UPSC News Diary Today 14-09-2022

”UPSC News Diary Today” is every day published in the evening between 6-7 PM and contains all current affairs articles from the day on a single platform. ”UPSC News Diary Today” covers various topics from UPSC Syllabus and is very helpful and time managing for UPSC Aspirants. The framing of this daily current affairs compilation article is easy to read and understandable also.

In the ”UPSC News Diary Today” article, we focus on both UPSC Preliminary and Mains exam-oriented current affairs & prepare a gist of daily important news articles from leading National Newspapers, PIB, and other various official sources.

Prof. B.B. Lal

Why in news?

Former Director General of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) B. B. Lal passed away.

Know about Prof. B. B. Lal

• He was the Director General of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) from 1968 to 1972 and has served as Director of the Indian Institute of Advanced Studies, Shimla.
• Prof. B. B. Lal was conferred upon Padma Bhushan in the year of 2000. Prof Lal also served on various UNESCO committees.
• In a career spanning over five decades Prof Lal made immense contribution to the field of archaeology.
• Prof Lal was trained by Sir Mortimer Wheeler at Taxila in 1944 and later joined Archaeological Survey of India.  Prof. Lal excavated several important landmark sites including Hastinapura (U.P.), Sisupalgarh (Orissa), Purana Qila (Delhi), Kalibangan (Rajasthan).
• From 1975-76 onwards, Prof. Lal investigated sites like Ayodhya, Bharadvaja Ashrama, Sringaverapura, Nandigrama and Chitrakoota under the Archaeology of Ramayana Sites.
• Prof. Lal has authored 20 books and over 150 research articles on various national and international journals.

JIMEX

Why in news?

• The sixth edition of Japan-India Maritime Exercise 2022 (JIMEX 22) hosted by Indian Navy in the Bay of Bengal.
• JIMEX 22 involves two phases: exercises at sea and a harbour phase at Visakhapatnam.

Key Points

• The two countries have been carrying out regular exercises in IOR towards reinforcing maritime association
• This edition marks the 10th anniversary of JIMEX, which began in Japan in 2012.
• It also coincides with the 70th anniversary of establishing of diplomatic relations between India and Japan.
• JIMEX 22 seeks to consolidate the high degree of interoperability that exists between maritime forces of the two countries, through complex exercises in the surface, sub-surface and air domains.

Annabhau Sathe

Why in news?

• Maharashtra’s Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Assembly Speaker Rahul Narvekar and others are is Moscow to unveil the statue of Lok Shahir (balladeer) Annabhau Sathe at the All-Russia State Library for Foreign Literature.
• An oil painting of Sathe, who passed away in 1969, will also be unveiled at Moscow’s Indian consulate.

Who is Annabhau Sathe?

• He was a famous poet of contemporary India.
• His literature depicted the caste and class reality of Indian society of that time.
• Sathe wrote his first poem on the menace of mosquitoes in the labour camp.
• Several of his works like ‘Aklechi Goshta,’ ‘Stalingradacha Povada,’ ‘Mazi Maina Gavavar Rahili,’ ‘Jag Badal Ghaluni Ghav’ were popular across the state.
• Almost six of his novels were turned into films and many translated into other languages, including Russian.
• His ‘Bangalchi Hak’ (Bengal’s Call) on the Bengal famine was translated into Bengali and later presented at London’s Royal Theatre.

Borra Caves

• Located in the Ananthagiri mandal of the Visakhapatnam district in Andhra Pradesh
• They are one of the largest caves of the country known as Borra Caves.
• These one million year old caves attract huge number of tourists every day and have become one of the major attractions of Vizag.
• Located at an elevation of 1400 m above sea level.
• Borra Caves were formed as a result of the flow of Gosthani River on the limestone deposits.
• These caves are known for the breathtaking stalactite and stalagmite formations such as Shiva-Parvathi, Rishi’s Beard, Mother-Child, Crocodile, Human Brain, Tiger and Cows udder.

Kashmiri Pandits

Kashmiri Pandits- Relevance for UPSC Exam

General Studies II- Centre-State Relations.

In News

Recent events of targeted killings of Kashmiri pandits and other Hindus by the militants in the valley lead to the protests which once again brought forward the question of their right to return and the safety of minorities living in the valley.

The Kashmiri Pandits

• The Kashmiri Pandits are one of the highest ranked Brahman castes who are the natives of the valley, locally known as pundits.
• They were the minority in the valley comprising only 5% of the total population.
• Traditionally dependent on agriculture and small-scale business and one of the favored sections in the administration.

The Conflict

• Radical Islamists and militants started targeting the Kashmiri pandits.
• The Growth of militancy in the 1990s forced Kashmiri pandits to leave the valley in greater numbers and thus they started migrating to the other states, leaving every belonging behind and seeking refuge in other parts.
• While many of them started migrating some decided to stay back in their homeland.
• Conflict arose between radical Islamists organization and the Hindus leading to the mass killings of the Kashmiri Hindus in waves.

• After the Pandit exodus from the Valley in the 1990s, the first few years of this century saw government efforts to send Pandits back to the Valley.
• Under the Prime Minister’s return and rehabilitation of Kashmir migrants scheme, government postings in the Valley for Kashmiri Pandit “migrant” youth began.
• Mostly, teachers and these government employees have lived in protected high security enclaves, but their work requires them to leave these enclaves and mingle with the rest of the population.
• Another segment, known as “non-migrant” Pandits because they never left the Valley, has lived in their own homes, without state-provided protection.

What is CDR?

• Centre for dialogue and reconciliation (CDR) is a Delhi-based think-tank incorporated in March 2001, aims to be a catalyst for peace in South Asia.
• CDR working for the peace-building process in Jammu Kashmir, supported the initiative of dialogue between the two communities as a part of self-assessment, acknowledging the mistakes.

What did CDR do in Kashmir?

• CDR supported the initiative for a dialogue proposed by two prominent young Kashmiris one a Muslim and the other a Pandit both who have witnessed the violence of 1990 and the subsequent years.
• They believe in the principle of talking could lead to healing.
• It led to CDR’s ‘Shared Witness’, a Pandit-Muslim dialogue series, in December 2010.
• Public intellectuals and other influential persons from both communities were participants.

Observations of the dialogue

• The dialogue series coincided with the launching of the Prime Minister’s job scheme.
• Dialogues created a social environment that enabled Kashmiri Pandits to take up government postings in the Valley.
• They focused on the events in and around 1990, and the incidents that triggered the displacement of the Pandit community.
• By the third dialogue, participants were sharing individual experiences that did not fit into the narrative that each community had built about the other.
• The process of the conversation led them to think on the actual reason behind the conflict, was it communal differences, or was it only religion?

Pandit’s Plight

• Pandits were aggrieved that the Muslims did not protest the Pandit killings, not even when the killers claimed them. That greater responsibility lay with the Muslims as they were the majority.
• If some social organizations had acted quickly, the exodus could have been stopped.
• They observed that the Pandit community too had suffered from a lack of leadership.
• They demand an apology and to set up of possible “Truth commission”

What do the Muslims say?

• The Muslim participants felt the Pandits were in denial of the struggle of the Muslims in the Valley, who were facing violence from the system.
• The Kashmiri Muslim was always portrayed as being misguided, aided, and abetted by Pakistan.
• The protest in Kashmir was not against religion but against structures of power and oppression.

Current situation

• The fresh spate of targeted killings of Kashmir pandits created an environment of fear and provided a major setback to their rehabilitation in the Kashmir valley.

Way ahead

• We need urgent civil society engagement between communities in Kashmir once again.
• The government can enable it, but individuals and civil society will need to create conditions on the ground. They will have to encourage people to give up the blame game.

Citizenship Amendment Act

Citizenship Amendment Act- Relevance for UPSC Exam

General Studies II- Government Policies & Interventions.

In News

A three-judge Bench of the Supreme Court led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) U U Lalit will hear the challenge to the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Act.

Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), 2019

• The act is sought to amend the Citizenship Act, 1955 to make Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi, and Christian illegal migrants from Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, eligible for citizenship of India.
• In other words, it intends to make it easier for non-Muslim immigrants from India’s three Muslim-majority neighbours to become citizens of India.
• Under The Citizenship Act, 1955, one of the requirements for citizenship by naturalization is that the applicant must have resided in India during the last 12 months, as well as for 11 of the previous 14 years.
• The amendment relaxes the second requirement from 11 years to 6 years as a specific condition for applicants belonging to these six religions, and the aforementioned three countries.
• It exempts the members of the six communities from any criminal case under the Foreigners Act, 1946 and the Passport Act, 1920 if they entered India before December 31, 2014.

Defining illegal migrants

• Illegal migrants cannot become Indian citizens in accordance with the present laws.
• Under the CAA, an illegal migrant is a foreigner who: (i) enters the country without valid travel documents like a passport and visa, or (ii) enters with valid documents, but stays beyond the permitted time period.
• Illegal migrants may be put in jail or deported under the Foreigners Act, 1946 and The Passport (Entry into India) Act, 1920.

Exceptions

• The Bill provides that illegal migrants who fulfil four conditions will not be treated as illegal migrants under the Act.  The conditions are:

1. They are Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis or Christians.
2. They are from Afghanistan, Bangladesh or Pakistan.
3. They entered India on or before December 31, 2014.
4. They are not in certain tribal areas of Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram, or Tripura included in the Sixth Schedule to the Constitution, or areas under the “Inner Line” permit, i.e., Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, and Nagaland.

Controversy with the Act

• Country of Origin: The Act classifies migrants based on their country of origin to include only Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh.
• Other religious minorities ignored: It is unclear why illegal migrants from only six specified religious minorities have been included in the Act.
• Defiance of purpose: India shares a border with Myanmar, which has had a history of persecution of a religious minority, the Rohingya Muslims.
• Date of Entry: It is also unclear why there is a differential treatment of migrants based on their date of entry into India, i.e., whether they entered India before or after December 31, 2014.
• Against the spirit of Secularism: Further, granting citizenship on the grounds of religion is seen to be against the secular nature of the Constitution which has been recognised as part of the basic structure that cannot be altered by Parliament.

The Challenge in Supreme Court

• The challenge rests primarily on the grounds that the law violates Article 14 of the Constitution that guarantees that no person shall be denied the right to equality before law or the equal protection of law in the territory of India.

The Supreme Court has developed a two-pronged test to examine a law on the grounds of Article 14.

1. First, any differentiation between groups of persons must be founded on “intelligible differentia”
2. Second, that differentia must have a rational nexus to the object sought to be achieved by the Act

• Simply put, for a law to satisfy the conditions under Article 14, it has to first create a “reasonable class” of subjects that it seeks to govern under the law.
• Even if the classification is reasonable, any person who falls in that category has to be treated alike.

What happens next?

• The listing of the CAA challenge indicates that the hearing will be fast-tracked.
• The court will have to ensure that all pleadings, written submissions are filed and served to the opposite party before it is listed for final hearing.
• Some petitioners could also seek a referral to a larger Constitution Bench.
• However, the challenge is to a statute and does not directly involve interpretation of the Constitution.
• These issues are also likely to be debated before the court allots time for the final hearing.

Way forward

• India is a constitutional democracy with a basic structure that assures a secure and spacious home for all Indians.
• Being partitioned on religious grounds, India has to undertake a balancing act for protecting the religious minorities in its neighbourhood.
• These minorities are under constant threat of persecution and vandalism.
• India needs to balance its civilization duties to protect those who are prosecuted in the neighbourhood.

Kushiyara River Treaty

Kushiyara River Treaty- Relevance for UPSC Exam

General Studies II- India and its Neighborhood.

In News

For the first time in 26 years, India and Bangladesh agreed to share the waters of a significant transboundary river, the Kushiyara, while negotiations over a long-delayed agreement to share the Teesta River’s waters, which are politically sensitive are still ongoing.

India-Bangla water disputes

• The Teesta River and the Ganges River dispute are the two main long-standing water conflicts between India and Bangladesh.
• Both rivers are important supplies of water for fishermen, farmers, and boatmen in both nations.
• Since the sacred river flows from India to Bangladesh, the Ganga River dispute has been a source of contention between the two countries for the past 35 years.
• There hasn’t been a long-term solution for sharing water offered despite several rounds of bilateral negotiations failing.
• In order to establish a water sharing arrangement for the following 30 years, a treaty was signed in 1996 which is about to expire.

The Kushiyara River Treaty

• The first such deal since the 1996 signing of the Ganga water treaty, India and Bangladesh reached an interim agreement on water sharing for the Kushiyara River.
• India withdrew its objection to withdrawal of Kushiyara’s waters by Bangladesh through the Rahimpur Canal.
• Over the last century, the flow of the Barak River has changed in such a way that the bulk of the river’s water flows into Kushiyara while the rest goes into Surma.
• The agreement is aimed at addressing part of the problem that the changing nature of the river has posed before Bangladesh as it unleashes floods during the monsoon.
• It goes dry during the winter when demand of water goes up because of a crop cycle in Sylhet.

Terms of the treaty

• Under this MoU, Bangladesh will be able to withdraw 153 cusecs (cubic feet per second) of water from the Kushiyara out of the approximately 2,500 cusecs of water that is there in the river during the winter season.
• The agreement addresses Bangladesh’s concern over water supply along the river, during the winter months but flood control in the basin of Kushiyara is expected to require much more work.

Benefits to Bangladesh

• The water of Kushiyara will be channelled through the Rahimpur Canal project in Sylhet.
• The eight km long canal is the only supplier of water from the Kushiyara to the region and Bangladesh has built a pump house and other facilities for withdrawal of water that can now be utilised.
• It is generally understood that approximately 10,000 hectares of land and millions of people will benefit from the water that will flow through a network of canals in Sylhet.
• It will benefit the farmers involved in Boro rice, which is basically the rice cultivated during the dry season of December to February and harvested in early summer.

• Bangladesh has been complaining that the Boro rice cultivation in the region had been suffering as India did not allow it to withdraw the required water from the Kushiyara.

Why is the water from the Kushiyara so important for Rahimpur Canal?

• The water of the Kushiyara has been used for centuries in Sylhet’s subdivisions like the Zakiganj, Kanaighat and Beanibazar areas.
• But Bangladesh has witnessed that the flow and volume of water in the canal has reduced during the lean season.
• The utility of the river and the canal during the lean/winter season had gone down, affecting cultivation of rice as well as a wide variety of vegetables for which Sylhet is famous.

India’s objection to the Rahimpur Canal

• India objected to the clearing and dredging of canal.
• It claimed that the dyke and other infrastructure interfered in border security as Kushiyara itself forms part of the border between the two sides.
• However, the agreement indicates that the economic benefits possible from the river outweighed the security

Hurdles to the Teesta agreement

• The Kushiyara agreement is relatively smaller in scale in comparison to Teesta that involves West Bengal, which has problems with the proposal.
• The Kushiyara agreement did not require a nod from any of the States like Assam from which the Barak emerges and branches into Kushiyara and Surma.

IDF World Dairy Summit 2022

IDF World Dairy Summit 2022- Relevance for UPSC Exam

• GS Paper 2: Governance, Administration and Challenges
  • Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.

IDF World Dairy Summit 2022 in News

• Recently, the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi inaugurated International Dairy Federation World Dairy Summit (IDF WDS) 2022 organised at India Expo Centre & Mart, Greater Noida.

IDF World Dairy Summit 2022

• About: The IDF World Dairy Summit 2022 is an annual meeting of the global dairy sector, bringing together approximately 1500 participants from all over the world.
  • The last such Summit was held in India about half a century ago in 1974.
• Participation: Around 1500 participants from 50 countries are expected to participate in IDF WDS 2022.
  • The participant profile includes CEOs and employees of dairy processing companies, dairy farmers, suppliers to the dairy industry, academicians, government representatives, etc.
• Theme: The theme of the IDF World Dairy Summit 2022 is ‘Dairy for Nutrition and Livelihood’.
• Key Activities: The IDF World Dairy summit is composed of a series of scientific and technical conferences and social events including a Welcome Reception, Farmers’ Dinner, Gala Dinner as well as Technical and Social Tours.
  • Participants will get an opportunity to acquire knowledge on latest research findings and experiences relevant to the global dairy sector in the broadest sense.
• Mandate: The IDF World Dairy Summit 2022 will provide a forum to industry experts to share knowledge and ideas on how the sector can contribute to nourish the world with safe and sustainable dairying.

IDF World Dairy Summit 2022- Importance

• The Indian dairy industry is unique because it is based on a cooperative model that empowers small and marginal dairy farmers, especially women.
• Driven by the vision of the Prime Minister, the government has taken multiple steps for the betterment of the dairy sector resulting in an increase in milk production by more than 44% in the last eight years.
• The success story of the Indian dairy industry, accounting for about 23% of global milk, producing around 210 million tonnes annually, and empowering more than 8 crore dairy farmers, will be showcased at the IDF WDS 2022.
• The International Dairy Federation World Dairy Summit (IDF WDS) 2022 will also help Indian dairy farmers gain exposure to global best practices.

Dairy Sahakar Scheme: An initiative of Ministry of Cooperation

Trade pillar of IPEF

Trade pillar of IPEF- Relevance for UPSC Exam

General Studies II- Groupings & Agreements Involving India and/or Affecting India’s Interests.

In News

India stayed out of the joint declaration on the trade pillar of the US-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) ministerial meet in Los Angeles, with Union Commerce Minister citing concerns over possible discrimination against developing economies.

Why did India opt out of the trade pillar?

• One of the reasons for staying out of the trade pillar was that the contours of the framework had not emerged yet.
• This is particularly about the kind of commitment each country would have to make on “environment, labour, digital trade and public procurement”.
• India’s decision also mirrors the decision to walk out after seven years of negotiations from the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).

What is IPEF?

• It is a US-led framework for participating countries to solidify their relationships and engage in crucial economic and trade matters that concern the region, such as building resilient supply chains battered by the pandemic.
• It is not a free trade agreement. No market access or tariff reductions have been outlined, although experts say it can pave the way to trade deals.

Members of IPEF

• The member nations include Australia, Brunei, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
• It includes seven out of 10 members of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), all four Quad countries, and New Zealand.
• Together, these countries account for 40 per cent of the global GDP.

Four pillars of IPEF

1. Trade that will include digital economy and emerging technology, labor commitments, the environment, trade facilitation, transparency and good regulatory practices, and corporate accountability, standards on cross-border data flow and data localisations;
2. Supply chain resilience to develop “a first-of-its-kind supply chain agreement” that would anticipate and prevent disruptions;
3. Clean energy and decarbonization that will include agreements on “high-ambition commitments” such as renewable energy targets, carbon removal purchasing commitments, energy efficiency standards, and new measures to combat methane emissions; and
4. Tax and anti-corruption, with commitments to enact and enforce “effective tax, anti-money laundering, anti-bribery schemes in line with [American] values”.

How do members participate?

• Countries are free to join (or not join) initiatives under any of the stipulated pillars but are expected to adhere to all commitments once they enrol.
• Negotiations are meant to determine and list the provisions under each pillar and open the floor for countries to choose their ‘commitments’.
• The framework would be open to other countries willing to join in the future provided they are willing to adhere to the stipulated goals and other necessary obligations.

Reasons for the creation of IPEF

• US regaining lost credibility: IPEF is also seen as a means by which the US is trying to regain credibility in the region after Trump pulled out of the Trans Pacific Partnership TPP).
• Rising Chinese influence: Since then, there has been concern over the absence of a credible US economic and trade strategy to counter China’s economic influence in the region.
• Competing RCEP: It is also in the 14-member Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, of which the US is not a member (India withdrew from RCEP).
• “Pivot to Asia” strategy: US has intensified its engagement with the wider Asia-Pacific region to advance its economic and geopolitical interests.

India’s perception of IPEF

• PM Modi described the grouping as born from a collective desire to make the Indo-Pacific region an engine of global economic growth.
• India has called for common and creative solutions to tackle economic challenges in the Indo-Pacific region.

What does it have to do with China?

• The US strategists believe the US lacks an economic and trade strategy to counter China’s increasing economic influence in the region since 2017.
• US companies are looking to move away from manufacturing in China.
• IPEF would therefore offer an advantage to participating countries, allowing them to bring those businesses into their territory.
• However, it officially excluded Taiwan despite its willingness and economic merit to join.
• This exhibits Washington’s geopolitical caution.

Reactions from the opponents

• Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi criticized the initiative as an attempt to further economic decoupling from China.
• He argued that the initiative, and the US Indo-Pacific strategy as a whole, created divisions and incited confrontation. It is destined to be ultimately be a failure.
• Taiwan was excluded in order to appease key “fence-sitter” countries such as Indonesia whose governments feared angering China.

Issues with IPEF framework

• IPEF would neither constitute a ‘free trade agreement,’ nor a forum to discuss tariff reductions or increasing market access.
• Unlike a traditional trade agreement, the US administration will not need congressional approval to act under the IPEF. Hence its legal status is questionable.
• This also raises doubts among potential participants about their reluctance to offer significant concessions under the agreement.
• The volatility of US domestic politics has raised concerns about IPEF’s durability.
• Unlike traditional FTAs, the IPEF does not subscribe to the single undertaking principle, where all items on the agenda are negotiated simultaneously.

Given the divisive nature of American politics, it is unclear whether the IPEF will survive past the Biden administration.

Way forward

• The IPEF’s launch in Tokyo was symbolic in nature; bringing the IPEF to fruition will involve significant domestic and international challenges.
• Without ratification by Congress, the IPEF’s fortunes will remain in limbo.
• Going forward, the US and the founding partners need to develop the process and criteria by which other countries from the region will be invited to join the negotiations on the IPEF.

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