14 DECEMBER 2023

Topic 1 : Algae-assisted fuel cells

Why in news: IIT Jodhpur’s innovative technology uses algae-assisted fuel cells to capture carbon dioxide, treat wastewater and generate power
 

What are these algae assisted fuel cells?

• Algal Fuel Cells (AFC) are bioelectric devices that use photosynthetic organisms to turn light and biochemical energy into electrical energy.
• The process outlined by IIT Jodhpur scientists uses wastewater, where the chosen algal strain —Chlorella vulgaris— is thermo-tolerant and can grow in wastewater.
• A algae-assisted microbial fuel cells (MFC) is a bio-electrochemical device that generates electricity by harnessing the metabolic activity of microorganisms.
  • When microorganisms break down organic matter (which wastewater is rich in)  into simpler molecules, electrons are released in the process.
  • If these electrons are made to flow through an external circuit, you get electric current.
• Only a small fraction of algae is used for power generation.
• The remaining is available for bioenergy.
• The process:
  • First step is to cool the flue gas (the gas produced from the flue or chimneys of thermal power stations and other industrial plants) in a heat exchanger and then direct it to a sieve-plate absorption column.
  • The sodium carbonate supplemented wastewater absorbs the CO₂, generating flue-gas-derived bicarbonates (FGDBs).
  • The FGDBs are added in plastic bag photobioreacors (PBRs), coupled with algae-assisted microbial fuel cells (MFC).
• Benefits over conventional method:
  • The conventional method of carbon capture from flue gases is not only energy intensive but also requires dilution of the gas with nitrogen, which restricts implementation.
  • The absorbent used — monoethanolamine (MEA) — is corrosive, has low oxidative stability and takes energy for regeneration.
  • It is a more efficacious indirect method for converting CO₂ into carbonates and then use it for algal growth.
  • Solubility of sodium bicarbonate in water is significantly higher (93.2 g/l) at room temperature and atmospheric pressure.
  • Therefore, the indirect biochemical route of CO₂ fixation is advantageous since more inorganic carbon can stay in the water.Topic 2 : Demaorchestia alanensis

Why in news: Researchers in Odisha have discovered a new species of marine amphipod — a shrimp-like crustacea of genus \Demaorchestia— in the state’s Chilika lake on the east coast of India.
 

Key details:

• The new species was named Demaorchestia alanensis after global expert professor Alan Myers of University College Cork, Ireland, who has made a significant contribution to global marine amphipod studies.
• The present contribution has added one more species to the genus Demaorchestia, raising the global species number in the group to six.
• It belongs to the subfamily Platorchestiinae found along the Indian coast. 
• About Amphipods:
  • Amphipods comprise an order of crustacea, shrimp-like in form, which contains mostly marine and freshwater forms.
  • Amphipods are a significant group in the marine ecosystem and play a vital role in the marine food chain.
  • They also serve as indicators for studying the impact of climate change and health of coastal ecosystems.
• Talitridae:
  • The family Talitridae was considered one of the oldest groups of amphipods,and it was believed to have been on the planet since the Jurassic age.
  • It is divided into four subfamilies:
    • Talitrinae,
    • Floresorchestiinae,
    • Pseudorchestoideinae and
    • Platorchestiinae.
  • In the Indian context, the family Talitridae is represented by only Talitrinae and Floresorchestiinae.

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Topic 3 : UN resolution on Gaza ceasefire

Why in news: India votes in favour of UN resolution demanding Gaza ceasefire.
 

Key details:

• India voted in favour of a resolution in the UN General Assembly (UNGA) that demanded an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas conflict and the unconditional release of all hostages.
• This was the first time India supported such a resolution since the war broke out more than two months ago.
   

About the UNGA resolution:

• The resolution expressed grave concern over the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip and the suffering of the Palestinian civilian population.
• It said Palestinians and Israelis must be protected in accordance with international humanitarian law.
• It put forward two key demands, including:
  • an immediate humanitarian ceasefire and
  • the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages, as well as ensuring humanitarian access.
     

Opposition to the resolution:

• The resolution was opposed by 10 countries:
  • Austria, The Czech Republic, Guatemala, Israel, Liberia, Micronesia, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, and the United States.
     

Implications:

• Unlike Security Council resolutions, General Assembly resolutions are not legally binding.
• It reflects the growing isolation of the US as it refuses to join demands for a ceasefire.
• More than the United Nations or any other international organisation, the United States is seen as the only entity capable of persuading Israel to accept a cease-fire as its closest ally and biggest supplier of weaponry.
   

Why did India abstain from the previous UNGA resolution?

• India abstained in a UNGA vote on a resolution that called for an immediate humanitarian truce in the Israel-Hamas conflict.
• The country’s decision was in line with the Russia-Ukraine war.
• While the circumstances, politics, and conditions of the two wars are vastly different and not comparable, the diplomatic toolkit of hedging and balancing between the warring sides has been a consistent feature of India.Topic 4 : FAO report on Asia Pacific Region

Why in news: The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations released a report recently.
 

Key findings of the report:

• The report is titled “Regional Overview of Food Security and Nutrition 2023: Statistics and Trends”.
• Rising food costs, if not matched by rising income, would lead to more people being unable to afford a healthy diet.
• If food costs rise at the same time incomes fall, a compounding effect occurs that can result in even more people unable to afford healthy diets.
• The region, with 370.7 million undernourished people, continues to represent half of the global total.
• Similarly, the Asia and the Pacific region accounts for half of the world’s severe food insecurity, with more women than men being food insecure.
• Prevalence rates on stunting, wasting and overweight among children under 5 years of age, as well as anaemia among women of reproductive age, are still off the marks in terms of World Health Assembly global nutrition targets.
• The region had a lower prevalence of both moderate or severe and severe food insecurity when compared with the world prevalence since 2015.
• Southern Asia showed higher prevalence of severe food insecurity compared with the other subregions, and it is in Eastern Asia where the lowest prevalence of severe food insecurity was observed.
• Compared with the world, Southern Asia had higher percentages for both moderate or severe and severe food insecurity since 2015.
• In Pakistan, the figure was 82.2% and in Bangladesh, 66.1% of the population faced difficulties in finding healthy food.
• Specific findings on India:
  • Undernourishment:
    • More than 74% of Indians could not afford a healthy diet in 2021.
      • In 2020, the percentage was 76.2.
    • It said that 16.6% of the country’s population was undernourished.
    • The impacts of undernourishment extend beyond health and nutritional well-being to include economic and social costs.
  • Stunting:
    • It said that 31.7% of children in India under the age of five showed stunted growth.
    • Stunted growth and development are the result of:
      • poor maternal health and nutrition,
      • inadequate infant and young child feeding practices, and
      • repeated infections.
  • Wasting:
    • For wasting (low weight for height), India recorded the highest rate in the region, with 18.7% children under five facing this major health problem.
    • 2.8% of children below five were overweight, another health risk.
  • Anaemia:
    • It said that 53% of women aged between 15 to 49 in India had anaemia, which was the largest prevalence rate in the region in 2019.
    • It (anaemia) impairs health and well-being in women and increases the risk for adverse maternal and neonatal outcomes.
    • It also said that 1.6% of adults in the country were obese.
  • Breastfeeding:
    • On exclusive breastfeeding among infants in the age group of 0-5 months, India had improved the prevalence with a percentage of 63.7%, which is higher than the world prevalence of 47.7%.
  • Low birth weight:
    • India had the highest prevalence of low birth weight in the region (27.4%), followed by Bangladesh and Nepal.About FAO:
    • The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations.
    • It leads international efforts to defeat hunger and improve nutrition and food security.
    • It was founded on 16 October 1945.
    • The FAO comprises 195 members, including 194 countries and the European Union.
    • Its headquarters is in Rome, Italy.
    • The FAO is governed by a biennial conference representing each member country and the European Union, which elects a 49-member executive council.Topic 5 : Anarcho-Capitalism

Why in news: The term anarcho-capitalist has recently gained popularity with Javier Milei, a self-proclaimed anarcho-capitalist, winning the presidential elections of Argentina.

About Anarcho-Capitalism:

• Anarcho-capitalism refers to a political philosophy which calls for the abolition of the state and for the provision of law and order to be controlled by private companies in a free market.
• The term was coined by American libertarian economist Murray Rothbard.
• Belgian political economist Gustave de Molinari is considered to be the first anarcho-capitalist.

How does it work?

• Argument for providing public services:
  • Traditionally, free market advocates have supported the private provision of most goods and services, except police and courts which, it was believed, could only be provided by the state.
  • But anarcho-capitalists believe that private companies competing in a free market can provide policing and legal services as well, often far better than the state when it comes to quality and price.
  • Just the way private companies today can offer better cars, telephone services, etc. at cheaper prices than the government, anarcho-capitalists argue, private companies can also provide a far better police and legal system.
• Customer satisfaction is a priority:
  • In an anarcho-capitalist society, people would be paying private police and courts to offer them protection against crime and to adjudicate disputes with others.
  • Anarcho-capitalists argue that private companies, which depend on customer patronage for their survival, would effectively serve the needs of their customers.
  • This is in contrast to the current monopoly police and court system offered by the state that is funded using taxpayer money and characterised by delays and various inefficiencies.
• Quality of services:
  • Since citizens often need to pay taxes regardless of the quality of the policing and legal services offered by the state, the police and courts are not accountable to citizens.
  • The quality of these public services is often quite low while their cost is significantly high.
  • In an anarcho-capitalist society, on the other hand, customers who are unhappy with the services of a certain private court or police can stop paying them and switch to a competing court or police in the marketplace.
  • In other words, competition would ensure that the quality of police and legal services is high and prices low.

Arguments against anarcho-capitalism: 

• Public services by multiple firms not practical:
  • Services like police and judiciary cannot be provided by multiple firms within a single geographical region.
  • This would lead to disagreement and conflict between different armed private gangs trying to protect the interests of their own paying clients and lead to chaos.
• Against the interest of welfare society:
  • Police protection and legal adjudication offered by markets would favour the rich and not the poor.
  • The rich can easily get away with crime by paying a higher sum of money to the private police or courts and leave the poor without justice.

Arguments in favour of anarcho-capitalism:

• Competition will ensure compliance:
  • It would not be sensible for a private police or court seeking long-term profits to refuse cooperation with its competitors in order to shield a client (who perhaps has committed a crime).
  • If a private police or court engages in such behaviour, it would meet resistance from its competitors who could refuse to cooperate with it in other cases.
  • Competing police and courts, trying to avoid a costly stalemate, would agree to play by a certain pre-approved set of rules when it comes to conflicts between their clients.
  • What these common rules turn out to be will ultimately be determined by the competing demands of customers in the market.
• Not anti-poor:
  • In the case of most goods and services sold in the market, the sellers get the majority of their revenue not from the rich but from the larger society.
  • So, a private court or police firm is unlikely to favour the rich as it would then run the risk of losing the patronage of other poorer customers in the market.
  • The poor might actually have better chances of obtaining justice in an anarcho-capitalist society because private firms would try to satisfy sizeable market demand in the bottom of the pyramid.
  • This is contrast to the current police and legal system backed by the state in which favours are doled out to groups based on their lobbying power.

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Topic 6 : SC verdict on abrogation of Article 370

Why in news: The Supreme Court gave its verdict on the Union government’s 2019 move to amend Article 370 of the Constitution.
 

Key details:

• What did the Centre do in 2019?
  • The abrogation ended the special status conferred to the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir.
  • The Centre later moved to reorganise J&K into two Union Territories:
    • Jammu and Kashmir and
    • Ladakh.
• What did the Supreme Court (SC) rule on revocation of Article 370?
  • The court held the Constitutional order that revoked Article 370 as valid.
  • The SC held that Jammu and Kashmir held no internal sovereignty after accession to India.
  • There was no prima facie case that the President’s 2019 orders were mala fide (in bad faith) or extraneous exercise of power.
  • The court said the reorganisation of the erstwhile state into Union Territories in 2019 was a temporary move.
  • It directed the Centre for the restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood and for Legislative Assembly elections to be held by 2024.
  • It also recommended that a Truth and Reconciliation Commission should be set up in J&K, for an acknowledgement of the acts of alleged rights violations in the region.What is a Truth and Reconciliation Commission?
  • A Truth and Reconciliation Commission is also known as a ‘truth and justice commission’ or simply, a ‘truth commission’.
  • It is an official mechanism to not just acknowledge, but also reveal, wrongdoings by a government (or sometimes non-state actors or combatants) so that conflicts of the past can be addressed and resolved.
  • It has been defined as one that:
    • is focused on the past, rather than in ongoing events;
    • investigates a pattern of events that took place over a period of time;
    • engages directly and broadly with the affected population, gathering information on their experiences;
    • is a temporary body, with the aim of concluding with a final report; and
    • is officially authorized or empowered by the state under review.

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​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Key aspects of Supreme Court’s Article 370 verdict

• On the sovereignty of Jammu and Kashmir
  • The petitioners had argued that J&K retained an element of sovereignty when it joined the Indian Union in 1947.
  • This arrangement was distinct from the relationship with the other princely states that merged with India.
  • The court examined the constitutional set-up of the erstwhile state to examine if it retained an element of sovereignty, which would allow Article 370 to operate in “unique circumstances”.
  • The court held that constitutional provisions contradict the argument that an agreement of merger was necessary for Jammu and Kashmir to surrender its sovereignty.
  • It noted that when Yuvraj Karan Singh issued the Proclamation adopting the Indian Constitution on November 25, 1949, it effectively had the effect of a merger like any other princely state.
• On whether Art 370 is temporary or permanent
  • The CJI said that there were two aspects that showed the temporary nature of Article 370:
    • First, it was intended as an interim arrangement until the Constituent Assembly of the State was formed since in the interim, there was needed a legal bridge between J&K and India.
      • Once the J & K Constitution was enacted and it was adopted to be a part of India, this arrangement would not have been necessary.
    • Second, the provision was adopted because of the special circumstances in the state, which was experiencing war conditions.
• On the legality of the abrogation of Article 370
  • The legal route for the abrogation of Article 370 was twofold.
    • First, on August 5, 2019, then President Ram Nath Kovind issued an order, which amended Article 367 of the Constitution.
      • Article 367 deals with interpretation of the Constitution, and the order added a new meaning to “Constituent Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir” to mean “legislative assembly of Jammu and Kashmir.
    • Then the Presidential Order was promulgated seeking the consent of Parliament (which had assumed powers of the J&K legislature) to recommend that “all clauses of the said article 370 shall cease to be operative”.
  • The Court held that the power under Article 370 (3) did not cease to exist upon the dissolution of the Constituent Assembly of Jammu and Kashmir.
  • When the Constituent Assembly was dissolved, only the transitional power recognised in the proviso to Article 370 (3) which empowered the Constituent Assembly to make its recommendations ceased to exist.
  • It did not affect the power held by the President under Article 370(3).
• On the action that was taken under President’s rule
  • Here, the challenge was to the extent of powers that can be appropriated when Article 356 is in operation.
  • The SC cited the 1994 ruling in S R Bommai v Union of India that defined the contours of proclamation of President’s rule.
  • Relying on the Bommai ruling, the court said that the standard to decide the validity of the President’s action was to see whether it was not mala fide or palpably irrational, or that the advisability and necessity of the action was not borne in mind by the President.
  • The ruling rejected the argument that irrevocable action being taken cannot be accepted as proof of mala fides.
• Restoration Of Statehood And Elections
  • The top court said the reorganisation of the former state into Union Territories in 2019 was a temporary move.
  • However, it upheld the carving out of Ladakh as a Union Territory.
  • It ordered the Centre to  restore statehood and called for elections by September 2024.
• Decision Of The Centre Can’t Be Challenged
  • The Supreme Court said every decision taken by the Union on behalf of the state during President’s Rule is not open to challenge.
  • The court rejected the argument of petitioners that the Union cannot take actions of irreversible consequences when the state is under President’s Rule.
• Concurrence of State Government Not Required
  • The Supreme Court stated that the presidential power in a state was valid and held that consultation and collaboration was not required to exercise this power and the concurrence of the state government was not required to apply all provisions of the Constitution using Article 370(1)(d).
  • Thus, the President taking the concurrence of the Union Government was not mala fide and the views of the state legislature under Article 3 proviso was merely for reference.

About Article 370:

Enactment of Article 370:

• The original draft was given by the Government of J&K.
• Following modification and negotiations, Article 306A (now 370) was passed in the Constituent Assembly on May 27, 1949.
• It is the first article of Part XXI of the Constitution.
• The heading of this part is ‘Temporary, Transitional and Special Provisions’.
• Article 370 could be interpreted as temporary in the sense that the J&K Constituent Assembly had a right to modify/delete/retain it and it decided to retain it.
• Another interpretation was that accession was temporary until a plebiscite.
• Interpretation of Supreme Court:
  • The Supreme Court in 2018 said that despite the headnote using the word “temporary’, Article 370 is not temporary.
  • In Sampat Prakash (1969) the SC refused to accept Article 370 as temporary.
  • A five-judge Bench said that Article 370 has never ceased to be operative.
  • Thus, it is a permanent provision.

Provisions of Article 370

• Power to Draft Constitution:
  • Included in the Constitution in 1949, Article 370 exempts J&K from the Indian Constitution (except Article 1 and Article 370 itself) and permits the state to draft its own Constitution.
• Restrictions on the power of Parliament:
  • It restricts Parliament’s legislative powers in respect of J&K.
  • For extending a central law on subjects included in the Instrument of Accession (IoA), mere consultation with the state government is needed.
  • But for extending it to other matters, concurrence of the state government is mandatory.
• Provisions for Princely states:
  • For princely states, the Act provided for three options:
    • to remain an independent country,
    • join Dominion of India, or
    • join Dominion of Pakistan
  • This joining with either of the two countries was to be through an IoA.
• Terms included in the IoA for Kashmir
• The Instrument of Accession gave Parliamentthe power to legislate in respect of J&K only on:
  • Defence,
  • External Affairs and
  • Communications.

Deletion of Article 370

• Article 370(3) permits deletion by a Presidential Order.
• Such an order, however, is to be preceded by the concurrence of J&K’s Constituent Assembly.
• Since such an Assembly was dissolved on January 26, 1957, one view is it cannot be deleted anymore.
• The other view is that it can be done, but only with the concurrence of the State Assembly.

Significance for the Indian Union

• Article 370 itself mentions Article 1, which includes J&K in the list of states.
• India has used Article 370 at least 45 times to extend provisions of the Indian Constitution to J&K.
• By the 1954 order, almost the entire Constitution was extended to J&K including most Constitutional amendments.
  • Ninety-four of 97 entries in the Union List are applicable to J&K;
  • 26 out of 47 items of the Concurrent List have been extended.;
  • 260 of 395 Articles have been extended to the state, besides 7 of 12 Schedules.
• Article 356 was extended though a similar provision that was already in Article 92 of the J&K Constitution, which required that President’s Rule could be ordered only with the concurrence of the President.
• To change provisions for the Governor being elected by the Assembly, Article 370 was used to convert it into a nominee of the President.Article 35A
• Article 35A stems from Article 370, having been introduced through a Presidential Order in 1954.
• Article 35A is unique in the sense that it does not appear in the main body of the Constitution but comes up in Appendix I.
• Article 35A empowers the J&K legislature to define the state’s permanent residents and their special rights and privileges.

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​​​​​​​Arguments in favour of Abrogation of Article 370

• Better relationship with Indians and Kashmir Population
• There is no distinct constitution for Indians and Kashmiris.
• After Article 370 is repealed, Kashmiris can work in the Indians’ newly established firms
• People of Kashmir will also benefit economically if they sell their lands to the Indians on a leasing basis.
• Private business owners can establish factories in Kashmir, creating jobs for Kashmiris and Indians.
• With the repeal of Article 370, all Kashmiris now have the right to education.

Arguments against the repeal of Article 370

• Many proclaim it as unconstitutional and it was compared to a dictatorship
• The people of Kashmir believe that their demands are being ignored.
• J&K no longer has the status of a state; instead, it is now considered to be union territory

Conclusion:

• The judgment is historic and may pave the way to resolving complex political and legal issues within constitutional parameters.Topic 7 : Digital Public Infrastructure

Why in news: According to a recent report, DPIs have not just impacted governance but also the private sector, especially startups.

Key details:

• It has a symbiotic relationship with the startup ecosystem adding over $100 billion in value across multiple sectors of the Indian Internet economy.
• The landscape is currently expanding beyond the JAM trinity:
  • Jan Dhan,
  • Aadhaar, and
  • Mobile.
• It has properties such as:
  • Ayushman Bharat Health Account (ABHA),
  • DigiLocker 2.0,
  • Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC),
  • Account Aggregator (AA),
  • Digital Infrastructure for Knowledge Sharing (Diksha) among others.
• The availability of zero merchant discount rates (MDR) have boosted the popularity of UPI in the e-commerce space.
  • The Unified Payments Interface (UPI) is an instant payment system developed in India, by the National Payments Corporation of India.
  • The interface facilitates inter-bank peer-to-peer and person-to-merchant transactions.
  • It is used on mobile devices to instantly transfer funds between two bank accounts.
• Mobility accounts for 65 per cent of the e-commerce payments with foodtech following closely at 50 percent and e-tailing at 35 percent.
• Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) itself could generate a Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) ranging from $250-300 billion by 2030.
• The evolving DPI landscape has also boosted gaming monetisation by 20-25 per cent, bringing in $27 billion in transaction value to the online gaming industry.

What is digital public infrastructure (DPI)? 

• DPI is a digital network that enables countries to safely and efficiently deliver economic opportunities and social services to all residents.
• DPI can be compared to roads, which form a physical network that connects people and provides access to a huge range of goods and services.  
• DPI allows people to open bank accounts and receive wages faster and more easily.
• It allows governments to support citizens more quickly and efficiently, especially during emergencies.
• It enables entrepreneurs to reach customers far and wide.  
• A strong DPI has three foundational systems:
  • Identity:
    • Being able to prove who you are—using a legal form of identity—enables a person to fully participate in society and the economy.
    • Yet some 850 million people around the world do not have official proof of their identity.
    • A digital identity allows people to access a wide range of goods and services, including bank accounts and lines of credit, supplies and markets for their businesses, and government benefits.   
  • Payments:
    • A rise in digital payment platforms has allowed millions of people, especially women, to conduct secure financial transactions without cash for the first time.
    • However, 1.4 billion people still do not have a financial account.
    • Secure and interoperable digital payment systems can help close this gap.
  • Data exchange:
    • A data exchange system allows data to be shared between otherwise unconnected institutions in ways that benefit people, while also giving individuals more control over their data and helping them make informed decisions about its use.

Benefits of DPI:  

• Individuals:
  • Individuals benefit because they can safely and cheaply receive wages, pay bills, access services, and conduct transaction.
  • For India, which has one of the most advanced DPIs in the world.
  • In a little over 10 years after launching its digital identity system, the number of adults with bank accounts more than doubled, to 78%, and women’s account ownership grew even faster, from 26% to 78%.
• Businesses:
  • Businesses benefit because DPI stimulates the market.
  • Digital service providers have equal opportunity to compete and reach new customers and markets, and entrepreneurs can use the infrastructure to innovate and launch new businesses.
  • Through DPI, an estimated 16 to 19 million microbusinesses and small businesses globally could gain access to capital to support sustained growth.  
• Government:
  • Governments benefit because they can provide essential services to every resident.
  • For example, Estonia’s X-Road digital infrastructure enables the government to provide 99% of public services online.
  • Services are so efficient that a person can file taxes in under five minutes and register a business in just three hours.  

DPI and Sustainable Development Goals:

• DPI reduces inequality:
  • It does so by making it easier for the public and private sectors to expand banking, credit, and payment services, especially to women and others who have traditionally been left behind.  
• DPIpromotes health and well-being:
  • A child who gets a legal form of identity at birth that is linked via a data exchange system to clinics and pharmacies can receive better health care over a lifetime.
  • Aggregated health data can help providers share information to improve patient care, and governments can better track illness and disease across communities. 
• DPI promotes sustainable and inclusive economic growth:
  • Small landholder farmers and rural entrepreneurs can access:
    • global weather forecasting data,
    • digital early warning systems, and
    • digital payments.
  • With this they can:
    • better plan their cropping cycles,
    • protect against pests and weather shocks, and
    • find new markets.
  • The increases in their crop yields can, in turn, improve their income while reducing food insecurity in the community.