The Hindu Newspaper Analysis 2 May 2023

The Hindu Newspaper Analysis for UPSC

The Hindu Newspaper Analysis 1 May 2023

• Only the Great One-Horned Rhino is found in India.
• Also known as Indian rhino, it is the largest of the rhino species.
• One-Horned Rhino: Vulnerable
• The species is restricted to small habitats in Indo-Nepal terai and northern West Bengal and Assam.
• In India, rhinos are mainly found in Assam, West Bengal and Uttar Pradesh.
• Assam has an estimated 2,640 rhinos in four protected areas, i.e. Pabitora Wildlife Reserve, Rajiv Gandhi Orang National Park, Kaziranga National Park, and Manas National Park.
• About 2,400 of them are in the Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve (KNPTR).

 The Hindu Editorial Today

What are the Conservation Efforts?

• The five rhino range nations (India, Bhutan, Nepal, Indonesia and Malaysia) have signed a declaration ‘The New Delhi Declaration on Asian Rhinos 2019’ for the conservation and protection of the species.
• Recently, the Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has begun a project to create DNA profiles of all rhinos in the country.
• National Rhino Conservation Strategy: It was launched in 2019 to conserve the greater one-horned rhinoceros.
• Indian Rhino Vision 2020: Launched in 2005, it was an ambitious effort to attain a wild population of at least 3,000 greater one-horned rhinos spread over seven protected areas in the Indian state of Assam by the year 2020.

• Recently, the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly passed a resolution seeking to provide for a time frame for Governors to act on Bills passed by the State Legislature.
• Last week, the Supreme Court of India, while disposing of a case filed by the State of Telangana against its Governor Dr. Tamilisai Soundararajan, remarked that Governors should not sit over Bills indefinitely.
• As such, there was no time limit fixed for various authorities to discharge duties that arose out of the constitutional scheme. It may also be understood that the drafters of the Constitution, in their contemporaneous wisdom, expected Raj Bhavans to be nominated with those who would discharge sovereign duties beyond the confines of political partisanship.
• Article 200 of the Constitution, as it stands today, limits the options before the Governor to give assent to the Bill sent by the legislature, or withhold assent, or reserve a Bill for the consideration of the President.
• The nub of the issue is that Governors have wrongly understood the function to grant assent to have endowed them with some discretionary responsibility.
• July 30, 1949, B.R. Ambedkar said there “can be no room for a Governor acting on discretion” and recommended removing the phrase “the Governor, in his discretion”.
• seven-Judge Bench of the Supreme Court in Shamsher Singh & Anr vs State Of Punjab (1974), wherein it was held that the discretion of the Governor is extremely limited and, even in such rare cases shall act in a manner that is not detrimental to the interest of the state. Furthermore, the Supreme Court has repeatedly held that the Governor shall only act on the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers.

• The Bihar government’s decision late last month to grant remission to Anand Mohan Singh is a disturbing political signal given the circumstances under which the remission was done.
• murder of the then District Magistrate of Gopalganj and young IAS officer, G. Krishnaiah, in December 1994..
• Apparently aimed at benefiting Singh, the government, on April 10, amended the Bihar Prison Manual, 2012, removing the “murder of a public servant on duty” clause from the case list for which remission cannot be considered.
• The tweaking of the rules was followed up with another notification ordering the release of 27 prisoners, including Singh (they had all spent at least 14 years in jail). The State’s defence that it “followed all rules and regulations” is no argument as the change in rule appears to have been made to benefit a specific person.

• In the year 2021, the CJI (Chief Justice of India) had questioned why a colonial law used against Mahatma Gandhi and Bal Gangadhar Tilak continued to survive in the law book after 75 years of Independence.
• Sedition laws were enacted in 17th century England when lawmakers believed that only good opinions of the government should survive, as bad opinions were detrimental to the government and monarchy.
• The law was originally drafted in 1837 by Thomas Macaulay, the British historian-politician, but was inexplicably omitted when the Indian Penal Code (IPC) was enacted in 1860.
• Section 124A was inserted in 1870 by an amendment introduced by Sir James Stephen when it felt the need for a specific section to deal with the offence.
• Today the Sedition is a crime under Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Section 124A IPC:

• It defines sedition as an offence committed when “any person by words, either spoken or written, or by signs, or by visible representation, or otherwise, brings or attempts to bring into hatred or contempt, or excites or attempts to excite disaffection towards the government established by law in India”.
• Punishment under Section 124A ranges from imprisonment up to three years to a life term, to which a fine may be added.
• A person charged under this law is barred from a government job.
• Supreme Court in Kedar Nath Singh vs State of Bihar case 1962, limited application of sedition to “acts involving intention or tendency to create disorder, or disturbance of law and order, or incitement to violence”.
• Mahatma Gandhi called Section 124A “the prince among the political sections of the IPC designed to suppress the liberty of the citizen”.

Reasonable Restrictions:

• The constitution of India prescribes reasonable restrictions (under Article 19(2)) that can always be imposed on this right (Freedom of Speech and Expression) in order to ensure its responsible exercise and to ensure that it is equally available to all citizens.

Maintaining Unity & Integrity:

• Sedition law helps the government in combating anti-national, secessionist and terrorist elements.

Maintaining Stability of State:

• It helps in protecting the elected government from attempts to overthrow the government with violence and illegal means. The continued existence of the government established by law is an essential condition of the stability of the State.

• Some members of the Meitei community in Manipur, which has been seeking Scheduled Tribe (ST) status for decades, have now said that they intend to file contempt proceedings against the Hill Areas Committee (HAC) of the Manipur Assembly, which recently passed a resolution opposing their inclusion.

About Meitei

• Meitei, also spelt Meetei or Meithei, also called Manipuri, dominant population of Manipur in northeastern India.
• They are predominantly Vaishnavite Hindus.
• They are divided into clans, the members of which do not intermarry.
• An interesting aspect of the village socio-economic organization in Meitei society is the Marup system (literally means friendship association), a type of cooperative saving and credit institution.

• India leads five countries named as the “Laundromat” countries that buy Russian oil and sell processed products to European countries, thus side-stepping European sanctions against Russia, says a Finland-based group that cited the latest figures for the first quarter of 2023.
• The report, released last week, coincides with the latest data from analytics firm Kpler and a report by international agency Bloomberg that showed how European Union (EU) countries, which are all part of the “price cap coalition” that bars trade and insurance for any oil purchased above a certain price from Russia, are in fact increasing their intake of oil from India, China, Turkey, the UAE and Singapore.
• European countries are simply substituting oil products they previously bought directly from Russia, with the same products now “whitewashed” in third countries and bought from them at a premium.
• Of the so-called “laundromat” countries, India, which in April remained the highest global consumer of seaborne Russian crude for a fifth month, is ahead of all others in the export of crude products to the coalition countries, exporting nearly 3.8 million tonnes of oil products to price cap coalition countries, which include the EU, G-7 countries, Australia and Japan.
• India’s exports of diesel, for example, tripled to about 1,60,000 barrels per day in March 2023, compared with the period before the Russian war in Ukraine, making diesel one of the largest components of India-EU trade at present.

Q) With reference to the Kondh tribe, consider the following statements:

1. They are mainly found in the Western Himalayan states of India.
2. They speak languages called Kui and Kuvi.

Which of the above statements is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2

कोंध जनजाति के संदर्भ में निम्नलिखित कथनों पर विचार कीजिये:

1. वे मुख्य रूप से भारत के पश्चिमी हिमालयी राज्यों में पाए जाते हैं।
2. वे कुई और कुवी नामक भाषाएँ बोलते हैं।

उपरोक्त कथनों में से कौन-सा/से सही है/हैं?

1. केवल 1
2. केवल 2
3. 1 और 2 दोनों
4. न तो 1 और न ही 2

Explanation :

The members of the Kondh tribe in Odisha’s Nayagarh district have added one more event to their calendar of festivals and celebrations called Bihan Mela.

• It is known as the seed festival and the event is participated by the farmers.
• Preparations begin as soon as farmers have harvested Kharif crops, which include both hybrid and indigenous varieties of paddy, millets, maize and sorghum.
• Women are at the helm of this festival and carefully collect seeds of the indigenous varieties and store them in earthen pots.
• On a designated day in December, they decorate the pots with red and white motifs, place them in a bamboo basket and carry it on their head to the village where the fair is being organised.
• Kondh tribal group is found in the hills and jungles of Orissa in eastern India.
• They have several sub-tribes, for instance, the Dongria, Kovi, Kuttia, Languli, Penga, and Jharnia. Raj Konds etc.
• These tribal people speak languages called Kui and Kuvi.
• These belong to the Dravidian language family and have strong similarities to Telugu, Tamil, and Kannada.
• The language has no script of its own, with the Oriya script used for writing Kui, and the Telugu script used for Kuvi.

Q) Achanakmar Tiger Reserve, recently seen in the news lies in which state?

1. Tamil Nadu
2. Chhattisgarh
3. Rajasthan
4. Assam

हाल ही में खबरों में रहा अचानकमार टाइगर रिजर्व किस राज्य में स्थित है?

1. तमिलनाडु
2. छत्तीसगढ़
3. राजस्थान
4. असम

About Achanakmar Tiger Reserve:

• Location: It is located in the Bilaspur district of Chhattisgarh.
• It was declared a tiger reserve in 2009.
• It is a part of the huge Achanakmar-Amarkantak Biosphere Reserve.
• Maniyari River flows right from the centre of this reserve, which is the forest’s lifeline.
• It has a corridor connecting to Kanha and Bandhavgarh Tiger reserves and plays a critical role in the dispersal of tigers among these reserves.
• Vegetation: Tropical deciduous forest.
• Flora: Sal, bija, saja, haldu, teak, tinsa, dhawara, lendia, khamar and bamboo bloom here along with over 600 species of medicinal plants.
• Fauna: Wild fauna includes the tiger, leopard, bison, flying squirrel, Indian giant squirrel, chinkara, wild dog, hyena, sambar, chital and over 150 species of birds.

Q) Consider the following statements regarding the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI):

1. It is a regulatory body set up by the Government of India under the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Act, 1997.
2. The recommendations made by the TRAI are binding on the Central Government.

Which of the above statements is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2

भारतीय दूरसंचार नियामक प्राधिकरण (ट्राई) के संबंध में निम्नलिखित कथनों पर विचार करें:

1. यह भारतीय दूरसंचार नियामक प्राधिकरण अधिनियम, 1997 के तहत भारत सरकार द्वारा स्थापित एक नियामक निकाय है।
2. ट्राई द्वारा की गई सिफारिशें केंद्र सरकार के लिए बाध्यकारी हैं।

उपरोक्त कथनों में से कौन-सा/से सही है/हैं?

1. केवल 1
2. केवल 2
3. 1 और 2 दोनों
4. न तो 1 और न ही 2

About Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI):

• It is a regulatory body set up by the Government of India under section 3 of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Act, 1997.
• It is the regulator of the telecommunications sector in India.
• Composition:
• It consists of a Chairperson and not more than two full-time members, and not more than two part-time members.
• The chairperson and the members of TRAI are appointed by the Central Government, and the duration for which they can hold their office is three years or until they attain the age of 65 years, whichever is earlier.
• Government Control over TRAI:
• TRAI is not a completely independent telecom regulator.
• Under section 25 of the Act, it has the power to issue directions which are binding on TRAI.
• The TRAI is also funded by the Central Government.
• Functions:
• Making recommendations on various issues;
• General administrative and regulatory functions;
• Fixing tariffs and rates for telecom services; and
• Any other functions entrusted by the Central Government.
• The recommendations made by the TRAI are not binding on the Central Government.

Q) Consider the following statements:

1. Grey Hydrogen is produced via coal or lignite gasification (black or brown), or via a process called steam methane reformation.
2. Green Hydrogen is produced using the electrolysis of water with electricity generated by renewable energy.

Which of the above statements is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2

निम्नलिखित कथनों पर विचार करें:

1. ग्रे हाइड्रोजन कोयला या लिग्नाइट गैसीफिकेशन (काला या भूरा), या स्टीम मीथेन रिफॉर्मेशन नामक प्रक्रिया के माध्यम से उत्पादित किया जाता है।
2. नवीकरणीय ऊर्जा द्वारा उत्पन्न बिजली के साथ पानी के इलेक्ट्रोलिसिस का उपयोग करके ग्रीन हाइड्रोजन का उत्पादन किया जाता है।

उपरोक्त कथनों में से कौन-सा/से सही है/हैं?

1. केवल 1
2. केवल 2
3. 1 और 2 दोनों
4. न तो 1 और न ही 2

Types of Hydrogen based on Extraction Methods:

• Grey Hydrogen: It is produced via coal or lignite gasification (black or brown), or via a process called steam methane reformation (SMR) of natural gas or methane (grey). These tend to be mostly carbon-intensive processes.
• Blue Hydrogen: It is produced via natural gas or coal gasification combined with carbon capture storage (CCS) or carbon capture use (CCU) technologies to reduce carbon emissions.
• Green Hydrogen: It is produced using electrolysis of water with electricity generated by renewable energy. The carbon intensity ultimately depends on the carbon neutrality of the source of electricity (i.e., the more renewable energy there is in the electricity fuel mix, the “greener” the hydrogen produced).

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