14 December 2023

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS ANALYSIS

1 – Emmy Awards: GS II – International Issues

Context:

• For his Netflix series, comedian Vir Das took home an International Emmy Award. In the comedy division, Das is the first Indian winner.

What do you mean by the Emmys?

• The most prestigious awards for performances in television and new media are the Emmy Awards.
• They aren’t granted for films, in contrast to the Oscar and Golden Globe awards.
• The first Emmy Awards ceremony was held on January 25, 1949, while the idea for the awards dates back to 1948.
• The term “Emmy” merely designates the award; it has no other meaning.
• The image-orthicon camera tube, which was crucial to the advancement of television technology, was dubbed “Immy” in the original plan.
• Later on, “Emmy,” a more feminine name, was added.

Various Emmy Award types:

The following categories are included in the Emmy Awards, in addition to the Primetime and International Emmy Awards:

• during the day,
• athletics,
• both news and documentary
• engineering and technology, and
• Television programmes created solely in America and broadcast during primetime are recognised with Primetime Emmy Awards.
• For international shows, there are international Emmy Awards.
• American programmes that air in the late morning and afternoon are eligible to win Daytime Emmy Awards.
• Regional television markets, such as state-to-state programming, local news, and locally produced shows, are eligible for the Regional Emmy Awards.

Who gives the Emmys?

• Three sister organisations present these prizes.
• The organisation in charge of the Primetime Emmy Awards is the Television Academy.
• The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences is in charge of the news, sports, documentary, and daytime divisions.
• The organisation in charge of the International Emmy Awards is the International Academy of Television Arts & Sciences.
• Every organisation has a membership of television professionals who cast votes to choose the winner.

Source The Hindu

2 – Ghol fish: GS III – Environmental Conservation:

Context:

• Recently, Gujarat declared the black-spotted croaker, often known as the ghol fish, to be the state fish.

About the Ghol Fish:

• One of the biggest fish in India is the ghol fish.
• This species of marine ray-finned fish is a member of the Sciaenidae family.
• Within the monospecific genus Protonibea, it is the only species.
• The fish, which is golden-brown in hue, is found in the marine regions of Gujarat and Maharashtra.
• In various regions of the world, it is also referred to as the Black Spotted Croaker fish (Protonibea diacanthus).
• In many nations, ghol fish is prized for its therapeutic qualities in addition to being a delicacy.
• Gujarat exports ghol fish bladder, which is a high-value commodity.
• The meat and air bladder of the fish make it lucrative and in high demand.
• The air bladder of the ghol fish is utilised in medicines and is also utilised to produce wine and beer.
• The Ghol fish measures about 1.5 metres in length.
• The price of a Ghol fish increases with its length.
• The Ghol fish can cost up to Rs 5 lakh per unit of length.
• From the Persian Gulf to the Pacific Ocean, the Indo-Pacific region is home to a large population of ghol fish.

Why did the ghol get picked?

• The ghol was selected by the Gujarati government due to its uniqueness and economic worth.
• Gujarat will be able to participate in its conservation efforts thanks to the announcement.

Factors contributing to the announcement:

• distinctiveness of the fish species since it is a hard species to find.
• The fish’s economic worth
• Prevent overexploitation and emphasise the need for conservation.

The fish’s commercial importance:

• Since this is a costly kind of fish, not much is known about its consumption in the area.
• The fish is quite popular in China and other nations.
• Due to its great therapeutic value, it is primarily transported to China, Hong Kong, and other Asian nations.

Source The Hindu

3 – Access platform for investor risk reduction: GS III – Economy-related issues

Context:

• The Securities and Exchange Board of India recently introduced Investor Risk Reduction Access (IRRA) (SEBI).

About the platform IRRA:

• The BSE, NSE, NCDEX, MCX, and Metropolitan Stock Exchange of India (MSE) are the stock exchanges that collaborated on the development of IRRA.
• The Investor Risk Reduction Access (IRRA) platform serves as a “safety net” for investors in the event that a stock broker or trading member registered with SEBI experiences technological difficulties.
• The IRRA platform is accessible to trading members who wish to provide their investors with internet-based trading and security trading using wireless technologies.
• Institutional clients and algo traders would not be able to access it.
• In the event that there is a problem with the stock brokers, investors will have the chance to close open positions and cancel pending orders.
• It is solely intended to cancel orders that are still outstanding, not to accept new positions or orders.

How will the platform be operated by IRRA?

• Trading members may use IRRA if a technical issue arises that prevents them from servicing customers across exchanges from both the primary site and the disaster recovery site.
• Exchanges for stocks can also keep an eye on things like social media posts, order flow, and connection.
• In addition, stock exchanges have the authority to automatically start the IRRA service, even in the absence of a trading member request for it.
• The exchanges will activate this service on their own initiative only if the trading member’s trading services are disrupted across all of the exchanges of which they are a member.
• Following initial verification, the platform uploads trades from all trading venues of the trading member upon invocation and provides investors with a link to access IRRA by SMS or email for those who trade online or via wireless technology.

About SEBI:

• The market regulator and statutory authority that oversees India’s securities industry is SEBI.
• Sebi’s primary responsibilities include promoting and regulating the securities market as well as safeguarding the interests of securities investors.
• Sebi is managed by its members on the board.
• A chairman and a number of other full- and part-time members make up the board.
• The union government proposes candidates for the chairmanship.

Among the others are:

• one representative from the Indian Reserve Bank and
• The Centre has nominated five additional members.
• Sebi’s regional offices are placed in Ahmedabad, Kolkata, Chennai, and Delhi, while the organization’s headquarters are in Mumbai.

Past:

• The regulatory body was Controller of Capital Issues prior to the establishment of Sebi.
• The Capital Issues (Control) Act of 1947 gave it authority.
• Sebi was established in 1988 to oversee the capital markets in India.
• At first, Sebi lacked any statutory authority and operated as a non-statutory entity.
• It was granted statutory and independent powers in 1992 when Parliament passed the Sebi Act.

Source The Hindu

4 – Vajra Prahar Exercise: GS III – Internal Security of India

Context:

• Vajra Prahar, an India-USA joint exercise, begins in Umroi, Meghalaya.

Important information:

• This is the Vajra Prahar Exercise’s fourteenth edition.
• The Indian Army and US Army Special Forces collaborated on Exercise VAJRA PRAHAR.
• Its goal is to exchange experiences and best practices in areas including cooperative mission planning and operational tactics.
• 2010 saw the holding of the inaugural tournament in India.
• The 13th iteration of the joint special forces exercise between the US and India took place in Himachal Pradesh.

Source The Hindu

5 – Employment Reservation Law of Haryana: GS II – Government Policies and Interventions

Context:

• A rule passed by the Haryana government in 2021 that guaranteed locals 75% reservation in jobs in the private sector in Haryana was overturned by the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

When did it pass?

• The Haryana State Employment of Local Candidates Bill was passed by the Haryana Assembly in November of 2020.

A duty owed by employers:

• Employers operating in the State are now required to reserve 75% of positions with a monthly salary of less than ₹30,000 (previously ₹50,000) for State citizens.
• All private organisations in the State, including corporations, partnerships, limited liability partnerships, trusts, and societies, are subject to the legislation.
• It also applies to anyone who hires ten or more workers to produce goods or render services.

What constitutes a local candidate?

• According to the law, a “local candidate” is someone who has lived in Haryana for the last five years.
• In order for these candidates to receive benefits, they will need to register on a specific site.
• Employers are required to use this portal exclusively for hiring.

Notable exception:

• If local candidates lack the necessary expertise or certification, companies may request an exemption; but, if government officials question the validity of the claim, they may reject it.

Penalties and violations:

• If discovered to be in violation of the Act, employers risk fines ranging from ₹10,000 to ₹2 lakh.

Legal challenges:

A breach of Article 19:

• A number of trade associations contested the law’s legality, claiming that it contravenes Article 19 of the Constitution.
• The freedom to live and establish anywhere on Indian territory, as well as to engage in any kind of commerce, profession, or business, is guaranteed under Article 19.

Articles 14 and 15 being broken:

• Additionally, it is argued that the law violated Articles 14 and 15, which forbid discrimination on the basis of caste, religion, sex, race, or place of birth, as well as equality before the law.

Discrimination against those who are not residents:

• The court was also informed that the reservation goes against the idea of common citizenship envisioned in the Constitution and drives a gap between those who reside in different States.

Protection of the Constitution:

• The State administration argued that the law was enacted in response to Haryana’s rising unemployment rate and that it aims to safeguard residents’ access to a means of subsistence.
• Additionally, it was claimed that Article 16(4) of the Constitution gives the government the authority to establish such restrictions.
• According to Article 16(4), the State may make provisions for the reservation of appointments or posts in favour of any underrepresented class of citizens that it deems to be inadequately represented in the services provided by the State, without violating the right to equality in public employment.

Have these laws been passed by other States?

• States like Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh have passed legislation granting reservations for their citizens in the private sector.
• Why was it quashed by the High Court?

Article 19(1)(g) violation:

• The court determined that the statute violated Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution to the extent that it restricted someone’s ability to engage in a trade, business, or other employment.
• Discrimination
• It also brought attention to the fact that the law creates artificial barriers across the nation in order to discriminate against people who do not reside in a certain State.

Parliament has absolute power.

• Based on Article 35 of the Constitution, the court explained that since only the Parliament can enact laws on such topics, the State legislature is prohibited from legislating on issues that are covered by Article 16(3) of the Constitution (equality of opportunity in matters of public employment).

Inspector Raj’s return:

• The Act’s Section 6 mandates that companies provide quarterly reports detailing the local applicants they have hired, and Section 8 gives officers the authority to request documentation to make sure the law is being followed.
• According to the court, these limitations amounted to “Inspector Raj,” which strengthened government authority over private companies.

Source The Hindu