Daily Prelims Notes 21 June 2023

June 21, 2023
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Daily Prelims Notes

21 June 2023

Table Of Contents

1. El Niño: Three of four criteria have been met, says Australian Weather Agency

Subject: Geography

Section: Physical geography (Climatology)

Context:

The Australian Bureau of Meteorology has said that three of the four criteria for the development of El Niño have been met, increasing the chances of the warm weather event setting in this year.

Details:

El Niño conditions, which are abnormal warming of the sea surface temperatures of the Pacific Ocean leading to drought and deficient rainfall in Asia — particularly India, had developed by mid-June.
The previously ENSO-neutral conditions in the central-eastern equatorial Pacific had transitioned to warm El Niño-like conditions.
The key oceanic and atmospheric variables are consistent with the onset of El Niño and signalled the onset of the warm phase of the ENSO.

El-Nino event:

El Nino refers to the large-scale ocean-atmosphere climate interaction linked to periodic warming in sea surface temperatures across the central and east-central Equatorial Pacific. It is associated with high pressure in the western Pacific. El Nino adversely impacts the Indian monsoons and hence, agriculture in India.

When criteria were met in the past:

When El Niño alert criteria have been met in the past, an El Niño event has developed around 70 per cent of the time.
There is an 80 per cent chance of El Niño conditions developing by the end of August.
Criteria met are:
- The central and eastern Pacific sea surface temperatures have warmed to El Niño thresholds.
- The trade winds have been weaker than average in the western or central equatorial Pacific Ocean during any two of the last three months, while the two-month average Southern Oscillation Index has been 0.7 or lower.
- The sustained warming to at least 0.8°C above average in the NINO3 or NINO3.4 regions of the Pacific Ocean by the late winter or spring.

Impact on Indian monsoon:

Despite El Niño being forecast this year, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has said the southwest monsoon, the key to agricultural production, will be normal.
The southwest monsoon, which accounts for 76 per cent of the country’s total annual rainfall, set in late by a week this year. Data from IMD show that rainfall in the current monsoon is 33 per cent deficient as of June 19.

2. ICIMOD report rings warning bells for rivers of East and Northeast India

Subject: Geography

Section: Physical geography (Climatology)

Context:

Rivers in eastern and northeastern India including the Brahmaputra, Ganga and Teesta will see a rapid increase in stream flow followed by water scarcity, a new report released by the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) on June 20, 2023, warned.

Report details:

The report — Water, ice, society, and ecosystems in the Hindu Kush Himalaya — pointed out that glaciers in the HKH region can lose up to 80 per cent of their current volume by the end of the century (with) Himalayan glaciers disappearing 65 percent faster in the 2010s than in previous decade.
The glaciers lost a mass of 0.28 metres of water equivalent per year (m w.e.) between 2010 and 2019 compared to 0.17 (m w.e.) per year between 2000 and 2009.
The Karakoram range, which was known to be stable, has also started showing a decline in glacier mass, losing 0.09 m w.e. per year during 2010-2019.
Floods and landslides are projected to increase over the coming decades.
India-specific findings:
- The Union Ministry of Earth Sciences also informed that glaciers feeding the Ganga and the Brahmaputra river basins were melting at a fast rate.
  - The mean retreat rate of the Hindu Kush Himalayan glaciers was 14.9-15.1 metres per annum, which varied from 12.7-13.2 metres per annum in the Indus, 15.5-14.4 metres per annum in the Ganga and 20.2-19.7 metres per annum in the Brahmaputra river basins.
- The Eastern Ganga region (EGR) is already facing Erratic and extreme rainfall, extreme floods and landslides, droughts, low flows, and scorching wet bulb heat.
- Eastern Himalayas, also called lesser Himalayas, have fewer glaciers compared to their Western counterparts.
  - Hence, rivers in the region get less contribution from such glaciers; and are less likely to be affected overall.
Loss of permafrost:
- The report highlighted the limited available information on permafrost — ground that remains at or below 0°C for at least two consecutive years — in the Hindu Kush region.
- Studies have estimated that western Himalaya lost 8,340 square km of permafrost area between 2002 and 2004 and 2018 and 2020, and about 965 square km of area disappeared in Uttarakhand Himalaya between 1970 and 2000 and 2001 and 2017.
- The loss of permafrost could lead to infrastructure damage, costing the world several billion dollars.

Hindukush-Himalaya Region:

Stretching over 3500 kilometres and across eight countries – Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Nepal, Myanmar and Pakistan – the Hindu Kush Himalaya is arguably the world’s most important ‘water tower’, being the source of ten of Asia’s largest rivers as well as the largest volume of ice and snow outside of the Arctic and Antarctica.
Together these rivers support the drinking water, irrigation, energy, industry and sanitation needs of 1.3 billion people living in the mountains and downstream.

Biodiversity of HKH region:

The mountain ecosystems of the Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) are diverse with one of the highest diversity of flora and fauna providing varied ecosystem services to one fourth of humanity. With four out of 36 global biodiversity hotspots the HKH is a cradle for 35,000+ species of plants and 200+ species of animals.
At least 353 new species—242 plants, 16 amphibians, 16 reptiles, 14 fish, two birds, and two mammals, and at least 61 invertebrates—have been discovered in the Eastern Himalayas between 1998 and 2008, equating to an average of 35 new species finds every year.
The Hindu Kush Himalaya (HKH) region is of global importance due to its unique biodiversity and is home to 4 of 34 global biodiversity hotspots, 6 UNESCO natural World Heritage sites, 30 Ramsar sites, 330 Important Bird Areas (IBAs) and 53 Important Plant Areas (IPAs).
In total, there are 60 ecoregion types (6 per cent of the world total), of which 30 are critical ecoregions.
HKH countries have established roughly 488 protected areas in the region with varying degrees of protection and status, covering 39 per cent of HKH terrestrial land.

Significance of Hindukush- Himalaya region (HKH):

The biodiversity of the region — 40 per cent of which is under protected areas — is dependent on the cryosphere as it is an important source of water for maintaining ecosystem health, supporting biological diversity, and providing ecosystem services.
Glaciers occupy an area of approximately 73,173 square kilometres (km2) in the HKH.
The average temperature in the region has increased by 0.28°C per decade between 1951 and 2020.
The HKH region harbours the highest mountain ranges in the world. It also contains the largest volume of ice on earth outside of the polar areas and is called “Asia’s water tower”.
The region is undergoing “unprecedented and largely irreversible” changes triggered by global warming.
Ice and snow in the Hindu Kush Himalaya are an important source of water for 12 rivers that flow through 16 countries in Asia, providing fresh water and other vital ecosystem services to 240 million people in the mountains and a further 1.65 billion downstream.

3. Bonn climate meet takeaways: Old conflicts, some forward movement

Subject: Environment

Section: International Conventions

Context:

Developed and developing countries bickered on issues old and new, and could not even agree on the agenda.

Global stocktake (GST):

Mandated by the 2015 Paris Agreement, GST is an exercise aimed at assessing the progress in the fight against climate change, and deciding ways and means to enhance global action to bridge the adequacy gap.
The Paris Agreement says GST must be conducted every five years, starting in 2023.

Conflict over historical emissions:

Australia seeks to downplay the ‘historical responsibility’ of the developed countries in causing global warming.
A bulk of the accumulated greenhouse gas emissions, the reason for global warming, have come from a group of about 40 rich and industrialised countries, usually referred to as Annex I countries because they were mentioned in Annexure I of the 1992 UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, or UNFCCC.
This historical responsibility has been the basis for the differentiated burden-sharing between developed and developing countries in the climate change framework.
Australia argued that the historical emissions happened at a time when there was no alternative to fossil fuel-based energy sources, and when there was little understanding or consensus on the harm caused by greenhouse gases.
It pointed out that since 1992, about 57% of the carbon dioxide emissions had come from non-Annex I countries.
It said that 70% of the incremental warming since 1992 due to emissions from carbon dioxide, methane and sulphur dioxide had come from non-Annex I countries.

Mitigation Work Programme (MWP):

Set up at COP26 Glasgow in 2021 for climate action.
This is a temporary emergency exercise focused only on increasing emission cuts.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change says global emissions have to come down by 43% from 2019 levels by 2030 to keep alive hopes of meeting the 1.5-degree target.
As of now, emissions are still growing and, in 2021, were higher than 2019 levels.
Developed countries are under an obligation to support the implementation of climate action plans of developing countries through money and tech transfers.
According to one assessment, developing countries need as much as US$ 6 trillion between now and 2030 just to implement their climate action plans.
The loss and damage needs of developing countries are assessed to be about US$ 400 billion every year.
More funds are needed for all kinds of other purposes, the total estimated to be running in several trillions of dollars every year. Against this, even a minuscule-looking US$ 100 billion per year that the developed countries had committed to raise from 2020 is not fully available.

4. Titanic tourist submersible missing: Difference between a submersible and a submarine

Subject :Science and technology

Section: Msc

Context:

A vessel known as the Titan went missing in the area of the Titanic wreck in the North Atlantic on 19 June 2023.
The Titan is classified as a submersible, not a submarine, because it does not function as an autonomous craft, instead relying on a support platform to deploy and return.

About the Titan:

The Titan began deep-sea ventures related to the Titanic in 2021.
Titan, the missing vessel is a submersible capable of taking five people — one pilot and four crew members — to depths of 4,000 meters, or more than 13,100 feet — for site survey and inspection, research and data collection, film and media production, and deep sea testing of hardware and software.
The titan was made of titanium and carbon fibre, it weighs about 21,000 pounds and is listed as measuring 22 feet by 9.2 feet by 8.3 feet, with 96 hours of “life support” for five people.
The Titan, one of three types of crewed submersibles operated by OceanGate, is equipped with a platform similar to the dry dock of a ship that launches and recovers the vessel.
- The platform is used to launch and recover manned submersibles by flooding its flotation tanks with water for a controlled descent to a depth of 9.1 meters (30 feet) to avoid any surface turbulence.
- Once submerged, the platform uses a patented motion-dampening flotation system to remain coupled to the surface yet still provide a stable underwater platform from which our manned submersibles lift off of and return to after each dive.
- At the conclusion of each dive, the sub lands on the submerged platform and the entire system is brought to the surface in approximately two minutes by filling the ballast tanks with air.
As per the website of company, titan employs a system that can analyze how pressure changes affect the vessel as it dives deeper, providing early warning detection for the pilot with enough time to arrest the descent and safely return to the surface.

5. GEMCOVAC –OM Vaccine

Subject : Science and technology

Section: Biotechnology

Concept :

Recently, India’s first indigenous mRNA vaccine for the Omicron variant, GEMCOVAC-OM was approved under emergency use guidelines by the Drug Controller General of India.

About GEMCOVAC –OM Vaccine:

It was developed using the indigenous platform technology by Gennova Biopharmaceuticals Ltd. and supported under the Mission COVID Suraksha, implemented by Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC).
It is a thermo-stable vaccine, which does not require ultra-cold chain infrastructure used for other approved mRNA-based vaccines, making it easy for deployment pan India.
It is delivered intra-dermally using a needle-free injection device system.
When administered intradermally in participants as a booster, it generated significantly higher immune responses.
The clinical outcome demonstrates the need for variant-specific vaccines for desired immune response.

Key facts about BIRAC

It is a not-for-profit Section 8, Schedule B, Public Sector Enterprise, set up by the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Government of India,
It is an Interface Agency to strengthen and empower emerging Biotech enterprises to undertake strategic research and innovation, addressing nationally relevant product development needs.

What is mRNA vaccine?

It contains messenger RNA (mRNA), a single-stranded RNA molecule that complements DNA.
It is created in the nucleus when DNA is transcribed by RNA polymerase to create pre-mRNA.

6. The climate lawsuit against Delta airlines

Subject : Environment

Section: Climate change

Concept :

Delta Air Lines, which claimed to be the world’s first carbon-neutral airline, is facing a lawsuit alleging false advertising.
The lawsuit accuses Delta of misleading customers with its sustainability pledges, particularly its use of carbon offsetting to balance out its carbon emissions.

Greenwashing

Greenwashing refers to the practice of making false or exaggerated claims about the environmental benefits of a product, service, or company in order to present a misleading image of sustainability or eco-friendliness.
It is a form of deceptive marketing that aims to capitalize on the growing consumer demand for environmentally friendly products and practices.

Major Forms of Greenwashing:

Vague or Misleading Labels: Companies may use terms like “eco-friendly,” “green,” or “natural” without providing specific information or clear standards for what those terms mean.
Irrelevant Claims: Companies may highlight a minor environmental improvement while ignoring more significant environmental issues related to their products or operations.
For example, a car manufacturer might promote a fuel-efficient model while downplaying the environmental impact of its manufacturing processes.
Hidden Trade-offs: This occurs when a product is marketed as environmentally friendly in one aspect but neglects to mention other negative environmental impacts.
For instance, a disposable product might be labeled as biodegradable, but the production process still has a significant carbon footprint.
Violation of Additionality Principle: Offset programs work only when they remove or reduce carbon emissions that wouldn’t have been eliminated otherwise, what is called “additionality”.
Paying to conserve rainforests that no one was planning to cut, doesn’t amount to offsetting carbon emissions.

7. EC releases draft delimitation proposal for Assam, reserved seats increased

Subject : Polity

Section: Elections

Concept :

The Election Commission on Tuesday released its draft proposal for delimitation in Assam, increasing the seats reserved for Scheduled Castes from eight to nine and for Scheduled Tribes from 16 to 19.
As per Articles 170 and 82 of the Constitution, the number of Assembly seats in a state and the number of Lok Sabha seats from a state are not to be altered till the first census after 2026 is
As a result, the number of Assembly seats and Lok Sabha seats in Assam would remain 126 and 14 respectively.
The delimitation was carried out on the basis of the 2001 Census, the first such exercise in Assam since 1976.
Among the Lok Sabha seats, two seats were proposed to be reserved for STs and one for SCs.

Delimitation

Delimitation literally means the act or process of fixing limits or boundaries of territorial constituencies in a country to represent changes in population.
The Delimitation Commission is to work without any executive influence.
The Constitution mandates that the Commission’s orders are final and cannot be questioned before any court as it would hold up an election indefinitely.
When the orders of the Delimitation Commission are laid before the Lok Sabha or State Legislative Assembly, they cannot effect any modification in the orders.

Composition:

The Delimitation Commission is appointed by the President of India and works in collaboration with the Election Commission of India.
Retired Supreme Court judge
Chief Election Commissioner
Respective State Election Commissioners

What is the Process of Delimitation?

Under Article 82, the Parliament enacts a Delimitation Act after every Census.
Under Article 170, States also get divided into territorial constituencies as per Delimitation Act after every Census.
Once the Act is in force, the Union government sets up a Delimitation Commission.
The first delimitation exercise was carried out by the President (with the help of the Election Commission) in 1950-51.
The Delimitation Commission Act was enacted in 1952.
Delimitation Commissions have been set up four times — 1952, 1963, 1973 and 2002 under the Acts of 1952, 1962, 1972 and 2002.
There was no delimitation after the 1981 and 1991 Censuses.

Issues with Delimitation

States that take little interest in population control could end up with a greater number of seats in Parliament. The southern states that promoted family planning faced the possibility of having their seats reduced.
In 2002-08, Delimitation was done based on the 2001 census, but the total number of seats in the Assemblies and Parliament decided as per the 1971 Census was not changed.
The 87th Amendment Act of 2003 provided for the delimitation of constituencies on the basis of 2001 census and not 1991 census. However, this can be done without altering the number of seats allotted to each state in the Lok Sabha.
The Constitution has also capped the number of Lok Shaba & Rajya Sabha seats to a maximum of 550 & 250 respectively and increasing populations are being represented by a single representative.

8. Climate breakdown: the Arctic Ocean could be ice-free by the 2030s

Subject : Environment

Section: Climate Change

Concept :

The Arctic Ocean could be ice-free in summer by the 2030s, even if we do a good job of reducing emissions between now and then. That’s the worrying conclusion of a new study in Nature Communications.

Blue Ocean Event (BOE)

A Blue Ocean Event (BOE) is probably something you’ve never heard of, but in just a few years it will be the biggest story that everyone is talking about.
A BOE is when the Arctic Ocean changes from being covered in ice year-round and reflecting most of the sunlight that impacts it back into space to being mostly ice-free blue water for a period of time during the warm season (May through October), which will cause it to absorb most of the sunlight that impacts it.
Once a BOE occurs during a warm season, the Arctic Ocean water will refreeze during the following cold season.
However, since the water will be slightly warmer each year, longer Blue Ocean Events are expected with each passing warm season, causing extensive impacts to the global climate and human habitat.
Blue water, which is dark, absorbs more sunlight than white ice, due to the fact that darker colors naturally absorb more sunlight than lighter colors, a phenomenon known as the “albedo effect.”
One problem with predicting when this might occur is that sea ice is notoriously difficult to model because it is influenced by both atmospheric and oceanic circulation as well as the flow of heat between these two parts of the climate system.

Consequences

There is still plenty of uncertainty around the exact date – about 20 years or so– because of natural chaotic fluctuations in the climate system. But compared to previous research, the new study still brings forward the most likely timing of a blue ocean event by about a decade.
Arctic sea ice is an important component of the climate system. As it dramatically reduces the amount of sunlight absorbed by the ocean, removing this ice is predicted to further accelerate warming, through a process known as positive feedback.
This, in turn, will make the Greenland ice sheet melt faster, which is already a major contributor to-sea level rise.
The loss of sea ice in summer would also mean changes in atmospheric circulation and storm tracks, and fundamental shifts in ocean biological activity.

9. Telecom regulator suggests norms for undersea cables

Subject :Science and technology

Section : Awareness in IT

Concept :

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has come up with recommendations on rules for undersea cables connecting Indian telecom networks to the global Internet.
Earlier, the Department of Telecommunications had sought TRAI’s recommendations on whether Indian companies without a major stake in undersea cables, usually developed by high-powered global consortia, be permitted to apply for clearances acting alone.
TRAI has recommended that all Indian telcos operating undersea cables be required to submit proof that they own at least part of the undersea cables that are in Indian waters.
TRAI also recommended introducing a distinction between a cable landing station and “points of presence” to which the station is connected.
TRAI further recommended that “dark fibre” should be permitted on existing cable landing stations, and “stubs”, which are short cables in Indian waters for potential future expansion, also be permitted.
Furthermore, TRAI suggested undersea cables be notified as critical information infrastructure so that they can be extended protection by the National Critical Information Infrastructure Protection Centre.

Dark fibre:

It is an unused optical fibre that has been laid but is not currently being used in fibre-optic communication
Since fibre-optic cable transmits information in the form of light pulses, a “dark” cable refers to one through which light pulses are not being transmitted.
Companies lay extra optical fibres in order to avoid cost repetition when more bandwidth is needed.
It is also known as unlit fibre.
These unused fibre optic cables later created a new market for unique private services that could not be accommodated on lit fibre cables (i.e cables used in traditional long-distance communication).
Unused strands of Fiber are leased to customers to create their own privately-operated optical fibre network. This is different from the leasing of bandwidth. In other words, It is in contrast to purchasing bandwidth or a leased line on an existing network. The Dark Fiber network is under total control of the client rather than the network provider.
The benefits which can be reaped from it are –
- High performance
- Secured network flow and separation from other traffic
- Superfast speeds
- Low and Fixed cost
- Reliable medium
- Full control of the fibre-optic network.

Applications include:

Fibre to the Antenna (FTTA)-Mobile network providers can use dark fibre to provide mobile backhaul, 5G backhaul and core network connections.
Data Centre Interconnect (DCI)-Dark fibre can be used to provide a high capacity, direct point to point connection between two data centres.
National Research and Educational Networks (NRENs)-Most National Research and Educational Networks (NRENs) that link together Universities and research establishments use dark fibre.
There are numerous licenses under which a vendor can lease dark fibre in India.
Co-location is a data centre within the exchange premises hosting a broker’s server that is connected by fibre network. Co-lo space is rented by exchanges to brokers for speed trading.
Some brokers are selectively allowed to install dark fibre without a clear policy. The NSE has no clearly-defined public policy as to when and how it permitted competing carriers into co-lo, which ensured advantages to a select few.

10. Tribal mat art woven into Yoga Day this time

Subject : Schemes

Concept :

In a powerful initiative aimed at promoting tribal artisans and their remarkable artistry, Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India Ltd.(TRIFED) has collaborated with Ministry of Ayush to supply 34,000 yoga mats.
This collaborative effort, set to coincide with the upcoming International Yoga Day, highlights the government’s commitment to uplift tribal communities and celebrate India’s rich cultural heritage.
This initiative not only bolsters the economic prospects of tribal communities but also ensures the preservation and promotion of their unique artistic traditions.

About TRIFED

The Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED) came into existence in 1987.
It is a national-level apex organization functioning under the administrative control of Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Govt. of India.
The ultimate objective of TRIFED is socio-economic development of tribal people in the country by way of marketing development of the tribal products on which the lives of tribals depends heavily as they spend most of their time and derive major portion of their income.
It empowers tribal people with knowledge, tools and pool of information so that they can undertake their operations in a more systematic and scientific manner.
It involves capacity building of the tribal people through sensitization, formation of Self Help Groups (SHGs) and imparting training to them for undertaking a particular activity, exploring marketing possibilities in national as well as international markets, creating opportunities for marketing tribal products on a sustainable basis, creating a brand and providing other services.
Ministry of Tribal Affairs shall announce Minimum Support Price (MSP) for the selected MFPs with the technical support from TRIFED.

11. Hard to restore Internet while blocking social media websites, Manipur tells HC

Subject : Science and technology

Section: Awareness in IT and computers

Concept :

With the Manipur government telling the High Court in Imphal that it would be difficult to restore internet access while blocking social media websites, a Bench of Justices Ahanthem Bimol Singh and A. Guneshwar Sharma has now sought a reply from internet service providers regarding the matter.
The bench said that internet access is necessary for “urgent and vital tasks,” particularly in the continuing student admissions process.

Internet Service Provider (ISP)

An Internet Service Provider (ISP) refers to an organization that can provide you access to the Internet to somebody who pays the organization.
To use this service, the customers have to pay the ISP organization some amount depending on their package.
This amount also varies according to the quantity of data they use or the data plan which they want to purchase.
An Internet Service Provider is also acknowledged as an Internet Access Provider or an online service provider.

VPN

A virtual private network, or VPN, is an encrypted connection over the Internet from a device to a network.
The encrypted connection helps ensure that sensitive data is safely transmitted. It prevents unauthorized people from eavesdropping on the traffic and allows the user to conduct work remotely.
VPN technology is widely used in corporate environments.
As it is totally disconnected from the rest of the web, it is a secure system. The network can be used safely by the government, companies, and military to utilise system resources.

12. New Global Financing Pact

Subject : International Relations

Section: International Agreement

Concept :

The New Global Financing Pact is an international agreement or framework set to take place in Paris, France.
India, the president of the G20 this year, is co-chairing the steering committee of the summit with France.

Aim of the proposed Pact:

It is aimed at addressing the financing needs of sustainable development and climate action.
It focuses on mobilizing funds from various sources, including public and private sectors, to support initiatives that promote economic growth, poverty eradication, and environmental sustainability.

Need of the Pact:

According to One Planet Lab’s white papers released for the Summit, the scale of investment needed to meet the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals, climate COP21 and Biodiversity COP15 objectives set at the global and national levels is to the tune of an additional $4 trillion every year.
Only 25% of global climate investment goes to South Asia, Latin America, and Africa, which house some of the most vulnerable regions.
Global funds clamp down on the fiscal independence of less developed countries by posing several conditions before the money comes in.

Proposals for increasing Climate financing:

Rich Tax: A group of over 140 economists has written an open letter urging world leaders to impose a special tax on the wealth of the super-rich to raise funds for the Global South to address climate change impacts. They propose a 2% tax on extreme wealth, which could generate over $2 trillion annually.
The summit should include three components:
- A pact for global finance flows at the domestic and international levels
- A platform to de-risk finance and attract private investment in sustainable infrastructure
- A political pathway with time-bound deliverables on climate finance.
Other suggestions include:
- Cancelling illegitimate debts
- Withdrawing support for fossil fuel projects
- Making polluting industries pay for damages

13. Bridgetown Initiative

Subject : International Relations

Section: International organisation

The Bridgetown Initiative is a proposal to reform the world of development finance, particularly how rich countries help poor countries cope with and adapt to climate change.

Barbados sets out three key steps in the Bridgetown Initiative. The first involves changing some of the terms around how funding is loaned and repaid. The aim is to stop developing nations spiralling into a debt crisis when their borrowing is forced up by successive disasters like floods, droughts and storms.

Why is the Bridgetown Initiative needed?

Development banks – financial institutions that provide loans and grants to developing countries to fund economic and social development – are outdated and need reform.
For example, rich countries are able to borrow capital with interest rates of between 1 to 4%. But for poorer countries – which are seen as riskier investments – interest rates are around 14%.
Without access to concessional funding – finance offered below market rates – there is “no way” developing countries can fight climate change, Mottley told the COP27 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt.
There is a need for reform of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, which were both set up in 1944 to repair economies and promote co-operation after World War II and the Great Depression of the 1930s.
Barbados and other so-called “small island developing states” aren’t the only ones in the frontline of tackling climate change. There are around 3.3 billion people between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn are affected.

The key demands of the Bridgetown Initiative are:

LIQUIDITY SUPPORT

N. member states should fast-track the transfer of $100 billion in so-called ‘Special Drawing Rights’, a monetary reserve currency, to programmes that support climate resilience and subsidise lending to low-income countries.
The International Monetary Fund should also immediately suspend surcharges – additional interest payments imposed on heavily indebted borrowing countries – for two to three years.
It should also restore “enhanced access limits” established during the COVID pandemic for two emergency financial support instruments, the Rapid Credit Facility (RCF) and Rapid Financing Instruments.

DEBT SUSTAINABILITY

G20 creditor countries should redesign their Common Framework for restructuring the debt of poor countries in default, notably by speeding up debt relief talks and allowing middle-income countries to access it.
The IMF should encourage the restructuring of unsustainable debt in a way that is consistent across countries, and change the way it analyses the debt to incentivise investments that create future savings, such as those for climate adaptation.
Public and private creditors should include disaster clauses in lending deals to allow countries to divert debt payments to disaster relief; and refinance high-interest and short-term debt with credit guarantees and longer maturities.
N. member states should agree to raise $100 billion a year for a fund to help pay for the climate-related loss and damage suffered by developing countries.

PRIVATE CAPITAL

The IMF and multilateral development banks should offer $100 billion a year in currency risk guarantees to help drive private sector investment in projects that would help developing countries make the transition to a low-carbon economy.
Connected to that, they should also expand their support to countries to help them create a pipeline of investable projects, and make greater use of blended finance and other structures where public lenders take on more project risk.

DEVELOPMENT LENDING

The G20 and other shareholders of the World Bank, IMF and development institutions should fully implement the 2022 recommendations of a panel of experts aimed at boosting lending by the multilateral development banks.
They should commit an extra $100 billion a year in fresh capital to the various institutions and move the Special Drawing Rights capital to multilateral development banks, starting with the African Development Bank by September 2023.
Increase the leveraging of the World Bank’s International Development Association, which provides concessional finance; fully fund its emergency support facility to $6 billion by end-2023; and scale up the IDA’s funding to $279 billion.
Raise the access limits to concessional finance through the Poverty Reduction and Growth Trust and the Resilience & Sustainability Trust.
Assess funding eligibility in light of a country’s vulnerability and provide low-cost, 50-year loans to help them invest in areas including climate resilience, water security, pandemic preparedness and access to renewable energy.
Simplify and harmonise the way countries can apply to access loans across the world, and provide more support in the process. The international financial institutions should also finance development plans that help protect shared resources.

TRADING

Groups such as the World Trade Organisation and other major trading partners should work with governments to strengthen supply chains to make them more resilient, ensure they benefit countries that produce raw materials and protect the vulnerable.

GOVERNANCE

The governmental shareholders of International Financial Institutions should change the way they are structured and run – largely by richer nations in the Global North – to make them more “inclusive and equitable

14. Mines Ministry seeks to do away with royalty-on-royalty charges, proposes changes in rules

Subject :Schemes

Context: The ministry is proposing that the average sale price be calculated after deducting the additional payments made to the District Mineral Foundation and others as royalty.

Details:

India’s Mines Ministry is planning to do away with double calculation of royalty — a complaint that miners in the country have been raising for quite some time now.
The ministry is proposing that the average sale price be calculated after deducting the additional payments made to the District Mineral Foundation (DMF) and others as royalty.
Royalty on minerals, currently payable on ad valorem(according to value) basis, is calculated on the basis of the average sale price (ASP) published by the Indian Bureau of Mines.
ASP is also used in calculating auction parameters such as premium, upfront payment, reserve price for bidding, security deposits and so on.
The ASP now includes royalty and payments to statutory bodies like DMF and National Mineral Exploration Trust (NMET). For the purpose of computing the sale value, no deduction is made in the royalty payment to these statutory bodies.
The Ministry is proposing to do away with this old system of calculation, and make necessary amendments in the Minerals (Other than Atomic and Hydro Carbons Energy Minerals) Concession Rules, 2016 (MCR 2016), too.

Why this move?

As per a committee report — set up under the Chairmanship of Praveen Kumar — the sale value of minerals already includes royalty, payments to DMF and NMET. But, the lessee (of the mines) ends up paying “royalty on royalty”. Thus there is an “additional charge on the miners”.
The committee — which had members of Mines and Steel Ministries, NITI Aayog, Indian Statistical Institute and Indian Bureau of Mines — has recommended “calculating ASP after deducting royalty, DMF and NMET.

Amendment to concession rules

The charging of royalty, DMF, NMET and auction premium on the sale value which includes these charges “is not the appropriate way to collect revenue and leads to cascading effect on both royalty and auction premium”, the Ministry said in a notice; adding that it is accordingly “considering to amend MCR 2016”.
Under the proposed amendment, “average sale price to be used for calculation of the payment of royalty, payment towards DMF and NMET… shall be the average sale price of the mineral grade or concentrate published by the Indian Bureau of Mines for the relevant mines, minus the royalty, payment towards DMF and NMET calculated on sale price published by IBM”.

District Mineral Fund

DMFs were instituted under the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) (MMDR) Amendment Act 2015.
They are non-profit trusts to work for the interest and benefit of persons and areas affected by mining-related operations.
Objective: To work for the interest of the benefit of the persons and areas affected mining related operations in such manner as may be prescribed by the State Government.
Jurisdiction: Its manner of operation comes under the jurisdiction of the relevant State Government.
The fund is collected at the district level(District Mineral Fund) .There are certain high-priority areas identified in all states’ DMF rules, where at least 60 per cent of the fund must be used. These include vital and pressing concerns, including healthcare.
The various state DMF rules and the Pradhan Mantri Khanij Khestra Kalyan Yojana (PMKKKY) guidelines stipulate some “high priority” issues for DMFs
They are, drinking water, health, women and child welfare,.education, livelihood and skill development, welfare of aged and disabled, sanitation.

Pradhan Mantri Khanij Kshetra Kalyan Yojana (PMKKKY):

The programme is meant to provide for the welfare of areas and people affected by mining related operations, using the funds generated by District Mineral Foundations (DMFs).

Objectives of the scheme:

To implement various developmental and welfare projects/programs in mining affected areas that complement the existing ongoing schemes/projects of State and Central Government.
To minimize/mitigate the adverse impacts, during and after mining, on the environment, health and socio-economics of people in mining districts.
To ensure long-term sustainable livelihoods for the affected people in mining areas.

15. National Bank for Financing Infrastructure and Development (NABFID)

Subject: Economy

Section: National Income

Context: NaBFID plans to raise up to Rs 52,000 crore in funding during FY24.

Concept :

NBFID will be set up as a corporate body with authorised share capital of one lakh crore rupees.

Objectives:

To directly or indirectly lend, invest, or attract investments for infrastructure projects located entirely or partly in India.
It intends facilitating the development of the market for bonds, loans, and derivatives for infrastructure financing.

Functions of NBFID:

Extending loans and advances for infrastructure projects.
Taking over or refinancing such existing loans.
Attracting investment from private sector investors and institutional investors for infrastructure projects.
Organising and facilitating foreign participation in infrastructure projects.
Facilitating negotiations with various government authorities for dispute resolution in the field of infrastructure financing.
Providing consultancy services in infrastructure financing.

Source of Funds:

It may raise money in the form of loans or otherwise both in Indian rupees and foreign currencies, or secure money by the issue and sale of various financial instruments including bonds and debentures.
It may borrow money from the central government, Reserve Bank of India (RBI), scheduled commercial banks, mutual funds, and multilateral institutions such as the World Bank and Asian Development Bank.

Initially, the central government will own 100% shares of the institution which may subsequently be reduced up to 26%.

Management of NBFID:

NBFID will be governed by a Board of Directors.
The Chairperson will be appointed by the central government in consultation with RBI.
A body constituted by the central government will recommend candidates for the post of the Managing Director and Deputy Managing Directors.
The Board will appoint independent directors based on the recommendation of an internal committee.

Support from the Central Government:

The central government will provide grants worth Rs. 5,000 crore to NBFID by the end of the first financial year.
The government will also provide guarantee at a concessional rate of up to 0.1% for borrowing from multilateral institutions, sovereign wealth funds, and other foreign funds.
Costs towards insulation from fluctuations in foreign exchange (in connection with borrowing in foreign currency) may be reimbursed by the government in part or full.
Upon request by NBFID, the government may guarantee the bonds, debentures, and loans issued by NBFID.

Prior Sanction For Investigation And Prosecution:

No investigation can be initiated against employees of NBFID without the prior sanction of the central government in case of the chairperson or other directors, and the managing director in case of other employees.
Courts will also require prior sanction for taking cognisance of offences in matters involving employees of NBFID.

16. Generalized System of Preferences (GSPs)

Subject : International relations

Section : International organisation

Context: India seeks restoration of GSP status withdrawn under Trump administration. India was the largest beneficiary of the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) status in 2017, with $5.7 billion worth of imports into the US given duty-free status. About 2,000 products including auto parts and textile materials were allowed to enter the US duty-free.

About Generalized System of Preferences (GSPs)

It was instituted in 1971 under the aegis of United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
It is aimed at creating an enabling trading environment for developing countries.
The countries which grant GSP preferences are Australia, Belarus, Canada, the European Union, Iceland, Japan, Kazakhstan, New Zealand, Norway, the Russian Federation, Switzerland, Turkey and the United States of America.
The provision and utilization of trade preferences is a key goal the Istanbul Program of Actions adopted at the UN LDC IV in 2013, as further reaffirmed in SDGs Goal 17.
The objective of UNCTAD’s support on GSP and other preferential arrangements is to help developing countries to increase utilization of GSP and other trade preferences.

European Union’s Generalized System of Preferences (GSPs)

It is a set of EU rules allowing exporters from developing countries to pay less or no duties on their exports to the European Union.
The EU adopted a new Generalized Scheme of Preferences in 2012.

The Generalised Scheme of Preferences (GSP) has 3 strands:

GSP general arrangement: for all beneficiary countries
GSP+: A special scheme with entire removal of tariffs on essentially the same product categories as those covered by the general arrangement.
The countries need to ratify and implement international conventions relating to human and labour rights, environment and good governance.
Everything But Arms: A special arrangement for least developed countries (as recognised and classified by the UN) giving them duty- and quota-free access for all products, except arms and ammunitions.

About UNCTAD

It is a permanent intergovernmental body established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1964.
Its headquarters are located in Geneva, Switzerland.
It is part of the UN Secretariat.
Its goals are to maximize the trade, investment and development opportunities of developing countries and assist them in their efforts to integrate into the world economy on an equitable basis.
Its objective is to formulate policies relating to all aspects of development including trade, aid, transport, finance and technology.