GS Analyst
Daily Current Affairs

Nagaland is undertaking the first avian documentation exercise to go beyond Amur falcons, the migratory raptor that put the State on the world birding map.

• Exercise Name: Tokhü Emong Bird Count (TEBC) 
• The exercise entails watching and counting birds from anywhere in Nagaland for at least 15 minutes and uploading the avian names on eBird (www.ebird.org/india), the bird recording platform.
• The TEBC falls within the Salim Ali Bird Count, a nationwide event conducted by the Bombay Natural History Society.
  
  
  

Knowing the Species

• Amur falcons (Falcon amurensis) is the world’s longest-traveling raptor.
• The species is protected under the Wildlife Protection Act 1972 and included under Schedule IV.

Tracking the Journey

• Duration: October-November
• Amur falcons migrate to their wintering grounds in South Africa, usually arriving in large numbers during October in Nagaland and Manipur besides other places in the northeast, undertaking a yearly journey of about 20,000 km.
• They leave the region in November after having enough food for their non-stop flight to Africa where they spend their winters.
  
  
  

Recently, two Uttar Pradesh legislators were held convicted, but only one of them has been disqualified. It makes a case to understand what amounts to disqualification after getting convicted.

Disqualification of MPs and MLAs:

• The Representation of the People Act, of 1951 specifies the qualifications and the disqualifications of Members of Parliament and state legislatures.
• Section 8 of the Representation of the People Act (RPA), 1951, contains provisions aimed at decriminalizing electoral politics.
• Section 8 (3) of the Representation of the People Act, 1951: MP/MLA convicted of any offense and sentenced to imprisonment for not less than two years shall be disqualified from the date of conviction.
• Even if a person is on bail after the conviction and his appeal is pending disposal, he is disqualified from contesting an election.
• There are two categories of criminal cases that attract disqualification upon conviction.

First Category:

• It contains offenses that entail disqualification for a period of six years upon any conviction. Major IPC offenses are included under this head, for example:
• making speeches that cause enmity between groups (Sec.153A) and doing so in a place of worship (Sec.505)
• bribery and personation during elections and other electoral offenses,
• offenses relating to rape and
• Cruelty to women by husbands and later’s relatives.
• If the punishment is fine, the six-year period will run from the date of conviction.
• If there is a prison sentence, the disqualification will begin on the date of conviction and will continue up to the completion of six years after the date of release from jail.

Second Category:

• All other criminal provisions form a separate category under which mere conviction will not entail disqualification.
• A sentence of at least two years in prison is needed to incur such disqualification.

Is there legal protection for legislators against disqualification?

• Under Section 8(4) of the RPA, legislators could avoid immediate disqualification until 2013.
• Section 8(4) allowed convicted MPs, MLAs, and MLCs to continue in their posts, provided they appealed against their conviction/sentence in higher courts within 3 months of the date of judgment by the trial court.
• In other words, the mere filing of an appeal against conviction will operate as a stay against disqualification.
• But in Lily Thomas vs. Union of India, the Supreme Court in July 2013 struck down section 8(4) of the RPA, 1951 and declared it ultra vires, and held that the disqualification takes place from the date of conviction.

Can the disqualification be removed?

• Yes, the Supreme Court has the power to stay not only the sentence but also the conviction of a person.
• In some rare cases, conviction has been stayed to enable the appellant to contest an election.
• But the Supreme Court has made it clear that such a stay should be very rare and for special reasons.
• The RPA itself provides a remedy through the Election Commission.
• Under Sec. 11 of the Act, the EC may record reasons and either remove or reduce the period of, a person’s disqualification.
• The EC exercised this power for Sikkim Chief Minister P.S. Tamang, who served a one-year sentence for corruption, and reduced his disqualification so as to contest a byelection and remain in office.

Important Supreme Court Judgements:

• 2002– Union of India (UOI) v. Association for Democratic Reforms and Anr: The SC held that every candidate, contesting an election to the Parliament, State Legislatures, or Municipal Corporation, has to declare their criminal records, financial records, and educational qualifications along with their nomination paper.
• 2005- Ramesh Dalal vs. Union of India: The SC held that a sitting MP or MLA shall also be subject to disqualification from contesting elections if he is convicted and sentenced to not less than 2 years of imprisonment by a court of law.
• 2013- In Lily Thomas v. Union of India: The SC held that Section 8(4) of The Representation of the People Act, 1951 is unconstitutional which allows MPs and MLAs who are convicted to continue in office till an appeal against such conviction is disposed of.
• The court held that MP/MLA convicted for two years or above would be disqualified immediately.
• 2015: Krishnamurthy v. Sivakumar & Ors: The SC held that disclosure of criminal antecedents (especially heinous crimes) of a candidate at the time of filing of nomination paper as mandated by law was a categorically imperative.

Election Commission’s Measures and Recommendations

• In 1997, Election Commission directed all the Returning Officers (ROs) to reject the nomination papers of any candidate who stands convicted on the day of filing the nomination papers even if his sentence is suspended.
• The Election Commission recommended that if a person is found guilty by a Commission of Inquiry. Then he shall be disqualified from contesting elections.
• Further, Election Commission believes that if a court of law frames the criminal charges against the accused person. Then prima facie he might have been involved in the alleged crime, hence he should be disqualified from contesting elections.
• The First Past the Post (FPTP) electoral system shall be replaced by the 2-ballot system. Under which a candidate is declared elected from a territorial constituency based on the majority principle. If no one wins 50 percent of the vote. All candidates except the top two are excluded and voters are asked to vote a second time. In the second round, the candidate who wins the most votes is elected.
• The 2-ballot system will make winning elections very difficult for criminals as they will have to garner. The widest possible support from the voters to get the majority votes.

According to a study, published in the latest edition of People and Nature by the British Ecological Society, the horns of rhinoceroses may have become smaller over time from the impact of hunting.

Key-highlights

• The study found that the rate of decline in horn length was highest in the critically-endangered Sumatran rhino and lowest in the white rhino of Africa, which is the most commonly found species both in the wild and in captivity. 
• Rhinos have long been hunted for their horns. 
• This observation follows patterns seen in other animals, such as tusk size in elephants and horn length in wild sheep, which have been driven down by directional selection due to trophy hunting.

Reasons for shrinking Horns

• Rhinos have long been hunted for their horns, which are highly valued in some cultures.
  • Rhino horns are made of keratin, which is also the key component of human hair and fingernails. 
• The declining horn length over time across species is perhaps related to the selective pressure of hunting and evolution.

Rhinos in India

• Only the Greater One-Horned Rhino is found in India which is also known as the Indian rhino and is the largest of the rhino species.
  • Assam accounts for its largest population in India and had at least five rhino-bearing areas till the 1980s.
• It is identified by a single black horn and a grey-brown hide with skin folds.
• It is one of the five species of Rhinos.
  • The other four species
    • White rhino: It is native to northern and southern Africa
    • Black rhino: It is native to eastern and southern Africa
    • Javan rhino: It is also known as Sunda rhino or lesser one-horned rhino
    • Sumatran rhino: Critically Endangered species of rhino
• They primarily graze, with a diet consisting almost entirely of grasses as well as leaves, branches of shrubs and trees, fruit, and aquatic plants.
• This species of rhino is commonly found in Nepal, Bhutan, Pakistan, and in Assam, India.
• Protection Status
  • IUCN Red List: Vulnerable
  • CITES Appendix I
  • Wildlife Protection Act, 1972: Schedule I
• World Rhino Day is celebrated on September 22 every year.

Conservation Efforts by India

• New Delhi Declaration on Asian Rhinos 2019: Signed by India, Bhutan, Nepal, Indonesia, and Malaysia.
• National Rhino Conservation Strategy 2019
• Project to create DNA profiles of all rhinos by the Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC).
• Indian Rhino Vision 2020.

Conservation status of the four species 

• Javan Rhinos (Rhinoceros sondaicus): Critically Endangered 
• Sumatran rhinos (Dicerorhinus sumatrensis): Critically Endangered 
• Black rhinos (Diceros bicornis): Critically Endangered 
• White rhinos (Ceratotherium simum): Near Threatened 

The Department of School Education and Literacy (DoSE&L) has released the Performance Grading Index (PGI) for States and Union Territories (UTs) for 2020-21.

Key findings of PGI 2020-21:

• A total of 7 States and UTs, Viz., Kerala, Punjab, Chandigarh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Andhra Pradesh have attained Level II (score 901-950) in 2020-21 as compared to none in 2017-18 and 4 in 2019-20.
  • Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Andhra Pradesh are the new entrants to the highest achieved level of any State so far.
• The newly formed UT viz., Ladakh has made significant improvement in PGI from Level 8 to Level 4 in 2020-21 or improved its score by 299 points in 2020-21 as compared to 2019-20 resulting in highest ever improvement in a single year.
• None of the states has so far attained the highest level (L-1).
• The inter-state disparity in school education in India has reduced in the last four years.

About the Performance Grading Index (PGI):

• The Performance Grading Index (PGI) is a unique index for evidence-based comprehensive analysis of the school education system in India.
• Initiated by: Department of School Education and Literacy (DoSE&L), Ministry of Education.
• Objective: to promote evidence-based policymaking and highlight course correction to ensure quality education for all.
• Methodology: The PGI structure comprises 1,000 points across 70 parameters grouped into five broad categories (Learning Outcomes, Access, Infrastructure & Facilities, Equity, and Governance Process).
• It ranked the states and UTs based on the scores out of 1000 points. The highest achievable grade is Level 1 with a score above 950. The lowest grade is Level 10 with a score below 551.

Recent government scheme promoting education

• New India Literacy Programme (NILP): It is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme to impart not only foundational literacy and numeracy but also to cover other components which are necessary for a citizen of the 21st century.
• Samagra Shiksha: This is an integrated scheme covering all classes from pre-primary to senior secondary. 
• ‘Students’ and Teachers’ Holistic Advancement through Quality Education (SARTHAQ): It is an indicative and suggestive Implementation Plan for School Education developed by the Department of School Education and Literacy.
• National Initiative for Proficiency in Reading with Understanding and Numeracy (NIPUN Bharat): The scheme aims to ensure that every child in the country necessarily attains foundational literacy and numeracy (FLN) by the end of Grade 3.