbourhood challeng-es must not paint it as a “victim ofcircumstance” but as an arbiter ofits own destiny, and the region’s.

[email protected]

As a regional leader, not a victim of circumstanceIndia must respond to neighbourhood challenges by making it clear that it is an arbiter of its destiny and the region’s

Suhasini HaidarGE

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DAILY NEWS ANALYSIS

The arrest of 68 Tamil Nadu �shermen by the SriLankan authorities between December 18 and 20and the impounding of 10 boats for “poaching” in

territorial waters have again raised concerns about thefate of the men. It is a matter of comfort and relief thatthe Indian High Commission in Sri Lanka is working tosecure their early release. The Tamil Nadu Chief Minis-ter, M.K. Stalin, in his communication to the ExternalA�airs Minister, S. Jaishankar, on Monday, has under-scored the need to get back 75 �shing boats too from SriLanka. Fishermen from Tamil Nadu getting arrestedand released later has become a routine a�air, but therehave been cases of deaths. In January 2021, four �sher-men from Ramanathapuram district lost their lives af-ter their vessel collided with a Sri Lankan naval craft.There was a similar case in October in which a �sher-man died. This is why the Palk Bay �shing disputeneeds a resolution soon. The fact that many rounds ofdiscussions — at the levels of the �shermen and the go-vernments of the two countries — have not led to anytangible improvement in the situation should not deterthe pursuit of sustained engagement to sort out a pro-blem that involves humanitarian and livelihood issues.

The bone of contention between the two countrieshas been the use of bottom trawlers by the Tamil Nadu�shermen, a practice opposed in Sri Lanka’s NorthernProvince on the ground that trawling damages the ma-rine ecosystem. This practice has been banned in SriLanka and there have been agitations for stringent en-forcement of the law. More than anything else, the �sh-ermen of Tamil Nadu should take into account the factthat their counterparts on the other side of the PalkStrait are still struggling to pick up the threads of theirlives after a brutal civil war. Given that an ambitious₹1,600 crore scheme of replacing in three years 2,000bottom trawlers with deep-sea �shing boats equippedwith long lines and gill nets continues to be a disap-pointment, both the Central and Tamil Nadu govern-ments need to take up fresh initiatives to get the �sher-men on board. The main reason for failure is thecomponent of cost to be borne by the �shermen, ac-counting for 30% of the unit cost of ₹80 lakh; the twogovernments take care of the remaining 70%. Apartfrom increasing the unit cost at least to ₹1.2 crore,which will be at the same level as that of a similarscheme under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yo-jana (PMMSY), the Governments must increase theirshare of subsidy. They should also motivate the �sher-men to adopt sea cage farming and sea/ocean ranching,which were all covered under the PMMSY. Such an ap-proach is essential as the �shermen �nd it hard to res-trict themselves to India’s territorial waters, given the li-mited marine wealth and area on the Indian side. But,the priority now for New Delhi should be in securingthe swift release of the 68 �shermen.

Troubled watersMore e�orts should be made

to wean away �shermen from trawlers

India on Wednesday gaveone million doses of CO-VID-19 vaccines to Myanmaras the country grapples witha breakdown in law and or-der following the military ta-keover in February. The dos-es were handed over byForeign Secretary HarshVardhan Shringla who is on avisit to the country, the �rstby any Indian high o�cialsince the coup.

“Foreign Secretary HarshVardhan Shringla handed ov-er 1 million doses of ‘Made inIndia’ vaccines to the repre-

sentatives of the MyanmarRed Cross Society to supportthe people of Myanmar, in-cluding those along the In-dia-Myanmar border, in their�ght against COVID-19,” an-nounced the Indian Embassyin Myanmar.

Vaccine Maitri initiativeMyanmar was part of the �rstfew countries alongside Ban-gladesh, Bhutan and Nepalthat received Covishield vac-cine of the Serum Institute ofIndia (SII) in January as partof the Vaccine Maitri initia-tive. However, the militaryjunta ousted the elected go-

vernment led by Aung SanSuu Kyi on February 2.

The COVID-19 relatedpreparations coincided withthe political protests whendoctors in leading hospitalsjoined the movement againstthe military takeover.

Myanmar’s e�orts to dealwith COVID-19 was furtherset back when the militaryrulers charged 19 doctorswith organising protests inApril. The pandemic hasclaimed more than 19,000lives in Myanmar and thehealthcare sector is in a se-rious crisis because of thecrackdown on protesters.

Country’s pandemic preparations coincided with protests Kallol BhattacherjeeNEW DELHI

India gives 1 mn doses to Myanmar

vulnerable �rst, includingwomen, children andminorities.”

He said India was willingto work with other stakehol-ders to quickly deliver assis-tance to the Afghan people.Mr. Tirumurti also men-tioned Resolution 2593,which, among other things,called on the Taliban to notpermit Afghanistan to be-come a training ground forterrorists.

China’s permanent repre-sentative to the U.N, ZhangJun, said he was “pleased”that the �nal resolution hadtaken on board China’sviews and “clari�ed somekey issues.” He also calledfor the unfreezing of Af-ghanistan’s �nancial assets.

“The countries con-cerned cannot continue tofreeze substantial Afghanoverseas assets while claim-ing to promote humanitar-ian aid to Afghanistan. Weonce again call for the un-freezing of Afghanistan’soverseas assets as soon aspossible,” Mr. Zhang said.

The U.S. and other coun-tries had frozen more than$10 billion after the Talibanousted the Ashraf Ghani go-vernment in August. TheUnited Nations Develop-ment Programme (UNDP)had released a report in No-vember saying the country’sbanking and �nancial reportare “in disarray.”

(With inputs from Suhasi-ni Haidar in New Delhi)

The resolution (2615) man-dates a review of the carve-out every six months. Addi-tionally, it “strongly encour-ages” providers ofassistance to try and ensurethat bene�ts do not accrueto entities designated on the1988 Sanctions List. It alsorequests that an EmergencyRelief Coordinator brief theUNSC every six months onthe delivery of assistanceand any obstacles to imple-mentation. It also “calls onall parties” to respect hu-man rights and observe in-ternational humanitarianlaw.

UN agency UNICEF hadwarned of “alarming disrup-tions in health and nutritionservices” in Afghanistanand “a disastrous food cri-sis,” drought and the spreadof diseases in a report pu-blished at the end ofNovember.

Calling the country’s hu-manitarian situation “dire,”India’s permanent repre-sentative to the UN, T.S. Ti-rumurti, said assistanceshould be distributedimpartially.

“Humanitarian assis-tance should be based onthe principles of neutrality,impartiality, and indepen-dence and disbursement tothe age should be non-dis-criminatory and accessibleto all irrespective of ethnici-ty, religion, or political be-lief. In particular, the assis-tance should reach the most

UNSC adopts resolutionto ease Afghan assistance


DAILY NEWS ANALYSIS

The United Nations Securi-ty Council (UNSC) on Wed-nesday unanimouslypassed a resolution permit-ting a carve-out in sanc-tions against the Taliban tofacilitate the delivery of hu-manitarian aid to Afghanis-tan.

The resolution, put for-ward by the U.S., passed af-ter the Security Councilmembers, including veto-wielding China and Russia,had objections to a draftversion that was circulatedearlier this week.

“This carve-out coversurgently needed humani-tarian assistance and otheractivities that support bas-ic human needs in Afghan-istan, such as those thatprimarily bene�t poor orat-risk populations or oth-erwise relieve human suf-fering, including activitiesrelated to shelter and set-tlement assistance, foodsecurity, education, liveli-hoods support, energy, wa-ter, sanitation, health, in-cluding COVID-relatedassistance, nutrition, andhygiene, among others,”said senior adviser at theU.S.’s U.N mission, Je�reyDeLaurentis, in his ‘expla-nation of vote’ statement.

UNSC adoptsresolution toease AfghanassistanceSriram Lakshman

CONTINUED ON � PAGE 8UNSC MOVE A GOOD STEP, SAYTALIBAN � PAGE 11

The U.S. National SecurityAdviser (NSA) held talks onWednesday with IsraeliPrime Minister Naftali Ben-nett, who warned that nego-tiations in Vienna on Iran’snuclear programme had“profound rami�cations”for Israeli security.

Mr. Bennett’s governmenthas remained �rmly op-posed to ongoing interna-tional e�orts to revive a 2015accord that saw Iran agree tocurbs on its nuclear activi-ties in exchange for sanc-tions relief.

Jake Sullivan, NSA to U.S.President Joe Biden, said hisvisit to Israel had come at “acritical juncture.”

“It’s important that we sittogether and develop a com-mon strategy, a commonoutlook, and �nd a way for-ward that fundamentally se-cures your country’s inter-ests and mine,” Mr. Sullivansaid, according to an Israeli

government statement. He did not directly men-

tion Iran but the Israeli state-ment said the meeting fo-cused on the Vienna talks.

Mr. Bennett has called forthe negotiations to be halt-ed, accusing Iran of “nuclearblackmail” and chargingthat revenue it gained fromsanctions relief would beused to acquire weapons toharm Israelis.

Lead U.S. Iran negotiatorRob Malley told CNN onTuesday that there are only“some weeks” left to revive

the deal if Tehran continuesits nuclear activities at thecurrent pace.

Negotiations to restorethe pact known as the JointCollective Plan of Action res-umed in November.

Washington was a partyto the original agreement,but withdrew under presi-dent Donald Trump in 2018.

The Biden administrationhas warned it may soon betoo late to revive the JCPOA.

“It really depends on thepace of their nuclear pro-cess,” said Mr. Malley, theU.S. special envoy for Iran.

“If they halt the nuclearadvances, we have moretime,” Mr. Malley said. “Ifthey continue at their cur-rent pace, we have someweeks left but not muchmore than that, at whichpoint the conclusion will bethere’s no deal to be re-vived,” he added.

Iran says it only wants todevelop a civil nuclearprogramme.

Israel PM meets U.S. NationalSecurity Adviser over IranJake Sullivan seeks to �nd common ground with BennettAgence France-PresseJerusalem

Jake Sullivan


DAILY NEWS ANALYSIS

China’s President Xi Jinpingon Wednesday gave a strongendorsement to both HongKong’s current Chief Execu-tive, Carrie Lam, and its re-cently held “patriots only”elections, which saw a re-cord low turnout and no par-ticipation by most of the pro-democracy Oppositioncandidates.

Ms. Lam, who faced wi-despread criticism in HongKong over her administra-tion’s handling of the 2019pro-democracy protests,met Mr. Xi in Beijing, in whatwas his �rst face-to-facemeeting with a senior o�cialfrom outside the Chinesemainland since February lastyear, according to the HongKong-based South ChinaMorning Post.

Mr. Xi has not left Chinasince a visit to Myanmar inmid-January 2020, days be-fore the lockdown of Wuhanwhere the COVID-19 pan-demic began.

A new Chief Executive forHong Kong will be chosen byan Election Committee inMarch.

Ms. Lam has not saidwhether she will seek to stayon for another term, and de-nied that her annual trip tothe Chinese capital to delivera “work report” would seeher seek Beijing’sendorsement.

Acknowledging LamMr. Xi nonetheless gave herone, saying that “the centralauthorities fully acknow-ledge the performance ofCarrie Lam and the HKSAR[Hong Kong Special Adminis-trative Region] governmentin ful�lling their duties”,State-broadcaster ChinaCentral Television reported.

“The city has gone from aperiod of chaos to stability,”he said, also praising “theHKSAR government's e�ortsto contain COVID-19 andboost the city's economicrecovery”.

On Sunday’s Legislative

Council (LegCo) elections,the Chinese leader said thepolls “proved that the im-proved electoral system is inline with the principle of‘One Country, Two Systems’as well as the reality of HongKong”.

“The elections had manif-ested the democratic rightswhich allowed Hong Kongcompatriots to be masters oftheir own home, and imple-mented the principles of pa-triots administering HongKong,” he said. “It also esta-blished a political systemwhich ensures the balancedparticipation of varioussectors.”

The “patriots only” pollswere swept by pro-Beijingcandidates after the newelectoral system, put for-ward by Beijing in March, es-sentially ruled out the parti-cipation of most of thepro-democracy Oppositioncandidates and also reducedthe number of directly elect-ed representatives in LegCofrom 50% to 22%, with therest nominated.

Record low turnoutThe new system also screenscandidates with a committeedetermining their eligibilityand whether they are “pa-triots”, part of a new push by

Beijing to ensure “patriotsadministering Hong Kong”.

The polls saw a record lowturnout, down to only 30.2%of registered voters, downfrom 58.28% in the last elec-tions in 2016 with the num-ber of people casting theirballot falling by as much as60%.

G7 concernsOn Tuesday, G7 Foreign Mi-nisters (Canada, France, Ger-many, Italy, Japan, the U.S.,U.K.) and the EU in a jointstatement expressed “graveconcern over the erosion ofdemocratic elements of theSAR’s electoral system”, say-ing that the changes “severe-ly restrict the choice of can-didates on the ballot paper”and “undermined HongKong’s high degree ofautonomy”.

The statement brought asharp response from Beij-ing’s Liaison O�ce in HongKong, whose spokesperson,in a statement, “expressedthe o�ce's strong indigna-tion” at what he called "aclumsy political trick andgross interference in China’sinternal a�airs.”

China endorses Hong Kong’s elections‘Patriots only’ polls held under CarrieLam’s watch get Xi’s stamp of approval

Ananth KrishnanHONG KONG

Toeing the line: Xi Jinping, right, with Carrie Lam, during ameeting in Beijing on Wednesday. * AP


DAILY NEWS ANALYSIS

Vrinda Bhandari

The Government has rushedthe passage of the ElectionLaws (Amendment) Bill,

2021 in Parliament, also amendingthe Representation of the PeopleAct, 1950 by facilitating the linkingof a person’s Aadhaar numberwith electoral roll data.

The amendment provides thatan electoral registration o�cermay “require” an individual to fur-nish their Aadhaar number in or-der to establish their identity.Even persons already enrolled“may” be “required” by the o�certo furnish their Aadhaar numbersin order to authenticate their en-tries in the electoral roll. Regis-tered voters have the option ofproviding their Aadhaar numberto Government authorities. Theamendment states that no oneshall be denied inclusion in theelectoral roll, nor shall theirnames be deleted from the electo-ral roll due to their inability to fur-nish the Aadhaar number “due tosuch su�cient cause as may beprescribed”. Such individuals maybe allowed to furnish alternatedocuments, as prescribed by theCentral government.

There are various substantiveand procedural concerns with theamendments passed. First, alth-

ough the Government has termedthese measures as voluntary, theprovisions of the amendment be-lie this. The electoral o�cer clear-ly has uncanalised discretion —since the law does not prescribeany guiding principles — to decidewhen an Aadhaar number may be“required”. Moreover, the Centralgovernment has the �nal say inprescribing the conditions (“su�-cient cause”) under which an indi-vidual will be permitted to enteror remain on the electoral rolls, incase of her “inability” to furnishtheir Aadhaar.

This means that the Central go-vernment will decide what rea-sons are considered acceptable fora voter to remain on the electoralroll. Interestingly, the law does noteven consider a situation where anindividual may be opposed to link-ing her Aadhaar number to theelectoral database — further un-dermining the voluntary premiseof the amendments.

Burden of proof shiftsIn this manner, the burden ofproof has been reversed. Insteadof the Government proactively en-suring registration on the electoralrolls (such as through house-to-house veri�cation) to achieve un-iversal adult franchise, the burdennow shifts to individuals who maybe unable/unwilling to link theirAadhaar to justify their retentionon the rolls. In fact, deletion fromthe voter rolls will happen withoutany procedural safeguards since atthe moment, the law does not pro-vide for a right to a hearing beforesuch deletion.

Such a step has real world con-sequences. In 2015, media reportshighlighted how lakhs of voters inAndhra Pradesh and Telanganawere reportedly excluded fromthe electoral process due to thepractice of linking Aadhaar num-bers with electoral ID. Right to In-formation replies indicated thatsuch deletion was carried outwithout any door-to-door veri�ca-tion of the identity of individuals.The Supreme Court of India had to�nally intervene to stop the linkingprocess since the constitutionalityof the Aadhaar Act was under chal-lenge then.

Political pro�lingSecond, there are concerns thatthe amendment will result in polit-ical pro�ling. By linking electoralIDs with Aadhaar numbers, it ismuch easier for the Governmentto track which voter has accessedwelfare subsidies and bene�ts us-ing their Aadhaar. This can beused by political parties to selec-tively target their messages tospeci�c voters, using informationthat is not publicly available.

Political pro�ling using Aadhaardata is not unheard of. In April2021, the Madras High Court asked

the Unique Identi�cation Authori-ty of India (UIDAI) to ascertainhow con�dential information heldby it may have been leaked in lightof “credible allegations” that onlymobile phones linked to Aadharcards received bulk SMS messagesto join WhatsApp groups of a par-ticular political party during elec-tion campaigning in Puducherry.Given these concerns, it is worry-ing that the amendment is con-spicuously silent in reiterating thesecret nature of such data or pro-hibiting the Election Commissionof India or any other agency fromsharing such information.

There are also procedural con-cerns that relate to the manner inwhich the amendment waspassed. The Government intro-duced the Bill on December 20and passed it on the same day inthe Lok Sabha, while pushing itthrough the Rajya Sabha on thenext date (December 21). Membersof Parliament were not given timeto understand or debate the impli-cations of the amendments. Des-pite calls for division of vote inboth Houses, the law was passedon the basis of a voice vote. Thisundermines the fundamental pre-mise of a parliamentary democra-cy — to allow elected representa-tives the opportunity to voice theconcerns of their constituents ov-er laws that a�ect them.

Not substantiatedThis is especially important sincethe Government has failed to pro-vide any empirical data that de-monstrates either the extent of theproblem of bogus voters in the

electoral roll ( justifying this ex-traordinary measure) or the suc-cess of Aadhaar in de-deduplica-tion. It is now well known that theAadhaar database is beset with er-rors and exclusions. This is partlybecause there is no veri�cation ofthe authenticity of the demo-graphic information on the Aad-haar database, i.e. the UIDAI doesnot independently authenticatethe information provided by anapplicant at the time of enrol-ment.

In fact, both the Calcutta HighCourt and the Allahabad HighCourt have refused to rely on theauthenticity of Aadhaar data, not-ing, “There is de�nitely somethingamiss with the Aadhaar enrolmentprocess if important demographicinformation such as the name ofthe applicant’s father, as in thecase in hand, can be falsi�ed andeven go undetected.”

Finally, it is worth questioninghow the Aadhaar project is onceagain being used for purposes farbeyond the stated “welfare” pur-pose that was upheld by the Su-preme Court of India in the Aad-haar judgment as the basis for theintroduction of the Aadhaar Act asa Money Bill in Parliament.

It is likely that some of these is-sues will be litigated before the Su-preme Court. One can only hopethat unlike other issues such aselectoral bonds that have beenpending for years, this challengewill be decided expeditiously. Thesuccess of our democracy may ve-ry well depend on it.

Vrinda Bhandari is a lawyer in Delhi

Why the electoral reforms Bill is a problemThe Aadhaar project is again being used for purposes far beyond the stated purpose of ‘welfare’

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DAILY NEWS ANALYSIS

The amendments proposedto the anti-child marriagelaw de�nes a child as some-one under the age of 21 andcontradicts laws where thelegal age of competence isrecognised as 18. This, ex-perts say, may criminaliseyoung people.

The Prohibition of ChildMarriage (Amendment) Bill,2021, which seeks to raisethe age of marriage for wo-men to 21, amends the de�-nition of child to mean “amale or female who has notcompleted twenty-one yearsof age”. It overrides personallaws of Hindus, Christians,Muslims and Parsis, as wellas the Special Marriage Act,1954.

The Lok Sabha has re-ferred this Bill to a Standing

Committee after MPs de-manded a deeper scrutinyand wider consultations.

Senior advocate IndiraJaising tweeted: “How patro-nising and patriarchal to callsomeone over the age of 18 a‘child’, ready and �t to votebut not to marry, is this con-stitutional morality.”

Voting ageThe 61st ConstitutionAmendment Act of 1988 de-�nes the voting age for elec-tions to Parliament and theLegislative Assemblies as 18.

The Majority Act, 1875 de-�nes the age of majority as“the age of eighteen yearsand not before”, and as 21years if a guardian is ap-pointed.

Under the Indian ContractAct, 1872 a person shouldhave attained the age of ma-

jority in order to be able toenter into a contract.

The law to punish sexualcrimes against children, theProtection of Children fromSexual O�ences (POCSO)Act, 2012 too recognises achild as someone under the

age of 18 years and therebyimplies that the age of con-sent for sex is also 18 years.

The law that deals with ju-venile o�enders (or childrenin con�ict with law) and chil-dren who need care and pro-tection, that is, the Juvenile

Justice (Care and Protection)Act, 2015 does the same.

Under the Right of Chil-dren to Free and Compulso-ry Education, 2009, thatguarantees access to educa-tion, a child is someone bet-ween the ages of six and 14years. Whereas under theanti-child labour law or theChild Labour (Prohibitionand Regulation) Act, 1986,which prohibits the engage-ment of children in all occu-pations and bans adoles-cents in hazardousoccupations, a child is “aperson who has not com-pleted his fourteenth year ofage” and an adolescentmeans “a person who hascompleted his fourteenthyear of age but has not com-pleted his eighteenth year”.

“At one level, we say thatthe age to enter into con-

tracts and to vote is 18 years.We are recognising that aperson has the mental ca-pacity to make decisions thatwill a�ect her life commer-cially or as a citizen, but atthe same time when it comesto her personal life, shedoesn’t have the right tomake decisions. The pro-posed law makes an arti�cialdistinction. By making mar-riages under 21 years invalid,we are criminalising thosewho marry under this ageand depriving them of pro-tections under law,” says Di-vya Balagopal, senior advo-cate, Mundkur LawPartners.

Tweaking the de�nition ofa child by amending the agecriteria should be done onlywhen it enables, and notwhen it deprives someone oftheir rights, warn experts.

‘Changes to marriage age will contradict other laws’De�ning a child by age should be done only when it enables rights, and it may even criminalise young people, say expertsJAGRITI CHANDRANEW DELHI

The Karnataka Protection ofRight to Freedom to ReligionBill, 2021 will be taken up fordiscussion on Thursday.

While the Bill was to havebeen taken up for discussionon Wednesday, this was post-poned by a day. “We willstart the debate soon afterthe House commences andpush the Question Hour tothe evening,” Speaker Vish-weshwar Hegde Kageri toldthe Karnataka LegislativeAssembly.

Earlier, Law and Parlia-mentary A�airs Minister J.C.Madhuswamy said the Billcould be taken up for discus-sion on Wednesday andpassed on Thursday. “At anycost, we want the Bill to becleared on Thursday since ithas to be placed in the Legis-lative Council on Friday tosecure approval,” he said.

Former Karnataka ChiefMinister B.S. Yediyurappa

suggested that the Bill couldbe taken up on Wednesdayand discussion time extend-ed till night.

However, another formerChief Minister, Siddara-maiah, said that since thesession was happening in Be-lagavi after three years,priority should given to thediscussion on north Karnata-ka. “If there is paucity oftime, extend the session by acouple of days,” Mr. Siddara-maiah said. Eventually, theSpeaker announced that theBill would be taken up fordiscussion on Thursday.

‘Criminalises faith’A day after the State govern-ment tabled the KarnatakaProtection of Right to Free-dom of Religion Bill, 2021 inthe Legislative Assembly, acoalition of over 40 organisa-tions of minorities, youth,Dalits, women, and humanrights organisations, held aprotest in Bengaluru, de-

manding its immediatewithdrawal.

Peter Machado, Archbish-op, Archdiocese of Banga-lore, said the communitywas sad that the governmenthad not heeded their ap-peals and had gone aheadwith the Bill. “We request

you not to humiliate thecommunity with this Bill,which potentially criminalis-es the practice of faith,” hesaid. “The anti-conversionBill, ironically named ‘Pro-tection of Right to Freedomof Religion Bill’ is presentlyseen as an issue solely posing

threat to the fundamentalrights of the Christian com-munity. But the Bill under-mines the agency of an indi-vidual to make intimatechoices of who their partn-ers can be and what religionthey must practice,” said ajoint statement by the coali-tion of organisations.

Yusuf Kanni, vice-presi-dent of the Jamaat-e-IslamiHind, Karnataka, said the Billbetrays the ideals of 12th cen-tury philosopher Basavesh-wara. “If the governmentpersists with the Bill, it willspark o� a CAA (CitizenshipAmendment Act)-like State-wide protest,” he said.

Several women activiststermed the Bill “anti-wo-men” as it robs them of theiragency. Transgender activistAkkai Padmashali said theBill rejects a plural idea of In-dia. “ The anti-conversionBill is just another distrac-tion from the real issues fac-ing the country,” she said.

Debate on anti-conversion Bill todayIn Bengaluru, a coalition of over 40 organisations demands its immediate withdrawalSpecial CorrespondentBengaluru

Staunch opposition: Protesters holding placards during a rallyagainst the anti-conversion Bill. * K. MURALI KUMAR


DAILY NEWS ANALYSIS

As Parliament adjournedsine die on Wednesday, thepresiding o�cers of the LokSabha and the Rajya Sabhaexpressed concern over thecontinuous disruption.

“I urge you all to collec-tively re�ect and introspectif this session would havebeen di�erent and better. Idon’t want to speak elabo-rately on the course of thissession as it would lead meto take a very critical view,”said Vice-President andChairman of the Rajya SabhaM. Venkaiah Naidu in his va-ledictory remarks in theHouse at the end of the ses-sion. Rajya Sabha utilisedonly 47.9% of its allottedtime during the 18 sittings.

Out of the total scheduledsitting time of 95 hours sixminutes, the Rajya Sabhatransacted only 45 hours ofbusiness. Mr. Naidu stressed

that the House performed“much below its potential”in this session, a situationthat owed much to the sus-pension of 12 Rajya Sabhamembers at the beginning ofthe session for its entiretythat pretty much drew thebattle lines in Parliamentdeeper than before.

In the Lok Sabha, wherethe productivity was muchhigher, the report of the Spe-

cial Investigative Team of theUttar Pradesh police on theLakhimpur Kheri incidentbecame a sticking point asOpposition members, in-cluding Congress leader Ra-hul Gandhi, demanded thesacking of Minister of Statefor Home Ajay Mishra Teni.

The SIT report said thatthe incident which left eightpeople dead — four farmers,a journalist and three BJP

workers — was a criminalconspiracy implicating Mr.Teni’s son, Ashish Mishra.

Speaker Om Birla said“agreements and disagree-ments on issues may be re-�ected in debates and notthrough disruption” and thatthe smooth conduct of theHouse was the responsibilityof all stakeholders and mustrun with the collective willand consensus of all.

The Lok Sabha saw 83hours and 20 minutes of bu-siness being conducted with18 hours and 48 minutes ofdisruption.

The Bills passed duringthe session included theAgricultural Laws RepealBill, 2021 which saw the go-vernment take back thethree contentious farm laws,the Central Vigilance Com-mission (Amendment) Bill,2021 and the Delhi Police Es-tablishment (Amendment)Bill, 2021.

House performed much belowits potential, says VenkaiahPresiding o�cers of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha express concern over disruptionSpecial CorrespondentNEW DELHI

Valedictory remarks: Rajya Sabha Chairman M. VenkaiahNaidu conducting the House on Wednesday. * PTI


DAILY NEWS ANALYSIS

The story so far: Amid vociferousopposition, the Karnataka Protection ofRight to Freedom of Religion Bill, 2021, wasintroduced by Home Minister AragaJnanendra on Tuesday during the wintersession of the Assembly in Belagavi. The Billenvisages stringent provisions for forced orinduced conversions. The Basavaraj Bommailed government wants to prohibit conversionby “misrepresentation, force, allurement,fraudulent means, or marriage.”

What does the Protection of Right toFreedom of Religion Bill aim to check?The Bill proposes a maximum punishmentof 10 years of imprisonment for forcibleconversion of persons from ScheduledCaste, Scheduled Tribe communities, minorsand women to another religion. The Billprohibits conversion by misrepresentation,force, fraud, allurement of marriage,coercion and undue in�uence.

According to the proposed legislation,complaints of conversions can be �led byfamily members of a person who is gettingconverted, or any other person who isrelated to the person who is gettingconverted, or any person associated with theperson getting converted.

The o�ence of conversion is cognisableand non-bailable and will attract a jail termof three to �ve years and a �ne of ₹25,000for people found violating the law and a jailterm of three to 10 years, and a �ne of₹50,000 for people converting minors,women and persons from the SC and STcommunities. The Bill also envisages acompensation of ₹5 lakh to victims of forcedconversions.

What about those wishing to convertwillingly to another religion?After the law comes into force, any personintending to convert to another religion willhave to inform the district magistrate at leastthirty days in advance. The person executingthe conversion must also give a notice onemonth in advance, following which aninquiry will be conducted by the districtmagistrate through the police to establishthe real intent of conversion. Not informingauthorities will carry a prison term of sixmonths to three years for persons who areconverted and one year to �ve years for thepersons carrying out the conversions. Aftergetting converted, the person has to againinform the district magistrate within 30 days

after conversion and must appear before thedistrict magistrate to con�rm his/heridentity. Not informing the districtmagistrate will lead to the conversion beingdeclared null and void.

Post conversion, the district magistratehas to inform revenue authorities, the socialwelfare, minority, backward classes andother departments of the conversion, whowill, in turn, take steps with respect to theentitlements of the person in terms ofreservations and other bene�ts.

How many States have enacted thelegislation? Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat,Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, MadhyaPradesh, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh andUttarakhand have laws restricting religiousconversion. Penalties for breaching the lawscan range from monetary �nes toimprisonment, with punishments rangingfrom one to three years of imprisonmentand �nes from ₹5,000 to ₹50,000. Some of

the laws provide for sti�er penalties ifwomen, children, or members of ScheduledCastes or Scheduled Tribes (SC/ST) are beingconverted. Some other States, includingManipur, are reportedly “considering similarlaws.”

Odisha was the �rst State to enactanti-conversion legislation, the OrissaFreedom of Religion Act, 1967. MadhyaPradesh enacted the same the followingyear.

How has Parliament handledanti-conversion bills?After independence, Parliament introduceda number of anti-conversion bills which were

not enacted for want of majority approval.In post-Independent India, the �rst IndianConversion (Regulation and Registration) Billwas introduced in 1954, which sought toenforce “licensing of missionaries and theregistration of conversion with governmento�cials.” This bill was rejected. This wasfollowed by the introduction of theBackward Communities (ReligiousProtection) Bill in 1960, “which aimed atchecking conversion of Hindus to‘non-Indian religions’ which, as per thede�nition in the Bill, included Islam,Christianity, Judaism and Zoroastrianism,”and the Freedom of Religion Bill in 1979,which sought “o�cial curbs oninter-religious conversion.”

These bills fell through for want ofmajority approval.

Research indicates that in the 1980s, thefocus of anti-conversion laws was Muslimsseeking to convert non- Muslims, whileChristianity has received its share ofattention since the 1990s.

EXPLAINER

What is the Karnataka Protection of Right to Freedom of Religion Bill? Which other States have a similar legislation?

Karnataka’s anti-conversion legislation

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According to the proposed legislation,complaints of conversions can be�led by family members of a personwho is getting converted, or any otherperson who is related to the personwho is getting converted

THE GISTB The Karnataka Protectionof Right to Freedom ofReligion Bill, 2021introduced in the KarnatakaAssembly aims to prohibitconversion bymisrepresentation, force,fraud, allurement ofmarriage, coercion andundue in�uence.

B According to the Bill, anyperson intending to convertwill have to inform thedistrict magistrate at leastthirty days in advance,following which an inquirywill be conducted. Aftergetting converted, theperson has to again informthe district magistratewithin 30 days and mustappear before the districtmagistrate to con�rmhis/her identity. Notinforming the districtmagistrate will lead to theconversion being declarednull and void.

B The o�ence of conversionwill attract a jail term ofthree to �ve years and a�ne of ₹25,000 for peoplefound violating the law anda jail term of three to 10years, and a �ne of₹50,000 for peopleconverting minors, womenand persons from the SCand ST communities.

Anuradha Raman

Right to belief: Christiannuns wave placards duringa demonstration againstthe tabling of theProtection of Right toFreedom of Religion Bill onDecember 22, 2021 inBengaluru. * MURALI KUMAR K


DAILY NEWS ANALYSIS

The Maharashtra govern-ment’s Shakti CriminalLaws (Maharashtra Amend-ment) Bill, 2020, on crimesagainst women and chil-dren has recommendedcapital punishment in rapecases, time-limit of 30 daysto complete the probe sincethe day of registration of thecomplaint and has put onuson social media platformsas well as Internet data pro-viding companies to sharedata for police investiga-tion.

State Home Minister Di-lip Walse-Patil on Wednes-day presented the report bya joint committee of theState Assembly on the Shak-ti Bill in the State Assembly.A total of 13 meetings of thejoint committee were heldand submitted the amend-ments to the original Bill.The Bill was sent to the jointcommittee in the budgetsession of the Assembly forscrutiny and is likely to bepassed in this winter ses-sion.

Mr. Walse-Patil explainedthat probe in such crimecases should also be overwithin 30 days and in case itdoes not happen, 30 moredays can be given after get-ting the reasons from theSpecial Inspector General

or the Police Commissioner. The Bill also provides for

punishment for failure onthe part of social mediaplatforms and mobile dataproviders to share datawithin seven days, if de-manded by investigating of-�cers in women assault cas-es. It may invite threemonths in jail or a �ne of₹25 lakh.

“Section 326 of the IPCapplied in case of acid at-tack to be amended to makeprovision of minimum 15years to maximum life im-prisonment to the guiltyalong with monetary �ne.The expenditure of plasticsurgery and face recon-struction operations will betaken care from the mone-tary �ne to be charged onthe guilty,” said the HomeMinister.

The earlier version of theBill had scrapped the provi-sion of anticipatory bail toindividuals accused of as-sault on women. The newrecommendations havecancelled this provision tak-ing advice from seniorlawyers.

The Bill has also madeprovision of minimum oneyear to maximum of threeyears of imprisonment and₹1lakh in �ne on those whomake false complaints ofsexual assault.

Maharashtra govt.’sShakti Bill seeks deathsentence for rape Time limit of 30 days to �nish probe

Alok DeshpandeMumbai

Leader of Opposition Devendra Fadnavis arrives for thewinter session of Assembly in Mumbai on Wednesday. * PTI

India has reported over 200 cases of the highly infec-tious Omicron variant and given that there were nocases when the month began, this has put the

Centre in a high state of alert. An unmistakable fore-boding was writ large in a letter by the Union Health Se-cretary to the Chief Secretaries of States and Union Ter-ritories on Tuesday that has asked them to be preparedfor the worst. It said that Omicron was at least “threetimes more transmissible” than the Delta variant, andtherefore “greater foresight, data analysis, dynamic de-cision-making, strict and prompt containment action”were required at the local and district levels. It also un-derlined two speci�c parameters which States have tobe vigilant about: a test positivity of 10% or more in thelast week and bed occupancy crossing 40% or more onoxygen-supported or intensive care units. There wereechoes in the letter of the days when India was under acomplete lockdown — it exhorted district o�cials,when required, to impose night curfew, strictly regulatelarge gatherings, curtail numbers in marriages and fun-erals, and restrict numbers in o�ces, industries andpublic transport. It also directed pre-emptive action.

Maharashtra and Delhi have reported the highestnumber of cases of Omicron, followed by Telangana,Karnataka, Rajasthan, Kerala and Gujarat. India’s dailycase count has ebbed and has remained well below10,000 for most of the month — a �rst since May 2020;close to 90% of the adult population has been vaccinat-ed with at least one dose. From the numbers alone, In-dia is in a much better position than from last year oreven as recently as this summer when the devastatingsecond wave struck a body blow. However, the conster-nation in the Centre appears to derive from the expe-rience of the last two years when waves in Europe andthe United States were harbingers of havoc in India.While last year it appeared that vaccines would be theworld’s passport out of the pandemic, it now seems thateven a third dose is inadequate. India is overwhelming-ly dependent on a single vaccine in spite of two beingproduced here; none of the mRNA vaccines is available.Drug regulators are yet to clear vaccines for childrenand booster doses partly out of concerns that this maytrigger a shortfall. A good 40% of adults — and they arestill the most vulnerable to severe disease — are yet tobe fully vaccinated. Crowds and public mingling are atpre-pandemic levels and the coming months will seehuge crowds as part of election campaigning. The trueimpact of Omicron will be known over the next fewweeks but the Centre must continue to strike the gongof caution while facilitating greater availability of essen-tial medicines, hospital beds and vaccines.

Warning bellsIndia must ensure more availability of beds,

medicines and vaccines to deal with Omicron


DAILY NEWS ANALYSIS

The Forest Rights Act (FRA) has beenin existence for 15 years. As on April30, 2020, the Ministry of Tribal Af-fairs had received 42,50,602 claims(individual and community), ofwhich titles were distributed to 46%of the applicants. If the Forest De-partment’s views are considered, theimplementation process is more orless over. But the supporters of tribalrights allege that the Department isoverlooking the genuine claims ofthe tribal people. Despite the Minis-try being the implementing agency,the role of the Forest Department ingranting titles is crucial because thelands claimed are under its jurisdic-tion. While both sides hold extremepositions, the situation on theground presents a mixed picture.

Issues in implementation The journey of the FRA’s implemen-tation has never been smooth. TheAct provides for democratic tenets inthe implementation process. In the�rst stage, it requires the constitu-tion of a Forest Rights Committeecomprising members from withinthe village by conducting a GramSabha with two-thirds of the mem-bers present at the meeting. The pro-cess was not followed in many plac-es. These committees were mostlyconstituted by the Panchayat Secre-taries upon the directives receivedfrom District Magistrates at shortnotice. The nominations for mem-bers for the taluk-level and district-level committees were also not tran-sparent. The contribution of womento the forest economy is well known.The FRA provides for equal rights intitles issued under the Act for wo-men. They have the equitable role atevery stage of decision-making. Ho-wever, on the ground, the womenwere hardly visible in this regard.

It was disappointing that in the in-itial stages of implementation, therewas insistence on satellite images asevidence while other admissibleproofs were ignored, as happened inGujarat. This resulted in mass rejec-tions of claims by the authorities. It isa di�erent matter that a writ petition

�led by the civil society groups in2011 forced the authorities to look in-to the matter afresh in the State.

In some villages around Bastar,Chhattisgarh, the plots claimed andthe documents con�rming the awarddid not match. Besides, the extent ofland that was awarded was far small-er than what was claimed within theceiling. The claimants did not protestanticipating that whatever little theyhad received could be taken back bythe authorities. Further, various wel-fare and developmental schemes ofthe Rural Department were not ex-tended everywhere to the tribal peo-ple who received documents of landpossession under the FRA despitethe directives issued by the Ministryto treat them on a par with others.

Overall, poor awareness levelsamong the tribal people proved to bea handicap, especially in the sche-duled areas which are remotely lo-cated. To e�ectively present claims, afair understanding of the Act and itsimplementation process is neces-sary. Some NGOs, like in Dang dis-trict of Gujarat, made a di�erence byhand-holding the bene�ciaries at ev-ery step. However, the involvementof NGOs was missing in some interiorareas in States like Chhattisgarhwhere insurgency was a�ecting thelives of the people. Evidence sug-gests that implementation was betterin areas which were fairly close to ur-ban settings or where accessibilitywas easy. In these places, most Cen-tral and State government schemesand programmes such as DeendayalUpadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana, JananiShishu Suraksha Karyakram, Mahat-

ma Gandhi National Rural Employ-ment Guarantee Scheme, NationalFood Security Act, National HealthMission; Pradhan Mantri Awas Yoja-na; and Pradhan Mantri Gram SadakYojana were implemented, empo-wering the people to assert their po-sitions.

Declining produce, livelihoodsMany tribal areas are witnessing adecline in the quality of forest pro-duce in their vicinity, thus forcingthem to look for other sources of live-lihood. In Chhattisgarh, in many vil-lages, earnings from activities suchas collection of tendu leaves for roll-ing local cigars were a�ected whenthere was an in�ux of labourers fromBihar who were willing to work forlow wages. Poor market and exploi-tation by local traders/middlemenwere no less demoralising.

The recognition given to theirlands under the FRA gave the tribalpeople a psychological boost. Ho-wever, they possess lands (includingthe lands recognised under the FRA)that are small, of poor quality (partic-ularly lands located on hill slopes)and are not very fertile. The lack ofirrigation facilities forces them to de-pend only on rainfall. To enhancetheir income, they migrate to work asconstruction or road-laying labour-ers. In their opinion, this will conti-nue until the wages earned throughany source in the villages matcheswith the wages in urban areas.

NGO representatives working inthe tribal areas believe that the liveli-hoods of the locals would improve ifhorticulture practices are promoted

in addition to bamboo and aloe veraplantations with an assured market.A popular recommendation is medi-cal and ecotourism along the lines ofthe Kerala model. On the other hand,given the quality of education re-ceived by the youth in the remotedistricts, the possibility of acquiringmeaningful jobs remains thin. Thoseaccustomed to urban culture do notfeel like going back to their villages.Civil society groups, therefore, be-lieve that providing skill-based edu-cation with assured jobs on a largescale in proportion to the demandwould do wonders in these areas.

A majority of the tribal communi-ties in India are poor and landless.They practise small-scale farming,pastoralism, and nomadic herding.On the Human Development Index,the tribal-populated States alwaysrank lower than the national average.Not long ago, a tragic news articlewas published about a tribal manwalking 12 km in Odisha carrying hisdead wife on his shoulder all night. AChhattisgarh tribesman who had ledthe members of his village in a marchto Delhi in 2004 to demand forestrights told this researcher that thelives of the tribal people are insignif-icant for our leaders. He said theCentral government in the 1970sgenerously welcomed refugees fromBangladesh into forests and providedthem a house and a land to farm,whereas natives were still being de-nied the same.

The way forwardThe FRA was never going to be a pa-nacea to address all the issues of thetribal people, but it is important. Toimprove the condition of the tribalpeople, especially those living in re-mote areas, there needs to be a pushon every possible aspect of their so-cioeconomic life. This can be at-tained if schemes and programmesalready drafted for the tribal peopleare implemented in letter and spiritacross the country. With protectivelaws like the Panchayats (Extensionto Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996, inplace, it is only a matter of will. Oneway forward could be to induct peo-ple who are sensitive to the cause oftribal people in the decision-makingprocess at every stage.

Madhusudan Bandi is a faculty member withthe Gujarat Institute of DevelopmentResearch, Ahmedabad. Email:[email protected]

Schemes and programmes already drafted for the tribal people need to be implemented everywhere

Looking beyond the Forest Rights Act

Madhusudan Bandi

G.N.

RAO


DAILY NEWS ANALYSIS

RBI Governor ShaktikantaDas pitched for continuedpolicy support to nurture re-vival, especially in sectorswhich are exposed to theevolving headwinds in thewake of spread of Omicronvariant of the coronavirus,MPC minutes released bythe central bank show.

The Monetary PolicyCommittee (MPC) had, onDecember 8, unanimouslyvoted for status quo on poli-cy rates for the ninth consec-utive time.

The minutes released onWednesday cite Mr. Das ashaving said that there wasgrowing uncertainty regard-ing the evolving global ma-croeconomic outlook.

On the domestic front,even as the prospects foreconomic activity were im-proving, there was still slackwith key drivers like privateconsumption remaining wellbelow their pre-pandemiclevels, he had said.

“Given these uncertain-ties, continued policy sup-

port is warranted for a dura-ble, broad-based andself-sustaining rebound, es-pecially to nurture revival insectors which are laggingand to safeguard thosewhich are exposed to theevolving headwinds,” theGovernor had said.

MPC member and RBI De-puty Governor Michael De-babrata Patra too had ex-pressed concerns on thespread of the new variant ofthe coronavirus, saying“suddenly, the global out-look has darkened”.

“As countries race to con-tain Omicron with travel res-traints and new quarantineand social distancing mea-sures, the global recoveryand the in�ation outlook areat risk again,” he had said.

MPC minutes show RBI chief �agging ‘growing uncertainty’ PRESS TRUST OF INDIAMUMBAI

Shaktikanta Das

Das pitched for continuedpolicy support to aid revival


DAILY NEWS ANALYSIS

The story so far: The Securities &Exchange Board of India (SEBI) onMonday issued directions to stockexchanges in commodity derivativessegment for immediately suspendingtrading in derivative contracts in key farmcommodities namely paddy(non-basmati), wheat, chana, mustardseeds and its derivatives, soya bean andits derivatives, crude palm oil & moongfor a year. The derivative contracts inthese commodities were alreadysuspended, as per a SEBI press releasedated August 16, 2021 and October 08,2021, respectively.

What are derivative contracts?Derivative contracts are contractsbetween two or more parties where thederivative value is based upon anunderlying asset, in this case agricommodities. The price of the derivativesare established by the price �uctuationsof the underlying assets. Derivatives canbe traded on an exchange or over thecounter (OTC).

How does the system work and whatare derivatives trading?

Derivatives trading takes place whentraders speculate on the future price ofan asset through buying or selling ofderivative contracts to maximise pro�t ascompared to buying the underlying assetoutright.

Traders also use derivatives forhedging to minimise risk against anexisting position. With derivatives,traders can go short and make pro�t fromfalling asset prices. They also usederivatives to hedge against any existinglong positions. The ultimate objective isto pro�t. This is viewed as a deterrent tobring in price discipline in the market.

What does the SEBI order mean?Now no new contract will be introducedtill SEBI’s further orders. In respect of

running contracts, no new position willbe allowed to be taken. Only squaring upof position has been allowed. Theimports of such commodities especiallyedible oils would reduce in the shortterm as traders will not have a hedgingplatform. Hedging which is speculative innature has been made di�cult. This willlead to release of blocked local producesupplies into the market which shouldcool the prices, and imports ofcommodities for speculative gains will bediscouraged.

Why suspension?To reign in on the rising prices of theseessential commodities which is fuellingin�ation. India is the world’s biggestimporter of vegetable oils and this

measure will make it di�cult for edibleoil importers and traders to transactbusiness since they use Indian exchangesto hedge their risk.

It is believed that speculators have arole in jacking up of prices and this needsto be discouraged to curb in�ation andsupport growth as the economy isrecovering from the COVID-19 impact.

The suspension of trading in thesecommodities follows a communicationfrom the Department of Economic A�airswhich is closely monitoring pricemovements.

How alarming is in�ation? As per RBI governor’s recent monetarypolicy statement, CPI in�ation ticked upin October to 4.5% from 4.3 inSeptember, after falling sharply betweenJune and September. The persistence ofhigh core in�ation (i.e., CPI in�ationexcluding food and fuel) since June 2020has been an area of policy concern asinput cost pressures could rapidly betransmitted to retail in�ation as demandstrengthens.

The governor’s assessment is that pricepressures may persist in the immediateterm. He observed that supply sideinterventions by the government have

limited the fallout of continuing highinternational edible oil prices ondomestic prices.

While cost-push pressures continue toimpinge on core in�ation, the in�ationprints are likely to be somewhat higherover the rest of the year as base e�ectsturn adverse. However it is expected thatheadline in�ation will peak in Q4:2021-22and soften thereafter. RBI has projectedCPI in�ation at 5.3% for FY22.

What is being done to deal with it?Besides suspension of futures trading inkey farm commodities by the SEBI, thegovernment and the Reserve Bank ofIndia are undertaking multipleinterventions to curb the rising in�ation.Recently as prices of edible oil hit nearrecord highs, the Union Governmentsubstantially reduced taxes on imports ofpalm, soy and sun�ower oil, but themove had limited impact on combatingin�ation.

The Union & State Governments hadalso recently reduced excise duty andVAT on petrol and diesel which wasaimed at bring down in�ation by way ofdirect e�ects as well as indirect e�ectsoperating through fuel andtransportation costs.

The suspension of futures trading in agri productsWhy has the SEBI issued a suspension on trading in derivative contracts in key farm commodities? Will this help combat in�ation?

EXPLAINER

THE GISTB The SEBI issued directionsto stock exchanges incommodity derivativessegment for immediatelysuspending trading inderivative contracts in keyfarm commodities.

B It is being suspended toreign in the rising prices ofthese essential commoditieswhich is fuelling in�ation.

B Apart from thesuspension order by theSEBI, the government andthe RBI have substantiallyreduced taxes on imports ofpalm, soy and sun�ower oiland have also reducedexcise duty and VAT onpetrol and diesel asmeasures to bring downrising in�ation.

Lalatendu Mishra


DAILY NEWS ANALYSIS

Adding 33 ‘unicorns’ in asingle year has helped Indiadisplace the United King-dom (U.K.) to be third in thelist of countries that arehome to such enterprisesvalued at more than $1 bil-lion each, according to areport.

India was placed fourthwhen it came to the numberof unicorns last year. Ho-wever, the U.S. and north-ern neighbour China, whooccupy the �rst two ranks,are way ahead, according tothe data compiled by HurunResearch Institute.

The U.S. added 254 un-icorns and now totals 487companies in the covetedlist, while China added 74 totake its tally to 301 start-upshaving a valuation of morethan $1 billion, it said.

The top-two occupantsare home to 74% of the un-icorn universe, it said.

The U.K. added only 15unicorns to take its total to39, and hence got displacedby India, it said.

“India is in the midst of astart-up boom, more thandoubling its unicorns to takeits o�cial tally of unicornsto 54, and overtake the U.K.to third place in the world,”Hurun Report India’s MDand chief researcher AnasRahman Junaid said.

India adds 33 unicorns inone year, displaces U.K. U.S., China occupy top 2 slots: HurunPRESS TRUST OF INDIAMUMBAI


DAILY NEWS ANALYSIS

The �rst batch of next-gener-ation Armoured EngineerReconnaissance Vehicles(AERV), indigenously de-signed and developed byDRDO, and manufactured bythe Pune unit of Bharat Elec-tronics Limited, was formal-ly inducted into the IndianArmy by Chief of Army Sta�Gen. Manoj MukundNaravane.

Indigenous contentAERV is manufactured byBEL at Pune with more than90% indigenous content. Itis a versatile BMP-IIK amphi-bious Infantry Combat Vehi-cle (ICV) �tted with instru-

ments for waterreconnaissance, land recon-naissance, navigation anddata backup.

According to BEL, “AERVis capable of measuring soilbearing capacity on river-banks to determine if theyare motorable for militaryvehicles on Go-No-Go basis(critical parameters forbridge laying), dry and wetgaps in day and night condi-tions, slopes and height ofriver banks or canals.”

Terrain navigation AERVs can navigate terrainusing Military Grid Coordi-nate System, measure andplot underwater beds andwater currents of rivers orcanals, store data from va-rious instruments on Con-trol Console for further ana-lysis and decision-making.

Indian Army inductsindigenously built AERVsIt was designed by DRDO and manufactured by BELSpecial CorrespondentBengaluru

AERVs can navigate terrainusing Military GridCoordinate System.


DAILY NEWS ANALYSIS

General Studies Paper I

AHistory of Indian culture will cover the salient aspects of art forms, literature and architecture fromancient to modern times;

BModern Indian history from about the middle of the eighteenth century until the present-significantevents, personalities, issues;

CFreedom struggle-its various stages and important contributors / contributions from different parts ofthe country;

D Post-independence consolidation and reorganization within the country;

EHistory of the world will include events from 18th century such as industrial revolution, world wars,re-drawal of national boundaries, colonization, decolonization,

FPolitical philosophies like communism, capitalism, socialism etc.-their forms and effect on thesociety

G Salient features of Indian Society, Diversity of India;

H Effects of globalization on Indian society;

I Role of women and women’s organization;

J Social empowerment, communalism, regionalism & secularism

K Salient features of world’s physical geography;

LGeographical features and their location- changes in critical geographical features (including waterbodies and ice-caps) and in flora and fauna and the effects of such changes;

M Important Geophysical phenomena such as earthquakes, Tsunami, Volcanic activity, cyclone etc.

NDistribution of key natural resources across the world (including South Asia and the Indiansubcontinent);

OFactors responsible for the location of primary, secondary, and tertiary sector industries in variousparts of the world (including India);

P Population and associated issues;

Q Urbanization, their problems and their remedies

General Studies Paper IIA India and its neighbourhood- relations;

B Important International institutions, agencies and fora- their structure, mandate;C Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India’s interests;

DBilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’sinterests.

EIndian Constitution, historical underpinnings, evolution, features, amendments, significant provisionsand basic structure;

F Comparison of the Indian Constitutional scheme with other countries;

GFunctions and responsibilities of the Union and the States, issues and challenges pertaining to thefederal structure, devolution of powers and finances up to local levels and challenges therein;Inclusive growth and issues arising from it;

HParliament and State Legislatures - structure, functioning, conduct of business, powers & privilegesand issues arising out of these;

IStructure, organization and functioning of the executive and the judiciary, Ministries andDepartments;


DAILY NEWS ANALYSIS

J Separation of powers between various organs dispute redressal mechanisms and institutions;

KAppointment to various Constitutional posts, powers, functions and responsibilities of variousConstitutional bodies;

L Statutory, regulatory and various quasi-judicial bodies;

MMechanisms, laws, institutions and bodies constituted for the protection and betterment of thesevulnerable sections;

N Salient features of the Representation of People’s Act;

OImportant aspects of governance, transparency and accountability, e-governance- applications,models, successes, limitations, and potential;

P Citizens charters, transparency & accountability and institutional and other measures;

Q Issues relating to poverty and hunger,

RWelfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre and States, Performanceof these schemes;

SIssues relating to development and management of social sector / services relating to educationand human resources;

T Issues relating to development and management of social sector / services relating to health

General Studies Paper III

AIndian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization of resources, growth, developmentand employment;

BEffects of liberalization on the economy, changes in industrial policy and their effects on industrialgrowth;

C Inclusive growth and issues arising from it;

D Infrastructure Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways etc. Government budgeting;

E Land reforms in India

FMajor crops, cropping patterns in various parts of the country, different types of irrigation andirrigation systems;

G Storage, transport and marketing of agricultural produce and issues and related constraints;H e-technology in the aid of farmers; Technology Missions; Economics of Animal-Rearing.

IIssues of buffer stocks and food security, Public Distribution System- objectives, functioning,limitations, revamping;

JFood processing and related industries in India – scope and significance, location, upstream anddownstream requirements, supply chain management;

K Issues related to direct and indirect farm subsidies and minimum support prices

L Awareness in the fields of IT, Space, Computers, robotics, nano-technology, bio-technology;

M Indigenization of technology and developing new technology;N Developments and their applications and effects in everyday life;O Issues relating to intellectual property rights

P Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment

Q Disaster and disaster management

RChallenges to internal security through communication networks, role of media and socialnetworking sites in internal security challenges, basics of cyber security;

S Money-laundering and its prevention;

T Various forces and their mandate;

U Security challenges and their management in border areas;

V Linkages of organized crime with terrorism;

W Role of external state and non-state actors in creating challenges to internal security;

X Linkages between development and spread of extremism.

General Studies Paper IV

A Ethics and Human Interface: Essence, determinants and consequences of Ethics in human actions;B Dimensions of ethics;

CEthics in private and public relationships. Human Values - lessons from the lives and teachings ofgreat leaders, reformers and administrators;

D Role of family, society and educational institutions in inculcating values.E Attitude: Content, structure, function; its influence and relation with thought and behaviour;F Moral and political attitudes;G Social influence and persuasion.

HAptitude and foundational values for Civil Service , integrity, impartiality and non-partisanship,objectivity, dedication to public service, empathy, tolerance and compassion towards the weakersections.

I Emotional intelligence-concepts, and their utilities and application in administration and governance.J Contributions of moral thinkers and philosophers from India and world.K Public/Civil service values and Ethics in Public administration: Status and problems;L Ethical concerns and dilemmas in government and private institutions;M Laws, rules, regulations and conscience asN sources of ethical guidance;

OAccountability and ethical governance; strengthening of ethical and moral values in governance;ethical issues in international relations and funding;

P Corporate governance.Q Probity in Governance: Concept of public service;R Philosophical basis of governance and probity;

SInformation sharing and transparency in government, Right to Information, Codes of Ethics, Codesof Conduct, Citizen’s Charters, Work culture, Quality of service delivery, Utilization of public funds,challenges of corruption.

T Case Studies on above issues.

NEWS_23 DEC - Vedhik IAS Academy

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