GS Analyst
Daily Current Affairs

The central government has announced a three to 10 percent increase in wage rate for unskilled workers under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) for the financial year 2024-25.

1: Dimension- Issue of disparity in wages under MGNERAGA

• Last year, the Parliamentary panel had stressed on the need to address the issue of disparity in wages under MGNREGA. It had asked the ministry to explore the possibility of making wages uniform across the country.
• It said, “Disparity of wages and non-increase in wages commensurately with inflation is perhaps the most discouraging aspect for labourers to undertake MGNREGA works.”
• The issue of divergence between wage rates under MGNREGA is on account of the fact that the states do not follow a uniform policy of wage revision for minimum agricultural wage. In 2023-24, the lowest wages were in Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh at Rs 221, while the highest was in Haryana at Rs 357.
• Drawing on inflation data, together with the rural monthly wage index published by the Indian Labour Bureau, the Ministry of Finance has observed negative trends in the purchasing power of rural Indian wages in recent years.
  • Thus, in its Economic Survey 2022-23, the Ministry highlighted a negative growth in real rural wages (that is, rural wages adjusted for inflation) due to elevated inflation between April and November 2022.

2: Dimension- The ‘actual’ outcome of wage disparity

• Inadequate labour protection:Although people in rural areas are more likely to be in employment than those in urban ones, they also tend to have jobs that can put them at risk of experiencing inadequate labour protection as well as low pay.
• Insufficient wage to cover inflation: The increase in wage rate may be insufficient to meet the increase in cost of basic goods, which have risen due to spike in inflation in the last few years.
• Decline in the number of MGNREGA household employment demands:The household employment demand has decreased from 8.05 crore in 2021-22 to 6.20 crore in 2023-24.

Way Forward

The fluctuation in wage rates among States is unjustified. Hence, a uniform wage rate is recommended to end the disparity. Bridging the wage disparity will end the uncertainty among beneficiaries and also serve the larger purpose of welfare of MGNREGA workers. The government should devise a mechanism for notifying a unified wage rate across the country.

The contentious Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) continues to be a subject of debate and concern as the central government announces its extension in three districts and three police stations of Arunachal Pradesh for a further six months. This decision raises questions about the balance between security imperatives and the protection of civil liberties in the northeastern state.

1: Dimension- Need of the Act in India’s north-east

• Arunachal Pradesh, shares its borders with China, Bhutan, and Myanmar, making it strategically significant from a security standpoint.
• Over the years, the region has witnessed sporadic incidents of insurgency and militancy, prompting the deployment of security forces and the enactment of special legal provisions such as AFSPA.
• The extension of AFSPA in three districts—Tirap, Changlang, and Longding—and three police stations underscores the persistent security challenges facing certain pockets of Arunachal Pradesh.
• These areas have been identified as being vulnerable to insurgent activities, cross-border infiltration, and other threats to public order and national security.

2: Dimension- Efficacy of such legal measures in addressing security challenges

• AFSPA is essential for dealing with insurgencies and protecting civilians from armed groups, critics view it as a draconian law that enables human rights abuses and undermines democratic principles.
• While security agencies emphasize the need for uninterrupted powers to combat insurgency and maintain stability, civil society organizations and human rights activists raise concerns about the potential for abuse of power and violations of fundamental rights.
• Reports of extrajudicial killings, arbitrary detention, and other human rights violations have fuelled calls for the repeal or reform of AFSPA.
• SC on AFSPA: The Supreme Court established legal principle “Accountability is a facet of the rule of law.” It rules that the armed forces cannot escape investigation for excesses in the course of the discharge of their duty even in “disturbed areas”.

Way forward

While security measures are undoubtedly important in addressing immediate threats, there is a growing recognition of the need for a holistic strategy that addresses the root causes of insurgency, including socio-economic marginalization, governance deficits, and issues of identity and belonging.While the recent decision is driven by legitimate concerns for public safety and national security, it also underscores the need for a nuanced approach that balances security imperatives with respect for human rights and the rule of law.

Despite the government’s commitment to “eliminate high-burden infectious” TB by 2025, ‘India is still far from reaching its goal’. There are six key challenges identified: TB diagnosis and access; lack of access to free, quality treatment and drugs; adequate nutrition and mental health support; stigma-free and gender responsive care; economic support; and high quality care.                                                                                                                                                  

1: Dimension- Barriers in India’s progress in combating TB

• Insufficient diagnosis and treatment access, stigma, and socioeconomic barriers continue to impede India’s progress in combating this disease.
• Poverty:Socioeconomic conditions create vulnerabilities to the disease.
• Undernutrition: It is a major risk factor for both the occurrence of new cases and the occurrence of severe TB that can result in TB deaths.
• Delayed diagnosis, and a lack of access to quality care. 
• Multi-drug resistance worsens matters.

2: Dimension- The right healthcare intervention

• Comprehensive care for children: Children constitute 6–7% of all patients treated under the national TB elimination programme
• Focus on nutrition: The state should immediately focus on increasing the duration and quality of inpatient care, particularly for very severe undernutrition.
• Effective diagnosis: There is a need to expand diagnostic facilities, include mobile testing units, improve access to molecular testing at affordable prices, and provide quick and accurate results.
• Addressing social factors: There is a need to address the social factors that aggravate the infection (poverty, stigma, etc).

Tamil Nadu Case Study (state-wide differentiated TB care model)

• The first published report?of a state-wide differentiated TB care model in Tamil Nadu (TN-KET), in 2023, showed that to reduce TB deaths in resource-limited settings, triaging — quickly examining patients to decide who is most seriously ill and must be treated first — can identify those with the immediate need for comprehensive assessment and inpatient care.
• Considering 70% of TB deaths happen within the first two months, it is important to triage patients at TB diagnosis.

Households around the world binned one billion meals a day in 2022, as per a report by the United Nations. 

1: Dimension- Impact of food waste

• GHG Emissions: Food waste necessitates the conversion of vast areas of land for the production of crops that are never eaten and it emits five times as many greenhouse gases into the atmosphere as the aviation industry.
• Big contributor to the climate and biodiversity crises:Not only is this waste squandering natural resources, it is also a big contributor to the climate and biodiversity crises, displacing wildlife from intensive farming, as more than a quarter of the world’s agricultural land is given over to the production of food that is subsequently wasted.
• Economic loss: Food loss and waste causes about USD 940 billion per year in economic losses. Reductions can save money for farmers, companies, and households.

2: Dimension- Main causes of Food Waste

• Climate changealso contributes to food losses and lack of food security. 
• Hot weather:More food appears to be thrown away in hot countries, perhaps reflecting the shorter time it takes for food to spoil in higher temperatures, a lack of access to refrigeration and higher consumption of fresh food with more inedible parts.
• Personal preferences:Apart from natural causes, personal preferences also contribute to wasted food.
• Poverty:Poorer households also tend to throw away food. This may reflect many factors, including a lack of access to adequate refrigeration and storage, reliance on lower quality food and a lack of time to make nutritious meals.

Case Study: Required Approach

• Food Waste Collection: In the UK, the government has announced £295m of funding for local councils to organise weekly collections of food waste, aimed at composting and preventing food waste from going to landfill, where its rotting generates methane, a powerful greenhouse gas.
  • Collecting food waste separately can encourage people to reform their habits, as they see clearly how much of what they buy is going into the bin.
• Food rescue scheme: In Johannesburg, South Africa, a food rescue scheme is channelling waste foods to those who need it most during the pandemic.
• Food banking is also an important and unique model in reducing food loss and waste, because food banks not only work with farms, manufacturers, retailers and food services to rescue wholesome food, but they also make sure that food ends up on the tables of people facing food insecurity.

Carlsberg Ridge &Afanasy-Nikitin Seamount in Indian Ocean are of India’s interest for which it has submitted applications for exploration to International Seabed Authority.

Carlsberg Ridge:

• It is the northern part of the Central Indian Ridge, a tectonic plate boundary between the African and Indian plates, running along the ocean between India and Africa.
• It was formed nearly 30 million years ago, and has been seismically active with major earthquakes. 
• Running along Seychelles and spanning 3,00,000sqkms, the Carlsberg Ridge is rich in polymetallic nodules— meaning, it contains mineral deposits with commercially viable quantities of at least 3 metals. The ridge is thought to contain trace elements of copper, lead, and zinc.

The Afanasy-Nikitin Seamount (ANS) seabed

• The ANS is a major structural feature in the Indian Ocean, rising up above the sea bed but below the surface, and forming a seamount.
• It is 400 km long and 150 km wide, and is located in the Central Indian Basin — southeast to Sri Lanka, right below the equator, to the west of Singapore — and it was formed about 80 million years ago, while dinosaurs still roamed the Earth.
• The Seamount is named after AfanasyNikitin, a 15th century Russian merchant who was one of the first to document his travels to India.
• The ANS seamount is about 3,000 km from India’s coast, and is rich in cobalt, copper, manganese, and nickel. 
  • Cobalt is in high demand among other metals due to its ubiquitous use in electronics and batteries.
  • Nickel is used in electric vehicles as it is resistant to corrosion and oxidation.
  • Manganese is also used for lithium ion and alkaline batteries
  • Copper is one of the most commonly used metals in electricity

In India, the treatment and care for Sickle Cell Disease (SCD) remains grossly inadequate and inaccessible.

What is Sickle Cell Disease?

• SCD is an inherited haemoglobin disorder in which red blood cells (RBCs) become crescent- or sickle-shaped due to a genetic mutation.
• These RBCs are rigid and impair circulation, often leading to anaemia, organ damage, severe and episodic pain, and premature death.
• India has the third highest number of SCD births, after Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
• SCD is also one of the 21 “specified” disabilities listed in the Schedule of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act 2016.
• In 2023, the Government of India launched the National Sickle Cell Anaemia Elimination Mission, to eliminate SCD by 2047. 
• Treatment and challenges:
  • Blood transfusion is another important therapy for SCD, but its availability is limited to district-level facilities.
  • Bone marrow transplantation (BMT) is the other cure for SCD. It is out of reach for most SCD patients due to high cost, long waiting time, difficulty in finding matched donors.
  • Drug hydroxyurea lessens the severity of pain, reduces hospitalisations, and improves survival rates by increasing the size and flexibility of RBCs and lowering their likelihood of becoming sickle-shaped. However, its availability is questionable.
  • The US recently approved two gene therapies, Casgevy and Lyfgenia, to treat SCD in people ages 12 and older.

Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has today released recommendations on ‘Usage of Embedded SIM for Machine-to-Machine (M2M) Communications’.

eSIM (embedded-SIM)

• An eSIM is a form of SIM card that is embedded directly into a device. Traditional SIM cards are made so that they can easily be swapped out of a phone, so that core service information can get ported from one physical device to another.
• M2M eSIM is designed for IoT sensors, meters, trackers, and devices that often operate with minimal onsite human interaction.

Machine-to-machine (M2M)

• Machine-to-machine, or M2M is a more advanced form of the Internet where many devices connect with each other. 
• Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) facilitate the communication between systems, allowing them to make their own autonomous choices

Significance of the initiative

• Security: It will ensure security by way of proper Know Your Customer (KYC), which is essential for ensuring network security, mitigating fraud risks and enhancing the overall integrity of the M2M eSIM ecosystem.
• Development of a homegrown M2M eSIM ecosystem: It will stimulate the development of a homegrown M2M eSIM ecosystem in the country, thus enabling the growth of modern M2M communication.

In a significant development towards its upcoming orbital space launch, Skyroot Aerospace, a Hyderabad based space-tech company, has successfully test-fired the Stage-2 of Vikram-1 space launch vehicle, called Kalam-250, at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) in Sriharikota.

About Vikram-1:

• ‘Vikram-1’ is a multi-stage launch vehicle.
• This launch vehicle has a capacity to place 300 kg payloads in the Low Earth Orbit.
• The rocket is an all-carbon-bodied vehicle capable of placing multiple satellites into orbit; it also features 3D-printed liquid engines.
• Globally, Vikram-1 is among ‘elite few’ rockets with the capability to deploy orbital satellites, says Skyroot.
• The ‘Vikram’ in the launch vehicles' name is a tribute to Vikram Sarabhai, the father of India's space programme.
• Significance of Satge-2:Stage-2 is a critical stage in the ascent of the launch vehicle, as it propels it from atmospheric phase to the deep vacuum of outer-space.

India's eight core sectors posted a 6.7 percent growth in February against 4.1% last month. It was 7.4 percent in February 2023. 

What are Core Sectors?

• Eight Core Sectors: Coal, Crude Oil, Natural Gas, Refinery Products, Fertilizer, Steel, Cement, and Electricity.
• These comprise 27% of the weightof items included in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP).
• The eight core sector industries in decreasing order of their weightage:
• Refinery Products> Electricity> Steel> Coal> Crude Oil> Natural Gas> Cement> Fertilizers.
• Index of Industrial Production:IIP is an indicator that measures the changes in the volume of productionof industrial products during a given period.
  • It is compiled and published monthly by the Central Statistical Organization (CSO),Ministry of Statistics, and Programme Implementation.
  • The base year for IIP is 2011-2012.