UPSC Civil Services Daily Current Affairs 5th April 2022
Topics for the day:
- ASI wants Odisha government to tweak beautifcation plan around Jagannath temple
- What is halal meat ?
- Fundamental duties of citizens
- In ‘Atmanirbhar’ push, India to make 108 military equipment
- Raja ravi varma
- What is the IPCC, and why are its Assessment Reports important?
ASI wants Odisha government to tweak beautifcation plan around Jagannath temple
Context :
- The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has asked the Odisha government to tweak its Shree Mandira Parikrama Project (SMPP) – a massive beautifcation project around the 12th-century Jagannath temple in Puri – which has already run into a controversy.
More on the news :
- It is being alleged that neither does the State government have permission of the National Monuments Authority (NMA) nor does it have approval from the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to plan and execute the project which could potentially pose a threat to the centuries-old temple.
- Issues raised by ASI :
- The proposed amenities fall within the prohibited area of the temple.
- Government was also requested to keep the entire design simple in tandem with the spiritual nature of the entire temple complex.
- The State government is accused of implementing the Rs.800- crore SMPP or the Shree Jagannath Heritage Corridor (SJHC) without keeping ASI in the loop, which is mandatory since the temple is a Centrally-protected monument.
- As per the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (AMASR) Act, 1958, no new construction can take place within a radius of 100 meters of a monument which is treated as prohibited zone. The area up to 200 metres is known as regulated zone. The NMA permission is compulsory for any construction.
About the AMASR Act :
- The act was a replacement of the Ancient Monuments Preservation Act (1904) which was introduced by lord Curzon
- Archaeological survey of india(ASI) regulates all archaeological activities in the country as per the provisions of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (AMASR) Act, 1958
- Under Section 4 of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (AMASR) Act, 1958, ancient monuments or archaeological sites which are of historical, archaeological or artistic interest and which have been in existence for not less than 100 years may be declared as of national importance
- The protection and maintenance of monuments declared as of national importance is taken up by ASI
Jagannath Temple :
- The temple is believed to be constructed in the 12th century by King Anatavarman Chodaganga Deva of the Eastern Ganga Dynasty.
- Jagannath Puri temple is called ‘Yamanika Tirtha’ where, according to the Hindu beliefs, the power of ‘Yama’, the god of death has been nullified in Puri due to the presence of Lord Jagannath.
- This temple was called the “White Pagoda” and is a part of Char Dham pilgrimages (Badrinath, Dwaraka, Puri, Rameswaram).
- There are four gates to the temple- Eastern ‘Singhdwara’ which is the main gate with two crouching lions, Southern ‘Ashwadwara’, Western ‘Vyaghra Dwara and Northern ‘Hastidwara’.
- There is a carving of each form at each gate. In front of the entrance stands the Aruna stambha or sun pillar, which was originally at the Sun Temple in Konark.
- The Puri temple is famous for its annual Ratha Yatra, or chariot festival, in which the three principal deities are pulled on huge and elaborately decorated temple cars.
- Unlike the stone and metal icons found in most Hindu temples, the image of Jagannath is made of wood and is ceremoniously replaced every twelve or 19 years by an exact replica.
Architecture of Jagannath Temple
- With its sculptural richness and fluidity of the Oriya style of temple architecture, it is one of the most magnificent monuments of India.
- The huge temple complex covers an area of over 400,000 square feet and is surrounded by a high fortified wall.This 20 feet high wall is known as Meghanada Pacheri.
- Another wall known as kurma bedha surrounds the main temple.
What is halal meat controversy ?
Context :
- A row has erupted in karnataka regarding the recent government order making stunning of animals compulsory before killing them as this goes against the religious beliefs of the minority community.
Halal v/s Jhatka :
What is halal ?
- Halal is an Arabic word meaning lawful or permitted. When used in reference to food, it is the dietary standard as prescribed in the Quran.
- Usually, halal foods are those that are free from any component that Muslims are prohibited from consuming and processed or produced in accordance with the Islamic law (Shariah).
- Islam places great emphasis on the way in which an animal’s life is ended. The method of Islamic slaughter, commonly known as ‘halal’ cut, is claimed to have been designed in a way that reduces the pain and distress an animal suffers.
- The animal is killed by slitting the throat with one continuous motion of a sharp knife.
- Once cut, the animal must be allowed to bleed out and be dead completely before processing further.
- This process results in the least amount of suffering, as when a cut is made swiftly and cleanly the animal loses consciousness before the brain can perceive any pain.
- The animal becomes unconscious within seconds and death occurs due to cerebral hypoxia.
What is Jhatka ?
- Contrary to halal, jhatka or ‘chatka’ cut is the meat from an animal killed instantaneously.
- The word jhatka is believed to have been derived from the Sanskrit word ‘jhatiti’, meaning ‘instantly, quickly, at once’.
- This type of slaughter is preferred mostly by Sikhs as well as meat-consuming Buddhists and some khatiks, an ethnic tribe found mostly in the Punjab region.
- ‘Jhatka karna’ refers to the instantaneous severing of the head of an animal with a single stroke of any weapon, with the underlying intention of killing it with minimal suffering.
Importance in Sikhism :
- While not all Sikhs maintain the practice of eating jhatka meat, it has been mandated by the 10 Sikh gurus.
- According to the Sikh tradition, only meat that is obtained from an animal which is killed with one stroke of the weapon and causing its instant death is fit for human consumption.
- Guru Gobind Singh had also enjoined upon Sikhs to abstain from halal meat introduced by the Muslim ruling class.
Fundamental duties of citizens
Context :
- The Supreme Court of India (SC) recently asked the Government of India to file an affidavit outlining the efforts it has taken or plans to take regarding the enforceability of Fundamental Duties.
- This comes after the Attorney General of India (AGI) argued that the court should not direct the formulation of legislation on the subject because the government is working to sensitise citizens and raise awareness about their responsibilities.
Fundamental Duties in the Constitution of India:
- The 42nd Constitutional Amendment Act, 1976 added a new Chapter (Part IV-A) with only one Article (51-A) which dealt with the Fundamental Duties for citizens.
- This section was inserted in the Indian Constitution on the recommendation of the Swaran Singh Committee and the concept was borrowed from the Constitution of erstwhile Soviet Union
- Originally, Part IV-A consists of 10 fundamental duties and later the 11th duty was added by the 86th Constitutional Amendment Act, 2002.
- The fundamental duties are statutory duties and shall be enforceable by law (unlike fundamental rights, they are non-justiciable).
- This means, the Parliament of India, by law, can provide penalties to be imposed for failure to fulfil those duties and obligations.
- For example, the Prevention of Insults to National Honour Act, 1971 is an Act of the Parliament of India which prohibits the insult to the country’s national symbols (national flag, national emblem, national anthem, the constitution).
11 Fundamental Duties: Article 51-A Says that it shall be the duty of every citizen of India:
- To abide by the constitution and respect its ideals and institutions.
- To cherish and follow the noble ideals which inspired our national struggle for freedom.
- To uphold and protect the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India.
- To defend the country and render national service when called upon to do so.
- To promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the people of India transcending religious, linguistic and regional diversities, to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women.
- To value and preserve the rich heritage of our composite culture.
- To protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers, and wild-life and to have compassion for living creatures.
- To develop the scientific temper, humanism and the spirit of inquiry and reform.
- To safeguard public property and to abjure violence;
- To strive towards excellence in all spheres of individual and collective activity.
- Who is a parent or guardian, to provide opportunities for education to his child or ward between the age of 6-14 years.
Need For Fundamental Duties:
- To serve as a constant reminder to every citizen – while the Indian constitution expressly confers certain Fundamental Rights on them, it also requires citizens to follow certain basic norms of democratic behaviour because rights and duties are correlative (go hand in hand).
- To maintain harmony and peace and to encourage the feeling of brotherhood and oneness, as India is a country where people belonging to different castes, creed, religion, sects, live together.
- It plays a vital role in upholding and protecting the sovereignty, unity and integrity of the country which is of inevitable importance.
Criticism:
- Some of the duties are vague and terms used therein are complex (like scientific temper).
- There is no explicit provision or sanction pertaining to the execution and enforcement of Fundamental Duties.
In ‘Atmanirbhar’ push, India to make 108 military equipment
Context :
- In a fresh impetus to its flagship ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan’, the Central Government will soon start indigenous production of 108 military equipment, including complex defence systems.
- The list of the equipment which will be produced indigenously include advanced defence gear and equipment including new generations of corvettes, radars, light and medium armoured vehicles, airborne early warning and control systems(AEW&C), medium-range surface-to-air missile systems (MRSAM), anti-tank guided missiles, tank engines and more.
Indigenisation of Defence Production in India:
- The Central Government has taken several policy initiatives in the past few years under ‘Make in India’ program and brought in reforms to encourage indigenous design, development and manufacture of defence equipment in the country.
- To make India self-reliant in the Defence sector, the Ordnance Factory Board (OFB) was split into seven different companies in October 2021.
- These seven new Defence PSUs are 100 per cent government-owned corporate entities and will help in improving the country’s self-reliance in defence preparedness.
Exports:
- India’s defence exports have recorded nearly a six-fold increase between 2017 and 2021, growing from Rs. 1,520 crore to Rs. 8,435 crore.
- Defence items being exported by India include missiles, the advanced light helicopter, offshore patrol vessels, personal protective gear, surveillance systems and a variety of radars.
Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP) 2020:
- The DAP 2020 has been established as a potential catalyst for the Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan, in the sector of defence manufacturing.
-
Features of the policy are :
- The new policy superseded the Defence Procurement Procedure of 2016 from October
-
Reservations for Indigenous firms:
- The policy reserves several procurement categories for indigenous firms.
- DAP 2020 defines an “Indian vendor” as a company that is owned and controlled by resident Indian citizens, with foreign direct investment (FDI) not more than 49 per cent.
-
New Buy (Global – Manufacture in India) category:
- This stipulates indigenisation of at least 50 per cent of the overall contract value of a foreign purchase bought with the intention of subsequently building it in India with technology transfer.
-
Greater indigenous content:
- It promotes greater indigenous content in arms and equipment of the military procures, including equipment manufactured in India under license.
- In most acquisition categories, DAP-2020 stipulates 10 per cent higher indigenisation than DPP 2016.
-
Import embargo list:
- The “import embargo list” of 101 items that the government promulgated has been specifically incorporated into DAP 2020. (An embargo is a government order that restricts commerce with a specified country or the exchange of specific goods.)
-
Offset liability:
- The government has decided not to have an offset clause in procurement of defence equipment if the deal is done through inter-government agreement (IGA), government-to-government or an ab-initio single vendor.
- The offset clause requires a foreign vendor to invest a part of the contract value in India.
About ‘Make’ Category:
- The ‘Make’ category of capital acquisition seeks to build indigenous capabilities through the involvement of both public and private sector.
- ‘Make-I‘ refers to government-funded projects while ‘Make-II‘ covers industry-funded projects.
- ‘Make-III’ covers military hardware that may not be designed and developed indigenously, but can be manufactured in the country for import substitution. Indian firms may manufacture these in collaboration with foreign partners.
Raja Ravi Varma
Context :
- One of his significant paintings, Draupadi Vastraharan, will be going under the hammer for the first time.
More on Raja Ravi Varma :
Early days and training:
- Varma was born into an aristocratic family in Travancore (Kerala).
- At the age of 14, Varma was patronised by Ayilyam Thirunal, the then ruler of Travancore, and went on to receive training in water colours from Ramaswamy Naidu, the royal painter.
Contributions:
- Made around 7,000 paintings. Apart from painting Hindu mythological figures, Varma also made portraits of many Indians as well as Europeans.
- Varma worked on both portrait and landscape paintings, and is considered among the first Indian artists to use oil paints.
- He continues to be regarded as the most important representative of the Europeanised school of painting in India.
Lithographic press:
- He mastered the reproduction of his work on the lithographic press through which his paintings spread far and wide.
- Lithographic press is a method of printing based on the principle that oil and water do not mix.
- Paintings were earlier sent to Germany and Austria to be lithographed. Varma set up his own printing press in Maharashtra first in Ghatkopar and eventually in Lonavala in 1894.
- Through his printing press, Varma’s paintings travelled into the prayer and living rooms of working-class homes.
Famous works:
- Damayanti Talking to a Swan
- Shakuntala Looking for Dushyanta
- Nair Lady Adorning Her Hair
- Shantanu and Matsyagandha.
Awards and Honours:
- In 1904, the British colonial government awarded Varma with the Kaiser-i-Hind Gold Medal.
- In 2013, a crater on the planet Mercury was named in his honour.
What is the IPCC, and why are its Assessment Reports important?
Context :
- The Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) delivered a dire assessment and warning in its latest report “third instalment of its Sixth Assessment Report (AR6)” revealing what UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said was “a litany of broken climate promises” by governments and corporations.
??What is IPCC ?
- The IPCC is the United Nations body for assessing the science related to climate change.
- The IPCC was set up in 1988 by the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP).
- Its main activity is to prepare Assessment Reports, special reports, and methodology reports assessing the state of knowledge of climate change.
- However, the IPCC does not itself engage in scientific research. Instead, it asks scientists from around the world to go through all the relevant scientific literature related to climate change and draw up the logical conclusions.
What are assessment reports :
- The IPCC’s Assessment Reports (ARs), which are produced every few years, are the most comprehensive and widely accepted scientific evaluations of the state of the Earth’s climate.
- They form the basis for government policies to tackle climate change, and provide the scientific foundation for the international climate change negotiations.
- Six Assessment Reports have been published so far, the sixth report (AR6) coming in three parts
- the first in August 2021, the second in February 2022, and the third now.
- The first part of AR6 flagged more intense and frequent heat-waves, increased incidents of extreme rainfall, a dangerous rise in sea-levels, prolonged droughts, and melting glaciers and said that 1.5 degrees Celsius warming was much closer than was thought earlier, and also inevitable.
- The second part warned that multiple climate change-induced disasters were likely in the next two decades even if strong action was taken to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases.
Some of the key points of the 3rd assessment of the report :
- Temperatures on Earth will shoot past a key danger point unless greenhouse gas emissions fall faster than countries have committed.
- Projected global emissions from (national pledges) place limiting global warming to 1.5C beyond reach and make it harder after 2030 to limit warming to 2C
- Unless countries step up their efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions, the planet will on average be 2.4C to 3.5C (4.3 to 6.3 F) warmer by the end of the century
- 40% of emissions since then came from Europe and North America. Just over 12 per cent can be attributed to East Asia, which includes China.
- China took over the position as the world’s top emitter from the United States in the mid-2000s.
- Authors highlight myriad ways in which the world can be brought back on track to 2C or even, with great effort, return to 1.5C after that threshold has been passed.
- This could require measures such as the removal of CO2 from the atmosphere with natural or artificial means
- Some potentially risky technologies such as pumping aerosols into the sky to reflect sunlight.
- Encouraging a rapid shift away from fossil fuels toward renewable energy such as solar and wind, the electrification of transport, more efficient use of resources and massive financial support for poor countries unable to pay for such measures without help.
- One move often described as “low-hanging fruit” by scientists is to plug methane leaks from mines, wells and landfills that release the potent but short-lived greenhouse gas into the atmosphere
UPSC Civil Services Daily Current Affairs 5th April 2022
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