UPSC Key-15 June, 2023: What you should read in the news today

FRONT PAGE

3 yrs after Galwan: LAC infra, troop presence, op logistics ramped up

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Mains Examination: General Studies II: India and its neighbourhood- relations.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story- Thursday, June 15 will mark three years of the Galwan Valley incident when Indian and Chinese troops clashed deep inside eastern Ladakh, leaving 20 Indian Army personnel dead. At the time of the clash, a month after PLA intrusions were detected along the Line of Actual Control in 2020, the Indian military infrastructure in the region was sparse, with just a division strength of around 15,000 troops of the Leh-based XIV Corps guarding the LAC there.

• What is Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR)?

• Map Work- Chang Chenmo river, Gogra-Hot Springs, Kongka Pass, Galwan Valley, Depsang Plains, Line of Actual Control, and Charding Nala region

• What in the Galwan?

• What is the importance of this region for India?

• How significant are they for the military?

• India-China Relations during Nehruvian Era-Know in detail

• The 1962 India-China War-Know the background

• India-China Border Dispute- Know the background

• For Your Information-India and China have held 18 rounds of military talks and 27 meetings of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs (WMCC) so far. The talks have led to disengagement of troops at the post 2020 friction points with the creation of buffer zones, but legacy issues such as Depsang Plains and Demchok continue to fester, leading to limited or no patrolling by Indian troops at these points

• What is Line of Actual Control?

• China’s aggressive attitude towards Indo-China Border and What impact can it have on India-China relations?

• Changing dynamics in Indo-China relationships-what are the points of irritation in recent scenario?

• Jingoism and not pragmatism nowadays dominate bilateral relations of India with her Neighbours -do you think so? Attest your opinion with few examples

• Resolving the Sino-Indian imbroglio-How?

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Explained: In India-China border dispute, strategic significance of Hot Springs, Gogra Post

📍Dealing with China

📍India-China Galwan faceoff: How serious is the situation, what happens next?

Law panel seeks views on UCC within 30 days

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Indian Polity and Governance

Main Examination: 

• General Studies II: Indian Constitution—significant provisions etc.

• General Studies II: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story-Eight months after the Centre told the Supreme Court that the Constitution obligated the State to have a Uniform Civil Code for its citizens, and said that people of different religions and denominations following different property and matrimonial laws was an “affront to the nation’s unity”, the 22nd Law Commission of India Wednesday sought the views of the public and religious organisations on the matter.

• 22nd Law Commission of India-Know in details

• For Your Information-The Commission headed by Justice Awasthi is the 22nd Law Commission of India. The tenure of the 21st Law Commission, which was headed by former Supreme Court judge Justice B S Chauhan, came to an end on August 31 2018. The 22nd Commission has been constituted two and a half years after it was approved by the Union Cabinet on February 19, 2020, just before the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. A petition had been moved in the Supreme Court subsequently against the delay in constituting the 22nd Commission.

• Article 44 of the Indian Constitution and Uniform Civil Code-What is the ongoing debate?

• What is Article 44 of Indian Constitution i.e. Uniform Civil Code?

• What is Directive principles of State Policy (DPSP)?

• Difference Between Fundamental Rights and Directive principles of State Policy

• ‘Reform of Family Law’ report by 21st Law Commission of India on Article 44-Know in detail

• Issues and Controversy with Uniform Civil Code and Why it has not been Implemented even after seven decades of Independence?

• Know how the government’s stance on a uniform civil code (UCC) has evolved between the year 1991 to 2023?

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍How to make a Uniform Civil Code

📍An Expert Explains: The issues in uniform civil code

EXPRESS NETWORK

Cyclones no longer a threat as they were in the ’90s, early 2000s

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Indian and World Geography-Physical, Social, Economic Geography of India and the World.

Mains Examination: 

• General Studies I: Important Geophysical phenomena such as earthquakes, Tsunami, Volcanic activity, cyclone etc., geographical features and their location-changes in critical geographical features and in flora and fauna and the effects of such changes.

• General Studies III: Disaster and disaster management.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story- For a country that gets hit by cyclones fairly regularly, at least two to three times a year, it is not surprising that India has put in place standard operating procedures to deal with these. Cyclones are no longer as big a threat as they were till the 1990s or even early 2000s.

• What is the institutional setup to address the cyclone’s damage?

• How are cyclones managed in India?

• What is a cyclone in disaster management?

• What are the measures of cyclone disaster management?

• “It was the devastation caused by the 1998 super cyclone in Odisha — unofficial estimates of death toll range anywhere between 10,000 and 30,000 — that turned out to be a wake-up call and forced the government to develop a comprehensive plan to deal with cyclones”-Discuss

• The occurrence of the super cyclone in Odisha in 1998 brought about a significant shift in India’s approach to
cyclone preparedness. What were the subsequent developments?

• For Your Information-Over the years, India has developed a three-layered response mechanism for cyclones. The first layer deals with the software — an early warning system, creation of awareness among local populations, evacuation plans and drills, training and dissemination of information. The second layer involves building the hardware — creation of shelters where people and cattle can be shifted, setting up of weather instruments and warning centres for better forecasts, and construction of embankments, connecting roads and bridges. The last layer is about making coastal infrastructure resilient to cyclones. This would require taking critical infrastructure like power transmission lines or water supply lines underground, ensuring that railway networks and airports do not get inundated and continue to function, and health systems do not get disrupted.

• What is the difference between Arabian Sea cyclone and Bay of Bengal cyclone?

• How Cyclone ‘Biporjoy’ will affect?

• Why Bay of Bengal Receives more Cyclone than Arabian Sea?

• World Meteorological Organisation (WMO)-About, Role, Vision and Mission

• India Meteorological Department (IMD)-About, Role, Vision and Mission

• Temperate cyclones and Tropical cyclones-Compare and Contrast

• In India, how cyclones are classified?

• Cyclones are given many names in different regions of the world-What are they?

• Typhoons, hurricanes, tornados, willy-willies and tropical cyclones-Know the difference

• How Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) classifies the low pressure systems in the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea on the basis of capacity to damage?

• Low Pressure, Depression, Deep Depression, Cyclonic Storm, Severe Cyclonic Storm and Severe Cyclonic Storm-Know the differences

• Cyclones are also classified into five different levels on the basis of wind speed-can you tell how exactly?

• Explain and elaborate cyclogenesis?

• The development cycle of tropical cyclones may be divided into three stages-What are those?

• When it comes to cyclone then the Indian subcontinent is one of the worst affected regions in the world-why?

• What are the pre-disaster measures?

• What are the post-disaster management?

• What is the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction?

• Sendai Framework and Hyogo framework-compare

• What is priority of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction?

• What are the main targets of Sendai Framework?

• What are the types of hazard as per Sendai Framework?

• What are the steps taken by India for disaster management?

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍What are some of the deadliest cyclones to have hit India in the past?

📍What will happen after cyclone Biparjoy makes a landfall?

📍For safety’s sake

THE EDITORIAL PAGE

The great IIT disconnect

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development-Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector Initiatives, etc.

Mains Examination: General Studies II: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story- Milind Sohoni Writes: In a recent interview to The Indian Express K Kamakoti, director of IIT-Madras, gave candid answers to important questions. On being asked about IIT graduates choosing non-engineering careers, Kamakoti expressed his deep concern about the situation, especially in areas of civil and aerospace engineering. According to him, this was largely due to non-engineering jobs offering better pay and work conditions.

• Indian Institutes of Technology-Know historical background

• Which committee recommended the establishment of IIT?

• Nalini Ranjan Sarkar committee reports-what was the recommendations?

• The IITs are an important national asset-How?

• What are the problems with IITs as per the article?

• “First, the problem of poor allocations has been longstanding and broad. A study in the 1970s revealed that about a quarter of IIT graduates left for work or study abroad soon after graduation, largely never to return”-Discuss

• “Most of the IIT course material is taught in the classroom or laboratory. Students rarely have to go outside the campus.”-Elaborate

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍IITs and the future of engineering: Why there’s hope amid the gloom

IN FULL FLOW

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Mains Examination: General Studies III: Infrastructure: Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways etc.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story-Sudhansh Pant Writes: The recently released World Bank’s Logistic Performance Index (LPI) Report 2023 has brought encouraging news for Indian ports as well as for the country’s logistics sector. India has moved up to 22nd rank in the global rankings on the “International Shipments” category from the 44th position in 2014. Moreover, the country has also secured the 38th rank on the LPI score.

• What is the Logistics Performance Index LPI?

• What factors contributed to the enhancement of India’s logistics performance?

• What are the logistics-related initiatives undertaken by India?

• Do You Know-The reason behind the vastly improved performance is the substantial reduction in the dwell time at Indian ports. This has reached an optimum level of about three days only as compared to four days in countries like the UAE and South Africa, seven days in the US and 10 days in Germany. India has done well in another parameter that measures port operational efficiency: The country’s average turnaround time (TRT) of only 0.9 days is amongst the best in the world. This achievement is the result of large investments in the upgradation of infrastructure in the ports and shipping sector in the past few years. There has been a consistent focus on improvements in port efficiency and productivity through reforms, induction of new technologies, a greater thrust on public-private partnership and an overall commitment to the ease of doing business.

• The focus on decarbonisation in the maritime sector along with the Panchamrit commitments of the government has reflected in the port sector-How?

• What is National logistics Portal Marine?

• Who launched the National logistics Portal Marine?

• The Centre has also undertaken several key policy and legislative reforms to boost the port sector-Know them

• For Your Information-The Centre has also undertaken several key policy and legislative reforms to boost the port sector. This includes the Major Port Authorities Act, 2021 which grants greater autonomy to major ports. The Marine Aids to Navigation Act, 2021 that provides for increased safety and efficiency in vessel traffic services and training and certification at par with international standards. The Indian Vessels Act, 2021 which brings uniformity in law and standardised provisions across all inland waterways in the country. The government is also in the process of replacing the Indian Ports Act, 1908 with a piece of legislation that is in tune with present-day requirements.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Logistics Performance Index (LPI)

THE IDEAS PAGE

Audacious and opaque

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Mains Examination: General Studies III: Science and Technology- developments and their applications and effects in everyday life.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story– On May 25, the USFDA approved an implantable Brain-Computer Interface (BCI) for clinical trials in humans. The company building the device is Neuralink, a neurotech startup co-founded in 2016, by tech mogul Elon Musk and a group of young neuroscientist-engineers.

• What is Neuralink?

• What will Neuralink actually do?

• Neuralink’s mission is twofold-What are they?

• For Your Information-Founded in 2016 by Musk and a group of engineers, Neuralink is building a brain chip interface that can be implanted within the skull, which it says could eventually help disabled patients to move and communicate again, and also restore vision.
Neuralink’s device has a chip that processes and transmits neural signals that could be transmitted to devices like a computer or a phone. The company hopes that a person would potentially be able to control a mouse, keyboard or other computer functions like text messaging with their thoughts. Neuralink also believes its device will eventually be able to restore neural activity inside the body, allowing those with spinal cord injuries to move limbs. The San Francisco and Austin-based company also aspires to cure neurological conditions such as Alzheimer’s and dementia.

• What is the science behind Neuralink?

• What progress has Neuralink made?

• “One major problem with Neuralink is scant published data that support its claims”-What Claims?

• What are the controversies associated with Neuralink?

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Elon Musk’s Neuralink being investigated: What does the company promise, why is the tech controversial?

THE WORLD

Belarus starts taking delivery of Russian nukes as Kremlin ups Ukraine war stakes

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Mains Examination: General Studies II: Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story– Russia will start deploying tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus after special storage facilities are ready on July 7-8, President Vladimir Putin said on Friday, Moscow’s first move of such bombs outside Russia since the fall of the Soviet Union. More than 15 months into the biggest land war in Europe since World War Two, Putin says the United States and its Western allies are pumping arms into Ukraine as part of an expanding proxy war aimed at bringing Russia to its knees. Putin in March announced he wanted to deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, an apparent warning to the U.S.-led NATO military alliance over its support for Ukraine.

• Map Work-Belarus

• Russia and Belarus-Know bilateral relations between the two nations

• Russia will station tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus-Why this move seems to be one of the Russia’s most pronounced nuclear signals since the beginning of its invasion of Ukraine 13 months ago?

• What do understand by “Tactical” nuclear weapons?

• How did Putin explain his move?

• What exactly will Russia do?

• What are the possible consequences behind Putin’s move?

• What are Ukraine and the west saying?

• What is NATO?

• North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)-Know the historical background and current Status

• What are the origins of NATO?

• What is important about NATO’s collective defence?

• What is Article 5 of NATO’s founding treaty (Collective Security)?

• What is Article 4 of NATO’s Founding Treaty?

• NATO: Why Russia has a problem with its eastward expansion

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Explained: Why does Russia want tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus?

Trump pleads not guilty after being arraigned in case of classified files

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Mains Examination: General Studies II: Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India’s interests, Indian diaspora.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story-Former US President Donald Trump pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to federal criminal charges that he unlawfully kept national-security documents when he left office and lied to officials who sought to recover them. Trump’s plea, entered before U.S. Magistrate Judge Jonathan Goodman in a federal court in Miami, sets up a legal battle likely to play out over coming months as he campaigns to win back the presidency in a November 2024 election. Experts say it could be a year or more before a trial takes place.

• What is the classified documents’ case against Trump?

• For Your Information- After Trump lost the re-election in 2020, he moved to his private estate called Mar-a-lago in Miami, in the state of Florida, in 2021. The documents he stored there, according to prosecutors, included US government documents on nuclear programs, defence and weapons capabilities of the US and foreign governments – all considered sensitive information. He allegedly also showed some of these documents to people who were not authorised to do so. The US government’s National Archives and Records Agency (NARA) then notified him that he had failed to turn over at least two dozen boxes of original records, and saw some of them being returned to it by late 2021. NARA believed that there were more documents to be recovered and referred the matter to the US Department of Justice in early 2022, after repeatedly demanding them from Trump’s office.

• What charges does Trump face?

• Has Trump been indicted before?

• What happens now, and can Trump still run for President?

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Fmr US President Donald Trump federally charged: What this means and what happens now

EXPLAINED

The grain storage plan govt has unveiled, and how it can help farmers

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development-Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector Initiatives, etc.

Mains Examination:

• General Studies II: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.

• General Studies III: Issues of buffer stocks and food security, Food processing and related industries in India

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story- The Union Cabinet recently approved the constitution of an Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) to facilitate the “world’s largest grain storage plan in the cooperative sector”. What is the plan and how will it be implemented?

• Why does India need a grain storage plan?

• What is the ‘world’s largest grain storage plan in the cooperative sector’?

• How is the storage of food grains in India done?

• How will the cooperative sector improve grain storage in India?

• What is the role of the Inter-Ministerial Committee?

• What is the budgetary allocation?

• What are the benefits of the plan?

• What will the integrated facility look like?

• For Your Information-The government said in a statement that an inter-ministerial committee (IMC) will be formed under the chairmanship of Minister of Cooperation, with ministers of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, Food Processing Industries, and secretaries as members “to modify guidelines/ implementation methodologies of schemes of the respective ministries as and when need arises”. This, it stated, will be done “within the approved outlays and prescribed goals” to facilitate the “world’s largest grain storage plan in the cooperative sector” by creating infrastructure such as godown for agriculture and allied purposes at “selected ‘viable’ Primary Agricultural Credit Societies (PACS)”. As per the statement, a national-level coordination committee will be formed within one week of the Cabinet’s approval.

• Highlighting the benefits of the “multi-pronged” plan, what Government said?

• Food grains production and total storage capacity available with Food Corporation of India (FCI), Central Warehousing Corporation (CWC) and the State Agencies (both owned and hired capacity)-Know in detail

• Food Corporation of India (FCI)-About, Role, Functions

• What are the Challenges associated with Food grains storage in India?

• What will be the significance of the proposed plan?

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Nod for panel to set up ‘largest’ grain storage in co-op sector

ECONOMY

Sharp slide in India’s remittance inflows on OECD slowdown

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Mains Examination: 

• General Studies II: Important International institutions, agencies and fora- their structure, mandate.

• General Studies III: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story- After growing over 24 per cent to post a record-high level of $111 billion in 2022, remittance flows to India are expected to grow by only 0.2 per cent in 2023, as per the latest Migration and Development Brief released by the World Bank. Remittances are likely to get affected by slower growth in the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) economies limiting employment and wage gains for migrants along with a diversion of formal remittances toward informal money transfer channels, the report said.

• Migration and Development Brief released by the World Bank-What are the key takeaways?

• What is called remittance?

• What is remittance inflows?

• What is remittance outflow?

• What is the significance of Remittances?

• After growing over 24 per cent to post a record-high level of $111 billion in 2022, remittance flows to India are expected to grow by only 0.2 per cent in 2023-Why?

• Which country gives highest remittance to India?

• How much remittance does India get?

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Why remittance to India is set to cross record $100-billion mark in 2022

US Federal Reserve holds rates steady, sees two small hikes by end of year

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Mains Examination: General Studies II: Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India’s interests, Indian diaspora.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What’s the ongoing story– The Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged on Wednesday but signaled in new projections that borrowing costs may still need to rise by as much as half of a percentage point by the end of this year, as the U.S. central bank reacted to a stronger-than-expected economy and a slower decline in inflation.

• Why pause by the Federal Reserve?

• What is the Federal Funds Rate (FFR)?

• How the Federal Reserve Manages Money Supply

• US Fed Taper-Meaning

• US Federal Reserve Policies and its Impact on India

• How pause by Federal Reserve will impact Indian Market?

• What is the outlook for the US economy?

• How is inflation measured in USA?

• Inflation measured in USA and inflation measured in India-Compare and Contrast

• Inflation in USA vs Inflation in India-Compare and Contrast

• What goods or services are driving the increase in prices in USA and also in India?

• Why is USA’s inflation a matter of concern for India?

• How inflation in USA will impact India’s Import and Export?

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Explained: US inflation and its impact on India

📍Explained: Federal Reserve signals, and Indian markets

For any queries and feedback, contact priya.shukla@indianexpress.com
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