Daily Prelims Notes 30 December 2021

Daily Prelims Notes

30 December 2021

Table Of Contents

1. SPECIALTY STEEL UNDER PRODUCER LINKED INCENTIVE SCHEME
2. RYUTHU BANDHU SCHEME
3. GST COUNCIL
4. AADHAR LINKAGE
5. OUTER SPACE TREATY

1. SPECIALTY STEEL UNDER PRODUCER LINKED INCENTIVE SCHEME

CONTEXT:

Recently, Government started taking applications for specialty steel and has fixed the deadline for investors looking to invest under the Producer Linked Incentive Scheme (PLI).

MORE FROM THE NEWS

• Earlier the Prime Minister had approved 6,322 crore PLI Scheme to boost production of Specialty Steal in India and also attract an additional investment of about 40,000 crore and generating additional employment opportunities.

WHAT IS PRODUCER LINKED INCENTIVE SCHEME?

• PLI scheme has been launched under the aegis of Aatma Nirbhar Bharat to give a boost to domestic industries through a slew of measures such as incentives, subsidies and funding support. This will further promote Ease of Doing Business in India.

• Even though the state governments had been providing the incentives to industries however, Central Government has increased their prominence due to –
  • Widening the coverage of central government’s incentives to additional sectors for holistic growth
  • Creation of a large-scale domestic manufacturing ecosystem across priority sectors.
• Basis of PLI Scheme:
  • Outcome-based and result oriented – This means that incentives will be disbursed only after production has taken place in the country.
  • Linking incentives to output: The calculation of incentives will be based on incremental production to be achieved at a high rate of growth. To achieve this incremental production, beneficiaries will be required to make additional investments in establishing green-field facilities or carrying out expansion of existing facilities.
  • Creating ‘champions’ to maximize impact: The scheme focuses on size and scale by selecting those players who can deliver on volumes. The targeted nature of the scheme will make it highly effective and the beneficiaries are likely to become globally competitive.
  • Selection of sectors has solely been based on its scope to cover cutting-edge technology, integrate with global value chains and create large-scale employment.
• The scheme has been approved for 14 key sectors to achieve following –
  • Make domestic manufacturing globally competitive,
  • To create global champions in manufacturing,
  • To boost existing capacities in domestic manufacturing for sunrise and strategic sectors,
  • Curb cheaper imports,
  • Reduce import bills,
  • Improve cost competitiveness of domestically manufactured goods,
  • Enhance export capacity, and
  • Generate employment
• Key sectors under PLI scheme– Key Starting Materials (KSMs)/Drug Intermediates (DIs) and Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs), Large Scale Electronics Manufacturing, Manufacturing of Medical Devices, Electronic/Technology Products, Pharmaceuticals drugs, Telecom & Networking Products, Food Products, White Goods (ACs & LED), High-Efficiency Solar PV Modules, Automobiles & Auto Components, Advance Chemistry Cell (ACC) Battery, Textile Products: MMF segment and technical textiles, Specialty Steel and Drones and Drones components.

SPECIALTY STEEL

• Specialty steels also referred to as alloy steel contains additional alloyed materials that deliver special properties to the final product.
• Specialty steels are engineered to provide superior performance under specific conditions. Various stainless-steel alloys are included among common specialty steels.
• What are the benefits of specialty steels?
  • The benefits of specialty steels include:
  • High corrosion resistance
  • Targeted resistance to high and/or low temperatures
  • Easily fabricated
  • Dimensional stability and strength
  • Non-magnetic
  • Sterile and hygienic
  • Well suited for special applications
  • Lighter weight
• Specialty steel is used for parts or manufacturing and maintenance components in various applications, from automobiles and other transportation equipment essential in modern society to daily home appliances and smartphone and other precision equipment.

PLI FOR SPECIALTY STEEL

• This scheme aims to help India’s SS production reach 42 Million Tonnes (MT) by 2026-27.
• Categories: There are five categories of specialty steel which have been chosen in the PLI Scheme:
  • Coated/plated steel products.
  • High strength/wear resistant steel.
  • Speciality rails.
  • Alloy steel products and steel wires.
  • Electrical steel.
• Slabs: There are three slabs of PLI incentives, the lowest being 4% and highest being 12%.
• Beneficiaries: Both big players i.e. integrated steel plants and to the smaller players (secondary steel players).
  • Any company registered in India, engaged in manufacturing of the identified ‘specialty steel’ grades will be eligible to participate in the scheme.
• Reason for choosing Specialty Steel:
  • To Increase Production:
    • Specialty Steel S has been chosen as the target segment by the government because out of a production of 102 million tonnes of steel in 2020-21, only 18 million tonnes of value-added steel/speciality steel were produced in the country.
  • To Reduce Imports:
    • Most of the imports into India are in the value-added and specialty segment. The PLI scheme will boost manufacturing capacities by Indian mills in this segment and MSMEs will be able to source from them directly.
    • Out of 6.7 million tonnes of imports of steel in 2020-21, approximately 4 million tonnes were of speciality steel, resulting in Foreign Exchange (Forex) outgo of approximately Rs 30,000 crore.
  • Sector in Uptrend:
    • The steel sector is on an uptrend and major integrated producers have lined up major expansion plans.

2. RYUTHU BANDHU SCHEME

CONTEXT:

It was recently reported that the total funds disbursed under RythuBandhu, Telangana government’s direct benefit transfer scheme for farmers, will soon touch Rs 50,000 crore in the coming days.

WHAT IS RYUTHU BANDHU SCHEME?

• It is a Telangana government’s direct benefit transfer scheme for farmers under which the state government extends financial support to land-owning farmers at the beginning of the crop season through direct benefit transfer.
• The scheme aims to take care of the initial investment needs, so that the farmers do not fall into a debt trap. Thus, instilling confidence in farmers and thereby enhancing productivity and income.
• Under the scheme –
  • Each farmer gets Rs 5,000 per acre per crop season without any ceiling on the number of acres held.
  • This grant helps farmers to cover the expenses on input requirements such as seeds, fertilizers, pesticides, and labour.
• The scheme does not cover landless or tenant farmers which are being demanded by the farmer bodies. The state government also faces problem of bringing the tenant farmers under the ambit of the scheme due to informal nature of the agreement.

PM-KISAN V/S RYUTHU BANDHU SCHEME

3. GST COUNCIL

CONTEXT:

The 46^th GST council meeting will be held.

MORE FROM THE NEWS

• The GST Council meeting will be an extension to the pre-budget meeting with state finance ministers.
• Discussion on rate rationalization and inverted duty structure will be the key feature of the meeting.
• Discussion on reviewing the GST rates slabs will also be taken up.

ABOUT GST COUNCIL

• It is a constitutional body under Article 279A. It makes recommendations to the Union and State Government on issues related to Goods and Service Tax and was introduced by the Constitution (One Hundred and First Amendment) Act, 2016.
• The GST Council is chaired by the Union Finance Minister and other members are the Union State Minister of Revenue or Finance and Ministers in-charge of Finance or Taxation of all the States.
• It is considered as a federal body where both the centre and the states get due representation.
• Every decision of the Goods and Services Tax Council shall be taken at a meeting by a majority of not less than three-fourths of the weighted votes of the members present and voting, in accordance with the following principles, namely:
  • the vote of the Central Government shall have a weightage of one third of the total votes cast, and
  • the votes of all the State Governments taken together shall have a weightage of two-thirds of the total votes cast, in that meeting
• GST Council – is hailed for its cooperative federalism technology which brings together the Center and States and can be applied to many other policy reforms.

4. AADHAR LINKAGE

CONTEXT:

The Union Government passed Election Law (amendment) Bill to link voter IDs with Aadhaar cards.

ABOUT ELECTION LAWS (AMENDMENT) BILL, 2021

• Salient Feature –
  • It provides for amendment of section 23 of the Representation of People’s Act, 1950, enabling the linking of electoral roll data with the Aadhaar ecosystem.
  • This aims to curb the menace of multiple enrollment of the same person in different places.
  • The language for registration of ‘wives of service voters’ will now be replaced by ‘spouse’.
  • The bill proposes four qualifying dates (the first day of the months – January, April, July and October) for updating the voting rolls to include those who have turned 18 as compared to only one date previously (1st January).

IMPACT OF AADHAR ON INCREASING EFFICIENCY IN WELFARE PROGRAMS

• For many welfare programs such as payment of MGNREGA payments, it was made mandatory to link worker’s Aadhar with MGNREGA job card and their bank accounts.
• Using the Aadhaar Payment Bridge System (APBS) government was able to save about 10% of the wages.
• The use of Aadhar card is claimed to have helped the government to ensure increased accountability and transparency.

CHALLENGES IN ACHIEVING THE TARGETS OF WELFARE SCHEME DUE TO AADHAR

• Delay in disbursing the payments – It has been observed that there have been persistent delays in disbursing the wages under MGNREGA due to incorrect details or technical errors.
• Inefficiency – The ground level bureaucrats face difficulties in increasing the Aadhar linkage due to intense pressure and high volume of data.
• Technical errors in APBS – The payments through ABPS is also being delays due to software mapping failure in the centralized National Payments Corporation of India, the clearing house for APBS. India, the clearing house for APBS. Workers and officials alike are clueless on resolving these payment failures
• Misdirection of Payments – It has also been reported that the payments of workers are misdirected as the Aadhar number of one person is linked incorrectly with that of the other person.
• Lack of grievance redressal – there is also lack of grievance redressal mechanism and facilitation centers to address the issues faced by the users.

CONCLUSION

Taking learnings from these previous instances of Aadhar failures, there should be certain measures which need to be taken by the government in order to improve the new initiative of linking electoral with Aadhar.

If the Aadhar linkage is shrouded in such opacity, inefficiency, unreliability and exclusion it may even result in hampering the electoral democracy of our country.

What is Aadhaar

Aadhaar number is a 12-digit random number issued by the UIDAI (“Authority”) to the residents of India after satisfying the verification process laid down by the Authority. Any individual, irrespective of age and gender, who is a resident of India, may voluntarily enrol to obtain Aadhaar number. Person willing to enrol has to provide minimal demographic and biometric information during the enrolment process which is totally free of cost. An individual needs to enrol for Aadhaar only once and after de-duplication only one Aadhaar shall be generated, as the uniqueness is achieved through the process of demographic and biometric de-duplication.

Aadhaar number is verifiable in an online, cost-effective way. It is unique and robust enough to eliminate duplicates and fake identities and may be used as a basis/primary identifier to roll out several Government welfare schemes and programmes for effective service delivery thereby promoting transparency and good governance. This is the only program of its kind globally, wherein a state-of-the-art digital and online Id is being provided free of cost at such a large scale to people, and has the potential to change the way service delivery functions in the country.

Aadhaar number is devoid of any intelligence and does not profile people based on caste, religion, income, health and geography. The Aadhaar number is a proof of identity, however, it does not confer any right of citizenship or domicile in respect of an Aadhaar number holder.

5. OUTER SPACE TREATY

Context:

China has accused the US of ignoring its obligations under the Outer Space treaty as it alleged that Starlink satellites launched by US billionaire Elon Musk’s firm SpaceX had two close encounters this year with its Space Station in orbit.

Concept:

Historical background:

The Outer Space Treaty was adopted by the UN General Assembly (UNGA) in resolution 2222 (XXI) after being considered by the Legal Subcommittee in 1966. The Treaty added new provisions to the foundation provided by the Declaration of Legal Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, which had been adopted by the General Assembly in 1963 in resolution 1962 (XVIII).

• Several multilateral treaties have been adopted by the United Nations General Assembly to enable the orderly conduct of activities in outer space.
• The cornerstone of these governance instruments is the Outer Space Treaty of 1967. Among the principles embodied in the Treaty are the freedom of exploration and use of space for the benefit and interest of all countries, the non-appropriation of outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, and the prohibition of the deployment of nuclear weapons or other kinds of weapons of mass destruction in outer space.

Four other treaties were adopted to reinforce the framework set by the Outer Space Treaty.

• The Rescue Agreement of 1968 requires States to assist an astronaut in case of accident, distress, emergency or unintended landing.
• The Liability Convention of 1972 establishes the standards of liability for damage caused by space objects.
• The Registration Convention of 1975 requires States to register all objects launched into outer space with the United Nations.
• The Moon Agreement of 1979 elaborates on the provisions of the Outer Space Treaty as they apply to the Moon and other celestial bodies.

Five sets of principles support that body of law. These are the declaration of legal principles governing the activities of States in Outer Space (1963), the principles relating to international direct television broadcasting (1982), the principles relating to remote sensing of the Earth (1986), the principles on the use of nuclear power sources (1992) and the declaration on international cooperation in the exploration and use of outer space (1996).