UPSC Civil Services Daily Current Affairs 26th February 2022
Topics for the day
- World shocked by Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine
- Krishna River water dispute
- Drone drops weapons in Jammu
- Netaji’s memories in Moirang
- SC says Tribunals Act goes against its order
- Academic Bank of Credit scheme
World Shocked by russia’s invasion of ukraine
Context :
- Russia launched an all-out invasion of Ukraine by land, air and sea which would be the biggest attack by one state against another in Europe since the Second World War
More on the news :
- Russian missiles rained down on Ukrainian cities and Ukraine reported columns of troops pouring across its borders into the eastern Chernihiv, Kharkiv and Luhansk regions, and landing by sea at the cities of Odessa and Mariupol in the south
- Explosions could be heard before dawn in the Ukrainian capital Kiev. While there was gunfire out near the main airport
Russia’s justification of the attack
- Putin declared in a televised address that he had ordered “a special military operation” to protect people, including Russian citizens who had been subjected to “genocide” in Ukraine
- Also earlier Russia had expressed concern over the expansion of NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, into eastern Europe and former Soviet Republics, especially Ukraine
- Also President Putin had earlier expressed concern that Ukraine has the knowledge and desire to obtain nuclear weapons, thus posing a threat to Moscow despite Ukraine surrendering all its nuclear weapons after break up of USSR
Response of the west :
- Germany halted certifying a $11 billion 750-mile pipeline that connects Russia directly to Germany
- The United States, the European Union, Britain, Australia, Canada and Japan announced plans to target banks and wealthy individuals through sanctions
- There was also repositioning of additional US troops to the Baltic nations on NATO’s eastern flank.
Krishna River water dispute
Context :
- ??The Karnataka government has moved the Supreme Court seeking setting up of a bench to hear a plea relating to the dispute over the allocation of water of Krishna river, flowing in states of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana.
What’s the issue?
- The supreme court in its November 16, 2011 order restrained the Central government from publishing in the official gazette the final order of the Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal II (KWDT) pronounced in 2010
- Karnataka had sought the vacation of this order and its early implementation
- The publication of the tribunal order is a necessary pre-condition for its implementation.
Verdict of the Tribunal :
- Earlier in 2013 the tribunal had modified its final order from 2010 to allot surplus water to Karnataka, Maharashtra, and the erstwhile State of Andhra Pradesh while preserving the allocation of 2,130 TMC already made among them.
- However, following the bifurcation of unified Andhra Pradesh, Telangana. Andhra Pradesh govt had moved the Supreme Court challenging the KWDT’s allocation of share.
- Karnataka had argued that thousands of crores of its dam and irrigation projects to provide water to its parched northern areas were stalled for all these years because of the 2010 order to not publish the KWDT decisions in the Official Gazette.
- Karnataka said that the dispute raised by Andhra Pradesh and Telangana was between them and did not concern it.
Inter state river water disputes act,1956
- According to its provisions, if a State Government makes a request regarding any water dispute and the Central Government is of opinion that the water dispute cannot be settled by negotiations, then a Water Disputes Tribunal is constituted for the adjudication of the water dispute.
- But there were no time limits for the adjudication of the disputes
- The act was amended in 2002 :
- The tribunal has to be constituted within one year of the request.
- The tribunal should give the award within 3 years and in some exceptional cases, within 5 years.
- If the award is not immediately implemented, the concerned parties can seek clarification within three months.
- However, the states could still approach SC through Article 136 (Special Leave Petition)
Drone drops weapons in Jammu
Context :
- Three boxes of arms and ammunition dropped by a drone on Wednesday night were recovered from Treva village in Jammu
Background :
- Earlier, drones were used for the first time to drop explosive devices, triggering blasts inside the Air Force Station’s technical area in Jammu.
Drone attacks and concerns :
- Over the past two years, drones have been deployed regularly by Pakistan-based outfits to smuggle arms, ammunition and drugs into Indian territory as drones fly low and therefore cannot be detected by any radar system
- According to government figures, 167 drone sightings were recorded along the border with Pakistan in 2019, and in 2020, there were 77 such sightings.
- Drones are becoming security threats particularly in conflict zones where non-state actors are active and have easy access to the technology. ex: 2019 twin drone attacks on Aramco crude oil production in Saudi Arabia.
Advantages of Drones :
- Drones are relatively cheaper in comparison to conventional weapons and yet can achieve far more destructive results.
- The biggest advantage that comes with using a drone for combat purposes is that it can be controlled from a remote distance and does not affect any member of the attacking side.
- It is this easy-to-procure, easy-to-operate, as it does not require specific technical knowledge to be deployed.
Netaji’s memories in Moirang
Context :
- Grandson of the INA member who hoisted the national flag in Moirang in 1944 is contesting the manipur elections
- Moirang, which is 45 km from Imphal, was chosen as the headquarters of the INA led by Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, after they liberated a part of Manipur from the British rule and established the provincial independent government
- Also recently, the government has decided to install a grand statue of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose at India Gate to commemorate his 125th birth anniversary
More about subash Chandra bose :
- Subhas Chandra Bose was born on 23rd January 1897, in Cuttack, Orissa Division, Bengal Province.
- In 1919, he had cleared the Indian Civil Services (ICS) examination. Bose, however, resigned later.
- He was highly influenced by Vivekananda’s teachings and considered him as his spiritual Guru. His political mentor was Chittaranjan Das. He worked as the editor for Das’s newspaper Forward, and later started his own newspaper, Swaraj
- As part of the INC :
- He stood for purna swaraj (independence), and opposed the Motilal Nehru Report which spoke for dominion status for India.
- Later he along with Jawaharlal Nehru and Srinivasa Iyengar founded the Independence for India League in the year 1928 which put forth the demand for complete independence. Srinivasa Iyengar was its first president.
- He actively participated in the Salt Satyagraha of 1930 and vehemently opposed the suspension of Civil Disobedience Movement and signing of the Gandhi-Irwin Pact in 1931.
- In the 1930s, he was closely associated with left politics in Congress along with Jawaharlal Nehru and M.N. Roy
- Bose won the congress presidential elections at Haripura in 1938. Again in 1939 at Tripuri, he won the presidential elections against Gandhi’s candidate Pattabhi Sitarammayya. Due to ideological differences with Gandhi, Bose resigned and left congress. Rajendra Prasad was appointed in his place.
- He later founded a new party, ‘the Forward Bloc’. The purpose was to consolidate the political left
- INA :
- He reached Japanese-controlled Singapore from Germany in July 1943, issued from there his famous call, ‘Delhi Chalo’, and announced the formation of the Azad Hind Government and the Indian National Army on 21st October 1943
- Known as Arzi Hukumat-e-Azad Hind, it was supported by the Axis powers of Imperial Japan, Nazi Germany, the Italian Social Republic, and their allies
- The INA was first formed under Mohan Singh and comprised Indian prisoners of war of the British-Indian Army captured by Japan in the Malayan and singapore campaigns.
- The INA fought allied forces in 1944 inside the borders of India in Imphal and in Burma.
SC says Tribunals Act goes against its order
Context :
- The Supreme Court said the government’s move to introduce a statute last year on key tribunals, merely days after the court struck down an identical law, may amount to dishonouring its judgment.
Background :
- The Tribunals Reforms (Rationalisation and Conditions of Service) Ordinance, 2021 was quashed by the Supreme Court earlier.
What was the order of the court ?
- The court held some provisions were unjust such as :
- The term of office of four years is lower than the minimum of five years directed by the Supreme Court in various judgements.
- The Supreme Court has also noted that the minimum age limit requirement of 50 years for appointment of members may discourage young talent
What was the Tribunal Reforms act,2021 ?
- Search-cum-Selection Committees will be constituted and on the basis of the recommendations of these committees, the Central Government would appoint chairpersons and members of tribunals
- The composition of the committees are as follows:
- Chief Justice of India (CJI) OR a Supreme Court judge nominated by the CJI, as the Chairperson (with casting vote)
- Two central government-nominated secretaries
- Sitting or outgoing Chairperson, or a retired Supreme Court judge, or a retired Chief Justice of a High Court
- Sitting chairperson – in case of appointment of a member of a tribunal (the sitting chairperson of that tribunal)
- Outgoing chairperson – in case of appointment of a chairperson of a tribunal (the outgoing chairperson of that tribunal)
- Retired Supreme court judge/retired HC Chief Justice – in case of a tribunal’s Chairperson seeking reappointment. Secretary of the Union Ministry under which the tribunal is to be constituted (with no voting rights)
- Tenure and Age – The Act provides for a four-year tenure ??with provision for re-appointment(subject to an upper age limit of 70 years for Chairperson and 67 years for other members). The Chairperson and members shall be of a minimum of fifty years of age.
- Abolishing of appellate bodies and transfer of functions: The Bill abolishes certain appellate bodies and transfer their functions to existing judicial bodies such as Appellate Tribunal under the Cinematograph Act, Airport Appellate Tribunal,Appellate Tribunal under the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Act etc.
Academic Bank of Credit scheme
Context :
- The Academic Bank of Credit (ABC) is expected to be implemented from this academic year
What is the Academic Bank of Credit (ABC)?
- Academic Bank of Credit (ABC), proposed under the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, was introduced July 2021.
- It is set-up by the University Grants Commission (UGC)
- Under the ABC, students will be given multiple entry and exit options
- This enables students to leave a degree or course and get a corresponding certification and rejoin studies after a certain time and be able to start from where they had left
- It will also provide students with the flexibility to move between institutes while pursuing one degree or leave a course
- In other words under the ABC, a student can earn a degree from any HEI, with multiple entry and exit options. Instead of spending three years in one college, a student can seamlessly switch over from one college to another one. In order to earn a degree, a student will now require to hold a certain number of credits under his or her account.
- For example, if a BCom student studies in one college, he or she can change college after one year. He or she can join the same course after a break.
- ABC will keep records of the academic credits of a student. It will not accept any credit course document directly from the students for any course they might be pursuing, but only from higher education institutes, who will have to make deposits in students’ accounts.
UPSC Civil Services Daily Current Affairs 26th February 2022
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