Daily Prelims Notes 13 January 2023

January 13, 2023
Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
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Daily Prelims Notes

13 January 2023

Table Of Contents

1. Governor vs Government

Subject: Polity

Section: Federalism

Context:

In the ongoing tussle with the ruling government in Tamil Nadu, Governor skipped a few words including, the ‘Dravidian model of governance thereafter the Chief Minister interrupted the speech and expressed regret that the Governor had avoided certain portions of the prepared address.
Governor then walked out of the Assembly after Chief Minister moved a resolution which stated that only the customary speech by the government would go on record.

About Governor’s address:

The Governor is expected to address the first Assembly session of the state every year and the first session of a new Legislature after a general election, under Articles 175 and 176 of the Constitution.
The Governor’s address is prepared by the state governmen
It contains a review of the government’s activities and accomplishments in the previous year, its plans for the session, and policy and legislative proposals that the government plans on implementing in the coming year.
It is prepared and submitted by the state government to the Governor beforehand, and it is the convention for the Governor to read it without any deviations.
As per settled British convention since 1829, the governor must read the full speech as it is basically the government’s statement about which the office, like that of the British monarch, has no responsibility.

Incidents where Governor modified the address:

Kerala’s Governor in 2018 omitted parts of the address that criticized the Union government for undermining principles of cooperative federalism.
In 2017, the Tripura Governor skipped parts of his speech drafted by the state government that was critical to the union government. In 1969, the West Bengal Governor refused to read parts of the address prepared by the ruling government, which was critical of the Union government.

Court observation on Governor’s Right to edit the address:

Calcutta High Court in AndulGafoor Habibullah v. Speaker, West Bengal Assembly (1966) held that:

The governor cannot decline to deliver his address and refuse to fulfill his constitutional duty. Thus, the address under Article 176 is mandatory.
However, the HC held that when the governor fails to deliver his address under Article 176 and walks out of the House after laying down the address on the table of the House, this is mere irregularity, not illegality.
Thus, it cannot be questioned under Article 212, wherein the validity of the House proceedings cannot be challenged on the ground of mere irregularity in the procedure.

The Calcutta HC in another incident held that the governor has the right to delete or not read irrelevant portions or portions which do not deal with the policy of the government.

He may cut down the irrelevant issues, which have nothing to do with the policy and the programmes of the state legislature and which may be calculated to mislead the legislature itself.

2. Groundwater in 12 Indian states found to be contaminated with uranium

Subject :Environment

Section: Pollution

Context:

Twelve Indian states have uranium levels beyond permissible limits in their groundwater, the most recent report on the state of groundwater released by the Central Groundwater Board, revealed.

Details:

Uranium concentrations in the country’s shallow groundwater range from 0-532 parts per billion (ppb).
Uranium concentration is within safe limits in 13 states and none of the samples collected from Kerala had its presence.

Uranium contamination:

Uranium is a nephrotoxic element and can have an adverse impact at very high concentrations.
This means that people dependent on groundwater containing the element are at a higher risk of impaired renal function and kidney disease.
Exposure to uranium may also lead to bone toxicity.

The permissible limit of uranium in groundwater:

30 ppb is the safe level prescribed by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) and the World Health Organization (WHO).

Worst affected states:

Punjab is worst affected with uranium presence being more than 17.7 times the prescribed limit. Nearly 29% of wells in Punjab is contaminated with uranium.
The 12 affected states are Punjab, Haryana, UP, Rajasthan, Tamilnadu, MP, Odisha, Delhi, Telangana, Chhattisgarh and Bihar.

2019 vs 2022; a comparison

In a 2019 assessment, groundwater in 18 states was found to be contaminated with uranium.
Of those, the uranium levels in six states– Andhra Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka and West Bengal– are currently upgraded to ‘within the prescribed limits’ zone.

Causes of contamination:

Geogenic processes are responsible for uranium contamination.
- High levels of uranium are largely due to natural uranium content in aquifer rocks,oxidation state and groundwater chemistry.
- Extreme bicarbonate levels were also found at the sites with high uranium levels. Bicarbonates help to bring the uranium out of the source rocks.
Anthropogenic causes include:
- Overexploitation of groundwater
- Groundwater-table decline
- Nitrate pollution

Solution:

Reverse osmosis (RO) is one of the latest membrane-based technologies used in water purification systems to remove uranium.

3. Ganga villas to sail today what Varanasi-Dibrugarh cruise to offer

Subject: Geography

Section: Transport and communication

Context:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will flag off the Ganga river cruise from Varanasi, his Parliamentary constituency. The 51-day cruise, being pitched as the world’s longest river cruise, is expected to reach its final destination — Dibrugarh in Assam — on March 1.

The route:

Starts from Varanasi, MV Ganga Vilas, and will cover 3,200 km over 51 days, crossing 27 river systems and several states before ending its journey at Dibrugarh.
The voyage will cover 50 tourist spots, including major cities like Patna in Bihar, Sahibganj in Jharkhand, Kolkata in West Bengal, Dhaka in Bangladesh and Guwahati in Assam.

Responsible ministry:

The Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways is the coordinator of this ship tourism project.
While it will be managed by private operators, the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI), under the Ministry of Shipping, Ports and Waterways (MoPSW), has supported the project.

River tourism in India:

In India, eight river cruise vessels are operational between Kolkata and Varanasi while cruise movement is also operating on National Waterways 2 (Brahmaputra).
The government of India has taken several initiatives to boost the country’s cruise tourism industry, including:
- infrastructure upgrades,
- rationalisation of port fees,
- removal of ousting charges,
- priority berthing for cruise ships, and
- the provision of e-visa facilities.
India aims to increase cruise passenger traffic from 0.4 million at present to 4 million.
The economic potential of cruise tourism is expected to rise from $110 million to $5.5 billion in the coming years.

4. FSSAI sets standards for basmati rice; to be enforced from August

Subject: Geography

Section :Agriculture

Context:

In a bid to promote the business around basmati rice, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) notified standards for basmati rice January 12, 2023. They will be enforced from August 1, 2023.

Need:

FSSAI sets the standards:
- To protect consumer interest
- To establish fair practices in the trade of basmati
- Ensure the basmati rice sold in the market has the characteristic fragrance identified with this variety
- To make the market free from artificial fragrances and colouring.

Parameters include:

The authority has set standards on parameters such as the average size of grains and their elongation ratio after cooking.
It has set the maximum limits for moisture, amylose content, uric acid, damaged grains and the presence of non-basmati rice.

Applicable on:

Brown basmati rice,
milled basmati rice,
parboiled brown basmati rice
milled parboiled basmati rice

About Basmati rice:

It is one of the best known varieties of rice all across the globe.
It is long grain rice which has its origin from India and some parts of Pakistan.
Basmati rice has a unique fragrance and flavour due to the presence of a chemical called 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline.
This chemical is found in basmati rice at about 90 parts per million (ppm) which is 12 times more than non-basmati rice varieties.
Basmati rice needs specific climatic conditions to grow which is why it is cultivated in selected regions of India.

Production of Basmati Rice in India:

India is the largest producer of Basmati rice with about 70 per cent share in global production.
Basmati rice constitutes one of India’s significant exports both in terms of soft power and hard money.
It is cultivated in the states of Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and western Uttar Pradesh.
In May 2010, GI status was given to basmati grown only in Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and parts of western Uttar Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir.
Major chunk of India’s basmati rice is exported to Gulf countries viz. Saudi Arabia, Iran, United Arab Emirates, Iraq and Kuwait.

5. Roman secret to durable architecture? Self-healing concrete

Subject: Science & Tech

Section :Msc

Roman architecture:

For many years, researchers assumed the key to the ancient concrete’s durability was based on one ingredient: Pozzolanic material, such as volcanic ash from the area of Pozzuoli on the Bay of Naples.

Recent findings:

Under closer examination, the researchers found the ancient samples also contain small, distinctive, millimetre-scale bright white mineral features, which have been long recognised as a ubiquitous component of Roman concretes.
These white chunks often called “lime clasts,” originate from lime, another critical part of the ancient concrete mix.
The relict lime casts were earlier thought of as evidence of sloppy mixing practices or poor-quality raw materials.
On close examination, they found the Romans employed a hot mixing method and used quicklime in conjunction with, or instead of, slaked lime for producing concrete.
Hot mixingwas actually the key to the super-durable nature.

What is Self healing concrete?

It will biologically produce limestone to heal cracks that appear on the surface of concrete structures.
Bacterial concrete or self healing concrete fills up the cracks developed in structures by the help of bacterial reaction (produce limestone) in the concrete after hardening.

Hot mixing process:

During the hot mixing process, the lime clasts created a brittle structure with a reactive calcium source.
The calcium would travel through the lime clasts, react with water and quickly fill any cracks.

Schematic of the proposed mechanism for self-healing within ancient Roman mortars

The calcium-saturated solution could also react with pozzolanic materials to further strengthen the composite material.
These reactions take place spontaneously and automatically heal the cracks before they spread.

6. Bubble of secrets: Here’s what the new 3D map of a gigantic cosmic cavity tells us about the universe

Subject: Science & tech

Section :Space

Context:

New research on a giant cosmic cavity that surrounds the solar system could reveal the universe’s secrets, including questions about the origins of stars.

Details:

Researchers from the Center for Astrophysics (CfA) Harvard & Smithsonian have generated a 3D magnetic map of the cavity called Local Bubble.

Local bubble:

The Local Bubble is a 1,000-light-year-wide cavity or a superbubble.
Local Bubble is thought to have originated from supernovae roughly 14 million years ago.
- Supernova is a cosmic explosion occurring when stars meet their end.
Other superbubbles also exist in the Milky Way.
Space is full of these superbubbles that trigger the formation of new stars and planets and influence the overall shapes of galaxies.
Superbubbles are comparable to holes in swiss cheese. Supernova explosions blow holes in the cheese. New stars form around these holes.
- Mechanisms powering the formation and expansion of the Local Bubble are not well-understood.
- There is little information on how magnetic fields likely impact the bubble and local star formation.

Mapping of local bubble:

They used Gaia and Planck– space-based observatories launched by the European Space Agency (ESA).
- Gaia was used to identify the location and local concentration of cosmic dust. This helped them trace the boundaries of the Local Bubble.
- Planck provided information on the magnetic alignment of cosmic dust.
- This alignment can indicate the orientation of the magnetic field acting on the dust particles, allowing the researchers to generate a 3D magnetic field orientation on the surface of the Local Bubble.

7. Rare White Tufted Royal Butterfly found in Kannur

Subject: Environment

Section: Species

Context:

A team of butterfly observers and researchers have found White Tufted Royal Butterfly, a rare butterfly species at Kalliyad in Kannur.

About White Tufted Butterfly:

White Tufted Royal Butterfly was a rare species.
The wingspan of the butterfly is just 32-40 mm.
Its larvae feed on Scurrulaparasitica, a plant belonging to the Loranthaceae family.
The butterfly is protected under Schedule 2 of the Wildlife Protection Act.
The species had been spotted in Agasthyakoodam in 2017 and the Shendurney Wildlife Sanctuary in 2018.

Significance:

Rich Biodiversity: The abundance of butterflies in any area represents rich biodiversity.
Indicator Species: The butterfly acts as an indicator species.
- An indicator species provides information on the overall condition of the ecosystem and of other species in that ecosystem. They reflect the quality and changes in environmental conditions as well as aspects of community composition.
Pollinator: It acts as a pollinator by helping in pollination and conserving several species of plants.

8. Godavari estuary in Andhra Pradesh has become prime habitat for Indian Skimmer, says expert

Subject: Environment

Section Species in news, Protected area in news

Context:

The Godavari estuary in Andhra Pradesh has become a prime and safe habitat for the Indian Skimmer (Rynchopsalbicollis), according to the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS).

Details:

Six tagged Indian Skimmers have been sighted during this census so far and five of them were tagged in the Mahanadi area and one in the Chambal area.
Indian Skimmer migrates to the Godavari estuary for feeding.
Great Knot and Caspian Terns have been sighted in good numbers during the census.

About Indian Skimmer (Rynchopsalbicollis):

Another common name for Indian skimmers is Indian scissors bill.
They are more widespread in winter; the Indian skimmer is found in the coastal estuaries of western and eastern India.
The species can be sighted near the Chambal River in Central India, in few parts of Odisha and in Andhra Pradesh.

Major Threats:

Habitat degradation, excessive and widespread increases in disturbances near the rivers.

Protection Status:

IUCN Red List Status: Endangered
CITES: Not listed

Coringa Wildlife Sanctuary:

The Government declared a part of the Godavari mangrove system asCoringa Wildlife Sanctuary in 1978 to rehabilitate the salt water crocodile and to protect the other endangered species, such as Olive Ridley turtles and Indian Otter.
About 120 species of resident and migratory birds depend on this area for breeding and nesting.

Asian Waterbird Census:

Every January, thousands of volunteers across Asia and Australasia visit wetlands in their country and count waterbirds.
This citizen-science programme supports the conservation and management of wetlands and waterbirds worldwide.
The AWC is an integral part of the global waterbird monitoring programme, the International Waterbird Census (IWC), coordinated by Wetlands International.

9. Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi Act 1991 (GNCTD ACT)

Subject: Polity

Section: Federalism

Concept :

The Supreme Court on Thursday questioned the need for having an elected government in Delhi after the Centre asserted the Union Territories are an extension of the Union which wants to administer them.
A five-judge constitution bench headed by Chief ustice DY Chandrachud, while continuing the hearing for a third day on the vexatious Centre-Delhi government row over control of services, was told by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the central government.

GNCTD Act , 1991 (69th Constitutional Amendment Act)

The GNCTD Act was enacted in 1991 to “supplement provisions of the Constitution relating to the Legislative Assembly and a Council of Ministers for the National Capital Territory of Delhi”.
It enabled the process of an elected government in Delhi.
The Supreme Court had in the past appreciated the 1991 developments, stating that the real purpose behind the Constitution (69th Amendment) Act, 1991 is to establish a democratic set-up and representative form of government wherein the majority has a right to embody their opinions in laws and policies pertaining to the NCT of Delhi subject to the limitations imposed by the Constitution.
It added two new Articles 239AA and 239AB under which the Union Territory of Delhi has been given a special status.
Article 239AA provides that the Union Territory of Delhi be called the National Capital Territory of Delhi and its administrator shall be known as Lt. Governor.
The chief minister is appointed by the President (not by the lt. governor). The other ministers are appointed by the president on the advice of the chief minister.
The ministers hold office during the pleasure of the president. The council of ministers is collectively responsible to the assembly.
The council of ministers headed by the chief minister aid and advise the lt. governor in the exercise of his functions except in so far as he is required to act in his discretion.
In the case of difference of opinion between the lt. governor and his ministers, the lt. governor is to refer the matter to the president for decision and act accordingly.
It also provides for a Council of Ministers for Delhi consisting of not more than 10% of the total number of members in the assembly.
It also creates a legislative assembly for Delhi which can make laws on subjects under the State List and Concurrent List except on these matters: public order, land, and police.
The strength of the assembly is fixed at 70 members, directly elected by the people. The elections are conducted by the election commission of India.
The lt. governor is empowered to promulgate ordinances during recess of the assembly. An ordinance has the same force as an act of the assembly. Every such ordinance must be approved by the assembly within six weeks from its reassembly. He can also withdraw an ordinance at any time.
But, he cannot promulgate an ordinance when the assembly is dissolved or suspended.
Further, no such ordinance can be promulgated or withdrawn without the prior permission of the President.
Article 239AB provides that the President may by order suspend the operation of any provision of Article 239AA or of all or any of the provisions of any law made in pursuance of that article. This provision resembles Article 356 (President’s Rule).

10. Industry seeks Ordinance to get around CCI quorum hurdle

Subject : Polity

Section : Statutory Organisations / Governance

Concept :

Domestic industry has knocked the doors of Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) expressing concern over the delay in disposal of cases by the Competition Commission of India (CCI).
They have informed the government that the lack of quorum in the competition watchdog is seriously hampering the CCI in discharging their functions.

Issue with the composition of CCI

The minimum number of members required for adjudication and approving mergers and acquisitions (M&As) has reduced since Ashok Kumar Gupta demitted the chairman’s office on 25 October after completing his four-year term, the person said requesting anonymity.
The anti-trust regulator now has two whole-time members, including Sangeeta Verma, who was appointed as the acting chairperson for three months or till a full-time chairperson takes office.
In addition to the chairperson, the CCI needs two members to have sufficient quorum to take key decisions, according to CCI Act and existing rules.

Competition Commission of India (CCI)

Competition Commission of India (CCI) is a statutory body of the Government of India responsible for enforcing the Competition Act, 2002, it was duly constituted in March 2009.
The Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Act, 1969 (MRTP Act) was repealed and replaced by the Competition Act, 2002, on the recommendations of the Raghavan committee.

Composition:

The Commission consists of one Chairperson and six Members who shall be appointed by the Central Government.
The commission is a quasi-judicial body which gives opinions to statutory authorities and also deals with other cases. The Chairperson and other Members shall be whole-time Members.

Eligibility criteria of members of CCI:

The Chairperson and every other Member shall be a person of ability, integrity and standing and who, has been, or is qualified to be a judge of a High Court, or, has special knowledge of, and professional experience of not less than fifteen years in international trade, economics, business, commerce, law, finance, accountancy, management, industry, public affairs, administration or in any other matter which, in the opinion of the Central Government, may be useful to the Commission.

Competition Act, 2002

The Competition Act was passed in 2002 and has been amended by the Competition (Amendment) Act, 2007. It follows the philosophy of modern competition laws.
The Act prohibits anti-competitive agreements, abuse of dominant position by enterprises and regulates combinations, which causes an appreciable adverse effect on competition within India.
In accordance with the provisions of the Amendment Act, the Competition Commission of India and the Competition Appellate Tribunal have been established.
The government replaced the Competition Appellate Tribunal (COMPAT) with the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) in 2017.

11. Under Constitution law declared by SC is binding on all parties

Subject : Polity

Section : Constitutional framework

Concept :

Vice-President of India Jagdeep Dhankhar’s public criticism of the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) judgment may be seen as comments by a high constitutional authority against “the law of the land”.
The Supreme Court has held that its judicial pronouncements lay down the law. Article 141 of the Constitution mandates that law declared by the Supreme Court is binding on all courts, including the Supreme Court itself.

Articles 141 and 142

Article 141: The law declared by the Supreme Court shall be binding on all courts within the territory of India.
Article 142 (1): The Supreme Court in the exercise of its jurisdiction may pass such decree or make such order as is necessary for doing complete justice in any cause or matter pending before it, and any decree so passed or orders so made shall be enforceable throughout the territory of India in such manner as may be prescribed by or under any law made by Parliament and, until provision in that behalf is so made, in such manner as the President may by order prescribe.
Article 142 (2): Subject to the provisions of any law made in this behalf by Parliament, the Supreme Court shall, as respects the whole of the territory of India, have all and every power to make any order for the purpose of securing the attendance of any person, the discovery or production of any documents, or the investigation or punishment of any contempt of itself.

Kesavananda Bharati case and Basic Structure Doctrine

In Kesavananda Bharati case, a relief was sought against the Kerala government vis-à-vis two state land reform laws, which imposed restrictions on the management of religious property.
The case was challenged under Article 26, concerning the right to manage religiously owned property without government interference.
Question underlying the case: Was the power of Parliament to amend the Constitution unlimited? In other words, could Parliament alter, amend, abrogate any part of the Constitution even to the extent of taking away all fundamental rights?
The Constitutional Bench in Kesavananda Bharati case ruled by a 7-6 verdict that Parliament could amend any part of the Constitution so long as it did not alter or amend the basic structure or essential features of the Constitution.
However, the court did not define the term ‘basic structure’, and only listed a few principles — federalism, secularism, democracy — as being its part.
The ‘basic structure’ doctrine has since been interpreted to include
- the supremacy of the Constitution,
- the rule of law
- Independence of the judiciary
- doctrine of separation of powers
- sovereign democratic republic,
- the parliamentary system of government,
- the principle of free and fair elections,
- welfare state, etc.
An example of application of basic structure is the SR Bommai case (1994).
In this case the Supreme Court upheld the dismissal of BJP governments by the President following the demolition of the Babri Masjid, invoking a threat to secularism by these governments.
Arguments related to Basic structure
Critics of the doctrine have called it undemocratic, since unelected judges can strike down a constitutional amendment. At the same time, its proponents have hailed the concept as a safety valve against majoritarianism and authoritarianism.
Origin: The basic structure theory was first introduced by Justice Mudholkar in the Sajjan Singh case (1965) by referring to a 1963 decision of the Supreme Court of Pakistan.
Chief Justice Cornelius of Pakistan had held that the President of Pakistan could not alter the “fundamental features” of their Constitution.

Background for the development of basic structure doctrine

Since the adoption of Indian Constitution, debates have started regarding the power of the Parliament to amend key provisions of the Constitution.
In the early years of Independence, the Supreme Court conceded absolute power to Parliament in amending the Constitution, as was seen in the verdicts in Shankari Prasad case (1951) and Sajjan Singh case (1965).
In both the cases the court had ruled that the term “law” in Article 13 must be taken to mean rules or regulations made in exercise of ordinary legislative power and not amendments to the Constitution made in exercise of constituent power under Article 368.
This means Parliament had the power to amend any part of the constitution including Fundamental rights.
Article 13(2) reads, “The State shall not make any law which takes away or abridges the right conferred by this Part (Part-III) and any law made in contravention of this clause shall, to the extent of contravention, be void.”
However, in the Golaknath case (1967), the Supreme Court held that Parliament could not amend Fundamental Rights, and this power would be only with a Constituent Assembly.
The Court held that an amendment under Article 368 is “law” within the meaning of Article 13 of the Constitution and therefore, if an amendment “takes away or abridges” a Fundamental Right conferred by Part III, it is void.
To get over the judgments of the Supreme Court in the Golaknath case (1967), RC Cooper case (1970), and MadhavraoScindia case (1970), the then government headed by Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had enacted major amendments to the Constitution (the 24th, 25th, 26th and 29th).
All the four amendments brought by the government were challenged in the Kesavananda Bharati case.

12. Can give migrated minority status to Hindus: Delhi govt

Subject : Polity

Section: Constitutional Framework

Concept :

Hindus who migrated to the national capital from other regions may be accorded “migrated minority” status if they were a religious minority in their state of origin, the Delhi government has suggested as part of an ongoing case in the Supreme Court on granting minority status to Hindus in certain circumstances.
Of the 24 states and Union territories (UTs), Delhi was the only government that explicitly backed granting minority status to Hindus in any form at the state or UT
Some other states — including Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, West Bengal and Uttarakhand — favoured identification of a “minority community” at the state level but didn’t name any particular faith or group in particular.
Most states conveyed their satisfaction with the existing regime where six minority faiths are identified and notified at the national level.
The Centre was asked to take a categorical stand on the issue after a public interest litigation by advocate Ashwini Upadhyay challenged the validity of Section 2(f) of the National Commission for Minorities Educational Institutions (NCMEI) Act .

Constitutional and Legal Provisions Related to Minorities

The National Commission of Minorities Act defines a minority as “a community notified as such by the Central government.”
The Government of India has declared six religions namely, Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis (Zoroastrian) and Jain as religious minorities in India.

National Commission for Minority Education Institution (NCMEI) Act, 2004:

It gives the minority status to the educational institutions on the basis of six religious communities notified by the government.
The term “minority” is not defined in the Indian Constitution. However, the Constitution recognizes religious and linguistic minorities.

Article 29:

It provides that any section of the citizens residing in any part of India having a distinct language, script or culture of its own, shall have the right to conserve the same.
It grants protection to both religious minorities as well as linguistic minorities.
However, the Supreme Court held that the scope of this article is not necessarily restricted to minorities only, as use of the word ‘section of citizens’ in the Article includes minorities as well as the majority.

Article 30:

All minorities shall have the right to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice.
The protection under Article 30 is confined only to minorities (religious or linguistic) and does not extend to any section of citizens (as under Article 29).

Article 350-B:

The 7th Constitutional (Amendment) Act 1956 inserted this article which provides for a Special Officer for Linguistic Minorities appointed by the President of India.
It would be the duty of the Special Officer to investigate all matters relating to the safeguards provided for linguistic minorities under the Constitution.

13. India, US ‘thinking big’, says Goyal, rules out mini trade deal or FTA

Subject : Economy

Section: External Sector

Concept:

Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal ruled out a mini-trade deal or FTA with the United States and said that they discussed the delay in business visa issuance at the conclusion of the India-US Trade Policy Forum meeting.
He also noted that revoking of the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) is not a priority for the Indian government.
The previous Trump administration has revoked the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) from India.
Minister said that the trade between the two countries continues to expand very rapidly and the GSP withdrawal has not been to the detriment of our growing trade ties.

Generalized System of Preferences(GSP)

GSP is the largest and oldest US trade preference programme, designed to promote economic development by allowing duty-free entry for thousands of products from designated beneficiary countries.
It is an umbrella that comprises the bulk of preferential schemes granted by industrialized nations to developing countries.
It involves reduced Most Favored Nations (MFN) Tariffs or duty-free entry of eligible products exported by beneficiary countries to the markets of donor countries.
The idea of granting developing countries preferential tariff rates in the markets of industrialized countries was originally presented at the first United Nation Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) conference in 1964.
The GSP was adopted at UNCTAD in New Delhi in 1968 and was instituted in 1971.

UNCTAD

United Nation Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) is a permanent intergovernmental body established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1964.
It supports developing countries to access the benefits of a globalised economy more fairly and effectively.
It has 195 member nations.

Most Favored Nations (MFN)

As per the World Trade Organisation’s( WTO) General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade’s MFN principle, each of the WTO member countries should “treat all the other members equally as ‘most-favoured’ trading partners.”
According to the WTO, though the term ‘MFN’ “suggests special treatment, it actually means nondiscrimination.”

14. Industrial output rebound to 7.1% in November 22

Subject : Economy

Section: GDP

Concept :

India’s industrial growth, as per the Index of Industrial Production (IIP), accelerated to 7.1 percent in November, data released on January 12 by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation showed.

Index of Industrial Production

IIP is an indicator that measures the changes in the volume of production of industrial products during a given period.
It is compiled and published monthly by the National Statistical Office (NSO), Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation.
It is a composite indicator that measures the growth rate of industry groups classified under:
Broad sectors, namely, Mining, Manufacturing, and Electricity.
Use-based sectors, namely Basic Goods, Capital Goods, and Intermediate Goods.
Base Year for IIP is 2011-12.

Significance of IIP:

It is used by government agencies including the Ministry of Finance, the Reserve Bank of India, etc, for policy-making purposes.
IIP remains extremely relevant for the calculation of the quarterly and advance GDP (Gross Domestic Product) estimates.

About Eight Core Sectors:

These comprise 27% of the weight of items included in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP).
The eight core sector industries in decreasing order of their weightage: Refinery Products> Electricity> Steel> Coal> Crude Oil> Natural Gas> Cement> Fertilizers.

15. System and Method for Controlling Generation and Movement of Fugitive Dust

Subject :Environment

Section: Pollution

Context: In order to minimize and control the fugitive dust in mining areas, Central Mine Planning and Design Institute Limited (CMPDIL), Ranchi (a consultancy subsidiary of Coal India Limited) has invented a “System and Method for Controlling Generation and Movement of Fugitive Dust”

Concept:

Fugitive dust is a form of particulate matter that contributes to air pollution that is generated from various sources which are exposed to air and not discharged into the atmosphere through a confined flow stream.
Fugitive dust is defined as dust that is not emitted from definable point sources, such as industrial smokestacks. Sources include open fields, roadways and storage piles
The dust-generation process is caused by 2 basic physical phenomena: 1. Pulverization and abrasion of surface materials by application of mechanical force through implements (wheels, blades, etc.). 2. Entrainment of dust particles by the action of turbulent air currents, such as wind erosion of an exposed surface by wind speeds over 19 kilometers per hour (km/hr) (12 miles per hour [mph])
Control techniques for fugitive dust sources generally involve watering, chemical stabilization, or reduction of surface wind speed with windbreaks or source enclosures. Watering, the most common and, generally, least expensive method, provides only temporary dust control.
Fugitive dust is PM suspended in the air primarily from soil that has been disturbed by wind or other activities. When PM is inhaled, it can travel easily into the lungs and cause respiratory illness, lung damage, and even premature death to sensitive individuals.

System and Method for Controlling Generation and Movement of Fugitive Dust

The invention relates to the synchronized application of windbreak (WB) and vertical greenery system (VGS) for reducing generation and dispersion of fugitive dust.
The WB and VGS are erected in the upwind and downwind direction with respect to the fugitive dust source(s) respectively.
The WB reduces the speed of the wind approaching towards the source and hence, it reduces the intensity of the ambient air to pick up dust while blowing over the source.
The VGS acts as a filter and reduces the quantity of the residual dust moving along with the wind towards the receptors in the down-wind direction.
Therefore, there is a significant reduction in the concentration of the dust in the ambient air at various receptors located in the down-wind direction.

16. Term ‘Defect’ in The Consumer Protection (E-commerce) Rules 2020

Subject: Governance

Section : Acts

Context: CCPA has written to District Collectors across India to investigate unfair trade practices and violation of consumer rights concerning manufacture or sale of such goods and submit Action Taken Report to CCPA.

Concept:

Under Section 2(10) the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, “defect” means any fault, imperfection or shortcoming in the quality, quantity, potency, purity or standard which is required to be maintained by or under any law for the time being in force or under any contract, express or implied or as is claimed by the trader in any manner whatsoever in relation to any goods or product and the expression “defective” shall be construed accordingly.
The Consumer Protection (E-commerce) Rules, 2020 stipulate that no e-commerce entity shall adopt any unfair trade practice, whether the in course of business on its platform or otherwise.

Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA)

The Consumer Protection Act, 2019 establishes the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) whose primary objective will be to promote, protect and enforce the rights of consumers.
It will be empowered to conduct investigations into violation of consumer rights and institute complaints / prosecution, order recall of unsafe goods and services, order discontinuation of unfair trade practices and misleading advertisements, impose penalties on manufacturers/endorsers/publishers of misleading advertisements.
It will be headquartered in the National Capital Region of Delhibut the central government may set up regional offices in other parts of the country.

The Act defines “misleading advertisement” in relation to any product or service, as “an advertisement, which—

(i) falsely describes such product or service; or

(ii) gives a false guarantee to, or is likely to mislead the consumers as to the nature, substance, quantity or quality of such product or service; or

(iii) conveys an express or implied representation which, if made by the manufacturer or seller or service provider thereof, would constitute an unfair trade practice; or

(iv) deliberately conceals important information”.

Composition:

It will have a Chief Commissioner as head, and only two other commissioners as members — one of whom will deal with matters relating to goods while the other will look into cases relating to services.
The CCPA will have an Investigation Wing that will be headed by a Director General.
District Collectors too, will have the power to investigate complaints of violations of consumer rights, unfair trade practices, and false or misleading advertisements.
Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution is yet to issue guidelines on misleading advertisements.