GS Analyst
Daily Current Affairs

In the escalating conflict between the government and the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) over the Forest (Conservation) Rules (FCR) 2022, NCST Chairperson has mentioned that the position of the body, on being violative of the Forest Rights Act, 2006 “will be the same”.

• The Forest Conservation Rules deal with the implementation of the Forest Conservation Act (FCA), 1980.
• They prescribe the procedure to be followed for forest land to be diverted for non-forestry uses such as road construction, highway development, railway lines, and mining.
• For forest land beyond five hectares, approval for diverting land must be given by the Central government. This is via a specially constituted committee, called the Forest Advisory Committee (FAC).

What do the updated rules say?

• The new rules, “streamline” the process of approvals. The rules make a provision for private parties to cultivate plantations and sell them as land to companies who need to meet compensatory forestation targets.
• It will help India increase forest cover.
• It will also solve the problems of the States not finding land within their jurisdiction for compensatory purposes.
• The concerned update sought to limit the necessity for consent from the gram Sabha. Accordingly, the States will ensure the “settlement” of Forest Rights Acts applicable.

What were the allegations of NCST over the new rules?

• According to NCST, the rules were framed under the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 and these rules being in violation of the Forest Rights Act (FRA), 2006 was ‘not legally tenable’.
• The Minister added that the two statutory processes were parallel and not dependent on each other. 
• Citing Rule 9(6)(b)(ii), the government said the FCR 2022 already provides for diversion of forest land “only after fulfilment and compliance of all provisions, including settlement of rights under the Forest Rights Act” and also does not bar or infringe upon the operation of other laws mandating consent of Gram Sabhas. 

How will the new rules affect tribal rights?

• Missing elements of tribals and forest-dwelling communities: The updated Forest Conservation Rules don’t talk about the tribals and forest-dwelling communities whose land would be hived off for developmental work.
• The new rules allow the Union government to permit the clearing of a forest for a project before the prior consent of the forest dwellers, as mandated under the 2006 Act.

• The new rules will dilute the Forest Right Act, of 2006.
• It will disempower forest tribals and may displace them: The update will limit the necessity for consent from the gram Sabha. Many forestry experts say it may imply that the consent of the resident tribals and forest dwellers may not remain a deciding factor.

Government’s position:

• The purpose of updating the rules is to “streamline the approval process.”
• Fulfilling and complying with the FRA, 2006 was an independent process and it will not dilute or infringe on the provisions of the Forest Rights Act, 2006.
• It could be undertaken by States “at any stage” of the forest clearance process and it also talks about compliance with provisions of the FRA before States order the diversion of the land.

Where comes the role of the National Commission On Schedule Tribe (NCST)?

Under Clause (5) of Art. 338A, the NCST has the following functions:

• To investigate & Monitor matters relating to Safeguards provided for STs under the Constitution or under other laws or under Govt. Order, to evaluate the working of such Safeguards.
• To inquire into specific complaints relating to the Rights & Safeguards of STs;
• To participate and Advise in the Planning Process relating to the Socio-economic development of STs, and to Evaluate the progress of their development under the Union and any State;
• To submit a report to the President annually and  at such other times as the Commission may  deem  fit, upon/ working of Safeguards, Measures required for effective implementation of Programmers/ Schemes relating to Welfare and Socio-economic development of STs;
• To discharge such other functions in relation to STs as the President may, subject to the provisions of any law made by Parliament, by rule specify;
• The Commission would also discharge the following other functions in relation to the protection, welfare and development & advancement of the Scheduled Tribes.

In a recent study has represented a pan-European pyrogeography featuring four distinctive pyroregions across the continent. 

What does a pyroregion means?

• The representation of multi-scaled Spatiotemporal interactions which is to employ suitable recurring wildfire metrics to group different regions on the basis of their pyrosimilarities is known as ‘pyroregion.’
• Significance:
• Clustering pyroregions may also be helpful for scientists to assess potential drivers altering fire occurrences and to assess potential future scenarios relative to an appropriate baseline.

Reasons for fire incidences in Europe:

• Extreme fire seasons are usually associated with warm climate conditions that dry out vegetation and create flammable landscapes.
• Conditions with the strong wind may amplify the fire potential, which can be synthesised in the fire-weather index.
• Persistent heat waves unfurled across parts of north-western and central Europe, breaking temperature records and fanning flames.
• This is evident when aggregating fire weather conditions and fire activity in terms of anomalies — deviation from the mean — over the historical period and across pyroregions.

Will global heating remap pyroregions in the future?

• Pyroregions also help simulate future changes in fire patterns as the planet warms.
• Global warming has been shown to increase the frequency and magnitude of fire weather conditions as observed in 2022.
• In a new study, it was found that an increase in fire across Europe is to global warming. The findings are in line with previous research that projects an increase across southern Europe.
• For instance, we found an increase in the burned area exceeding 50 per cent across the northern Iberian Peninsula beyond 2°C warming above pre-industrial levels.
• The analysis also showed large increases in fire frequency, intensity, fire-season length and percentage of large fires.

India and wildfires:

• Forest fires continue to scorch several hectares of green cover in Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh.
• Himachal reported close to 750 forest fires, while Uttarakhand recorded over 1,500 such incidents.
• The Forest Survey of India data on forest fire points between March 1 and April 30 this year shows a clear spike in incidents coinciding with rising heat wave conditions.
• The number of forest fire points rose from 8,735 to 42,486 during the four weeks in March.
• However, the week-wise progress in the number of forest fire points in April peaked in the first week fell to 13,719 in the second week and picked up to touch 20,285 in the last week.
• In the last three months, Uttarakhand has recorded at least 1,791 forest fires that have scorched over 2,891 hectares of forest land, including 2,079 hectares of reserve forest areas. These fires have caused estimated damage to property worth over Rs.74 lakh and the death of at least one person.
• While the numbers are lesser in last year’s comparison, the issue of forest fires intensifying mainly in mid-February and continuing usually till mid-June is a major problem for the hill state which has forests in almost 71 per cent of its geographical area.
• The chief conservator of forests admitted that the number of forest fires this year increased significantly in the month of April mainly due to an unexpected rise in temperature and less rain.
• The strong wind velocity also contributed majorly to spreading the fires fast across the jungles.

What are the causes of forest fires in India?

• Several factors like temperatures, precipitation, vegetation, and moisture contribute to the scale and frequency of these fires.
• According to the Forest Survey of India, nearly 36 per cent of India’s forests are prone to frequent fires.
• Higher fire incidents are reported in March, April and May due to ample availability of dry biomass (fuel load) following the end of winter and the ongoing summer season.
• Most forest fires, according to experts, are man-made due to changes in agriculture and unchecked land-use patterns.
  
  

Efforts to Mitigate Forest Fires:

• Since 2004, the FSI (Forest Survey of India)developed the Forest Fire Alert System to monitor forest fires in real-time.
• In its advanced version launched in January 2019, the system now uses satellite information gathered from NASA and ISRO.
• National Action Plan on Forest Fires (NAPFF) 2018 and Forest Fire Prevention and Management Scheme.

The Supreme Court has upheld the decision taken by the government in 2016 to demonetize the currency notes. The court also said that the decision, being the Executive's economic policy, cannot be reversed.

What is the Supreme Court’s verdict on demonetization?

• In its majority 4:1 judgment, it was held that the Centre’s notification dated November 8, 2016, was valid and satisfied the test of proportionality.
• Procedure Followed:
  • RBI Approval was taken: The central government’s decision was after the RBI board’s approval which shows an in-built safeguard against the center’s powers.
  • No Excessive delegation of power: It cannot be said that there is an excessive delegation of power under the RBI Act to the Centre which is answerable to the Parliament.

Why was demonetization challenged?

• The matter primarily revolved around the procedure prescribed in Section 26(2) of the RBI Act, 1934, which appears to have not been followed.
• According to Section 26(2) of the RBI Act, 1934 the Parliament should have discussed the law on demonetization.
  • The process should not have been done through a gazette notification.
  • Parliament cannot be left aloof on an issue of such critical importance for the country.

How did the government and the RBI respond?

• Process of Initiation: According to RBI, the Section does not talk about the process of initiation. It only says that the process will not end without the last two steps outlined in it.
• Presence of the Quorum: RBI also pointed out that the quorum as determined by RBI General Regulations, 1949, was met for the Central Board meeting.
• Consultations with the Reserve Bank: The government told the court that it began consultations with the RBI in February 2016.
  • However, the process of the consultation and the decision-making were kept confidential.

Majority view:

• The Centre's decision-making process was not flawed as there was consultation between the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Union government.
• There was a reasonable nexus to bring such a measure.
• The court hold that demonetization was not hit by the doctrine of proportionality.

Dissenting view:

• Parliament should have discussed the law on demonetization.
• The process should not have been done through a gazette notification.
• Parliament cannot be left aloof on an issue of such critical importance for the country.
  
  

It's high time that we need to provide adequate community representation in the management of their places of worship. Regulation of secular activities associated with religious practice requires more attention.

Why the government control over temples needs to be replaced?

• States' control over temples has become a more controversial issue due to:
  • Gross mismanagement of financial resources
  • Increasing Corruption
  • Disregarding temple maintenance leads to the loss and destruction of temple antiquities.
  • Against the principle of Secularism

State interference in religion:

• The most fundamental criticism against the release of Hindu temples from government control to society is:
  • To whom will the temples be handed over?
  • Will it not perpetuate class hierarchies?
• Sovereign control of temples is justified on the grounds that Hindu temples were supervised and managed by kings.
• On the contrary, there are inscriptions, cast in stone, that attest that temples were managed wholly and entirely by local communities.

Hindu temples under state shackles:

• The proponents of state management of temples argue that courts have accorded approval to this practice. Hence, it becomes pertinent to read the Shirur Mutt judgment (1954) of the Supreme Court.
• Shirur Mutt judgment (1954):
  • The court held that the term “religion” will cover all rituals and practices “integral” to a religion, and took upon itself the responsibility of determining the essential and non-essential practices of a religion.
  • Supreme Court obliterated the Madras Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Act, 1951.

Constitutional Provisions:

Article 25(2) grants power to the State to enact the law on two distinct aspects.

• Article 25(2)(a) empowers the state to regulate “economic, financial, political or other secular activities which may be associated with religious practice”.
• Article 25(2)(b) enables the state to enact a law to prohibit the exclusion of ‘classes and sections’ of Hindu society to enter into Hindu temples of a public character and also make laws for social welfare and reform.
• Thus, the control of secular aspects associated with religion and the power to throw open Hindu temples to all classes and sections of society are distinct.
• The Constitution does not permit the state to assume ownership of properties belonging to religious institutions.

The effect of temple control legislation:

• The state cannot mix with religion: A long line of judicial precedents, post the 42nd Amendment, emphasize that secularism means the state cannot mix with religion.
• State official involvement is not desired: Nothing justifies a state official dictating to a religious function how worship is to be conducted.
  • The purpose of the legislation, if any must be to involve the community, which has been excluded by the state.

Christians, Sikhs, Muslims, so why not Hindus?

• Muslims have madrasas and Sikhs have the autonomy to run similar institutions.
• While this has worked well for other communities, the Hindu community has been arbitrarily chosen to be regulated.
• Undoubtedly, the greatest achievement of temple freedom will be in letting the Hindu religion work toward the greater good of society.

Suggestions:

• This right of representation can be effectuated by the creation of boards representative of religious heads, priests, and responsible members of the dharmiksampradaya.
• The logic is simple. Members who profess a particular dharmiksampradaya will have their due interest in mind.

Recently, the Central government has proposed several policy measures for regulating the Online gaming industry, with a self-regulatory body, grievance redressal mechanism, and mandatory know-your-customer norms for verification are among the key proposals in the draft rules.

More about the News:

• The proposal aimed at safeguarding users against potential harm from skill-based games.
  • Around 40 to 45 per cent of the gamers in India are women, and therefore it was all the more important to keep the gaming ecosystem safe.
• To regulate online gaming platforms as intermediaries. Like an intermediary, online gaming firms will be required to undertake additional due diligence, including:
  • KYC of users
  • transparent withdrawal and refund of money
  • a fair distribution of winnings
• The proposal has been introduced as an amendment to the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021.

Key points from the proposal:

• Online games will have to register with a self-regulatory body.
• Only games that are cleared by the body will be allowed to legally operate in India.
• Online gaming companies will not be allowed to engage in betting on the outcome of games.

Nodal Ministries:

• Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY)would be the nodal ministry to regulate online gaming, except for the e-sports category on which the Department of Sports can take the lead.
• Certain other aspects of online gaming such as advertisements, code of ethics relating to content classifications, etc. could be regulated by the Information and Broadcasting Ministry.
• The Consumer Affairs Ministry can regulate the sector for unfair trade practices.

About Self-Regulatory Body:

• It will have a board of directors with five members from diverse fields including online gaming, public policy, IT, psychology, and medicine.
• There could be more than one self-regulatory body.
• It must ensure that the registered games don’t have anything:
  • which is not in the interest of the sovereignty and integrity of India
  • defense of India,
  • security of the state
  • friendly relations with foreign states
  • public order
  • incites the commission of any cognizable offence relating to the aforesaid.

Online Gaming Market in India:

• Current state: India’s gaming market is currently estimated at $2.6 billion and is expected to be worth $8.6 billion by 2027.
• Market growth: The online gaming industry in India grew at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 38% between 2017-2020, as opposed to 8% in China and 10% in the US.
• New user base: India’s percentage of new paying users (NPUs) in gaming has been the fastest growing in the world for two consecutive years, at 40% in 2020 and 50% in 2021.
• Revenue generation: The revenue of the Indian mobile gaming industry is expected to reach $5 billion in 2025.

Banning of Online Gaming:

• Many social activists, government officials, and those in law enforcement believe that online games like rummy and poker are addictive in nature, and when played with monetary stakes lead to depression, mounting debts, and suicides.
• Earlier, the World Health Organisation (WHO) had announced a plan to include “gaming disorder” as a mental health condition.

The United Nations has declared 2023 as the International Year of Millets. Despite it having a lot to offer to consumers and farmers, millets aren’t the first choice.

What is Millet?

• Millet is a collective term referring to a number of small-seeded annual grasses that are cultivated as grain crops, primarily on marginal lands in dry areas in temperate, subtropical, and tropical regions.
• Examples: jowar (sorghum), ragi (finger millet), Kodo (Kodo millet), kutki (little millet), kakun (foxtail millet), Sanwa (barnyard millet), cheena (proso millet), kuttu (buckwheat) and chaulai (amaranth).

Positives of millets:

• Nutritionally superior traits: Millet’s score over rice and wheat in terms of minerals, vitamins, and dietary fibre content, as well as amino acid profile.
• For example, Bajra (pearl millet), has iron, zinc, and protein levels comparable to that of wheat, but it’s gluten-free and has more fibre.

• The rotis from bajra make one feel fuller for longer, as they take more time to digest and do not raise blood sugar levels too fast.

Advantages as a crop:

• Millets are hardy and drought-resistant crops.
• This has to do with their short duration (70-100 days, against 115-150 days for rice and wheat)
• lower water requirement (350-500 mm versus 600-1,250 mm) and
• ability to grow even on poor soils and in hilly terrain.

Where do millets lag?

• Eating Habits: For the poor, both in urban and rural areas, rice and wheat were once aspirational foods
• The dominance of traditional grains: Two-thirds of India’s population receives up to 5 kg of wheat or rice per person per month at Rs 2 and Rs 3/kg respectively.
  • The recent move to place two fine cereals free of cost from January 2023, further tilts the scales against millets.
• Cooking: Rolling Rotis is easier with wheat than millet flour
  • This is because gluten proteins make the wheat dough more cohesive and elastic.
  • As resultant bread come out light and fluffy (in the case of wheat), which isn’t the case with bajra or jowar.
• Low per-Hectare yields: The national average is roughly 1 tonne for jowar, 1.5 tonnes for bajra and 1.7 tonnes for ragi.
  • Whereas it is 3.5 tonnes for wheat and 4 tonnes for paddy — are a disincentive.
• Presence of Infrastructure for traditional grains: With access to assured irrigation, they would tend to switch to rice, wheat, sugarcane, or cotton.
• Absence of government procurement at minimum support price (MSP): It makes farmers hesitant to grow even this high-yielding and naturally bio-fortified bajra, suitable for both post-monsoon Kharif and summer cultivation.

Possible Government Intervention:

• The Centre has two existing schemes:
  • Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman and
  • Saksham Anganwadi & Poshan 2.0 — with a combined budget of Rs 30,496.82 crore in 2022-23.
  • These can be better leveraged by making them more millets-focused.
• MSP procurement of millets should be part of a decentralized nutritional programme specifically targeting tomorrow’s citizens.
• Centre could fund any state willing to procure millets specific to their region exclusively for distribution through schools and anganwadis.

Role of Schools:

• Every schoolchild and Anganwadi beneficiary can be served one daily hot meal based on locally-sourced bajra, jowar, ragi, Kodo, or kutki.
• It will help combat hidden hunger, besides giving a boost to crop diversification by creating demand for millions of small millets, dairy and poultry farmers.

State Initiatives:

• Odisha already has a dedicated millets mission that undertook procurement of 32,302 tonnes worth Rs 109.08 crore, mainly of ragi, in 2021-22.
• Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Haryana might want to do the same in bajra, just as Maharashtra may for jowar, Karnataka for ragi, and Madhya Pradesh for Kodo/ kutki.