The Hindu Newspaper Analysis 11 August 2023

The Hindu Newspaper Analysis for UPSC

The Hindu Newspaper Analysis 10 August 2023

• the Union government on Thursday introduced a Bill to remove the Chief Justice of India (CJI) from a panel to select the Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioners.
• Instead of the CJI, the three-member panel would now have a Union Cabinet Minister, besides the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha and the Prime Minister, who would head it.

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• A five-judge bench of the Supreme Court (SC) unanimously ruled that the appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner and the Election Commissioners shall be made by the President on the advice of a Committee consisting of the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition of the Lok Sabha and Chief Justice of India (CJI).
• Constitutional Provisions:
• Part XV (Article 324-329) of the Indian Constitution: It deals with elections and establishes a commission for these matters.
• Structure of ECI:
• Originally the commission had only one EC but after the Election Commissioner Amendment Act 1989, it was made a multi-member body (1 CEC & 2 other ECs.).
• According to Article 324, the Election Commission shall consist of the CEC and such number of other election commissioners, if any, as the President may from time-to-time fix.
• Appointment Procedure:
• Article 324(2): The appointment of the CEC and other Election Commissioners shall be made by the President, subject to the provisions of any law made in that behalf by Parliament.
• The President determines the conditions of service and tenure of office of the Election.
• They have a tenure of six years, or up to the age of 65 years, whichever is earlier.
• Removal:
• They can resign anytime or can also be removed before the expiry of their term.
• The CEC can be removed from office only through a process of removal similar to that of a SC judge by Parliament.
• Any other EC cannot be removed except on the recommendation of CEC.

Consider the following statements: (2017)

1. The Election Commission of India is a five-member body.
2. Union Ministry of Home Affairs decides the election schedule for the conduct of both general elections and bye-elections.
3. Election Commission resolves the disputes relating to splits/mergers of recognised political parties.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1. 1 and 2 only
2. 2 only
3. 2 and 3 only
4. 3 only

• Navigation with Indian Constellation (NavIC) Technology
• An autonomous regional satellite navigation system,also known as Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS), is developed by ISRO.
• It has been designed to provide accurate position information service to users in India as well as the region extending up to 1500 km from its boundary.
• It will provide two types of services:
• Standard Positioning Service (SPS): provided to all the users.
• Restricted Service (RS) : It is an encrypted service provided only to the authorised users.
• The IRNSS System is expected to provide a position accuracy of better than 20 m in the primary service area.
• Presently, it consists of 7 active satellites located at a distance of approximately 36,000 Km.
• 3 satellites are in Geostationary Orbit (GEO).
• 4 satellites are in inclined Geosynchronous Orbit (GSO).

• Which are the other Navigation Systems operational in the world?
• Four global systems:
• GPS from the U.S.
• GLONASS from Russia.
• Galileo from European Union
• BeiDou from China.
• Two regional systems:
• NavIC from India
• QZSS from Japan.

Q) With reference to the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS), consider the following statements: (2018)

1. IRNSS has three satellites in geostationary and four satellites in geosynchronous orbits.
2. IRNSS covers entire India and about 5500 sq. Km beyond its borders.
3. India will have its own satellite navigation system with full global coverage by the middle of 2019.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 1 and 2 only
3. 2 and 3 only
4. None

Mains

Q) Why is Indian Regional Navigational Satellite System (IRNSS) needed? How does it help in navigation? (2018)

• The military regime’s relentless campaign includes an average of over 30 airstrikes per month in 2023. Surprisingly, the Tatmadaw (the military of Myanmar) exerts real control in only 30%-40% of the territory.
• At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and the coup, India took a proactive approach by providing food and vaccine assistance.
• India’s policy options in Myanmar are challenging, but not limited.

• The latest decision by the RBI’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) to leave its policy rate unchanged is a calculated risk taken by the rate setting panel, especially when viewed in light of the upward revision of its inflation forecast.
• About MPC:
• The Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934 was amended by Finance Act (India), 2016 to constitute MPC.
• It is tasked with framing monetary policy using tools like the repo rate, reverse repo rate, bank rate, cash reserve ratio (CRR).
• It has been instituted by the Central Government of India under Section 45ZB of the RBI Act that was amended in 1934.
• Composition of MPC:
• The committee will have six members. Of the six members, the government will nominate three. No government official will be nominated to the MPC.
• The other three members would be from the RBI with the governor being the ex-officio chairperson. Deputy governor of RBI in charge of the monetary policy will be a member, as also an executive director of the central bank.
• Selection and term of members:
• Selection: The government nominees to the MPC will be selected by a Search-cum-Selection Committee under Cabinet Secretary with RBI Governor and Economic Affairs Secretary and three experts in the field of economics or banking or finance or monetary policy as its members.
• Term: Members of the MPC will be appointed for a period of four years and shall not be eligible for reappointment.

• India has 1.2 billion mobile phone users and over 600 million smartphone users. That figure is expected to cross a billion by 2026, according to a Deloitte study, indicating that a future world will be dependent on these small devices.
• However, one place where smartphone usage has become controversial is the classroom.
• Last month, UNESCO recommended a universal ban on the usage of smartphones in schools, saying that it was needed to tackle classroom disruption, improve learning, and help protect children from cyberbullying.

• More than two years after Sri Lanka cancelled a joint India-Japan MoU for the East Container Terminal (ECT) project in Colombo, the three countries are studying ways of restarting trilateral cooperation, envoys at a conference said in New Delhi on Thursday.
• The cancellation of the MoU, estimated at about $500 million, and the suspension of the Japanese-funded light rail transit (LRT) project by the previous Gotabaya Rajapaksa government, had led to a freeze in ties between Tokyo and Colombo.
• With India and Japan coming to Sri Lanka’s rescue during last year’s economic crisis, and offering assistance with Sri Lanka’s debt restructuring process, the Ranil Wickremesinghe government has also sought the return of infrastructure project plans and investment from both countries.

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