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Thursday, July 14, 2022

THE HINDU NEWSPAPER IMPORTANT ARTICLES 14.07.2022

19:16
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Wednesday, July 13, 2022

Daily Current Affairs, 13th July 2022

19:28

 


1)  World Paper Bag Day 2022 observed on 12th July

•Every year, World Paper Bag Day is observed on July 12 to raise awareness of the importance of using paper bags instead of plastic bags. This day is dedicated to spreading awareness of the ill effects of plastic and how detrimental they are to our environment. Paper bags can easily be used to replace one-time-use plastic bags which are non-biodegradable or, in other words, take hundreds of years to decompose in landfills.


World Paper Bag Day 2022: Theme


•The theme for Paper Bag Day this year is, “If You’re ‘fantastic’, Do Something ‘dramatic’ To Cut The ‘Plastic’, Use ‘Paper Bags’.”


2)  India’s 1st elevated urban expressway “Dwarka” to be operational by 2023

•The Dwarka Expressway, which is being developed as the first elevated urban expressway in India, will be operational in 2023, said Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari. Dwarka Expressway will reduce pressure on the Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway (part of the Delhi-Jaipur-Ahmedabad-Mumbai arm of the Golden Quadrilateral) and arterial roads that experience severe traffic congestion, primarily from the commuters of West Delhi.


3)  PM inaugurated Deoghar Airport and several other development projects

•Prime Minister Narendra Modi officially inaugurated and set the cornerstone for a number of construction projects totaling more than 16,800 crores of rupees in Deoghar. At a public event held on the grounds of Deoghar College, the prime minister declared that the government is funding religious institutions in order to preserve our culture and faith for future generations.


4)  NIFT, Panchkula officially inaugurated by Union Minister Piyush Goyal

•The 17th campus of the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) in Panchkula was officially opened by Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and Union Minister Piyush Goyal, who referred to it as the “fulcrum of development of the textile sector in the state.” According to Khattar, 20% of seats at this institute will be earmarked for people from Haryana in accordance with NIFT rules. He said that this campus’ foundation stone was set on December 29, 2016, by Smriti Irani, who was the Union Textiles Minister at the time.


5)  On October 1st, this year, Paper Import Monitoring System to go in Action

•The Paper Import Monitoring System (PIMS) was established by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) by changing the import policy for major paper products from “free” to “free subject to mandatory registration under PIMS.” According to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, the new rule will take effect on October 1, 2022. However, the ministry announced in a statement that the online registration option will be available as of July 15, 2022.


6)  75th Independence Day: Govt to start nationwide campaign ‘Har Ghar Tiranga’

•In order to encourage citizens to raise the national flag at their residences in observance of the nation’s 75th Independence Day, the Central government will soon launch the nationwide campaign Har Ghar Tiranga. The initiative was launched under the auspices of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav, whose nodal ministry is the Ministry of Culture. The Indian National Flag is a source of great pride for the entire country, and in order to further honour the flag, the programme known as Har Ghar Tiranga has been approved by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, who is in charge of all initiatives under the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav.


7)  I&B Ministry unveils New Logo of Prasar Bharati on its Silver Jubilee

•India’s public broadcaster Prasar Bharati unveiled its new logo on July 11, 2022, in its silver jubilee year. The new logo was released by the secretary of I&B Apurva Chandra, secretary, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (I&B) in the presence of Mayank Kumar Agrawal, CEO, Prasar Bharati, DPS Negi, Member (Finance), Prasar Bharati, and officers of Ministry of I&B and Prasar Bharati.


•The organization started as All India Radio (AIR) in the past and Doordarshan (DD) was born to cater to television services later and finally came Prasar Bharati (PB) by the enactment of an act by the parliament, which is visualized in the logo identity as emerging and evolving from the centre.


8)  President of Sri Lanka Rajapaksa signs his resignation

•The Speaker of Parliament will officially announce the resignation of Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa after he has signed his letter of resignation. The resignation was written and given to a senior government official, who will give it to Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, according to reports in Sri Lankan newspapers. Just before tens of thousands of demonstrators stormed the President’s House, Gotabaya Rajapaksa fled.


9)  India’s Retail inflation at 7.01% in June

•Retail inflation, based on the consumer price index (CPI), eased to 7.01 per cent in June this year compared to 7.04 per cent in the preceding month. Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation said inflation eased marginally mainly due to easing prices in the “Food & Beverages” section.


10)  Japan’s ‘Order of the Rising Sun’ award conferred to Narayanan Kumar

•The government of Japan has conferred the ‘Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star’ award on Sanmar Group Vice Chairman Narayanan Kumar in recognition of his contribution toward strengthening economic relations between Japan and India. Kumar was honoured by the Consul General of Japan in Chennai, Taga Masayuki.


Why was this honour is given to Narayanan Kumar?


•Masayuki lauded Kumar’s dedicated efforts in promoting friendship, goodwill and mutual understanding between Japan and India. Kumar also heads the Indo-Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry. He had served the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) as its president and was among the ‘Spring 2022 Imperial Decorations recipients’.
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GS SCORE Mains 2022 Sampoorna: Contemporary Issues of Art & Culture PDF

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GS SCORE Current Affairs July 2022 Week 1 PDF

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GS SCORE Current Affairs July 2022 Week 1 PDF

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The HINDU Notes – 13th July 2022

14:22

 


📰 Create more jobs, revamp employment policy

The Government’s 10 lakh jobs creation plan does not appear to have factored in the ground realities

•The Government of India has recently announced its plan to create 10 lakh government jobs in the next 18 months. Of about 40 lakh sanctioned posts, 22% posts are now vacant and the Government will fill these posts in 18 months.

•Though the announcement has been called a “historic step in the interest of the youth” and as “raising a new hope and confidence among youth” by some top Government leaders, the plan has serious problems.

Vacancies are much higher

•The first question is: how is the Government managing now in the absence of more than a fifth of the required number of staff? There are as many as 8.72 lakh positions that were vacant in various departments of the Central government, as told by the Minister of State in Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Jitendra Singh, to the Rajya Sabha on February 3, 2022. If various positions in public sector banks, the defence forces and police, the health sector, central schools and central universities, and the judiciary are added, then the number touches about 30 lakh posts. This number does not include vacancies in State government jobs. As sanctioned posts broadly indicate the required posts needed to run a government, it appears that this government is perhaps facing a serious shortage of staff, which is then causing long delays in work, corruption and maybe other inefficiencies.

•The Government, however, has not made any complaints about such shortages in recent years. Why then has it made this sudden announcement? Is it because the Government is concerned about youth unemployment? Or is it because it wants to fill the required posts? Or, is it because elections are due in a number of States?’

‘Quality’ as issue

•Another major concern is about the quality of employment that will be generated through this plan. The share of contract workers in total government employment has been increasing rapidly in recent years — from 11.11 lakh in 2017 to 13.25 lakh in 2020 and to 24.31 lakh in 2021. In addition, there are “honorary workers” such as Anganvadi workers, their helpers, accredited social health activist (ASHA) workers, etc. These employees of the government earn a lower salary (consolidated wages), and are not entitled to “decent work” conditions (International Labour Organization recommendations) including a minimum package of social security.

•The Government must ensure that the employment generated under its plan will be of a standard quality. There has been no assurance so far on this by the Government.

More jobs are needed

•The total labour force in the country stands at 437.2 million (April 2022 data). At a labour force participation rate of 42.13% (Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy Pvt. Ltd.) the unemployment rate of the youth is about 20% at present. Given the backlog of about 30 million unemployed people and an annual addition of 50 lakh-70 lakh workers every year (World Bank), the dimensions of India’s unemployment problem today are formidable. The generation of a mere 10 lakh jobs in the next 18 months is too little. This scheme of the Government will hardly provide any relief to the youth of the country; and will not have much of an impact on the present unemployment problem.

•It is important to note here that the performance of the private sector in creating employment opportunities has remained dismal. Currently, when the economy is still struggling to overcome the shocks caused by the novel coronavirus pandemic, and when private final consumption expenditure has not crossed the pre-pandemic level, private firms are being seen to be managing their profit margin by cutting costs (in the form of rationalising wage bills). In this situation it is all the more important for the Government to ensure as many jobs as possible.

Focus on basis needs

•As is claimed, if the Government is really in ‘mission mode’ to provide employment to the unemployed, and to the youth, it will have to do much more than what has been announced. To start with, the Government will have to create more employment within the Government. Recent national and international reports and rankings have shown that India is lagging far behind most other countries in terms of health and nutrition, particularly women and children, in education, literacy and skills, holistic care of children in early childhood and later; drinking water and sanitation, and other basic infrastructure, etc.

•We believe that the Government will have to take responsibility for meeting these basic needs without depending on privatisation — at least for the bottom 40% of the population. The first task for the Government would be to take much better direct care of basic well-being, human development and human resource development, and the basic infrastructure of the bottom population without privatisation in these areas.

•Another major task would also be to reorient the industrialisation policy to focus on labour-intensive sectors of the economy, and promote Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) and informal production by ensuring better technology and higher productivity, providing finances (including working capital) and pushing further cluster development for all industries that have the potential.

Urban employment

•And, finally, considering the fact that the urban economy has been badly hurt by the pandemic, a carefully designed urban employment guarantee programme would be most desirable to create ample urban employment avenues for urban youth. This programme will have to be different from the rural employment guarantee programme. The urban programme should include: basic urban services, where the youth would get special training so that they can be absorbed in the mainstream economy; day-care centres set up for childcare to enable women to reduce their unpaid services and to ensure quality care for children; and infrastructural gaps filled in under construction work to facilitate quality urban life.

•If the gesture of filling vacant posts in the Government is part of a mission employment, it will have to be followed by radical changes in the Government’s employment policy. Let us hope that people of India will be able to discern the motives behind the gesture, and assess the Government’s performance accordingly.

📰 A new judicial device for ‘complete justice’

India’s top court cannot be seen to be helpless when faced with issues of individual liberty

•Mohammed Zubair, the co-founder of Alt News, continues to be in prison despite the Supreme Court of India, last Friday, granting him interim bail, because of remand in another case by the Delhi police. The Court was aware of the futility of the bail order. Yet, the Court did not direct his release by granting him bail in the other case too.

•The order relates to a case challenging the Allahabad High Court’s judgment refusing to quash the First Information Report (FIR) against Mr. Zubair. The charge was under Section 295A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) — outraging religious feelings ... by insulting religion or religious beliefs. Later, a charge under Section 153-A IPC, of promoting religious enmity, was added.

•It was explained to the Court that there was not even a prima facie case against Mr. Zubair. Also, it was shown that the case itself was a device to crush dissent. The political malice behind the charge was very obvious. The Court also seemingly accepted the contentions, as evident from the grant of bail. Yet, the Court said the order was with respect to only the case registered in Uttar Pradesh. This has meant the continued detention of Mr. Zubair.

Challenges before judiciary

•The Supreme Court of India is regarded as the world’s most powerful top court, on account of its wide power of judicial review. It has the jurisdiction to issue writs under Article 32 of the Constitution. It also has the original jurisdiction under Article 131 of the Constitution. There is also wide appellate power under Articles 132, 133, 134 and 136 of the Constitution. More significantly, the Supreme Court has the power to “make such order as is necessary for doing complete justice in any cause or matter pending before it”, as per Article 142 of the Constitution. Yet, the top court has shown itself to be helpless when issues of individual liberty have been placed before it on very many occasions. Many political prisoners languish in prison after their bail pleas have been repeatedly rejected by different courts. The executive is able to register multiple FIRs in different States of India so as to ensure that the dissident is not released from prison even if bail is granted in some of the cases. Thus, the 
jail jurisprudence of the executive effectively surpasses the Court’s bail jurisdiction. Reports say that after the Supreme Court’s order, another warrant was issued against Mr. Zubair by a local court in Lakhimpur Kheri in Uttar Pradesh. This scenario, which reflects the new normal in the country’s criminal jurisprudence, poses crucial challenges to the judiciary.

•The Supreme Court cannot afford to be conventional if it really wants to tackle this situation where an aggrandising executive hunts its opponents in a systematic and incremental way. Conventional legal wisdom proclaims that every criminal case is a case which requires to be dealt with as such and taken to its logical conclusion. Even in Mr. Zubair’s case, the contention of the Solicitor General of India was that “any order passed by (the Supreme) Court (in this case) will interdict four judicial orders passed by two courts which have not been challenged”. It is the Court’s inability to overcome this line of argument by invoking the spirit of Article 142 that led to the ironic predicament of Mr. Zubair being in jail, despite the grant of the ‘interim bail’.

•The practice of registering multiple FIRs is extremely problematic. In the context of free speech, American legal scholar Professor Vincent Blasi identifies “historical periods when intolerance of unorthodox ideas is most prevalent and when governments are most able and most likely to stifle dissent systematically”. The situation in India is illustrative.

More ‘rule by law’

•The criminal justice system in such tough times degenerates into rule by law, that replaces rule of law. The law becomes an effective device in the hands of the Government for the purposes of a witch-hunt and this operates against the opponents of a regime, as a class. In this scenario, if the Court erroneously presumes that the nation’s legal system is governed by the principle of rule of law, fallacies and unjust consequences are bound to occur. In such a legal ambience, it will be equally fallacious to treat each case as isolated, as in reality, it is not so. Climatic changes in a nation’s constitutionalism are a hard reality which no court can ignore.

•Even in challenging times, a constitutional court should be able to evolve a mechanism of its own to preserve the democratic foundation of the country by intervening in the incremental process of nation’s “deconstitutionalisation”. Professor of law Rosalind Dixon in a recent study says that “at least under certain conditions — of sufficient independence, political support and remedial power — courts can too play an important role in buttressing democratic processes and commitments”, and this, according to her, “is the essence of responsive judicial review”. The constitutional courts in Colombia and Brazil have developed the new doctrine of “unconstitutional state of affairs”. This enables the court to address structural deficits with a sense of realism and to pass effective orders even by deviating from procedural rigour, with a view to protect fundamental rights. This is, in certain ways, akin to the practice of Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in India and structural injunctions in the United States.

Create a judicial atmosphere

•The courts, no doubt, may sometimes subserve the interest of the executive. This may even pose a serious threat to personal liberty, as it happened recently in its observations against activist Teesta Setalvad and former police officer R.B. Sreekumar. But in certain rare situations, it could still act as a determined umpire who checks the executive’s excesses. The Supreme Court’s intervention in the Centre’s COVID-19 vaccine policy and the Pegasus episode illustrates this point. The need is to expand the latter approach and to create and perpetuate a democratic judicial atmosphere that supports the cause of freedom.

•At least in principle, the Indian Supreme Court is constitutionally equipped with the power to invoke its jurisdiction for the larger cause of liberty, even by deviating from the conventional technical route. The “complete justice” under Article 142 is meant to be used when the legalistic arguments such as those raised by the state in Mr. Zubair’s case have the effect of sabotaging the goal of constitutional justice. The Court needs a new version of judicial activism, which the Court itself evolved, in the 1980s.

•The genesis of Article 142 shows that the makers of the Constitution have consciously incorporated this provision by drastically modifying the earlier corresponding provision in the Government of India Act, 1935. The Government of India Act, by way of Section 210(2), only said about the enforceability of the orders of the Federal Court. It did not, naturally, contain an idea of complete justice in the constitutional sense. Article 142, on the other hand, arms the Supreme Court with this supplemental power.

•The interpretation of the scope of this provision has been varied, and sometimes even conflicting. Some judgments pleaded for its restrictive use while some others did for its liberal and contextual application. In Delhi Development Authority vs Skipper Construction Company (1996), the top court said that the power under Article 142 should remain “undefined and uncatalogued, so that it remains elastic enough to be moulded to suit the given situation”.

Treat them as a class

•It is essential for the Supreme Court of India to treat political prisoners and dissenters facing multiple FIRs and undergoing unjustifiably long incarceration as a class. It needs jurisprudence at the normative level to tackle the technical arguments that create a false notion of rule of law when the very cause of arrest and detention is the lack of it. When a glaring instance of curtailing a person’s freedom is placed before the top court, it should be capable of calling for the records pertaining to the multiple FIRs and to suo motu add all the stakeholders as parties (if needed); the Court should immediately ensure that vindictive incarceration does not continue even for a day. This might be difficult, yet not impossible. Mr. Zubair’s case is one (like many other cases in the past) that demonstrates the juridical deficits of today’s Supreme Court. It is, therefore, an imperative to evolve an effective jurisprudence of “complete justice” by focusing on personal liberty. It is the praxis of this new judicial device that can, perhaps, preserve the country’s democratic legacy.

📰 The scale of municipal finances is inadequate
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Yojana Magazine July 2022 ( English ) PDF

07:56

 Yojana Magazine July 2022 ( English ) PDF

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THE HINDU NEWSPAPER IMPORTANT ARTICLES 13.07.2022

07:49
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Tuesday, July 12, 2022

Daily Current Affairs, 12th July 2022

18:52

 


1)  World Malala Day 2022 celebrates on 12th July

•International Malala Day is celebrated every year on July 12 on the occasion of young activist Malala Yousafzai’s birthday. The United Nations (UN) designated this date to be marked as Malala Day to honour the young woman who has been advocating for female education. The day is used as an opportunity to appeal to world leaders to ensure compulsory and free education for every child.


International Malala Day: History and significance


•On July 12, 2013, then 16-year-old Pakistani activist delivered a moving speech at the headquarters of the United Nations. She highlighted the need for access to women’s education globally and called the world leaders to reform their policies.


•Malala was widely appreciated for her remarkable speech. Since July 12 was her birthday, therefore the UN promptly declared that the day will be celebrated as ‘Malala Day’ to honour the young activist.


2)  India becomes 68th country to join Interpol’s child sexual abuse database

•India has joined Interpol’s international child sexual exploitation (ICSE) database which will allow it to draw links between victims, abusers, and crime scenes using audio-visual data. The CBI, which is India’s nodal agency for Interpol matters, joined the database making India the 68th country to connect to it, according to a statement from Interpol.


3)  First-ever exhibition and seminar on “AI in Defense” organised

•The Department of Defense Production, Ministry of Defense, will host the first-ever Artificial Intelligence in Defence symposium and exhibition in New Delhi, which will be officially inaugurated by Union Defence Minister Shri Rajnath Singh. The event will include a demonstration of the most innovative AI-enabled products that have been created by services, research organisations, industry, start-ups, and entrepreneurs.


4)  UN: India anticipated to overtake China as world’s most populated nation next year

•According to a report released by the UN on World Population Day, India is expected to overtake China as the world’s most populous nation next year. The world’s population is anticipated to exceed eight billion people on November 15, 2022, according to a research by the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. According to the United Nations’ most recent estimates, the world’s population may reach 8.5 billion people in 2030, 9.7 billion in 2050, and 10.4 billion in 2100.


5)  In Rurban Mission’s delta rating, Jharkhand ranks first

•According to a formal announcement, Jharkhand came out on top in the Syama Prasad Mookerjee Rurban Mission’s delta ranking for the month of June with a composite score of 76.19. As a result, the state has moved up to number eight in the mission’s overall ranking. The state’s score in the delta ranking increased by 1.93 points from the previous month, the most increase among the 34 states and union territories.


6)  Ministry of Mines hosts 6th National Conclave on Mines and Minerals

•The 6th National Conclave on Mines & Minerals was held as part of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav legendary week celebrations in New Delhi, according to the Ministry of Mines. Shri Amit Shah, the Union Minister of Housing, was the chief guest at the colloquium that will be held at the Dr. Ambedkar International Center. The one-day conclave was officially opened by Union Minister of Mines, Coal, and Parliamentary Affairs Shri Pralhad Joshi in the presence of Minister of State for Mines, Coal, and Railways Shri Raosaheb Patil Danve, Secretary Ministry of Mines Shri Alok Tandon, and other senior ministry officials.


•The launch of three modules of the Mining Tenement System (MTS), awards for 5-Star rated mines for the years 2020–21, and the National Geo Science Awards–2019 were some of the highlights of the conclave. Other highlights included the presentation of the national level Rashtriya Khanij Vikas Puraskar to the best performing States in the field of mining. The conclave’s opening session included a technical presentation from the National Mineral Exploration Trust (NMET) and a discussion on mining automation. During the round table discussions, the CEOs of various mining businesses did come up with crucial ideas related to India’s mining industry.


7)  Meghalaya to invest 300 crore in Childhood education programmes

•Meghalaya Chief Minister, Conrad K Sangma has announced Government that the government has earmarked Rs 300 crore from the externally aided projects to make investments in early childhood education programmes. An estimated amount of Rs 8.33 crore has been spent on the construction of the DERT. The state and has come up with a road map to invest in early childhood education programmes.


•The Government aims to achieve the larger goal of making each individual product that will enable every individual to contribute for the growth and development of the State. The Government has been making investments to overhaul the education infrastructure, teachers training at the grassroots level to ensure an enabling environment for learning.”


8)  India sets world record for building longest double-decker bridge in Nagpur

•The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and Maharashtra Metro achieved the world record for constructing the longest double-decker viaduct with a length of 3.14 km in Nagpur. The longest viaduct with highway flyover and metro rail supported on single column piers. The maximum metro stations constructed on a double-decker viaduct are recognized by the Asia Book of Records & India Book of Records. The development is the fulfilment of the promise by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s Government on building world-class infrastructure in New India.


9)  Deutsche Bahn to be world’s first intermodal partner of Star Alliance

•Deutsche Bahn (DB) will be the world’s first Intermodal Partner of Star Alliance. With this, DB and the aviation industry are sending another strong signal for the environment-friendly evolution of the travel industry. Under the new cooperation, DB customers and passengers of Star Alliance member airlines will be able to start or end their long-distance journey comfortably on the climate-friendly train. Germany is the first market and DB is the world’s first partner in the new Star Alliance initiative.


•An industry-first, Star Alliance’s Intermodal Partnership model intelligently combines airlines with railway, bus, ferry or any other transport ecosystem, alliance-wide. It is designed to link loyalty systems and facilitate seamless airport/station/port transit. Star Alliance plans to expand intermodal partnerships in the future.


10)  Pallavi Singh wins the Mrs Universe Divine Crown in South Korea

•India’s Pallavi Singh has won the Mrs Universe Divine Title at the finals held at Yeosu City, South Korea. She hails from Kanpur, India, and has made her country proud in this contest that saw participation from 110 countries. This is a proud moment for India. Pallavi Singh was the contestant from Asia in the Mrs Universe contest and has demonstrated the strong will and commitment of Indian women to excel in all walks of life.


•Pallavi Singh won the title of Mrs India held in Jaipur in 2020. She then won the title of Mrs Indo-Asia Universe in the Asia-level competition held in Delhi in October 2021. She was the contestant from India and Asia in the Mrs Universe contest, which saw her taking away the crown.


11)  Ruling party in Japan records significant victory in legislative vote

•In a parliamentary election in Japan, the ruling party and its coalition partner achieved a significant victory. In the 248-seat chamber, the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its minor coalition partner Komeito increased their combined share to 146, well exceeding the majority in the elections for half of the upper house seats. Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio expressed his gratitude for the decision. He pledged to handle the nation’s most pressing problems, such as the pandemic, the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, and the rising cost of life.


•The Japanese Prime Minister declared that in addition to a constitutional reform, he will continue to advocate for strengthening Japan’s national security. Additionally, he promised to boost the Japanese economy. Only two days had passed since the shooting death of former prime minister Shinzo Abe at a campaign rally before the election.


12)  Meenakshi Lekhi launched ‘Swadhinta Sangram Na Surviro’ book

•Union Minister of State for External Affairs and Culture, Meenakshi Lekhi has launched a book in Gujarati commemorating the contributions of freedom fighters at a function. The book, ‘Swadhinata Sangram Na Surviro’, celebrates 75 freedom fighters and shares the stories of the sacrifices made by them for the country.


•The book is a part of the “Swadhinta Ka Amrit Mahotsav” to mark the 75th year of the country’s Independence. The book commemorates the contribution of our freedom fighters who battled imperialism & dedicated their lives for Maa Bharati. Poet and president of the book release function’s guidance committee, Bhagyesh Jha, said the book is an attempt to pay tribute to the freedom fighters who sacrificed their lives for the country’s freedom.


13)  Akash Air gets Air Operator Certificate from DCGA to take off

•Billionaire investor Rakesh Juhunjhunwala-owned, Akasa Air has been cleared for take-off. The no-frills airline received its air operator certificate (AOC) from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Thursday. The airline will start its operations at the end of July.


•The grant of the AOC is the final step of a comprehensive process laid down by the DGCA. The airline inducted its first Boeing 737 Max aircraft on June 21. It plans to start its service, connecting metro cities with tier II and III cities, after adding its second aircraft. The airline hopes to have 18 aircraft by the end of the financial year (FY) 2023.
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The HINDU Notes – 12th July 2022

13:57

 


📰 Safety in the sky

The DGCA should have no tolerance for laxity among airlines seeking to cut corners


•Bird hits, cracked windshields, component failures, engine compressor surges and blade failures, flight deck indicator and system-related warnings, flight diversions, mid-air engine shutdowns, pressurisation problems, and a case of severe turbulence in the monsoon — these aviation-related occurrences in Indian skies in recent months, reaching a crest over the last 30 days, with most of them affecting one airline, have raised concerns about air passenger safety. In its ‘show cause notice’ issued recently to SpiceJet, the carrier in focus, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has highlighted some of the reported events. In its tersely worded observations on the low-cost airline’s operations — a fleet of narrowbody jets and turboprops — the aviation regulator has pointed to a ‘degradation of safety margins’, and touched on 'poor internal oversight’ and ‘inadequate maintenance actions’. Further, the DGCA has added, a financial assessment (September 2021) could point to a shortage of spares and, therefore, the ‘invocation’ of flying with a minimum equipment list. In its initial response, the airline management has put forward a defence of being an IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) air carrier. And, second, given the scale of flight operations in India — according to Ministry of Civil Aviation data, there were 5,268 aircraft movements in the domestic sector, on July 10 — such incidents are not an aberration. It has even cited an average of 30 such episodes a day, which some official sources have backed, though feebly.

•The metric is problematic — even aviation experts concur on this. There is no comparison with a global standard, or even a category breakup. Even worse, and dangerous, is not having the acknowledged root causes addressed. In the DGCA’s Annual Safety Review 2020, edition V, for example, under ‘Deficient maintenance’ (the objective is to improve the maintenance of Indian registered aircraft), for a target of 2.16 for incidents involving component/system failure per 10,000 flight hours, the achieved performance is 2.39. Similarly, under the number of maintenance errors per 10,000 flight hours, for a target of 1.43, the performance is 1.46. Repeated snags are a red flag, pointing to faults in the safety oversight system. In an ideal ecosystem, issues with safety would be analysed in terms of the rate of occurrence using tiered categorisation, with the goal of reduction to the minimum level. Troublesome too is how an airline continues its operations despite a ‘show-cause notice’ and during the monsoon. With passenger numbers climbing back to pre-COVID-19 levels, the entry of new airlines, the existing players indicating aggressive fleet expansion plans, and an international safety audit that is happening once too often for India, the regulator needs to be nimble and more vigilant. The industry watchword — safety — cannot be glossed over.

📰 The new ‘normal’ of political splits and shifts

Parties are more closely aligned with the state; the party bond exists only as long as it ensures a legislator’s success

•Political parties sometimes break up like marriages, and like remarriages, individual legislators switch parties. In both cases, the consequences can be severe. When individual legislators or a group decide to leave a party, form another party, or join another party, it could have repercussions in terms of government formation, maintenance, and termination. In Maharashtra, recently, and in Madhya Pradesh, a while ago, splits in the ruling party and a subsequent realignment of legislators inaugurated new governments.

Distinct waves

•Splits and switches are commonplace in legislatures across the globe, and India has witnessed at least three distinct waves. The first wave occurred towards the latter half of the 1960s when challengers to the Congress attempted to displace it in the States. There was literally great shoving and pushing and a quick turnover of governments due to the free movement of legislators across political parties.

•The next phase was inaugurated with an attempt to end the free movement and regulate the behaviour of legislators through the anti-defection law. While the law discouraged individual movement, it incentivised a collective movement of legislators since it laid down specific numbers to legitimise and validate party switches. When legislators switch in groups, the costs are shared, and the move also appears less opportunistic, which in many ways defeats the purpose of the legislation. Though the law has placed hurdles before splits and switches, the activity has continued. To make matters worse, the implications of the law now influence the strategies of legislators and parties.

•The third phase was inaugurated in 2014 with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on the ascendance when already-dominant parties began to use splits and switches to weaken and destroy their competitors. Aided by friendly Governors, the BJP, like the Congress did earlier, benefited from a string of governmental changes, including Arunachal Pradesh (2016), Bihar (2017), Karnataka (2019), Madhya Pradesh (2020), and Maharashtra (2022), which were brought about by legislators switching sides. In Puducherry (2021), switches led to fresh elections, bringing a BJP alliance to power. In Goa (2022) and Manipur (2017), though the Congress was returned as the single-largest party, it was outmanoeuvred by the BJP soon after. It was only in Uttarakhand that a Supreme Court of India intervention saved the Congress government.

A regional example

•It is not the BJP alone, as around the same time, ruling parties had a field day in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. In Telangana (2014), the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) decimated the Congress and the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) by encouraging shifts. In 2018, the Congress again crumbled under pressure. Likewise, in Andhra Pradesh, first, the TDP did the same to the Yuvajana Shramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP) after 2014, and subsequently, when the YSRCP came to power in 2019, it paid the TDP back in the same coin. In all these cases, the ruling party already had a comfortable majority of its own and did not necessarily need additional support.

•Therefore, the current phase is bizarre when compared to the past because dominant parties appear to be actively cheering splits and shifts and having no respect for the basic rules of the game. The anti-defection law and control of institutions are now weaponised by dominant parties to intervene in the internal working of Opposition parties, and sometimes make and break them. Furthermore, legislators are switching support even if it does not count to the making or maintenance of governments.

A perspective

•So what do we make of the splits and switches? Much of our discussion is dominated by the morality of splits and switches, and this revolves around the damage it causes to the foundations of representative democracy. And these are undoubtedly reasonable arguments. First, switchers violate the trust relationship with their constituents as voters get something other than what they bargained for. Second, assuming voters vote for parties and not candidates, the argument is that uncohesive parties make it difficult for voters to draw definitive lines of responsibility. Consequently, it is difficult for voters to hold party governments accountable for their actions during elections.

•Despite sound arguments about the despicable nature of splits and switches, they continue to happen routinely. The question then arises: Why do legislators split from and switch parties without fearing the negative connotations? We cannot answer this question as long as our perspective of political parties is dated.

•While we keep track of party system change, we ignore the point that the component parts, parties which make up the system, too change and transform. Our conceptualisation of parties is static and is drawn from an era long gone by. Parties constantly adapt new modes to sustain and find success for themselves.

•Our popular image of a party is that of the classical mass party, which rises from societal movements and is essentially internally democratic. They are linked to mass organisations and groups that share a common goal encompassing different dimensions of societal life. The leadership comes from the organisation, is accountable to it and is committed to the goal. Our normative posturing comes from this ideal type. This is what even the Election Commission of India imagines a party should be since many of its guidelines lay stress on the ‘democratic spirit’ and the need for transparency and participation in internal decision-making.

•However, in reality, parties are anything but this. While they mobilise and compete around identity and group solidarity issues such as mass parties, the internal democracy element is missing, and their links with society and mass organisations are at best tenuous. Today’s parties are centralised vote-getting machines which primarily work to ensure the return of political leaders to office. Mass inputs and ideas do not matter, and it is the central leadership that counts. All party activities begin and end with elections.

•In this model, it is not surprising that paid professionals occupy a central place. They pick strategies, run campaigns and are sometimes involved in ticket distribution. New forms of communication and campaign methods have displaced traditional campaign modes. Consequently, the vast pool of voluntary unpaid labour which traditionally formed the backbone of parties and linked parties with the grass roots are no longer as closely involved as they were in the past.

•Leaders are “elected unanimously” and party conferences are choreographed events where ordinary members meet and greet leaders. These events are used to enhance the profile of the leadership elite and are indeed not a forum for intra-party debate and discussion. Since parties are mainly concerned with electoral success, anyone who enjoys the confidence of the top leadership and can help increase the seat share is likely to get a ticket. Moreover, we now know that parties prefer candidates who bring in their own money, fund other candidates and raise resources for the party. All this puts the party on the ground in the shade.

New alignment

•Finally, the most significant change is that parties are more closely aligned with the state rather than civil society. Parties exchange material and psychological rewards, and goods and services the state provides for electoral advantage. Voters also see parties as a supplier of services. This connection pushes legislators and parties to be in government or at least close to the government. This was one of the most common reasons for Members of Legislative Assemblies who switched parties in the two Telugu-speaking States. As a corollary to this shift, the party has become a shadow of what it once was and has been reduced to an instrument to defend policies and programmes of the government.

•On the supply side, the party on the ground no longer calls the shots; parties are election vehicles and a supplier of services. The party bond exists only as long as it ensures success for the legislator. On the demand side, the voter does not appear to have any problem, whether it is ‘A’ or ‘B’, as long as “services” are available. Consequently, splits and switches are not seen as objectionable by legislators and are not punished by voters as well. Legislators will, therefore, be willing to do anything if the benefits exceed the costs.

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