Current Affairs from The Hindu DATE:20-04-15
S.NO. / NEWS ITEM / SYLLUBUS / ESSENCE OF THE ARTICLE1. / Yemen clashes: 44 killed (Page 12) / a) International / a) Sources said the clashes between rebels and pro-governmental forces in Yemen and Saudi-led air strikes killed 44 people, as Riyadh committed to cover a UN humanitarian aid appeal.
2. / We are keen on expanding our strategic partnership with India (Page 9) / a) I.R / a) Australian Foreign Minister said the PMs of our countries have both signed the civil nuclear cooperation agreement last year and the Australian govt is determined to conclude the agreement as soon as possible.
3. / Protection only for honest public servants: apex court (Page 10) / a) National
b) Polity / a) Under Section 197 of the Criminal Procedure Code, no court should take cognisance of criminal charges against a public servant unless previous sanction to prosecute him is received from a competent authority.
4. / Eye on capital, loss in vision (Page 8) / a) National / a) The Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act 2014 gives enough time for N. Chandrababu Naidu to concentrate on the larger issue that confront Andhra Pradesh rather than be stucked down by the issue of land for the capital, which seems to be the case now.
5. / The secrecy regime (Page 8) / a) National
b) Polity / a) A committee set up by the Union govt to look into the provisions of the Official Secrets Act 1923 in light of the Right to Information Act 2005 marks a step in making a transition from a secrecy regime towards open and transparent governance.
6. / Confusing GDP numbers (Page 15) / a) Economy / a) In January, the Central Statistics Office revised its GDP growth estimates scaling them up by some 1.5 percentage point for 2014-15.
S.NO. / NEWS ITEM / SYLLUBUS / BACKGROUND / IMPORTANT POINTS
1. / Yemen clashes: 44 killed (Page 12) / a) International / a) Yemen conflict / a) Sources said the clashes between rebels and pro-govt forces in Yemen and Saudi-led air strikes killed 44 people, as Riyadh committed to cover a UN humanitarian aid appeal.
b) The UN says hundreds of people have died and thousands of families run away from their homes since the air war was launched on March 26 at the request of embattled President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi.
b) Saudi King Salman ordered the aid commitment following a UN appeal for $274 million in emergency assistance for the millions affected by Yemens multi-sided conflict.
2. / We are keen on expanding our strategic partnership with India (Page 9) / a) I.R / a) India – Australia relations
b) Civil nuclear cooperation agreement
c) Malabar exercises
d) Indian Ocean
e) Economic ties
f) Free Trade Agreement (FTA) / a) Australian Foreign Minister said the PMs of our countries have both signed the civil nuclear cooperation agreement last year and the Australian govt is determined to conclude the agreement as soon as possible.
b) The agreement is being considered by a joint standing committee on treaties. The joint standing committee is made up of members of both the government and the opposition
c) She said we are also looking at other multilateral exercises as it has been sometime since Australia took part in the Malabar exercises and other exercises such as Pitch-Black and Kakadu. We see these as opportunities for Australia and India to jointly hold exercises with other partners.
d) She said we have a common interest in ensuring that our region is secure and we share the Indian Ocean region. Interoperability with the US and closer engagement with Japan is important for both of us. We would like to invite China to these exercises as well.
e) She said we are keen on expanding our strategic partnership with India. From a foreign policy perspective, we are keen on deepening our engagement with India both in terms of defence connections as well as economic ties.
f) She also said we recognise that with Indias projected growth there would be significant demand for energy. Australia is an energy superpower. We have abundant coal, oil, natural gas and uranium. While we also recognise that India has also its own reserves, we can provide high quality energy resources to India.
g) She said India needs to play to its economic strengths as much as Australia needs to as well. But we have recently concluded FTAs with China, Japan and South Korea. We want to ensure that our friends in India have access to the same markets and gain the benefits.
3. / Protection only for honest public servants: apex court (Page 10) / a) National
b) Polity / a) Prevention of Corruption Act
b) Section 197 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC)
c) Supreme Court
d) High Court / a) In a judgment with far-reaching effect on numerous cases pending under the Prevention of Corruption Act, the Supreme Court has held that a public servant cannot by default claim legal protection of prior sanction against prosecution.
b) Under Section 197 of the CrPC, no court should take cognisance of criminal charges against a public servant unless previous sanction to prosecute him is received from a competent authority. This safeguard is meant to help government servants perform their duties honestly without fear of malicious prosecution.
c) Dealing with such a case (which has been hanging fire since 1999), a Bench of Justices said protection under Section 197 of CrPC was only available to a public servant for the honest discharge of his duty. The apex court observed that prosecution for corruption should be exemplary and without delay.
d) The judgment came in a grasp of criminal appeals filed by the Andhra Pradesh police in 2013 against a High Court order rejecting criminal proceedings against two revenue officials who successfully claimed protection under Section 197 of CrPC.
4. / Eye on capital, loss in vision (Page 8) / a) National / a) Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act 2014
b) Vijayawada-Guntur-Tenali-Mangalagiri (VGTM) area
c) Krishna river
d) Amaravathi / a) The expert committee appointed by Home Ministry under the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act 2014 and stated in its terms of reference that fertile, agricultural lands should not be touched as far as possible.
b) The entire Vijayawada-Guntur-Tenali-Mangalagiri area is regarded as the rice bowl of AP and it is one of Indias important granaries. Now, to take away 30,000 acres of land from the Thullur, Tadepalli and Mangalagirimandalswhich are double crop and triple crop yielding areas and which will result in the dispossession of farmers there for temporary financial gains is an example of short-sighted policy.
c) The northern part of Thullur is reported to being earmarked to play a key role in the functioning of the capital city. Yet, the fact is that there is no master plan available for the so-called capital city.
d) Another point the author wish to highlight is the subject of soil preparation work especially in an area which has a high water table. In a related way, consolidation, road infrastructure and various other items of infrastructure will take a long time to develop and build, even assuming that some land is made available.
e) In the 100 or more new towns India built since Independence and this includes Chandigarh, Bhubaneshwar, Gandhi Nagar and the steel towns of Bokaro, Durgapur and Rourkela, it took nearly seven to eight years to have the basic infrastructure in place and this was just for the setting up of one or two major industries and entrepreneurial needs. Therefore, the claim that in AP, all these can be done within a span of five years is a gross exaggeration.
f) The expert committee had pointed out repeatedly that the most serious challenge before AP is to create more than three lakh jobs a year and with significantly higher productivity. These jobs do not seem to be in sight.
g) The committee has repeatedly said that the most important challenge facing Mr. Naidu and which he should resolve with his political insight as soon as possible, is the need for him to look at balanced development as CM of Andhra Pradesh and not just of the VGTM area.
h) The Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act 2014 gave both AP and Telangana a time frame of 10 years to share Hyderabad as a common capital. The committee made a number of recommendations on how this time could be utilised.
i) The Act gives sufficient time for Naidu to concentrate on larger issues that confront AP rather than be stucked down by the issue of land for the capital. The companies based in Singapore and which are working on the master plan for the new capital are reported to be seeking 3000 acres outside the capital territory but inside the VGTM area.
j) It is reported that land holders who account for an area of about 32,000 acres have agreed to surrender their land and accept land pooling. At the same time, there are also reports of growing resistance to the plan in some areas alongside the right bank of the Krishna river. What AP is trying to do is very different to land pooling attempted elsewhere in the country and with varying success.
k) It should be recognised that the success of the Gujarat land pooling plan, which took place in dense urban areas where the negotiations had a touch of realism. Plans were published repeatedly in an offer to seek consent and it was clear what the authorities intended and what the land holders would be getting.
l) AP will become a better-knit geographic and economic entity if Naidu spends the next few years concentrating on some of the very important projects including those in which the Central Govts support has been assured such as the coastal corridor, a gas pipeline and its transmission to Rayalaseema, the Nadikudi-Kalahasti railway line, and development of some of the railway lines east to west.
m) Every political capital requires political support. What is important right now is nearly suicidal move to mortgage APs political energy and financial resources to this capital project.
5. / The secrecy regime (Page 8) / a) National
b) Polity / a) Right to Information (RTI) Act 2005
b) Official Secrets Act (OSA) 1923
c) Section 22 of RTI Act
d) Section 8(2) of RTI Act / a) A committee set up by the Union govt to look into the provisions of the Official Secrets Act 1923 in light of the RTI 2005 marks a step in making a transition from a secrecy regime towards open and transparent governance.
b) Although the move is currently involved in specific controversies over declassifying files relating to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, its broader and long-term implications are of huge significance. The legal position is clear. Whenever there is a conflict between the two laws, the provisions of RTI Act override those of the OSA.
c) Section 22 of the RTI Act states that its provisions will have effect notwithstanding anything that is inconsistent with them in the OSA. Similarly, under Section 8(2) of the RTI Act a public authority may allow access to information covered under the OSA, if the public interest in disclosure outweighs the harm to the protected interests.
d) It is the interpretation of public interest that is the challenge. National security laws should balance the need to ensure state sovereignty with principles of transparency and accountability.
e) The draconian OSA was enacted in 1923 by the British rulers under very different political circumstances and it was amended post-Independence, continuing the insulation of govt from public scrutiny. The statute has provisions that are too broad and vague, often leaving room for arbitrariness.
f) For instance, under Section 2(8)(d) of the Act defining a prohibited place, any railway, road, way or channel or other means of communication by land or water can be notified by the Central government as a prohibited place. Section 3 provides for penalty for spying to be imposed on anyone who is even found in the vicinity of a prohibited place.
g) Secrecy in govt operations is necessary but it has to be limited by absolute necessity, keeping the confidentiality strictly time-bound. As part of the review, the Home Secretary will take inputs from security agencies; to make the process more representative, civil society should also be included in the dialogue.
6. / Confusing GDP numbers (Page 15) / a) Economy / a) Economic growth
b) GDP
c) Central Statistics Office (CSO)
d) Gross Fixed Capital Formation (GFCF) / a) In Jan, the CSO revised its GDP growth estimates scaling them up by 1.5 percentage point for 2014-15. A high growth rate of 7.4 percent during last year was arrived at on the basis of new estimates for the first three quarters and projections for the last.
b) There were some doubts on the previous methodology especially in relations to the unorganised sector but over the years it has not been accused of lacking consistency. A meaningful comparison of the data with previous years was possible. But in the latest revision, the CSO has not only changed the base year from 2004-05 to 2011-12 but restored the foundations of the methodology altogether.
c) The reason why the CSOs revised estimate for last year has been viewed with such doubt is that macroeconomic activity on the ground, do not point to any sudden growth acceleration. It is possible to pick holes in many other components of the revised estimates also.
d) Most significant is the fact that according to the revised estimates, the rate of investment or the GFCF (as a percentage of GDP) has actually fallen over the past few years (33.6 percent in 2011-12 to 28.6 percent in 2014-15). These levels of fixed investments are not higher than rates in the older series of national accounts, which has 2004-05 as the base year.
e) An economist has compared the methodology used by the CSO to arrive at the new series with the one adopted in the past. There are significant differences. For instance, the new manufacturing GDP includes not only the value of production of a business unit but also the distribution costs.
f) With the scope of manufacturing considerably expanded, the GDP form manufacturing, mining, and quarrying have gone from negative to significantly positive. But this should have reduced the scope of corresponding services.
g) It would be perhaps desirable to follow the economist advice and report the oldwith the new series for five years, if not longer so that their underlying differences are transparent on a continuing basis and they are able to serve the needs for research and statistical use.
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