📰 Targeting GI tag, Mayurbhanj’s superfood ‘ant chutney’ to find more tables
For Odisha tribes, dishes made of weaver ants offer a cure to many illnesses and are known to boost the immune system and keep diseases at bay
•People often keep a safe distance from red weaver ants as their sting inflicts a sharp pain and reddish bumps on the skin.
•Despite this, weaver ants are popular among the people, mostly of the tribes, of Mayurbhanj district in Odisha for the mouth-watering dish made of them — the Kai chutney.
•This savoury food item, rich in proteins, calcium, zinc, vitamin B-12, iron, magnesium, potassium, sodium, copper, fibre and 18 amino acids, is known to boost the immune system and keep diseases at bay.
•In Odisha, scientists are now fine-tuning their research to make a presentation for the Geographical Indications (GI) registry of Kai chutney. Applied under food category, the GI tag will help develop a structured hygiene protocol in the preparation of Kai chutney for standard wider use.
•Geographical Indications labels enhance the reputation and value of local products and support local businesses.
•Weaver ants, Oecophylla smaragdina, are abundantly found in Mayurbhanj throughout the year. They make nests with leaves of host trees.
•“When required, leafy nests of ants are plucked from their host trees and collected in a bucket of water before sorting and separation from leaves and debris. Larval and adult stages of the ants are preferred and are either eaten raw or turned into ‘chutney’ by mixing them with spicy ingredients,” said Jagannath Patra, a scientist at the Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK).
•The chutney is prepared by mixing and grinding salt, ginger, garlic and chilly and is sold by tribal people in rural markets.
•“The tribes of Mayurbhanj consume Kai chutney or soup to get rid of flu, common cold, whooping cough, to increase appetite and enhance eyesight naturally without corrective eye wear and to treat joint pain and stomach diseases, and for the development of a healthy brain and the nervous system,” Deepak Kumar Mohanty, a senior scientist with the KVK, said.
•“The tribal healers also prepare medicinal oil by dipping the collected Kais in pure mustard oil. After 30 days, this oil is used as baby oil and externally used to cure rheumatism, gout, ringworm infection and skin diseases. So, it is the only panacea for the tribes,” the application for GI registry says.
•“The Kai family consists of three category members — workers, major workers and queens. Workers and major workers are mostly orange-colored. Kais feed on small insects and other invertebrates, their prey being mainly beetles, flies and hymenopterans,” it said.
📰 We need an urgent national plan on electrical safety
More funding and coordinated action are needed
•There are reasons to be proud of the growth of the Indian power sector since independence. There has been significant growth in infrastructure, nearly all households have an electricity connection, amid promises of providing 24x7 electrical supply and achieving net zero emissions by 2070. While these are commendable, there are also many problems that the sector faces, electrical accidents being a tragic one.
•Understanding the problems and failures is essential for growth and success. And it is unfortunate that the increasing rate of electrical accidents is a problem that has not received sufficient attention of those who plan, regulate and operate the electricity sector. National or State policies or programmes do not provide targets or specific resource allocation for safety. In some cases where resource is allocated, it is under-utilised or a small portion is spent on staff for safety kits or training.
Rising fatalities
•As per the data from the National Crime Records Bureau, the number of fatalities and rate of deaths (per lakh population) due to electric shocks and fires has been steadily increasing over the years. From 2,957 deaths and 0.36 deaths per lakh population in 1990, it has increased to 15,258 deaths and 1.13 deaths per lakh population in 2020. Data from the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) conveys the same story in terms of increasing fatal accidents. It is worth mentioning that in many developed countries, the number of deaths has been reducing over the years and the deaths per lakh population is of the order of 0.03 or lower.
•Accidents, as the saying goes, do not just happen, but are caused. From the analysis of available data, it appears that over 90% of the people who die due to electrical accidents are the general public. Hence, any attempt to reduce such accidents must include the safety of general public as a top priority.
•Geographically, most of the electrical accidents appear to be taking place in rural areas, but considering the rapid urbanisation, poor urban localities also need attention. In electrical terms, most accidents occur in the distribution system and at non-industrial consumer locations. Most fatalities occur at distribution network (specifically 11 kV and Low-Tension systems) and Low-Tension consumer locations, and therefore need higher attention.
•Electrocution due to accidental contact with live conductors is the immediate cause for accidents in a majority of cases. The reason could be snapping or sagging of conductors, or exposed switch boards at low heights. The second major reason is fire due to electrical faults, which accounts for around 12% of the accidents. Poor design, construction, inadequate maintenance, inadequate protection systems and lack of safety awareness are some of the root causes.
Safety checks and balances
•There are safety regulations prepared by the CEA, which all electricity utilities are expected to follow. But there is no mechanism to ensure that utilities are following them. For example, distribution companies are expected to have safety officers and conduct periodic safety audits. These are not done because revenue collection and fault repairs are higher priorities for the companies. Electrical inspectors in States are expected to approve connections, provide licences to electricians and conduct enquiries on accidents. But they are heavily under-staffed. As for safety professionals, their focus is on industrial safety, and not on safety aspects of the rural public. Many well-meaning grass-root organisations focus on ensuring ex gratia for accident victims, not on accident prevention.
•Electricity safety is a public interest challenge, which can be met only through coordinated action involving all stakeholders. The implementation of the current safety regulatory regime can be significantly tightened through better data collection, introducing safety aspects in national programmes, strengthening safety institutions, developing safety metric for distribution companies, involving public and professionals in safety initiatives and utilising technological innovations.
•The need of the hour is a national programme to reduce electrical accidents in the distribution sector, with clear scope of work, sufficient resource allocation and robust monitoring and verification mechanism. States could identify districts which have reported high accidents in the past few years and chalk out a programme to reduce accidents. Only such measures can ensure that electricity supply is not only universal, affordable and good quality, but also safe.
It can never be an alternative to compassionate policing based on trust between the police and citizens
•India has a grim record in police brutality and custodial violence. Between 2001 and 2018, 1,727 persons died in police custody, but only 26 policemen were convicted for such deaths. The recent spate of custodial deaths in Tamil Nadu has yet again highlighted the methods used by the police during interrogation. It is not uncommon knowledge that the police, when they grow increasingly frustrated with the trajectory of their interrogation, sometimes resort to torture and violence which could lead to the death of the suspect. Custodial deaths are common despite enormous time and money being spent on training police personnel to embrace scientific methods of investigation. This is because police personnel are humans from different backgrounds and with different perspectives.
Use of technology
•Given the problem of custodial deaths, technology has been proposed as a silver bullet by many. Several technological solutions are available to help prevent custodial deaths. These include body cameras and automated external defibrillators. There is no doubt that technology can help avert police custodial deaths. For example, body cameras could hold officers liable. Deception detection tests (DDTs), which deploy technologies such as polygraph, narco-analysis and brain mapping, could be valuable in learning information that is known only to a criminal regarding a crime.
•Among the DDTs, the Brain Fingerprinting System (BFS) is an innovative technology that several police forces contemplate adding to their investigative tools. BFS has proved helpful for solving crimes, identifying perpetrators, and exonerating innocent suspects. Laboratory and field tests for the BFS at the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Central Intelligence Agency, and U.S. Navy demonstrated no errors and no false positives and false negatives. The technique helps investigative agencies uncover clues in complicated cases. In June 2008, India convicted an accused leaning on evidence from a BFS device. In 2010, the Supreme Court, in Selvi v. State of Karnataka, rendered the evidence inadmissible. The court observed that the state could not perform narco analysis, polygraph, and brain-mapping tests on any individual without their consent. With informed consent, however, any information or material discovered during the BFS tests can be part of the evidence. As the BFS is high-end technology, it is expensive and unavailable in several States.
•Police departments are increasingly using robots for surveillance and bomb detection. Many departments now want robotic interrogators for interrogating suspects. Many experts today believe that robots can meet or exceed the capabilities of the human interrogator, partially because humans are inclined to respond to robots in ways that they do to humans. From his studies, human-computer interaction (HCI) researcher Joseph Weizenbaum concluded that suspects might be more receptive to opening up to automated conversational counterparts than the police.
•Robots equipped with AI and sensor technology can build a rapport with the suspects, utilise persuasive techniques like flattery, shame and coercion, and strategically use body language. Researchers at the University of Arizona have created automated interrogation technology called The Automated Virtual Agent for Truth Assessments in Real-Time (AVATAR). The Canadian Border Services Agency tested AVATAR last year. The HCI system uses visual, auditory, near-infrared and other sensors to scrutinise a suspect’s eye movements, voice, and other qualities throughout an interaction. The aggregation of information and its analysis by the system have been highly accurate.
•Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) are emerging as tool of interrogations. AI can detect human emotions and predict behaviour. Therefore, these are also options. ML can in real-time alert superiors when police are meting out inhumane treatment to suspects.
Valid concerns
•There is a lot of concern about AI or robot interrogations, both legally and ethically. There exists the risk of bias, the peril of automated interrogation tactics, the threat of ML algorithms targeting individuals and communities, and the hazard of its misuse for surveillance. Therefore, while the technology available to the police and law-enforcement agencies is constantly improving, it is a restricted tool that can’t eradicate custodial deaths. While it might provide comfort and transparency, it can never address the underlying issues that lead to these situations.
•What we need is the formulation of a multi-pronged strategy by the decision-makers encompassing legal enactments, technology, accountability, training and community relations. The Law Commission of India’s proposition in 2003 to change the Evidence Act to place the onus of proof on the police for not having tortured suspects is important in this regard. Besides, stringent action must be taken against personnel who breach the commandments issued by the apex court in D.K. Basu v. State of West Bengal (1997). The draft bill on the Prevention of Torture, 2017, which has not seen the day, needs to be revived. Technology may make policing more convenient, but it can never be an alternative for compassionate policing established on trust between the police and the citizens.
📰 Why is defection a non-issue for voters?
Indian voters are divided on what kind of representatives they prefer voting for
•The reason why a poor record on honesty and frequent switching of candidates from one political party to another (defection) hardly concerns Indian voters is simply that a very large section of the electorate chooses the party and not the candidate during elections. If merits and demerits of candidates had any bearing on voting considerations of Indian voters, many defectors and candidates with questionable records would not have made it to the Indian Parliament or the Assemblies of different States.
•In some instances, there may be well-founded reasons for an elected MLA or MP to defect from one party to another. But the reason why many legislators and parliamentarians defect to other parties for purely personal gains is that they know voters will not punish them for their actionsand will support them if they contest election on the ticket of any “popular” political party. Similarly, many of them also know that it is the party’s ticket and the popularity of its leader that helps them win the election. What they are careful about is to keep themselves accessible to people and help them in getting their work done. When some voters decide to choose the candidate rather than the party during elections, the ability to get work done remains the biggest asset for the candidate, no matter how.
•The findings from the National Elections Studies conducted by Lokniti-CSDS indicate, during the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, 58% voters mentioned voting for the party while 33% said they voted for the candidate. The proportion of voters who voted for the party declined slightly to 52% during the 2019 Lok Sabha elections while 37% voters preferred voting for the candidate. There is a slight increase in candidate-centred voting amongst Indian voters during the last few years, but the evidence over the years for Lok Sabha and State Assembly elections suggests that a large majority of Indian voters vote for the party and not for the candidate. This party-centred approach is prevalent amongst both uneducated as well as educated voters, amongst urban and rural voters and amongst voters with various degrees of media exposure. It is this strong trend of party-centred voting which neutralises any displeasure, if at all, that voters may have about their chosen representatives defecting and contesting again on a different party ticket.
Relocating mandate
•There are numerous examples, of defectors being re-elected, on a party ticket against which they had contested the previous election. Twenty-two sitting legislators of the Congress party, some of them Ministers in the Kamal Nath government, defected to the BJP in Madhya Pradesh in March 2020, of whom 19 were re-elected again to the House as BJP legislators. Another instance that is fresh in our minds is that of Mahesh Iranagouda Kumathalli, who become the MLA of Athani Assembly constituency in Karnataka in 2018 on a Congress ticket, but crossed over to the BJP and got re-elected to the House. How could one forget Suvendu Adhikari’s defection from Trinamool Congress to the BJP, and his subsequent re-election to the West Bengal Assembly, defeating the sitting Chief Minister and heavy weight Mamata Banerjee. These are just few examples from the long list of defectors getting re-elected soon after their defections and occupying prime positions. Let us not forget, Vishwajit Rane, who resigned as Congress MLA of Valpoi, Goa, and the Minister of Health, Agriculture & Craftsmen Training on March 16, 2017, joined the BJP on April 7, 2017 and became part of Parrikar government with health portfolio. While this has been the dominant trend, the 2022 Assembly elections in Goa came as an exception when nine of the 12 defectors lost the Assembly election, some very badly. Nevertheless, it is the broad trend which seems to encourage MLAs and MPs to change parties without any valid reasons except for personal gains.
•We can broadly predict when the four seasons — winter, spring, summer and monsoon — set in, but one cannot predict when and where defections are likely to take place. Defection is not new to Indian politics, and has been around for a long time. Voters have seen it as a routine exercise in Indian politics, and do not consider it an evil practice. There have been several attempts by various governments at different points of time to strengthen laws to curb this menace in politics. It was first introduced in the 4th Lok Sabha in 1967 by the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, but the Act finally came into being in 1984 during Rajiv Gandhi government’s tenure. Important amendments to Anti-Defection law introduced in 2003 by the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government to strengthen the legislation failed to bring about the desired results. The political drama that recently unfolded in Maharashtra involving 37 Shiv Sena legislators is another example of how Anti-Defection law is being misused by contesting groups/sides and dissident legislators for personal and political gains.
Voting preferences
•Evidence from the National Election study indicates that the views of Indian voters are divided on what kind of representatives they would prefer to vote for. Many of them do not express strong reservations against candidates with tainted backgrounds or those involved in corrupt practices. While many are happy to vote for an honest but inaccessible candidate (48%), there are others (24%), who are happy to vote for a candidate who is corrupt but accessible.
•Similarly, 36% voters are ready to vote for a candidate with criminal background, but gets works done, while 35% are ready to vote for an honest candidate, but can’t get work done. I think we are close to answering why defection and corruption do not matter much to Indian voters.
📰 Strains on India-Russia defence cooperation
Which are some of the major deals with Russia that are either pending or under review? How has the Russian government responded?
•As the Russia-Ukraine conflict stretches on with no clear endgame, there are apprehensions on Russia’s ability to adhere to the timelines for both spares and hardware.
•Officials have stated that while some timeline lapses and shipping delays were possible, there would not be any dent on the Army’s operational preparedness along the borders especially the Line of Actual Control.
•Russian deals which have been deferred include the one for 21 MiG-29 fighter jets along with the upgradation of 59 existing Mig-29 jets and the manufacture of 12 SU-30 MKI aircraft.
•The story so far: As the war in Ukraine stretches over four months with no end in sight, it has given rise to apprehensions on Russia’s ability to adhere to timely deliveries of spares and hardware.
What is the status of India-Russia defence cooperation?
•When the war began in February, top officers stated that the Indian armed forces have stocks of spares and supplies for eight to ten months and the expectation was that the war would end quickly. However, as it stretches on with no clear endgame, there are apprehensions on Russia’s ability to adhere to the timelines for both spares as well as new deliveries.
•Responding to questions on this issue in early May, Army Chief Manoj Pande acknowledged the Army’s dependency on certain weapon systems specially in the area of air defence, rockets, missiles and certain tanks from Russia and Ukraine and said that as far as the immediate impact was concerned “the supply chain of certain spares and ammunition has got impacted to some extent, but we have adequate stocks to last for a reasonable period of time.” He added that they are also looking at certain alternative mitigation measures and identifying alternate sources from friendly foreign countries while in the long term, this is also an opportunity for the private industry to step up production and meet the requirements.
•The Defence Ministry and Services have carried out assessments on the possible impact on timely deliveries due to Western sanctions on Russia. Officials have stated that while some timeline lapses and shipping delays were possible, there would not be any dent on the Army’s operational preparedness along the borders especially the Line of Actual Control.
•In addition, the armed forces have also made significant emergency procurements in the last two years since the standoff in Eastern Ladakh and have stocked up on spares and ammunition. Therefore, there shouldn't be any immediate urgency for spares and other requirements, officials noted. Russia has assured India that it would adhere to delivery timelines. However, as the war stretches on there are apprehensions that it could have an impact as the Russian industry would be caught up in replenishing the inventories of their own armed forces.
What is the status of deals underway/new deals pending with Russia?
•The defence trade between India and Russia has crossed $15 billion since 2018, in the backdrop of some big deals including the $5.43 billion S-400 long range air defence systems. Other major contracts currently under implementation are construction of four additional stealth frigates in Russia and India, licensed production of the Mango Armor-piercing fin-stabilised discarding sabot (APFSDS) rounds for the T-90S tanks as also additional T-90S tanks, AK-203 assault rifles among others. However, there is some delay. For instance, the delivery of the second regiment of the S-400 is delayed by a few months as also the operationalisation of the agreement for the manufacture of 6.1 lakh AK-203 rifles at Korwa, Amethi in Uttar Pradesh.
•There are also several big ticket deals currently under negotiation but several of them have been deferred by the Defence Ministry as part of the review of all direct import deals. This is in conjunction with efforts to push the ‘Make in India’ scheme in defence. Russian deals have also been deferred including the one for 21 MiG-29 fighter jets for the Indian Air Force (IAF) along with the upgradation of 59 existing Mig-29 jets estimated to cost ₹7,418 crore and the manufacture of 12 SU-30 MKI aircraft at an estimated ₹10,730 crore by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).
•Another long pending deal for the manufacture of 200 K-226T utility helicopters in India is also under reconsideration due to the fact that the indigenous Light Utility Helicopter is now ready, as well as cost concerns. A formal decision on cancellation has not been taken yet, officials stated.
•In addition, a deal for six Ka-31 early warning helicopters and a bigger deal for Igla-S very short range air defence systems have also been deferred though the Army inducted a small number of Igla-S systems brought under emergency procurement.
What is the status of payments?
•With Russia being shut out of the global SWIFT system for money transfers, India and Russia have agreed to conduct payments through the Rupee-Rouble arrangement. With several big ticket deals including the S-400 under implementation, there are large volume of payments to be made.
•The Central banks of the two countries had extensively discussed this issue, and officials recently said that small payments have been resumed and work is on to resolve larger payments. For the two countries, payments by the Rupee-Rouble arrangement is not new.
•For instance, for the S-400 air defence systems signed in October 2018, with the looming threat of U.S. sanctions under CAATSA (Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act), the two sides had worked out payments through the Rupee-Rouble exchange. In fact, the delivery schedule got slightly delayed as the payment was tied up. However, at that time Russia was within the SWIFT system.
•While India continues to remain Russia’s largest arms buyer with a major chunk of legacy hardware from Russia and the Soviet Union, the volume of imports has reduced in the last decade.
📰 Wake-up call
Landslides in Manipur are related to avoidable, man-made actions
•The landslide that occurred last week in the Tupul area in Manipur’s Noney district will go down as one of the severest natural disasters in the State, with the death toll reaching 37 and 28 people remaining trapped below the debris even as rescue efforts were on. The tragic disaster has been compounded by the debris of the landslide blocking the Ijei river, creating a significant welling up of water which could inundate low-lying areas if the “dam”-like structure is breached. While the administration has sought to ease the water outflow from the stored water, inclement weather has hampered the pace of the efforts and the government and disaster management officials must now take precautions to ensure that the consequences of the disaster do not snowball even further. The fact that such a disaster occurred in a railway construction site in a landslide-prone area should give development planners and government officials in the State pause. While the Himalayan States in northern India and other States with hill/ghat terrain such as Kerala have registered the bulk of landslides in the last decade or so according to government data, the number of such incidents in Manipur (20 between 2014 and 2020) is not insignificant. The relatively high number of casualties accompanying these landslides and the fact that the Environment Ministry has itself acknowledged that the disasters were “anthropogenically” induced are a matter of serious concern for the State. The Ministry identified the causes of landslides in Manipur as “a result of modification of slopes for construction, widening of road, quarrying for construction materials, fragile lithography, complex geological structures and heavy rainfall”.
•As a post-facto exercise, the State government must look at whether sufficient soil and stability tests were done before choosing the site for railway construction work in the Tupul area. Researchers have corroborated the fact that the areas in western Manipur abutting the national highways fall under very high, high or moderate hazard zones. The severe landslide occurred in the Tupul area despite the government identifying susceptible areas in the State through the National Landslide Susceptibility Mapping project. The uncertain nature of rains, with the monsoon being more intense this year compared to predictions, has added to the problem. An early warning system for landslides is still being developed and refined by the Geological Survey of India and this could help reduce the scale of such disasters, once deployed across vulnerable States. While it is understandable that States in the Northeast are keen on accelerating connectivity projects to uplift a relatively economically backward region, disasters such as the landslide in Tupul point to the dangers of not taking ecological challenges related to deforestation seriously enough. This is a wake-up call for governments in States that are prone to landslides regularly.
📰 The functioning of the National Investigation Agency
When and why was the NIA constituted? Can the agency move beyond domestic borders?
•The NIA was constituted in the wake of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack in November 2008. The agency came into existence on December 31, 2008, and started its functioning in 2009.
•The NIA is a central agency which investigates all offences affecting the sovereignty, security and integrity of India, friendly relations with foreign states, and the offences under the statutory laws enacted to implement international treaties.
•The law under which the agency operates extends to the whole of India and also applies to Indian citizens outside the country.
•The story so far: The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has taken over the probe into the June 28 killing of tailor Kanhaiyya Lal (48) in Rajasthan's Udaipur over a social media post supporting suspended Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Nupur Sharma. Now, the Union Home Ministry has handed over to the agency the investigation of a similarly executed murder of pharmacist Umesh Kolhe (54) at Amravati in Maharashtra on June 21.
What is the NIA?
•It is a central agency mandated to investigate all the offences affecting the sovereignty, security and integrity of India, friendly relations with foreign states, and the offences under the statutory laws enacted to implement international treaties, agreements, conventions and resolutions of the United Nations, its agencies and other international organisations. These include terror acts and their possible links with crimes like smuggling of arms, drugs and fake Indian currency and infiltration from across the borders. The agency has the power to search, seize, arrest and prosecute those involved in such offences.
•Headquartered in Delhi, the NIA has its branches in Hyderabad, Guwahati, Kochi, Lucknow, Mumbai, Kolkata, Raipur, Jammu, Chandigarh, Ranchi, Chennai, Imphal, Bengaluru and Patna.
When did the NIA come into being?
•In the wake of the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack in November 2008, which shocked the entire world, the then United Progressive Alliance government decided to establish the NIA. In December 2008, former Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram introduced the National Investigation Agency Bill.
•The Home Minister had then said the agency would deal with only eight laws mentioned in the schedule and that a balance had been struck between the right of the State and duties of the Central government to investigate the more important cases. The Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha.
•The agency came into existence on December 31, 2008, and started its functioning in 2009.
•Till date, the NIA has registered 447 cases.
What are the scheduled offences?
•The list includes the Explosive Substances Act, Atomic Energy Act, Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, Anti-Hijacking Act, Suppression of Unlawful Acts against Safety of Civil Aviation Act, SAARC Convention (Suppression of Terrorism) Act, Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against Safety of Maritime Navigation and Fixed Platforms on Continental Shelf Act, Weapons of Mass Destruction and their Delivery Systems (Prohibition of Unlawful Activities) Act and relevant offences under the Indian Penal Code, Arms Act and the Information Technology Act.
•In September 2020, the Centre empowered the NIA to also probe offences under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act that are connected to terror cases.
How wide is NIA's jurisdiction?
•The law under which the agency operates extends to the whole of India and also applies to Indian citizens outside the country; persons in the service of the government wherever they are posted; persons on ships and aircraft registered in India wherever they may be; persons who commit a scheduled offence beyond India against the Indian citizen or affecting the interest of India.
How does the NIA take up a probe?
•As provided under Section 6 of the Act, State governments can refer the cases pertaining to the scheduled offences registered at any police station to the Central government (Union Home Ministry) for NIA investigation. After assessing the details made available, the Centre can then direct the agency to take over the case. State governments are required to extend all assistance to the NIA. Even when the Central government is of the opinion that a scheduled offence has been committed which is required to be investigated under the Act, it may, suo motu, direct the agency to take up/over the probe.
•Where the Central government finds that a scheduled offence has been committed at any place outside India to which this Act extends, it can also direct the NIA to register the case and take up investigation. While investigating any scheduled offence, the agency can also investigate any other offence which the accused is alleged to have committed if the offence is connected to the scheduled offence.
