The Hindu Newspaper Analysis 26 December 2022

The Hindu Newspaper Analysis for UPSC

The Hindu Newspaper Analysis 24 December 2022

• If all goes well, Sania Mirza, daughter of a TV mechanic from Jasovar village in Mirzapur district of Uttar Pradesh, may become India’s first Muslim woman fighter pilot after she cleared the National Defence Academy (NDA) examination with an overall rank of 149.

The Hindu Editorial Today

• One of the silences in the Constitution is in Article 200 which does not prescribe a timeline for the Governor to provide assent to Bills sent by the Legislative Assembly. This has been used to advantage by the Governors of various Opposition-ruled States to obfuscate the mandate of democratically elected governments.
• The examples range from the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Online Gambling and Regulation of Online Games Bill, 2022 (passed by the Tamil Nadu Assembly) to the Kerala Lok Ayukta (Amendment) Bill, 2022 (passed by the Kerala Assembly). In Tamil Nadu alone, almost 20 Bills are awaiting assent by the Governor.
• The situation is no different in Telangana and West Bengal as well.
• When the draft of Article 200 was discussed in the Constituent Assembly, Prof. Shibban Lal Saxena rightly highlighted how there is no time limit prescribed for the Governor to act. In Purushothaman Nambudiri vs State of Kerala (1962), a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court clarified that the Constitution does not impose any time limit within which the Governor should provide assent to Bills.
• However, the Court has maintained that the Governor must honour the will of the Legislature and that the President or a Governor can act only in harmony with their Council of Ministers.
• There is no timeline prescribed for even the President, under Article 201 of the Constitution, to decide on the outcome of the Bill.
• In a consultation paper, the ‘Institution of Governor under the Constitution’, the Justice B.P. Jeevan Reddy-led Committee states that if the Governor withholds assent to a Bill indefinitely, “such a course will not be conducive with the decorous regard a Governor is expected to the rules of the Constitutional game….”.
• The ‘National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution’ that was set up by the A.B. Vajpayee government in 2000 recommended that “there should be a time-limit — say a period of six months — within which the Governor should take a decision whether to grant assent or to reserve a Bill for consideration of the President.”
• Sarkaria Commission that a “Governor will act as a safety-valve against hasty legislations and by their operation enable the State Government and Legislature to have a second look at it”.

• The Government has decided not to extend the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana, (PMGKY), a scheme that ran between April 2020 to December 2022 (except for a short period in between), and provided additional allocation of foodgrains, i.e., rice or wheat from the central pool at five kilograms a month free of cost to beneficiaries under the National Food Security Act (NFSA).
• In other words, ration card holders can now avail 5 kg of wheat or rice per month for free rather than at a subsidised rate, while Antyodaya Anna Yojana cardholders will receive 35 kg of free foodgrains.
• While the expenditure numbers on food distribution and subsidy provisions seem fiscally expensive, the schemes have provided distress relief to the most needy, helped the Government control its food buffer stocks better, and also reduced wastage of procured food grains at a time when procurement figures for rice and wheat by the Food Corporation of India remain high.
• The PDS and the PMGKY have not only enabled basic food security but have also acted as income transfers for the poor by allowing them to buy other commodities that they could not have afforded if not for the benefits.

Q) With reference to the provisions made under the National Food Security Act, 2013, consider the following statements: (2018)

1. The families coming under the category of ‘below poverty line (BPL)’ only are eligible to receive subsidised food grains.
2. The eldest woman in a household, of age 18 years or above, shall be the head of the household for the purpose of issuance of a ration card.
3. Pregnant women and lactating mothers are entitled to a ‘take-home ration’ of 1600 calories per day during pregnancy and for six months thereafter.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

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

• Prior to the implementation of the NFSA, there were mainly three types of ration cards issued by State Governments such as Above Poverty Line (APL), Below Poverty Line (BPL), and Antyodaya (AAY) ration cards distinguished by different colours o p t e d  by the concerned State Government. According to NFSA 2013, APL and BPL groups have been re-classified into two categories – Non-Priority and Priority. Hence, statement 1 is not correct.
•  Eldest woman of the household of age 18 years or above is to be the head of the household for the purpose of issuing of ration cards. Hence, statement 2 is correct.
• Pregnant Women and Lactating Mothers are entitled to food supplement of 600 calories of energy and 18-20 gms of protein per day in the form of Micronutrient Fortified Food and/or energy-dense food as take away home ration. Hence, statement 3 is not correct. Therefore, option (b) is the correct answer.

• Increasing the retirement age of Supreme Court and High Court judges could extend the years of service of non-performing judges and might have a cascading effect with government employees raising a similar demand, the Department of Justice has told a parliamentary panel.
• It also said increasing the retirement age of judges would be considered along with measures to ensure transparency and accountability in appointments to the higher judiciary.
• In July, Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju had informed Parliament that there was no proposal to increase the retirement age of Supreme Court and High Court judges.
• While Supreme Court judges retire at the age of 65 years, High Court judges retire at 62 years.

• The number of polluted stretches in India’s rivers has fallen from 351 in 2018 to 311 in 2022, though the number of most polluted stretches is practically unchanged, according to a report from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) in November but made public this week.
• The CPCB network monitors water quality at 4,484 locations across the country.
• Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) exceeding 3 milligrams per litre (mg/l) is identified as polluted locations. Two or more polluted locations identified on a river in a continuous sequence are considered as a “polluted river stretch.” A BOD less than 3 mg/l means the river stretch is fit for “outdoor bathing.”
• Biochemical Oxygen Demand or alternatively termed as Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) is the amount of oxygen needed or demanded by aerobic microorganisms to break down the organic matter present in a certain sample of water at a specific temperature and over a given time period.
• The more the BOD of a water body or water sample, the more it is polluted.
• CPCB is a statutory organisation which was constituted in September, 1974 under the Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974.
• It was entrusted with the powers and functions under the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981.
• It serves as a field formation and also provides technical services to the Ministry of Environment and Forests under the provisions of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.

Important Functions:

• to promote cleanliness of streams and wells in different areas of the States by prevention, control and abatement of water pollution.
• to improve the quality of air and to prevent, control or abate air pollution in the country.

• Some Internet-based firms have been tricking users into agreeing to certain conditions or clicking a few links.
• The unsuspecting users would not have accepted to such terms or clicked urls (uniform resource locator), but for the deceptive tactics deployed by tech firms.
• Such acceptances and clicks are flooding inboxes of the users with promotional emails they never wanted, making it hard to unsubscribe or request deletion. These are examples of “dark patterns,” also known as “deceptive patterns.”

What are dark patterns?

• Such patterns are unethical user interface designs that deliberately make your Internet experience harder or even exploit you. In turn, they benefit the company or platform employing the designs.
• By using dark patterns, digital platforms take away a user’s right to full information about the services they are using and their control over their browsing experience.
• Amazon came under fire in the EU for its confusing, multi-step cancelling process in Amazon Prime subscription. After communicating with consumer regulators, Amazon this year made its cancellation process easier for online customers in European countries.
• These include “baseless” countdowns for online deals, conditions in fine print that add on to costs, making cancellation buttons hard to see or click, making ads appear as news reports or celebrity endorsements, auto-playing videos, forcing users to create accounts to finish a transaction, silently charging credit cards after free trials end, and using dull colours to hide information that users should know about.

Q) Consider the following statements.

1. A no-confidence motion is “a motion expressing want of confidence in the Council of Ministers.”
2. There should be a minimum of 50 percent of the members approval for moving the No-Confidence Motion.

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. अविश्वास प्रस्ताव “मंत्रिपरिषद में विश्वास की कमी व्यक्त करने वाला प्रस्ताव” है।
2. अविश्‍वास प्रस्‍ताव को पेश करने के लिए सदस्‍यों की मंजूरी का न्‍यूनतम 50 प्रतिशत होना चाहिए।

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

• According to the Article 75 of the Indian Constitution, council of ministers shall be collectively responsible to the Lok Sabha and as per Article 164, the council of ministers shall be collectively responsible to the Legislative Assembly of the State.
• According to rule 198 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of the Lok Sabha, a no-confidence motion is “a motion expressing want of confidence in the Council of Ministers.”
• With a minimum of 50 Members’ approval, the motion can be moved.

Q) The term ‘fledgling democracy’ mean

1. An oldest democracy
2. A democracy that is not secular
3. Democracy without a written Constitution
4. A new Democracy

नवोदित लोकतंत्र’ शब्द का अर्थ है

1. सबसे पुराना लोकतंत्र
2. एक लोकतंत्र जो धर्मनिरपेक्ष नहीं है
3. लिखित संविधान के बिना लोकतंत्र
4. एक नया लोकतंत्र

• The term fledgling is used to describe a person, organization, or system that is new or without experience.

Q) Consider the following statements.

1. In India no law can be amended retrospectively.
2. In India, no person shall be convicted of any offence except for violation of the law in force at the time of the commission of the act charged as an offence.
3. The Constitution of India guarantees protection against double jeopardy.

Which of the above statements is/are correct?

1. 2 only
2. 2, 3
3. 1, 3
4. 1, 2, 3

निम्नलिखित कथनों पर विचार करें।

1. भारत में किसी कानून में पूर्वव्यापी प्रभाव से संशोधन नहीं किया जा सकता है।
2. भारत में, किसी भी व्यक्ति को अपराध के रूप में आरोपित अधिनियम के आयोग के समय लागू कानून के उल्लंघन के अलावा किसी भी अपराध के लिए दोषी नहीं ठहराया जा सकता है।
3. भारत का संविधान दोहरे खतरे से सुरक्षा की गारंटी देता है।

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

1. केवल 2
2. 2, 3
3. 1, 3
4. 1, 2, 3

• Criminal laws cannot be amended retrospectively. Civil law can be amended retrospectively. For example, a tax can be imposed retrospectively.
• Article 20 of the Constitution guarantees protection against double jeopardy. Article 20(1) says that no person shall be convicted of any offence except for violation of the law in force at the time of the commission of the act charged as an offence, nor be subjected to a penalty greater than that which might have been inflicted under the law in force at the time of the commission of the offence.

Q) Consider the following statements.

1. There is no international binding agreement to ensure that rocket parts fall back to earth in guided fashion once their missions are complete.
2. The Liability Convention 1972 requires countries to pay for damages due to uncontrolled rocket re-entries.

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. यह सुनिश्चित करने के लिए कोई अंतरराष्ट्रीय बाध्यकारी समझौता नहीं है कि रॉकेट के पुर्जे अपने मिशन पूरा होने के बाद निर्देशित तरीके से वापस पृथ्वी पर गिरें।
2. लायबिलिटी कन्वेंशन 1972 में देशों को अनियंत्रित रॉकेट री-एंट्री के कारण हुए नुकसान के लिए भुगतान करने की आवश्यकता 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

• More than 140 experts and dignitaries have signed an open letter published by the Outer Space Institute (OSI) calling for both national and multilateral efforts to restrict uncontrolled re-entries — the phenomenon of rocket parts falling back to earth in unguided fashion once their missions are complete.
• There is no international binding agreement to ensure rocket stages always perform controlled re-entries nor on the technologies with which to do so. The Liability Convention 1972 requires countries to pay for damages, not prevent them.

Q) Consider the following statements about Konark Sun Temple:

1. The temple is attributed to king Narasimhadeva I of the Eastern Ganga dynasty.
2. It is a classic illustration of the Kalinga architecture.

Which of the above statements is/are correct?

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

कोणार्क सूर्य मंदिर के बारे में निम्नलिखित कथनों पर विचार करें:

1. इस मंदिर का श्रेय पूर्वी गंगा वंश के राजा नरसिंहदेव प्रथम को दिया जाता है।
2. यह कलिंग वास्तुकला का उत्कृष्ट उदाहरण 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

Explanation:

• The temple is attributed to king Narasimhadeva I of the Eastern Ganga dynasty about 1250 CE.
• It is a classic illustration of the Odisha style of Architecture or Kalinga architecture..
• The new ₹10 denomination banknotes in the Mahatma Gandhi (New) Series bear signature of the Governor, Reserve Bank of India. The note has the motif of ‘Sun Temple, Konark’ on the reverse, depicting the country’s cultural heritage.

Mains Practice Question:

Q) Explain how e-governance can facilitate economic inclusiveness and bring social transformation in India. (250 words)

स्पष्ट करें कि ई-गवर्नेंस किस प्रकार आर्थिक समावेशन को सुगम बना सकता है और भारत में सामाजिक परिवर्तन ला सकता है। (250 शब्द)

Sharing is caring!