General Studies-01

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General Studies-02

{Op-Ed}The gown and the Bench

Key aspect: An overview of the transformation in collegium system.

Background: Political interference in the selection of judges in the third and fourth decades of independent India resulted in the collegium system where judges select judges.

In 2014: The opaque system and unsatisfactory selection, transfer, and elevation of judges to the Supreme Court caused disquiet and led to the passing of the Constitution (99th Amendment) Act, 2014 and the National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) Act, 2014, which sought to give politicians and civil society a final say in the appointment of judges to the highest courts.

In 2015: A Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court declared these unconstitutional on the ground that the composition of the NJAC did not provide adequate representation to those from the judiciary in the selection and appointment of judges.

Permanent committee: 

• All these developments resulted in demand for permanent committee.
• It will consist of the Chief Justice of India, two senior-most judges of the Supreme Court/ High Courts, the Attorney General of India/ the Advocate General of State, and a member of the Bar to be nominated by the above four members.
• The committee will have a permanent Secretariat.
• The committee will examine each candidate’s case, interview the candidate, and make its assessment based on a point-based format.
• The transparency is ensured by publishing decisions in website officially.
• The secretariat should not be dragged into the quagmire of investigating frivolous complaints or objections.

{Op-Ed}Facts in fiction

Key aspect: Editorial is dealing with the controversies associated with Tamil movie mersal & central government.

Issue:

• BJP leaders want the deletion of particular scenes on the goods and services tax regime (because these are factually incorrect) as well as those on the health care situation in the country (because these are critical of the government).
• Opposition parties & Actors came up with arguments.

Background:

• Controversial sections of the Indian Penal Code such as 153A, which prohibits the promotion of enmity between different groups, and 295A, which prohibits insult of religious beliefs, are routinely used to silence voices or harass those who hold dissenting views.

Findings by the editor:

• The cynical manipulation of such sections of the law is bad enough.
• Mersal is a pure work of fiction, and if the lead actor got his facts about GST in a twist, this is best left to film critics and the audience to react to.
• There is not even a bad provision in the law that bars criticism of the government, whether in newspapers or in films

General Studies-03

{oP-eD}Economic growth: an alternative view

key Aspect: GDP growth and environmental damage

• There is a drop in GDP growth rate from 7.4% in January-March 2016 to 5.7% in April-June 2017 is equivalent to Rs. 2.59 trillion.
• its argued that smaller rate of GDP growth will have a negative impact on the growth of employment, income and livelihood opportunities.

Environmental Kuznets Curve (EKC) hypothesis:

• It underlines almost all our development policies, which are directed towards pushing double-digit income growth with little concern for environmental capital.
• The EKC hypothesis is shown in an inverted U-shaped curve depicting the relationship between per capita income and environmental deterioration.
• It suggests that during the initial period of economic development, where per capita income is low, deterioration of environmental quality caused by rapid industrialisation and urbanisation is inevitable.
  • In reality, the EKC is a near myth since an increase in per capita income does not bring desirable levels of improvement to the environment.

The Indian context
There were several studies to estimate economic cost of environmental damages in india.

• A 2013 World Bank study highlighted that in India, a higher level of economic growth maintained in the past imposed Rs. 3.75 trillion worth of environmental damage cost, which is equivalent to 5.7% of the country’s GDP at 2009 prices.
• Another study by World Bank and the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington found that India’s air pollution alone caused welfare loss equivalent to 7.69% (approximately Rs. 31,316.2 billion) of its GDP in 2013.
• Since GDP growth and environmental damage have a strong positive relationship, lower growth in GDP could afford benefits.
• Income growth on a higher path brings a win-win outcome in the long run where poverty is reduced and environmental quality is improved.
• Efforts to develop environmental accounting and green GDP for India can help us achieve sustainable development in future.

{Op-Ed}On a different trajectory

 key Aspect: Analysis of Maoism from its beginning in india till now.

• Independent India had previously experienced armed peasant movements, including the Telangana armed struggle and the Tebhaga movement (in Bengal), but the Naxalbari movement seemed to follow a different trajectory.
• It was ignited by a small group of Bengal revolutionaries (all members of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) formed in 1964) who felt disillusioned with the so-called embourgeoisement of the party which had only recently split from the CPI on the ground it had turned revisionist.
  • Breaking away from the CPI(M), this faction received almost instant endorsement from the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) under Mao.

This was followed by a few cadres visiting China to receive the benediction of the CCP. In course of time some of the cadres went to China for training.

Rural, semi-urban base

• In April 1969:The movement took formal shape, with the coming into existence of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) under the leadership of Charu Mazumdar.
• The CPI(ML), hence, consisted of both rural and semi-urban elements. In the early years, and till the 1990s, a number of recruits to the movement came from the urban intelligentsia.

From the beginning, the movement, which included many well-known ideologues, suffered from a series of splits. Several leaders from Bengal and Andhra Pradesh thereafter set up their separate parties.

The main strength of the CPI (Maoist) are:

1. its organisational structure
2. a Central Committee
3. a powerful military wing
4. Geographical distribution of key commitee members.

The presence of over 100 battalions of Central paramilitary forces aided by State police forces has had a sobering effect on the movement in reducing maoist presence.

Major attacks this year:

1. March: leading to the killing of 12 CRPF personnel, members of a road opening party.
2. April: More daring attack on a CRPF patrol in Sukma district killing 25 personnel.

In official circles, Maoist success is often attributed to the failure of police personnel to observe ‘Standard Operating Procedures’ and also to the failure of intelligence.

Authors findings:

• A strong possibility exists that Ganapathy may be replaced by the present chief of the CMC. The CMC is in direct charge of guerrilla type violent activities of the party.
• The CPI (Maoist), bereft of ideology, could then drift towards becoming like any other militant or terror group active in different parts of the country.
• This could have graver consequences for the country since the CPI (Maoist) has a much wider base than any other militant outfit

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