GS Analyst: Daily Current Affairs

India's Vision 2047 aims to achieve sustainability and climate resilience by addressing climate vulnerabilities and ensuring economic growth with minimal environmental footprints. The focus is on achieving net zero by 2070 while becoming weather-ready and climate-resilient.

Inter-ministerial Coordination for Managing Climate Hazards & Sustainability Challenges:

• Introduction to the Issue: Effective governance requires ministries to work collaboratively, breaking down silos to tackle climate hazards with scientific and technological innovations.
• Synergy Between Ministries: Synergy between ministries such as MoEFCC, MoES, and Jal Shakti is essential for data networks, early warnings, and modeling infrastructure to handle climate impacts like heatwaves, floods, and droughts.
• Implementation Strategy: Ministries must coordinate to manage risks, vulnerabilities, and responses while ensuring resources and technology are used efficiently for disaster responses, adaptation, and mitigation.

Working in Verticals to Synergise Goals, Strategies, Plans, Implementations:

• Sustainability Matrix: Verticals for water, agriculture, energy, health, and infrastructure are needed, with a focus on nature-based solutions and managing the food-water-energy nexus.
• Resource Management: Adaptation and mitigation strategies will exploit overlaps in resources and technologies, ensuring mainstream sustainability in fiscal policies and budget processes.
• Budget Protection: Each ministry’s budget will be protected while allowing access to resources from other ministries for effective disaster management and resilience building.

Paving the Sustainability Pathway:

• Collaborative Action Plan: A co-developed action plan involving all institutions, including academic and governmental agencies, ensures comprehensive monitoring and evaluation towards sustainability.
• MoES-Led Teams: MoES will track hazards, vulnerabilities, and resilience at local levels to ensure no one is left behind and sustainability goals are met with minimal environmental impact.
• Integration with Private Sector: The private sector's role in energy, agriculture, water, and health is crucial for driving innovation and ensuring equitable growth.

Challenges of Implementation and Ensuring Inclusivity:

• Implementation Hurdles: Ensuring effective implementation of sustainability plans requires careful consideration of potential misuse and sensitivity to local contexts.
• Enforcement Challenges: Proper enforcement of policies demands robust monitoring and adaptive strategies to address misuse and inefficiencies.
• Promoting Inclusivity: Tailoring support on a case-by-case basis to address diverse needs fosters an equitable and supportive environment for all stakeholders.

UPSC Mains Questions:

Q. Examine the role of the private sector in driving innovation and ensuring sustainable development in India's Vision 2047.

India has achieved an outstanding outcome in the 2023-24 mutual evaluation by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). This milestone highlights India's efforts to combat money laundering (ML) and terrorist financing (TF), placing India in the "regular follow-up" category, a distinction shared by only four other G-20 countries.

• FATF Evaluation and Its Significance:
• High-Level Compliance: The FATF plenary concluded that India has reached a high level of technical compliance with FATF requirements. The anti-money laundering (AML), countering the financing of terrorism (CFT), and counter-proliferation financing (CPF) regimes of India are achieving good results, including international cooperation and access to beneficial ownership information.
• Effective Measures: India's AML/CFT/CPF framework has been effective in using financial intelligence and depriving criminals of their assets. The evaluation highlighted India's success in transitioning from a cash-based to a digital economy to reduce ML/TF risks.
• Recognition of Efforts: The FATF has recognized India's rigorous measures over the past decade to safeguard its financial system from ML/TF threats, including efforts to mitigate risks arising from corruption, fraud, and organized crime.
• Areas Needing Improvement:
• Supervision and Implementation: The FATF observed that India needs to strengthen the supervision and implementation of preventive measures in some non-financial sectors.
• Delays in Prosecutions: India needs to address delays in concluding ML and TF prosecutions to ensure timely justice.
• CFT Measures for NPOs: Improvements are required to ensure that CFT measures aimed at preventing the non-profit sector from being abused for TF are implemented effectively, including conducting outreach to NPOs about their TF risks.
• Policy Implications and Future Directions:
• Enhancing Supervision: Strengthening the supervision of non-financial sectors will be crucial to maintaining and improving compliance with FATF standards.
• Speeding Up Legal Processes: Addressing delays in ML and TF prosecutions will enhance the effectiveness of India's AML/CFT framework and ensure quicker justice.
• Outreach to NPOs: Conducting regular outreach and providing guidance to NPOs will help them understand and mitigate TF risks, ensuring compliance with FATF's risk-based approach.

UPSC Mains Questions:

Q. Examine the challenges faced by India in strengthening the supervision and implementation of preventive measures in non-financial sectors. How can these challenges be addressed to ensure better compliance with FATF standards?

The rise of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) has brought significant advancements in various fields. However, the increasing reliance on AI/ML algorithms has also highlighted the need to eliminate biases within these systems.

Challenges of Bias in AI/ML:

• Inherent Biases in Data: AI/ML systems often learn from historical data that may contain inherent biases. These biases can lead to discriminatory outcomes, perpetuating existing inequalities and prejudices.
• Lack of Diversity in Development: The lack of diversity among AI/ML developers can contribute to biased algorithms. When development teams are not representative of the broader population, the algorithms they create may not account for the diverse needs and perspectives of all users.
• Complexity of Bias Detection: Identifying and mitigating biases in AI/ML systems is a complex task. Biases can be subtle and may not be immediately apparent, requiring sophisticated techniques and constant vigilance to detect and address them.

Efforts to Address AI/ML Bias:

• Regulatory Frameworks: Regulatory bodies, including the RBI, are focusing on creating guidelines and frameworks to ensure fairness and transparency in AI/ML systems. These frameworks aim to promote ethical AI development and deployment practices.
• Inclusive Development Practices: Encouraging diversity in AI/ML development teams can help create more balanced and unbiased algorithms. Including people from various backgrounds ensures a wider range of perspectives and reduces the risk of overlooking potential biases.
• Bias Audits and Evaluations: Conducting regular audits and evaluations of AI/ML systems for biases is crucial. These audits help identify biases in data and algorithms, enabling organizations to take corrective measures and improve the fairness of their systems.

Future Directions and Policy Implications:

• Development of Advanced Systems: Under its aspirational goals for ‘RBI@100’, the RBI aims to develop cutting-edge systems for high-frequency and real-time data monitoring and analysis. These systems will incorporate AI/ML analytics while ensuring fairness and eliminating biases.
• Promotion of Ethical AI: Promoting the development and use of ethical AI is essential for building trust in AI/ML systems. Policymakers and industry leaders must work together to establish and enforce ethical guidelines for AI/ML development.
• Education and Awareness: Raising awareness about AI/ML biases and their impact is crucial. Educational initiatives can help developers, policymakers, and the public understand the importance of fairness in AI/ML and the need to address biases proactively.

UPSC Mains Questions:

Q. Discuss the challenges associated with biases in AI/ML systems. How can these biases impact societal and economic outcomes? Provide examples to illustrate your points.

The Lok Sabha has passed a resolution against the Emergency which was declared on June 25, 1975, to create awareness about all historic events.

About:

• The Constitution of India provides for extraordinary measures to deal with exceptional situations that threaten the nation's security, stability, or democratic functioning. These are known as the emergency provisions, outlined in Part XVIII of the Constitution, from Articles 352 to 360.
• Types of Emergency:
• National Emergency (Article 352)
• State Emergency or President's Rule (Article 356)
• Financial Emergency (Article 360)

National Emergency (Article 352):

• A National Emergency can be declared on grounds of war, external aggression, or armed rebellion. Key points:
• It can be proclaimed by the President on the written advice of the Union Cabinet.
• It must be approved by both Houses of Parliament within one month.
• Initially valid for six months, it can be extended indefinitely with parliamentary approval every six months.
• Fundamental Rights under Article 19 are automatically suspended during this period.
• National Emergency has been declared three times in India's history - in 1962 (Sino-Indian War), 1971 (India-Pakistan War), and 1975-77 (internal disturbance, known as "The Emergency").

Financial Emergency (Article 360):

• This can be declared if the financial stability or credit of India or any part of its territory is threatened.
• Never invoked in Indian history.
• Requires parliamentary approval within two months.
• Can remain in force indefinitely with repeated parliamentary approval.

A Red Panda, which is also called as lesser Panda, was sighted by a team of forest department officials at Mayudia in Lower Dibang valley district of Arunachal Pradesh for the first time in this area.

About:

• It is a small mammal native to the eastern Himalayas and southwestern China.
• The red panda is slightly larger than a domestic cat with a bear-like body and thick russet fur.
• The belly and limbs are black, and there are white markings on the side of the head and above its small eyes.
• Red pandas are very skillful and acrobatic animals that predominantly stay in trees. Almost 50% of the red panda’s habitat is in the Eastern Himalayas.
• IUCN Status: Endangered

Kenya is grappling with a severe financial crisis triggered by a heavy debt burden, compounded by a controversial finance bill proposing tax hikes. The issue has resulted in widespread protests, showcasing the delicate balance between debt management and public welfare.

Controversy Surrounding the Finance Bill:

• Introduction to the Issue: The Kenyan government's decision to introduce an IMF-backed finance bill to increase taxes on essentials sparked protests. This move, aimed at stabilizing the country's debt-laden economy, faced significant backlash.
• Debate Over Public Sentiment: The bill's proposal to raise taxes on items such as sanitary pads, fuel, and bread led to public outrage, resulting in violent protests that left at least 23 people dead and 200 injured.
• Government's Response: Following the protests, President William Ruto announced he would not sign the bill, highlighting the government's need to consider public sentiment while addressing economic challenges.

Impact on Kenya's Economy and Debt Situation:

• Debt Burden: Kenya's debt, both domestic and foreign, reached $80 billion last year, accounting for nearly three-fourths of its GDP. The country spends over half of its revenue on debt servicing.
• Economic Strain: The COVID-19 pandemic and the Ukraine war exacerbated Kenya's financial woes, with rising global food and energy prices impacting the economy.
• Reliance on Multinational Lenders: Kenya's development model relies heavily on loans from the IMF, World Bank, and bilateral partners like China. However, the rising debt burden poses significant challenges for economic stability.

Challenges and Policy Implications:

• Implementation Hurdles: The proposed tax hikes were intended to raise an additional 200 billion Kenyan shillings ($1.55 billion) but faced strong public opposition and implementation challenges.
• IMF's Role: The IMF's stringent conditions for additional lending and tax reforms have been criticized for being one-sided, potentially exacerbating public discontent and economic instability.
• Need for Balanced Measures: Moving forward, President Ruto must balance austerity measures with the needs of the populace. International lenders should support African countries in debt distress without further impoverishing their citizens.

UPSC Mains Questions

Q. Discuss the impact of heavy debt burden on the economic stability of developing countries with a special focus on Kenya. What measures can be taken to balance debt repayment and public welfare?

The integrity, credibility, and legitimacy of India's high-stakes entrance examinations are under scrutiny due to cancellations, postponements, and demands for re-conducting exams like UGC-NET, UGC-CSIR, and NEET-PG. These issues highlight systemic failures in establishing a reliable examination system despite efforts like the National Education Policy 2020.

Controversy Surrounding Examination Integrity:

• Introduction to the Issue: The recent controversies surrounding paper leaks and exam postponements have exposed the flaws in India’s entrance examination system, emphasizing the need for a credible and trust-based system.
• Debate Over Short-term Changes: The establishment of the National Testing Agency (NTA) in 2017 without substantial systemic overhaul has led to recurring issues, undermining its purpose of ensuring consistent and reliable evaluations.
• Government's Proactive Measures: The government’s response, including referring cases to the CBI and forming a committee led by K Radhakrishnan, demonstrates its understanding of the crisis's potential consequences and commitment to comprehensive reforms.

Challenges in Operational Framework:

• Stagnant Operational Practices: Despite its promising inception, NTA's operational framework has remained stagnant, failing to address technological threats and operational deficiencies. The lack of infrastructure enhancement and skilled personnel has resulted in substandard performance.
• Instances of Mismanagement: The NTA's compensatory marks issue during NEET exams without structured criteria highlights the nonchalance in its operations, further eroding public trust.
• Need for Comprehensive Reforms: The NTA must adopt innovative approaches and significant infrastructure investments to transition from traditional assessment methods to a dynamic, technology-driven evaluation system.

Federal Sensitivity and Trust Building:

• Significance of Trust: Building trust is crucial for developing a credible examination system. The disparities in education quality and evaluation due to the concurrent list status of education in the Constitution exacerbate the issue.
• Exploitation of Systemic Loopholes: The disparities and inconsistencies provide opportunities for the coaching industry to exploit learning gaps, leading to unethical practices like paper leaks.
• Collaborative Mechanism: Empowering the NTA with authority and a collaborative framework involving federal and state law enforcement and intelligence agencies is essential to combat examination malpractices effectively.

UPSC Mains Questions

Q. Critically analyze the challenges faced by the National Testing Agency (NTA) in ensuring the integrity and credibility of high-stakes entrance examinations in India. What measures can be taken to address these challenges?

Twenty-five years ago, the Indian Army achieved a near-impossible feat by recapturing the Kargil heights, despite an intelligence failure. The valor and sacrifice of 527 soldiers underscored the Army's resilience and capability in overcoming extreme challenges.

Controversy Surrounding Intelligence Failure:

• Introduction to the Issue: The Kargil War highlighted significant intelligence lapses, with the Indian Army initially blamed for the failure. However, it was not the Army's mandate to gather strategic intelligence.
• Debate Over Responsibility: The intelligence agencies failed to discern Pakistan’s strategic moves and internal divisions, leading to the intrusions. The Army's role was reactive, focused on operational success rather than intelligence gathering.
• Government Response: The Kargil Review Committee, led by K Subrahmanyam, identified systemic failures and proposed structural reforms to enhance national security and prevent future lapses.

Challenges and Heroism in Recapturing the Heights:

• Logistical and Tactical Challenges: The military was restricted from crossing the Line of Control, necessitating direct infantry assaults on well-defended high-altitude positions. Despite these constraints, the Army successfully recaptured key positions like Tololing and Tiger Hill.
• Leadership and Morale: The success was driven by exceptional leadership and high morale, with leaders like Major General Mohinder Puri and visits from then-Chief General VP Malik bolstering the troops' determination.
• Media's Role: For the first time, responsible media coverage played a crucial role, providing real-time updates that boosted national morale and contributed to the strategic success of the operations.

Valour and Sacrifice:

• Unmatched Sacrifice: The valor of soldiers like Captain Vikram Batra and others, who fought under extreme conditions, remains unparalleled. The war saw the supreme sacrifice of 527 soldiers, including 26 officers, who upheld the honor of their units.
• Legacy of the Heroes: The stories of war heroes like Manoj Pandey, Sanjay Kumar, Yogendra Yadav, Anuj Nayyar, and Vijayant Thapar continue to inspire the nation. Their bravery and dedication are etched in the annals of military history.

UPSC Mains Questions

Q. Discuss the role of intelligence in modern warfare, using the Kargil War as a case study. What reforms were suggested by the Kargil Review Committee to improve intelligence gathering and national security?