Today's Headlines - 02 August 2023
Birth certificate as single document
GS Paper - 2 (Polity)
The Registration of Births and Deaths Act 1969 is likely to be amended for the first time in 54 years of its existence, with the Union Government introducing a Bill in Lok Sabha that allows the use of a birth certificate as a single document for admission in schools and colleges, issuance of driving licence and appointment to a government job.
More about the Bill
The proposed amendments also allow the use of a birth certificate for preparation of voter list, issuance of Aadhaar number and registration of marriage even as critics earlier opposed the government plans citing privacy concerns, infringing states’ rights and claiming that it gives unbridled data about people to the government.
The amendments are needed to keep pace with societal change and technological advancements and to make it more citizen friendly. Consultations were held with state governments, public and other stakeholders.
According to the Statement of Objects and Reasons of the Bill, the amendments provides for the use of the birth certificate as a single document to prove the date and place of birth of a person born on or after the date of commencement of the amendments for a variety of things.
The database of births and deaths will be made available to authorities dealing with population register, electoral rolls, Aadhaar number, ration card, passport, driving licence, property registration and other databases notified by the union government.
The Bill also provides for facilitating registration process of adopted, orphan, abandoned, surrendered, surrogate child and child to a single parent or unwed mother, to make it mandatory for all medical institutions to provide a certificate as to the cause of death to the registrar and a copy of the same to the nearest relative.
Special "sub-registrars" can be appointed in the event of disaster or epidemic for speedy registration of deaths and issue of certificates, to collect Aadhaar numbers of parents and informants, if available, in case of birth registration.
The bill will also ensure addressing the grievances of the general public aggrieved by any action or order of the registrar or district registrar and to enhance the penalties provided in the Act.
#upsc #news #headline #birth #certificate #document #polity #goverment #bill #loksabha #schools #colleges #job #amendments #adhaar #number #privacy #electoral #population #ration #passport #driving #disaster #epidemic #mandatory #medical #institutions
Birth certificate as single document
GS Paper - 2 (Polity)
The Registration of Births and Deaths Act 1969 is likely to be amended for the first time in 54 years of its existence, with the Union Government introducing a Bill in Lok Sabha that allows the use of a birth certificate as a single document for admission in schools and colleges, issuance of driving licence and appointment to a government job.
More about the Bill
The proposed amendments also allow the use of a birth certificate for preparation of voter list, issuance of Aadhaar number and registration of marriage even as critics earlier opposed the government plans citing privacy concerns, infringing states’ rights and claiming that it gives unbridled data about people to the government.
The amendments are needed to keep pace with societal change and technological advancements and to make it more citizen friendly. Consultations were held with state governments, public and other stakeholders.
According to the Statement of Objects and Reasons of the Bill, the amendments provides for the use of the birth certificate as a single document to prove the date and place of birth of a person born on or after the date of commencement of the amendments for a variety of things.
The database of births and deaths will be made available to authorities dealing with population register, electoral rolls, Aadhaar number, ration card, passport, driving licence, property registration and other databases notified by the union government.
The Bill also provides for facilitating registration process of adopted, orphan, abandoned, surrendered, surrogate child and child to a single parent or unwed mother, to make it mandatory for all medical institutions to provide a certificate as to the cause of death to the registrar and a copy of the same to the nearest relative.
Special "sub-registrars" can be appointed in the event of disaster or epidemic for speedy registration of deaths and issue of certificates, to collect Aadhaar numbers of parents and informants, if available, in case of birth registration.
The bill will also ensure addressing the grievances of the general public aggrieved by any action or order of the registrar or district registrar and to enhance the penalties provided in the Act.
#upsc #news #headline #birth #certificate #document #polity #goverment #bill #loksabha #schools #colleges #job #amendments #adhaar #number #privacy #electoral #population #ration #passport #driving #disaster #epidemic #mandatory #medical #institutions
Today's Headlines - 17 August 2023
'PM-eBus Sewa' approved
GS Paper - 2 (Infrastructure)
The Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister approved the Rs 57,613 crore PM-eBus Sewa initiatives to augment the use of electric buses in 169 cities. The scheme will augment city bus operations, under which priority will be given to cities having no organised bus service.
More about the Initiatives
These include all the capital cities of Union Territories (UTs), north eastern and hill states. The e-buses will be provided under the public-private partnership (PPP) mode for 10 years.
The scheme will cover cities of 3 lakh and above population and priority will be given to cities not having organised bus services.
Ten thousand e-buses will be deployed on public-private partnership (PPP) model in 169 cities.
Infrastructure will be upgraded in 181 cities under the Green Urban Mobility Initiatives.
The Scheme has two segments
Segment A – Augmenting the City bus services (169 cities)
The approved bus scheme will augment city bus operations with 10,000 e-buses on Public Private Partnership (PPP) model.
Associated Infrastructure will provide support for Development/ up-gradation of depot infrastructure; and Creation of behind-the-meter power infrastructure (substation, etc.) for e-buses.
Segment B– Green Urban Mobility Initiatives (GUMI): (181 cities)
The scheme envisages green initiatives like bus priority, infrastructure, multimodal interchange facilities, NCMC-based Automated Fare Collection Systems, Charging infrastructure, etc.
Support for Operation: Under the scheme, States/Cities shall be responsible for running the bus services and making payments to the bus operators.
The Central Government will support these bus operations by providing subsidies to the extent specified in the proposed scheme.
Boost to E-Mobility:
The scheme will promote e-mobility and provide full support for behind-the-meter power infrastructure.
Cities will also be supported for development of charging infrastructure under Green Urban Mobility Initiatives.
The support to bus priority infrastructure shall not only accelerate the proliferation of state-of-the-art, energy efficient electric buses but also foster the innovation in the e-mobility sector as well as development of resilient supply chain for electric vehicles.
This scheme shall also bring in economies of scale for procurement of electric buses through aggregation for e-buses.
Adoption to Electric mobility will reduce noise and air pollution and curb carbon emission.
Modal shift due to increased share of bus-based public transportation will lead to GHG reduction.
#upsc #news #headline #PM #ebus #sewa #infrastructure #cabinet #electric #cities #operations #service #unionterritories #partnership #population #mobility #scheme #segments #public #private #depot #infrastructure #development #NCMC #collection #system #airpollution #carbonemission #transportation #GHG #adoption #procurement
'PM-eBus Sewa' approved
GS Paper - 2 (Infrastructure)
The Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister approved the Rs 57,613 crore PM-eBus Sewa initiatives to augment the use of electric buses in 169 cities. The scheme will augment city bus operations, under which priority will be given to cities having no organised bus service.
More about the Initiatives
These include all the capital cities of Union Territories (UTs), north eastern and hill states. The e-buses will be provided under the public-private partnership (PPP) mode for 10 years.
The scheme will cover cities of 3 lakh and above population and priority will be given to cities not having organised bus services.
Ten thousand e-buses will be deployed on public-private partnership (PPP) model in 169 cities.
Infrastructure will be upgraded in 181 cities under the Green Urban Mobility Initiatives.
The Scheme has two segments
Segment A – Augmenting the City bus services (169 cities)
The approved bus scheme will augment city bus operations with 10,000 e-buses on Public Private Partnership (PPP) model.
Associated Infrastructure will provide support for Development/ up-gradation of depot infrastructure; and Creation of behind-the-meter power infrastructure (substation, etc.) for e-buses.
Segment B– Green Urban Mobility Initiatives (GUMI): (181 cities)
The scheme envisages green initiatives like bus priority, infrastructure, multimodal interchange facilities, NCMC-based Automated Fare Collection Systems, Charging infrastructure, etc.
Support for Operation: Under the scheme, States/Cities shall be responsible for running the bus services and making payments to the bus operators.
The Central Government will support these bus operations by providing subsidies to the extent specified in the proposed scheme.
Boost to E-Mobility:
The scheme will promote e-mobility and provide full support for behind-the-meter power infrastructure.
Cities will also be supported for development of charging infrastructure under Green Urban Mobility Initiatives.
The support to bus priority infrastructure shall not only accelerate the proliferation of state-of-the-art, energy efficient electric buses but also foster the innovation in the e-mobility sector as well as development of resilient supply chain for electric vehicles.
This scheme shall also bring in economies of scale for procurement of electric buses through aggregation for e-buses.
Adoption to Electric mobility will reduce noise and air pollution and curb carbon emission.
Modal shift due to increased share of bus-based public transportation will lead to GHG reduction.
#upsc #news #headline #PM #ebus #sewa #infrastructure #cabinet #electric #cities #operations #service #unionterritories #partnership #population #mobility #scheme #segments #public #private #depot #infrastructure #development #NCMC #collection #system #airpollution #carbonemission #transportation #GHG #adoption #procurement
Today's Headlines - 19 August 2023
New non-poor emerging in India
GS Paper - 3 (Economy)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in his Independence Day address that in the first five-year term of his government, “13.5 crore of my fellow poor brothers and sisters have broken free from the chains of poverty and entered the new middle class”. The 13.5-crore number cited by the PM appears in the second National Multidimensional Poverty Index report that was published by Niti Aayog on 17 July 2023 (Some highlights in chart). The first such report was published in 2021.
What is the Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI)?
The national MPI measures deprivations across the three dimensions of health and nutrition, education, and standard of living.
Within health, it tracks three variables: nutrition, child and adolescent mortality, and maternal health.
In education, it tracks two variables: years of schooling, and school attendance. And in standard of living, it tracks seven variables such as sanitation, drinking water, bank account, etc.
The index is based on the methodology used by the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to construct the Global MPI. OPHI and UNDP are technical partners in the formulation of the national index.
But India’s MPI is not exactly the same as the Global MPI. For instance, India’s MPI has 12 variables, while the Global MPI has 10. The two additional variables in India’s MPI are maternal health and bank account.
How does this reduce poverty?
It must be noted that this is a multidimensional poverty index and, as such, is not comparable to India’s traditional and official way of estimating poverty.
However, the Global MPI 2023 report, which too was released in July, states that 415 million people in India moved out of poverty between 2005-06 and 2019-21.
The Global MPI pegs India’s poverty ratio at 16.4% as against 14.96% in Niti Aayog’s MPI. This difference is on account of the two additional metrics, and some differences in definitions.
Does the reduction in poverty add to India’s middle class?
There is no official definition of the middle class in India. It is, therefore, difficult to say whether those who escape poverty necessarily join the middle class, or to what extent.
Estimates of India’s middle class provided by private research organisations peg the middle class at income levels that are considerably higher than those of the people who are coming out of poverty.
For instance, in a report, ‘The rise of India’s middle class’, published in July, People Research on India’s Consumer Economy (PRICE) divided all households into four categories: Destitutes, Aspirers, Middle Class and Rich. “…Households which are classified as Middle Class have an annual income in the range of Rs 5 lakh to Rs 30 lakh (at 2020-21 prices),” the report said. Destitute households were those with an annual income less than Rs 1.25 lakh.
According to PRICE’s survey, as of 2021, out of a population of 1,416 million, 196 million Indians were categorised as ‘Destitutes’, 432 million were the ‘Middle Class’, and 732 million were ‘Aspirers’.
#upsc #news #headline #nonpoor #emerging #india #economy #primeminister #Narendramodi #Independenceday #poverty #middle #nitiaayog #multidimensional #poverty #MPI #index #nutrition #education #bankaccount #OPHI #UNDP #methodology #oxford #sanitation #middle #class #india #research #consumer #destitude #population #price #survey #annualincome #middleclass #aspires #UNDP #technical #MPI
New non-poor emerging in India
GS Paper - 3 (Economy)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in his Independence Day address that in the first five-year term of his government, “13.5 crore of my fellow poor brothers and sisters have broken free from the chains of poverty and entered the new middle class”. The 13.5-crore number cited by the PM appears in the second National Multidimensional Poverty Index report that was published by Niti Aayog on 17 July 2023 (Some highlights in chart). The first such report was published in 2021.
What is the Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI)?
The national MPI measures deprivations across the three dimensions of health and nutrition, education, and standard of living.
Within health, it tracks three variables: nutrition, child and adolescent mortality, and maternal health.
In education, it tracks two variables: years of schooling, and school attendance. And in standard of living, it tracks seven variables such as sanitation, drinking water, bank account, etc.
The index is based on the methodology used by the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to construct the Global MPI. OPHI and UNDP are technical partners in the formulation of the national index.
But India’s MPI is not exactly the same as the Global MPI. For instance, India’s MPI has 12 variables, while the Global MPI has 10. The two additional variables in India’s MPI are maternal health and bank account.
How does this reduce poverty?
It must be noted that this is a multidimensional poverty index and, as such, is not comparable to India’s traditional and official way of estimating poverty.
However, the Global MPI 2023 report, which too was released in July, states that 415 million people in India moved out of poverty between 2005-06 and 2019-21.
The Global MPI pegs India’s poverty ratio at 16.4% as against 14.96% in Niti Aayog’s MPI. This difference is on account of the two additional metrics, and some differences in definitions.
Does the reduction in poverty add to India’s middle class?
There is no official definition of the middle class in India. It is, therefore, difficult to say whether those who escape poverty necessarily join the middle class, or to what extent.
Estimates of India’s middle class provided by private research organisations peg the middle class at income levels that are considerably higher than those of the people who are coming out of poverty.
For instance, in a report, ‘The rise of India’s middle class’, published in July, People Research on India’s Consumer Economy (PRICE) divided all households into four categories: Destitutes, Aspirers, Middle Class and Rich. “…Households which are classified as Middle Class have an annual income in the range of Rs 5 lakh to Rs 30 lakh (at 2020-21 prices),” the report said. Destitute households were those with an annual income less than Rs 1.25 lakh.
According to PRICE’s survey, as of 2021, out of a population of 1,416 million, 196 million Indians were categorised as ‘Destitutes’, 432 million were the ‘Middle Class’, and 732 million were ‘Aspirers’.
#upsc #news #headline #nonpoor #emerging #india #economy #primeminister #Narendramodi #Independenceday #poverty #middle #nitiaayog #multidimensional #poverty #MPI #index #nutrition #education #bankaccount #OPHI #UNDP #methodology #oxford #sanitation #middle #class #india #research #consumer #destitude #population #price #survey #annualincome #middleclass #aspires #UNDP #technical #MPI
Today's Headlines - 26 August 2023
BRICS gets six new members
GS Paper - 2 (International Relations)
The five-member BRICS invited six more countries to join the alliance, in a move which can strengthen its claim of being a ‘voice of the Global South’ on one hand, while raising concerns about China’s increasing dominance on the other. BRICS consists of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. In its ongoing summit at Johannesburg, South Africa, it has invited Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Egypt, and Ethiopia. Their membership will begin in January.
Why New Members
Adding new members strengthens the group’s heft as a spokesperson of the developing world. BRICS currently represents around 40% of the world’s population and more than a quarter of the world’s GDP.
With the additions, it will represent almost half the world’s population, and will include three of the world’s biggest oil producers, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Iran.
The rush towards BRICS is driven by two basic impulses: “First, there is considerable anti-US sentiment in the world, and all these countries are looking for a grouping where they can use that sentiment to gather together.
Second, there is a lot of appetite for multipolarity, for a platform where countries of the Global South can express their solidarity.”
The formation of BRICS in 2009 was driven by the idea that the four emerging markets of Brazil, Russia, India, and China would be the future economic powerhouses of the world. South Africa was added a year later.
While the economic performance of BRICS has been mixed, the war in Ukraine — which has brought the West together on the one hand and strengthened the China-Russia partnership on the other — has turned it into an aspiring bloc that can challenge the western geopolitical view, and emerge as a counterweight to Western-led fora like the Group of 7 and the World Bank.
What this means for India
If India’s presence at the recent G7 summit in Hiroshima, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi also participated in an informal Quad summit, was seen as a sign of New Delhi’s US tilt, it continues to attach importance to the “anti-West” BRICS.
India is also part of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), and despite problems, it has relations with Russia, with China.
While China does want BRICS to be an anti-western group, the Indian view is that it is a “non-western” group and should stay that way.
Among the new members, while India looks at all of them as partnerships worth developing, concerns have been raised that the group could become more pro-China and sideline New Delhi’s voice and interests.
#upsc #news #headline #brics #newmembers #internationalrelations #globalsouth #china #brazil #russia #india #southafrica #johannesburg #iran #egypt #ethiopia #world #GDP #population #quarter #economics #ukraine #worldbank #hiroshima #shanghaicooperation #organisation #SCO #NEWDELHI #prochina #interests #developing
BRICS gets six new members
GS Paper - 2 (International Relations)
The five-member BRICS invited six more countries to join the alliance, in a move which can strengthen its claim of being a ‘voice of the Global South’ on one hand, while raising concerns about China’s increasing dominance on the other. BRICS consists of Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa. In its ongoing summit at Johannesburg, South Africa, it has invited Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Egypt, and Ethiopia. Their membership will begin in January.
Why New Members
Adding new members strengthens the group’s heft as a spokesperson of the developing world. BRICS currently represents around 40% of the world’s population and more than a quarter of the world’s GDP.
With the additions, it will represent almost half the world’s population, and will include three of the world’s biggest oil producers, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Iran.
The rush towards BRICS is driven by two basic impulses: “First, there is considerable anti-US sentiment in the world, and all these countries are looking for a grouping where they can use that sentiment to gather together.
Second, there is a lot of appetite for multipolarity, for a platform where countries of the Global South can express their solidarity.”
The formation of BRICS in 2009 was driven by the idea that the four emerging markets of Brazil, Russia, India, and China would be the future economic powerhouses of the world. South Africa was added a year later.
While the economic performance of BRICS has been mixed, the war in Ukraine — which has brought the West together on the one hand and strengthened the China-Russia partnership on the other — has turned it into an aspiring bloc that can challenge the western geopolitical view, and emerge as a counterweight to Western-led fora like the Group of 7 and the World Bank.
What this means for India
If India’s presence at the recent G7 summit in Hiroshima, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi also participated in an informal Quad summit, was seen as a sign of New Delhi’s US tilt, it continues to attach importance to the “anti-West” BRICS.
India is also part of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), and despite problems, it has relations with Russia, with China.
While China does want BRICS to be an anti-western group, the Indian view is that it is a “non-western” group and should stay that way.
Among the new members, while India looks at all of them as partnerships worth developing, concerns have been raised that the group could become more pro-China and sideline New Delhi’s voice and interests.
#upsc #news #headline #brics #newmembers #internationalrelations #globalsouth #china #brazil #russia #india #southafrica #johannesburg #iran #egypt #ethiopia #world #GDP #population #quarter #economics #ukraine #worldbank #hiroshima #shanghaicooperation #organisation #SCO #NEWDELHI #prochina #interests #developing
Today's Headlines - 08 September 2023
G20 agrees to give African Union membership
GS Paper - 2 (International Relations)
Group of 20 nations agreed to grant the African Union permanent membership status, and leaders are expected to announce the decision during a summit in India. The move would give the 55-member African Union, which is currently classified as an “invited international organization,” the same status as the EU. It’s part of a drive to provide African countries with a stronger voice on global issues such as climate change and emerging-market debt, particularly as emerging markets in the so-called Global South take on a more prominent role in world affairs.
More about the News
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is hosting the G20 summit, has made it a priority to grant the African Union full membership.
Countries like Germany, Brazil, and Canada have also expressed their support for African Union membership to the G20.
The G20 or Group of 20 is an intergovernmental forum of the world's major developed and developing economies.
The members represent around 85% of global GDP, over 75% of global trade, and about two-thirds of the world population.
The European Union is keen to take some credit for the G20 step. Leaders from the bloc plan to hold a high-level meeting with African leaders on the sidelines of the summit, which is being skipped by Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
Dubbed a “mini-summit,” the Europe-Africa meeting will include a discussion of the consequences of Russia’s war against Ukraine on global food security — a situation that threatens to escalate after Putin refused to revive a UN-backed deal to allow grain shipments after talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Other topics include efforts to reform the global financial architecture, improving conditions for private investments and infrastructure projects in Africa, as well as the situation in the Sahel region.
Flashback
The African Union (AU) is a continental body consisting of the 55 member states that make up the countries of the African Continent.
It was officially launched in 2002 as a successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU, 1963-1999).
#upsc #news #headline #G20 #African #union #membership #internationalrelations #20nations #leaders #climatechange #market #organization #global #south #news #primeminister #NarenderaModi #G20Summit #germany #brazil #canada #intergovermentalforum #GDP #world #population #european #vladimirputin #projects #AU #55members #unity
G20 agrees to give African Union membership
GS Paper - 2 (International Relations)
Group of 20 nations agreed to grant the African Union permanent membership status, and leaders are expected to announce the decision during a summit in India. The move would give the 55-member African Union, which is currently classified as an “invited international organization,” the same status as the EU. It’s part of a drive to provide African countries with a stronger voice on global issues such as climate change and emerging-market debt, particularly as emerging markets in the so-called Global South take on a more prominent role in world affairs.
More about the News
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is hosting the G20 summit, has made it a priority to grant the African Union full membership.
Countries like Germany, Brazil, and Canada have also expressed their support for African Union membership to the G20.
The G20 or Group of 20 is an intergovernmental forum of the world's major developed and developing economies.
The members represent around 85% of global GDP, over 75% of global trade, and about two-thirds of the world population.
The European Union is keen to take some credit for the G20 step. Leaders from the bloc plan to hold a high-level meeting with African leaders on the sidelines of the summit, which is being skipped by Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
Dubbed a “mini-summit,” the Europe-Africa meeting will include a discussion of the consequences of Russia’s war against Ukraine on global food security — a situation that threatens to escalate after Putin refused to revive a UN-backed deal to allow grain shipments after talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Other topics include efforts to reform the global financial architecture, improving conditions for private investments and infrastructure projects in Africa, as well as the situation in the Sahel region.
Flashback
The African Union (AU) is a continental body consisting of the 55 member states that make up the countries of the African Continent.
It was officially launched in 2002 as a successor to the Organisation of African Unity (OAU, 1963-1999).
#upsc #news #headline #G20 #African #union #membership #internationalrelations #20nations #leaders #climatechange #market #organization #global #south #news #primeminister #NarenderaModi #G20Summit #germany #brazil #canada #intergovermentalforum #GDP #world #population #european #vladimirputin #projects #AU #55members #unity