Daily Prelims Notes 13 February 2023

February 13, 2023
Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
Category: DPN

Daily Prelims Notes

13 February 2023

Table Of Contents

Subject: ENVIRONMENT

Section: CLIMATE CHANGE

Context: The term widely used in UN Climate Change negotiations broadly refers to the measure of losses and damages due to the negative impacts of the climate crisis.

More on the News:

The damages from climate change are both economic and non-economic. In the case of the former, we can assign a monetary value, whereas the same does not apply to non-economic losses.
Non-economic losses can range from the loss of cultural heritage and societal or cultural identity to the loss of biodiversity, ecosystem services and intergenerational trauma due to extreme climate events.
The recently concluded COP27 in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt witnessed history in creating the “loss and damages” fund to assist the most vulnerable countries with damages from climate-linked disasters.
The developments at COP27 have been welcomed by India, however, with the condition that only developed countries are obligated for such funding arrangements.
India’s Union Minister for Environment, Forests and Climate Change expressed that India will seek funds from the facility, considering it is extremely vulnerable to climate change.

Loss and damages

The Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change (IPCC) definition for ‘loss and damage’.
- The term ‘losses and damages’ refers to the economic and non-economic impacts of climate change, including extreme and slow onset events, in developing countries that are particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change. It’s destructive, irreversible, and cannot be addressed by mitigation and adaptation measures.
Evolution
- L&D was brought up as a demand in 1991 by the island country of Vanuatu, which was representing the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS).
- Since the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change was formed in the early 1990s, loss and damage due to climate change have been debated.
- The Least Developed Countries Group has long aimed to establish accountability and compensation for loss and destruction.
- Warsaw International Mechanism on Loss and Damages (WIM)was founded in 2013 without funding after extensive pressure from developing countries.
- At the COP26 in Glasgow, the G77, a coalition of 134 developing countries, and China, proposed the Loss and Damage Finance Facility (LDFF), a dedicated stream of finance to specifically address losses and damages.
- It is finally approved in CoP 27, at Sherm-Al- Sheikh, Egypt.

2. Orca moms may be feeding their sons into extinction

Subject : ENVIRONMENT

Section: BIODIVERSITY

Context: The study took place over nearly half-a-century and followed the lives of 40 female orca whales. The researchers wanted to understand why the species was becoming increasingly endangered.

More on the News:

Researchers found that when female orca whales had sons their chances of giving birth to future offspring reduced by 50%. This remained the case throughout the mother’s lifetime and was not observed in orcas who gave birth to daughters.
Killer whale mothers pay a high cost in terms of their future reproduction to keep their sons alive.
It was along with these findings about the decreased reproduction rates that the researchers also noted how orca mothers continued a very close maternal relationship with their male offspring. The mothers gave their sons half the salmon they caught for themselves.
That was not the case for the orca daughters, who were generally fed by their mothers until they reached their own reproductive age.
There is an idea that this behavior — to ensure the young male ocas are fed and fit — could be an attempt by their mothers to increase the overall reproductive output of their population. Healthy males mate with many females, and that ultimately could increase the number of future offspring.
This strategy of indefinitely sacrificing future reproduction to keep their sons alive may have been beneficial in their evolutionary past, but it now potentially threatens the future viability of the southern resident killer whale population.

About killer whales (orca):

Orcas belong to a highly evolved group of toothed whales under the suborder Cetacean and dolphin family and are widely distributed in temperate and tropical waters.
They have long life spans and are highly social, feeding cooperatively, and with complex vocal behaviours.
While most killer whale populations in other regions show high site fidelity and residence rates, resident populations are yet to be identified in the northern Indian Ocean.
Given their highly social and curious behaviour, orcas often approach fishing vessels to assess if there is any fish in the net, or just to observe people on the vessel.
In the wild, there are no instances of killer whales fatally attacking humans.

3. Pinpointing priority areas for mangrove conservation in the Sundarbans

Subject: ENVIRONMENT

Section: ECOSYSTEM

Context: A new study published in Scientific Reports has mapped priority areas in the Sundarbans Biosphere Reserve (SBR) that are highly suitable for mangrove conservation and restoration.

About Sunderbans

It is a vast contiguous mangrove forest ecosystem in the coastal region of Bay of Bengal spread over India and Bangladesh on the delta of the Ganges, Brahmaputra and Meghna rivers.
The site is intersected by a complex network of tidal waterways, mudflats and small islands of salt-tolerant mangrove forests and presents an excellent example of ongoing ecological processes.
It constitutes over60% of the country’s total mangrove forest area.
Indian Sundarbans was recognised as UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987, ‘Wetland of International Importance’ under the Ramsar Convention in January 2019 and also a Biosphere Reserve in 1989.
The area is known for its wide range of fauna, and is home to many rare and globally threatened wildlife species such as the Estuarine Crocodile, Royal Bengal Tiger, Water Monitor Lizard, Gangetic Dolphin and Olive Ridley Turtles.
The Sunderbans Delta is the only mangrove forest in the world inhabited by tigers.
For its preservation, Discovery India and World Wide Fund (WWF) India partnered with the Government of West Bengal and local communities in the Sundarbans in 2019.
It is the world’s largest single block of mangrove and “is highly threatened and drastically reducing at an alarming rate due to the overexploitation of resources, land transformation for aquaculture practice, increase in paddy cultivation, infrastructural development, and human settlements

COP14 on wetlands

Aims and objectives of the COP-

The Conference of the Contracting Parties (COP) invites Parties and relevant stakeholders to join this international mangrove cooperation mechanism for technical exchanges, collaborative research, education and training, and pilot projects on conservation and restoration, to protect mangrove biodiversity and coastal blue carbon ecosystems, enhance mangrove ecosystem services and resilience to climate change.

What is Ramsar Recognition?

A Ramsar site is a wetland of international importance under the Ramsar Convention, which is also known as the ‘Convention on Wetlands’ — an intergovernmental environmental treaty established by UNESCO in 1971, and named after the city of Ramsar in Iran, where the convention was signed that year.
Ramsar recognition is the identification of wetlands around the world, which are of international importance, especially if they provide habitat to waterfowl (about 180 species of birds).
There is international interest and cooperation in the conservation of such wetlands and the judicious use of their resources.
India’s Ramsar wetlands are spread over 11,000 sq km — around 10% of the total wetland area in the country — across 18 States.
No other South Asian country has as many sites though this has much to do with India’s geographical breadth and tropical diversity.

Criteria: One of the nine criteria must be fulfilled to be the Ramsar Site.

Criterion 1: If it contains a representative, rare, or unique example of a natural or near-natural wetland type found within the appropriate biogeographic region.
Criterion 2: If it supports vulnerable, endangered, or critically endangered species or threatened ecological communities.
Criterion 3: If it supports populations of plant and/or animal species important for maintaining the biological diversity of a particular biogeographic region.
Criterion 4: If it supports plant and/or animal species at a critical stage in their life cycles, or provides refuge during adverse conditions.
Criterion 5: If it regularly supports 20,000 or more waterbirds.
Criterion 6: If it regularly supports 1% of the individuals in a population of one species or subspecies of waterbird.
Criterion 7: If it supports a significant proportion of indigenous fish subspecies, species or families, life-history stages, species interactions and/or populations that are representative of wetland benefits and/or values and thereby contributes to global biological diversity.
Criterion 8: If it is an important source of food for fishes, spawning ground, nursery and/or migration path on which fish stocks, either within the wetland or elsewhere, depend.
Criterion 9: If it regularly supports 1% of the individuals in a population of one species or subspecies of wetland-dependent non avian animal species.

Significance:

Ramsar Tag helps develop and maintain an international network of wetlands which are important for the conservation of global biological diversity and for sustaining human life through the maintenance of their ecosystem components, processes and benefits.
Sites are protected under strict guidelines of the convention.

Mangrove Alliance for Climate

An initiative led by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Indonesia, the Mangrove Alliance for Climate (MAC) includes India, Sri Lanka, Australia, Japan, and Spain.
It aims to educate and spread awareness worldwide on the role of mangroves in curbing global warming and its potential as a solution for climate change.
The intergovernmental alliance works on a voluntary basis which means that there are no real checks and balances to hold members accountable.
The members will also share expertise and support each other in researching, managing and protecting coastal areas.

The current state of the mangroves

Geographical Location:

Mangroves are found only along sheltered coastlines within tropical or subtropical latitudes because they cannot withstand freezing temperatures.
They share the unique capability of growing within reach of the tides in salty soil.

Area Covered

Global Mangrove Cover:
- The total mangrove cover in the world is 1,50,000 sq kms.
- Asia has the largest number of mangroves worldwide.
- South Asia comprises 8% of the world’s mangrove cover.
- India’s contribution is8% total mangrove cover in South Asia.

Mangroves in India:

Coverage:
- According to the India State of Forest Report, 2019, the mangrove cover in India is 4,975 sq km, which is 15% of the country’s total geographical area.
- West Bengal has45% of India’s mangrove cover, followed by Gujarat at 23.66% and A&N Islands at 12.39%.

Largest Mangrove Forest:

Sundarbans in West Bengal is the largest mangrove forest regions in the world. It is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- The forest is home to the Royal Bengal tiger, Gangetic dolphins and Estuarine crocodiles.
Bhitarkanika Mangroves: The second largest mangrove forest in India is Bhitarkanika in Odisha created by the two river deltas of River Brahmani and Baitarani.
- It is one of the most significant Ramsar wetlands in India.
Godavari-Krishna Mangroves, Andhra Pradesh: The Godavari-Krishna mangroves extend from Odisha to Tamil Nadu.
- The deltas of the Ganges, Mahanadi, Krishna, Godavari, and Cauvery rivers contain mangrove forests.
- The backwaters in Kerala have a high density of mangrove forests.
- Pichavaram in Tamil Nadu has a vast expanse of water covered with mangrove forests. It is home to many aquatic bird species.

Significance of Mangroves-

Ecologically mangroves are important in maintaining and building the soil, as a reservoir in the tertiary assimilation of waste.
They provide protection against cyclones.
Promotes land accretion, fixation of mud banks, dissipation of winds, tidal and wave energy.
The dense tangle of roots allows the trees to handle the daily rise and fall of tides.
Mangrove forests stabilize the coastline, reducing erosion from storm surges, currents, waves, and tides.
Mangroves improve water quality by absorbing nutrients from runoff that might otherwise cause harmful algal blooms offshore.
Both coral reefs and seagrass beds rely on the water-purifying ability of mangrove forests to keep the water clear and healthy.
Mangroves make up less than 2% of marine environments but account for 10-15% of carbon burial.
Once the leaves and older trees die they fall to the seafloor and take the stored carbon with them to be buried in the soil.
This buried carbon is known as “blue carbon” because it is stored underwater in coastal ecosystems like mangrove forests, seagrass beds and salt marshes.
Supports an incredible diversity of creatures including some species unique to mangrove forests.
They provide habitat and refuge to a wide array of wildlife such as birds, fish, invertebrates, mammals and plants.

Threats Faced by Mangroves

Commercialisation of Coastal Areas: Aquaculture, coastal development, rice and palm oil farming and industrial activities are rapidly replacing these salt-tolerant trees and the ecosystems they support.
- Mangrove coverage has shrunk by half in the last 40 years. Less than 1% of tropical forests are mangroves.
Shrimp Farms: The emergence of shrimp farms has caused at least 35% of the overall loss of mangrove forests.
Temperature-Related Issues: A fluctuation of ten degrees in a short period of time is enough stress to damage the plant and freezing temperatures for even a few hours can kill some mangrove species.
Soil-Related Issues: The soil where mangroves are rooted poses a challenge for plants as it is severely lacking in oxygen.
Excessive Human Intervention: During past changes in sea level, mangroves were able to move further inland, but in many places, human development is now a barrier that limits how far a mangrove forest can migrate.
- Mangroves also frequently suffer from oil spills.

Conservation of Mangroves

UNESCO Designated Sites: The inclusion of mangroves in Biosphere Reserves, World Heritage sites and UNESCO Global Geoparks contributes to improving the knowledge, management and conservation of mangrove ecosystems throughout the world.
International Society for Mangrove Ecosystem (ISME): The ISME is a non-governmental organization established in 1990 to promote the study of mangroves with the purpose of enhancing their conservation, rational management and sustainable utilization.
Blue Carbon Initiative: The International Blue Carbon Initiative is focused on mitigating climate change through the conservation and restoration of coastal and marine ecosystems.
- It is coordinated by Conservation International (CI), IUCN, and the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission-UNESCO (IOC-UNESCO).
International Day for the Conservation of the Mangrove Ecosystem: UNESCO celebrates this day on July 26 with the aim of raising awareness about mangrove ecosystems and promoting their sustainable management and conservation.
Mangroves for the Future Initiative: IUCN and UNDP developed a unique initiative to promote investment in coastal ecosystem conservation called the “Mangroves for the Future (MFF)”.
- The member nations include Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Maldives, Myanmar, Pakistan, Seychelles, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Vietnam.
National Mangrove Committee: The Government of India set up a National Mangrove Committee in 1976 which advises the government about the conservation and development of mangroves.

Budget push for Mangroves https://optimizeias.com/budget-push-for-mangroves/

4. 4G in name only: data needles stutter in ‘grey spots’ in India

Subject : Science and technology

Section:

Concept :

As per the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), from September 2022, the three main telecom providers in India classify almost 95% of their customer base as “broadband” customers, which now means that they should be able to access Internet speeds of minimum 2 Mbps.
The Government in India has revised the minimum broadband speed definition from 512 Kbps to 2 Mbps
Broadband speeds below 2 Mbps are not sufficient for video calls, streaming video and many other services.
However, in the country, high speed broadband speeds are taken for granted in large cities whereas there are villages without any 4G network coverage.
Besides these two categories there are smaller urban settlements and towns which are affected due to weak connectivity.
White spots are those places without cellular connectivity.
Grey spots are areas that are connected but may not let users get enough out of their access.
The users in these towns, despite having 4G network towers, struggle to get usable Internet speeds mainly because of the shortage of towers i.e. these towers cannot handle high traffic due to high number of users.
According to the data released by Ookla in December 2022, the mean wireless Internet speed in India was 108.86 Mbps, while the median was just 25.29 Mbps.
- Mean Speed: indicates the internet speed an average user usually gets.
- Median Speed: midpoint of the fastest and slowest connections.
This huge difference between the mean and median shows that there is huge inequality in the quality of access.

What is Broadband?

Broadband refers to various high-capacity transmission technologies that transmit data, voice, and video across long distances and at high speeds.
Common mediums of transmission include coaxial cables, fiber optic cables, and radio waves.
Broadband is always connected and removes the need for dial-up.
There are six main types of broadband technologies: digital subscriber line (DSL), cable modem, fiber, wireless, satellite, and broadband over power lines (BPL).
The bulk of Internet users (92.6%) across the globe access broadband through their mobile phones.
Its importance is far-reaching; it allows for high-quality and quick access to information, teleconferencing, data transmission, and more in various capacities, including healthcare, education, and technological development.

5. Aero India 2023

Subject: Science and technology

Section :Defence

Concept :

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi will inaugurate the 14th edition of Asia’s largest aero show –– Aero India 2023 – in Bengaluru, Karnataka on February 13, 2023..

Details

Spanning over five days, the event, on the theme ‘The runway to a billion opportunities’, will radiate the rise of a strong & self-reliant ‘New India’ by displaying India’s growth in aerospace and defence capabilities.
The focus will be on showcasing indigenous equipment/technologies and forging partnerships with foreign companies, in line with ‘Make in India, Make for the World’ vision for a secure and prosperous future.
The major exhibitors include Airbus, Boeing, Dassault Aviation, Lockheed Martin, Israel Aerospace Industry, BrahMos Aerospace, Army Aviation, HC Robotics, SAAB, Safran, Rolls Royce, Larsen & Toubro, Bharat Forge Limited, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL), Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) and BEML Limited.
The ‘CEOs Round Table’, under the chairmanship of the Raksha Mantri, will be held on the theme ‘Sky is not the limit: opportunities beyond boundaries’.
The Bandhan ceremony, which witnesses signing of Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs)/Agreements, Transfer of Technologies, Product Launches and other major announcements, will be held
The annual defence innovation event, Manthan, will be the flagship technology showcase event
The ‘India Pavilion’, based on ‘Fixed Wing Platform’ theme, will showcase India’s growth in the area, including the future prospects.

About Aero India:

Aero India is a biennial air show and aviation exhibition held in Bengaluru, India at the Yelahanka Air Force Station.
It is organised by the Defence Exhibition Organisation, Ministry of Defence.
The Aero India is the largest air show in Asia.
The Defence Ministry of India, Indian Air Force,Hindustan Aeronautics Limited Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), Department of Space, the Union Civil Aviation Ministry and other such organisations join hands to organise the Aero India show making it the largest air show in Asia.
The first edition of the air show was held in 1996.

6. Indo-U.S. Unmanned Aerial Vehicle to be flight-tested

Subject :Science and technology

Section: Defence

Concept :

A member of the U.S. government delegation who was attending the Aero India 2023, has said that a prototype of the Air-Launched Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (ALUAV) jointly developed by India and the US would be flight-tested soon.
The US government official has said that the flight testing of ALUAV is expected to commence in September-November of 2023.
The flight testing will take place at a range in northern India and also in the US.
India and the US had signed the Project Arrangement (PA) to ALUAV in 2021 as a part of the Defence Technology and Trade Initiative (DTTI).
Bengaluru-based Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE) and the Aerospace Systems Directorate at the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, along with the Air Forces of India and the U.S. are the main organisations involved in the execution of the project.
According to reports, ALUAV would be launched from the C130J aircraft.

Defence Technology and Trade Initiative (DTTI)

In 2012, the Department of Defence created a mechanism for overcoming or reducing these impediments. This effort has evolved into the India-U.S. Defence Technology and Trade Initiative or DTTI.
Objective: The main aim of DTTI is to bring sustained leadership focus to promote collaborative technology exchange and create opportunities for co-production and co-development of future technologies for Indian and US military forces.
DTTI is intended to focus senior U.S. and Indian leadership on real opportunities and challenges associated with strengthening our defence partnership.
While DTTI is not a treaty or law, it elevates the shared commitment of both countries to deepen bilateral defence cooperation
Under the DTTI Terms of Reference, the two leads will meet as the DTTI Group every six months alternating locations between the U.S. and India.
The day-to-day DTTI effort is overseen by the DTTI Interagency Task Force (DIATF).
Four Service-led Joint Working Groups (JWGs) execute projects and activities under DTTI:
- Land Systems (LS),
- Naval Systems (NS),
- Air Systems (AS), and
- Aircraft Carrier Technology Cooperation (ACTC).
Co-development of ALUAV has been overseen by the Joint Working Group on Air Systems and is a major accomplishment for DTTI.

7. Millet International Initiative For Research And Awareness (MIIRA)

Subject :Geography

Section : Agriculture

Concept :

With food security and nutrition a top priority in agriculture during its G20 Presidency, India is planning to propose the launch of a global initiative – MIIRA, to encourage the consumption and production of millets.
A draft charter of the initiative is ready and will be placed for approval at the first meeting of the Agricultural Deputies (under G20) from February 13-15 at Indore, MP.

Background

The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) declared 2023 as the International Year of Millets (IYM), a proposal sponsored by the Government of India to promote these “nutri-cereals.”
The declaration will be helpful to the Government of India in articulating its goal of making IYM 2023 a “People’s Movement” as well as presenting India as the “Global Hub for Millets,” as India produces one-fifth of the world’s millets.
The year 2023 is also significant because of India’s G20 Presidency, which will also have five meetings on agriculture.
In her Budget speech (2023-24), while describing various types of millets as ‘Shree Anna’, the Union Finance Minister said that the Indian Institute of Millet Research, Hyderabad will be supported as the Centre of Excellence.
This will help in sharing best practices, research and technologies at the international level.

Millet International Initiative for Research and Awareness (MIIRA)

The global initiative will be aimed at coordinating millet research programmesat the international level and will be launched keeping in mind the nutritional value and the climate resilient nature of millets.
Besides setting up a web platform to connect researchers and holding international research conferences, the plan is also to promote millet consumption by raising awareness.
India would provide the “seed money” for MIIRA to take off, and each G20 member will subsequently be required to pay to its budget in the form of a membership fee.
According to the sources, the MIIRA secretariat will be in Delhi, and India being a major producer of millets, will ensure a flow of investment from the country’s industry and research bodies.

8. Bhashini and Bhasha daan initiative

Subject : Science and Technology

Section :Computers

Concept :

Bhashini, a small team at the Ministry of Electronics and IT (MeitY), is currently building a WhatsApp-based chatbot that relies on information generated by ChatGPT to return appropriate responses to queries.
And because people, especially farmers in rural areas, may not always want to type out their queries, questions can be asked on the chatbot through voice notes.
To build such a language model, the official said, it is pertinent to have large datasets of the various local languages spoken in India on which the model can be trained.
This is where an initiative called Bhasha Daancomes in. It is an ambitious project which aims to crowdsource voice datasets in multiple Indian languages.
On the project’s website, people can contribute in three key ways: by recording their voice samples in multiple Indian languages by reading out a piece of text, typing out a sentence being played, and translating text in one language into another.

Bhashini – National Language Translation Mission

‘Digital India BHASHINI’ seeks to enable easy access to the internet and digital services in Indian languages, including voice-based access, and help the creation of content in Indian languages.
It was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the inauguration of the Digital India Week, 2022 at Gandhinagar, Gujarat.
Bhashini stands for BHASaINterface for India
It is under the Ministry of Electronics & IT.
Digital India Bhashini, as India’s Artificial Intelligence (AI)-led language translation platform, will enable massive citizen engagement to build multilingual datasets through a crowd-sourcing initiative called Bhasha Daan.

Significance

This mission aims to empower Indian citizens by connecting them to the Digital Initiatives of the country in their own language, thereby leading to digital inclusion.
The Bhashini platform will catalyze the entire Digital Ecosystem and is a giant step towardsrealizing the goal of Digital Government.
Bhashini aims to build a National Public Digital Platform for languages to develop services and products for citizens by leveraging the power of artificial intelligence and other emergingtechnologies.
BHASHINI also aims to increase the content in Indian languages on the Internet substantially in the domains of public interest, particularly, governance and-policy, science & technology, etc., thus encouraging citizens to use the Internet in their own language.

Bhasha Daan

Bhasha Daan is an initiative to crowdsource language inputs for multiple Indian languages as part of Project BHASHINI.
It calls upon citizens to help build an open repository of data to digitally enrich his/her own language.
The aim here is to create large datasets for Indian languages, which can be used to train AI models for use by different stakeholders to create products or services for the following:
- Training and benchmark datasets
- Data contributions from government entities, language chapters, communities etc
- Crowd sourcing initiatives
- Open source language models

Categories of Bhasha Daan

Suno India: One can enrich one’s language by typing the audio he/she hears, or by validating the text transcribed by others.
Bolo India: One can enrich one’s language by donating the voice, through recording of sentences. One can also validate the audios recorded by others
LikhoIndia : One can contribute by translating the prompted text. One can also validate the translations contributed by others.
Dekho India: One can enrich one’s language by typing the text seen, or by labelling the image. One can also validate the images contributed by others.

9. LOK ADALAT

Subject : Polity

Section :Judiciary

Concept :

Transwomen, acid attack survivors don new roles at first national Lok Adalat in Delhi’s courts.
This is the first Lok Adalat held this year by the Delhi State Legal Services Authority (DSLSA) at trial courts.
This year, DSLSA has asked trans people, acid attack survivors and people from disenfranchised communities to be a part of court proceedings as associate members, who help a judge settle cases.

Lok Adalat

Lok Adalat is one of the alternative dispute redressal mechanisms, it is a forum where disputes/cases pending in the court of law or at pre-litigation stage are settled/ compromised amicably.
The Lok Adalats are formed to fulfil the promise given by the preamble of the Indian Constitution– securing Justice – social, economic and political of every citizen of India.

Members of Lok Adalats

The persons deciding the cases in the Lok Adalats are called the Members of the Lok Adalats, they have the role of statutory conciliators only and do not have any judicial role.
Therefore, they can only persuade the parties to come to a conclusion for settling the dispute outside the court in the Lok Adalat and shall not pressurize or coerce any of the parties to compromise or settle cases or matters either directly or indirectly.
The Lok Adalat shall not decide the matter so referred at its own instance, instead the same would be decided on the basis of the compromise or settlement between the parties.
The members shall assist the parties in an independent and impartial manner in their attempt to reach amicable settlement of their dispute.

Constitutional basis:

Article 39A of the Constitution provides for free legal aid to the deprived and weaker sections of the society and to promote justice on the base of equal opportunity.
Articles 14 of the Constitution also make it compulsory for the State to guarantee equality before the law.

Statutory provisions:

Under the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987 Lok Adalats have been given statutory status.
The decision made by the Lok Adalats is considered to be a verdict of a civil court and is ultimate and binding on all parties.

No appeal:

There is no provision for an appeal against the verdict made by Lok Adalat.
But, they are free to initiate litigation by approaching the court of appropriate jurisdiction by filing a case by following the required procedure, in exercise of their right to litigate.

Court fee:

There is no court fee payable when a matter is filed in a Lok Adalat.
Note: If a matter pending in the court of law is referred to the Lok Adalat and is settled subsequently, the court fee originally paid in the court on the complaints/petition is also refunded back to the parties.

Nature of Cases to be Referred to Lok Adalat:

Any case pending before any court.
Any dispute which has not been brought before any court and is likely to be filed before the court.
Provided that any matter relating to an offence not compoundable under the law shall not be settled in Lok Adalat.

How to Get the Case Referred to the Lok Adalat for Settlement?

The State Legal Services Authority or District Legal Services Authority as the case may be on receipt of an application from any one of the parties at a pre-litigation stage may refer such matter to the Lok Adalat for amicable settlement of the dispute for which notice would then be issued to the other party.

Types of Lok adalats

The bodies that may organize Lok Adalats at such intervals and places to exercise their jurisdiction are as follows:
- National Legal Service Authority
- Supreme Court Legal Services Committee
- State Legal Services Authority
- High Court Legal Service Committee
- District Legal Services Authority
- Taluk Legal Services Committee.
Other types of Lok Adalats: Permanent Lok Adalats and Mobile Lok Adalats.
Permanent Lok Adalats:
Permanent Lok Adalats have been set up as permanent bodies with a Chairman and two members for providing compulsory pre-litigative mechanism for conciliation and settlement of cases relating to Public Utility Services like transport, postal, telegraph etc.
Here, even if the parties fail to reach to a settlement, the Permanent Lok Adalat gets jurisdiction to decide the dispute, provided, the dispute does not relate to any offence.
Further, the Award of the Permanent Lok Adalat is final and binding on all the parties. The jurisdiction of the Permanent Lok Adalats is upto Rs. Ten Lakhs.
The Lok Adalat may conduct the proceedings in such a manner as it considers appropriate, taking into account the circumstances of the case, wishes of the parties like requests to hear oral statements, speedy settlement of dispute etc.

Mobile Lok Adalats :

It is organized in various parts of the country which travel from one location to another to resolve disputes in order to facilitate the resolution of disputes through this mechanism.

10. Governor sitting on EC opinion is unethical – Ex. CEC

Subject : Polity

Section: Parliament and State legislature

Concept :

Jharkhand Governor Ramesh Bais being shifted to Maharashtra on Sunday, at least two former Chief Election Commissioners (CECs) said it was “unethical” and “unprecedented” that he had not made public the poll panel’s August 2022 opinion in the office of profit matter against Chief Minister Hemant Soren till now.
The EC had communicated its opinion, on whether Soren should be disqualified or not, to Bais in August 2022.
In October, Bais had set off speculation by saying publicly that he had sought a “second opinion”. But in a letter to Soren, the EC clarified in November that it had not received any such request.

Decision on questions as to disqualifications of members – Article 192

(1) If any question arises as to whether a member of a House of the Legislature of a State has become subject to any of the disqualifications mentioned in clause (1) of article 191, the question shall be referred for the decision of the Governor and his decision shall be final.
(2) Before giving any decision on any such question, the Governor shall obtain the opinion of the Election Commission and shall act according to such opinion.

Disqualifications as per Article 191 (1)

A person shall be disqualified for being chosen as, and for being, a member of the Legislative Assembly or Legislative Council of a State:
- if he holds any office of profit under the Government of India or the Government of any State specified in the First Schedule, other than an office declared by the Legislature of the State by law not to disqualify its holder;]
- if he is of unsound mind and stands so declared by a competent court;
- if he is an undischarged insolvent;
- if he is not a citizen of India, or has voluntarily acquired the citizenship of a foreign State, or is under any acknowledgment of allegiance or adherence to a foreign State;
- if he is so disqualified by or under any law made by Parliament.

11. President Murmu appoints new Governors in 13 states

Subject :Polity

Section: Federalism

Concept :

The Governor – Appointment

President of India appoints the Governor of State by warrant under his hand and seal for a five-year term.
The Governor is not directly elected by the people, and neither is he elected indirectly by a special electoral college.

Qualifications: The Indian Constitution specifies two basic qualities for the selection of a Governor.

He should be an Indian citizen.
He must be at least 35 years old.

Over time, the following conventions have emerged:

He should be an outsider who does not reside in the state where he will be appointed.
When appointing the Governor of a state, the President must consult with the state’s Chief Minister.

Constitutional Position: The provisions of Articles 154, 163, and 164 of the Constitution empower the constitutional post of Governor.

Article 153 of the Indian Constitution mandates the appointment of a Governor in each state. The 7th Amendment to the Constitution however, allows for the appointment of the same person as Governor of two or more states.
Article 154: The Governor shall have executive power over the state, which he shall exercise either directly or through officers subordinate to him in conformity with this Constitution.
Article 163: There shall be a council of ministers, led by the Chief Minister, to assist and advise the Governor in the exercise of his powers, except when he is compelled to execute his functions at his discretion.
Article 164: The council of ministers is collectively responsible to the state’s legislative assembly. This provision is the cornerstone of the state’s parliamentary system of governance.
The Governor has the same Executive, Legislative, Financial, and Judicial authorities as the President of India. However, the Governor’s power is restricted in several ways compared to that of the President, as the Governor lacks the President’s military, diplomatic, and emergency authorities.