05 October 2023

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS ANALYSIS

1 – Details of the History of the India’s names: GS I – Indian Culture

India’s names have a rich history:

Bharat:

• The epic Mahabharata and Puranic literature are where the words “Bharat,” “Bharata,” and “Bharatvarsha” first appeared.
• According to the Puranas, Bharata is the region that lies between the sea in the south and the land of the snow in the north.
• The term “Bharata” designates the supraregional and subcontinental area where the Brahmanical social order is dominant.
• The term Bharata also refers to the legendary ancient king who served as the forefather of the Rig Vedic tribe of the Bharatas and, thus, the grandfather of all inhabitants of the subcontinent.

Hindustan:

• It is believed that the name Hindustan came from “Hindu,” which is the Persian equivalent of the Sanskrit word “Sindhu” (Indus).
• It became popular after the Achaemenid Persians conquered the Indus valley (in the northwest of the subcontinent) in the sixth century BC, when The Buddha was living in the Gangetic basin.

The entire Indo-Gangetic plain was referred to as “Hindustan” by the early Mughals (16th century).

• In the middle to end of the eighteenth century, the term “Hindustan” was frequently used to describe the Mughal emperor’s empire, which included most of South Asia.

India:

• The name was transliterated as “Indus” by the Greeks, who had learned about “Hind” from the Achaemenids.
• ‘India’ had already come to be associated with the area beyond the Indus by the time the Macedonian king Alexander invaded India in the third century BC.
• British maps started to use the name “India” more frequently starting in the late 18th century, and “Hindustan” started to lose its link with all of South Asia.
• The word India’s Graeco-Roman associations, lengthy history of use in Europe, and use by bureaucratic and scientific groups like the Survey of India may have contributed to its popularity.

‘Bharat’ and ‘India’ are used in the Constitution:

• ‘Hindustan’ was omitted and both ‘Bharat’ and ‘India’ were kept when the issue of identifying India in the Constitution came up.
• Many members opposed the usage of the name “India,” which they believed to be a reminder of the country’s colonial past.

On the idea of Hindustan and India, according to Vinayak Damodar Savarkar:

• Savarkar claimed that the term “Hindu” and “Hindustan” best described the inhabitants of the region that stretched from Sindhu in the north to the Indian Ocean in the south.
• The Aryans chose the name “Sindhu,” and although though the letter S is replaced by the letter H in both Persian and Prakrit, it’s possible that they did so in an effort to make the word appear to be solidly indigenous.
• When Sapta Sindhu’s centre of gravity moved to the Gangetic delta, the word “Bharat” emerged.
• The words Aryawarta or Bramhawarta were insufficient to capture the broad synthesis that sought to unite the entire continent from the Indus to the sea.
• When the House of Bharat began to exert its control over the entire world, this need to find a fitting term to describe the expansive notion of an Indian Nation was more or less successfully realised.

Source The Hindu

2 – All about the Sanatan Dharma and Hindu Dharma: GS I – Indian Culture

Context:

• The distinction between Sanatan Dharma, Hinduism, and Hindutva has been covered by Hindutva ideologist Vinayak Damodar Savarkar in his key book Essentials of Hindutva.

Savarkar’s views on Hinduism, Sanatan Dharma, and Hindutva:

Hinduism and the Sanatan Dharma:

• The Sanatan Dharma adherents, according to Savarkar, are those who respect the authority of the Puranas, Smriti, and Shruti.
• Both Shruti and Smriti make reference to Vedic writings.
• The Vedas, Upanishads, and other oral traditions are considered to be Shruti, whereas the Upvedas, Tantras, and other written traditions are considered to be Smriti.
• The majority of Hindus follow the Sanatan Dharma or Shruti, Smriti, and Puranas religious system, which is best characterised by the quality that makes up its distinctive characteristic.
• They wouldn’t care if it was called Vaidik Dharma at all.
• There are some Hindus who partially or completely reject the authority of certain Puranas, Smritis, and Shrutis themselves.
• The Sanatan dharma, the Shruti-smriti-puranokta Dharma, or the Vaidik Dharma are some of the older names for the religion practised by the majority of Hindus.
• While the remaining Hindus’ religion would still be referred to by its respective and acceptable titles, such as Sikha Dharma, Arya Dharma, Jain Dharma, or Buddha Dharma.
• Therefore, despite the vast majority of adherents who support its doctrines, the Vaidik or Sanatan Dharma is just a subset of Hinduism or Hindu Dharma.

Hindutva:

• Hindutva is a historical movement, not a phrase.
• It is a complete history, not just the spiritual or religious history of our people, as it is occasionally misunderstood to be when confused with the other cognate term Hinduism.
• Only a small portion of Hindutva is represented by Hinduism.

Source The Hindu

3 – Details of One-hour trade settlement: GS III – Indian Economy related issues

Context:

• The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) is now preparing to introduce one-hour trade settlement.

How does trade settlement work?

• When purchased stocks from a listed business are delivered to the buyer and the seller receives payment, a transaction settlement is said to be complete.

T+1 resolution:

• Because of the present T+1 cycle, trade-related settlements take place 24 hours, or a day, after the transactions themselves.
• India started the T+1 settlement cycle in top-listed securities after China, becoming the second nation in the world to do so.

Advantages of hourly trade settlement:

• A person’s account will be credited the next day if they sell shares under the current T+1 settlement cycle.
• If an investor sells a share, the proceeds will be credited to their account in an hour, and the buyer will receive the shares in their demat account in an hour. This is known as one-hour settlement.

Source The Hindu

4 – About Exercise Trishul: GS III – Defence related issues

Context:

• The Western Air Command (WAC) of the Indian Air Force (IAF) has just started its yearly training exercise, Trishul.

Key information:

• A significant training exercise by the Indian Air Force, code-named Trishul, will be conducted in the northern sector near the borders with China and Pakistan.

Significance:

• The Indian military has seen a significant shift in its focus from Pakistan to China since the ongoing standoff with China in eastern Ladakh in 2020, and the IAF has maintained a high pace of operations.

Source The Hindu

5 – Details of the Regional and international groupings invited to G20: GS II – International Issues

Context:

• Three regional and three international groups have been invited as guests to the G20 meeting by India.

Organizations from the region invited to the G20 conference in New Delhi:

African Union (AU):

• The 55 member nations that make up the countries of the African Continent make up the AU, an intergovernmental body.
• The AU, which was formally established in 2002, aims to increase solidarity and togetherness among African nations and people.
• During this year’s Leaders’ Summit, the group is set to join the G20 as its 21st member.

AUDA-NEPAD:

• The African Union’s programme for economic development is called the New Partnership for Africa’s Development.
• The institution was created in 2018 after the African Union chose to rename the African Union Development Agency-NEPAD (AUDA-NEPAD) from the NEPAD Planning and Coordination Agency (founded in 2010).
• Its major objective is to organise and carry out important continental and regional projects in Africa in order to accomplish “Agenda 2023.”
• Africa’s ultimate strategy and roadmap for becoming the future global powerhouse is called Agenda 2023.

ASEAN:

• The ASEAN is a political and economic association of ten Southeast Asian nations that was founded in 1967. Members:
• Its original members are Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines, Indonesia, and Thailand.
• Later members of the group included Brunei Darussalam, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar, and Cambodia.
• The key goals of ASEAN are:
• Southeast Asia is experiencing rapid economic growth, social advancement, and cultural development.
• fostering the region’s peace and stability.
• International organisations welcomed to the G20 summit in New Delhi:

International Solar Alliance:

• India and France established the International Solar Alliance in 2016, an intergovernmental institution founded on treaties.
• Its goal is to offer a focused forum for collaboration between nations with abundant solar resources and the larger global community to support the growing usage of solar energy.
• The ISA Framework Agreement now has 116 signatories, 94 of which have provided the requisite documents of ratification to become full members of the ISA.

CDRI:

The 2019-founded Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure is made up of the following organisations:

• nation-state authorities.
• UN organisations and initiatives.
• banks for multilateral development.
• private industry and
• educational establishments.
• It strives to support both new and existing infrastructures that are disaster-resistant.
• The organisation also aims to strengthen capacities, expand the availability of technical help, and raise awareness of such infrastructures.

ADB:

• Asian Development Bank, which was established in 1966, works to further the social and economic development of its developing member countries (DMCs) in the Asia Pacific region.
• It primarily employs loans and equity investments, as well as other consulting services, loan guarantees, grants, policy discussions, and technical help for projects and initiatives aimed at promoting development.
• The 68-member ADB has its main office in Manila, Philippines.
• 317% of the shares are owned by India, which has 5.347 percent voting power.
• The two biggest stockholders are Japan and the US, followed by China and India.

Source The Hindu