All India Presiding Officers Conference.
Theme
of this year's conference is Harmonious Coordination of Legislative, Executive
and Judiciary- Key to a Vibrant Democracy.
Various
sessions will be organised in which presiding officers will exchange their
views and shared best practices. discussions will also be held on ways to make
the proceedings of Parliament and Legislative Assemblies more productive.
On
26th November which is celebrated as Constitution Day, PM of India Modi will
address the valedictory session of the conference.
Creation of Chandigarh.
Haryana
Deputy Chief Minister said it would be better if both Haryana and Punjab agreed
on Chandigarh as a Union Territory and make their independent capitals and
Benches of High Courts.
On
November 1, Haryana was celebrating 54 years of its formation as a separate
state after it was carved out of undivided Punjab in 1966.
Background:
Chandigarh
was planned to replace Lahore, the capital of erstwhile Punjab, which became
part of Pakistan during the Partition.
In
March 1948, the Government of (India’s) Punjab, in consultation with the
Centre, approved the area of the foothills of the Shivaliks as the site for the
new capital.
From
1952 to 1966 (till Haryana was carved out of Punjab), Chandigarh remained the
capital of Punjab.
At
the time of reorganization of Punjab in 1966, the city assumed the unique
distinction of being the capital of both Punjab and Haryana, even as it was
declared a union territory and was placed under the direct control of the
Centre.
The
properties in Chandigarh were to be divided in 60:40 ratio in favour of Punjab.
Aarogya Setu’s backend code released by MeitY, in a bid
to promote transparency.
Ministry
of electronics and information technology (MeitY) has released the backend code
of the Aarogya Setu in the open domain to help people understand how contact
tracing mobile application functions.
The
step is expected to increase transparency and dispel privacy concerns and will
also help peopleunderstand how contact tracing mobile application functions.
It
is released on a government platform called Open Forge that has been set up to
promote sharing and reuse of e-governance application source code.
Aarogya
Setu app aimed at informing users of potential risk of the COVID-19 infection
by alerting people when they come in contact with someone infected with
COVID-19.
Coordinated Patrol Exercise.
Recently,
the 30th edition of India-Thailand Coordinated Patrol (CORPAT) has been
concluded in the Andaman Sea close to the Strait of Malacca.
Naval
Exercise: India and Thailand have been carrying out CORPAT along their
International Maritime Boundary Line twice a year since 2005.
Indian
Naval Ship (INS) Karmuk (an indigenously built Missile Corvette) and Thailand
Frigate HTMS Kraburi, along with Dornier Maritime Patrol Aircraft from both the
navies participated in the 30th edition.
Aims:
To
keep part of the Indian Ocean safe and secure for commercial shipping and
international trade.
To
ensure effective implementation of the United Nations Conventions on Laws of
the Sea (UNCLOS).
UNCLOS
specify regulations regarding protection and conservation of natural resources,
conservation of marine environment, prevention and suppression of illegal,
unregulated fishing activity, drug trafficking, piracy, exchange of information
in prevention of smuggling, illegal immigration and conduct of search and
rescue operations at sea.
In line with India’s SAGAR Vision:
As
part of Indian Government’s vision of Security And Growth for All in the Region
(SAGAR), the Indian Navy has been involved in assisting countries in the Indian
Ocean Region with Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) Surveillance, Humanitarian
Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR), and other capacity building and
capability-enhancement activities, on their request.
Other
Military Exercises between India and Thailand:
Exercise
MAITREE (Army).
Exercise
SIAM BHARAT (Air Force).
Neutralising Antibodies.
A
new study in Pune has revealed that nearly 85% of the people who had been found
infected with novel coronavirus in a serosurvey, conducted earlier, had
developed neutralising antibodies.
In
other words, these people had developed immunity against the disease.
It
is sometimes thought that everyone who is infected with a disease-causing
virus, and recovers, becomes immune to the disease, because they build
antibodies against it. But that is not the case.
While
the creation of antibodies is necessary for the recovery process, it does not
guarantee immunity against a future attack from the same virus.
Immunity
comes from what are known as “neutralising” or “protective” antibodies.
Neutralising antibodies:
Neutralising
antibodies, like other antibodies that are created to fight the disease, are
nothing but proteins.
These
are a small subset of the disease-specific antibodies that are generated once
an infection has occurred.
The
neutralising antibodies become special because they have the ability to thwart
the entry of the same virus inside human bodies in the future. The other
antibodies help in fighting off the virus once the infection has already
happened.
Sentinel-6 Satellite launched.
The
Copernicus Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich satellite was launched aboard a SpaceX
Falcon 9 rocket on November 21.
Objective:
Designed
to monitor oceans Developed jointly by: European Space Agency (ESA), NASA,
European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (Eumetsat),
the USA’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the EU.
Key takeaways
This
is a part of the next mission dedicated to measuring changes in the global sea
level.
The
mission, called the Jason Continuity of Service (Jason-CS) mission, is designed
to measure the height of the ocean.
Height
of the ocean is a key component in understanding how the Earth’s climate is
changing.
The
spacecraft consists of two satellites, out of which one was launched recently,
and the other, called Sentinel-6B, shall be launched in 2025.
Rodchenkov Act.
The
Rodchenkov Act was passed by the Senate and will become a law once the US
president signs it.
It
allows the USA to initiate legal proceedings against those involved in running
doping rings, including coaches, officials, managers or suppliers even if they
are not residents of the United States or if the act of doping took place
outside the United States.
Key objectives:
The
main objective of the Rodchenkov Act is to bring to book facilitators who
otherwise got away when athletes who tested positive for performance-enhancing
substances were banned under the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) code.
The
Act seeks to criminalise ‘major international dope fraud conspiracies’, which
is mentioned in Section 4 of the Act.
The
Act accounts for a scenario where doping fraud conspiracies ‘may not support
the use of existing laws’ and gives the example of Russia’s systematic doping
during the 2014 Sochi Winter Games and in other ‘major international competitions.
What does the Act cover?
The
Act will cover any ‘major international competition’ where one or more athletes
from the United States participates and three or more from other countries are
present.
The
Act also covers events where the competition organiser or sanctioned body has
received sponsorship or funding from an organisation doing business in the
United States, and the broadcaster has bought the rights to telecast in the
United States.
Punishment provision:
An
offence will attract imprisonment of upto 10 years and a fine of upto $250,000
for individuals.
Fines
can go upto $1 million if a syndicate, lab or organisation is found to be
indulging in doping related activities.
Properties
can also be seized, including those belonging to a private individual.
Can
someone in India be charged under the act?
Yes,
it appears so. A hypothetical example would be if it is proven that an Indian
coach, who is part of a doping syndicate, provided performance-enhancing
substances to athletes who won medals at an international competition and this
resulted in American athletes missing out on podium places.
It
may be difficult to extradite the person to the United States, but once charged
a citizen of another country will have to be wary of travelling outside her/his
country, especially for competitions at venues where investigators could
conduct questioning and try and piece together evidence to make their case
stronger.
Water bomb in the Himalayas.
Context:
With
India-China relations hitting its lowest point since the 1962 war, border
infrastructure has come under intense scrutiny.
The
construction of several dams along the Yarlung (Brahmaputra) river on the
Chinese side has been a repeated cause for concern for Indian officials and the
local people, whose livelihoods and security depend on the river.
Peculiar
characteristics of Brahmaputra River that is cause of concern
Two
Floods: Inhabitants along the river have to deal with two floods annually, one
caused by the melting of the Himalayan snow in summer and the other due to the
monsoon flows
Dangers
of Climate Change: The frequency of these floods have increased and are
devastating due to climate change and its impact on high and low flows.
Dynamic
in nature: The river is in itself dynamic as frequent landslides and geological
activity force it to change course very often.
Water Issues of China
Resource
Constraints: China, which is home to close to 20 per cent of the world’s
population, has only 7 per cent of its water resources.
Consequence
of Industrialisation: Severe pollution of its surface and groundwater caused by
rapid industrialisation is a source of concern for Chinese planners.
Regional
Imbalance within China: China’s southern regions are water-rich in comparison
to the water-stressed northern part. The southern region is a major food
producer and has significant industrial capacity as a consequence of more
people living there.
River
interlinking Plans: China has an ambitious plan to link its south(water rich)
and north(water stressed) through canals, aqueducts and linking of major rivers
to ensure water security
International
Ramifications: In pursuit of above goals, China, being an upper riparian state
in Asia, has been blocking rivers like the Mekong and its tributaries,
affecting Southeast Asian countries like Thailand, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia.
It has caused immense damage to the environment and altered river flows in the
region
Geopolitical
Tool: Such projects by China has the potential to significantly change the flow
rate during times of standoffs and high tensions. In fact, during the 2018
Doklam border standoff between India and China, China stopped communication of
water flow levels from its dams, effectively rendering India blind to floods
during the standoff.
Hegemonic
Attitude: China sees such projects as a continuation of their historic
tributary system as the smaller states have no means of effectively resisting
or even significant leverage in negotiations. Chinese projects in the Himalayas
have only recently begun to operate amid protests from India.
There
are now multiple operational dams in the Yarlung Tsangpo basin with more dams
commissioned and under construction. These constructions present a unique
challenge for Indian planners because
a) It will lead to degradation of
the entire basin.
Massive
amounts of silt carried by the river would get blocked by dams leading to a
fall in the quality of soil and eventual reduction in agricultural
productivity.
b) Impact on Ecological Diversity;
The
Brahmaputra basin is one of the world’s most ecologically sensitive zones. It
is identified as one of the world’s 34 biological hotspots.
This
region sees several species of flora and fauna that are endemic to only this
part of the world — the Kaziranga National Park houses 35 mammalian species out
of which 15 are listed as threatened in the IUCN conservation list.
The
river itself is home to the Gangetic river dolphin, which is listed as
critically endangered
Reduction
in flow of waters downstream will have negative consequences of the flora and
fauna of the surrounding ecosystem
c). Prone to Disasters;
The
location of the dams in the Himalayas poses a risk. Seismologists consider the
Himalayas as most vulnerable to earthquakes and seismic activity.
Landslides
resulting from earthquakes pose a significant threat — the 2015 Nepal
earthquake and the resultant landslides wiped out several dams and other
facilities.
The
sheer size of the infrastructure projects undertaken by China increases the
vulnerability of the region to earthquakes and landslides
d).
Lives & Livelihoods are in danger:
Close
to a million people live in the Brahmaputra basin in India and tens of millions
further downstream in Bangladesh.
The
projects in the Himalayas threaten the existence of hundreds of thousands of
people.
Way
Ahead:
There
are alternate solutions to solving the water crisis.
Both
sides must cease new constructions on the river and commit to potentially less
destructive solutions.
Building
a decentralised network of check dams, rain-capturing lakes and using
traditional means of water capture have shown effective results in restoring
the ecological balance while supporting the populations of the regions in a
sustainable manner.
It
is in the interest of all stakeholders to neutralise this ticking water bomb.
