Daily Prelims Notes 21 March 2022

Daily Prelims Notes

21 March 2022

Table Of Contents

1. ParTapi Narmada river-linking project
2. India proposes river rejuvenation through plantations
3. Latest regulation on plastic waste management
4. National Bank for Financing Infrastructure and Development (NabFID)
5. WTO Agreement on Agriculture and the Peace Clause
6. Informal Sector
7. Plant Diseases
8. Crypto taxation
9. China militarizing South China Sea
10. On 20th March 1602: Dutch East India Company was established

1. ParTapi Narmada river-linking project

Subject: Geography

Section: Mapping

Context: The tribals in Gujarat held a public meeting in Kaprada in Valsad district to protest against the Centre’s Par Tapi Narmada (PTN) river-linking project.

Reason for Protest:

• According to a report by the NWDA, about 6065 ha of land area will be submerged due to the proposed reservoirs. A total of 61 villages will be affected, of which one will be fully submerged and the remaining 60 partly.
• The districts where the project will be implemented are largely dominated, by tribals who fear displacement.

Timeline of the Project:

• A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed between Gujarat, Maharashtra and the central government on May 3, 2010, that envisaged that Gujarat would get the benefit of the Par Tapi Narmada link project through en-route irrigation from the link canal and in the drought-prone Saurashtra Kutch region by way of substitution.
• Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the project was prepared by the National Water Development Agency (NWDA) in 2015 and modified on the intervention of the Gujarat government, through letters the then chief minister wrote in 2016
• Gujarat government had, in December 2016, proposed providing a pipeline system instead of open canals to “avoid/minimise the land acquisition in tribal areas” as well as to reduce evaporation and seepage losses.
• Recently, Finance Minister in her Budget Speech said that five river linking projects will be taken up after consensus among states – it includes Par Tapi Narmada river-linking project

About Par Tapi Narmada river-linking project:

• Par Tapi Narmada Link proposes to transfer water from the water surplus regions of Western Ghats to the water deficit regions of Saurashtra and Kutch (Gujarat).
• It proposes to link three rivers — Par, originating from Nashik in Maharashtra, Tapi from Saputara and Narmada originating in Madhya Pradesh.
• The link mainly includes the construction of seven dams(Jheri, Mohankavchali, Paikhed, Chasmandva, Chikkar, Dabdar and Kelwan), three diversion weirs (Paikhed, Chasmandva, and Chikkar dams), two tunnels (5.0 kilometers and 0.5 kilometers length).
• 395-kilometre long canal (205 kilometre in Par-Tapi portion including the length of feeder canals and 190 km in Tapi-Narmada portion), and six powerhouses.

About Narmada River

• The Narmada River is also known as the Rewa River.
• Narmada is the largest west flowing river of the peninsular region flowing through a rift valley between the Vindhya Range on the north and the Satpura Range on the south.
• It rises from Maikala range near Amarkantak in Madhya Pradesh.
• It drains a large area in Madhya Pradesh besides some areas in the states of Maharashtra and Gujarat.
• The river near Jabalpur (Madhya Pradesh) forms the DhuanDhar Falls.
• There are several islands in the estuary of the Narmada of which Aliabet is the largest.
• Major Tributaries: Hiran, Orsang, the Barna and the Kolar.
• The major Hydro Power Projects in the basin are Indira Sagar, Sardar Sarovar

About Tapi River

• The Tapi River is located in Madhya Pradesh.
• It originates from the Multai reserve forest.
• The river is flowing through the states of Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Gujarat.
• Kakrapar Dam, Ukai Dam, Girna Dam are the major projects on this river.
• The Suki, the Gomai, the Arunavati, the Vaghur, the Amravati, the Purna, the Mona, and the Sipna are the major tributaries of Tapti River.

2. India proposes river rejuvenation through plantations

Subject: Environment

Section: Biodiversity and conservation

Context: The government of India has recently released a river rejuvenation programme worth Rs. 193 billion through a massive focus on plantation activities.

Concept:

About the Programme:

• Government of India is planning an ambitious programme for the rejuvenation of 13 major Indian rivers through forestry interventions at a cost of nearly Rs. 19,300 crores (Rs. 193 billion).
  • 13 major rivers include – Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas, Sutlej, Yamuna, Brahmaputra, Luni, Narmada, Godavari, Mahanadi, Krishna, and Cauvery
• Funded by the National Afforestation & Eco-development Board of the environment ministry (MoEFCC), were prepared by the Dehradun-based Indian Council of Forestry Research & Education (ICFRE).
• The programme is expected to be executed through the state forest departments as nodal department and with the convergence of schemes of other line departments in the states towards the activities proposed in the DPRs and funding support from the government of India.
• The plan is proposed to be spread over a period of five years with a provision for additional time for the maintenance of plantations.

Need for the Programme:

• Deforestation and forest degradation, scanty rainfall, flash floods, landslides, bank erosion, faulty agriculture and horticulture practices, soil erosion, excessive groundwater extraction, rapid urbanisation, unregulated floodplain, waste dumping, the release of effluents, unregulated tourism, pilgrimage, unregulated sand mining, and riverbank encroachment are some of the issues that are impacting the rivers in the country.
• Forest and river ecosystems are inter-connected and forests absorb rainfall, leads to slow runoff, regulate the hydrological cycle, reduce soil erosion, improve water infiltration rate, recharge aquifers, etc.

Intervention through the Programme:

• Activities such as afforestation, soil and moisture conservation structures, grassland and pasture development, cultivation of medicinal and aromatic plants, management of invasive and alien species, forest fires while in agricultural landscapes it proposes agroforestry (bund and block plantations), high-density plantations, fodder plantations and plantation of fruit trees.
• In the urban landscapes, they call for riverfront development, eco-park development, industrial and educational estate plantations, and avenue plantations.
• Also includes removal of lantana from degraded forests

Benefits of Programme:

• Increasing the green cover
  • DPRs projects forest cover after the programme could be about 7,417.36 square kilometres
• Sequestering carbon dioxide
  • carbon-dioxide sequestration to the tune of 50.21 million tons of CO2 equivalent after 10 years and 74.76 million tons of CO2 equivalent after 20 years.
• Recharging water table
  • programme would lead to about 1,889.89 million cubic metres of groundwater recharge every year
• Containing soil erosion
  • Sedimentation reduction of about 64,83,114 cubic metres every year
• Help India achieving the international climate commitments
  • such as the creation of an additional carbon sink of 2.5 -3 billion tons of CO2 equivalent through additional forest and tree cover by 2030 made just before the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, restoration of 26 million hectares of degraded lands by 2030 as a land degradation neutrality target under UNCCD (United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification) and halting the biodiversity loss by 2030 under CBD (Convention on Biological Diversity) and Sustainable Development Goals.

Issues:

• Top-down approach that even usurps the powers of the states
  • As per the Forest Rights Act 2006, the power to decide what happens on their landscapes belongs to the communities.
• Proposal completely unscientific as afforestation has nothing to do with river rejuvenation
  • Construction of big dams and then many smaller dams that cut off environmental flows, industrial and domestic pollution, and climate change-led glacier meltdown and extreme weather events are main reasons for degradation of river

Way Forward:

Stopping dam building, regulating effluents, controlling groundwater depletion that immediately affects the base flows in rivers

3. Latest regulation on plastic waste management

Subject: Environment

Section: Pollution

Context: Recently Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change announced the Plastic Waste Management (Amendment) Rules, 2022, which notified the instructions on Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) for plastic packaging.

New Plastic Waste Management Rules:

• Classification of Plastics:

The new rules classify plastics into four categories:

• Category One will include rigid plastic packaging;
• Category Two will include flexible plastic packaging of single layer or multilayer (more than one layer with different types of plastic), plastic sheets, carry bags, plastic sachet or pouches;
• Category Three will include Multi-layered plastic packaging(at least one layer of plastic and at least one layer of material other than plastic);
• Category Four will include plastic sheets used for packaging as well as carry bags made of compostable plastics.

• Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) :Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) is a policy approach under which producers are given a significant responsibility – financial and/or physical – for the treatment or disposal of post-consumer products
  • It covers reuse, recycling, use of recycled plastic content and end of life disposal by producers, importers and brand-owners.
• Extended Producer Responsibility Certificates: The guidelines allow for sale and purchase of surplus extended producer responsibility certificates.
• ‘Minimum recycled content’: which means producers of plastic will have to add a minimum quantity of recycled material in their product, increasing the recycled content over the years.
• Centralized Online Portal: It calls for creating a centralized online portal by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). It will be used for the registration as well as filing of annual returns by producers, importers and brand-owners.
• Environmental compensation: It shall be levied based upon polluter pays principle, with respect to non-fulfilment of EPR targets by producers, importers and brand owners. However payment of compensation will not absolve the liability and unfulfilled EPR obligations for a particular year will be carried forward to the next year for a period of three years.
• Committee to Recommend Measures:
  • A committee constituted by the CPCB under the chairmanship of CPCB chairman will recommend measures to the environment ministry for effective implementation of EPR, including amendments to Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) guidelines.

Rules on Plastic Waste Management so far:

• Plastic-waste management rules, 1999: Its aim was to restrict the use of plastic carry bags (thickness 20 µm or less) and prevent food from being packaged in recycled plastic.
• Plastic Waste Management (Amendment) Rules, 2003: It diluted the restriction on carry bags but mandated registration of manufacturing units with regional pollution control authorities.
• Plastic Waste Management (Amendment) Rules, 2011: For the first time, there was a national law proposing a ban on the use of plastic materials in sachets to store, pack or sell gutkha, tobacco, and pan masala.
• Plastic Waste Management (PWM) Rules, 2016: It included many progressive propositions, like ‘polluter pays’ and ‘extended producer responsibility’.
• Plastic Waste Management (Amendment) Rules, 2021: The rules aim to prohibit the use of specific single-use plastic items, which have “low utility and high littering potential” by 2022.

What is ‘polluter pays’ principle?

• The ‘polluter pays’ principle is the commonly accepted practice that those who produce pollution should bear the costs of managing it to prevent damage to human health or the environment. (it essentially holds the polluter liable for the pollution caused to the environment.)
  • For instance, a factory that produces a potentially poisonous substance as a by-product of its activities is usually held responsible for its safe disposal.
• The ‘polluter pay’ principle was first introduced by the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development(OECD) in 1972
• The polluter pays principle is part of a set of broader principles to guide sustainable development worldwide. The ‘polluter pay’ principle forms a part of the environmental law of India.

4. National Bank for Financing Infrastructure and Development (NabFID)

Subject: Economy

Section: Monetary Policy and banking

Concept:

NBFID was announced in the Budget 2021.

The National Bank for Financing Infrastructure and Development Bill, 2021 was introduced in Lok Sabha on March 22, 2021. The Bill seeks to establish the National Bank for Financing Infrastructure and Development (NBFID) as the principal development financial institution (DFIs) for infrastructure financing.

NBFID will be set up as a corporate body with authorised share capital of one lakh crore rupees.  Shares of NBFID may be held by:

(i) central government,

(ii) multilateral institutions,

(iii) sovereign wealth funds,

(iv) pension funds,

(v) insurers,

(vi) financial institutions,

(vii) banks, and

(viii) any other institution prescribed by the central government.

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

Objective:

• To directly or indirectly lend, invest, or attract investments for infrastructure projects located entirely or partly in India.
• Development objectives include 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:

• NBFID 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.
• NBFID may borrow money from:

(i) central government,

(ii) Reserve Bank of India (RBI),

(iii) scheduled commercial banks,

(iii) mutual funds, and

(iv) multilateral institutions such as World Bank and Asian Development Bank.

Structure and management:

• NBFID will be governed by a Board of Directors.
• The members of the Board include:

 (i) the Chairperson appointed by the central government in consultation with RBI,

(ii) a Managing Director,

(iii) up to three Deputy Managing Directors among others.

• 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.

No investigation can be initiated against employees of NBFID without the prior sanction of (i) the central government in case of the chairperson or other directors, and (ii) 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.

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.

Other provisions

• The Bill also provides for any person to set up a DFI by applying to RBI.
• RBI may grant a licence for DFI in consultation with the central government.
• RBI will also prescribe regulations for these DFIs.

5. WTO Agreement on Agriculture and the Peace Clause

Subject: Economy

Section: External sector

Concept:

India has been accused of using the peace clause at the World Trade Organization (WTO), for exceeding the 10 per cent ceiling on support it offered its rice farmers without meeting the requirement of separately notifying its public stock holding

(PSH) programmes.

India instance

India assured WTO members, that its rice export, pegged at 21.4 million tonnes in 2021, were not sourced from its rice stocks for PSH programmes procured at the MSP (minimum support price).

Peace Clause

It was agreed to at the WTO’s Bali Ministerial meeting in December 2013 that allowed developing countries to breach subsidy limits on food crops subject to certain conditions being met related to notifications on the PSH programmes and food security.

The ‘peace clause’ said that no country would be legally barred from food security programmes even if the subsidy breached the limits specified in the WTO agreement on agriculture. It protects India’s food procurement programmes against action from WTO members in case the subsidy ceilings – 10 percent of the value of food production in the case of India and other developing countries – are breached.

6. Informal Sector

Subject: Economy

Section: Employment

Context: 270 million informal sector workers join e-Shram portal.

Concept:

Informal Sector:

• ‘Informal economy’ represents enterprises that are not registered, where employers do not provide social security to employees.
• It is characterized as a range of economic units which are mainly owned and operated by individuals and employ one or more employees on a continuous basis.
• It includes farmers, agricultural labourers, owners of small enterprises and people working in those enterprises and also the self-employed who do not have any hired workers.
• National Accounts Statistics (NAS) defines the ‘unorganised sector’ in addition to the unincorporated proprietary or partnership enterprises, including enterprises run by cooperative societies, trust, private and limited companies.
• The informal sector can, therefore, be considered as a subset of the unorganised sector.
• According to the Periodic Labour Force Survey, over 90 per cent of workers in India are informal workers. Out of these, those engaged in rural areas workers are significantly more than urban areas workers.

Social Security Measures for Informal Sector:

• Unorganised Workers’ Social Security Act, 2008 empowers the Central Government to provide Social Security benefits to unorganised sector workers by formulating suitable welfare schemes on matters relating to life and disability cover, health and maternity benefits, old age protection and any other benefit as may be determined by the Central Government.
• The State Governments are also empowered to formulate suitable welfare schemes on the matters regarding housing, provident funds, educational schemes, skill upgradation, old age homes etc.
• g., Life and disability cover is provided through Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Yojana (PMJJBY) and Pradhan Mantri SurkshaBima Yojana (PMSBY).The health and maternity benefits are addressed through Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY). For old age protection to unorganised sector workers including traders, shopkeepers and self- employed persons, the Government has launched two flagship schemes namely Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maan-DhanYojana (PM-SYM) and National Pension Scheme for Traders, Shopkeeper and Self-Employed Persons (NPS- Traders).
• Besides, there are other important schemes which are listed below:
  1. PM Rozgar Protsahan Yojana
  2. Aam Aadmi Bima Yojana
  3. Atal BeemitVyakti Kalyan Yojana
  4. Central Sector Scheme for Rehabilitation of Bonded Labourer
  5. Gatidhara Scheme for Self- employment
  6. Grant-in-aid Scheme to NGOs for welfare of women labour
  7. Atal Pension Yojana
  8. RashtriyaSwasthyaBima Yojana
  9. Revised Integrated Housing Scheme
  10. Garib Kalyan Rozgar Yojana
  11. Mahatma Gandhi BunkarBima Yojana
  12. DeenDayal Upadhyaya Antyodaya Yojana (Day)
  13. NirmanKamgarAwasShayata Yojana

To know about e-shram portal refer, https://optimizeias.com/e-shram-portal-2/

7. Plant Diseases

Subject: Science

Section: Biology

Context: A new stain of Red Rot has been the cause of worry in Uttar Pradesh’s Sugarcane (Co-0238 variety) Production presently.

Concept:

A plant disease is usually defined as abnormal growth and/or dysfunction of a plant. Diseases are the result of some disturbance in the normal life process of the plant. Diseases may be the result of living and/or non-living causes. Biotic diseases are caused by living organisms (e.g., fungi, bacteria, and viruses). Following are the list of diseases caused by bacteria, fungi & virus.

 1. Diseases caused by Bacteria:

2.Diseases caused by Fungi:

 3. Diseases caused by Virus:

8. Crypto taxation

Subject: Economy

Section: Fiscal Policy

Context: The government is working on the classification of cryptocurrency as goods or services under the GST law, so that tax can be levied on the entire value of transactions.

Content:

• Currently, 18 per cent Goods and Services Tax (GST) is levied only on services provided by crypto exchanges and is categorized as financial services
• Cryptos, by nature, are similar to lottery, casinos, betting, gambling, horse racing, which have 28 per cent of GST on the entire value. Besides, GST at 3 per cent is levied on the entire transaction value in the case of gold.
• The Goods and Services Tax (GST) law does not clearly state about the classification of cryptocurrency and in the absence of a law regulating such virtual digital currencies, the classification has to take into account whether the legal framework classifies it as actionable claim.
• An actionable claim is a claim which can be made by a creditor, for any type of debt other than a debt secured by mortgage of immovable property.
• The 2022-23 Budget has brought in clarity with regard to the levy of income tax on crypto assets. From April 1, a 30 per cent I-T plus cess and surcharges, will be levied on such transactions in the same manner as it treats winnings from horse races or other speculative transactions.
• The Budget 2022-23 also proposed a 1 per cent TDS on payments towards virtual currencies beyond Rs 10,000 in a year and taxation of such gifts in the hands of the recipient. The threshold limit for TDS would be Rs 50,000 a year for specified persons, which include individuals/HUFs who are required to get their accounts audited under the I-T Act.
• The provisions related to 1 per cent TDS will come into effect from July 1, 2022, while the gains will be taxed effective April 1.
• Separately, the government is working on legislation to regulate cryptocurrencies, but no draft has yet been released publicly

9. China militarizing South China Sea

Subject: International Relations

Section: Maps

Context:

According to a top US military commander China has fully militarized at least three of several islands it built in the disputed South China Sea, arming them with anti-ship and anti-aircraft missile systems, laser and jamming equipment and fighter jets in an increasingly aggressive move that threatens all nations operating nearby.

Content:

US Indo-Pacific commander Admiral John C Aquilino said the hostile actions were in stark contrast to the Chinese president Xi Jinping’s past assurances that Beijing would not transform the artificial islands in contested waters into military bases. The efforts were part of China’s flexing its military muscle

Aquilino said the construction of missile arsenals, aircraft hangars, radar systems and other military facilities on Mischief Reef, Subi Reef and Fiery Cross appeared to have been completed but it remained to be seen if China would pursue the construction of military infrastructure in other areas.

In recent years, satellite imagery has shown China’s increased efforts to reclaim land in the South China Sea by physically increasing the size of islands or creating new islands altogether. In addition to piling sand onto existing reefs, China has constructed ports, military installations, and airstrips—particularly in the Paracel and Spratly Islands, where it has twenty and seven outposts, respectively. China has militarized Woody Island by deploying fighter jets, cruise missiles, and a radar system.

China maintains that, under international law, foreign militaries are not able to conduct intelligence-gathering activities, such as reconnaissance flights, in its exclusive economic zone (EEZ). According to the United States, claimant countries, under UN Convention of the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), should have freedom of navigation through EEZs in the sea and are not required to notify claimants of military activities. In July 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague issued its ruling on a claim brought against China by the Philippines under UNCLOS, ruling in favor of the Philippines on almost every count. While China is a signatory to the treaty, which established the tribunal, it refuses to accept the court’s authority.

Why South China Sea important?

China’s sweeping claims of sovereignty over the sea—and the sea’s estimated 11 billion barrels of untapped oil and 190 trillion cubic feet of natural gas—have antagonized competing claimants Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam. As early as the 1970s, countries began to claim islands and various zones in the South China Sea, such as the Spratly Islands, which possess rich natural resources and fishing areas

More South China sea: https://optimizeias.com/south-china-sea/

10. On 20^th March 1602: Dutch East India Company was established

Subject: History

Section: Modern

Concept:

The Dutch Commercial enterprise led the Dutch to undertake voyages to the East. Cornelis de Houtman was the first Dutchman to reach Sumatra and Bantam in 1596. In 1602, the States General of the Netherlands amalgamated many trading companies into the East India Company of the Netherlands. This company was also empowered to carry on war, to conclude treaties, to take possession of territory and to erect fortresses.

Dutch Settlements

After their arrival in India, the Dutch founded their first factory in Masulipatnam (in Andhra) in 1605. They went on to establish trading centres in different parts of India and thus became a threat to the Portuguese. They captured Nagapal near Madras (Chennai) from the Portuguese and made it the main stronghold in South India.

The Dutch established factories on the Coromand coast, in Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Bengal and Bihar. In 16 they opened a factory in Pulicat, north of Madras. Their oath principal factories in India were at Surat (1616), Bimlipata (1641), Karaikal (1645), Chinsura (1653), Baranag Kasimbazar (near Murshidabad), Balasore, Patna, Nagapat (1658) and Cochin (1663). Participating in the redistribution or carrying trade, they took to the islands of the Far E various articles and merchandise from India. They carried indigo manufactured in the Yamuna valley and Central Indi textiles and silk from Bengal, Gujarat and the Coromandesaltpetre from Bihar and opium and rice from the Gang valley.