16 July 2024

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS ANALYSIS

1 – Codex Alimentarius Commission: GS II – International Issues:

Important information:

• The CAC’s Executive Committee is a crucial division.
• In this role, India will be able to participate in the decision-making process as well as have a significant potential to contribute to the international standard-setting process for several food product categories.
• By critically evaluating work proposals and keeping an eye on the development of standards, the Executive Committee assists in the management of the Commission’s standards development programme.

The members of the Executive Committee are:

• the Chair
• three alternate chairs,
• six coordinators for the regions and
• seven duly elected delegates from the various Codex regions.
• The Commission also approved India’s suggestion to create group standards for millets, and member nations both endorsed and appreciated India’s initiative to create international standards for millets.

What is the Alimentarius Codex Commission?

• Adopted by the Codex Alimentarius Commission, the Codex Alimentarius, sometimes known as the “Food Code,” is a set of standards, rules, and codes of practice.

About CAC:

• The World Health Organisation (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) collaborated to form the Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC), an international body that sets food standards, in 1963.

Goals:

• to safeguard consumer health and advance ethical food trading standards.
• It convened for the first time in 1963.
• All FAO and WHO Associate Members and Member Nations with an interest in global food standards are eligible to join the Commission.
• Every year, the Commission convenes in regular session in Geneva or Rome.
• The six official UN languages are used by the Commission for work. These are the following:
• Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, English, French, and Russian.
• There are currently 189 Codex Members of the Codex Alimentarius Commission, consisting of 188 Member Countries and 1 Member Organisation (the European Union).
• In 1964, India joined Codex Alimentarius as a member.

 Source – The Hindu

2 – Lakadong turmeric from Meghalaya: GS III – Indian Agriculture/Geography:

Important information:

• Meghalaya Lakadong turmeric, grown in the alluvial valleys of the Jaintia Hills, is reported to have three times the potency of standard turmeric.
• Grown in the valley close to the meeting point of the Myntang and Mynriang rivers, the area is surrounded by thick stands of evergreen trees.
• There are no artificial pesticides or fertilisers used in the farming process; everything is done by hand.

Why is turmeric such a unique spice?

• Native to India, turmeric has long been used in Chinese, Ayurvedic, Unani, and Siddha traditional medicine.
• It has been a staple of Middle Eastern and South Asian cuisine for ages.
• It is revered and has been included into customs, ceremonies, and even beautification routines.
• Curcumin, an active substance with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant qualities, is found in turmeric.

The Lakadong turmeric’s uniqueness:

• According to sources, ordinary turmeric has a curcumin content of 2 to 3%, however Lakadong turmeric is claimed to have a value of 7 to 12%.
• Lakadong turmeric is thought to have higher health benefits and culinary benefits than normal turmeric because of its high curcumin level.
• One of Meghalaya’s most sought-after spices is this naturally cultivated kind.

Importance of the GI label:

• Due to Lakadong Turmeric’s widespread appeal in both domestic and international markets, turmeric goods from other sources are now frequently mislabeled, mismarketed, and sold under the Lakadong brand.
• Small farmers can gain from GI by giving them a differentiator that will help them stand out in the marketplace.
• Demand for high-quality products or in specialist markets may rise as a result, driving up prices.
• GI aids in the preservation of customs and knowledge.
• It guarantees that the GI label can only be used by people who are inside the specified geographic area and follow the conventional procedures.
• This supports the preservation of regional agricultural traditions and history.
• GI status has the potential to expand one’s market reach both locally and globally.
• Products may become more noticeable and appealing as a result, attracting the attention of merchants and customers looking for genuine, regionally specific goods.
• GI has a major impact on rural development.
• Farmers may earn more money as a result of better pricing obtained and the promotion of regional goods.
• Thus, local economies and the sustainable utilisation of available resources may be boosted.
• GI highlights a product’s distinct origin and qualities, adding a powerful factor to the brand identity.

A GI Tag: What Is It?

• Geographical Indication (GI) Tags serve as a unique designation applied to a town, state, or area.
• These tags are applied to certain goods, such as handicrafts or agricultural products, that represent the distinctiveness of that specific area or region.
• Chennai is home to the Geographical Indication Registry, which issues the tag.
• The Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999 was passed by India, a WTO member nation.
• It became operative on March 1, 2003.
• The definition of Geographical Indications (GI) is “Indications that designate a good as originating in a member’s territory, or in a region or locality within that territory, where a particular good’s quality, reputation, or characteristic is primarily attributable to its geographic origin.”
• When a product, name, or sign is granted a GI tag, it indicates that it is one-of-a-kind, has distinguishing features, and was created using traditional techniques that uphold the region’s reputation.
• This tag can also be seen as a safeguard against copyright infringement of any kind.
• In India, Darjeeling tea was the first product to receive a GI label sometime in 2004 or 2005.

 Source – The Hindu

3 – Sindhudurg Fort: GS I – Indian Culture:

Important information:

• The yearly event honours the attack on Karachi Harbour by the Indian Navy in 1971 as part of Operation Trident, which was carried out during the Bangladesh Liberation War.

• This is a part of the Indian government’s new decision to relocate the army, navy, and air force day celebrations from New Delhi to a more public location.
• The Navy Day was held at Visakhapatnam the previous year.
• It’s also because 2023 will be King Shivaji’s 350th anniversary of crowning.

About Sindhudurg Fort:

• Off the western coast of Maharashtra, in the Arabian Sea, sits the island fort known as Sindhudurg.
• Between AD 1664 and 1667, Shivaji, the Maratha king, constructed it.
• The fort is located in the Sindhudurg district in Maharashtra’s Konkan region.
• About 1.6 kilometres offshore from Malvan, on a low island known as Kurte, is where the fort is built.
• Located across from Sindhudurg, Padamgad is a small, abandoned fort that was once used as a Maratha Navy shipyard. It was constructed on a smaller island.
• Among the forts that gave the Marathas a foothold on the Konkan coast against then-dominant nations like the Portuguese, English, and Dutch was Sindhudurg.
• The Siddis of Janjira were the principal foe against whom the fort was constructed.
• Based on multiple historical accounts, the fort spans 48 acres and features an underground tunnel constructed in the sixteenth century.

 Source – The Hindu

4 – NCRB report: GS II – Statutory and Non-Statutory Bodies

Important information:

• The study presents a wide overview of developments in crime registration by compiling data on reported crimes from all throughout the nation.
• The Union Ministry of Home Affairs oversees the NCRB, which publishes reports with statistics on offences ranging from financial and commercial crimes to crimes against women.

About NCRB:

• The organisation in charge of gathering and evaluating crime data as specified by the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Special and Local Laws is the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB).
• Head office: New Delhi.
• Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) is the nodal ministry.
• The NCRB publishes the “Crime in India” report, which is an annual compilation of detailed statistics on crime nationwide.

By whom is the NCRB report published?

• The NCRB was founded in January 1986 with the intention of creating a body responsible for gathering and maintaining crime data.
• Under the Union Home Ministry, it operates.
• In addition to releasing yearly reports, its duties encompass:
• gathering, organising, and sharing of data with the relevant states about international and interstate crimes.
• Additionally, NCRB serves as a “national warehouse” for the fingerprint databases of foreign and Indian offenders and helps track down interstate offenders via fingerprint searches.

Information gathering:

• The 36 states and the Union Territories of the United States provided data for the NCRB study.
• The corresponding state-level crime records bureaus provide comparable data for 53 metropolitan cities, or those with a population of over 10 lakh according to the 2011 census.
• State and UT police submit this data at the police station or district level, and it is then verified by the NCRB, the state, and the district levels.

How is the information gathered for NCRB reports?

• The NCRB was created in January 1986 with the mission of gathering and maintaining crime statistics records.
• Additionally, it serves as a “national warehouse” collecting criminals’ fingerprint records from both domestic and international countries and helps track down interstate offenders via fingerprint searches.
• The police departments of 36 states and Union Territories provide information for the NCRB’s renowned annual Crime in India reports.
• Comparable data are provided by the corresponding state-level crime records bureaus for 53 cities that have populations greater than 10 lakh apiece according to the 2011 Census.
• State/UT police submit the data at the local police station level, which is then verified by the district and state levels before being approved by the NCRB.

Important lessons from the NCRB report for 2022:

Total offences:

• A total of 58,24,946 legally recognised offences were reported in 2022, including:
• 35,61,379 crimes under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and
• 22,63,567 crimes under Special and Local Laws (SLL).
• The number of cases registered during the second pandemic year, 2021, decreased by 4.5%.

Rate of crime:

• From 445.9 crimes reported per lakh people in 2021 to 422.2 crimes in 2022, the crime rate has decreased.
• Given that crime rates rise in absolute terms as the population grows, this is thought to be a more reliable indication.

Crime pertaining to women:

• In 2022, 4,45,256 incidents of crime against women were reported.
• Compared to 2021, there was a 4% increase in these figures.
• According to IPC sections, the percentage of crimes against women was recorded under:
• Abuse by Spouse or His Family (31.4%),
• Women’s Kidnapping and Abduction (19.2%), and
• Attacks on Women Meant to Offend Her Empathy (18.7%).

Online criminality:

• Cybercrime reporting jumped by 24.4 percentage points in comparison to 2021.
• Fraud accounted for almost 64.8% of incidents that were reported, with extortion coming in second at 5.5% and sexual exploitation at 5.2%.

Suicides:

• The number of suicides reported in 2022 compared to 2021 increased by 4.2%.

Reasons:

• Family issues (apart from issues pertaining to marriage) (31.7%),
• Problems Associated with Marriage (4.8%) and
• Disease (18.4%).
• The suicide victims’ overall male to female ratio was 71.8:28.2.

Top trends in the report’s state-by-state data:

The following states and territories have the highest rate of chargesheeting for IPC offences:

• Kerala (96.0%),
• Puducherry(91.3%) as well as
• Bengal, West (90.6%).
• Out of all genuine cases, this represents the proportion of cases where the police proceeded to file charges against the defendant.
• when a final report was presented as true, along with the total number of instances chargesheeted, but no charge sheet was laid.

Report limitations from the NCRB:

The Rule of Principal Offence:

• The “Principal Offence Rule” is followed in the publishing, which means that the true number of crimes committed by each offender may be underreported.
• According to the Principal Offence Rule, only the “most heinous crime,” which carries the worst sentence, shall be taken into account when counting in a case when numerous offences are reported.
• For instance, “Murder with Rape” is recorded as “Murder,” which causes the crime of rape to be undercounted.

Local data submission:

• Inefficiencies or gaps in data at the local level affect the report since it only gathers data that is supplied at that level.
• Officer shortage:
• Data gathering may be hampered by local police officer shortages or vacancies.

Real crime not documented:

• Rather than real crime, the numbers document the incidence of registered crime.
• After the 2012 bus gangrape case, there was a marked increase in reported crimes against women in Delhi; however, this rise may not have been due to an increase in actual crime rates against women, but rather to heightened awareness among those affected and the police about the importance of reporting crimes.

Comparing registered and actual numbers:

• There is a substantial distinction between “rise in crime” and “increase in police registration of crime.”
• A “crime rate” is computed per unit of population, with the larger states likely to have higher actual numbers.
• However, the information now utilised to calculate the overall population is outdated, having come from the 2011 Census.

Fear of law enforcement:

• Some groups might not be prepared to come forward and record cases for a variety of reasons, such as the fear of an uncooperative or hostile response from the authorities.

 Source – The Hindu