31 July 2023

DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS ANALYSIS

1 – Details of the Kargil Vijay Diwas: GS I – Indian Culture

Context:

• On the eve of the 24th anniversary of the Kargil Vijay Diwas, leaders from across India’s political spectrum paid tribute to India’s armed services and fallen martyrs.

About the Kargil War:

• The Kargil War officially ended on July 26, 1999, when the last surviving Pakistani troops and infiltrators were evicted from positions on the Indian side of the Line of Control (LoC).
• Infiltrators from Pakistan crossed the Line of Control and took up high positions in Ladakh’s Kargil area, sparking the fighting.
• The Indian army gradually reclaimed key sites from the Pakistanis.

Conditions that are difficult:

Cold to the bone:

• The Kargil battlefield is located in a frigid desert, with winter temperatures reaching – 30 degrees Celsius.
• While summers are more comfortable, the frigid air and barren environment make the battlefield extremely unfriendly.
• The cold affects both men and machinery; guns jam, and operators waste enormous amounts of energy to keep their bodies warm.

High elevations:

• High altitudes also provide the difficulty of decreased oxygen levels in the air, which produces a variety of physiological impacts and disorders.
• Acute mountain sickness is the most frequent altitude-related illness, including headaches, nausea, appetite loss, muscle weakness, and general weariness.

The effect on weaponry and aircraft:

• Low air pressure affects weapon and aircraft accuracy and performance.
• While reduced air pressure increases projectile range, accuracy and predictability degrade.
• Typically, aircraft engines produce less power, while helicopters lose rotor efficiency.

Strategic issues:

• The topography dictates military strategy and places severe constraints on soldiers.
• The terrain hinders movement, frequently provides cover for the enemy, and restricts the scope of operations.
• The Indian Army was at a distinct disadvantage during the Kargil War, with the enemy occupying high heights overlooking Indian defences.

Source The Hindu

2 – About the Sri Lanka’s 13th Amendment: GS II – International Issues

Context:

• The Indian Prime Minister expressed hope that Sri Lanka would commit to adopting the 13th Amendment to the Sri Lankan constitution, which stems from the 1987 Indo-Sri Lanka Accord, and holding provincial council elections.

The 1987 Indo-Sri Lanka Agreement:

It was signed by:

• The 13th Amendment to the Sri Lankan Constitution was enacted following the signing of the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord on July 29, 1987, in Colombo by Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and President J R Jayewardene.

Prior to the amendment:

• Sri Lanka had a unitary government under the 1978 constitution, with the Centre wielding all power.

Status following the amendment:

• The 1987 Accord attempted to alter the constitution to delegate some powers to the administrations of the country’s nine provinces, thereby resolving the civil war on a constitutional basis.

Other provisions of the Accord included:

• Along with Sinhala, Tamil and English have been designated as official languages.
• By August 15, 1987, the Eastern and Northern Provinces’ state of emergency would be lifted.
• Amnesty for political and other prisoners currently detained under the Prevention of Terrorism Act and other emergency measures.
• The Accord further states that the Government of India will underwrite and guarantee the resolutions, as well as cooperate in their implementation.
• As a result, Tamil groups in Sri Lanka have repeatedly urged India to ensure that the Accord be completely implemented.

13th Amendment Implementation:

• While the armed conflict had been concentrated in the Northern and Eastern regions, the amendment granted increased autonomy to provinces throughout Sri Lanka.
• The central government retains land and police powers, while elected province councils (similar to state assemblies in India) have the authority to legislate on issues such as agriculture, housing, road transport, education, and health, among others.
• The division of powers was never fully implemented.
• The 13th Amendment is opposed by Sinhala nationalists because they believe it was imposed by India.
• While the Sinhala provinces witnessed regular elections and political parties gained from grassroots politics, the North and Eastern areas remained under the jurisdiction of the central government for a long time.
• Provincial elections have been scheduled in Sri Lanka since 2014.
• This is due to the fact that Parliament has failed to revise a 2017 Act in Parliament, which would reform the election process by creating a hybrid system of first past the post and proportional representation instead of the current system of proportional representation.

Source The Hindu

3 – Details of the Bill that proposes birth record digitization: GS II – Government Policies and Interventions

Context:

• By introducing the Registration of Births and Deaths Amendment Bill, 2023, India has taken the first step towards generating digital birth certificates.

Important information:

It will be a comprehensive document that can be used for:

• acceptance into educational institutes
• jobs
• Passports or Aadhaar cards
• voter registration,
• Marriage registration, for example.

Significance:

• This will eliminate the need for multiple documents to confirm the date and location of birth.
• A consolidated registration would aid in the updating of other databases, resulting in more efficient and transparent service and social benefit delivery.

Other provisions include:

• The Bill would require states to register births and deaths on the Centre’s Civil Registration System portal.
• It also suggests sharing the information with the Union Home Ministry’s Registrar General of India.
• The Bill would include provisions for digital registration and electronic transmission of birth and death certificates for the benefit of the public.
• The new laws will apply to all children born once the Bill is passed.
• It intends to gather Aadhaar numbers from parents and informants for birth registration, if they are available.
• It will also make the registration of adopted, orphaned, abandoned, surrogate children, and children of single parents or unwed mothers easier.

Source The Hindu

4 – About the Samudrayaan Project: GS II – Government Policies and Interventions

Context:

• The Union Minister for Earth Sciences briefed the Lok Sabha on the Samudrayaan programme.

Concerning the Mission:

• Deep Ocean Mission was established in 2021 as a Ministry of Earth Sciences Central Sector Scheme.
• Samudrayaan is a Deep Ocean Mission initiative.
• So far, the MATSYA 6000 manned submersible design has been completed as part of the Deep Ocean Mission’s Samudrayaan project.
• The 200-crore Samudrayaan Mission will deploy three persons in a manned submersible vehicle dubbed MATSYA 6000 to a depth of 6000 metres in the sea for deep underwater explorations. Submarines can dive to a maximum depth of about 200 metres.

The following are the primary components of the Deep Sea Mission:

Construction of a manned submersible:

• A manned submersible capable of transporting three people to a depth of 6,000 metres in the ocean will be created.
• This submersible will be outfitted with a variety of scientific sensors and gadgets to aid in deep ocean exploration.
• MATSYA 6000, an indigenously developed manned submersible, will have an operational duration of 12 hours and an emergency endurance of 96 hours.
• It will aid scientific people in observing and comprehending hitherto undiscovered deep-sea locations through direct intervention.

To mine polymetallic nodules, follow these steps:

• An integrated mining system will also be developed to mine polymetallic nodules at depths of 6,000 metres in the central Indian Ocean.
• They contain, in addition to manganese and iron, nickel, copper, cobalt, lead, and other elements of economic and strategic value

What is the significance of polymetallic nodules for India?

• It is estimated that 10% of the recovery of that vast deposit can supply India’s energy needs for the next 100 years.
• The Exclusive Economic Zone of India covers an area of 2.2 million square kilometres.

To investigate major climate variables:

• The second component of the project involves the creation of a set of observations and models to better understand and forecast crucial climatic variables.
• These Ocean Climate Change Advisory Services are intended to enhance coastal tourism, a Blue Economy priority area.

Investigate deep-sea biodiversity:

• The Samudrayaan project will develop technical advances to discover and conserve deep-sea biodiversity.
• The primary focus will be on studies on the sustainable use of deep sea bio-resources.

Hydrothermal sulphides of several metals:

• The fourth component involves investigating multi-metal hydrothermal sulphide mineralisation in the Indian Ocean’s mid-oceanic ridges.

Plant for Desalination:

• The fifth will concentrate on the development of an offshore Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) powered desalination plant that will use tidal energy.

Ocean Biology Marine Station:

• Finally, the ministry will create an advanced Marine Station for Ocean Biology as part of the initiative.

The Project’s Importance for India:

• India has a 7,517-kilometer-long coastline with nine coastal states and 1,382 islands.
• It is surrounded on three sides by oceans, and around 30% of the country’s population lives in coastal areas, which play an important role in the country’s economy.
• The mission will also help to further the Central Government’s vision of a “New India,” which includes the Blue Economy as one of ten major components of progress.

Samudrayaan participants include the following:

• ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation)
• IITM
• DRDO (Defence Research and Development Organisation)

Source The Hindu

5 – Details of the Indo-Australia Relations: GS II – International Issues

Context:

• The 8th Defence Policy Talks (DPT) between India and Australia were recently held.

About Indo-Australian Relations:

Historical Consideration:

• The historical relations between India and Australia began shortly after European arrival in Australia in 1788.
• The British East India Company controlled all trade to and from the convict colony of New South Wales via Kolkata.
• In the pre-independence period, India and Australia established diplomatic connections with the opening of the India Trade Office in Sydney in 1941.
• The end of the Cold War, combined with India’s determination to implement major economic reforms in 1991, was the first good step towards the development of tighter ties between the two countries.

Summit of the Four Leaders:

• The Prime Ministers of India, Australia, Japan, and the United States attended the first-ever Quad Leaders’ Virtual Summit in 2021.
• The future quad summits were held in person in Washington D.C. in 2021, Tokyo in 2022, and Hiroshima in 2023.
• The Australian Government commissioned the India Economic Strategy to 2035 as part of its attempts to create strong economic relationships with India. The strategy defines a pathway for Australia to harness potential afforded by Indian economic growth.

The Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement between India and Australia (the “IndAus ECTA”):

• With effect from the fiscal year 2023-24, Indian IT companies will be exempt from double taxation.

Joint Ministerial Commission of India and Australia: India-Australia Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC):

• It was founded in 1989 to facilitate contact between governments and businesses on a variety of trade and investment concerns.

Trade on two sides:

• Australia’s ninth largest trading partner is India.
• Bilateral commerce in goods and services with India totaled US$ 31.1 billion in 2021, with exports of goods and services totaling US$ 12.5 billion and imports of goods and services totaling US$ 18.6 billion.

The following are India’s main exports to Australia:

• Petroleum that has been refined.
• Medications (including veterinary medications).
• Pearls and gemstones.
• Made-up textile products.

The following are India’s largest imports:

• coal
• secret trade items
• ores and concentrations of copper
• natural gas
• nonferrous scrap and trash,
• ferrous waste and scrap
• Services connected to education.

Cooperation in Civil Nuclear Power:

• Domestic judicial action contesting the compatibility of the IAEA’s safeguards in India and Australia’s international non-proliferation obligations would not impede exports.  I
• Additionally, any future bilateral trade in any nuclear-related material or commodities for civil purpose will be protected.

Defence Collaboration:

• In 2015, the first-ever Bilateral Maritime Exercise, AUSINDEX 15, was held in Visakhapatnam and the Bay of Bengal.
• In March 2018, an Australian naval ship, HMAS Larrakia, took part in the ‘MILAN’ naval drill in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
• Exercise Malabar was also attended by the navies of India, Australia, Japan, and the United States.
• In 2022, INS Satpura took part in the international Exercise KAKADU in Darwin.
• In 2022, the Indian Army and the Australian Army participated in the India-Australia Joint Military Exercise AUSTRAHIND 2022 in Rajasthan.

Australian Indian Community:

• The Indian community in Australia is becoming increasingly important, with a population of approximately 9.76,000 (Census 2021).
• After England, India is Australia’s second largest migrant group (2021).
• India is a significant supplier of skilled immigrants to Australia.
• With almost 89,766 students now studying at Australian universities, the number of Indian students continues to climb.

Source The Hindu