DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS ANALYSIS
1 – Asian Buddhist Peace Conference: GS II – International issues:
Context:
- The 12th General Assembly of the Asian Buddhist Conference for Peace (ABCP), a voluntary mass movement of Asian Buddhists, was recently held in New Delhi.
What were the main points of the ABCP’s 12th General Assembly?
- Theme: India’s dedication to the Voice of the Global South Summit and its G20 chairmanship are reflected in ABCP, The Buddhist Voice of the Global South.
- India’s Devotion to the Legacy of the Buddha: India was highlighted as a country founded on the teachings of the Buddha.
- India’s proactive involvement in creating the India International Centre for Buddhist Culture and expanding the Buddhist circuit was emphasised.
- Constitutional Acknowledgment of Buddha’s Influence: Particular attention was given to the representation of Lord Buddha in the Indian Constitution’s artwork, particularly in Part V, where he is mentioned in the Union governance section.
Asian Buddhist Conference for Peace: What is it?
- The Buddhist Centre of Mongolia (ABCP) was established in 1970 in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, as a lay and monastic voluntary organisation.
- Buddhist dignitaries from India, Mongolia, Japan, Malaysia, Nepal, the USSR at the time, Vietnam, Sri Lanka, South Korea, and North Korea then joined together to form ABCP.
- Headquarters: Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia’s Gandanthegchenling Monastery.
- The President of ABCP at the moment is the Supreme Head of the Buddhists in Mongolia.
Objectives of ABCP:
- Chinese Buddhists’ efforts to assist the consolidation of world peace, harmony, and collaboration among Asian peoples.
- advancing their social and economic development and encouraging adherence to the rule of law and human decency.
- spreading the heritage, customs, and culture of Buddhism.
How Do Buddhist Teachings Align with Good Governance Principles?
- In policymaking, the Buddha’s emphasis on maintaining the Right View—which avoids distortion and delusion—aligns with the values of openness, impartiality, and evidence-based decision-making, which are cornerstones of effective governance.
- For instance, Bhutan’s index of Gross National Happiness, which is based on Buddhist principles, attempts to gauge public well-being in addition to financial metrics.
- Good Behaviour in Leadership: Public servants can be held to the Buddha’s Five Precepts, which include refraining from violence, stealing, lying, sexual misbehaviour, and intoxication.
- Compassionate Governance: Leaders are encouraged by the fundamental teachings of the Buddha to take into account the needs and suffering of all citizens, not only members of particular groups.
- Initiatives like equitable taxes or universal healthcare, for instance, show an effort to practise compassionate governance.
- Conversation and Nonviolent Conflict Resolution: The Buddha’s emphasis on Right Speech and Right Action encourages civil discourse and peaceful resolution of disputes.
- This can be used in interfaith discussions, international diplomacy, and even domestic political discourse.
How Can the Buddha’s Teachings Aid in Overcoming Today’s Difficulties?
- Compass for Ethical Uncertainty: The teachings of the Buddha offer a way of sustainability, simplicity, moderation, and reverence for all life in an era characterised by ethical uncertainty.
- The Eightfold Path and Four Noble Truths provide a transformative road map that leads people and countries towards nonviolence, compassion, and inner peace.
- Mindfulness in a Distracted World: The Buddha’s emphasis on mindfulness is more relevant than ever in this day and age of incessant digital stimulation.
- In a disorganised world, techniques like meditation help us manage information overload, lower stress levels, and develop focused attention.
- Compassion in a Polarised Society: The Buddha’s teachings on compassion and understanding provide an essential counterbalance to the growing social and political unrest.
- His focus on the interdependence of all beings promotes compassionate dialogue and constructive dispute resolution.
- The Buddha’s idea of the Middle Way, which avoids extremes of indulgence and denial, resonates in our consumerist society. The Middle Way in an All-or-Nothing Culture.
- It promotes deliberate consumption, striking a balance between one’s needs and responsible living.
Source The Hindu
2 – FCRA licences given to NGOs: GS II – Government Policies and Interventions:
Context:
- Discussions regarding the legal framework controlling foreign contributions in India have been triggered by the cancellation of the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act, 2010 (FCRA) registrations for two well-known non-governmental organisations (NGOs), the Centre for Policy Research (CPR) and World Vision India (WVI).
What caused the CPR and WVI registrations to be cancelled?
- The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said that CPR had misused funds to harm India’s economic interests by diverting foreign donations to finance demonstrations and legal challenges against development projects.
- Citing CPR’s report on air pollution as an example, the claim involves the creation of current affairs programmes in contravention of FCRA regulations.
- According to the MHA, publishing these programmes using foreign funding is under Section 3 of the FCRA.
- Furthermore, World Vision India’s registration was cancelled due to suspected FCRA infractions that occurred between 2012–13 and 2020–21.
- Of all the non-governmental organisations registered under the Act in 1986, WVI has received the greatest amount of foreign donations.
What does the FCRA stand for?
- About: Fearing foreign meddling in India’s affairs through funding independent organisations, the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act was passed in 1976 during the Emergency period.
- It was intended to control foreign contributions in order to maintain conformity with the ideals of a sovereign democratic republic and avoid any negative effects on internal security.
The FCRA’s evolution:
- 2010 Amendment: This amendment was passed in order to simplify the rules governing the use and acceptance of foreign donations by particular people or organisations and to prohibit the use of such contributions for purposes that are detrimental to the interests of the country.
Modification in 2020:
- Supplying Aadhaar IDs to all important NGOs’ personnel and only accepting international contributions through certain FCRA bank accounts held with the State Bank of India
- total prohibition on domestic foreign fund transfers
- Administrative expense cap is lowered from 50% to 20%.
- Application: In order to receive foreign donations, associations, groups, and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) must register with the FCRA.
- Valid for five years at first, with the option to renew if specified standards are met.
- Foreign Contributions: For social, educational, religious, cultural, and economic reasons, registered associations are eligible to accept contributions from overseas.
- Ministry of Home Affairs is the monitoring authority.
- NGOs were required by the MHA in 2015 to maintain accounts in banks with core banking services in order to have real-time security access.
- The MHA changed the requirements in 2023 for NGOs registered under the FCRA, requiring them to declare assets acquired with foreign financing on their yearly reports.
What Rules Apply to NGOs in India?
- NGOs are defined by the World Bank as non-profit groups that work to alleviate suffering, advance the rights of the underprivileged, save the environment, offer essential social services, or engage in community development.
- In India, however, the term “NGOs” refers to a broad range of groups, including volunteer and non-voluntary, quasi-governmental and semi-governmental ones.
- Registration and Regulation: Under Section 8 of the Companies Act of 2013, non-governmental organisations may register as trusts, societies, or companies. Every form has its own set of guidelines for governance and registration.
- Trusts: Subject to the Indian Trusts Act of 1882 or similar state legislation, they must be registered with the office of the Charity Commissioner.
- Societies: Registrated with the Registrar of Societies in accordance with the Societies Registration Act, 1860, or any state-specific modifications.
- Section 8 firms: Non-profit organisations registered in a manner akin to that of commercial firms.
- The NGO-DARPAN Platform facilitates communication between non-governmental organisations and central government departments, ministries, and bodies.
- This is a free service provided by the National Informatics Centre and NITI Aayog to promote better accountability, efficiency, and transparency as well as increased collaboration between the public and nonprofit sectors.
Source The Hindu
3 – Madhika Language Is Endangered: GS I – Culture-related issues:
Context:
- The Chakaliya group in the isolated colony of Kookanam, close to Karivellur grama panchayat, Kerala, is facing the impending loss of their own language, Madhika.
- The last two individuals who speak Madhika fluently are now extinct. They worry that the language will disappear from the globe once they pass away.
What are the salient features of the Chakaliya community and the Madhika language?
About Madhika Language:
- Madhika is a script-free language that is a combination of Malayalam, Kannada, Telugu, and Tulu. Its varied linguistic influences can confuse listeners even if it sounds like Kannada.
- Havyaka Kannada, an older variety of Kannada, has a significant influence on Madhika.
- The social shame attached to the Chakaliya community is the reason behind Madhika’s neglect. They were regarded as being above the law.
- There is a serious chance that Madhika won’t live past individual speakers because there isn’t any documentation (no script) and older speakers are dying off.
About the Community of Chakaliya:
- Originally, the Chakaliya group was nomadic and worshipped Mariamma and Thiruvenkatramana. Centuries ago, they moved to northern Malabar from the hilly areas of Karnataka.
- The community in Kerala was once designated as a Scheduled Tribe (ST), but it was later reclassified as a Scheduled Caste (SC).
How does India’s linguistic diversity fare?
The Linguistic Space of India:
- With its wide variety of languages and writing systems, India boasts a rich linguistic legacy.
- India has written history that extends back to the Indus Valley Civilization, around 4,000 years ago.
Survey of Linguistics:
- The first linguistic survey, carried out between 1894 and 1928 while colonial administration was in effect, discovered 179 languages and 544 dialects.
- 1576 mother tongues with distinct grammatical structures and 1796 speech variants classed as other mother tongues were listed in the 1991 Census of India.
- Any language that is spoken by fewer than 10,000 people is deemed “potentially endangered” by UNESCO.
Indian Language Families:
- India is home to several significant language families, such as Austric, Dravidian, Indo-Aryan,
- Tibeto-Burman, and others.
Risk of Extermination:
- An NGO (Bhasha Research and Publication Centre) conducted the People’s Linguistic Survey of India (PLSI), which found that almost 400 languages could disappear during the next 50 years.
- The majority of endangered languages are spoken by marginalised groups, whose youth get little to no schooling. If they attend school, they will frequently get instruction in one of the 22 Indian languages that the Constitution recognises.
- Languages lacking scripts, such as Bhili, are more vulnerable to extinction.
Actions Made to Protect Endangered Languages:
- Indian Programme for the Preservation and Protection of Endangered Languages
- UNESCO’s International Mother Language Day
What language-related provisions are there in India’s constitution?
Article 29:
- Ensures that all citizens have the right to maintain their own language, script, or culture while defending the interests of minorities.
Eighth Schedule:
- The Indian Constitution’s Part XVII addresses the official languages. There are 22 official languages recognised by the Eighth Schedule.
- Currently, six Indian languages are classified as “Classical.”
Article 350A:
- mandates that basic education be given in the mother tongue in every state.
Article 350B:
- Allows for the designation of a “Special Officer” to represent minorities in language.
Article 351:
- Grants the Union government the authority to order the advancement of the Hindi language.
Source The Hindu
4 – Amrit Dharohar Scheme for Capacity Building: GS II – Government Policies and Interventions
Context:
- The ‘Amrit Dharohar Capacity Building Scheme’ is a major initiative by the Central government to modernise the wetland tourism sector.
- Launched in June 2023, this effort intends to transform tourism practices at environmentally fragile wetlands, especially Ramsar sites like Sultanpur Bird Sanctuary in Haryana and Chilika Lake in Odisha.
Amrit Dharohar Capacity Building Scheme: What is it?
About:
- Together, the Ministries of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change and Tourism have developed the ‘Amrit Dharohar Capacity Building Scheme’.
- The plan will be put into action over the course of the following three years, starting in 2023, to promote the best possible use of wetlands and improve biodiversity, carbon storage, ecotourism prospects, and local community revenue creation.
- The Scheme’s main goal is to carefully shift environmentally fragile wetlands from high-volume to high-value nature tourism.
Goal:
- By utilising the nation’s Ramsar Sites’ potential for nature tourism, the goal is to improve the quality of life for the local populace.
Execution:
- The plan is being carried out in tandem with a number of ministries and departments of the Central Government, state wetland administrations, and a network of formal and informal organisations and people who are all working towards the same goal.
Pilot Programmes and the Development of Skills:
- Five of the sixteen Ramsar sites that have been identified have been chosen for the program’s pilot initiatives.
- Sultanpur National Park in Haryana, the Bhitarkanika Mangroves in Odisha, Chilika Lake in Odisha, Sirpur in Madhya Pradesh, and Yashwant Sagar in Madhya Pradesh are some of these pilot locations.
- Participants’ training is provided by the Alternative Livelihood Programme (ALP), a 30-hour, 15-day programme, and the Paryatan Navik Certificate, which is a tourism boatman certification.
- High-value tourists are individuals who plan to go beyond popular tourist destinations, stay longer, and spend more money.
- The foundation of nature tourism is the area’s natural features, which include activities like birdwatching, hiking, camping, stargazing, hunting, fishing, and park visits.
- Experienced travellers drawn to a variety of natural and cultural features are known as nature tourists.
A Ramsar Site: What Is It?
- An environmental pact signed in February 1971 at Ramsar, Iran, under the auspices of UNESCO, designates a wetland as being of worldwide importance. This designation is granted to a Ramsar site.
- Ramsar encourages both national and international action in support of wetlands protection and the prudent, sustainable use of their resources.
- There are 75 Ramsar sites in India.
Source The Hindu
5 – Indian Stock Market is the world’s fourth largest: GS III – Economy-related issues:
- The Indian stock market is currently the fourth-largest stock market in the world, surpassing Hong Kong.
- Bloomberg stated that the total value of listed shares on Indian exchanges exceeded Hong Kong’s USD 4.29 trillion by USD 4.33 trillion, despite a 1.5% decline in domestic indices.
- India’s stock market is growing because of a robust GDP growth forecast, controlled inflation, political stability, and inflow of international portfolio investors.
- The world’s three largest stock markets are those in the US, China, and Japan.
Source The Hindu
