GS Analyst
Daily Current Affairs

India is taking another step in its quest to find valuable minerals hidden in the depths of the ocean which could hold the key to a cleaner future. India applied to the International Seabed Authority (ISBA), Jamaica, for rights to explore two vast tracts in the Indian Ocean seabed that aren’t part of its jurisdiction.

1: Dimension-The global race for mineral resources

• Countries including China, Russia and India are vying to reach the huge deposits of mineral resources - cobalt, nickel, copper, manganese - that lie thousands of metres below the surface of oceans. These are used to produce renewable energy such as solar and wind power, electric vehicles and battery technology needed to battle against climate change.
• The UN-affiliated International Seabed Authority (ISA) has issued 31 exploration licences so far, of which 30 are active.
• If the ISA approves India's new applications, its licence count will be equal to that of Russia and one less than China. India already has two deep-sea exploration licences in the Indian Ocean.
• India’s application for two regions:
  • AN Seamount: One of these regions is a cobalt-rich crust long known as the Afanasy Nikitin Seamount (AN Seamount).
  • Carlsberg Ridge: One of India's applications seeks to explore polymetallic sulphides - chimney-like mounds near hydrothermal vents containing copper, zinc, gold and silver - in the Carlsberg Ridge of the Central Indian Ocean.
• India, China, Germany and South Korea already have exploration licences for polymetallic sulphides in the Indian Ocean ridge area.

2: Dimension-Rights for Open Ocean

• No countries can claim sovereignty over open oceans. Around 60% of the world’s seas are open ocean and though believed to be rich in a variety of mineral wealth.
• Currently no country has commercially extracted resources from open oceans.
• Countries have exclusive rights up to 200 nautical miles, and its underlying sea-bed from their borders.
• Some ocean-bound states may have a natural stretch of land, connecting their border and the edge of the deep ocean that extends beyond this 200, as part of their so-called continental shelf.
• UNCLOS-linked body, the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf decides on the limits of a country’s continental shelf.

3: Dimension-Environmental Concerns

• Deep seabed is the last frontier in the planet that remains largely unstudied and untouched by humanity and mining there could cause irreparable damage, no matter how pressing the need.
• Around two dozen countries - including the UK, Germany, Brazil and Canada - are also demanding either a halt or a temporary pause on deep-sea mining, given what they say is a lack of information about the marine ecosystems in those depths.

Amid a flaring up of tensions between Beijing and Manila over the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, India has taken its side and backed the Philippines in upholding its national sovereignty and seeks “staunch adherence” to a rules-based order.

1: Dimension- India-Philippines’ growing relations

• Strategic cooperation between India and the Philippines, especially in defence and security, has grown significantly in recent years.
• India’s ties with the Philippines have grown in areas such as trade, investment, health, food security, education, science and technology, defence and maritime cooperation.
• In 2022, Manila became the first foreign customer for the BrahMos cruise missile by inking a USD 375-million order for the weapon system developed by India and Russia.
• India and the Philippines are also part of the Indo-Pacific maritime domain awareness initiative.
• Both countries are “staunch advocates” of freedom of navigation and adherence to international law, including UNCLOS and the 2016 ruling of the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague.
  • This ruling declared China’s claims in South China as unlawful.

2: Dimension-India’s interests in the Region

• India is “deeply invested” in the region because of its Act East policy and Indo-Pacific vision and strongly supports Asean’s centrality and unity.
• Strategic interests, freedom of navigation, and oil and gas resources are the three factors determining India's expanded involvement in the South China sea.
• Geographically, Southeast Asia serves as a backyard for India and a gateway to the Indian Ocean.

India's commitment to achieve net-zero emissions by 2070, announced at the COP26 climate talks, highlights its ambitious targets for carbon neutrality and renewable energy adoption. India's emphasis on black carbon reduction, particularly through initiatives like the PMUY scheme, underscores its commitment to addressing regional health issues and achieving sustainable development goals while contributing to global climate mitigation efforts.

1: Dimension- India's Climate Commitments and Renewable Energy Targets

• At the COP26 climate talks in Glasgow in November 2021, India pledged to achieve net-zero emissions by 2070, positioning itself as a frontrunner in the race to carbon neutrality.
• According to the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, India has installed a renewable energy capacity of over 180 GW by 2023 and is expected to meet its target of 500 GW by 2030.

2: Dimension-Risks of Black Carbon

• Global warming: Black carbon is the dark, sooty material emitted alongside other pollutants when biomass and fossil fuels are not fully combusted.
• Severe health risks: There is a direct link between exposure to black carbon and a higher risk of heart disease, birth complications, and premature death.
• Source: Most black carbon emissions in India arise from burning biomass, such as cow dung or straw, in traditional cookstoves.
  • Residential sector contributes 47% of India’s total black carbon emissions.
  • Industries contribute a further 22%, diesel vehicles 17%, open burning 12%, and other sources 2%.
• Decarbonisation efforts in the industry and transport sectors in the past decade have yielded reductions in black carbon emissions, but the residential sector remains a challenge.

3: Dimension-Impact of Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY)

• The programme has been able to play a vital role in reducing black carbon emissions, as it offers a cleaner alternative to traditional fuel consumption. The programme has provided connections to over 10 crore households as of January 2024.
• However, in 2022-2023, 25% of all PMUY beneficiaries — 2.69 crore people — availed either zero LPG refill or only one LPG refill, according to RTI data, meaning they still relied entirely on traditional biomass for cooking.
• The average PMUY beneficiary household consumes only 3.5-4 LPG cylinders per year instead of the six or seven a regular non-PMUY household uses. This means up to half of all the energy needs of a PMUY beneficiary household are still met by traditional fuels.
• A shortage of LPG and higher usage of traditional fuels also affect women and children disproportionately. They are more prone to higher levels of indoor air pollution, causing many health issues and leading to premature deaths.

4: Dimension- Challenges in Implementation

• Rapid increase in LPG prices: In October 2023, the government increased the LPG subsidy to Rs 300 from Rs 200. Most PMUY beneficiaries find the price too high, more so since cow dung, firewood, etc. are ‘free’ alternatives.
• Low refill rate: While it is the rightful duty of the government to make clean fuel affordable through subsidies, the problem of low refill rates persists.
• Connectivity issue: Another big hurdle to the PMUY’s success is the lack of last-mile connectivity in the LPG distribution network, resulting in remote rural areas depending mostly on biomass.

The key to enhancing the quality of life in these areas lies primarily in securing access to clean cooking fuels. While the future holds the promise of meeting energy needs in rural areas through renewable sources, the immediate benefits for rural communities are poised to come from using LPG.The local production of coal-bed methane (CBM) gas by composting biomass is also a solution. CBM is a much cleaner fuel with lower black-carbon emissions and investment. Panchayats can take the initiative to produce CBM gas locally at the village level, ensuring every rural household can access clean cooking fuel.

The International Labour Organisation (ILO) released its latest report on India and has said that India is poised to reap a demographic dividend but challenges related to youth unemployment persist.

Key-highlights of the Report

• Report Title: India Employment Report 2024
• India's youth was 27% of the population in 2021 and this number is set to decline to 21% by 2036, and each year 7-8 million youth are added to the workforce.
• Vulnerable occupation: Youth employment in India is by and larger of poorer quality than employment for adults, with employed youth being much more likely in vulnerable occupations or informal sectors.
• Youth wages and earnings have increased with age but are lower than what they are for adults for all categories of employment.
• Poor condition of work: There has been only a marginal gap between youth earnings from wage employment and self-employment, indicating poor conditions of work.
• Highest unemployment among graduates: The highest youth unemployment rates are among those with a graduate degree and higher among women than men.
• Women not in employment, education or training amounted to a proportion nearly five times larger than among their male counterparts (48.4% versus 9.8%) and accounted for around 95% of the total youth population not in employment, education or training in 2022.

1: Dimension-Disruptive Factors

• Fast-changing technological advancements: There are increasing uncertainties in the labour market due to fast-changing technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI).
• Demographic dividend: India remains poised to reap a demographic dividend for at least another decade due to the youth population remaining at 23 per cent of the total in 2036 from 27 per cent in 2021.
• Temporary Jobs: Digital platforms and the gig economy are creating many new jobs, but these jobs are largely temporary, informal, and non-standard work.
• Algorithmic management: On the gig and platform economy front, autonomy and flexibility are non-existent due to algorithmic management and control as the subjective and unfair nature of ratings used through the algorithmic management in these platforms also creates difficulties.

2: Required Measures

• Labour-intensive manufacturing employment: The report calls for primacy to be given to labour-intensive manufacturing employment to absorb the abundant unskilled labour, along with the emerging employment-generating modern manufacturing and services sectors, with a direct and greater focus on micro, small and medium-sized enterprises by providing a more supportive and decentralised approach.
• Green investment: It also highlights investment in the green (environment-friendly) and blue (based on ocean resources) economies, developing rural infrastructure.
• Revival of employment in rural areas: There is a need for establishing an integrated market to revive employment in the farm and non-farm sectors in rural areas.

The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APCC) Climate Center has predicted that India is likely to experience above-normal precipitation during its peak monsoon season from July to September. This forecast change is attributed to the recent ENSO alert which predicts a smooth transition from El Nino to La Nina condition.

• The El Nino and La Nina are the two phases of the El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) phenomenon that occurs in the equatorial Pacific Ocean. 
• El-Nino is the periodic warming of waters in the central Pacific Ocean. The phenomenon has a direct impact on the weather patterns prevalent over the Indian peninsula. 
• La Nina refers to the periodic cooling of ocean surface temperatures in the central and east-central equatorial Pacific.
  • Typically, La Nina events occur every 3 to 5 years or so, but on occasion can occur over successive years.
  • La Nina represents the cool phase of the El Nino/Southern Oscillation (ENSO) cycle.

Impact on Indian Monsoon

• The June-September monsoon, which is vital for India's USD 3 trillion economy, brings nearly 70% of the rain the country needs to water crops and replenish reservoirs and aquifers.
• Persistent El Nino conditions are likely to bring intense heat during the summer season this year. However, the prevailing El Nino conditions will likely get neutral after the summer season.
• Before a good monsoon, India will see a scorching summer season due to prevalent El Nino conditions.
• More heatwave days than normal are predicted over northeast peninsular India -- Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and north interior Karnataka -- and many parts of Maharashtra and Odisha.

With the State stepping into peak summer season, Kerala is staring at heat wave-like conditions at many places.

What is a heat wave?

• Heat wave is a condition of air temperature which becomes fatal to human body when exposed.
• Quantitatively, it is defined based on the temperature thresholds over a region in terms of actual temperature or its departure from normal.
• For declaring a heat wave, the temperature should be 4.5 °C above normal for that time in a region.
• The criteria for the coastal station maximum temperature should be greater than or equal to 37 °C.

Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed after a container ship smashed into a pylon.

About the Bridge

• The Francis Scott Key Bridge was one of three ways to cross the Baltimore Harbor and handled 31,000 cars per day or 11.3 million vehicles a year.
• The steel structure is four lanes wide and sits 185 feet (56 meters) above the river.
• It opened in 1977 and crosses the Patapsco River.
• The bridge leads to the Port of Baltimore, the deepest harbor in Maryland's Chesapeake Bay.
• Reason behind the collapse: The metal truss-style bridge has a suspended deck, a design that contributed to its collapse, engineers say. The ship appeared to hit a main concrete pier, which rests on soil underwater and is part of the foundation.