07 March 2023

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS ANALYSIS

1 – MGNREGA: GS II – Topic Government Policies and Interventions

 Context:

• Funds under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) are likely to be withheld for West Bengal in the upcoming fiscal year if the Centre-State disagreement over the violation of the regulations in the scheme’s implementation is not resolved.

About:

• The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), also referred to as the MNREGS or the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Plan, was passed by Indian legislators on August 25, 2005.
• The MGNREGA officially guarantees one hundred days of employment per fiscal year to adult members of any rural family who are willing to engage in unskilled manual labour associated with public work for the statutory minimum wage.
• The Indian Ministry of Rural Development (MRD) is in charge of managing the complete implementation of this initiative in cooperation with state governments.
• This law aims to give rural inhabitants in India more purchasing power, especially those who work in low-wage, semi-skilled employment and fall below the poverty line.
• It tries to narrow the wealth and poverty gaps in the country.
• Around one-third of the workforce must be made up of women.
• Adults in rural households submit their name, age, address, and photo to the Gram Panchayat.
• The Gram Panchayat records residences and issues employment cards after making inquiry.
• The adult member’s information and picture are on their job card.
• To apply for a job, a registered person should write to the Panchayat or the Programme Officer (for at least fourteen days of continuous work).
• After the Panchayat/Program officer accepts a legitimate application and dates it as received, a letter explaining the work will be given to the applicant and displayed at the Panchayat office.
• The employment will be available within a 5 km radius; if further, further compensation will be provided.

Qualifying criteria:

• To be eligible for MGNREGA benefits, an applicant must be an Indian citizen.
• At the time of application, the job candidate was of legal drinking age.
• The candidate must live nearby (i.e. application must be made with local Gram Panchayat).
• The candidate must be willing to do manual labour.

 Crucial information:

• Under the MGNREGA, a rural household with adults who volunteer to do unskilled manual labour is entitled to 100 days of pay work per fiscal year.
• Individual beneficiary-oriented works may be submitted for consideration by members of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, small- or marginal-farmers, people who have benefited from land reforms, or people who have benefited from the Indira Awaas Yojana of the Government of India.
• Within 15 days after submitting the application, the applicant will be offered a wage employment, or on the first day that labour is needed.
• If no job is found within fifteen days of submitting an application or from the date work is sought for, the applicant has the right to unemployment compensation.
• payment must be made within fifteen days of the work’s completion.
• The projects that Gram Panchayaths are allowed to work on are numerous.
• MGNREGA places a strong emphasis on the economic and social empowerment of women.
• The “Green” and “Decent” jobs that MGNREGA offers.
• Accountability and transparency are promoted by requiring social audits for MGNREGA programmes.
• The MGNREGA programme aims to protect farmers from such risks, lessen their reliance on climate change, and preserve natural resources.
• The principal platform for wage seekers to express their concerns and make demands is the Gram Sabha.
• The Gram Sabha and Gram Panchayat, who also decide on the projects’ priority, approve the list of MGNREGA projects.

 Source The Hindu

 2 – Blue Economy: GS III – Topic Indian Economy

 Context:

• The G20 Environmental and Climate Sustainability Working Group recently met in Bengaluru. Land degradation, the blue economy, and the circular economy were the three subjects that were mentioned the most frequently during the Indian presidency. In an interview with The Hindu, Ashish Chaturvedi, Chief of UNDP India’s Environment, Energy and Resilience Division, discussed the Blue Economy and its importance to the G20 conference.

What Is the Blue Economy?

• Gunter Pauli first proposed the concept in his book “The Blue Economy: 10 years, 100 innovations, 100 million employment” from 2010.
• To support the sustainability of the ocean ecology, better housing conditions, employment possibilities, and economic development.
• It encourages greening ocean development activities for increased productivity and the preservation of ocean health.
• According to the Blue Economy hypothesis, the growth of the ocean economy is connected with social inclusion, environmental sustainability, and cutting-edge commercial concepts.
• It is composed of
• Social and economic advancement may be significantly aided by the use of sustainable marine energy.
• Fisheries: Sustainable fisheries can boost profits, produce more fish, and support the recovery of fish stocks.
• At least 80% of all goods that are traded worldwide are sent by water.
• Ocean and coastal tourism can benefit the economy and create jobs.
• Oceans have a crucial role in preventing climate change by acting as a carbon sink (blue carbon).
• Waste Management: Improved rubbish management on land may help the ocean recover.

What role does the blue economy play?

• High Return on Investment: One dollar invested in fundamental ocean activities returns five times that amount, or five dollars, and frequently more, according to a report commissioned by the high-level group for a sustainable ocean economy.
• Synergy with SDG: It promotes all of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations, particularly SDG14, which is about “life below water”.
• Sustainable Energy: To meet the growing need for renewable energy, offshore regions have a lot of promise for offshore wind, waves, ocean currents, including tidal currents, and thermal energy.
• Importance to India: The blue economy contributes an estimated 4% of India’s GDP and supports 95% of the country’s transportation-related business. The nation’s 7,500 km of coastline is split between nine coastal states, with 12 major and 200 minor ports (GDP).

What actions are taken to promote the blue economy?

• With the intention of developing technologies to use both live and non-living resources found in the deep ocean, the Deep Ocean Mission was started.
• In order to develop and maintain bilateral projects between the two countries, the India-Norway Task Group on Blue Economy for Sustainable Development was founded in 2020.
• A strategy plan for port-led growth called the Sagarmala Initiative mainly relies on IT-enabled services to modernise ports.
• O-SMART: In order to control the use of the oceans and marine resources for sustainable development, India created the O-SMART umbrella initiative.
• Integrated coastal zone management aims to increase coastal residents’ prospects of earning a living while maintaining marine and coastal resources.
• National Fisheries Policy: India’s national fisheries strategy promotes the “Blue Growth Initiative,” which is centred on the sustainably exploitation of fisheries wealth from marine and other aquatic resources.

How to Proceed:

• As a result of India’s substantial maritime interests, the blue economy has a significant future role in the country’s economic development.
• Sustainability and socioeconomic welfare could very possibly become the next multiplier of GDP and well-being if they are prioritised.
• In order to attain the greater goals of growth, job creation, fairness, and environmental conservation, India should endeavour to adopt Gandhi’s idea of combining economic benefits with sustainability.

 Source The Hindu

3 – Olive Ridley Turtles: GS III – Topic Environmental Conservation

 Context:

• The 6.37 lakh Olive Ridley sea turtles that arrived to Rushikulya shoreline this year for mass nesting set a new record for the beach in Odisha’s Ganjam district.
• The creation of new beaches for egg-laying near to the Podampetta area, according to Berhampur Divisional Forest Officer Sunny Khokkar, is to blame for the arrival of 6.37 lakh turtles between February 23 and March 2, which is regarded as the primary nesting period.

About:

• Olive ridley marine turtles are the smallest and most common marine turtles in the world.
• These turtles are carnivores, as evidenced by their olive-colored carapace.
• What distinguishes them most is the Arribada mass nesting, in which numerous females gather to lay their eggs on the same beach.

Habitat:

• The warm waters of the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian oceans are home to them.
• The Gahirmatha Marine Sanctuary in Odisha is believed to contain the largest sea turtle rookery (colony of breeding animals) in the world.

Status:

• The 1972 Wildlife Protection Act’s Schedule 1. Appendix 1 of CITES: Listed as Endangered on the IUCN Red List.

Threats:

• To extract their flesh, eggs, shells, and leather for human consumption, they are regularly poached.
• Sea Pollution and Waste: Plastics, fishing nets, abandoned nets, polythene, and other trash dumped by tourists and fishery workers are harming the habitats of sea turtles.
• Fishing Trawlers: The overexploitation of marine resources by the use of trawlers usually violates the ban on fishing within 20 kilometres of a marine sanctuary.
• The damage indicators on many of the dead turtles suggested they may have been captured in gill nets or trawls.

Saving Olive Ridley Turtles: Steps taken:

 Initiative Olivia:

• The Indian Coast Guard’s “Operation Olivia,” which was started in the early 1980s, helps to protect Olive Ridley turtles each year as they congregate along the coast of Odisha for breeding and nesting from November to December.
• Also, it halts illegal trawling activities.

 It is necessary to employ Turtle Excluder Devices (TEDs):

• In order to prevent unintentional killing of turtles in India, the government of Odisha has made it mandatory for trawls to use Turtle Excluder Devices (TEDs), a net particularly constructed with an exit cover that allows the turtles to escape while conserving the catch.

Tagging:

• Scientists use non-corrosive metal tags to identify endangered Olive Ridley turtles in order to protect the species and its ecosystems. This enables them to follow the turtles’ movements and pinpoint the places they frequently visit.

 Source The Hindu

4 – SWAMIH Investment Funds: GS III – Topic Indian Economy

 Context:

• The Special Window Investment Fund for Affordable and Middle-Income Housing (SWAMIH) I have so far raised Rs 15,530 crore in order to provide priority debt financing for the completion of stressed, brownfield, and residential projects that are certified by the Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) and fit into the affordable, mid-income housing category. SWAMIH has so far given final permission to more than 130 projects with fines totaling more than Rs 12,000 crore.

 About:

• A social impact fund called the Investment Fund for the Special Window for Affordable and Mid-Income Housing (SWAMIH) I was created specifically to complete difficult and stalled residential projects.
• The Fund is managed by SBICAP Ventures Ltd., a State Bank Group company, and is funded by the Indian Ministry of Finance.
• The fund considers inexperienced developers, experienced developers with challenging projects, developers with a history of stalled projects, customer complaints and NPA accounts, and even projects with legal issues.
• It is recognised as the lender of last resort for financially distressed projects.

 Source The Hindu