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Company directors can’t just resign and walk away (The Hindu)

Mains Paper 2: Polity
Prelims level : Insolvency and Bankruptcy code
Mains level : Implementing smooth Insolvency and Bankruptcy code process

Context:

•  The stand taken by the Committee of Creditors of Reliance Communications in rejecting the resignation of Anil Ambani and four other directors of the company is right.

Background:

•  It ensures that the people who were at the helm while the company was run to the ground are around to ensure the completion of the resolution process.
•  Until the dues of the creditors are, at least partly, paid. The beleaguered company had to shut down its mobile operations after being unable to pay dues exceeding ₹33,000 crore.
•  Asking Ambani and other directors to continue with their duties and responsibilities and provide full cooperation in the insolvency resolution is only justified as they would be the most well-equipped to provide information regarding the assets and liabilities of the company.

Significance behind the ruling:

•  The rules on handling the resignation of the managing director and members on the board of the corporate borrower are not explicitly spelt out in the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code.
•  The adjudicating authority accepts the suspension of powers of the board of directors and their transfer to the resolution professional, once the insolvency resolution process begins;
•  The board members and the managing director are expected to continue discharging their duties pertaining to the running of the business.
•  The main difference is that while the chief executive functioned under the supervision of the board of directors earlier, he would function under the supervision of the resolution professional once insolvency proceedings commence.
•  This is justifiable, as the administrator is not expected to possess the skills required to run the company and ensure that the creditors get back as much of their dues as possible.
•  The Code can also hold the directors accountable for their actions taken in the ‘twilight period’, which can be up to two years preceding the commencement of the insolvency proceedings.
•  If the directors are found negligent in containing the potential loss to the creditors, then they are liable to make such contributions to the assets of the corporate debtor as asked by the adjudicating authority.
•  Enforcement of such actions becomes easier if they remain in the organisation.
•  The action of the creditors of Reliance Communications sends a signal that those responsible for the state of affairs at the company cannot just walk away, absolving themselves of all responsibilities.
•  It is doubtful if this action will help the resolution process in a material way.

Way forward:

•  The directors of the corporate debtor can choose to remain taciturn and not cooperate with the resolution professional.
•  It is only when the creditors have exhausted all avenues of making the corporate debtor pay his dues, will they drag the company to insolvency proceedings.
•  It is doubtful if the board can be made to help the administrator.
•  With the IBC still a work in progress, it is hoped that the role of key management personnel can be better elucidated in the future.

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Widening gap: On UN’s Emissions Gap Report (The Hindu)

Mains Paper 3: Environment
Prelims level : Paris Agreement
Mains level : Uses of green technologies

Context:

•  The UN’s Emissions Gap Report comes as a sharp warning to countries on Climate Change.

Main goal of the Paris Agreement:

•  To keep the rise in global temperature over pre-industrial times well below 2°C, and ideally at 1.5°C.

Highlights of the report:

•  Emissions gap represents the difference between current actions to reduce greenhouse gases (GHGs) and what is needed to meet the target.
•  The UN report estimates that there would have to be a 2.7% average annual cut in emissions from 2020 to 2030 for temperature rise to be contained at 2°C, while the more ambitious 1.5° C target would require a 7.6% reduction.
•  But countries with large emissions, such as the U.S., China, the European Union (EU) nations and India, will face more challenging demands if corrective measures to decarbonise are not implemented now.
•  Climate warnings issued over the years have failed to impress most politicians, but the EU is considering an emergency declaration, and the British Parliament adopted a resolution earlier this year.
•  It can do little to mitigate the effects of dangerous climate change. Hundreds of millions of people could face the extreme impacts.

Actions taken by various countries:

•  In the U.S., the Trump administration has initiated the process of withdrawing from the Paris Agreement, but there is considerable sub-national support for climate action.
•  The EU, where public pressure to act on climate change is high, is working on legislation to bring about net zero emissions.
•  The U.K., responsible for a large share of historical emissions, has turned its net zero 2050 goal into a legal requirement.
•  China and India, on the other hand, have to reconcile growing emissions with development needs.
•  Their best options are a scaling up of investments in renewable energy, leapfrogging to clean technologies in buildings and transport, and greater carbon sequestration.

Way ahead:

•  It needs to provide more consistent support for renewable energy, have a long-term plan to retire coal power plants, enhance ambition on air quality, adopt an economy-wide green industrialisation strategy, and expand mass transport.
•  In the key area of buildings, the energy conservation code of 2018 needs to be implemented under close scrutiny.

Conclusion:

•  With a clear vision, India could use green technologies to galvanise its faltering economy, create new jobs and become a climate leader.

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More bang for the buck: On why ISRO should go commercial (The Hindu)

Mains Paper 3 : Science and tech
Prelims level : Indian Space Research Organisation
Mains level : Commercialisation in space sector

Context

•  The Indian Space Research Organisation’s successful launch on Wednesday of Cartosat-3, along with 13 other small U.S. satellites, marks a major technological milestone for India.
  Cartosat-3:
•  Cartosat-3 is capable of unprecedented image resolution of nearly 25 cm on the ground as against the best global military-grade satellites that can provide a 10 cm resolution.
•  The best satellite images commercially available are between 25-30 cm.
•  As a commercial satellite, Cartosat-3 creates a wealth of applications. Military espionage is the lowest hanging fruit.

Earlier system:

•  It is believed that surveillance by the earlier Cartosat-2 satellite series — with a resolution, though coarser, of about 65 cm — was used to plan and execute military operations such as ‘surgical strikes’ across the Line of Control in 2016 and the Manipur-Myanmar border in 2015.
•  For the government, such resolution can help monitor progress of road construction, coastal land-erosion, forest conservation, oceanic changes and infrastructure development.
•  Image resolution is good to have but secondary to image processing.
•  That means unless and until there is sophisticated technology available to analyse the generated images, it will forever be inferior, and less valued, than coarser images scanned by better processing-software.

Significance of launches satellite:

•  Satellite launches make for a good spectacle, they are meaningful only in so far as they aid commerce and generate revenue and jobs.
•  Indian regulations restrict access to satellite images sharper than one metre to the government.
•  Other than for transponders, there is a long way to go for Indian private companies sending innovative payloads aboard ISRO launch vehicles.
•  ISRO recently launched a company called New Space India Limited (NSIL).
•  It is another public enterprise meant to commercialise space products and satellite development deals with private entities.
•  The deal for the U.S. satellites launched along with Cartosat-3 was formally inked by the NSIL.

Way forward:

•  A good beginning, it should not be shackled by bureaucratic encumbrances, à la Antrix.
•  The host of interesting electronics aboard Cartosat-3 should ideally inspire ISRO to explore collaboration with the private sector in improving high-technology manufacturing.
•  ISRO’s key capability still lies in developing and launching small- and medium-sized satellites, it ought to be able to market the technology aboard Cartosat-3 globally and induce the farming out of satellite development projects to ISRO or its subsidiaries.
•  ISRO’s credentials as a poster child for India’s technological abilities have been fortified, it still has a long way to go in terms of its reputation as an enabler of local business.

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Caught in the Act: On Transgender Persons Act (The Hindu)

Mains Paper 2 : Polity
Prelims level : Transgender Persons Act
Mains level : Provision of the Transgender Persons Act

Context:

•  The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill, passed in the Rajya Sabha seeking to ensure the fundamental rights of those who do not conform to the binary notions of gender identity, has disappointed the community.

Background:

•  The Act’s long history traces back to the judgment in NALSA vs Union of India of April 2014, which directed the Centre and State to grant legal recognition for the third gender, ensure there is no discrimination against them, and construct specific social welfare programmes.
•  In August 2016, the government introduced the Transgender Bill in the Lok Sabha and this was referred to the Standing Committee on Social Justice and Empowerment, which submitted its report in less than a year.
•  But that Bill lapsed with the dissolution of the 16th Lok Sabha.
•  The current Act arose out of a Bill that the government introduced in the Lok Sabha in July 2019, and was passed there on August 5 this year, the same day the Centre revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.

Provision of the Act:

•  The Act is progressive in that it allows self perception of gender identity, but regresses by mandating that each person would have to be recognised as ‘transgender’ on the basis of a certificate of identity issued by a district magistrate, rejecting the recommendation from the 2016 Standing Committee to have a screening committee.
•  There are no avenues open either for appeal in the event a magistrate refuses to hand out such a certificate.

Way ahead:

•  India’s vocal LGBTQI community had problems with the Bill’s basics right from the nomenclature.
•  Calling it a ‘Transgender Persons’ Bill would not give adequate play to the diversity the non-binaries included.
•  Activists have slammed it for its ‘narrow understanding’ of gender identities and for offering woefully inadequate mainstreaming opportunities.
•  They remain unhappy with the silence on unnecessary and non-consensual sex selective or reassignment surgeries, despite the plea that it be made an offence.
•  Elaborate detailing of the anti-discriminatory clause in the Bill might have gone a long way in ensuring implementation and legal recourse, they argue.
•  With the Bill becoming law, unaltered in any significant form, in the face of such strident opposition, the community is seething at being ignored.

Conclusion:

•  Its only hope is that the National Council for Transgender Persons, which is supposed to provide the institutional framework for implementing the Act.
•  It might allow more latitude for incorporating genuine demands.
•  Otherwise, this Act might well be a glove that ill fits the hand it was tailored for.

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Stubble burning is not the only culprit (The Hindu)

Mains Paper 3 : Environment
Prelims level : Stubble burning
Mains level : Environmental pollution and impact assessment

Context

•  Almost everyone gets into the “act”, the Supreme Court of India and top echelons of the Government not excluded, while children are forced to breathe polluted air.
•  Airwaves are filled with immediate “band-aid” type solutions and television experts finally come around to just one issue — stubble burning by farmers in Punjab.
  An oversimplification
•  The intention is not to justify stubble burning, but to point out that it is not the only culprit (though it is an important one) and other factors need to be attended to as well.
•  The simplification of the narrative to stubble burning and the argument that all that smoke that comes out of Punjab’s paddy fields lands in the National Capital Region (NCR), particularly in the capital city of Delhi.
•  It may not stand scientific scrutiny considering the fact that wind speeds, dispersal rates and settling down of particles are governed by laws of science.
•  There was a reference in a television programme about satellite observations on stubble burning from 2002-17.
•  There has been an increase of 3% in aerosol loading attributable to crop residue burning during October and November every year.
•  However, no data was presented on the impact of burning of biomass in urban Delhi, coal fired ovens (tandoors) and coal-based industries, coal-based power plants in the outskirts of Delhi, the exponential increase in sport utility vehicles, or SUVs, in the NCR and so forth.As for stubble burning, we need to stop this practice for sure.

But how do we do it?

•  Farmers do it out of economic compulsion.
•  The “city centric” argument is that Punjab now produces 25% more rice than what it did 15 years ago, which is good for the country, but bad for Delhi.
•  Others argue that the Punjab Preservation of Sub-soil Water Act 2009 is the main culprit.
•  There are many who believe that a generous distribution of direct seeders (or “Happy Seeders” as they are called) should make the difference.

Three ways out

•  Reduce paddy area/production, allow farmers to plant/transplant paddy before June and distribute “happy seeders”.
•  This will, according to many, address the problem of air pollution in Delhi during October and November.
•  They achieved the highest productivity in the country and contributed maximum among all States to the central pool of rice procurement.
•  In the process, the area went up from 2.6 million hectares in 2001 to 3 million hectares in 2017; production went up from 9 million tonnes to 12.5 million tonnes.
•  Punjab dug deeper to get groundwater and caused long-term damage to itself.
•  Attempts at diversification did not take off because of the difference in net farm returns and market risks.
•  A rice farmer earns about ₹57,000 per hectare whereas maize in a maize-wheat combination would set them back by about ₹15,000-17,000.
•  The farmer will not bear this burden. An estimate by agricultural economist Ashok Gulati suggests ₹12,000 per hectare (keeping power saving in mind) as an acceptable compensation.
•  If the idea is to reduce area of common paddy by half a million hectares, resulting in a reduction of output of 2 million tonnes, the Central government has to step in and support this change for the next five years.
•  This half-a-million hectare should be in water-stressed blocks and can be encouraged to shift to maize or any other crop. Another one lakh hectare can shift to basmati production.

Falling water levels

•  Coming to the more controversial argument about the Punjab Preservation of Sub-soil Water Act 2009.
•  There exist strong arguments to prevent over exploitation of groundwater especially if farmers cultivate rice in April/May.
•  Though strong evidence is necessary to establish improvement in groundwater levels, there is some evidence to show that the rate of deterioration has slowed down.
•  If farmers are allowed to go back to the pre-2009 regime, what will happen to the groundwater in Punjab is anyone’s guess.
•  The elephant in the room, however, is free power to tube wells.
•  Can this amount of about ₹6,000 crore be shifted to a direct benefit transfer as has been suggested by policy experts? Is there a political will?
•  Are the large farmers the real opposition here? This shift could be a game changer.
•  A bigger game changer will be a shift to cash transfer in lieu of grains in the public distribution system by the Centre.

Way ahead:

•  The “happy seeder” is the most talked about solution. Direct seeders do help but have limitations. First, the seeder has to operate within about 4-5 days of the harvest.
•  The effectiveness depends on the moisture (not too moist, not too dry) present in the soil at the time of seeding .
•  This requires a good understanding of soil conditions. The agronomic practices need to change particularly with regard to application of fertilizer and irrigation.
•  These machines may be used only during the 15-day window in a whole year. They will remain idle for the remaining 350 days.

Conclusion:

•  The problem is complex and needs a solution. But the solution should take into consideration the economic condition of farmers.
•  The scientific options available and the willingness of the Central government to change policy and fund a major part of the expenditure.
•  Blaming the farmers alone will not do; citizens need to put in their bit too. We owe it to the children.

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A line runs through it (Indian Express)

Mains Paper 2 : International Relations
Prelims level : Kalapani controversy
Mains level : India and its neighbourhood relations

Context

•  Residual revolutionaries of the Left competed with the supposedly pro-India Nepali Congress to castigate India for releasing maps which showed Kalapani at the India-Nepal-China trijunction to the north and Susta to the south as Indian territory.

Background:

•  The notion of boundaries as lines drawn on a map is a recent concept — as is the nation state.
•  This is particularly true in the Subcontinent, where empires and kingdoms shaded into one another across ambiguous frontiers rather than be separated by boundaries marking sovereign jurisdictions.
•  The India-Nepal border is unique in that neither country has allowed a political boundary to interrupt the age-old traffic of people who share ties of kinship, religion and culture.
•  This is now being threatened by territorial nationalism on the Nepali side and an emerging security state on the Indian side.

Role of Nepal:

•  These latest maps have nothing to do with Nepal. They were published to reflect the recent bifurcation of the state of Jammu and Kashmir into the two new Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
•  There was no change in the depiction of India-Nepal boundary.
•  The perception was created that the publication of the new map was a departure from the past and constituted pernicious cartographic aggression.
•  It is true that Nepal has, in the past, claimed territory in the Kalapani area and Susta as its own.
•  The two sides agreed that these differences should be resolved though friendly negotiations and their foreign secretaries were mandated to undertake this exercise. As far as one is aware, these talks are yet to take place.
•  If this is an issue with the potential to arouse such strong public sentiment on the Nepali side, then such inaction is inexplicable. My own experience has been that the Nepali side raises such issues for rhetorical purposes but is uninterested in following up through serious negotiations. This is what happened with Nepali demands for the revision of the India-Nepal Friendship Treaty. The Indian side agreed in 2001 to hold talks at the foreign secretary level to come up with a revised treaty — one that, in the Nepali eyes, would be more “equal” with reciprocal obligations and entitlements. Only one such round of talks has taken place.

Kalapani controversy:

•  The Kalapani controversy has arisen due to a difference of perception as to the real and primary source of the Mahakali river.
•  The Treaty of Sugauli concluded in 1816 locates the river as the western boundary with India but different British maps showed the source tributary at different places.
•  This is not unusual given the then state of cartographic science and less-refined surveying techniques.

Addressing the problem:

•  We have similar problems regarding the alignment of the McMahon Line on the eastern sector of the India-China border.
•  With regard to Susta, the problem has arisen as a result of the shifting of the course of the river, again a frequent occurrence in rivers shared by neighbouring countries.
•  There are only two ways to deal with this challenge — either to accept a shifting border as the river itself shifts or to agree on a boundary which remains fixed despite changes in the course of the river.
•  The latter is usually the more rational choice. But such matters require friendly consultations aimed at mutually acceptable outcomes not emotionally charged grandstanding.

Way forward:

•  The prime ministers of India and Nepal inaugurated, through a video conference, the much awaited Motihari-Amlekhgang pipeline, which will enable safe, secure and assured supply of petroleum products to Nepal.
•  These supplies were trucked across the border in the past with frequents incidents of pilferage and contamination in transit and interruptions due to natural disasters or road blocks set up during political protests.
•  This is a demonstration of what cross-border cooperation can achieve to benefit both countries.
•  The ugly anti-Indian protests in Kathmandu provide the self-defeating counterpoint.

Conclusion:

•  There are six to eight million Nepali citizens living and working in India.
•  They enjoy immense goodwill and a congenial and friendly environment wherever they are.
•  Political leaders in Nepal should reflect on this extraordinary asset their country enjoys built over centuries of benign togetherness.
•  Its thoughtless erosion may prove to be costly for both our countries.

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Helping 10-year-olds to read by 2030 (The Hindu)

Mains Paper 2 : Social Justice
Prelims level : learning poverty
Mains level : Challenges towards learning poverty reduction process

Context

•  The World Bank (WB) introduced a new Learning Target, which aims to cut by at least half the global rate of Learning Poverty by 2030.
•  Learning Poverty is defined as the percentage of 10-year-olds who cannot read and understand a simple story.

Highlights the current situation:

•  More than half of all 10 year olds in low-income and middle-income countries cannot read and understand a simple story.
•  We are in the middle of a global learning crisis.
•  This stifles opportunities and aspirations of hundreds of millions of children which is unacceptable.
•  It wastes the children’s potential and also hurts entire economies.
•  It will impact the future workforces and economic competitiveness negatively.

Why learning poverty should be eliminated?

Importance of Learning:

•  Learning to read is an especially critical skill which opens a world of possibilities.
•  It is the foundation on which other essential learning is built.
•  Wiping out learning poverty is an urgent matter.
•  It is a key for eliminating poverty and boosting shared prosperity.

Stagnation:

•  But over the last several years, progress in reducing learning poverty has been stagnant.
•  Between 2000 and 2017, there has only been a 10% improvement in learning outcomes for primary school-aged children globally.
•  If this pace continues, 43% of 10-year-olds will not be able to read in 2030.

How this WB target is an ambitious but still an achievable one?

•  The children who will turn 10 in 2030 will be born only in 2020 (next year), which is good news.
•  If we work urgently, there is an opportunity to reverse this trend.
•  The target set is ambitious but achievable and should galvanise action toward achieving Sustainable Development Goal (SDG4).
•  SDG4 is ensuring quality education for all.
•  It will require nearly tripling the rate of progress worldwide.
•  This can be done if every country can match the performance of the countries that made the most progress between 2000 and 2015.
•  Several countries are showing that it is possible.

What are some examples?

In India:

•  The Right-to-Education Act has been successful in increasing coverage and access to school education.
•  But now there is an urgent need to shift the focus to quality.
•  The decision of India to join the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) and the merger of schemes under Samagra Shiksha are encouraging signs that India is moving in this direction.

In Kenya:

•  The national reading programme has more than tripled the percentage of grade two students reading at an appropriate level.
•  This was accomplished through technology-enabled teacher coaching, teacher guides, and delivering one book per child.

What are the challenges?

•  The challenges of reducing learning poverty will differ between countries and regions.
•  In some countries, access to school remains an enormous problem.
•  In other countries, children are in classrooms but are not learning.

What are the steps taken to overcome these challenges?

•  By setting a global target, the WB can work with countries to define their own national learning targets.
•  Cutting learning poverty in half by 2030 is only an intermediate goal.
•  The WB’s ambition is to bring that number to zero.
•  As the WB is the largest financier of education in low-and middle-income countries, it will work with countries to promote reading proficiency in primary schools.
•  Policies include providing detailed guidance and practical training for teachers, ensuring access to more and better age-appropriate texts, and teaching children in the language they use at home.

Way forward:

•  The WB is working with governments and development partners to improve entire education systems.
•  So, advancements in literacy can be sustained and scaled up.
•  An ambitious measurement and research agenda supports these efforts and includes,
•  Measurement of learning outcomes and their drivers,
•  Continued research and innovation, and
•  Smart use of new technologies on how to build foundation skills.

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(The Gist of Kurukshetra) POLICY AND PLANNING TOWARDS RURAL EDUCATION

POLICY AND PLANNING TOWARDS RURAL EDUCATION

• Government of Indio has taken determined steps to correct the rural— urban imbalance in literacy rates which affect the overall development of the economy as well as the country as a whole.
• The Ministry of Human Resource Development of Government of India works through two departments:

1. Department of School Education and Literacy
2. Department of Higher Education.

• And since education is a subject of Concurrent List, therefore Central Government and State Governments work together for the betterment of education sector.

I. Status of Education in India (Rural vs. Urban)

• As per Census 2011, literacy rate in rural areas was around 68 per cent while it was 84 per cent in urban areas. Furthermore, only 59 per cent of rural women were estimated to be literate as compared to nearly 80 per cent urban women being literate in 2011.
• Some interesting findings have been thrown up by the survey on 'Social Consumption: Education' during the National Sample Survey (NSS) 71st Round, January to June 2014, conducted by the National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) under the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI).
• It has brought to light several ground level realities of education in rural India vis a vis urban India which are of relevance to a policy maker.

Access to Computer and Internet (NSS 71st Round)

• The Survey showed that nearly 6 per cent of rural households and 29 percent of urban households possessed a computer. Among households with at least one member of age 14 years and above, nearly 16 per cent among rural households had internet access as compared to 49 per cent urban households. Among persons of age 14-29 years, nearly 18 per cent in rural areas and 49 per cent in urban areas were able to operate a computer.

U-DISE (2016-17) Report

• Some of the highlights of NSS 71st Round may not appear to be encouraging, however, going by the figures stated in the last U-DISE (2016-17). Report brought out by M/o Human Resource Development, there has been a major thrust on providing rural school infrastructure and stepping up school enrolments in rural areas through various schemes and interventions.
• As per U-DISE 2016-17, total number of schools in India were 15.3 lakhs out of which nearly 12.97 lakh schools were in rural areas. Total enrolment in schools was 25.13 crore out of which 18.02 crore was enrolment of students from rural areas. This data pertains to all the schools from Class I to Class XII across the country.
• Therefore, rural areas account for 84.46 per cent of total schools in India and 71.72 per cent of total; student enrolment in India. In addition, 73.04 per cent teachers are placed in rural locations.

The National Achievement Survey 2017

• The National Achievement Survey 2017 (NAS 2017) of Ministry of Human Resource Development, GoI is amongst the largest surveys conducted in the world. It tried to assess the attainment of competency-based learning outcomes of 2.2 million students from 1,10,000 schools across 701 districts in all 36 States/UTs. NAS 2017 has thrown interesting light on learning outcomes for rural vs urban student populations.
• A surprise finding of NAS 2017 with respect to learning outcomes in Rural vs Urban areas is that the learning outcomes are similar in rural and urban school going population and in fact, even higher for rural students over urban ones for class 8th in Mathematics, Science and Social Science subjects.
• This has, to some extent, broken the myth that rural students are laggards as compared to urban ones. Some of the concerns which have been thrown up by various studies taken up by both public and private institutions include not only availability (infrastructure like schools/colleges etc.) but also accessibility (distance), quality (learning outcomes), education of girl child, the quality of teaching, skills education among others.

II. Government Initiatives for Rural Areas

• Expansion of Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas, pan-India expansion of Samagra Siksha and voluminous increase in budgetary allocations, expansion of Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas, improvements in quality of Mid-Day Meal Scheme, Unnat Bharat Abhiyan, Swachhta Abhiyan, Massive Online Courses, expansion of Eklavya Model Residential School Scheme, digital initiatives and promoting several other education related interventions by the states arc some of important efforts of the Government for the development of rural education.
• While some of the programmes/schemes/projects are specific to rural areas; expansion of infrastructure and quality improvement of teachers in rural areas are also likely to receive a major thrust under flagship programmes like Samagra Shiksha.

Digital Initiatives

• The digital initiatives can become a game changer for rural areas since they revolutionise the delivery mechanisms for education in the country.
• They have a special role to play for imparting quick, meaningful and quality education to students in far flung and rural areas as well as in-situ training of teachers.
• The recent launch of Operation Digital Board aims to introduce digital boards all over the country in government and government-aided schools for nearly 1.5 lakh Secondary/Sr. Secondary schools. Similarly, UGC proposes to take up 300 universities and about 10,000 colleges in the first phase covering 2 lakh classrooms.
• e-PATHSHALA : NCERT books are now available in digital version for free for anybody. Approximately 15 lakh students have downloaded e-Pathshala app. As on 26 February, 2019, visits to e-Pathshala crossed 4.0 cr. The App enjoys a rating of 4 out of 5 on Google play store and 4.5 out of 5 on Windows store.
• Diksha is a digital platform for teachers to enable capacity building of all categories of teachers. It will help over 50 lakh teachers in improving the quality of education.
• MOOCs on SWAYAM Platform: It is an integrated platform for offering online courses and covering school (9th to 12th) to Postgraduate Level. Till July 2019, 2769 MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses) have been offered on SWAYAM, wherein about 1.02 crore students have enrolled in various courses till date. The online courses are being used not only by the students but also by the teachers and non-student learners, in the form of lifelong learning.
• SWAYAM PRABHA (Kishore Manch) DTH-TV Channels have been launched for transmission of educational e-contents through 52 National Channels i.e. SWAYAM PRABHA DTH-TV.
• National Digital Library of India (NDL) is a project to develop a framework of virtual repository of learning resources with a single-window search facility. There are more than 5 crore digital resources available through the NDL. More than 50 lakh students have registered themselves in the NDL, with about 20 lakhs active users.

NISHTHA:

• National Initiative for School Heads and Teachers Holistic Advancement (NISHTHA) has been launched very recently to build capacities of 42 lakh elementary school level teachers, principals, block resource centre coordinators and cluster resource centre coordinators. The basic objective of 'NISHTHA' Programme is to motivate and equip teachers to encourage and foster critical thinking in students.
• Teachers will get awareness and develop their skills on various aspects related to Learning Outcomes, Competency Based Learning and Testing, Learner centred Pedagogy, School Safety and Security, Personal-social qualities, Inclusive Education, ICT in teaching-learning including Artificial Intelligence, Health and well-being including yoga, initiatives in school education including library, eco club, youth club, kitchen garden, school leadership qualities, environmental concerns, pre-school, pre-vocational education and school based assessment in a joyful learning manner.

Vision of Draft New Education Policy (NEP) to Increase the Supply of Good Quality Teachers in Rural Areas:

• To ensure that truly excellent students enter the teaching profession -especially from and in rural areas, the draft NEP envisions creating special merit scholarships which will also include guaranteed employment in their local areas upon successful completion of their four-year integrated B.Ed. programmes. To further encourage outstanding teachers to be deployed to rural areas, incentives like housing will be provided for teachers to take up teaching jobs in rural areas, especially in those rural areas with the greatest current teacher shortages.

Atal Tinkering Lab:

• Atal Tinkering Lab (ATL) is a programme run by Atal Innovation Mission (AIM) under NITI Aayog to foster curiosity and innovative mindset in young students across India to encourage research and innovation in schools across the country. The vision of the initiative is 'To create one million children in India as Neoteric Innovators'.
• As per latest data, 8878 schools have been selected for establishing ATLs, out of which 3020 have completed their compliance process and have been funded successfully. The selected schools are from both urban and rural areas. Around 117 Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas are also been selected for Atal Tinkering Labs.

Conclusion:

• The massive effort in recent times to revamp and expand the education system in India has far reaching implications. Not only is the thrust on infrastructure but also on quality and unique solutions through technology to improve delivery systems of education.
• The student community has shown great enthusiasm for e-Resources for learning. This holds great promise for the future since as the internet penetration increases, the major beneficiaries of online courses and facilities will be the rural and far flung areas.

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(The Gist of Kurukshetra) TEACHER EDUCATION: CHALLENGES AND PROBLEMS

TEACHER EDUCATION: CHALLENGES AND PROBLEMS

Though many reforms are brought in teacher education particularly after independence yet there are many more emerging issues and challenges that need urgent attention for improving the quality and professional development of teachers. Some of these are as follows:

• There are about 19000 teacher education institutions in the country, of which 92 per cent are privately-owned and are largely in rural areas. Various studies including J.S. Verma Commission shows that a large proportion of teacher education colleges are not providing quality education. If we see the result of Central Teacher Eligibility Test conducted during 2011 for students who wanted to become primary and upper primary teachers after acquiring the teacher education degree, it was less than 1 per cent in the country. The situation has not improved much now as the pass percentage of students is still less than 18% in the country.
• Most of the independent teacher education institutions are in rural areas and running different courses in teacher education. In these institutions, large numbers of posts are also lying vacant as quality teachers are not prepared. There is also a general observation and complain about these institutions that malpractices like fake attendance of students, non-attending teachers, etc is prevalent in these institutions.
• NCTE ( 2014,2019) revised notifications have increased the duration of teacher education programmes like B.Ed and M.Ed. running of admission of students, equipment, physical facilities and qualified faculty etc.
• During transaction of curriculum of different courses of teacher education programmes, it is observed that theory and practice, and content and pedagogy of these programmes are not integrated. It has not resolved so far and proves to be a great hurdle in preparing quality teachers and teacher educators.
• In our existing system, the teachers with general degree of B.Ed. have been teaching from elementary to senior secondary stages. Even at some places, they are teaching subjects which they have not studied at graduate and postgraduate levels. It resulted into many complicated problems like drop out, absenteeism and low achievement among the children.
• The centrally sponsored scheme of restructuring and re-organization of teacher education launched in the nineties in the light of NPE, 1986 by Government of India could not realize the objectives. The Programme on Mass Orientation for School Teachers (PMOST) could not reach the field in its real spirit. The institutions like DIETs, CTEs, IASEs, and SCERTs are not functioning according to its role and functions.
• In case of higher education, there is no provision for pre-service education. Teachers are working without professional degrees in teacher education colleges and universities, in different institutions and universities for preparing quality professional teachers, teacher educators, curriculum developers, educational policy analysts, educational planners, administrators, supervisors and researchers and school principals. There is resentment at few places among stakeholders facing the problem.
• Both teacher education and school education are working in isolation and does not have any relationship between the two in curriculum and its translation. The pre-service teacher education curriculum does not reflect the needs and demands of students and school teachers.
• There is no mechanism of Management Information System (MIS) on Teacher Education. The data relating percentage of untrained teachers, unemployed trained teachers, number of teacher educators and their specialisation, curriculum and syllabus at different levels, frequency of curriculum revision, innovative programmes.

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(GIST OF YOJANA)  Solid Waste Management: The Way Forward

Solid Waste Management: The Way Forward

Introduction:

• Solid Waste Management is a major problem in India, where urbanisation, industrialisation, and economic growth have resulted in increased municipal solid waste (MSW) generation. The burgeoning population and the improvement in living standards of the people have only compounded this problem.
• Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEFandCC) notified MSW (Management and Handling) Rules, 2000 and the revamped Solid Waste Management Rules in 2016 to ensure proper solid waste management in India. Various initiatives arc being taken in different parts of the country, however, a lot still remains to be done to comprehensively address the issue related to Solid Waste Management.

Legal Framework:

• Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016 delineate the responsibility of the different stakeholders including the MoEFandCC, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, (MoHUA), Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), State Pollution Control Boards (SPCBs), State Urban Departments, Urban Local bodies. Gram Panchayats, as well as the waste generators. Whereas MoHUA, State Urban Departments and Local Bodies have mainly been entrusted with the responsibility of development of infrastructure related to waste management, MoEFandCC, CPCB, SPCB, and Pollution Control Committee (PCC) have been entrusted with the responsibility of monitoring the enforcement of the Rules. The responsibility of the waste generator lies essentially in proper segregation of the waste which is the core requirement of effective solid waste management. The Rules demarcate the requirements of the key components of the solid waste management system besides fixing the timeline for achieving the same.

SWM- Key Components: The key components of SWM system include the following:

• Stage 1: Segregation of waste by waste generator into dry and wet waste;
• Stage 2: Door-to-door collection of waste and transportation of segregated waste;
• Stage 3: Setting up of material recovery facilities for dry waste to recover recyclables like plastic, paper, metal, glass, etc.;
• Stage 4: Setting up of waste processing facilities, viz., compost, biomethanation and waste-to-energy plants for resource recovery and energy generation; and
• Stage 5: Setting up of waste disposal facilities- Landfills. The main objective of an efficient
• SWM system is to maximise resource recovery and energy generation from waste in the processing facility (Stage 4) and minimise waste disposal in landfills, which weighs heavily on our ever-shrinking land resources and also is a potential source of air, soil and water contamination. The primary requirement of all waste processing facilities (Stage 4) is segregation of waste into wet and dry waste.
• If the waste is not being collected, segregated, and transported properly, recycling of waste is not feasible and the waste ends up at landfills (Stage 5). Also, the waste processing plants are not able to function at optimum level if they have to process mixed waste including CandD (Construction and Demolition) waste. The segregation, collection, and transportation scheme is to be further synchronised to meet the requirement of the waste processing facilities catering to the area.
• Status of Solid Waste Management The overall solid waste generated in the country has been estimated to be 1,52,076 Tons per day (TPD) as perthe Annual Report 2018-19 submitted
  by the SPCBs/PCCs. Of this, 1,49,748 TPD of waste is collected which is 98.5% of the total waste generated.
• However, only 55,759 TPD (35%) of waste is treated, and 50,161 TPD (33%) of waste is landfilled and 46,156 TPD of waste which is one third of the total waste generated in the country remains unaccounted.

An overview of SVVM status in the country is given as:

• Source segregation initiated in 24 States/UTs;
• Operational in 22 States/UTs;
• 25 States/UTs procured land for waste SWM facilities;
• Waste processing facilities set up - 2028; Waste processing operational - 160; and
• Landfill sites identified - 1161/Operational- 37.
• The unaccounted waste is littered on streets or lands up in dumpsites. There are presently 3,159 dumpsites in the country which arc a major source of groundwater contamination and air pollution.
• Also, they have issues related to fires, stability, and depreciated aesthetics. Recently, with the National Green Tribunal’s (NGT) intervention, biomining (a method for stabilisation of waste so as to minimise its adverse environmental impact) of these dumpsites, has been initiated in 11 States.

SWM Initiatives:

1. Initiatives taken by CPCB: CPCB has prepared the following guidelines which are uploaded on its website:

• Guidelines on Legacy Waste;
• Guidelines on Buffer Zone;
• Guidelines for the Management of Sanitary Waste; and
• Selection Criteria for Waste Processing Technologies.
• Further, CPCB has issued directions to the concerned authorities for SWM Rules compliance and imposed environmental compensation on
  defaulting Authorities.

2. Initiatives taken by States/Union Territories: Some of the States and UTs such as Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Daman and Diu, and Goa have achieved maximum compliance with respect to provisions of SWM Rules, whereas a lot needs to be done in case of the remaining States/UTs. Initiatives taken by Chhattisgarh State are as follows:

• Door-to-door collection, waste segregation, and transportation in covered vehicles completed in all ULBs;
• Land for waste processing facilities identified in all 168 ULBs;
• No sanitary landfills planned- 166 ULBs have Solid and Liquid Resource Management (SLRM)centres and 2 ULBs have Compost/Refuse-derived fuel (RDF) facilities;
• SLRMs planned for Gram Panchayats;
• Bioremediation/capping completed in 160 ULBs/Remaining 8 to be covered by 2021; and
• Municipal bye-laws for levying spot fine for littering framed.

3. Setting up of Waste-to Energy Plants:Four waste-to energy plants have been set-up in the country of which three plants arc in Delhi. Electricity generated by these plants is purchased by the power regulators and is fed to the national grid. Several other such plants arc in the pipeline in different parts of the country.

4. Development of Model Cities: Model cities which include Pune (Maharashtra), Indore (Madhya Pradesh), and Ambikapur (Chhattisgarh) have been developed which have implemented efficient methods for collection, segregation, and waste processing facilities. They have also implemented efficient methods for remediation of dumpsites and reclaimed land from the same.

5. Increased Judicial Intervention: After the enactment of the NGT Act 2010. In the past few years we have seen increasing judicial intervention in ensuring compliance with the provisions of SVVM Rules by the various stakeholders, specifically the State authorities. Some of the major Orders issued by the NGT include:

(a) Vide order dated 22-12-16 in OA 199/2014. Almitra H. Patel and Anr. Vs. Union of India and Ors. NGT directed as follows:

• Every State and Union Territory shall enforce and implement the Solid Waste Management Rules 2016 in all respects and without any further delay.
• All the State Governments and Union Territories shall prepare an action plan in terms of the Rules of 2016 and the directions in this judgment, within four weeks from the date of pronouncement of the judgment.
• It shall be mandatory to segregate prior to incineration relatable to the quantum of the waste.
• It shall be mandatory to provide for a butler /one around plants and landfill sites.
• It will be obligatory on the part of the State, local authorities to create a market for consumption of RDF.
• The landfill sites shall be subjected to bio stabilization within six months from the date of pronouncement of the order.
• There shall be complete prohibition on open burning of waste on lands, including at landfill sites.

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(b) NGT vide order dated 5.3.19 in OA 606/2018 directed Chief Secretaries of all States/Union Territory for the following:

• Steps for compliance of Rules 22 and 24 of SWM be now taken within six weeks to the extent not yet taken. Similar 23 steps be taken with regard to Bio-Medical Waste Management Rules and Plastic Waste Management Rules.
• At least three major cities and as many major towns as possible in the State and at least three Panchayats in every District may be notified on the website within two weeks from today (22-12-l6)... as model cities/towns/villages which will be made fully compliant within the next six months (from 22-12-16).
• The remaining cities, towns and Village Panchayats of the State may be made fully compliant in respect of environmental norms within one year.
• A quarterly report be furnished by the Chief Secretary, every three months. First such report shall be furnished by July 10, 2019.
• The Chief Secretary may personally monitor the progress, at least once in a month, with all the District Magistrates.
• The District Magistrates or other officers may be imparted requisite training.
• The District Magistrates may monitor the status of compliance of environmental norms, at least once every two weeks.
• Performance audit of the functioning of all regulatory bodies may be conducted and remedial measures be taken, within six months.
• Vide Order dated July 17.7.19 in OA No. 519/2019 with Original Application No.386/2019, Hon’ble NGT has ordered Biomining of all three dumpsites in Delhi namely Ghazipur, Bhalswa, and Okhla.

Challenges:

The various challenges faced in implementation of SWM Rules include the following:

1. Segregation of waste at source by waste generators;
2. Lack of infrastructure for collection and transportation of waste;
3. Availability of land for setting up of waste collection and transportation facilities;
4. Budgetary provisions for (ii and iii) above;
5. Techno-economically viable solutions for fresh and legacy Waste;
6. Management of legacy waste;
7. Rural areas not covered in most of the States/UTs; and
8. Enforcement issues.

Way forward

As availability of land, lack of infrastructure, and availability of financial resources serve as a major impediment for SWM, focus of the SWM is to maximise resource recovery from waste so as to facilitate the availability of these resources for efficient SWM. The major steps in this direction would include:

• Creating public awareness for involvement of different stakeholders for SWM;
• Development of ULB-wise action plan for collection, segregation, transportation and processing of waste. Inputs from model cities like Indore, Ambikapur, and Pune may be taken for development and implementation of these plans;
• Emphasising on setting up of waste processing facilities rather than waste disposal facilities as in the case of Chhattisgarh;
• Giving fillip to research and development activities with a focus on resource recovery from waste; Capacity building in various regimes of SWM;
• Laying down of an appropriate governance framework at State and district levels;
• Clear allocation of responsibility to ULBs and waste generators for setting up of infrastructure and for involving informal sector in waste collection/segregation; and
• Adequate technical support to ULBs for processing technology and best practices in waste management.

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(GIST OF YOJANA)  Sanitation Economy and Dignity of the Sanitation Workers

Sanitation Economy and Dignity of the Sanitation Workers

Introduction:

• The sanitation sector has emerged as a big economy in India in recent years and the future potential is immense.
• Sanitation economy is not just about toilets but it also includes provision of clean drinking water, elimination of waste and converting them into useful resources and digitised sanitation system that optimises data for operating efficiencies, maintenance, consumer use, and health information insights.

Background:

• Sanitation, in addition to an economy in itself, is also cross-cutting theme and has the potential to contribute in a big way to the growth and employment of many other sectors of Indian and global economy, most notably to sectors such as health, consumer goods and agriculture sector and new and renewable energy.
• The major initiatives which have helped in propelling the sanitation economy of India are the ambitious schemes launched by our Government in the form of Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) in 2014, Jal Shakti Abhiyan (JSA) and curbing single-use plastics in 2019. This aimed at providing basic sanitation to all Indians, ensuring piped water supply to all rural households and combating pollution, respectively.
• A recent report by the Toilet Board Coalition estimated the sanitation market opportunity in India alone to be at USS 32 billion in 2017 and doubling to USS 02 billion by 2021 within a short time span of four years. This speaks volumes about the phenomenal growth the economy is waiting to harness in the near future. Government's Initiatives towards Sanitation:
• The first building block of having a ‘New India' by 2022 under the leadership of Hon'ble Prime Minister is the pledge towards a ‘Clean India'. In this direction, three major schemes of our Government in the field of sanitation and their effectiveness are discussed here.
• The first major initiative towards sanitation was the Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM) with an aim to accelerate sanitation coverage to achieve an Open Defecation Free (ODF) and Clean India by 2 October, 2019. When die mission was launched five years ago by the Hon'ble Prime Minister, the challenge was quite daunting.
• Only 38.7 per cent of rural households had toilets and country-level data showed India having the largest number of people defecating in the open. Under such a challenging situation, the PM exhorted people to fulfill Mahatma Gandhi's vision of a Clean India by 2 October, 2019 so as to provide a befitting tribute to Bapu when we celebrate his 150th Birth Anniversary.
• Dignity to the Sanitation Workers Sanitation workers are one of the major contributors to this vision. However, the workers involved in this occupation suffer from social stigma with respect to their work, especially the manual scavengers. Our Government has taken a number of steps to effect changes in the perception of the people towards the sanitation workers.
• Legal Protection for Eliminating Manual Scavenging: Sanitation workers are divided broadly into two categories: Safai Karamcharis and Manual Scavengers. A majority of them work as contract employees under extremely hazardous conditions with poor health and safety situations while cleaning latrines, sewer, septic tanks and railway tracks. In order to prohibit the employment of manual scavengers, the Government had enacted Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013 (MS Act, 2013) which came into effect from 6 December, 2013.

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The objectives of this Act are to

• eliminate the insanitary latrines;
• prohibit:

1. employment as manual scavengers and,
2. hazardous manual cleaning of sewer and septic tanks and.

• Survey of manual scavengers and their rehabilitation within a time bound manner. Any contravention of the provisions is punishable with imprisonment up to 2 years and line
  up to Rs. 2 lakh, or both.
• Ensuring Minimum Wages: Safe Working Conditions and Pension Benefits For ensuring minimum wages and timely payment of wages to all workers, including the sanitary workers, Ministry of Labour and Employment has enacted the Code on Wages Bill, 2019, which received the assent of the President on 8 August, 2019. This bill also provides for higher wage premium for workers engaged in arduous and hazardous work in difficult circumstances and therefore will benefit millions of sanitation workers. This will raise their income level and restore their dignity. The code also prohibits gender discrimination in wages, recruitment, and conditions of work, which will benefit women sanitation workers.
• Housing, Education, Financial Assistance and Skill Development Schemes: Under Indira Awas Yojana (IAY) of the Ministry of Rural Development. There is a provision for providing assistance for construction of new houses and upgradation of kutcha or dilapidated houses. Assistance of up to Rs. 75,000 is provided to the eligible households. A provision has been made under IAY for special coverage of identified manual scavengers for providing them housing facilities in rural areas, irrespective of their BPL status. The new Scheme of our Government, ‘Housing for All' under the Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation aims at providing housing facility to the citizens.
• Under the Scheme of 'Pre-Matric Scholarship to the Children of those engaged in Occupations involving cleaning and prone to health hazards', being implemented by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, the children of manual scavengers, tanners and flyers, waste pickers and those engaged in hazardous cleaning are also provided scholarship between Rs.225 to Rs. 700 per month for a period of 10 months in a year for pursuing their studies up to class 10th.
• Protecting Sanitation Workers through Ayushman Bharat: Ayushman Bharat — Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY) is another flagship initiative introduced in September 2018 under the visionary leadership of Hon’ble Prime Minister, which has immense potential to benefit the sanitation workers and in restoring their dignity given the fact that a large proportion of them belong to poor and vulnerable families. The PMJAY will cover over 10.74 crore poor and deprived families (approximately 50 crore beneficiaries) providing coverage up to Rs. 5 lakh per family per year (on a family floater basis) for almost all secondary care and most of tertiary care hospitalisation, with no cap on family size. This will help sanitation workers in terms of reducing their out of pocket expenditure on health and will provide them flexibility to allocate their household resources towards other important family needs.

Way Forward

• While much has been achieved in improving the sanitation situation in the country and in restoring the dignity of the sanitation workers, much is left to be achieved. As a way forward, I would like to highlight the following five important steps:
• The goal of making India clean is as important as the goal of keeping India clean. Therefore, maintaining ODF status is important so that villagers are not returning to the old practice of open defecation. We must focus on putting in place a robust monitoring mechanism to check the condition of sanitation at the district and Panehayat level.
• Although we are ODF, but the country is not garbage and litter free. Therefore, we must focus on circular economy for converting our waste into resources. The first step in this regard will be 100 per cent achievements in terms of waste segregation, successful disposal, and streamlining waste infrastructure. In addition, we must also focus on sustained behavioural changes through a trained workforce for curbing single-use plastics and thereby making India completely garbage and litter free.
• Despite a ban on manual scavenging, its existence is reported from time to time. Therefore, the use of technology can play a key role in addressing this issue and all the stakeholders must encourage this to get rid of manual scavenging completely.
• Prioritisation and faster identification of insanitary latrines and manual scavengers through a time-bound plan must be seriously and earnestly pursued so that effective rehabilitation
  of manual scavengers through various welfare and income generating schemes can be done at a much larger scale and in a mission mode.
• Last but not the least, I call upon the trade unions, employers’ associations and other similar associations/organisations to provide adequate voice to the issues of sanitation workers, their needs and requirements and to work with the Government hand in hand so that together we can strive hard to mainstream the sanitary workers and restoring their dignity.

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When longevity is the biggest achievement: on Shinzo Abe (The Hindu)

Mains Paper 2: International
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Challenges ahead of the PM Shinzo Abe

Context:

•  On November 20, Shinzo Abe will become the longest- serving Prime Minister of Japan, overtaking Taro Katsura’s record of 2,886 days in office.
• Prime Minister term of Mr. Abe:
•  Mr. Abe has been in power for two different spells: a short-lived one, between July 2006 and September 2007, and the current stretch since 2012.
•  Over the last seven years, he has brought stability to a political landscape that had been fractured, honing the image of a strong, conservative leader readying Japan for a newly muscular role in a shifting geopolitical landscape.
•  Mr. Abe has steered the economy out of deflation and decline, if not into growth.
•  He has presided over a significant increase in the country’s military capabilities and attempted to expand Japan’s strategic options beyond its traditional reliance on the United States.

The TINA factor

•  His legacy might not be as long-lasting as his time in office.
•  Critics say the only reason Mr. Abe is still in power is because of a weak and uninspiring Opposition.
•  The TINA (there is no alternative) factor that voters around the world are all too familiar with.

Tenure and performance of Mr. Abe:

•  Mr. Abe returned to power in 2012, Japan had been through five Prime Ministers in as many years.
•  His immediate order of business was implementing a set of economic reforms to stimulate the economy, popularly dubbed Abenomics.
•  The three pillars of this stimulus included monetary easing, fiscal spending and deregulation to promote private investment.
•  He also vowed to bring more women into the workforce, an attempt nicknamed “womenomics”.
•  Mr. Abe has reinvented Japan, from a recalcitrant participant in trade liberalisation to a leader of the Trans-Pacific Partnership bloc, after the U.S. withdrew from it in 2017.
•  Under him, Japan has boosted defence spending and enhanced its ability to project power outside of its borders.
•  In a historic shift in 2014, Mr. Abe’s government reinterpreted (without amending) the Constitution to permit Japanese troops to fight overseas for the first time since the Second World War.
•  A five-year defence programme announced in 2018 allocated 25.5 trillion yen ($233.7 billion) in spending, a 6.4% rise over the previous five years.

On the diplomatic front:

•  Mr. Abe has reached out to traditional partners like the U.S. (he was the first foreign leader to meet with Donald Trump after the President’s election), while keeping ties with rival China on an even keel.
•  Mr. Abe made an official visit to Beijing last October (the first such visit in nearly seven years) and President Xi Jinping is expected in Japan next year.
•  For Japan, it has been a difficult balancing act, to avoid excessive dependence on the U.S., while anticipating the dangers associated with a more assertive China.
•  Mr. Abe has demonstrated considerable tactical pragmatism in walking this tightrope.
•  Mr. Abe has also reached out to strengthen alliances with regional powers like India and floated the idea of a Free and Open Indo-Pacific for which he has gained the backing, to varying degrees, of the U.S., Australia and India.But, despite this smorgasbord of initiatives,

Criticism:

•  Mr. Abe’s tenure has not been entirely rosy.
•  The Japanese economy remains limp and Japanese corporations have so far proved unable to transform themselves into 21st century technology leaders.
•  Though, during his tenure, Japan has benefited from periods of economic growth and low unemployment, the country remains mired in a slow-growth, high-debt deflationary trap.
•  The government recently downgraded its 2019 growth forecast to 0.9% from an earlier prediction of 1.3%.

Moving away from pacifism

•  Domestically, Mr. Abe’s vision of a less pacifist Japan remains deeply contested.

•  His most cherished policy goal is the amendment of Article 9 in the Constitution: the clause that restricts Japan’s ability to maintain a military deterrent.

•  But it is looking no closer to fulfilment than it did at the beginning of his reign. The Prime Minister wants to write the existence of Japan’s Self-Defense Forces, as the military is known, into Article 9, giving constitutional standing to de facto reality.

•  However, a survey conducted by the Asahi Shimbun newspaper earlier this year showed that 64% of respondents opposed even this modest revision.

•  While Mr. Abe continues to reiterate his pledge to push through the revision by 2020, it is looking increasingly unlikely that he will prove successful.

Way ahead:

•  Japan can meet the challenge of China’s increasing heft. Relations with neighbour and potential ally, South Korea, are worse than ever.
•  Under Mr. Abe, Japan has made little progress in facing up to its historical responsibility for the widespread atrocities of the Japanese Imperial Army in the Second World War.
•  The recent deterioration in relations with Seoul were prompted by unresolved grievances involving Koreans who were forced to work in Japan’s mines and factories during the war, as well as “comfort women” who were made to service the military’s brothels.
•  Far from helping heal the historical wounds inflicted by Japan, Mr. Abe’s nationalistic stance is seen as unrepentant at best and provocative at worst.

Conclusion:

•  Mr. Abe’s long reign will come to an end in September 2021 when his term as leader of the Liberal Democratic Party finishes.
•  At the current juncture it looks as though he will get a pass in the history books, though not with distinction. ‘A’ for longevity, but a ‘B,’ at most, for everything else.

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Maternity scheme reaches only one-third of beneficiaries (The Hindu)

Mains Paper 2: Governance
Prelims level: Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana
Mains level: Government policies and interventions for development in various Sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation incl. Housing

Context:

•  A vital programme to support lactating mothers and pregnant women by compensating them for loss of wages during their pregnancy has been able to reach less than a third of the eligible beneficiaries.
•  The researchers who extrapolated from data obtained under the Right to Information (RTI) Act said.
  Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana:
•  Almost 61% of beneficiaries registered under the Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY) between April 2018 and July 2019 (38.3 lakh out of the total 62.8 lakh enrolled) received the full amount of ₹6,000 promised under the scheme, according to an RTI reply.
•  However, the researchers, who are development economists, assert that since the scheme failed to reach at least 49% of all mothers who would have delivered their first child (an estimated total of 123 lakh for 2017 according to the researchers), the scheme was able to benefit only 31% of its intended beneficiaries.
•  The PMMVY is targeted only at women delivering their first child.
•  A cash amount of ₹6,000 is transferred to the bank account of the beneficiary in three instalments upon meeting certain conditions including early registration of pregnancy, having at least one ante-natal check-up and registration of child birth.

The stipulated conditions:

•  The scheme brings under its ambit 23% of all births and pays full benefits to a mere 14% of all births, which was at 270.5 lakh for 2017.
•  The meagre reach calculated is also an overestimate, asserts Ritika Khera, Assistant Professor, IIM Ahmedabad.
•  The actual number of beneficiaries would have been higher for 2018-2019, she contends, as the figure increases from one year to the next.
•  The data extrapolated from the RTI reply is also consistent with a survey coordinated by three development economists Jean Dreze, Anmol Somanchi and Ms. Khera.
•  The survey was conducted to assess the implementation of the scheme.
•  The survey team covered a district each in six States — Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Odisha — in 2019 to interview women and inspect anganwadis.
•  A total of 706 women were interviewed, including 342 pregnant and 364 lactating women.

Inadequate awareness:

•  The study found that only 50% of pregnant women and 57% of nursing women surveyed were eligible for the scheme.
•  It also throws light on the need for higher awareness among the pool of beneficiaries — only 66% of pregnant women and 69% of nursing women knew about the scheme. Only 8% of pregnant women and 23% of nursing mothers received some benefits.

Shortcomings:

•  Several factors impeded proper implementation of the programme that aims to fight malnutrition among children.
•  These include an application form of about 23 pages, a slew of documents such as mother-child protection card, Aadhaar card, husband’s Aadhaar card and bank passbook aside from linking their bank accounts with Aadhaar.
•  The requirement to produce the husband’s Aadhaar card results in excluding women who may be living with men they are not married to, single mothers and those who may be staying at their natal home.
•  Women must also have the address of their marital home on their Aadhaar card, which often results in newly weds being either left out or forced to go from door-to-door when pregnant and needing rest and care.
•  Odisha, which decided to not implement PMMVY because it has its own State-sponsored scheme called ‘Mamata’ that includes two births, has a few lessons to offer through its near universal coverage.

Way ahead:

•  According to the survey, 95% of pregnant women and 89% of nursing mothers had been enrolled, the level of awareness was more than 90% among the two categories of women.
•  However, there were long delays in transferring the cash amount to the beneficiaries resulting in only 35% of all women who were pregnant and 67% of all nursing women receiving some benefits.
•  The survey findings also highlight the need to pay greater attention to the special needs of pregnancy good food, extra rest and health care.
•  Only 22% of the nursing women surveyed reported that they had been eating more than usual during their pregnancy and the average weight gain was barely 7kg when it should be at least 13-18kg.
•  Almost all the respondents had done household work regularly during their last pregnancy.
•  21% of nursing women said that they had no one to help them with domestic chores and 63% said that they had been working right until the day of delivery.

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Towards a Colombo reset (Indian Express)

Mains Paper 2: International Relations
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: New dimensions of India – Sri Lanka Relations

Context:

•  Even before the new president of Sri Lanka, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, was sworn in, the narrative about Colombo’s renewed “tilt” towards China and against India had taken root.
•  The headline misrepresents the complex power play involving Beijing, Delhi and Colombo.

Background:

•  The Great Game in the Subcontinent is not limited to just India and China.
•  It is quite easy to forget the considerable interests and influence of many other powers in the region, including the US, European Union, Japan and Russia.
•  The exclusive focus on major power rivalry masks the agency of South Asian political elites and their capacity to manoeuvre among the major powers.

About Rajapaksas:

•  Although the Rajapaksas had blamed India for their defeat in the 2015 elections, they have sought to make up with Delhi in recent years.
•  India has been engaging all the major political formations in Sri Lanka.
•  The stage, then, is ready for a reset in the bilateral relations between the two strong governments in Delhi and Colombo.

China’s movement:

•  India is acutely aware that China’s economic and strategic salience in the Subcontinent will continue to grow and is not tied to the regime leadership in its neighbourhood.
•  Delhi can’t expect its neighbours to shut down economic and commercial engagement with Beijing, notwithstanding the many questions about the terms of China’s assistance on projects, including those under the Belt and Road Initiative.
•  But Delhi will be right to ask Colombo not to take steps with Beijing that threaten India’s security.
•  That reset involves addressing the structural factors that have complicated the relationship between Delhi and Colombo.

Develop India-Sri Lanka relationship:

•  Delhi and Colombo need a clear understanding of mutual red lines relating to national security and a political comfort level to discuss cases that fall within the orange zone.
•  That should help prevent the recurrence of the controversy over Chinese submarines in Colombo port that generated so much bad blood between the two nations in 2014.
•  As the world rediscovers the geopolitical value of Sri Lanka at the heart of the Indo-Pacific, Colombo has huge opportunities to leverage its location for national benefit.
•  A prudent and important part of that strategy would be to avoid provoking India.
•  Delhi too would be wise to be mindful of Colombo’s security concerns and find ways to develop long-term strategic cooperation with Sri Lanka.

Resolve disputes

•  Delhi needs to invest some political capital in resolving problems such as the long-standing dispute over fisheries.
•  Beyond its objection to China’s BRI projects, Delhi, either alone or in partnership with like-minded countries like Japan, should offer sustainable terms for infrastructure development.
•  Delhi also needs to contribute more to the development of Colombo’s defence and counter-terror capabilities.

Shaping India’s relations with Sri Lanka:

•  The structural factor shaping India’s relations with Sri Lanka is the Tamil question.
•  India’s involvement in Sri Lanka’s tragic civil war has been far more consequential than the China factor in complicating Delhi’s relations with Colombo.
•  Delhi has certainly learnt the dangers of being drawn too deep into the domestic conflicts of neighbouring countries.

Way ahead:

•  The Rajapaksas have declared that they will not bend before foreign pressures.
•  India knows that too much heat from the West will automatically increase China’s leverage in Colombo.
•  If the Tamil question continues to have a big impact on Sri Lanka’s foreign policy, Delhi needs to look beyond old formulae to try and encourage reconciliation within Lanka and across the Palk Strait with Tamil Nadu.

Conclusion:

•  With a strong government in Sri Lanka, it is time for Delhi to think boldly about its relationship with Colombo.

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With the economic centre of gravity shifting to states, India’s growth hinges on cooperative federalism (Indian Express)

Mains Paper 2: Polity
Prelims level: Cooperative federalism
Mains level: Development of cooperative federalism

Context:

•  In the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business index released last month, India ranked 63, an impressive jump from its lowly rank of 142 in 2014.

Challenges ahead:

•  The government amended the terms of reference of the 15th Finance Commission a few months ago asking that allocations for defence and internal security be carved out upfront, before determining the pool of resources to be shared with the states, the latter baulked at the highhandedness of the Centre.
•  It has been attempted to reform the land acquisition law by tweaking the balance in favour of investors, but quickly buckled down as many states took umbrage.
•  Even though land is on the concurrent list in the Constitution, and a central law would have prevailed notwithstanding states’ opposition.

Importance of states in India’s economic management:

•  In the early years of our republic, the Centre dominated across all domains — political, economic and administrative — and states, even those led by leaders with political heft, acquiesced to this unequal arrangement.

•  The reaction to central dominance came in the early 1980s when strong regional leaders started agitating against “the hegemony of the Centre”.

•  Several of them, for instance N T Rama Rao, built their political careers on an “anti-Centre” platform.

•  Much of the economic policy control stayed with the Centre which decided not just public investment but even private investment through its industrial and import licensing policies, leaving the states on the margins of economic management.

Three trends in economic reforms:

•  That arrangement started to change with the onset of reforms from 1991.
•  Three trends, in particular, have shifted the economic centre of gravity from the Centre to the states

1. Change in the content of the reform agenda:

•  The Centre could push through the reforms of the 1990s without even informing, much less consulting, the states because they all pertained to subjects such as industrial licencing, import permits, exchange rate and the financial sector, which were entirely within its domain.
•  In contrast, the second-generation reforms on the agenda now shift the emphasis, to use economic jargon, from product to factor markets like land, labour and taxation, which need, not just acquiescence, but often the consent of states.
•  There was a clash of interests not just between the Centre and states but also between producer and consumer states, large and small states and coastal and inland states.
•  The grand bargain that culminated in the GST, admittedly imperfect, involved all parties making compromises.
•  But the deal could not be clinched until the Centre guaranteed to fill the revenue gap, if any, of states according to an agreed formula.

2. Driving the economic centre of gravity towards states:

•  This is the changing dynamics of our fiscal federalism. Ballpark estimates suggest that the Centre collects about 60 per cent of the combined revenue (Centre and states), but gets to spend only about 40 per cent of the combined expenditure.
•  This asymmetry is mirrored on the states’ side. Together, they collect 40 per cent of the combined revenue, but spend as much as 60 per cent of the combined expenditure.
•  The aggregates is the greater autonomy that states now enjoy in determining their expenditure. Gone is the Planning Commission.
•  The states now not only get a larger quantum of central transfers but also get to decide on how to spend that larger quantum.

How states manage their public finances matters much more than before?

•  The RBI in its latest annual report on state finances, raised several red flags — states’ increasing weakness in raising revenue, their unsustainable debt burden and their tendency to retrench capital expenditures in order to accommodate fiscal shocks such as farm loan waivers, power sector loans under UDAY and a host of income transfer schemes.
•  As the RBI pointed out, the quality of expenditure at the state level has a multiplier effect on overall development outcomes.
•  Conversely, fiscal irresponsibility will take a heavy toll on our growth and welfare prospects.
•  The market will penalise mismanagement of public finances; it does not much care who is responsible, the Centre or the states, for an unsustainable debt burden or for even the colour of the fiscal deficit.

3. Growing importance in economic federalism:

•  Their critical role in creating a conducive investment climate in the country. Much of the responsibility for improving the ease of doing business rests not with Delhi but with the states.
•  This highlights the need for coordinated action.

Conclusion:

•  India’s prospects, including our aspiration for a $5 trillion economy, depend on the Centre and the states working together.
•  No one would know this better than Modi who combines over two decades of experience as chief minister and prime minister.
•  Arguably, he has another unique advantage in that more than two-thirds of the states are currently governed by the BJP.

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Odisha’s strides in nutrition (The Hindu)

Mains Paper 2: Health
Prelims level: National Family Health Survey
Mains level: National Family Health Survey report on malnutrition in Odisha

Context:

•  Odisha, which is one of the Empowered Action Group States, or eight socioeconomically backward States of India, has done remarkably well in health and nutrition outcomes over the past two decades. Its infant mortality rate has significantly declined.
•  Its under-five mortality rate almost halved in the National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-4 from NFHS-3.
•  It has seen a steep decline in stunting in children under five. Anaemia in children and pregnant women has also decreased since NFHS-3.
•  Antenatal care and institutional deliveries have shown good improvement. All these changes have been possible with financing, policy support, robust leadership, and innovations in delivery of services.

Nutritional interventions

•  Nutrition has a strong correlation to health, and is integral to growth and development. Timely nutritional interventions of breastfeeding, age-appropriate complementary feeding, Vitamin A supplementation, and full immunisation are effective in improving nutrition outcomes in children.
•  Odisha has performed better than other Empowered Action Group States in reducing undernutrition, and sets an example with its nutrition action plan calling for convergence with health, nutrition, and WASH (water, sanitation and hygiene) programmes.
•  Odisha has taken a decisive step of decentralising the procurement of supplementary nutrition under the Integrated Child Development Services programme.
•  This has led to fair access of services under the ICDS by all beneficiaries.
•  This is evident from the rise in utilisation of services under the ICDS as compared to a decade ago.
•  There has been a marked improvement in supplementary nutrition received by pregnant and lactating women in NFHS-4 compared to NFHS-3.

Major loopholes highlighted:

•  However, despite progress in child and maternal indicators, Odisha continues to be plagued by a high level of malnutrition.
•  There is stark variability across districts in stunting ranging from as high as 47.5% in Subarnapur to a low of 15.3% in Cuttack.
•  Wasting is high in 25 out of 30 districts. Almost half of the under-five children from tribal communities in Odisha are underweight, and 46% are stunted.
•  The infant mortality rate among tribals is the fourth highest in Odisha, after Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh.
•  Supplementary food given under the ICDS programme has shown a significant increase.
•  However, data show that less of such food is given as children grow older.
•  There is also a decline is children receiving timely complementary feeding.
•  Less than 10% of children receive a minimum acceptable diet. This can be attributed to a possible lack of understanding and awareness about nutrition due to illiteracy.

Improving implementation

•  Another challenge for Odisha is in reaching out to remote and particularly vulnerable tribal groups.
•  This could be the reason why tribal women and children are lagging behind the national average on nutrition and health indicators.
•  It is essential to improve the implementation of schemes, and ensure last-mile delivery of nutrition services.
•  A part of the solution lies in setting up mini Anganwadi centres catering to far-flung tribal hamlets.
•  Raising awareness through community campaigns on the need for good nutrition would help improve utilisation of services by beneficiaries.
•  The International Food Policy Research Institute, in its research, called for inter-department engagements to accelerate the nutrition outcome in Odisha.
•  There is a need to improve sanitation, women’s education and underlying poverty, to be able to tackle undernutrition.

Conclusion:

•  Underweight children should also be identified precisely so that the monitoring mechanism for improving service delivery can be strengthened.
•  The National Nutrition Mission sets an example with its inter-ministerial convergence and real-time monitoring mechanism for tracking each beneficiary and tackling malnutrition.

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Prelims Questions:

Q1. With reference to the Government e-Marketplace (GeM), consider the following statements:
1. It is an online market place that was launched in 2016.
2. It has been developed by Directorate General of Supplies and Disposal (DGS&D) with technical support of National E-Governance Division (NEGD), Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
A. 1 only
B. 2 only
C. Both 1 and 2
D. Neither 1 nor 2

Answer: C
Mains Questions:
Q1. While health outcomes have greatly improved, tribal communities still lag behind. Comment.

Quality on tap: On report of Ministry of Consumer Affairs (The Hindu)

Mains Paper 3: Environment
Prelims level: Bureau of Indian Standards
Mains level: Water quality standards in India

India’s export woes (Mint)

Mains Paper 3: Economy
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: India’s external trade deficits

Context

•  India’s October trade figures deepen concerns about the health of our export sector.
•  Released data says, the merchandise exports fell 1.1% from a year earlier to $26.4 billion last month. Though smaller than September’s 6.6% decline, it’s still bad news.
•  Exports have been stuck in negative territory for three months in a row.
•  A consolation was the sharp decline in the trade deficit to $11 billion in October from $18 billion a year earlier. This was on account of a 16.3% decline in imports, to $37.4 billion.

Recognised as a worrying picture:

•  Exporters have had to suffer inordinate delays in the refunds due to them under the goods and services tax regime.
•  Add to this India’s decision to walk out of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), which will make access to a vast, rapidly-growing market difficult for them.
•  As for bilateral trade deals, our record so far has not been encouraging. Making matters worse are New Delhi’s trade differences with the US.
•  A settlement has proved elusive, even though policymakers on both sides aver that significant progress has been made on contentious issues.

Way ahead:

•  If India is to revive its flagging export sector, it will have to reshape its policy mix in various ways. Local manufacturers need to be competitive globally.
•  The recent reduction in corporate tax is a good move on the financial front, but past experience suggests that exposure to foreign competition is especially vital—which requires lowering import tariffs, not raising them.
•  Then there are many other drags on business that need elimination.

Conclusion:

•  Unless export-oriented reforms are undertaken, India risks missing the opportunity to grab some of the global value chains disrupted by the US-China trade war.
•  That would be one costly miss.

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Steps to revival (Indian Express)

Mains Paper 3: Economy
Prelims level: Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code
Mains level: Implementing Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code

Context

•  The Supreme Court approved the resolution plan of ArcelorMittal to pay Rs 42,000 crore to local financial creditors and take over Essar Steel after setting aside a ruling of the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal.

Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code:

•  This marking a closure to an important case under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code.
•  The Court has made it clear that the decision of the Committee of Creditors or lenders will be final and binding, which should help faster resolution of more such cases.
•  It will also mean the entry of the world’s largest steelmaker into one of the biggest markets having agreed to infuse Rs 8,000 crore into the bankrupt company which it is acquiring. But the bigger challenge lies ahead.
•  It concerns one of the most competitive sectors in India — telecom — with a Supreme Court ruling on dues in adjusted gross revenue hitting two major players, Vodafone Idea and Bharti Airtel, leading to the foreign telecom company reporting the highest ever quarterly loss by an Indian corporate of Rs 50,921 crore a week ago, and Bharti Rs 23,045 crore.

Not restricted to just the telecom sector:

•  The latest development is bound to trigger fresh concerns for Indian banks, which had an exposure of Rs 1.15 lakh crore to the telecom sector at the end of September this year.
•  These lenders will be further weighed down because of extra provisions and the need for capital if the issue is not swiftly sorted out by the government.
•  Vodafone, which had indicated its inability to invest more, is no ordinary firm. It is one of India’s largest FDI investors and a global telecom player.
•  It has taken a lot of effort, including by the NDA government, to undo the damage caused by the decision of the UPA government to tax the company retrospectively over seven years ago.
•  What is worrying is the reluctance or failure of the government and policymakers to recognise the inter-connection — the knock-on impact of such decisions on other sectors such as banking.

Way ahead:

•  In such a scenario, a good decision, like the reduction of corporate tax, which makes India one of the most competitive tax regimes.
•  This will be neutralised at a time when the country is hoping to attract global supply chains shifting from China.
•  The mood among investors is more sombre, compared to the start of this fiscal, especially with indications that growth could well be sub 5 per cent and with little clarity on a global economic recovery next year too.

Conclusion:

•  Retaining the trust of investors — be it local wealth creators or foreign entities — is an ongoing process, which is why the government should move quickly on the strategic sell-off of BPCL and Air India.

•  To address sectoral issues and further strengthen India’s dominant state-owned banks to revive lending.

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Education, ours and theirs (Indian Express)

Mains Paper 2: Education
Prelims level: Not much
Mains level: Nationalisation of Education

Context

•  Union Home Minister Amit Shah, while speaking at a recent seminar in Banaras Hindu University on the 5th century emperor, Skandagupta, declared: “Putting together our history, embellishing it and rewriting it is the responsibility of the country, its people and historians”, suggesting that there are different ways to write the history of India and that professional historians had not done their job properly so far.

History of sangh parivar:

•  The sangh parivar has always shown interest is the teaching of history, not only because it contributes to defining the national identity, but also because the parivar believes the version of the past portrayed by secularists does not reflect reality.
•  In August 2014, the RSS formed a committee, the Bharatiya Shiksha Niti Aayog, to “Indianise” the education system. It was headed by Dinanath Batra, who had specialised in rewriting Indian history according to the canons of Hindu nationalism.
•  In 2010, he had filed a civil suit to ban Wendy Doniger’s The Hindus, which he felt gave Hinduism a bad image.
•  Batra also pressured the University of Delhi to remove from its syllabus an essay by A K Ramanujan — Three Hundred Ramayanas — that contradicted the Hindu nationalist idea that there was a single version of the epic.

Enemies of Indianisation:

•  In Batra’s 2001 book, The Enemies of Indianisation: The Children of Marx, Macaulay and Madrasa, he listed 41 major flaws that reflected the historic tropisms of the Hindu nationalists:.
•  The idea that the Aryans came from another part of the world in ancient times because the Hindus could only be sons of the soil;
•  All the glories attributed to ancient India in its epic poems are an accurate reflection of historical reality;
•  The Muslim invasions opened the darkest chapter in Indian history, starting with the destruction of Nalanda University in the 12th century up until the end of the Mughal empire.
•  The standard account of the freedom movement ascribes too much importance to Gandhi and Nehru to the detriment of Hindu nationalist heroes.
•  These serious flaws have all been attributed to the secularist or Westernised nature of history textbook authors.

Views of Y Sudershan Rao:

•  The leading Hindu nationalist historian, Y Sudershan Rao, who was appointed by the Narendra Modi government in summer 2014 to head the Indian Council of Historical Research.
•  Rao views history and mythology as being the same thing and believes that historiographic research should focus on identifying the locations where the “events” described in the epics took place.
•  This mixing up of history and mythology has become common since 2014. The then culture minister Mahesh Sharma said in 2018: “I worship Ramayana and I think it is a historical document.”
•  The textbooks put out by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), which can be used in schools affiliated with the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), have been extensively rewritten.
•  In between 2014 and 2018 1,334 changes were made to 182 textbooks put out by the NCERT between 2005 and 2009.

At the state government level:

•  In Rajasthan, where the revision of the history curriculum, and changing of narratives formed an integral part of policy at the highest levels of government.
•  In fact, when the BJP was in power, the education minister, Vasudev Devnani, was quite candid on how he wanted the history textbooks to be re-written.
•  For him, the focus of teaching should be on imparting nationalism, and he asserted that the textbooks “would remove the chapters on the greatness of Akbar and include the heroics of Maharana Pratap”.
•  This led to a process of regionalising the history of the nation, wherein Pratap would become the central protagonist of the Medieval period.
•  Devnani went a step further when he had the textbooks change the outcome of the Battle of Haldighati, fought between Pratap and Akbar.
•  As the historical record points to a stalemate, the BJP narrative “altered” this, to portray a victory for Pratap, in Devnani’s eyes “fixing an aberration”.

Freedom struggle:

•  Besides, these textbooks revisited the prioritisation of individuals associated with the freedom struggle.
•  The first prime minister of the nation, Jawaharlal Nehru, has been omitted from the class 8 textbook, while B R Ambedkar is classified as a ‘Hindu social reformer’, in a bid to sanitise his fight against caste.
•  The textbooks argue that Ambedkar’s efforts were similar to those of Dayanand Saraswati, Mahatma Gandhi and RSS founder K B Hedgewar.
•  Ambedkar’s more radical contributions such as the Mahad Satyagraha, or his conversion to Buddhism are omitted altogether.

Vinayak Damodar Savarkar:

•  The most celebrated “freedom fighter” is Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, the founder of the Hindutva ideology.
•  He figures in every history textbook from class 8 to 12 as someone “whose contribution to the cause of independence cannot be described in words”.
•  Deified status is further exemplified by describing him as a “great patriot, great revolutionary and great organiser”.
•  The usage of the term “great” is thus once again the monopoly of certain protagonists in the BJP textbooks.

Conclusion:

•  The teaching of history is linked to the prioritisation of certain communities and individuals in order to foster a particular spirit of nationalism among school students.
•  While Batra has still not yet realised his ambitions at the national level, in the states, the party has been most effective in transmitting its version of Indian history to the next generation of learners.

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