29th April 2025 (3 Topics)
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29th April 2025
Editorials
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Context
The Office of the Deputy Speaker of the Lok Sabha has remained vacant throughout the 17th Lok Sabha (2019–2024) and continues to be vacant after the formation of the 18th Lok Sabha in 2024, creating a constitutional anomaly and raising concerns about neglect of parliamentary conventions and democratic safeguards.
Constitutional and Historical Foundation
- Constitutional Mandate: Article 93 of the Constitution requires the Lok Sabha to elect a Speaker and Deputy Speaker "as soon as may be," indicating urgency and necessity, not discretion, for the post.
- Historical Evolution: The office traces its roots to the Deputy President of the Central Legislative Assembly during British rule (first held by Sachidanand Sinha, 1921) and was formally retained post-Independence to ensure legislative continuity.
- Role Definition: The Deputy Speaker is not merely a substitute but an institutional safeguard, expected to preside impartially, manage proceedings during Speaker's absence, and handle critical legislative responsibilities.
Significance in Parliamentary Practice
- Operational Necessity: A Speaker cannot preside continuously, making the Deputy Speaker crucial for uninterrupted and orderly House functioning.
- Neutrality and Trust: Once elected, the Deputy Speaker is expected to act impartially irrespective of political affiliation, thereby reinforcing the non-partisan ethos of the legislature.
- Bipartisanship Convention: Traditionally, the Deputy Speaker’s post has been offered to the Opposition to foster bipartisan cooperation, though this is a convention, not a legal obligation.
Present Anomaly and Reform Suggestions
- Current Constitutional Vacuum: The continued vacancy violates the spirit of "as soon as may be," creating centralization of procedural authority solely with the ruling side and risking leadership vacuum during emergencies.
- Impact on Democratic Functioning: By sidelining the appointment, Parliament risks eroding institutional credibility, weakening consensus politics, and undermining parliamentary safeguards.
- Reform Proposals: Introducing a mandatory time frame (e.g., election within 60 days of the first sitting) or a statutory mechanism involving Presidential intervention has been suggested to enforce compliance and close the current procedural loophole.
Practice Question
Q. The prolonged vacancy of the Deputy Speaker’s office in the Lok Sabha has exposed critical gaps in India’s parliamentary conventions and constitutional compliance. Examine the constitutional importance of the Deputy Speaker and suggest institutional reforms to address such anomalies.
Editorials
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Context
dian cities are increasingly struggling with water shortages, electricity demand, and rising temperatures amid intensifying summers, raising urgent concerns about their readiness for climate extremes and rapid urbanisation, and exposing gaps in India's efforts toward achieving Sustainable Development Goal-11 (SDG-11) — inclusive, safe, resilient, and sustainable urban spaces.
Challenges in India's Urban Future
- Urbanisation and Vulnerabilities: Rapid urbanisation in India is intensifying pollution, congestion, and environmental degradation, disproportionately affecting the urban poor and exposing cities to greater climate vulnerabilities, as highlighted in the Sustainable Futures Collective’s 2025 report.
- Limitations of Existing Indices: India’s current tracking tools like NITI Aayog’s SDG Urban Index and the Ease of Living Index cover only limited aspects of SDG-11, lacking comprehensive, ground-level assessments of urban sustainability, inclusivity, resilience, and safety.
- Absence of Grounded Policy-Research Tools: The non-availability of a dedicated SDG-11-focused city index has created a policy-research gap, making it difficult for policymakers to accurately assess and address the real needs of Indian cities.
Key Findings from New Research on Urban SDG-11
- Methodology and Data Sources: The study constructed four separate indices for SDG-11 pillars — safety, inclusivity, resilience, and sustainability — using 57 indicators from diverse datasets like Census 2011, NCRB, IMD, employing the Shannon Entropy Weighting technique for objectivity.
- Performance Rankings Across Cities: Findings revealed that Ahmedabad ranked highest in inclusivity, Bengaluru in safety, Surat in sustainability, and Chennai in climate resilience, whereas Jaipur and Kolkata consistently ranked lower across multiple dimensions.
- Exposure of NITI Aayog Ranking Gaps: A comparison with NITI Aayog’s rankings showed that cities labelled as "front-runners" under its framework performed poorly in the new indices, exposing significant flaws in the official performance evaluation methods.
Way Forward for Sustainable Urban Development
- Localised Governance Imperative: Given each city's unique challenges, there is a pressing need for city-specific governance and urban planning strategies that are data-backed and ground-reality oriented.
- Leveraging Technology for Better Tracking: Integrated Command and Control Centres under the Smart Cities Mission should be utilised to collect real-time urban data for dynamic and responsive planning, improving SDG-11 monitoring at the Urban Local Body (ULB) level.
- Addressing Urban Poverty Gaps: As urban poverty is severely underestimated due to reliance on outdated Census 2011 data, a periodic Urban Poor Quality of Living Survey at the State level is essential for making inclusive policies aligned with contemporary urban realities.
Practice Question
Q. "India’s urbanisation trajectory demands a shift from uniform national policies to localised urban governance models." Critically analyse this statement in the context of achieving Sustainable Development Goal-11. Also suggest a roadmap for improving real-time monitoring of urban challenges. 
Editorials
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Context
India is planning a major policy shift by allowing up to 49% Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the nuclear energy sector, aiming to boost nuclear capacity, reduce coal dependency, and move toward achieving its 'net zero' carbon emissions target by 2070.
Current Status and Challenges in India's Nuclear Sector
- Government Monopoly and Limited Capacity: India’s nuclear power sector remains a state-controlled monopoly, generating only about 2% of the total installed capacity, with just over 8 GW of power despite the critical need for carbon-free energy.
- Strategic Caution and Legal Constraints: The sector has historically been restricted due to national security concerns and regulatory frameworks such as the Atomic Energy Act (1960) and the Civil Liability for Nuclear Damage Act (2010), discouraging private and foreign participation.
- Supplier Liability Issues: Even after the 2008 India-US Civil Nuclear Agreement, global suppliers remained hesitant due to strict liability laws imposing unlimited exposure risks, severely limiting foreign investment and technology inflow.
Recent Policy Proposals and Their Impact
- Opening Doors to FDI: The new proposal to allow up to 49% FDI marks a significant liberalisation of the sector, aimed at attracting foreign capital and technology to overcome the current investment and innovation stagnation.
- Private Sector Entry and Liability Reforms: Alongside FDI, the government plans to ease nuclear liability laws and permit domestic private players, potentially transforming the nuclear sector into a competitive and vibrant market.
- Strategic Trade Opportunities: Liberalising the sector could offer India a new avenue for strategic trade negotiations, particularly with nations like the United States, strengthening its global nuclear energy partnerships.
Opportunities and Safeguards for the Future
- Scaling up Nuclear Capacity Ambitions: India has set a goal to expand nuclear capacity 12 times to 100 GW by 2047, and large-scale foreign and private investments are seen as essential for achieving this target.
- Building a Nuclear Supply Chain Ecosystem: Opening up the sector presents an opportunity to develop a strong indigenous nuclear supply chain, reducing dependency on imports and ensuring sustainability of nuclear infrastructure.
- Ensuring Sovereign Control and Safety: While welcoming FDI and private participation, it is critical to maintain sovereign authority over nuclear safety, security, and regulatory standards to prevent compromising national interests.
Practice Question
Q. "Opening India's nuclear energy sector to foreign direct investment (FDI) represents both a strategic opportunity and a policy challenge." Critically examine in light of India's carbon neutrality goals and national security imperatives. 
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