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12th July 2022

  • Published
    12 July 2022

UN population report

Context

According to World Population Prospects 2022, India is projected to surpass China as the world’s most populous country in 2023.

  • It also projected the world’s population to reach 8 billion on November 15, 2022.
About

World Population Prospects:

  • It has been published by the Population Division of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs in a biennial cycle since 1951. 
  • Each revision of the WPP provides a historical time series of population indicators starting in 1950.
  • It does so by taking into account newly released national data to revise estimates of past trends in fertility, mortality or international migration.
  • World Population Prospects 2022 also states that fertility has fallen markedly in recent decades for many countries.

Main takeaways for the global population:

  • The global population is projected to reach eight billion November 15, 2022.
  • It is growing at its slowest rate since 1950, having fallen under one per cent in 2020.
  • The world’s population could grow to around 5 billion in 2030 and 9.7 billion in 2050.
    • It is projected to reach a peak of around 4 billion people during the 2080s and to remain at that level until 2100.
  • Two-thirds of the global population lives in a country or area where lifetime fertility is below 2.1 births per woman, roughly the level required for zero growth in the long run for a population with low mortality.
    • The populations of 61 countries or areas are projected to decrease by one per cent or more between 2022 and 2050, owing to sustained low levels of fertility.
  • The share of the global population aged 65 years or above is projected to rise from 10% in 2022 to 16% in 2050. 
    • The report warns that countries with ageing populations should take steps to adapt public programmes to the growing proportion of older persons, including by improving the sustainability of social security and pension systems and by establishing universal health care and long-term care systems.
  • In most countries of sub-Saharan Africa, as well as in parts of Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean, the share of population at working age (between 25 and 64 years) had been increasing thanks to recent reductions in fertility.
  • Global life expectancy at birth reached 8 years in 2019, an improvement of almost nine years since 1990.
    • As per the report, the COVID-19 pandemic affected all components of population change. Global life expectancy at birth fell to 71 years in 2021.
  • Over the next few decades, migration will be the sole driver of population growth in high-income countries.
    • For 10 countries, the estimated net outflow of migrants exceeded 1 million over the period from 2010 through 2021. 

Key findings on India by the report:

  • India is projected to surpass China as the world’s most populous country in 2023.
  • India, along with seven will make up over half of the estimated increase in the global population up to 2050.
  • The eight countries include:
    • The Democratic Republic of the Congo,
    • Egypt
    • Ethiopia
    • India
    • Nigeria
    • Pakistan
    • The Philippines
    • Tanzania
  • Health experts have called for more investment in healthcare sector in India

What is the Nord Stream 1 gas link, why its shutdown has Europe on edge

Context

The Nord Stream 1, Germany’s main source of gas from Russia, was shut down recently for 10 days of scheduled maintenance work.

Background

What is Nord Stream 1?

  • The Nord Stream Pipeline system is a major feat of engineering, which involved complex logistics, along with suppliers and contractors from all over the world.
  • The project consists of two pipelines running almost parallel to one another through the Baltic Sea.
  • Nord Stream 1 is a 1,224 km underwater gas pipeline that runs from Vyborg in northwest Russia to Lubmin in northeastern Germany via the Baltic Sea.
  • Majority owned by the Russian energy giant Gazprom, the pipeline is the primary route through which its gas enters Germany.
  • It transports 55 billion cubic metres of gas a year, of which most goes directly to Germany, while the rest travels west and southwards through onshore links to other countries and into storage caverns.
  • Germany is Russia’s biggest European gas consumer, and most of it comes through the Nord Stream Pipeline.
  • Its share of Russian gas supplies was 55% in 2021, and currently lies at 35%.

Reliable Gas Sources

  • Bovanenkovo oil and gas condensate deposit is the main natural gas base for the Nord Stream Pipeline.
  • Bovanenkovo lies in Western Siberia (Russia), on the Yamal Peninsula, 40 kilometers from the coast of the Kara Sea and covers an area of about 1000 square kilometers.
  • Searched and estimated gas reserves there amount to 4.9 trillion cubic meters which makes the Bovanenkovo field a reliable source of natural gas for Europe.

What are Europe’s alternative sources of energy?

  • There have been growing concerns that there could be further restrictions to European gas supplies, well beyond the scheduled maintenance that has been imposed.
  • European countries rely on Russian energy for their cold winters, but now believe that Russia could weaponize their dependency as a response to their sanction due to the conflict in Ukraine.
    • If Nord Stream 1 does not resume its supply to Europe, it will not have adequate gas supply by the end of the year.
  • As an alternative source for energy, European countries have increasingly turned towards the US, from whom they purchase liquified natural gas (LNG) that comes via ships.
    • Since ship delivered gas ends up being far more expensive, there are also attempts to get non-Russian pipeline gas from Norway and Azerbaijan.

Natural gas is a lower-carbon fuel that can replace other fossil fuels in the energy mix and deliver a reliable output to complement intermittent renewable energy.       

Largest natural gas fields in Russia

  • Urengoy field – 10.9Tcm: Located in the northern West Siberia Basin, the Urengoyskoye gas and condensate field has been in production since 1978.
  • Yamburg field – 8.2Tcm: Yamburg, which is operated by Gazprom and located in Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug in Tyumen Oblast, is also the world’s third biggest natural gas field.
  • Bovanenkovo field – 4.9Tcm: Located in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug, the onshore Bovanenkovo field operated by Gazprom has been in production since 2012.
  • Shtokmn field – 3.9Tcm: Discovered in 1988, the Shtokman gas and condensate field is located in the central part of the Russian sector of the Barents Sea, approximately 600km north-east of Murmansk and in water depths of ranging from 320m to 340m.
  • Zapolyarnoye field – 3.5Tcm: The Zapolyarnoye field is located in the southern part of the Taz District, 220km away from Novy Urengoy, Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Area.

Sarfaesi Act, invoked against telecom provider GTL

Context

Banks have invoked the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest (SARFAESI) Act against telecom infrastructure provider GTL to recover their pending dues.

  • The recovery action has been initiated by IDBI Bank on behalf of lenders, whose total exposure to GTL stood at Rs 7,250 crore as of December, 2021.
About

SARFAESI Act:

  • The SARFAESI Act of 2002 was brought in to guard financial institutions against loan defaulters.
  • To recover their bad debts, the banks under this law can take control of securities pledged against the loan, manage or sell them to recover dues without court intervention.
  • The law is applicable throughout the country and covers all assets, movable or immovable, promised as security to the lender.


Elements of the SARFAESI Act:

The SARFAESI Act is applied to the entire country of India. The SARFAESI Act, 2002 provisions are in effect for modifying the four laws listed below:

  • Indian Stamp Act, 1899.
  • The recovery of the debts due to the Banks and Financial Institutions Act, 1993 (RDDBFI). 
  • The Depositories Act, 1996 and for those matters that are connected therewith or incidental thereto. 
  • The Reconstruction and Securitisation of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest Act, 2002.

Aim of the SARFAESI Act:

The SARFAESI Act has two main objectives:

  • Recovering the financial institutions’ and banks’ non-performing assets (NPAs) in a timely and effective manner.
  • Allows financial organisations and banks to sell residential and commercial assets at auction if a borrower defaults on his or her debt.

Need for the SARFAESI Act

  • Before the law was enacted in December 2002, banks and other financial institutions were forced to take a lengthy route to recover their bad debts.
  • The lenders would appeal in civil courts or designated tribunals to get hold of ‘security interests’ to recovery of defaulting loans, which in turn made the recovery slow and added to the growing list of lender’s non-performing assets.
  • Recognising that one out of every five borrowers is a defaulter, the government was under obligation to provide proper mechanisms for debt recovery as well as to foreclose the security.
  • Hence, The SARFAESI Act, 2002 (the Securitisation Act) attempts to fulfil these dual goals, as well as to provide a wide legal framework for asset Securitisation and asset reconstruction.

What powers do banks have under the law?

  • The Act comes into play if a borrower defaults on his or her payments for more than six months.
  • The lender then can send a notice to the borrower to clear the dues within 60 days.
  • In case that doesn’t happen, the financial institution has the right to take possession of the secured assets and sell, transfer or manage them.
  • The defaulter, meanwhile, has recourse to move an appellate authority set up under the law within 30 days of receiving a notice from the lender.
  • According to a 2020 Supreme Court judgment, co-operative banks can also invoke SARFAESI Act.
  • According to the Finance Ministry, the non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) can initiate recovery in Rs. 20 lakh loan default cases.

National Emblem crowned on India’s new Parliament

Context

Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled the National Emblem cast on the roof of the new Parliament building.

About

The National Emblem

  • Cast at the top of the Central Foyer of the new Parliament building, the 6.5-metre-high National Emblem is made of bronze, and weighs 9,500 kg.
  • A supporting structure of steel weighing around 6,500 kg has been constructed to support the Emblem.

National Emblem:

  • It is an adaptation from the Sarnath Lion Capitol of Ashoka.
  • Carved out of a single block of polished sandstone, the Capitol is crowned by the Wheel of the Law (Dharma Chakra).
  • In the original, there are four lions, mounted back to back, on a circular abacus, which itself rests on a bell-shaped lotus.
  • The frieze of the abacus has sculptures in high relief of an elephant, a galloping horse, a bull and a lion separated by intervening Dharma Chakras.
  • The profile of the Lion Capital showing three lions mounted on the abacus with a Dharma Chakra in the centre, a bull on the right and a galloping horse on the left, and outlines of Dharma Chakras on the extreme right and left was adopted as the State Emblem of India on January 26, 1950.
    • The bell-shaped lotus was omitted.
  • The words Satyameva Jayate from Mundaka Upanishad, meaning ‘Truth Alone Triumphs’, are inscribed below the abacus in Devanagari script.

The building’s interiors

  • The new building will have six granite statues of important personalities, four galleries each for the two Houses of Parliament, three ceremonial foyers, three India galleries, and one Constitution gallery.
  • Each wall in the building will have a dominant theme — dedicated, for instance, to the contribution of tribal leaders, or to showcasing the contribution of women.
  • Displays including a mix of portraits, illustrative arts, installations, sculptures, and decorative art will frame storylines.

Architectural style

  • Bimal Patel of HCP Designs, Ahmedabad, is the architect in charge of the building, which is triangular in shape, and incorporates architectural styles from around India.
    • The building is coming up adjacent to the existing Parliament complex, and is of almost the same size.
  • Seating capacity: The new Parliament House will have a seating arrangement of 888 members in the Lok Sabha. At present, India has 543 Lok Sabha seats.
    • Similarly, 384 members will be able to sit in the Rajya Sabha of the new Parliament House, which currently has 245 seats.
    • When a joint meeting of the two houses is convened at the new Parliament House, the hall earmarked for it will have a seating arrangement of 1,272 members. At present, the joint meeting of the two Houses is held at the Centre Hall with only 430 seats.
    • The new Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha halls will have increased seating capacities (888 and 384 seats, respectively) in anticipation of an expanded Parliament; a 25-year-old freeze on increasing state-wise distribution of seats ends in 2026.
  • The building will have an open-sky area of 2,000 sq metres for a banyan tree.

Cost of the project

  • The new Parliament building project was awarded to Tata Projects for Rs 971 crore.
    • The estimated project cost has shot up by nearly 24 per cent to about Rs 1,200 crore due to additional works, changes in construction plan, and pandemic-related delays.
  • The building is part of the Central Vista Project, which also includes a joint central secretariat, revamp of the Rajpath, a new Prime Minister’s residence, a new Prime Minister’s Office, and a new Vice-President’s enclave.

The current Parliament building

  • The present Parliament House was inaugurated on January 18, 1927. Its architectural work was entrusted to Sir Herbert Baker.
  • The giant circular building with its 144 sandstone columns was designed by Sir Edward Lutyens, who also designed the heart of Delhi – from the seat of the government in the North Block to the iconic Connaught Place.
    • Sir Herbert Baker wanted the Parliament House to be triangle-shaped. A central hall should be built in between.
  • But then British architect Sir Edwin Lutyens opposed it. He had suggested shaping it round in his proposal. Ignoring Herbert Baker's suggestion, the British had accepted Edwin Lutyens' proposal.
  • The existing Parliament building will be conserved as an archaeological asset of the nation.

NASA’s James Webb telescope beams first cosmic view of ‘deepest’ universe

Context

President Joe Biden and NASA released the clearest-ever image of our young Universe, dating to the time soon after the Big Bang.

About
  • The first image from the $10 billion James Webb Space Telescope is the farthest humanity has ever seen in both time and distance, closer to the dawn of time and the edge of the universe.
  • Light travels at 186,000 miles per second. And that light that you are seeing on one of those little specks has been travelling for over 13 billion years.
  • Webb is considered the successor to the highly successful, but aging Hubble Space Telescope.
  • Hubble has stared as far back as 13.4 billion years. It found the light wave signature of an extremely bright galaxy in 2016.
  • Astronomers measure how far back they look in light-years with one light-year being 5.8 trillion miles (9.3 trillion kilometers).

James Webb Space Telescope (JWST):

  • JWST is a general-purpose observatory with a large aperture telescope optimised for infrared observationsand a suite of state-of-the-art astronomical instruments capable of addressing many outstanding issues in astronomy.
  • It was named after former administrator of NASA James E. Webb. It was launched as an international collaboration between NASA, ESA (European Space Agency) and the Canadian Space Agency. It costs around $9.7 billion, and is billed as the next-generation space telescope (NGST).
  • Key features of JWST are-
  • JWST will operate in an orbit around the Earth-Sun L2 Langrage point, ~ 1.5 million kilometres away from Earth. This makes its operation, pointing and stability requirements much simpler in comparison with HST
  • It orbits around the Earth at an altitude of ~570 km above it.
  • The telescope and the instruments will operate at the extremely low temperature of -233°C, which prevents the instrument's own infrared emission from overwhelming the signals from the astronomical targets

Potential benefits of the JWST Mission-

The launch of JWST is touted as the next big event in study of space events. It has the potential to explore following thing in universe-

Universe's first galaxies-

  • It is possible to observe different life stages of galaxies and stars by observing light emitted by the galaxies in time space.
  • Reveal the birth of stars and planets and how they die

Look for exo-planets with the potential for life-

  • If life exists outside of Earth, it will release distinct chemical signatures, such as by breathing carbon dioxide and photosynthesizing out oxygen that can transform a planet. Analysing the chemicals in a planet’s atmosphere will not only allow scientists to look for life, but also enable them to assess a planet’s habitability.

Study black holes from a different angle-

  • Nothing can escape a black hole, not even light. But there is a plenty of stuff that revolves around stars i.e. stars, dust and entire. This telescope will allow scientists to see different goings particularly the cooler gases.

Nairita Chakraborty named Commissioner of UK history preservation body

Context

Indian-origin architect and design advocate Nairita Chakraborty has been appointed to the prestigious role of Commissioner of Historic England, the public body championing the country’s historic environment and heritage.

About
  • Chakraborty, who grew up in Delhi and studied at the School of Planning and Architecture before moving to the UK, has over 16 years of experience in heritage, townscape and design.
  • She is already a member of Historic England’s Advisory Committee.
  • She has produced significant work on the adaptation and conversion of large and complex listed buildings, as well as town centre, public realm, and conservation area schemes.

The Historic England Commission

  • As the governing board of the Historic Buildings and Monuments Commission for England, the Commission has direct responsibility for the work of Historic England.
  • The Commission also has overall responsibility for the National Heritage Collection, which is managed by the English Heritage Trust on its behalf.
  • It comprises a maximum of 17 individuals, appointed by the Secretary of State for the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, for their skill or professional standing in one or more area of expertise.

Editorial

The search for dark matter

Context

 Many physicists strongly believe that the entire visible part of the universe forms only 5% of all matter in it. They believe the rest is made up of dark matter and dark energy.

What is dark matter and why is it so elusive?

  • Four fundamental forces -All interactions in the universe are a result of four fundamental forces acting on particles — strong nuclear force, weak nuclear force, electromagnetic force and gravitation.
  • Particles that do not have a charge -Dark matter is made up of particles that do not have a charge — which means they do not interact through electromagnetic interactions.
  • Why Dark?-These are particles that are “dark”, namely because they do not emit light, which is an electromagnetic phenomenon, and “matter” because they possess mass like normal matter and hence interact through gravity.
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ThinkQ

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QUIZ - 12th July 2022

Mains Question:

Q1. Though ever increasing population of India is a grave cause of concern, the country can make good use of this population bonus for the Indian economy. Comment (150 words)

 

Approach 

  • Introduction- brief about population level of India
  • Impact of increasing population
  • Significance for the economy 
  • Required measures 
  • Conclude accordingly 
GS Mains Classes GS Classes 2024 GS Classes 2024 UPSC Study Material

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