Daily Prelims Notes 19 March 2022

Daily Prelims Notes

19 March 2022

Table Of Contents

1. Ural Oil
2. The Forex Reserves
3. Bhagat Singh
4. UN Convention On Law Of The Sea
5. Blue City Jodhpur
6. Invasive Alien Species
7. The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act 2013
8. Transition to net zero impact on Banking sector
9. Buddhist Manuscripts

1. Ural Oil

Subject: Economy

Section: External sector

Context: Indian PSU oil companies buys discounted Russian crude resisting west pressure

Content:

India generally contracts Kazakh and Russian Ural crude oil on a free on board (FOB) basis. Most of the crude oil booked at present is Ural, which is a sulphur heavy grade, but supplies of the light sweet grade Sokol may also be shipped, largely from the Russian far-east region.

• Urals oil is a reference oil brand used as a basis for pricing of the Russian export oil mixture. It is a mix of heavy sour oil of Urals and the Volga region with light oil of Western Siberia. The opportunity for India to buy more of the Russian flagship grade that typically heads to Europe arose after its discount to global benchmark Brent fell to the widest since 2005, hit by rising tensions between Russia and the West over Ukraine.
• Russian oil is being offered through traders in the spot market at deep discounts against Brent or Dubai markers, cheaper by up to $18-22 per barrel depending on factors such as Sokol or Ural grade, and trader, etc.
• It is mostly on CIF basis(seller pays freight and marine insurance). Oil imports from Iran were routed through this mechanism.
• The discount makes it economically viable considering the long shipping route (more than 5,000 nautical miles) and the current freight costs. The discount of $18-22 per barrel can easily subsume $4-5 per barrel of shipping charges and still make it profitable to contract.
• Majority of the deliveries will be shipped through the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk (for Ural grade).

2. The Forex Reserves

Subject: Economy

Section: External sector

India’s forex reserves witnessed the single steepest weekly fall so far (by $9.646 billion). The forex reserves stood at $622.275 billion as at March 11, 2022.

• The decline in foreign currency assets (FCA) including multi-currency assets (securities, deposits with other central banks and the BIS, and deposits with commercial banks overseas).
• Other two components of the reserves too declined — Special and Reserve Position in the IMF ($7 million)
• The only component of the forex reserves that increased was gold.

Causes:

• RBI intervention to stabilize rupee depreciation-
  • State-run banks sold dollars (USD) on behalf of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to keep the rupee from breaching the 77 a dollar as crude oil prices surged beyond $120 a barrel.
• Capital outflows from the Indian equity market.
• Global financial markets volatility in the backdrop of the Russia Ukraine war.

Forex trends

• The level of reserves has risen from 16 percent of GDP at end-March 2013 to the current 20.5 per cent.
• The import cover provided by the reserves has doubled
• Short-term external debt on a residual maturity basis has declined over the same period from 59 percent of reserves to 40.3 per cent.
• India currently has the fifth largest holdings of international reserves in the world.
• India’s international assets cover three-fourth of India’s external liabilities, including debt, equity and all other forms of contractual obligations.

3. Bhagat Singh

Subject: Indian History

Section: Freedom struggle

Context- A photograph of Bhagat Singh in Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s office has run into a controversy.

Concept-

About Bhagat Singh:

• Bhagat Singh (September 1907 – 23 March 1931) was a charismatic Indian revolutionary.
• Born as Bhaganwala, Bhagat Singh grew up in a petty-bourgeois family of Sandhu Jats settled in the Jullundur Doab district of Punjab.
• In 1923, Bhagat Singh joined the National College, Lahore which was founded and managed by Lala Lajpat Rai and Bhai Parmanand.
• In 1924, he became a member of the Hindustan Republican Association, started by Sachindranath Sanyal.
  • The main organiser of the Association was Chandra Shekhar Azad and Bhagat Singh became very close to him.
• It was as a member of the HRA that Bhagat Singh began to take seriously the philosophy of the Bomb.
  • Armed revolution was understood to be the only weapon with which to fight British imperialism.
• In 1925, Bhagat Singh returned to Lahore and he and his colleagues started a militant youth organisation called the Naujawan Bharat Sabha.
• In April 1926, Bhagat Singh established contact with Sohan Singh Josh and through him the ‘Workers and Peasants Party’ which brought out the monthly magazine Kirti in Punjabi. Bhagat Singh worked with Josh and joined the editorial board of Kirti.
• In 1927, was first arrested on charges of association with the Kakori Case, accused of an article written under the pseudonym Vidrohi (Rebel). He was also accused of being responsible for a bomb explosion in Lahore.
• In 1928, Bhagat Singh changed the name of the Hindustan Republican Association to the Hindustan Socialist Republic Association (HSRA).
• In 1929, he along with BatukeshwarDutt, set off two explosive devices inside the Central Legislative Assembly in Delhi, and then allowed themselves to be arrested, while shouting the famous slogan: “InquilabZindabad“, or “Long live the revolution”.
• In 1930, when Azad was shot, the HSRA collapsed. Naujawan Bharat Sabha replaced HSRA in Punjab.
• In 1931, Bhagat Singh was arrested and charged in the Saunders murder case, along with Rajguru, Sukhdev and others. The trio was ordered to be hanged on 24 March 1931 but the sentence was carried out a day earlier at the Lahore Jail. He was executed at the age of 23.

Bhagat Singh’s Political Ideology:

• He regarded Kartar Singh Sarabha, the founding member of the Ghadar Party as his hero.
• Bhagat was also inspired by Bhai Parmanand, another founding member of the Ghadar Party.
• He was attracted to anarchism and communism. He was an avid reader of the teachings of Mikhail Bakunin and also read Karl Marx, Vladimir Lenin and Leon Trotsky.
• His “azaadi” freedom was not limited to the expelling of the British; instead, he desired azaadi from poverty, azaadi from untouchability, azaadi from communal strife, and azaadi from every form of discrimination and exploitation.
• ‘Why I am an Atheist’ is an essay written by Bhagat Singh in 1930 while he was imprisoned in the Lahore Central Jail.
• 23rd March is observed as ‘Martyrs’ Day’ or ‘Shaheed Diwas’ or ‘Sarvodaya Day’ in honour of Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev.
• * The song “Mera Rang De Basanti Chola…. is said to be written by revolutionary Ram Prasad Bismil, who was hanged at Gorakhpur jail in 1927.

4. UN Convention On Law Of The Sea

Subject: Environment

Section: Biodiversity

Context- United Nations members negotiate instrument under UN Convention on Law of the Sea to conserve, sustainably use marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction.

Concept-

• The fourth meeting of the Intergovernmental Conference (IGC-4) is underway March 7-18 in New York.
• The IGC-4 is convening under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. And this particular meeting is to conclude a draft of the instrument on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction, also referred to as BBNJ.
• This meeting was scheduled in 2020 but had to be postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
• BBNJ encompasses the high seas, beyond the exclusive economic zones or national waters of countries.
• This new agreement on BBJN has been under negotiation for the last 20 years. The current meeting is expected to finalise the draft for signing.

About UN Convention on Law of The Sea:

• The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), 1982 is an international agreement that establishes the legal framework for marine and maritime activities.
• It is also known as Law of the Sea.
• It divides marine areas into five main zones namely-
  • Internal Waters,
  • Territorial Sea,
  • Contiguous Zone,
  • Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and
  • the High Seas.
• It is the only international convention which stipulates a framework for state jurisdiction in maritime spaces. It provides a different legal status to different maritime zones.
• It not only zones coastal states’ offshore areas but also provides specific guidance for states’ rights and responsibilities in the five concentric zones.
• India is a state party to the UNCLOS.

5. Blue City Jodhpur

Subject: Geography

Section: Oceanography

Context- Jodhpur, the gateway to the Thar desert, is globally known as the ‘Blue City’ for the colour of its houses. Its entire character as a city on the edge of a great desert has changed due to abundance of water.

Concept-

• Jodhpur, which used to conserve every drop of water, now has the highest coverage of tap water in Rajasthan, 97.4 per cent.
• Jodhpur was known for its talabs (ponds), baoris and jhalaras (stepwells).
• Earlier, everyone used to consume water from the baori. Each baori had a neem tree next to it. Neem leaves and seeds used to mix with the water, making it therapeutic.
• However With the coming up of the Indira Gandhi canal, some water bodies have been abandoned, some are unused, some encroached upon and some reclaimed for ‘public purposes’.
• Only two of Jodhpur’s 46 talabs — Ranisar and Padamsar — remain.
• The introduction of canal water has caused the ground water table in Jodhpur to increase at the rate of one metre per year. The basements of shops in the inner city are full of excessive groundwater.

About Jodhpur:

• Jodhpur is the second-largest city in the Indian state of Rajasthan.
• It is popularly known as the “Blue City” among people of Rajasthan and all over India.
• It was formerly the seat of the princely state of Jodhpur State.
• Jodhpur was historically the capital of the Kingdom of Marwar, which is now part of Rajasthan.
• Jodhpur was founded in 1459 by Rao Jodha, a Rathore Rajput chieftain.
• It had architectural features like courtyard-houses, carved stone façades, jharokhas or enclosed balconies, jaalis or latticed screens, meandering streets, open chowks or squares, community spaces and water structures in the core area to help lower high temperatures.

Traditional Water Conservation Systems in India:

6. Invasive Alien Species

Subject: Environment

Section: Biodiversity

Context- Invasive alien forest insects will kill 1.4 million urban trees in US by 2050: Study.

Concept-

• Invasive alien forest insects will kill 2.1-2.5 per cent of all street trees (1.4 million) in the United States in 30 years (2020-2050). This loss would cost $30 million annually to manage, a recent study has said.
• Ninety per cent of all mortality would be due to the emerald ash borer (Agrilusplanipennis).

What Are Alien Invasive Species:

• An alien species is a species introduced outside its normal distribution.
• An alien species become ‘invasive’ when they are introduced deliberately or accidentally outside their natural areas, where they out-compete the native species and upset the ecological balance.
• Invasive alien species (IAS) are animals, plants or other organisms that are introduced into places outside their natural range, negatively impacting native biodiversity, ecosystem services or human well-being.
• The most common characteristics of invasive species are
  • rapid reproduction and growth,
  • high dispersal ability,
  • ability to survive on various food types, and in a wide range of environmental conditions and
  • the ability to adapt physiologically to new conditions, called phenotypic plasticity.
• The alien invasive species are non-native to an ecosystem. They may cause economic or environmental harm or even adversely affect human health.

Invasive Alien Species & Climate Change:

• IAS are one of the biggest causes of biodiversity loss and species extinctions, and are also a global threat to food security and livelihoods.
• IAS are compounded by climate change. Climate change facilitates the spread and establishment of many alien species and creates new opportunities for them to become invasive.
• IAS can reduce the resilience of natural habitats, agricultural systems and urban areas to climate change. Conversely, climate change reduces the resilience of habitats to biological invasions.

7. The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act 2013

Subject: Polity

Section: Govt schemes

Context- Kerala High Court on Thursday (March 17) asked organisations associated with the film industry to take steps to constitute a joint committee to deal with cases of sexual harassment of women, in line with the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act of 2013.

Concept-

About The POSH  Act:

• The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act was passed in 2013.
• It defined sexual harassment, lay down the procedures for a complaint and inquiry, and the action to be taken.
• It broadened the Vishaka guidelines, which were already in place.
  • The Vishaka guidelines were laid down by the Supreme Court in a judgment in 1997.
    • The case involved Bhanwari Devi, employed with the rural development program of the Government of Rajasthan viciously gang-raped because of her efforts to stop the then prevailing practise of child marriage in support of the government’s campaign against child marriage in 1992.
  • The Visakha guidelines, which were legally binding, defined sexual harassment and imposed three key obligations on institutions — prohibition, prevention, redress.
• The Act mandated that every employer must constitute an Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) at each office or branch with 10 or more employees.
• It lay down procedures and defined various aspects of sexual harassment, including the aggrieved victim, who could be a woman “of any age whether employed or not”, who “alleges to have been subjected to any act of sexual harassment”. This meant that the rights of all women working or visiting any workplace, in any capacity, were protected under the Act.
• Definition of sexual harassment: Under the 2013 law, sexual harassment includes “any one or more” of the following “unwelcome acts or behaviour” committed directly or by implication:
  • Physical contact and advances
  • A demand or request for sexual favours
  • Sexually coloured remarks
  • Showing pornography
  • Any other unwelcome physical, verbal or non-verbal conduct of sexual nature.

Procedure for complaint:

• Under the Act, the complaint must be made “within three months from the date of the incident”. However, the ICC can “extend the time limit” if “it is satisfied that the circumstances were such which prevented the woman from filing a complaint within the said period”.
• The ICC “may”, before inquiry, and “at the request of the aggrieved woman, take steps to settle the matter between her and the respondent through conciliation” — provided that “no monetary settlement shall be made as a basis of conciliation”.
• The ICC may either forward the victim’s complaint to the police, or it can start an inquiry that has to be completed within 90 days.
  • The ICC has powers similar to those of a civil court in respect of summoning and examining any person on oath, and requiring the discovery and production of documents.
• When the inquiry is completed, the ICC must provide a report of its findings to the employer within 10 days. The report is also made available to both parties.

After the ICC report:

• If the allegations of sexual harassment are proved, the ICC recommends that the employer take action “in accordance with the provisions of the service rules” of the company. These may vary from company to company.
• Compensation is determined based on five aspects:
  • suffering and emotional distress caused to the woman;
  • loss in career opportunity;
  • her medical expenses;
  • income and financial status of the respondent; and
  • the feasibility of such payment.
• After the recommendations, the aggrieved woman or the respondent can appeal in court within 90 days
• Section 14 of the Act deals with punishment for false or malicious complaint and false evidence.

8. Transition to net zero impact on Banking sector

Subject: Economy

Section: Monetary Policy and Banking

Concept:

India is planning to reduce the carbon emission intensity of its economy by 45 percent by 2030 from 2005 levels, and achieve net zero emission by 2070.

This transition to a net-zero carbon emission target will entail adjustment in the production processes of industries that are directly or indirectly exposed to excessive use of fossil fuel according to an article in the Reserve Bank of India’s latest monthly Bulletin.

Overall impact

Three sectors with direct exposure to fossil fuels — electricity, chemicals, and automobiles — account for around 24 per cent of credit to the overall industrial sector, but only 10 percent of total outstanding non-retail bank credit, which implies a limited spillover to the banking system.

However, several other industries input intensive sector- such as cement, basic metals, paper, textiles, wood, rubber & plastic, IT & telecom, beverage & tobacco, leather, food manufacturing & processing, use fossil fuels and therefore any transition to green energy can have implications for their income and consequently their interest coverage ratio (ICR)

Transition to green energy and shifts in input mix, there could be some pressure on input costs in these sectors in the short-term, the EBITA (earnings before interest, taxes, and amortization  of the representative firm could take a hit leading to worsen loan serviceability and an increase in GNPA ratio of such sectors especially industries that have low ICR, high GNPA ratio and high energy input intensity.

9. Buddhist Manuscripts

Subject:  History

Section: Art and Culture

Context: Hundreds of original Buddhist manuscripts from Nalanda and Vikramshila to be translated and published.

Concept:

• The Bihar State Government has signed an MoU with CIHTS (Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies) for the translation (in Hindi) and publication (in 5 years) of original Buddhist manuscripts that were saved from being burnt in the 12^th and 13^th centuries by Bhaktiyar Khilji’s Army.
• The manuscripts were brought back to India from Tibet by traveller, freedom fighter and monk Rahul Sankrityayan.
• The manuscripts were written in Sanskrit by scholars of the two universities between 7^th and 12^th centuries AD.
• Translation and publication would be vital for those doing research on Vajrayana or Tibetan Buddhism, different Tantric practices and Buddhist philosophy.

Vikramshila:

• Located in Bhagalpur district in Bihar, it was one of the three most important Buddhist monasteries in India during the Pala Empire, along with Nalanda and Odantapuri.
• It was established by the Pala Emperor Dhamapala due to the decline in the quality of scholarship at Nalanda.
• It was a centre for Vajrayana Buddhism.
• It is mostly known from Tibetan sources, particularly the works of Taranatha, a 16^th –17^th century Tibetan monk historian.
• Subjects like philosophy, grammar, metaphysics, Indian logic etc. were taught here, but the most important branch of learning was Buddhist Tantra.
• It produced eminent scholars who were often invited by foreign countries to spread Buddhist learning, culture and religion. The most distinguished and eminent among all was AtisaDipankara(a notable abbot), a founder of the Sarmatraditions of Tibetan Buddhism.
• It appears to have had a more clearly delineated hierarchy than other mahaviharas, as follows:
• Abbot (Adhyakṣa)
• Six gate protectors or gate scholars (Dvarapalaor Dvarapaṇḍita), one each for the Eastern, Western, First Central, Second Central, Northern, and Southern Gates
• Great Scholars (Mahapaṇḍita)
• Scholars (Paṇḍita)
• Professors or Teachers (Upadhyayaor Acharya) including paṇḍits
• Resident monks (bhikṣu)

To know about Nalanda, refer: https://optimizeias.com/nalanda/