(The Gist of PIB) Market Study on E-commerce in India [JANUARY-2020]

Market Study on E-commerce in India

• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) released a Report titled ‘Market Study on E-commerce in India:
• The Market Study on E-commerce in India (‘the study’) was initiated by the CCI in April 2019 with a view to better understand the functioning of e-commerce in India and its implications for markets and competition.
• The objective was also to identify impediments to competition, if any, emerging from e-commerce and to ascertain the Commission’s enforcement and advocacy priorities in light of the same.

Key findings of the study:

• The study, a combination of secondary research, questionnaire survey, focused group discussions, one-on-one meetings, a multi-stakeholder workshop and written submissions of stakeholders, covered the three broad categories of e-commerce in consumer goods (mobiles, lifestyle, electrical and electronic appliances, and grocery), accommodation services and food services.
• 16 online platforms, 164 business entities [including sellers (manufacturers and retailers) and service providers (hotels and restaurants)] and 7 payment system providers from across India participated in the study. In addition, 11 industry associations, representing different stakeholder groups, also participated.\
• The study has helped gather useful insights and information on the key features of e-commerce in India, the different business models of e-commerce players, and the various aspects of commercial arrangements between market participants involved in e-commerce.
• The study has also provided an opportunity to learn from business enterprises on how they are responding to the advent of digital trade and has helped gauge the key parameters of competition in digital commerce.
• The study confirms that online commerce is gaining importance across the sectors studied. The share of online distribution and its relative importance vis-à-vis traditional channels varies significantly across products.
• This divergence constrains the construction of a unified competition narrative and points to the need for product-specific assessment of the market and competitive dynamics. Online commerce, as the study shows, has increased price transparency and price competition.
• The search and compare functionalities of online platforms have lowered search costs for consumers and have provided them with a wide array of alternatives to choose from. For businesses, e-commerce has helped expand market participation by aiding innovative business models.
• The report released today presents the key trends identified and also discusses the issues that may, directly or indirectly, have a bearing on competition, or may hinder the realisation of the full pro-competitive potential of e-commerce.
• These include the issues of lack of platform neutrality, unfair platform-to-business contract terms, exclusive contracts between online marketplace platforms and sellers/service providers, platform price parity restrictions and deep discounts.
• The CCI is of the view that many of these issues would lend themselves to a case-by-case examination by the CCI under the relevant provisions of the Competition Act, 2002. The report outlines these issues and presents the observations of the CCI on the same without assessing whether conduct is anti-competitive or is justified in a particular context.

On the basis of the market study findings, the enforcement and advocacy priorities for the CCI in the e-commerce sector in India are, inter alia, the following:

• Ensuring competition on the merits to harness efficiencies for consumers
• Increasing transparency to create an incentive for competition and to reduce information asymmetry
• Fostering sustainable business relationships between all stakeholders Search ranking
• Set out in the platforms’ terms and conditions a general description of the main search ranking parameters, drafted in plain and intelligible language and keep that description up to date.
• Where the main parameters include the possibility to influence ranking against any direct or indirect remuneration paid by business users, set out a description of those possibilities and of the effects of such remuneration on ranking.
• The introduction of the above-mentioned features, however, should not entail, disclosure of algorithms or any such information that may enable or facilitate manipulation of search results by third parties.

Collection, use, and sharing of data

• Set out a clear and transparent policy on data that is collected on the platform, the use of such data by the platform and also the potential and actual sharing of such data with third parties or related entities.

User review and rating mechanism

• Adequate transparency over user review and rating mechanisms is necessary for ensuring information symmetry, which is a prerequisite for fair competition. Adequate transparency to be maintained in publishing and sharing user reviews and ratings with the business users. Reviews for only verified purchases to be published and mechanisms to be devised to prevent fraudulent reviews/ratings.

Revision in contract terms

• Notify the business users concerned of any proposed changes in terms and conditions. The proposed changes not to be implemented before the expiry of a notice period, which is reasonable and proportionate to the nature and extent of the envisaged changes and to their consequences for the business user concerned.

Discount policy

• Bring out clear and transparent policies on discounts, including inter alia the basis of discount rates funded by platforms for different products/suppliers and the implications of participation/non-participation in discount schemes.

Study Material for UPSC General Studies Pre Cum Mains

(The Gist of Kurukshetra) NUTRITION: A PUBLIC HEALTH PRIORITY [JANUARY-2020]

NUTRITION: A PUBLIC HEALTH PRIORITY

Introduction:

• In the month of September, one would have heard and read a lot about ‘POSHAN Mah, and nutrition.
• The aim of this article is to enhance the understanding of 'nutrition' and learn its importance, while also discussing some related aspects of nutrition and healthy eating.

What is Nutrition? What do we know about nutrition?

• The definition given by the British Nutrition Foundation is: 'the study of nutrients in food, how the body uses nutrients and the relationship between diet, health and disease.'
• The other more comprehensive definition is -'nutrition is the intake of food, considered in relation to the body's dietary needs.
• The important aspect to note here is the 'intake of food in relation to the body's dietary needs'. This implies that as the body's needs change, so should the diet i.e. a lifecycle approach should ideally cater to dietary needs of each stage.
• For example, nutrition needs of a child vary from that of an adolescent and those of an adult working person may vary from that of a geriatric individual. Good nutrition, an adequate, well balanced diet combined with regular physical activity, is considered to be a cornerstone of good health. Poor nutrition can lead to reduced immunity, increased susceptibility to disease, impaired physical and mental development, and reduced productivity.
• This brings us to the next set of words which are results of improper nutrition, and termed as malnutrition. Malnutrition comprises both undernutrition and overnutrition and they both lead to their own set of disease conditions.

Measuring under-nutrition:

• In the realm of public health, we consider three terms which are the standards to measure under-nutrition i.e. stunting, wasting and under-weight; while overnutrition is measured by incidence of overweight, obesity, and diet-related Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs) comprising of heart disease, stroke, diabetes and cancer.
• A stunted child is one whose height is lower than the standard height for the given age of child. Stunting is the result of long-term nutritional deprivation and often results in delayed mental development, poor school performance and reduced intellectual capacity. Also, women of short stature are at greater risk for obstetric complications because of a smaller pelvis. Further, small women are at greater risk of delivering an infant with low birth weight, contributing to the inter-generational cycle of malnutrition, as infants of low birth weight or retarded intra-uterine growth tend be smaller as adults.
• Wasting is defined as a condition where the weight of the child is lower than the standard weight for the given height. Wasting in children is a symptom of acute under-nutrition, usually as a consequence of insufficient food intake or a high incidence of infectious diseases, especially diarrhoea. Wasting in turn impairs the functioning of the immune system and can lead to increased severity, duration of and susceptibility to infectious diseases and an increased risk for death.
• On the other hand, underweight is a condition where the weight is lower than the standard weight for the given age of the child. Evidence has shown that children who are even mildly underweight have an increased risk of mortality and severely underweight children are at a greater risk of the same.
• A child is considered to be overweight when the weight is higher than the standard weight for the given age of the child. Childhood obesity is associated with a higher probability of obesity in adulthood, which can lead to a variety of disabilities and diseases, such as diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.
• The risks for most NCDs resulting from obesity depend partly on the age of onset and the duration of obesity. Obese children and adolescents are likely to suffer from both short-term and long-term health consequences, the most significant being, cardiovascular diseases (mainly heart disease and stroke), diabetes, musculoskeletal disorders (especially osteoarthritis) and cancers of the endometrium, breast and colon.
• Child growth is internationally recognized as an important indicator of the nutritional status and health in populations; the above-mentioned indicators are a direct measure of the same and subsequently, essential for our discussion here.

Nutrition Status:

• Globally, 15.08 crore children under five years are stunted and 5.05 crore are wasted, as stated by the Global Nutrition Report 2018. In India, 4.66 crore children are stunted, and 2.55 crore are wasted.
• Also, India figures among the set of countries that have more than 10 lakh overweight children. Overall, of the 141countries analysed in the report, 88 per cent (124 countries) experience more than one form of malnutrition. The developmental, economic, social and medical impacts of the global burden of malnutrition are serious and lasting, for individuals, their families, communities and for the countries that suffer from loss of productivity and therefore lower growth.
• To understand the malnutrition status in India, let us look at the figure below, which gives a succinct snapshot of the same. The critical issue that can be deducted from the figure is that even though little improvement can be observed from National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-3 to NFHS-4, the improvement is not on course to meet all nine global nutrition targets. Another important fact that comes through, is that more than 50 per cent of our children and adolescent women are anemic.

Initiatives by Government:

• As has been mentioned above, minor improvements have been observed between NFHS-3 and NFHS-4, which implies that the policies and initiatives of the Government are in the right direction and making an impact.
• The determinants of health comprise various factors across the socio-economic, cultural and behavioural realms. In the past few years, significant work has been done on several key determinants of nutrition. The Swachh Bharat Mission focuses on creating Open Defecation Free (ODF) communities; this has significantly contributed to reduced incidences of diarrhea and gut infections amongst children. The Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana provides support to pregnant women and lactating mothers and also encourages health seeking behaviour and immunisation.
• Mission Indradhanush, which targets the left out and missed out children and pregnant women for immunisation, is aimed on increasing the rates of complete immunisation of women and children. Mothers Absolute Affection (MAA), the exclusive breastfeeding initiative, is focused on increasing rates of exclusive breast feeding to reduce infection amongst children up to the age of 6 months.
• For children, adolescents and pregnant women, to manage nutrition issues, MoFIFW also implements the Intensified Diarrhoea Control Fortnight (ICDF) programme, National Deworming Day (NDD) programme and the Pradhan Mantri Surakshit Matritva Abhiyaan (PMSMA). In September 2017, the cost norms for providing supplementary nutrition through anganwadis to pregnant women and lactating mothers, children and adolescent girls were revised and linked with the food price index.
• However, these are all individual and independent programmes run by separate Ministries and work has been carried out in silos. International experience has shown that converging initiatives such as these, with focus on areas with high malnourishment, accelerates the rate of reduction of malnourishment; and this was the genesis of the National Nutrition Mission (NNM). On the occasion of International Women's Day 2018, Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi launched the NNM.

The 6X6X6 AMB strategy:

• Provision of supervised biweekly iron folic acid (IFA) supplementation by the ASHAfor all under five children;
• Weekly IFA supplementation for 5-10 years old children;
• Annual/biannual deworming (children and adolescents); Point of care testing (POCT) and treatment for in-school adolescents and pregnant women using newer technologies; Establishing institutional mechanisms for advanced research in anaemia;
• Addressing non-nutritional causes of anaemia; and Setting a comprehensive communication strategy including mass/mid media/social media communication material (radio and TV spots, posters, job-aids, interpersonal communication (IPC) material, etc).

Conclusion:

• Nutrition is certainly a policy issue going beyond women and children alone, as the country has moved away from the selective emphasis of the MDGs to the more comprehensive SDGs. The increasing burden of communicable diseases as well as over-nutrition, are leading to complex policy challenges: for example, diabetes and hypertension prevalence are higher among men than women, although more women are overweight/obese.
• The focus is on enhancing awareness around nutrition and healthy eating practices, and to make a shift to a healthy lifestyle too. Hence, while government policies and programmes are converging and taking steps to manage malnutrition, the most important factor affecting positive change will be behaviour change of the population, where individuals and communities make informed choices regarding their nutrition needs and the food they eat, and also changing to a healthy lifestyle which strongly compounds the benefits of healthy eating. As the tagline of POSHAN Abhiyaan states: Sahi Poshan Desh Roshan— a healthy population is the foundation rock of a healthy and productive nation.

Study Material for UPSC General Studies Pre Cum Mains

(GIST OF YOJANA) Salient features of the E-waste (Management) Amendment Rules, 2018 [JANUARY-2020]

Salient features of the E-waste (Management) Amendment Rules, 2018

• The e-waste collection targets under EPR have been revised and applicable since 1 October, 2017.
• The phase-wise collection targets for e-waste in weight shall be 10% of the quantity of waste generation as indicated in the EPR Plan during 2017-18, with a 10% increase every year until 2023.
• After 2023 onwards, the target has been made 70% of the quantity of waste generation as indicated in the EPR Plan.
• Separate e-waste collection targets have been drafted for new producers, i.e. those producers whose number of years of sales operation is less than the average lives of their products.
• The average lives of the products will be as per the guidelines issued by CPCB from time to time.
• Producer Responsibility Organisations (PROs) shall apply to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) for registration to undertake activities prescribed in the Rules.
• Under the Reduction of Hazardous Substances (RoHS) provisions, cost for sampling and testing shall be borne by the government for conducting the RoHS test. If the product does not comply with RoHS provisions, then the cost of the test will be borne by the Producers.

Study Material for UPSC General Studies Pre Cum Mains

(GIST OF YOJANA) National Voters' Day 2020 Electoral Literacy for a Stronger Democracy [JANUARY-2020]

National Voters' Day 2020 Electoral Literacy for a Stronger Democracy

Introduction

• National Voters’ Day is celebrated since 2011 to mark the Foundation day of the Election Commission of India (ECI), which was established on this day in the year 1950. Every vote counts in the elections. NVD was initiated in 2011 by the Commission to highlight the value of vote and importance of every vote in democracy. NVD marks the Foundation day of Election Commission of India, which was established on this day in the year 1950.

Objectives:

• The main purpose of the celebration is to encourage, facilitate, and maximise the enrolment, especially for the new voters. Dedicated to the voters of the country, the day is also utilised to spread awareness for effective participation in the electoral process.
• Each year, simultaneous celebrations are organised at the National level. State level, district level down to the polling station level making it the largest celebration of democracy in the world.
• National level function is organised at New Delhi by ECI where Hon’ble President of India graces the occasion as Chief Guest. Awards are given away to the National, Special and Zonal recipients besides the ‘Best State Award’ and ‘Media Awards’ for excellence, proficiency, and innovation in electoral process and outstanding performance.
• Best Practices in Election Management in the fields of Voter Education, Security Management, Infrastructure Management, Expenditure Monitoring and Tackling Money Power, Use of Technology, Management of Electoral Rolls, Innovation etc. are considered.
• The selection process is fairly comprehensive and aims at eliciting the best of the talent and performance among election officials and stakeholders. New voters (18+ years old) are given their Elector Photo Identity Card.

Voters’ Pledge:

• We, the Citizens of India, having abiding faith in democracy, hereby pledge to uphold the democratic traditions of our country and the dignity of free, fair and peaceful elections, and to vote in every election fearlessly and without being influenced by considerations of religion, race, caste, community, language or any other inducement.
• NVD celebrations focus on a specific theme every year. The theme sets the tone for the activities conducted throughout the year. Yearwise themes are as follows;
• 2011: Greater Participation for a Stronger Democracy
• 2012: Women’s Registration
• 2013: Inclusion
• 2014: Ethical Voting
• 2015: Easy Registration, Easy Correction
• 2016: Inclusive and Qualitative Participation; No voter to be left behind
• 2017: Empowering Young and Future Voters
• 2018: Accessible Elections
• 2010: No Voter to be Left Behind
• 2020: Electoral Literacy for a stronger Democracy

Electoral literacy programme:

• ECI launched the Electoral literacy programme under SCALP on the eve of 8th NVD and by now about 5.8 lakh Electoral Literacy Clubs (ELC), Chunav Pathshalas, and Voter Awareness Forums have been set up across the country. These forums work on the principle of engaging the target populations through hands-on experience on the electoral process.
• The ELCs operate at the level of schools, colleges, and other institutions of learning; Chunav Pathshalas operate at community levels; and the Voter Awareness Forums operate at the level of organisations including Government offices. The programme is envisaged to expand and cover all the institutions.
• Mandate for universal equal suffrage emanates from Article 326 of the Constitution. The mandate was further enhanced with the Constitution (Sixty-first Amendment) Act, 1988 that reduced the voting age to 18 years. As per its mandate, the Election Commission made sustained efforts to enroll all eligible electors. Yet, voters’ apathy and lack of enrolment and participation of certain sections of society, especially the new voters (18+), was a challenge. During the Diamond Jubilee celebration in 2010, the Commission had a focused analysis of both, the enrolment and electoral participation, especially among the young voters.
• The Commission decided to take up a rigorous exercise to identify all eligible voters attaining the age of 18 as on 1st January every year in each polling station area of the country, enroll them and handover their Elector Photo Identity Cards on 25 January. The initiative aimed at providing the youth a sense of citizenship, empowerment, and pride in electoral participation as also to inspire them in exercising the newly acquired franchise.
• Thus as a measure of enhancing participation of citizens, especially the youth in democratic electoral process ECI decided to celebrate 25 January its Foundation Day, as the National Voters’ Day every year.

Key outcomes:

• Outcomes in terms of enrollment of voters emanating from the initiative have been encouraging. The Lok Sabha Elections 2019 saw a historic voter turnout of 67.47% Voter turnout had increased to a record 66.44% in 20 14 from 58. 19% in 2009. The number of electors that was 83.4 crore on the eve of 2014 General Elections rose to 91 crore ahead of Lok Sabha Election 2019. This is an addition of over 7.46 crore electors which included 4.07 crore women and 3.3 crore men.
• Moreover, women participation also increased to a historic 66.79% in 2019 reducing the gender gap to 0.01% as compared to 1.46% in 2014 elections. Also, with an aim to ensure accessible elections, 62 lakh Persons with Disability (PwD) electors were identified.
• At present, about 91 crore Indian citizens are registered as voters. The Commission has demonstrated fulfillment of its mandate through conduct of successive elections in the country right from 1950 onwards. The strength of its electoral processes is seen both with awe and respect among democracies of the world. Today, the electoral operations of India are the largest in the world as demonstrated in the Lok Sabha Election 2019 where about 1.2 crore polling officials worked at over 10 lakh polling stations in the country.

Conclusion:

• A voter is the central unit of a democracy and its electoral processes. NVD connects voters with the electoral process and renews both, their relevance and contribution to the democracy.
• NVD inspires the voters, the key stakeholder in democratic polity besides other stakeholders including election machinery. Today NVD initiative has been institutionalized as an annual feature for celebration of democracy and electoral participation in the country.

Study Material for UPSC General Studies Pre Cum Mains

(The Gist of Science Reporter) NASA’s TESS Unveils New Planetary System [JANUARY-2020]

NASA’s TESS Unveils New Planetary System

• Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) of NASA discovered a new planetary system comprising three new planets orbiting a nearby dwarf star called TESS Object of Interest (TOI) 270.
• The newly found planetary system is about 73 light-years away in the Southern Constellation of the Pictor.
• The dwarf star is 40% smaller than the sun in size and mass both.
• The new planetary system will enable a better understanding of the formation and evolution of planetary systems.
• A study describing the system was published in the journal Nature Astronomy.

Study Material for UPSC General Studies Pre Cum Mains

(The Gist of PIB) National Mission for Safety of Women [JANUARY-2020]

National Mission for Safety of Women

• To bring out more stringent provisions and expeditious trial and disposal of such cases, the Union of India enacted the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2018.

Key highlights:

• They have taken up work of setting up Fast Track Special Courts (FTSCs) as a part of the National Mission for Safety of Women (NMSW). Accordingly, the Central Government has started a Scheme for setting up of 1023 FTSCs across the country based on the pendency of subject cases obtained from various High Courts (1,66,882 numbers as on 31.03.2018) for time bound trial and disposal of pending cases related to rape and POCSO Act.
• Further, in pursuance to the direction of Supreme Court of India in Suo Motu Writ Petition (Criminal) No.01/2019 dated 25.07.2019, out of 1023 FTSCs, 389 Courts have been proposed to be set up exclusively for POCSO Act related cases in Districts where pendency of such cases is more than 100.
• The Scheme was circulated to all concerned State Governments/ Union Territories Administrations in September 2019. Efforts are constantly being made to obtain consent/willingness of remaining States/UTs.
• The Department of Justice in the Government of India is constantly endeavoring to extend requisite assistance to the High Courts and State Governments in setting up these Courts for prompt trial and disposal of cases to ensure a safe and worth living environment especially to women and children in totality.
• 216 numbers of POCSO courts have already been operationalized in 12 States under the scheme.

Study Material for UPSC General Studies Pre Cum Mains

(The Gist of PIB) Muppavarapu Venkaiah Naidu National Awards [JANUARY-2020]

Muppavarapu Venkaiah Naidu National Awards

• Eminent Agricultural Scientist Dr. M S Swaminathan and well-known social worker, Dr. Gutta Muniratnam were respectively chosen as the first recipients of ‘Muppavarapu Venkaiah Naidu National Award for Excellence’ and ‘Muppavarapu National Award for Social Service’’

About:

• The National Award for Excellence was instituted by the Muppavarapu Foundation, while the one for Social Service was launched by the Swarna Bharat Trust, in Hyderabad.
• M.S. Swaminathan, a plant geneticist by training, was awarded for his distinguished contributions to the field of agriculture. He is widely referred to as the scientific leader of the green revolution movement.
• Dr. G Muniratnam was awarded for his extraordinary contribution in improving the quality of people’s lives through social service. He is Founder Secretary of Tirupati -based Rashtriya Seva Samiti and an exemplary social worker.
• Each award carries a cash prize of Rupees Five Lakh and citation.

Study Material for UPSC General Studies Pre Cum Mains

Matter of her right

• The Union cabinet has done well to approve a Bill that seeks to amend India’s outmoded abortion law. On Tuesday, it gave its nod to the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (Amendment) Bill, 2020.

Highlights the Medical Termination of Pregnancy Act:

• It will amend the Medical Termination of Pregnancy (MTP) Act, 1971.
• The Bill seeks to increase the upper gestation limit from 20 to 24 weeks for termination of pregnancy.
• This provision applies to unmarried women and therefore, relaxes one of the regressive clauses of the 1971 Act — single women couldn’t cite contraceptive failure as a reason for seeking abortion. It also has a provision to protect the privacy of the person seeking abortion.
• The MTP Act, 1971 was replete with unclear language, which resulted in doctors refusing to perform abortions even within the stipulated 20 week gestation limit.
• Women had to seek the approval of the judiciary, which, by most accounts, did not always come in time.
• Union Minister of Information and Broadcasting said that the MTP Bill 2020 “will help reduce maternal mortality”.
• Extending the gestation period to 24 weeks is a significant step in this regard.
• However, the government should also learn from the experiences of the 1971 Act: The new piece of legislation should be worded in a manner that obviates frequent appeals to the judiciary.

Criticism of MTP Act 1971:

• It was that it failed to keep pace with advances in medical technology that allow for the removal of a foetus at a relatively advanced state of pregnancy.
• Moreover, a number of foetus abnormalities are detected after the 20th week, often turning a wanted pregnancy into an unwanted one.

Way forward:

• The proposed MTP law intends to address such medical complications. But matters related to women’s agency over her womb get complicated by the social milieu in parts of the country.
• The ante-diluvian preference for a male child keeps sex determination centres in business in spite of their illegal status.
• There are concerns that a more liberal abortion law can aggravate this state-of-affairs.
• The litmus test of the proposed MTP law’s claims to being women-centric lies in addressing all such concerns.

  Online Coaching for UPSC PRE Exam

  General Studies Pre. Cum Mains Study Materials

India’s civil society moment (Indian Express)

• We the people of India, will not tolerate the fusion of religious identity and citizenship, will not sanction dilution of secularism and equality, will not accept irresponsible amendments to the Constitution, and will not endure vicious attempts to divide us.

Civil society:

• The concept of civil society is normative, insofar as it specifies that associational life in a metaphorical space between the market based on profit, and the state that embodies power, is a distinct good.
• Associational life neutralises the individualism, the atomism, and the anomie of modern life. Social associations enable the pursuit of multiple projects and engender solidarity.
• The projects can range from developing awareness about climate change, to discussing and dissecting popular culture, supporting needy children, organising neighbourhood activities, and safeguarding human rights.
• Above all, the concept recognises that even democratic states are imperfect. Democracy has to be realised through sustained engagement with the holders of power.
• Citizen activism, public vigilance, informed public opinion, a free media, and a multiplicity of social associations are indispensable for this task.

Objective of civil society:

• The minimal avatar of civil society — that of mobilisation against authoritarian regimes — that has proved politically effective since the last decades of the 20th century.
• This concept has motivated thousands of people across the globe to stand up and speak back to a history, not of their making.
• The objective of civil society is not to takeover the state. That is left to political parties.
• Vibrant civil societies are born out of complete disenchantment with the party system. They are, and remain, the public conscience of society.
• The powerful states have collapsed like the proverbial house of cards before street assemblies and demonstrations.

Way ahead:

• We do not need to worry about who should lead civil society mobilisation in India. Nor should we worry about where it is heading.
• It is enough that citizens have gathered in public spaces to fight a government increasingly seen as authoritarian and divisive. Moreover, civil societies eschew organisation, leadership and goals.
• Organisation leads to bureaucratisation, leaders rapidly become tyrants, and no one agent is capable of defining what the goals of a complex society should be.
• The task of civil society is not to wage a revolutionary war. Its task is to awaken people to the fact that they have a right to hold governments responsible for acts of omission and commission.
• When it takes on authoritarian states, the strength of civil society is its spontaneity and collective mobilisation. Its weapon is the Constitution; its demand is respect for constitutional morality.

Conclusion:

• Civil society is not an institution; it is a space, the site for many projects that restore democracy. This is India’s civil society moment. It needs to be celebrated.

  Online Coaching for UPSC PRE Exam

  General Studies Pre. Cum Mains Study Materials

Donald Trump’s peace plan for Israel and Palestine (The Hindu)

• The West Asia peace plan unveiled by U.S. President Donald Trump seeks to give the Israelis what they have long wanted — an expansive state with Jerusalem as its “undivided capital” and tight security control over a future Palestinian state.
• With his plan, Mr. Trump is actually pushing to revive the stalled two-state talks between the Israelis and the Palestinians, but on his own terms.
• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who had earlier spoken against the two-state solution, has accepted the Trump plan, while appearing beside the President in the White House. The Palestinians were absent.

What’s the plan?

• Both Israel and the Palestinians make non-negotiable claims over Jerusalem. The plan says Jerusalem will not be divided, and it will remain “the sovereign capital of the State of Israel”.
• The capital of Palestine can occupy far-flung eastern neighbourhoods lying beyond “the existing security barrier”, which can be renamed Al Quds, the Arabic name for Jerusalem.
• Israel does not have to dismantle any of its illegal settlements in the West Bank.
• To the Palestinians, the deal offers the possibility of a US-recognised quasi sovereign state that will not, however, have a standing army; they will also have to give up violent resistance to Israel, and ensure the disbandment of Hamas, which governs Gaza.
• Observers have said that the deal, which was drawn up without any meaningful Palestinian participation, is loaded in Israel’s favour. 

Will it work?

• The Palestine position, which is backed by most of the world powers, is the formation of an independent, sovereign Palestinian state based on the 1967 border with East Jerusalem as its capital.
• Issues like the right of return of the Palestinian refugees are to be settled in final negotiations. But Mr. Trump has effectively rejected the Palestinian claims outright and asked them to make more compromises.
• He seeks to give Jerusalem and about 30% of the West Bank to the Israelis and has denied the right of return of the Palestinian refugees — all for truncated sovereignty for the Palestinians in a state that would practically be surrounded by Israel.
• And for this, the Palestinians should take action against militant groups, stop supporting Palestinian families of those jailed or killed by Israel and refrain itself from questioning the occupation in international fora.

Way forward:

• It's hard to overlook the injustice in demanding that the Palestinians accept further annexation of the West Bank.
• Issues such as the status of Jerusalem and the right to return of refugees, an internationally accepted right, and the final borders should be resolved through talks, not by dictating terms
  to one party.

  Online Coaching for UPSC PRE Exam

  General Studies Pre. Cum Mains Study Materials

A deliverance: On pregnancy termination bill (The Hindu)

• The Centre’s move to extend the limit of medical termination of pregnancy to 24 weeks is a sagacious recognition of this, and needs to be feted.

Why it is so significant?

• The extension is significant, the government reasoned, because in the first five months of pregnancy, some women realise the need for an abortion very late.
• Usually, the foetal anomaly scan is done during the 20th-21st week of pregnancy. If there is a delay in doing this scan, and it reveals a lethal anomaly in the foetus, 20 weeks is limiting.
• Obstetricians argue that this has also spurred a cottage industry of places providing unsafe abortion services, even leading, in the worst of cases, to the death of the mother.
• When women take the legal route to get formal permission for termination after 20 weeks, the tedium is often frustrating and stressful for a mother already distressed by the bad news regarding her baby.
• The extension of limit would ease the process for these women, allowing the mainstream system itself to take care of them, delivering quality medical attention.

Factors related with abortion:

• The question of abortion needs to be decided on the basis of human rights, the principles of solid science, and in step with advancements in technology.
• A key aspect of the legality governing abortions has always been the ‘viability’ of the foetus.
• This indicates, in human gestation, the period from which a foetus is capable of living outside the womb.
• As technology improves, with infrastructure upgradation, and with skilful professionals driving medical care, this ‘viability’ naturally improves.
• Viability is usually placed at about seven months (28 weeks) but may occur earlier, even at 24 weeks.

Way forward:

• Ultimately, nations will have to decide the outer limit also based on the capacity of their health systems to deliver care without danger to the life of the mother; there is no uniform gestational viability for abortion.
• It needs to ensure that all norms and standardised protocols in clinical practice to facilitate abortions are followed in health care institutions across the country.
• Since everything rests on the delivery, stopping short would undoubtedly make this progressive order a mere half measure.

  Online Coaching for UPSC PRE Exam

  General Studies Pre. Cum Mains Study Materials

(The Gist of Science Reporter) First Direct Evidence of White Dwarf Stars [JANUARY-2020]

First Direct Evidence of White Dwarf Stars

• For the first time, astronomers at Warwick University found direct evidence of white dwarf stars solidifying into crystals.
• They also observed that the sky is filled with white dwarf stars, out of which the oldest is almost completely crystallized.
• White dwarf stars are some of the oldest stellar objects in the universe and are very useful to astronomers as their predictable life cycle allows them to be used as cosmic clocks to estimate the age of groups of neighbouring stars to a high degree of accuracy.
• The study was published in Nature.

Study Material for UPSC General Studies Pre Cum Mains

(The Gist of Kurukshetra) HEALTH SYSTEM: TOWARDS A NEW INDIA [JANUARY-2020]

HEALTH SYSTEM: TOWARDS A NEW INDIA

Introduction:

• India has made noteworthy strides on health and nutrition over the last two decades. Polio guinea worm disease, yaws as well as maternal and neonatal tetanus have been eliminated.
• The Total Fertility Rate has reduced sharply from 2.7 in 2005-06 to 2.2 in 2015-16 and for the first time the birth cohort has fallen below 25 million. Contrary to expectations, we were able to achieve the Millennium Development Goals in respect of the Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR level of 130 against a target of 139) as well the Under-5 child mortality target (U5 MR level of 43 against a target of 42).
• Infant Mortality Rate has also reduced from 57 per 1000 live births in 2005-06 (National Family Health Survey-3) to 41 per 1000 live births in 2015-2016 (NFHS-4). Given the size, complexity and diversity of our country, the importance of these improvements in the health and nutrition status of the population cannot be underestimated.

Challenges:

• India's health system is still facing multiple challenges. There are significant inter and intra-state disparities in outcomes and socio-economically disadvantaged groups are especially vulnerable to gaps in healthcare access. Additionally, while the burden of non-communicable diseases is rising, there is also a substantial unfinished agenda with respect to communicable diseases as well as maternal and child health.
• The health system is fragmented at multiple levels: payers and modes of financing, providers of healthcare services and the digital backbone. Currently the government (Union and States combined) spends approximately 1.13 per cent of GDP on health. As a consequence, households finance 62 per cent of the healthcare spending through out-of-pocket expenditure at the point of care. Risk pooling is low, with less than 35 percent of the population participating in any risk pooling scheme and less than 10 per cent being covered by a functioning risk-pooling mechanism which provides effective protection against catastrophic health events.
• Delivery of health services is also fragmented into small sub-scale entities with 95 per cent of the care being delivered by providers employing less than 10 workers each, adversely affecting the quality and efficiency of service delivery.
• The digital systems used in these health care entities, if at all used, are also siloed in the absence of mandatory adherence to any data standard. The result is that the patient health records lie buried in manual systems or disparate IT systems with little standardization and almost no possibility of interoperability. This limits the availability of information that could potentially guide policy making.
• While there is no doubt that building a well-functioning system is a work of decades, the the government has initiated systematic efforts over the last few years by taking a comprehensive view of the health system and impacting its multiple determinants.

Public and Primary Health:

• Over 2.55 crore children and 70 lakh pregnant women were immunized over a period of two years under Mission Indradhanush. The programme has emerged as a global best practice in public health. Further, Rotavirus and Pneumonia vaccines were introduced in an effort to counter pneumonia and diarrhoea in children less than 2 years of age. For the first time, a comprehensive effort is being made for incorporating traditional medicine within the overall framework for promoting health and well-being through the National AYUSH Mission.
• In 2017, the first-ever All India Institute of Ayurveda was launched along the lines of AIIMS, New Delhi, for creating synergies between the traditional wisdom of Ayurveda and modern technologies. Cleanliness is crucial for preventing diseases. Following the implementation of the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, nearly 100 per cent of households in rural India now have access to a toilet, compared to merely 29.1per cent in 2005-06.
• The battle against Tuberculosis (TB) has also been escalated through the launch of a new National Strategic Plan in 2017. The thrice weekly treatment regimen has been changed to a daily fixed-dose drug regimen and a sum of Rs. 600 crore has been allocated for providing nutritional support to TB patients in the Union Budget 2018-19. Going forward, the establishment of dedicated public health cadres by States needs to be prioritised with training imparted on critical skills such as the ability to integrate health with its social determinants, carry out community surveillance, analyse data and enable public participation, disseminate health promotion information and effect behaviour change.
• To build a robust primary healthcare system, the government has announced the setting up of 150,000 Health and Wellness Centres (HWCs) between 2018 and 2022 under the Ayushman Bharat initiative. Currently, over 27,000 HWCs are operational across the country. Historically, only a selective package of services has been provided at the primary care level in India, however, the HWCs will deliver a comprehensive package of diagnostic, curative, rehabilitative and palliative services for communicable as well as non-communicable diseases. Moreover, the Centres will provide diagnostics and drugs free of cost which will have a direct impact on controlling out-of-pocket expenditures. Currently, over 55 per cent of India's out-of-pocket expenditure is on outpatient care, of which drugs constitute the biggest component.

Secondary and Tertiary Healthcare:

• The second pillar of Ayushman Bharat is the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY) which will provide 10 crore of the poorest and most vulnerable families in the country an annual cover of Rs. 5 lakh per annum for hospitalization related expenses.
• By consolidating multiple health insurance schemes under PM-JAY, the government is taking a major step towards 'One Nation One Scheme' which will ultimately ensure that all citizens can access a common package of secondary and tertiary health services regardless of the State in which they reside. Thus far, 19,624 hospitals have been empanelled under PM-JAY and over 70 lakh patients have been admitted.

Human Resources for Health:

• We cannot build a world-class health system without first investing in a world-class medical education system. Earlier this year, the government enacted the landmark National Medical Council Act 2019 for overhauling medical education in India. Central and State government medical colleges are being upgraded to add 10,000 undergraduate and 8,058 postgraduate seats by 2020-21, ensuring the presence of at least one medical college for every 3-5 Parliamentary Constituencies and at least one in every State.
• Similar efforts are also underway for producing the requisite number of skilled nursing professionals through the setting up of 112 Auxiliary Nursing and Midwifery schools and 136 General Nursing Midwifery schools in underserved districts of the country. Further, minimum qualifications for teachers in medical institutions have been rationalized for the Diplomate of National Board. This is expected to expand the pool of candidates eligible for appointment as faculty by 3700 a year.

Medicines and Devices:

• More than 5,500 Jan Aushadhi stores have been opened for providing quality drugs at affordable prices and the government plans to expand the number of stores to 7,500 by 2020. It is estimated that these stores serve between 10-15 lakh people across India on a daily basis.
• To make medicines affordable for all citizens, the government has also fixed the ceiling prices of nearly 850 drugs. Further, the prices of Drug Releasing Stents which are used for treating blocked arteries were also lowered from INR 30,180 to INR 27,890. This is a significant step because an estimated 5 lakh patients undergo the stent procedure every year.
• Recognizing the vital role played by medical devices in ensuring a well-functioning health system, the Medical Devices Rules were notified by the government in 2017. Previously, only 15 categories of devices had been subject to regulation, that too under the umbrella of drugs. India also finalized its first National Essential Diagnostics List earlier this year to guide decision making with respect to the different kinds of diagnostic tests required by healthcare facilities across the country. Moreover, to boost indigenous production the government is supporting the establishment of medical device parks in India.

Health Technology and Data Systems:

• Tools such as telehealth, mobile health and Artificial Intelligence (Al) are helping to lower barriers between hospitals and patients, thereby improving access to care, especially in Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities.
• India has made considerable progress in leveraging Information Communication Technology (ICT) for enhancing the coverage and quality of maternal and child health services. For example, the Auxiliary Nurse Midwives Online or ANMOL application has been developed to equip public health workers to register pregnant women, encourage institutional birthing and monitor immunisation programmes for newborns.
• In the area of digital health, the National Health Stack proposed by NITI Aayog in 2018 is an important step. It is designed to offer a suite of advanced technologies which can be incorporated into overall digital health implementation in India. The availability of these "plug-in" modules will simplify and accelerate progress in implementing digital health in facilities and for health payers.
• It will also facilitate collection of comprehensive healthcare data across the country. The focus of this work will allow policymakers to experiment with policies, detect fraud in health insurance, measure outcomes and move towards smart policy making.
• In 2019, the National Digital Health Blueprint was released by the government. The key features of the blueprint include a Federated Architecture, a set of architectural principles, a 5-layered system of architectural building blocks, Unique Health ID (UHID), privacy and consent management, national portability and Electronic Health Records (EHRs) among others.
• Operationalizing EHRs for every citizen will be the key to optimizing health information systems. A system-wide EHR will enable monitoring of diseases, expenditures and performance to deliver financial and health outcomes.
• AI solutions can provide doctors with an unbiased second opinion on diagnosis, treatment options, potential risks and predicted outcomes. For doctors working under considerable time pressure, AI can prove to be an important supportive tool by collating test reports of patients, studying their medical records and suggestion treatments.
• Crucially, AI can enable healthcare personnel to detect the dormant signs of diseases, thereby ensuring prevention or treatment at an early stage. Cancer screening and treatment is one area where AI provides tremendous scope for targeted large scale interventions. Indian witnesses an incidence of more than 1million new cases of cancer every year, a number that is likely to increase given the ageing Indian population and lifestyle changes. NITI Aayog is in advanced stages of launching a programme to develop a national repository of annotated and curated pathology images for cancer screening and treatment.

Nutrition:

• A critical determinant of ill health is malnutrition. Even though governments have launched multiple schemes over the years, a robust convergence mechanism has been absent, resulting in persistent high levels of malnutrition in the country.
• To tackle this challenge comprehensively, the POSHAN Abhiyaan was launched to provide an appropriate governance structure reflecting the many overlapping factors like access to sanitation and health services that affect the nutritional status of an individual or household.
• The Abhiyaan is targeting a reduction in stunting, under-nutrition, anaemia and low birth weight by at least 2 per cent, 2 percent, 3 per cent and 2 per cent per annum respectively.
• The POSHAN Abhiyaan. focuses on engaging all stakeholders to make nutrition a Jan Andolan. Rashtriya POSHAN Mah has been celebrated in the month of September for the last two years. In 2018, it reached out to over 25 crore people with messages on crucial practices like antenatal care, optimal breastfeeding, anaemia, growth monitoring, delaying age at marriage for girls and hygiene, among others.
• Rashtriya POSHAN Mah, 2019 focused on creating awareness about essential health and nutrition interventions during the first 1000 days of a child's life, prevention of diarrhoea, Anaemia Mukt Bharat, complementary feeding practices as well as the importance of clean water, sanitation and hygiene.

Way forward:

• A challenge that will need to be addressed going forward is the prevalence of Overweight Obesity which is one of the most important risk factors for non-communicable diseases.
• While it currently affects the affluent sections of society disproportionately, the transition of the risk factor will progressively impact all population groups including poorer households.
• To address the Overweight-Obesity burden in the country, a lifecycle approach that focuses on ensuring the availability and consumption of adequate quantities of nutritionally balanced food at every stage of life is required. Surveillance mechanisms for monitoring overweight-obesity prevalence in the population must be established and scaled-up. Physical and wellness activities like Yoga also need to be promoted in every age group.
• In its Three-Year Action Agenda, NITI Aayog called for a new wave of institution building with a strong and a pro-active stewardship role by the government to overcome the persistent challenges while also leveraging the potential of a mixed health system. The government has launched several reform initiatives over the last few years which need to be rigorously implemented.
• Additionally, the key enablers of health system reform such as financing, organisation and provision of service delivery as well as digital health need to be strengthened as highlighted in the book Health System for a New India: Building Blocks released by NITI Aayog earlier this year.

Study Material for UPSC General Studies Pre Cum Mains

(The Gist of Kurukshetra) Key Govt. Initiatives, Policies and Programmes to Tackle Nutrition Challenges [JANUARY-2020]

Key Govt. Initiatives, Policies and Programmes to Tackle Nutrition Challenges

• 1951- India's Five-year plans were the major vehicles to improve health and nutrition in India. The first one was launched in 1951. Since then till 12th five-year plan of India (2012-17). The five year plans were key policy instruments to tackle under-nutrition.
• 1952 - Community Development Program (CDP) had an important component of improving nutritional status of population at block level and with engagement of local self-government.
• 1974- Minimum Needs Programme (MNP) was introduced in the first year of the Fifth Five Year Plan (1974-78). The MNP was aimed to provide certain basic minimum needs and improve the living standards of people including health and nutrition services.
• 1975- The integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) was launched on 2 Oct 1975 to improve health and nutritional status of women and children in India.
• 1986- A separate Dept, of Women and Child Development (DoWCD) was established Ministry of Human Resource Development (HRD) under Govt of India. This department was responsible for ICDS and other nutrition services for pregnant women and children.
• 1993- National Nutrition Policy was released
• 1995-The Government of India initiated the National Programme of Nutritional Support to Primary Education (NP-NSPE) on 15 August 1995. This was based upon learning and extension of the Mid-Day Meal (MDM) scheme launched by Govt, of Tamil Nadu in early 1960s and adopted by a number of states since then.
• 2006- Full-fledged Ministry of Women & Child Development (MoWCD) was established
• 2017- Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandan Yojana (which was announced on 31 Dec 2016) was officially implemented from the year 2017 onwards and provides financial support to identified groups of pregnant women for their first pregnancy.
• 2017-'National Nutrition Strategy' released by NITI Aayog, Govt of India.
• 2018- POSHAN Abhiyaan.

Study Material for UPSC General Studies Pre Cum Mains

(GIST OF YOJANA) Sustainable Sanitation In The Cities [JANUARY-2020]

Sustainable Sanitation in the Cities

Introduction:

• The Census (2011) revealed that 12.6% of households in Urban India were practising Open Defecation (OD). While this was definitely lower than the extent of OD (68%) in rural India, it was nonetheless adversely impacting the health of urban citizens and the overall environment.
• Moreover, with only 38% coverage of septic tanks and less than 33% coverage of sewerage network in the country, more than 70% of the discharge from the toilets, be it from household or from community/public toilets, were being disposed off in an unsafe manner.
• A bigger cause of worry was that 75% of fresh water resource used for drinking purpose was contaminated with sewage contributing to 60% of total pollution load (CPCB Report, 2009).

The Cost of Poor Sanitation:

• The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) place significant emphasis on sanitation, cleanliness, and hygiene. There is significant evidence globally that better sanitation, hygiene, and cleanliness help in effective control of various vector-borne diseases, parasite infections, and nutritional deficiencies.
• There have been studies linking cleanliness and hygiene with reduction in gastrointestinal diseases (especially diarrhoea), psychological issues, and allergic conditions. As per a UNICEF report (2011), almost 90% of child deaths from diarrhoeal diseases are directly linked to contaminated water, lack of sanitation, or inadequate hygiene.
• In addition to the impact on the communicable diseases, better sanitation leads to reduction in occurrences of low birth weight in babies, spontaneous abortions, and occurrences of birth defects. Studies have proved that improvement in sanitation and hygiene results in better health outcomes.
• As per the India Health Report for Nutrition Security in India (PHFI, 2015)', the North Eastern State of Mizoram has reported a 13 percentage-point decline in stunting (below normal height for the age) and five percentage points decline in underweight children (underweight and short) between 2006 and 2014 due to improved access to sanitation. Improved sanitation has been shown to have significant impact not only on health, but also on social and economic development, particularly in developing countries. For example, an independent study conducted by UNICEF in India in August 2017 established that every Indian family will save about Rs. 50,000 annually if open defecation is eliminated.

Journey to Sustainable Urban Sanitation:

• On 2 October, 2019, Urban India became Open Defecation Free (ODF) a fitting tribute to Mahatma Gandhi on his 150th birth anniversary. This historical feat achieved in only a short span of five years was remarkable, given that no Government programme till date had focused on the issue of urban sanitation. In the intervening five years, not only was the sanitation objective of the Mission fulfilled, but lakhs of citizens, especially women, have been provided dignity and safety and significant reduction in vector borne diseases with consequent improvement in health parameters has been experienced, setting urban India on the path of holistic cleanliness.
• The Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) has been implementing various Missions of the Government of India, viz. Swachh Bharat Mission (Urban), AMRUT, Smart Cities Mission, NERUDP all of which address the issue of Urban sanitation. Over the last five Cars the urban sanitation initiatives of the Government have achieved impressive success, with more than 99% of its cities and 35 States/UTs having become ODF (under Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban). Other Key Enablers: Leveraging Technology, Intensive Behaviour Change & Capacity Building of ULBs
• In addition, MoHUA’s initiatives in urban sanitation have been complemented significantly through a variety of enablers, viz.
• Leveraging technology and ‘smart' solutions to widen citizen outreach (e.g. Google mapping of public toilets, Swnchhnta app as a Citizens’ grievance redressal system on all aspects of sanitation);
• Robust online MIS and portal for real time data capture;
• Swachh Manch for large scale citizen engagement;
• Behaviour change initiatives (e.g., engagement of celebrities as ambassadors, mass media audio/video campaigns, swachhata selfie, on-ground citizen activation, etc.); and
• Continuous capacity building of ULBs through dissemination of technical advisories, providing need-based handholding support, classroom- and field visit-based workshops, etc.

Way Forward:

• Urban India is now poised at a crucial juncture. While the sanitation situation in cities and towns has definitely improved, there is still a lot that remains to be done, so that all cities become truly smart and liveable.
• For example, while sufficient toilets (both for individual households and community/public toilets) have been constructed and people have started using them instead of going out for defecation, the issue of maintenance of the community/public toilets needs to be strengthened further to ensure that the toilets do not fall into disuse. Similarly, the issues of safe containment, transportation and disposal of faecal sludge and septage from toilets, as also the grey and black water from households and establishments need to be strengthened further if the health impacts of holistic sanitation are to be realised.
• This is especially true for smaller cities without sewer networks, and for 60% households in the country that are dependent on onsite sanitation facilities such as septic tanks, which are more often than not constructed without soak pits, and where desludging trucks routinely empty the collected, untreated faecal sludge into open fields and water bodies. This implies that the health and other beneficial impacts of holistic sanitation are not likely to be achieved in the cities, despite being ODF.

Study Material for UPSC General Studies Pre Cum Mains

(GIST OF YOJANA) Kayakalp: Transforming Public Health Facilities [JANUARY-2020]

Kayakalp: Transforming Public Health Facilities

Introduction:

Kayakalp initiative of the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare began in 2015 with the aim of improving infrastructure upkeep, hygiene and sanitation, and infection control practices in Central Government institutions and public health facilities in all the States and UTs.

Major highlights of the scheme:

• Health facilities are assessed and scored on a number of parameters, and every year the highest-scoring facilities at each level receive recognition though Kayakalp Awards that carry cash, apart from the citation.
• The scheme has resulted in significant improvement in the level of the cleanliness, hygiene, and infection control practices at public healthcare facilities and has inculcated a culture of ongoing assessment and peer review to promote hygiene, cleanliness, and sanitation. For ensuring the objective assessment of “Swachhata” at the public health facilities, assessment is done under seven thematic areas.
• Training is provided for not only undertaking the assessment but also for implementation of correct protocols and practices. Trained assessors undertake the final assessment and generate a score for short-listed health facilities. Kayakalp has not only been able to facelift the public health facilities but has made significant contributions towards moulding the behavioural practices of the public.
• This paradigm shift is well reflected in the number of “satisfied" patients as reported through “Mera Aspataal '', an ICT-based patient feedback system. Kayakalp made a modest beginning in its first year with assessing only the District Hospitals (DH). Subsequently, within a span of three years, all the Sub District Hospitals, Community Health Centres, and Primary Health Centres (Rural and Urban) have also been brought under its ambit.
• The number of facilities participating in Kayakalp has increased manifold. Starting with participation of 700 DHs, in the last financial year, approximately 26,000 health facilities have participated in Kayakalp. Not only the number of facilities participating under the initiative has multiplied, the number of facilities scoring 70% (passing criteria) or more has also increased manifold over the years.
• Apart from the gargantuan participation of the primary and secondary-level healthcare facilities, tertiary-level healthcare facilities participate with the same vigour and enthusiasm. With participation of 10 facilities in year 2015-16, the number has risen to 24 Central Government institutions in the year 2018-19. Taking a step ahead, from FY 2019-20, Kayakalp has now been introduced to Ayushman Bharat Health and Wellness Centres (ABHWCs). Also, in order to ensure that “voice of patients, the health clients” is heard and their feedback is obtained for each of the facilities visited by them, the data of ‘Mera Aspataal’ household toilets have been Kayakalp scoring for DHs.
• In the current year, for holistic and comprehensive improvement across the health sector, the Kayakalp scheme has been extended to the private sector health facilities. Quality Council of India (QCI) through its constituent National Accreditation Board for Hospital & Healthcare Providers (NABH) conducted Kayakalp assessment in the private hospitals. The assessments were conducted as per the Kayakalp guidelines established by MoHFW encompassing parameters viz. hospital/facility upkeep, sanitation and hygiene, waste management, infection control, hospital support services, and hygiene promotion. QCI conducted Kayakalp assessments in 653 private hospitals pan India within a duration of two months.
• The hospitals were classified in three categories and out of the 653 facilities, 635 hospitals were found compliant with Kayakalp Guidelines.
• MoHFW has also used the platforms of Village Health Sanitation and Nutrition Committees (VHSNCs) under the National Health Mission and Mahila Arogya Samitis (MAS) under the National Urban Health Mission (NUHM) to promote sanitation in the vulnerable urban communities.
• Many States have adopted innovative practices in making VHSNCs and MAS effective. Accredited Social Health Activists (ASHs) also work with VHSNCs to mobilise the community for construction and use of toilets. MAS are recently established community groups of about 12 to 20 women from primarily poor and vulnerable populations in urban areas, and they are working for mobilizing communities on a range of issues, including sanitation.
• Not only healthcare professionals or health departments, MoHFW has worked on inter-ministerial collaboration for hygiene and sanitation. Leveraging the momentum achieved under Kayakalp, MoHFW and Ministry of Jal Shakti started an integrated scheme, the “Swachh Swasth Sarvatra” in December 2016. Under this initiative, resources have been provided to CUCs located in Open Defecation Free (ODF) blocks which are yet to meet the Kayakalp criteria. In 2019, the country’s three best PHCs under Kayakalp from Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, and Karnataka were also felicitated by Ministry of Jal Shakti.
• Efforts made under Kayakalp and Swachh Bharat Abhiyan have been well recognised by the WHO as well, which mentions that nearly all (97%) DHs now have some or the other form of proper waste management.
• Swachh Bharat Abhiyan along with Kayakalp has given thrust to the country’s efforts to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 3 (Good health and well-being) and Goal 6 (Clean water and sanitation) respectively.
• As reported by the WHO, it is expected that Swachh Bharat Abhiyan will result in averting more than 3,00,000 deaths (diarrhoea and protein-energy malnutrition) between 2014 and October 2019. More than 14 million DALYs (Disability Adjusted Life Years) are estimated to be avoided (diarrhoea and protein energy malnutrition) between 2014 and October 2019.
• The achievements under the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan are applaudable. As many as one crore household toilets have been built since its launch in October 2014, almost 6 lakhs villages have been declared ODF villages and 35 States/UTs too are now ODF.

Way forward:

• The initiative has been able to create a ripple of improvement in the public health sector and has been possible because of the collaborative efforts of all States. This being said, the overall activities to maintain hygiene have now developed into a habit, sustaining a Kayakalp certification or an ODF certification has led to people practicing hygiene practices in their daily lives.
• Not only have hygiene habits lead to overall positive health outcomes (reduction in hospital-acquired infection, reduction on antibiotic use etc.) the clean facilities have given a takeaway message to people to also keep their home and surroundings clean and that is an impact beyond the four walls and boundaries of a public health facility, indeed. The synergy and momentum achieved under Swachh Bharat Mission shall continue to expand and deliver a ‘Clean India, a Healthy India’.

Study Material for UPSC General Studies Pre Cum Mains

(The Gist of PIB) Exercise Cutlass Express 2019 [FEBRUARY-2019]

Exercise Cutlass Express 2019

• INS Trikand, a front-line warship of the Indian Navy, participated in a multinational training exercise ‘CUTLASS EXPRESS – 19’ held from 27 Jan to 06 Feb 19.

Key highlights

• The aim of the exercise was to improve law enforcement capacity, promote regional security and progress inter-operability between the armed forces of the participating nations for the purpose of interdicting illegal maritime activity in the Western Indian Ocean.
• During the exercise, Naval, Coast Guard and Marine Police personnel from a number of East African countries were jointly trained by mentors from USA, India, and Netherlands, with support of
  international organisations like the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), Combined Maritime Force (CMF) and European Naval Forces (EUNAVFOR).
• The Indian Navy played a significant role in ‘CUTLASS EXPRESS – 19’, being involved in planning, coordination and execution.
• Through INS Trikand, the IN provided a platform for live Visit Board Search Seizure (VBSS) drills, which proved to be of immense training value to the participating nations.

Key highlights of this exercise

• The exercise was conducted in two phases.
• The first, called the Command Post Exercise (CPX) was conducted from 27 Jan to 02 Feb 19.
• It involved training of personnel on shore for coordination and conduct of VBSS operations.
• During the CPX, extensive training and interaction was carried out between the officers and sailors of the Indian Navy and personnel from the participating nations.
• The training included exposure of the personnel to the various software tools used by the US Navy and the European Union for integration of maritime information, with a view to positively identify a suspicious vessel and direct a VBSS operation against it.
• The second phase called the Final Training Exercise (FTX) was conducted from 03 - 05 Feb 19.
• This phase consisted of actual boarding operations at sea and live boardings were out onboard INS Trikand, anchored off Djibouti harbour.
• The closing ceremony of the event was held at the Djibouti Naval Base on the morning of 06 Feb 19.

Study Material for UPSC General Studies Pre Cum Mains

(The Gist of PIB) GOVERNMENT OF INDIA HAS TAKEN SEVERAL INITIATIVES TO PROVIDE ‘SABKO SHIKSHA ACHCHI SHIKSHA’ [FEBRUARY-2019]

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA HAS TAKEN SEVERAL INITIATIVES TO PROVIDE ‘SABKO SHIKSHA ACHCHI SHIKSHA’

• The Government of India has taken several initiatives to provide ‘Sabko Shiksha Achchi Shiksha’ i.e. for making available good quality education, accessible and affordable for all.
• In pursuance of the proposal of the Union Budget, 2018-19, to treat school education holistically without segmentation from pre-school to Class XII.
• The Department of School Education and Literacy has launched the Samagra Shiksha - an Integrated Scheme for School Education as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme with effect from the year 2018-19.
• This programme subsumes the three erstwhile Centrally Sponsored Schemes of Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) and Teacher Education (TE).

About Samagra Shiksha program

• Samagra Shiksha is an overarching programme for the school education sector extending from pre-school to class XII and aims to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education at all levels of school education.
• It envisages the ‘school’ as a continuum from pre-school, primary, upper primary, secondary to senior secondary levels.
• The main emphasis of the Scheme is on improving quality of school education and the strategy for all interventions would be to enhance the Learning Outcomes at all levels of schooling.

Objectives

• Provision of quality education and enhancing learning outcomes of students;
• Bridging Social and Gender Gaps in School Education;
• Ensuring equity and inclusion at all levels of school education;
• Ensuring minimum standards in schooling provisions;
• Promoting Vocationalisation of education;
• Support States in implementation of Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009; and
• Strengthening and up-gradation of SCERTs/State Institutes of Education and DIET as nodal agencies for teacher training.

Features

• Provision for up-gradation of schools up-to senior secondary level and strengthening of school infrastructure as per norms.
• Composite school grant increased from Rs. 14,500-50,000 to Rs. 25,000-1 Lakh and to be allocated on the basis of school enrolment.
• Annual Grant for sports equipment at the cost of Rs. 5000 for Primary Schools, Rs.10,000 for upper primary schools and up to Rs. 25,000 for secondary and senior secondary schools.
• Annual grant for Library at the cost of Rs. 5,000/- for Primary School, Rs.13,000/- for composite Elementary school, Rs. 10,000/- for Secondary school (Class 9th & 10th), Rs.10,000/- for Senior Secondary school (Class 11th & 12th), Rs. 20,000/- for composite Senior Secondary school (Class 1st to 12th).
• Allocation for Children with Special Needs (CwSN) increased from Rs. 3,000 to Rs. 3,500 per child per annum including a stipend of Rs. 200 per month for CWSN girls to be provided from Classes I to XII – earlier it was only for classes IX to XII.
• Allocation for uniforms enhanced from Rs. 400 to Rs. 600 per child per annum.
• Allocation for textbooks enhanced from Rs. 150/250 to Rs. 250/400 per child per annum.
• Upgradation of Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas (KGBVs) from Class 6-8 to Class 6-12.
• Strengthening Teacher Education Institutions like SCERTs and DIETs to improve the quality of teachers with SCERT as the nodal institution for in-service and pre-service teacher training
• Enhanced use of digital technology in education through smart classrooms, digital boards and DTH channels.

Study Material for UPSC General Studies Pre Cum Mains

(The Gist of PIB) Urban Affairs Ministry launches Light [FEBRUARY-2019]

Urban Affairs Ministry launches Light

House Project challenge

• The Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs has instituted a challenge for States/ UTs to select six sites across the country for constructing the Lighthouse project  under GHTC-India.
• MoHUA encourages all States/ UTs to participate in this challenge proactively.

Key highlights

• The winning six States/ UTs that score the highest marks across the prescribed criteria will be awarded lighthouse projects.
• The States/ UTs will receive Central Assistance to construct these projects as per PMAY (U) guidelines.
• In addition to this, a Technology Innovation Grant (TIG) for the States/ UTs is provisioned to offset the impact of any additional cost implication due to the use of new technology and to absorb the issues related to economies of scale and other related factors.
• The selected sites for lighthouse projects will be used as an ‘open laboratory’ for live demonstration and will receive due attention from academia (Civil Engineering, Planning, Architecture), practitioners (Public/ Private), policy makers (Central/ State) and media apart from felicitation/ recognition in Grand Expo-cum-Conference
• The Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs has already launched a “Global Housing Technology Challenge-India (GHTCIndia)”.

The challenge has three components

• Conduct of Grand Expo-cum-Conference,
• Identifying Proven Demonstrably
• Technologies from across the globe and
• Promoting Potential Technologies through the establishment of Affordable Sustainable Housing Accelerators- India (ASHA-I) for incubation and accelerator support.
• Out of the three, the second component intends to identify and pilot ‘Proven Demonstrable Technologies’ from around the world in actual housing projects in different parts of the country.
• The shortlisted global technology providers will be invited to plan and construct light house projects within the framework of PMAY (U) on pre-selected sites provided by States/UTs across six identified PMAY.

Study Material for UPSC General Studies Pre Cum Mains

(The Gist of PIB) Cultural Heritage Youth Leadership Programme (CHYLP) [FEBRUARY-2019]

Cultural Heritage Youth Leadership Programme (CHYLP)

• The scheme for Cultural Heritage Youth Leadership Programme (CHYLP) envisaged enriching awareness of Indian culture and heritage amongst the youth in order to promote, understand and develop fondness for India’s rich cultural heritage, with a view to develop appropriate leadership qualities amongst youth.
• The focus of the programme was to be on less privileged children residing in backward areas by interacting with them in vernacular languages for their better understanding.
• Intermittently programme was given to Centre for Cultural Resources and Training (CCRT), an autonomous organization working under the purview of Ministry of Culture. CCRT organized workshops for the scheme.
• However, to accelerate the process, Museum Division of this Ministry arranged visits of children of unprivileged section of society to museums so that these children may get an opportunity to gain the knowledge relating to the Indian History and Culture and Science.

Study Material for UPSC General Studies Pre Cum Mains