North East India might witness another dry monsoon: Skymet Weather - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

North East India might witness another dry monsoon: Skymet Weather.

This would be the region's 20th dry monsoon in the last 21 years if the prediction holds true

Some parts of North East India might witness another dry southwest monsoon season, according to Skymet Weather, a private weather forecasting company based in Noida, Uttar Pradesh.

“In terms of geographical risk, Skymet expects that the plains of north India, along with a few parts of the north-east region, are likely to be at risk of being rain deficient through the season,” stated a report from the company on its website.

Skymet has forecast a ‘healthy normal’ countrywide rainfall during the monsoon season. The company predicts that the overall rainfall over India in the monsoon season might be 103 per cent of the long period average (LPA), which is considered the normal rainfall.

This prediction has a 60 per cent chance of being true. There is a 15 per cent chance of above-normal rainfall, a 15 per cent chance of below-normal rainfall and a 10 per cent chance of excess rainfall during the season, the agency said.

The northeastern region receives 90 per cent of its rainfall during the monsoon months of June to September.

If Skymet’s prediction comes through, this would be the 20th year in the last 21 years when the region has received below-normal monsoon rainfall, according to data from India Meteorological Department (IMD). Last year, the deficit was 16 per cent.

In 2007, the region had received excess rainfall.

Some states like Meghalaya (40 per cent excess) and Sikkim (60 per cent excess) had rainfall much above their normal quota last monsoon season. Others like Manipur (46 per cent deficit), Mizoram (34 per cent deficit) and Nagaland (29 per cent deficit) saw a severe shortfall, according IMD.

Assam and Arunachal Pradesh, which had above average rainfall, and Tripura, which had below average rainfall, were between the two extremes.

This skewed distribution of rainfall among the states meant that at the end of the season, a third of the region’s 86 districts were left with either deficient or large deficient rainfall. Of the 29 extremely dry districts, 20 were in Nagaland, Manipur and Mizoram.

Many of the states with deficit rainfall during the monsoon season, recovered in the post-monsoon and winter months. Nagaland, for instance, received an excess rainfall of 30 per cent from October 1 to December 6; Tripura, which had a 10 per cent deficit during monsoon, had 21 per cent excess precipitation since October; Manipur and Mizoram also received rainfall which was much closer to the average.

On the other hand, some states like Meghalaya and Sikkim, which had received excess rainfall during the monsoon, went into deficit in the post monsoon period.

Assam was the only state to have fared well throughout.

The region, once again, recorded a whopping 78 per cent rainfall deficit in the winter months of January and February. The situation has not improved since. Between March 1 and March 31, the region had a deficit in rainfall of 47 percent.

India’s north-east region could suffer a drought or drought-like conditions if the rest of the pre-monsoon period and upcoming the monsoon period remain rainless.

The forecast is ominous for a region that mostly depends on agriculture and allied activities and hosts some of the most bio-diverse forests and wetlands on the planet. (Source: downtoearth)

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North East India might witness another dry monsoon: Skymet Weather.

WEF’s gender gap index: India slips 28 places, ranks 140 among 156 countries - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

WEF’s gender gap index: India slips 28 places, ranks 140 among 156 countries.

India had ranked 112th among 153 countries in the Global Gender Gap Index 2020.

India has slipped 28 places to rank 140th among 156 countries in the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report 2021, becoming the third-worst performer in South Asia.

According to the report, India has closed 62.5% of its gender gap till date.

The country had ranked 112th among 153 countries in the Global Gender Gap Index 2020.

Noting that the decline also took place on the economic participation and opportunity subindex, albeit to a lesser extent, the report said India’s gender gap on this dimension widened by 3% this year, leading to a 32.6% gap closed till date.

Most of the decline occurred on the political empowerment subindex, where India regressed 13.5 percentage points, with a significant decline in the number of women ministers (from 23.1% in 2019 to 9.1% in 2021).

“Among the drivers of this decline is a decrease in women’s labour force participation rate, which fell from 24.8% to 22.3%. In addition, the share of women in professional and technical roles declined further to 29.2%. The share of women in senior and managerial positions also remains low: only 14.6% of these positions are held by women and there are only 8.9% firms with female top managers,” the report said.

Further, the estimated earned income of women in India is only one-fifth of men’s, which puts the country among the bottom 10 globally on this indicator, it said.

Discrimination against women is also reflected in the health and survival subindex statistics. With 93.7% of this gap closed to date, India ranks among the bottom five countries in this subindex.

Wide gaps in sex ratio at birth are due to the high incidence of gender-based sex-selective practices. In addition, more than one in four women has faced intimate violence in her lifetime, the report said.

“Conversely, 96.2% of the educational attainment subindex gender gap has been closed, with parity achieved in primary, secondary and tertiary education. Yet, gender gaps persist in terms of literacy: one third of women are illiterate [34.2%] compared to 17.6% of men,” it added.

Among India’s neighbours, Bangladesh ranked 65, Nepal 106, Pakistan 153, Afghanistan 156, Bhutan 130 and Sri Lanka 116.

Among regions, South Asia is the second-lowest performer on the index, with 62.3% of its overall gender gap closed.

“Within the region, a wide gulf separates the best-performing country, Bangladesh, which has closed 71.9% of its gender gap so far, from Afghanistan, which has only closed 44.4% of its gap.

“India is the third-worst performer in the region, having closed 62.5% of its gap. Because of its large population, India’s performance has a substantial impact on the region’s overall performance,” the report said.

In South Asia, only Pakistan and Afghanistan ranked below India.

The report stated that India, home to 0.65 billion women, has widened its gender gap from almost 66.8% one year ago to 62.5% this year.

In Pakistan and Afghanistan, the income of an average woman is below 16% of that of an average man, while in India it is 20.7%, it said.

As the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic continues to be felt, the global gender gap has increased by a generation from 99.5 years to 135.6 years, the report noted.

Now in its 15th year, the report benchmarks the evolution of gender-based gaps in four areas: economic participation and opportunity, educational attainment, health and survival, and political empowerment. It also examines the drivers of gender gaps and outlines the policies and practices needed for a gender-inclusive recovery.

For the 12th time, Iceland is the most gender-equal country in the world. The top 10 most gender-equal countries include Finland, Norway, New Zealand, Rwanda, Sweden, Ireland and Switzerland. (Source: The Hindu)

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WEF’s gender gap index: India slips 28 places, ranks 140 among 156 countries.

Two new seaweed species discovered along India’s coastline - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

Two new seaweed species discovered along India’s coastline.

A group of marine botanists, led by Felix Bast from the Central University of Punjab, Bathinda (CUPB), have traced these native seaweed species along the coasts of Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu and in Gujarat and Daman Diu.

Two new red algal seaweed species, which can be a potential raw material for those involved in jelly and ice cream production, have been discovered along India’s coastline.

A group of marine botanists, led by Felix Bast from the Central University of Punjab, Bathinda (CUPB), have traced these native seaweed species along the coasts of Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu and in Gujarat and Daman Diu.

Both varieties—Hypnea indica and Hypnea Bullata—were discovered in Kanyakumari. The fine and hairy algae Hypnea indica was discovered in Shivrajpur and Somnath Pathan in Gujarat, whereas Hypnea Bullata grew along the coastline of Daman and Diu.

All field samplings for this study, undertaken as part of SERB-Core Research Grant awarded by the Department of Science and Technology, were collected in 2018. The researchers said that the seaweeds thrived on rocks that submerged during high tides and remain exposed during low tides at these locations.

” The challenge while collecting the samples was planning visits to these sites coinciding with low tides, apart from scanning beaches and seas for long distances, sometimes about 100 kms even. We applied morphology with DNA bar coding technique in order to confirm the novelty of these two species,” said Pushpendu Kundu, a fifth year doctoral student at CUPB and co-author of the study, recently published in journal Botanica Marina.

It is for the first time we have discovered these red algal species of sea weeds along Indian coasts, the researchers said.

“These species were not abundantly found but were growing in isolated patches, mainly in the intertidal regions of the sea. The region near the Pamban bridge is an epicentre of algal diversity and needs to be further studied,” said Bast, associate professor and head, Department of Botany at CUPB.

Commercially, Bast said, Hypnea variants of seaweeds can fetch good monetary value if commercial-scale cultivation is taken up. Hypnea contains Carrageenan, a biomolecule commonly used in the food industry. But, seaweed cultivation in India remains unpopular.

” India has a vast coastline of over 7,500 kms. There is a great potential and a need for creating an ecosystem — where farmers and the fishermen communities are scientifically trained in seaweed cultivation. Alongside, associated industries, too, need to support such efforts,” said Bast, who cited successful seaweed cultivation undertaken by smaller countries like Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand.

With India currently drafting its maiden policy on Blue Economy, proposed to improve utilisation of ocean resources in the coming decade, Bast is hopeful about seaweed cultivation in India. The Ministry of Earth Sciences is currently drafting this policy. (Source: The Indian Express)

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Two new seaweed species discovered along India’s coastline.

India, South Korea agree to go for joint production, export of military hardware - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

India, South Korea agree to go for joint production, export of military hardware.

In a significant move, India and South Korea have agreed to go for joint production and export of military hardware, enhance intelligence sharing and boost cooperation in cyber and space domains as part overall expansion of defence and security ties, official sources said on Sunday.

The decisions were taken during delegation-level talks between Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and his South Korean counterpart Suh Wook on Friday with both sides resolving to give a major push to ramp up ties in strategically key areas, they said.

The South Korean minister was on a three-day visit to India from Thursday last that was focused on boosting bilateral defence and military cooperation.

In the field of defence industrial cooperation, the sources said the two sides decided to focus on joint research, joint production and joint export.

"There were extensive discussions on it," said a source.

South Korea has been a major supplier of weapons and military equipment to India. In 2019, the two countries finalised a roadmap for cooperation in joint production of various land and naval systems.

In the talks, the South Korean minister also expressed keenness in seizing the opportunities in India's two defence corridors, particularly by investing in joint ventures under the 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat' (self-reliant India) initiative.

The government is working on setting up two defence industrial corridors in the country, one in Uttar Pradesh and another in Tamil Nadu, with an aim to ensure connectivity among various defence industrial units.

The sources said issues regarding multilateral and regional cooperation in the emerging regional security scenario were also discussed between Singh and Wook.

It is learnt that China's military assertiveness in the region figured in the talks.

The two sides also agreed to increase focus on cyber and space cooperation besides resolving to continue to focus on streamlining the intelligence exchange mechanism.

In the talks, the two ministers exchanged views on the impact of Covid-19 pandemic on the defence and security engagements as well as best practices followed by the armed forces to deal with the pandemic.

The sources said the Korean minister also highlighted the congruence between India's Act East Policy and his country's Southern Policy.

In light of India's experience in the UN peacekeeping operations, the Indian side conveyed to the South Korean delegation that it will ensure an appropriate participation in the upcoming UN Peacekeeping Ministerial meet in that country in December 2021.

The South Korean minister also visited Agra where he was shown capabilities of India's special forces. He also interacted with top executives of defence public sector undertakings and representatives of industry chamber FICCI. (Source: defencenews.in)

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India, South Korea agree to go for joint production, export of military hardware.

World Happiness Report: India ranks 139 out of 149, Finland tops for 4th yr - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

World Happiness Report: India ranks 139 out of 149, Finland tops for 4th yr.

India has been ranked 139 out of 149 countries in the list of UN World Happiness Report 2021 released on Friday which is topped by Finland

The World Happiness Report 2021, issued by the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network, focuses on the effects of COVID-19 and how people all over the world have fared.

It ranks the world's 149 countries on "how happy their citizens perceive themselves to be".

Our aim was two-fold, first to focus on the effects of COVID-19 on the structure and quality of people's lives, and second to describe and evaluate how governments all over the world have dealt with the pandemic. In particular, we try to explain why some countries have done so much better than others, it said in a statement.

It said that India is on the 139th spot in the list. In 2019, India was ranked 140th.

There have been both in-person and telephone samples for India, with the in-person responses being lower than telephone responses, while significantly higher than in-person responses in 2019. Hence the reversal in 2020 of the longer term slide in Indian life evaluations was not attributable to mode effects, it said.

Finland has been ranked as the happiest country in the world. The Nordic nation is followed by Iceland, Denmark, Switzerland, The Netherlands, Sweden, Germany and Norway.

Pakistan is on 105th, Bangladesh on 101st and China on 84th, according to the report.

People in war-torn Afghanistan are the most unhappy with their lives, followed by Zimbabwe (148), Rwanda (147), Botswana (146) and Lesotho (145).

The happiness study ranks the countries of the world on the basis of questions from the Gallup World Poll. The results are then correlated with other factors, including GDP and social security.

The United States ranks at 19th place for happiness, despite being one of the richest countries in the world. (Source: The Business Standard)

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World Happiness Report: India ranks 139 out of 149, Finland tops for 4th yr.

India first Asian country to join International Pulsar Timing Array with uGMRT - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

India first Asian country to join International Pulsar Timing Array with uGMRT.

Observations made by Pune-based upgraded Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (uGMRT) will be used along with the data gathered by some large radio telescopes located in Europe, America and Australia.

India has formally joined the elite league of international radio telescopes that are involved in tracking very low-frequency gravitational waves, especially those emerging from two orbiting very large supermassive blackholes.

Observations made by Pune-based upgraded Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (uGMRT), operated by TIFR – National Centre for Radio Astrophysics (NCRA), will be used along with the data gathered by some large radio telescopes located in Europe, America and Australia.

Last week, the International Pulsar Timing Array (IPTA) approved India’s full membership as the Indian Pulsar Timing Array (InPTA).

With uGMRT, India has become the first Asian country to be a full member of IPTA consortium comprising European Pulsar Timing Array (EPTA), North American Nanohertz Observatory for Gravitational Waves (NANOGrav) and Parkes Pulsar Timing Array (PPTA) from Australia.

With 30 dish antennas each measuring 45m diameter and positioned over 25 km around Khodad village in Junnar, the uGMRT is one of the world’s largest and highly sensitive instruments offering a frequency range between 300 to 800 MHz.

“Presently, the uGMRT is the only radio telescope in the world offering this wide a frequency range and sensitivity. As a result, we will now be able to obtain improved observations by an order of 5, making the overall data more robust. Here on, Indian researchers will get access to international data,” said Bhal Chandra Joshi, NCRA scientist and India representative at the IPTA.

Formally set up in 2019, the InPTA currently has about 25 radio astronomers and research students from Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), NCRA, Raman Research Institute, IIT Hyderabad and Indian Institute of Mathematical Sciences.

“Initially, when we constituted InPTA, it was to test the data quality and observations recorded by uGMRT viz-a-viz the international standards. After receiving satisfactory results, an application for the full membership was sent,” said NCRA director Prof Yashwant Gupta.

It was in 2016 when short-period gravitational waves were first detected using two Laser Interferometer Gravitational wave Observatories (LIGO) located in the US.

But in order to monitor and capture the much fainter long-period gravitational waves emerging from blackhole pairs measuring billions of times larger than our Sun, collaborative and synchronised observations from multiple large radio telescopes are required. As the long-period gravitational waves measure some nano Hertz, ground-based instruments like LIGO too fall short in capturing these.

To tackle this problem, the IPTA set up three international experiments using EPTA, PPTA and NANOGrav. These together make up the millisecond pulsars, considered the most accurate clocks in the universe.

“Through these experiments, it will be possible to identify changes in periods caused by the passing long-period gravitational waves and remove any delays caused by the interstellar medium. Such discoveries can further our understanding about the universe and offer newer insights into gravitational wave astronomy,” the researchers said.

Without collaboration, discovery of long-period gravitational waves can take about a decade. “But with the help of IPTA experiments, it will be possible to make discoveries in fewer years. India too will enjoy the credits for all discoveries,” said Joshi. (Source: The Indian Express)

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India first Asian country to join International Pulsar Timing Array with uGMRT.

New technology for High Electron Mobility Transistor will make India self-reliant in power transistor technology - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

New technology for High Electron Mobility Transistor will make India self-reliant in power transistor technology.

Scientists from Bangalore have developed a highly reliable, High Electron Mobility Transistor (HEMTs) that is a normally OFF device and can switch currents up to 4A and operates at 600V. This first-ever indigenous HEMT device made from gallium nitride (GaN) is useful in electric cars, locomotives, power transmission and other areas requiring high voltage and high-frequency switching would reduce the cost of importing such stable and efficient transistors required in power electronics.

Power electronic systems demand high blocking voltage in OFF-state and high current in ON-state for efficient switching performance. Specific transistors called HEMTs made of aluminium gallium nitride/ gallium nitride (AlGaN/GaN) provides an edge over silicon-based transistors as they allow the systems to operate at very high voltages, switch ON and OFF faster, and occupy less space. Commercially available AlGaN/GaN HEMTs use techniques to keep the transistor in normally OFF state, which affects the stability, performance and reliability of the device.

Therefore, to meet this need, Prof. Mayank Shrivastava, Dept. of Electronic Systems Engineering, his co-investigators Prof. G. Narayanan, Prof. Digbijoy Nath, Prof. Srinivasan Raghavan and Prof. Navakanta Bhat, from Department of Electrical Engineering, and Centre for Nanoscience & Engineering, and their students, all from Indian Institute of Science Bangalore (IISc), have developed the new kind of HEMT, which is in the OFF state by default and works like any other commonly used power transistor. Such transistors are called e-mode or enhancement mode transistors. Supported by the Department of Science & Technology (DST), Government of India, under the ‘Make in India’ initiative, they developed the new technology and device architecture using an Aluminium titanium oxide gate.

The developed technology is a first of its kind, which uses a type of chemical called ternary oxide (composed of two different metal ions combined in an oxide matrix or Al, Ti and O), which behaves like material having larger positive charge concentration (p-type material). It does away with intrinsic reliability and performance issues of the in-use industrial techniques for e-mode HEMTs, allowing the development of efficient power switching systems.

This device will now be taken up for the prototype development and field-testing level (TRL 5). The scientists used aluminium titanium oxide as the gate oxide, where the percentage of aluminium could be controlled during the fabrication process. Since aluminium titanium oxide is stable, it resulted in high reliability of the transistor.

The projected overall power device market is set to cross the 18 Billion $ mark by 2020, out of which the market for HEMTs is projected to cross the 5 Billion US$ market. So, GaN HEMTs will acquire a major share of the power device market. With a growing market for electric vehicles in India, such an indigenous development can make India self-reliant for transistor technology. (Source: pib)

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New technology for High Electron Mobility Transistor will make India self-reliant in power transistor technology.

India’s arms imports fell by a third between 2011-15 and 2016-20: report - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

India’s arms imports fell by a third between 2011-15 and 2016-20: report.

However, India remains the second highest importer, only behind Saudi Arabia. The top five global arms exporters were the US, Russia, France, Germany and China in 2016-2020.

At a time when the government is trying to reduce the import dependence when it comes to defence platforms and weapons, a report by Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), an international organisation that tracks arms trade, has mentioned that India’s arms imports came down by a third between 2011-2015 and 2016-2020.

However, India remains the second highest importer, only behind Saudi Arabia. The top five global arms exporters were the US, Russia, France, Germany and China in 2016-2020.

In its study released on Monday, SIPRI stated, “Arms imports by India decreased by 33 per cent between 2011–15 and 2016–20. Russia was the most affected supplier, although India’s imports of US arms also fell, by 46 per cent.”

The report attributed the fall not to the government’s push to make India self-reliant in defence manufacturing, but to factors including reducing the dependence on Russian arms, and the complex procurement procedure.

“The drop in Indian arms imports seems to have been mainly due to its complex procurement processes, combined with an attempt to reduce its dependence on Russian arms.

The report also mentioned that in the coming years, India has planned for a number of large-scale arms imports through several suppliers.

Last year the government had announced a negative imports list of 101 defence equipment and platforms. Also, over 60 per cent of the capital expenditure, Rs 70,221 crore, for the armed forces has been allocated for domestically produced weapons and platforms this year.

The report stated that “international transfers of major arms stayed at the same level between 2011–15 and 2016–20” as the “substantial increases in transfers by three of the top five arms exporters — the USA, France and Germany — were largely offset by declining Russian and Chinese arms exports”. The report said middle eastern arms imports grew by 25 per cent during this period, and was driven by Saudi Arabia, with a 61 per cent increase, and Egypt and Qatar, which saw a jump of 136 per cent and 361 per cent, respectively.

In the international arms transfers, Russia and China saw their exports fall, the report said. “Arms exports by Russia, which accounted for 20 per cent of all exports of major arms in 2016–20, dropped by 22 per cent,” to roughly the same level as in 2006–10, the report mentioned.

It highlighted that the bulk of Russian fall was due to India reducing its imports from there.

Alexandra Kuimova, Researcher with the SIPRI Arms and Military Expenditure Programme, said, “Russia substantially increased its arms transfers to China, Algeria and Egypt between 2011–15 and 2016–20, but this did not offset the large drop in its arms exports to India.” (Source: The Indian Express)

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India’s arms imports fell by a third between 2011-15 and 2016-20: report.

India's foreign exchange reserves world's fourth largest after surpassing Russia - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

India's foreign exchange reserves world's fourth largest after surpassing Russia.

Reserves for both countries have mostly flattened out this year after months of rapid increase. India pulled ahead as Russian holdings declined at a faster rate in recent weeks.

India’s foreign-exchange reserves surpassed Russia’s to become the world’s fourth largest, as the South Asian nation’s central bank continues to hoard dollars to cushion the economy against any sudden outflows.

Reserves for both countries have mostly flattened out this year after months of rapid increase. India pulled ahead as Russian holdings declined at a faster rate in recent weeks.

India’s foreign currency holdings fell by $4.3 billion to $580.3 billion as of March 5, the Reserve Bank of India said on Friday, edging out Russia’s $580.1 billion pile. China has the largest reserves, followed by Japan and Switzerland on the International Monetary Fund table.

India’s reserves, enough to cover roughly 18 months of imports, have been bolstered by a rare current-account surplus, rising inflows into the local stock market and foreign direct investment.

Analysts say a strong reserves position gives foreign investors and credit rating companies added comfort that the government can meet its debt obligations despite a deteriorating fiscal outlook and the economy heading for its first full-year contraction in more than four decades.

“India’s various reserves adequacy metrics have improved significantly, particularly in the last few years,” Kaushik Das, chief India economist at Deutsche Bank, said before the latest data were released. “The healthy FX reserves position should give enough comfort to RBI for dealing with any potential external shock-driven capital-stop or outflows in the period ahead.”

The RBI bought a net $88 billion in the spot forex market last year, central bank data show. That helped make the rupee the worst performer among Asia’s major currencies last year and earned India a place on a US Treasury watchlist for currency manipulation.

A recent RBI report recommended further strengthening of foreign-exchange reserves, citing swings in the rupee around the time of the global taper tantrum in 2013. Governor Shaktikanta Das has said that emerging market central banks need to build reserves to prevent any external shocks, irrespective of being put on watch by the US. (Source: hindustantimes.com)

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India's foreign exchange reserves world's fourth largest after surpassing Russia.

State of India’s environment: Quality of air, water, land worsened in India’s industrial clusters - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

State of India’s environment: Quality of air, water, land worsened in India’s industrial clusters.

Tarapur in Maharashtra emerged the most polluted cluster between 2009 and 2018

A new monitoring mechanism is indicating that industrial pollution levels continue to worsen in India. An evaluation of 88 industrial clusters identified by central and state pollution control boards (CPCB and SPCBs) as polluted industrial areas has thrown up a bleak picture of air, water and land contamination in the country, said the 2021 State of India’s Environment (SoE) report.

SoE is an annual publication brought out by Down To Earth in association with Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), a Delhi-based non-profit. The report will be released February 25, 2021 at an online event by over 60 environmental thinkers and activists, journalists and academics from across India.

In 2009, the Central Pollution Control Board had developed the Comprehensive Environmental Pollution Index (CEPI), which characterises the environmental quality of a location and identifies severely polluted industrial areas. According to CEPI data, air pollution worsened in 33 of the 88 industrial clusters between 2009 and 2018.

In Delhi’s Najafgarh drain basin, the CEPI air quality score went up from 52 in 2009 to over 85 in 2018. Mathura (Uttar Pradesh) had a score of 48 in 2009, which shot up to 86 in 2018.

The Bulandshahr-Khurja area in Uttar Pradesh nearly doubled its score, from 42 in 2008 to over 79 in 2018. Gajraula (Uttar Pradesh) and Siltara (Chhattisgarh) scored over 70 in 2018.

The quality of water deteriorated in 45 of the 88 clusters in this same period. Sanganer (in Rajasthan) and Gurugram (in Haryana) had a CEPI water quality score of more than 70 in 2018. Tarapur (Maharashtra), Kanpur (Uttar Pradesh) and Varanasi-Mirzapur (Uttar Pradesh) — all indicated scores that were 80 or above.

The comparison of CEPI 2009 and 2018 data shows that land pollution has increased in 17 of the 88 clusters. The worst performer here has been Manali, whose CEPI score went to over 71 in 2018 from 58 in 2009.

In terms of overall CEPI scores, 35 of the clusters have indicated a rise in environmental degradation. Tarapur (in Maharashtra) has had the ignominy — says the SoE — of the highest overall CEPI score of over 96 in 2018. (Source: downtoearth)

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State of India’s environment: Quality of air, water, land worsened in India’s industrial clusters.

Isro says India's second Mars mission Mangalyaan-2 will be an orbiter mission - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

Isro says India's second Mars mission Mangalyaan-2 will be an orbiter mission.

On a day when Nasa's rover Perseverance landed on Mar to look for signs of past life on the Red Planet, chief of Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) K Sivan said India would also send a second Mars mission and this mission is likely to be an orbiter.

However it is not yet known when this mission, named Mangalyaan-2, will be ready.

As per a report by news agency PTI, Sivan said Mangalyaan-2 will be undertaken only after the launch of Chandrayaan-3, India's upcoming Moon mission.

In Chandrayaan-3, Isro would be aiming to land a rover on the Lunar surface. This mission has been delayed due to the coronavirus-induced pandemic. It is expected that that the mission will lift off in 2022.

Speaking about the Mar's mission to PTI, Sivan said landing there is "more tough".

After its first Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) was successful, Isro called for 'Announcement of Opportunities' on MOM-2.

Sivan said Mangalyaan-1, India's first Mars mission, is "still working good" and sending data.

"It is now planned to have the next orbiter mission around Mars for a future launch opportunity," according to the Announcement of Opportunities.

Sivan said the space agency had asked the scientific community for suggestions on possible experiments and it is in the process of receiving these. "Once we get these suggestions, we will prepare a project report and have discussion in (an expert) committee. Then we will go to Space Commission," Sivan was quoted as saying by PTI.

Speaking about Mangalyaan-2, he said it will only be an orbiter mission.

Mangalyaan-1 was launched in November 2013 and entered the Martian orbit in September 2014.

It was designed to work for six months but now the mission is in its seventh year.

Mangalyaan-1 or Mars Orbiter Mission was India's first Endeavour to successfully reach another planet.

The launch vehicle, spacecraft and ground segment cost Rs 450 crore, one of the cheapest missions to Mars so far.

The Mars orbiter has sent thousands of pictures to talling more than two terabytes. ISRO has other major projects lined up. After the Mars Orbiter Mission's success, it also decided to explore Venus.(Source:defencenews.in)

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Isro says India's second Mars mission Mangalyaan-2 will be an orbiter mission.

India lost crops on 18 million hectares to extreme floods from 2017-2019: Govt - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

India lost crops on 18 million hectares to extreme floods from 2017-2019: Govt.

Madhya Pradesh hardest-hit; figures show gross underestimation of crop losses due to floods.

India has suffered a huge crop loss on 18.176 million hectares (mha) of land, roughly 8.5 per cent of the total gross cropped area due to floods from 2017-2019, according to data shared by the government in the Lok Sabha February 11, 2021.

Of this, 10.68 mha was affected in 2019 alone. In 2018 and 2017, 2.515 mha and 4.973 mha of cropped area was lost in India. The intensity of extreme floods has increased in the country, affecting newer areas that were not flood-prone earlier.

The flood-prone states of Assam, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh saw extreme floods. They were also witnessed in Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Odisha, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan due to ‘excess’ or ‘large excess’ rainfall in these states, combined with extremely heavy rainfall in a short span of time.

Madhya Pradesh was the hardest-hit among all. It had zero crop loss in both 2017 and 2018. However, it suffered the highest loss of 6.047 mha among all states in 2019 due to extreme rainfall, according to the reply given by Union Minister of State for Jal Shakti Rattan Lal Kataria.

In 2019, the state also saw the second highest claims, after Maharashtra, by farmers for crop insurance under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana. Other states where crop losses were comparatively more were Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat, Rajasthan and West Bengal.

Maharashtra’s data was missing from the reply, along with several other states and Union territories like Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jammu and Kashmir, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim, that had not reported the data for one year or the other. This also indicates gross underestimation of losses to crops due to floods.

Also, the figures for 2020 were not shared in the reply.

Kataria said the Flood Management and Border Areas Programme (FMBAP) scheme for flood management worked in the entire country. River management activities and works related to border areas, with an outlay of Rs 3,342 crore, was under implementation from 2017-18 to 2019-20 and later extended upto March, 2021, he added.

Central assistance amounting to Rs 6,409.96 crore had been released till March, 2020 under this programme.

“The Government of India launched the Flood Management Programme during Eleventh Plan period for providing central assistance to the state governments for taking up works related to river management, flood control, anti-erosion, drainage development, restoration of damaged flood management works and anti-sea erosion works that was continued during the Twelfth Plan,” the reply stated. (Source: downtoearth)

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India lost crops on 18 million hectares to extreme floods from 2017-2019: Govt.

Top of list, India has already seen ten Internet suspensions in 2021 - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

Top of list, India has already seen ten Internet suspensions in 2021.

India leads the global tally in suspension of Internet services over the past decade. In 2019 and 2020 alone, Internet and allied services remained suspended in India for more than 13,000 hours, with as many as 164 instances of shutdowns being enforced.

THE suspension of Internet services at Singhu, Ghazipur and Tikri borders of Delhi as well as adjoining areas again for a day on Saturday means that in less than 40 days of 2021, the Centre or state governments have suspended Internet across the country around 10 times.

Singhu, Ghazipur and Tikri, which are seeing protests by farmers against the new agriculture laws, have had virtually no Internet services since January 26, when there was violence in the Capital during a tractor parade called by the protesters.

Internet, SMS and other services were suspended for more than 24 hours in at least two instances the past month, one each in Delhi and Haryana.

In the longest instance of high-speed Internet being suspended by an elected government, for 552 days, services that had been curtailed in Jammu and Kashmir in August 2019 were fully restored only on Friday.

The state with the maximum Internet suspensions after J&K is Rajasthan.

India leads the global tally in suspension of Internet services over the past decade. In 2019 and 2020 alone, Internet and allied services remained suspended in India for more than 13,000 hours, with as many as 164 instances of shutdowns being enforced, according to data collected by various independent auditors.

In 2019, Indian governments suspended the Internet for 4,196 hours, estimated to have resulted in economic impact in excess of $1.3 billion. In 2020, the total number of Internet blackout hours more than doubled to 8,927, with economic losses of more than $2.5 billion, according to data collected by Top10VPN.com, a global virtual private network (VPN) review website.

Internet was suspended 83 times in 2020 and 106 times in 2019. While at least six times this was for more than 24 hours, in four known instances, the services were cut off for more than 72 hours at a stretch, according to data available in the public domain and also compiled by the Software Freedom Law Centre, India, SFLC.in.

Between 2012 and 2020, Internet services were snapped 437 times, with a sharp increase in 2016. In 2018, the Internet was blacked out 134 times all over India.

While 4G services have now been restored in J&K, this is conditional for mobile Internet users, subject to proper verification by authorities.

The erstwhile state has borne the brunt of the Internet suspensions, with 251 such instances since 2012 of suspensions for at least 24 hours. In 2020, 2019 and 2018, Internet services were completely suspended 69, 55 and 65 times across J&K.

Rajasthan is the second highest in Internet suspensions since 2012, with 18 such instances in 2018, according to data available in public domain. Uttar Pradesh had snapped Internet services 29 times till January 2020.

Internet, voice, as well as other broadband telecom services can be suspended citing public safety and security, either by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) or by the order of an officer of the rank of Joint Secretary or above, authorised by the Centre or the state home secretary, in case of “unavoidable circumstances”.

For Internet shutdowns which are likely to continue for 24 hours or more, the orders have to be issued by the home secretary of the Central or state government under the Indian Telegraph Act of 1885. Such orders must contain detailed reasons for ordering the shutdown and be sent to a review committee the next day. (Source: The Indian Express)

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Top of list, India has already seen ten Internet suspensions in 2021.

Union Budget 2021-22: India to launch Hydrogen Energy Mission - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

Union Budget 2021-22: India to launch Hydrogen Energy Mission.

With the announcement, India has joined the race for producing the next big energy source.

Union Minister for Finance Nirmala Sitharaman announced that the Hydrogen Energy Mission will be launched in 2021-22, during her budget speech February 1, 2021.

“Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while speaking at the Third Re-inVest Conference in November 2020, had announced plans to launch a comprehensive National Hydrogen Energy Mission. It is now proposed to launch a Hydrogen Energy Mission in 2021-22 for generating hydrogen from green power sources,” Sitharaman said.

“Green Hydrogen Mission is not only essential to decarbonise heavy industries like steel and cement, it also holds the key to clean electric mobility that doesn’t depend on rare minerals,” Ulka Kelkar, director, Climate, World Resources Institute, India, told Down To Earth.

Moreover, the hydrogen that the minister talked about was to be generated from green sources.

“Hydrogen can be generated from many sources. But what the minister talked about was the hydrogen sources from renewable sources,” Samrat Sengupta, director, Climate Change and Renewable Energy programme, Centre for Science and Environment, a Delhi-based non-profit, said.

The emphasis on hydrogen in the budget was in line with the technological development in the global north and with a long-term vision towards reduced dependency on minerals and rare-earth element-based battery as energy storage, Sengupta added.

Hydrogen energy technologies across the world have still not become commercially viable, but the energy source is seen as the next big thing as its usage would lead to zero emissions. With the announcement February 1, India has officially joined the race.

“Green hydrogen, produced with renewable electricity, is projected to grow rapidly in the coming years. Many ongoing and planned projects point in this direction. Hydrogen from renewable power is technically viable today and is quickly approaching economic competitiveness,” a 2019 document titled, Hydrogen: A Renewable Energy Perspective by the International Renewable Energy Agency had said.

“The rising interest in this supply option is driven by the falling costs of renewable power and by systems integration challenges due to rising shares of variable renewable power supply. The focus is on deployment and learning-by-doing to reduce electrolyser costs and supply chain logistics. This will require funding. Policy makers should also consider how to create legislative frameworks that facilitate hydrogen-based sector coupling,” it added.

Focussing on the production of green hydrogen in India would mean significantly ramping up the current renewable energy infrastructure across the country, according to experts.

“Green hydrogen energy is vital for India to meet its Nationally Determined Contributions and ensure regional and national energy security, access and availability. Hydrogen can act as an energy storage option, which would be essential to meet intermittencies (of renewable energy) in the future,” Pawan Mulukutla, director, Electric mobility programme, World Resources Institute, India.

Given the range of ways that green hydrogen energy could be produced and used, it allowed the formation of a circular economy, which primarily focussed on ensuring energy security, by utilisation of all the resources possible, Mulukutla added.

However, green hydrogen energy technologies come with their own problems.

“In terms of reaching commercial viability, there are a range of demonstration and real-world live applications currently operating across the world,” Mulukutla said.

He cited the example of a recently opened 8.2-tonne green hydrogen-per-day plant in Quebec, Canada, that will be used for green mobility and heavy industries in the surrounding area. He also cited H21 in the UK.

“In terms of challenges to green hydrogen specifically, cost of renewable electricity is the major problem. Public investments need to strategised and channelled well,” Mulukutla said. (Source: Livemint)

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Union Budget 2021-22: India to launch Hydrogen Energy Mission.

Will a new road between China and Pakistan lead to a military boost against India? - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis

Will a new road between China and Pakistan lead to a military boost against India?.

Pakistan is looking to develop new overland border crossings with China that would potentially boost the allies’ military interoperability against Indian forces in Ladakh and the rest of Kashmir.

Proposals floated this month by the government of the Pakistan-administered Gilgit-Baltistan (GB) region primarily aim to pave the way for a new transit and trade route between China and Pakistan’s neighbours Afghanistan and Iran.

Currently, China and Pakistan are connected only by the Karakoram Highway, completed in 1978, via a single crossing in the Khunjerab Pass.

However, the route of a proposed new border road from Yarkand – on GB’s border with the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region – also suggests strong strategic motivations because it would open a new supply line from China to Pakistani forces deployed along the Line of Control (LOC).

The 740km LOC divides Kashmir roughly into two halves governed by India and Pakistan. Its northernmost point, the India-held Siachen Glacier, is located next to the western extreme of the disputed 3,488km China-India border known as the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

The GB government’s public works department was instructed on January 15 to prepare a “project concept clearance proposal” for a 10-metre-wide road capable of being used by trucks, from the Mustagh Pass on the border with the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region via the eastern GB region of Skardu, where the Siachen Glacier is located.

The proposed new road would be linked to Yarkand in Xinjiang, and enter GB 126km west of Ladakh, crossing the major supply artery from the Karakoram Highway near Skardu city. From there, it would run south through the high-altitude Deosai Plateau to the Astore Valley, where the southern flank of GB meets the LOC amid the Himalayas.

In a video posted on social media platforms this month, GB chief minister Khalid Khurshid announced plans to drill a road tunnel through the mountains to connect Astore to the Neelum Valley in the Azad Kashmir region, where much of the LOC is thinly demarcated by the Neelum and Jhelum rivers.

The tunnel would be built with the help of Chinese engineering firms, because their Pakistani counterparts lack the expertise.

ALARM BELLS

Washington-based analyst Sameer Lalwani told This Week In Asia there were potentially three logistics and strategic effects of enhanced China-Pakistan connectivity.

“It could deepen trade links by enhancing transport capacity; enable great Pakistan military mobility in any contingency, threatening India’s hold over the Siachen Glacier; and it can even facilitate greater China-Pakistan military coordination that generates peacetime dilemmas and wartime complications for India,” he said.

The proposed Xinjiang-GB-Kashmir road would “certainly ring alarm bells in New Delhi, which has been acutely sensitive to deepening China-Pakistan strategic and military ties over the past decade”, said Lalwani, who is director of the South Asia programme at the Stimson Center, a Washington-based think tank.

“It may also result in the Indian military – which has already sunk considerable resources to retain control of Siachen – concentrating an even greater proportion of money, manpower, and materiel to its continental defences at the expense of maritime power projection,” he said.

The GB government’s decision to initiate work on the new road between Xinjiang and Kashmir is the latest in a series of developments triggered by New Delhi’s August 2019 decision to rescind India-administered Kashmir’s semi-autonomous status under the Indian constitution.

The move saw the region split into two union territories, Kashmir and Ladakh, fuelling tensions with Pakistan and China, their respective counter-claimants.

Forces from China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) subsequently seized 103 square kilometres of India-held territory in Ladakh last year, while Pakistan revised its official map to lay claim to all of Kashmir.

In November, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan announced that GB would be granted provisional provincial status.

Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party won elections held in GB that month, and its new administration there has vowed to embark on a series of development projects aimed at leveraging the region’s position as the cross-border hub for the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC).

Since the CPEC’s launch in 2015, some US$28 billion of power generation, motorway and mass transit projects have been built in Pakistan by Chinese state-owned enterprises, ending crippling power shortages and vastly improving its logistical infrastructure.

As part of Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative, the 15-year CPEC programme was envisioned as a means of integrating the Chinese and Pakistani economies with a view to developing a trade and investment corridor with the Middle East via the Chinese-operated Pakistani port of Gwadar.

‘STRATEGIC OR SECURITY SUPPORT’

Mustafa Hyder, executive director of the Pakistan-China Institute in Islamabad, said “the plan has always been for the CPEC to serve as one corridor with multiple passages”.

“When you talk of the Mustagh Pass or other routes, these are part of the multiple passages which define the CPEC,” he said.

The proposed road from Yarkand to Neelum Valley is part of the historic Silk Road that China has sought to revive under the belt and road plan. Until glaciers blocked the Mustagh Pass in the 1890s, it served as a trade route between Tibet and India.

After much of the Karakoram Highway was upgraded under the CPEC’s first five-year phase, Hyder said “it is only natural that other routes that supplement the Karakoram Highway will come about because the local population and business community of GB foresee a lot of prospective business with China, in which they can be a stakeholder”.

The proposal for the new road was first floated in 2016 during a meeting in Skardu between influential residents and a Chinese delegation.

While conceived as an economic development project, the new China-Pakistan route and other intra-Pakistan connectivity projects “are certainly going to cater to the core interests of Pakistan”, Hyder said.

“If those core interests include strategic or security support to protect Pakistan or China’s sovereignty and security, those roads will certainly be used, if and when need be – and they should be used,” he said.

“The Ladakh stand-off has upped the ante in South Asia. When we talk about the India-China confrontation, particularly post-Ladakh stand-off, the skirmishes between the two sides have alerted neighbouring countries … to the expansionist designs of India, which is being backed by Washington to counter and contain China, and also because of the CPEC, which is seen as a project that needs to be truncated or sabotaged.”

In the video posted online, GB chief minister Khurshid said his administration would also build a westbound highway linking the Karakoram Highway from GB to Chitral, a district of Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province that straddles the Wakhan Corridor, a sliver of Afghanistan that also borders China and Tajikistan.

The Chinese army has since 2018 stationed troops at a dedicated military base in Tajikistan situated 12km from the corridor, and has conducted joint patrols and counterterrorism operations with Afghan security forces to prevent infiltration by militant Uygur groups.

NATURAL PARTNER

Few members of the separatist Turkestan Islamic Party remain in Afghanistan, after hundreds of militants relocated to Syria following the outbreak of civil war there in 2011 to join al-Qaeda and Islamic State militias that have since been defeated.

In recent CPEC joint working-group meetings, discussions between China and Pakistan have progressed on the development of a highway between Chitral and Chakdara, where it would connect to an existing motorway that culminates near Rashakai, home to the top-priority CPEC special economic zone.

From there, it is a short drive to Peshawar and the Khyber Pass into Afghanistan.

“Afghanistan is a natural partner for Pakistan, so we can see multiple opportunities emerging as the infrastructure improves,” said Hyder of the Pakistan-China Institute.

Likewise, Pakistan is moving ahead with upgrades for the highways connecting Peshawar to Gwadar, as well as two motorways that will complete its nationwide network by 2024.

Pakistan is currently fencing its western border with Afghanistan and Iran, along which it will open dedicated crossings to promote legitimate cross-border trade as a replacement for the large-scale smuggling that has been prevalent along the porous boundaries for decades.

Michael Kugelman, senior South Asia associate at The Wilson Center in Washington, said both China and Pakistan had powerful economic motivations for pursuing new connectivity projects.

“With China having controlled the pandemic and showing signs of an economic recovery, it has a strong incentive to roll up its sleeves and focus on new infrastructure projects. The idea is to enhance connectivity efforts, but also to better enable China to project power, especially with an eye towards its nearby rival India,” he said.

“For China’s ally Pakistan, which is keen to push back against India and to see the emergence of new infrastructure in a key strategic space, this is just what the doctor ordered – so long as it’s happy with the financing terms of these projects.”

Pakistan expects its deepening alliance with China to figure prominently in forthcoming talks with the newly installed United States administration led by President Joe Biden.

“The first thing we want to talk about is investment partnerships,” Pakistan’s national security adviser Moeed Yusuf said last week at an online event organised by The Wilson Center.

“This conversation about CPEC is not always positive in Washington – how about an American reprocessing zone? How about American companies coming, investing money, reprocessing for export and sending [goods] wherever they want. How about doing things economically where there can be Pakistan-US-China co-investment?”

Yusuf said Pakistan had rejected the idea of being a member of either the American or Chinese camps as the rivals continue to jostle for supremacy.

“It doesn’t make sense for us to say I’m with one and not the other. Neither, frankly, [have] the Chinese ever asked us that, or the US for that matter,” he said. (Source: pib)

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Will a new road between China and Pakistan lead to a military boost against India?.

India’s rank slips to 86th in corruption perception index 2020 - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

India’s rank slips to 86th in corruption perception index 2020.

The index, which ranks 180 countries and territories by their perceived levels of public sector corruption according to experts and business people, uses a scale of 0 to 100, where 0 is highly corrupt and 100 is very clean.

India’s rank has slipped six places to 86th among 180 countries in a corruption perception index (CPI) in 2020. For 2020, Transparency International (TI)’s corruption perception index was released on Thursday.

The index, which ranks 180 countries and territories by their perceived levels of public sector corruption according to experts and business people, uses a scale of 0 to 100, where 0 is highly corrupt and 100 is very clean.

India’s rank is 86 out of 180 nations with a score of 40. “India was ranked at 80th position out of 180 countries in 2019. The CPI score for India is constant this year as well as the previous year’s score,” the index said.

India is still very low on corruption Index, the report said, noting that experts feel the CPI does not reflect the actual corruption level in any country. The integrity score determines the corruption situation of a country.

This year, New Zealand and Denmark were ranked at first position with scores of 88. Somalia and South Sudan were ranked lowest at 179th position with scores of 12. (Source: The Indian Express)

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India’s rank slips to 86th in corruption perception index 2020.

India's Vaccine Production Capacity One Of World's Best Assets: UN Chief - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

India's Vaccine Production Capacity One Of World's Best Assets: UN Chief.

The UN Secretary-General also expressed hope that India will have all instruments necessary to play a major role in ensuring a global vaccination campaign becomes possible as the world fights the pandemic.

India's vaccine production capacity is one of the best assets the world has today, UN chief Antonio Guterres has said as he applauded India for supplying COVID-19 doses to nations around the world to combat the catastrophic global health crisis.

The UN Secretary-General also expressed hope that India will have all instruments necessary to play a major role in ensuring a global vaccination campaign becomes possible as the world fights the pandemic.

"I would like to say how much we count on India. I mean, India has one of the most advanced pharmaceutical industries. India played a very important role in the production of generics for use that was a very important element of democratisation of access to medicines all over the world," Mr Guterres said.

He was responding to a question by PTI during a press briefing on Thursday on India helping countries around the world in the fight against the global pandemic by supplying COVID-19 vaccines.

"And we strongly hope that India will have all the instruments that are necessary to play a major role in making sure that a global vaccination campaign becomes possible. I think that the production capacity of India is one of the best assets the world has today, and I hope the world understands that it must be fully used," he said.

Mr Guterres added that he reiterated during his briefing to the UN Member States on his priorities for 2021 that licenses should be made available for companies around the world to be able to produce some of the vaccines that already exist.

"I know that, in India, there is a production, a very high level of production, both of Indian-developed vaccines, and I think there is a perspective, very important perspective, of also others. And we are in contact with Indian institutions for that."

India has airlifted more than 6 million COVID-19 doses to nine countries in Phase-I under its initiative termed "Vaccine Maitri". Contractual supplies to various countries are also being undertaken in a phased manner and New Delhi has said it will gradually supply to the COVAX facility of the World Health Organization.

COVAX is the global initiative to ensure rapid and equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines for all countries, regardless of income level.

This month, COVAX had announced that, pending WHO emergency use listings, nearly 150 million doses of the AstraZeneca/Oxford candidate are anticipated to be available in the first quarter of 2021, via existing agreements with the Serum Institute of India (SII) and AstraZeneca.

The Joe Biden administration has also applauded India for sending crucial supplies of the COVID19 vaccine to a host of South Asian nations, describing India as "a true friend" who is using its pharma to help the global community. (Source:ndtv)

"We applaud India''s role in global health, sharing millions of doses of COVID-19 vaccine in South Asia. India''s free shipments of the vaccine began w/Maldives, Bhutan, Bangladesh & Nepal & will extend to others. India''s a true friend using its pharma to help the global community," the US State Department''s account for the Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs had tweeted.

India has assisted more than 150 countries through urgent health and medical supplies. New Delhi has pledged 15 million dollars for GAVI, the Vaccine Alliance, and operationalised the COVID-19 Emergency Fund for its neighbours with an initial contribution of 10 million dollars.

India has already rolled out a massive coronavirus vaccination drive under which two vaccines, Covishield and Covaxin, are being administered to frontline health workers across the country. The country plans to vaccinate about 300 million citizens in the first six months.

Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka and the Maldives have received India''s COVID-19 vaccines under grant assistance in sync with its "Neighbourhood First" policy.

India also began commercial exports of COVID-19 vaccines and sent two million doses each to Brazil and Morocco.

Underlining that the priority for 2021 is to respond to COVID-19, Mr Guterres told the General Assembly earlier in the day that vaccines are the first great moral test before the world. He voiced concern that the world is falling short and vaccines are reaching a handful of countries quickly, while the poorest countries have almost none.

"Science is succeeding, but solidarity is failing. Governments have a responsibility to protect their populations, but COVID-19 cannot be beaten by one country at a time. If the virus is allowed to spread like wildfire in the global South, it will inevitably mutate; it is mutating, becoming more transmissible, more deadly and, eventually, more resistant to vaccines, ready to come back to hound the global North."

He cited recent studies to say that vaccine hoarding could cost the global economy up to USD 9.2 trillion, with almost half of that impact in the wealthiest countries themselves.

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India's Vaccine Production Capacity One Of World's Best Assets: UN Chief.

Will upcoming budget address the needs of ailing healthcare sector in India? - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

Will upcoming budget address the needs of ailing healthcare sector in India?.

A large part of previous budgets was dedicated towards making healthcare cheaper and more accessible, but with the covid-19 pandemic demands increased budget for improving healthcare infrastructure at primary, secondary and tertiary levels and also to propel healthcare sector recovery

COVID-19 pandemic exposing the severe underspending on healthcare in India may lead the sector to receive booster dose in terms of finances in the upcoming budget.

Union government’s stimulus package and PM CARE’s fund allocation to healthcare last year has already indicated that the allocation towards health in the budget would be at the centre stage this fiscal.

Adult vaccination, health infrastructure, diagnostics and out of pocket expenditure that have so far been the most ignored areas, may get some funds for making India more prepared for future pandemics. The public health experts hold major expectation from the health budget. The experts have voiced that more than ever before, the pandemic reiterated the vital importance of a robust healthcare ecosystem and the acute need to strengthen health infrastructure in the country, both that need increased investments and a fertile environment to nurture innovations.

“In battling COVID -19, despite numerous challenges, the private health sector stood firmly with India and now the sector must be supported with farsighted policy interventions that help boost its resilience and sustainability," Preetha Reddy, President NATHEALTH and Executive Vice Chairperson, Apollo Hospitals.

Reddy said that in addition, incentives to create new infrastructure for healthcare services and manufacturing, a 5-year tax holiday for new infrastructure creation, import duty relief for life saving equipment and easing of GST regulations amongst many such initiatives, will all add up to provide gainful employment to millions in the country and also enable India to serve people around the world.

“Likewise, digital healthcare has the inherent potential to improve access to high quality medical care for all and hence, it requires special impetus. The paucity of skilled healthcare resources should also be addressed with forward looking policies," said Reddy.

A large part of previous budgets was dedicated towards making healthcare cheaper and more accessible, but with the covid-19 pandemic demands increased budget for improving healthcare infrastructure at primary, secondary and tertiary levels and also to propel healthcare sector recovery.

“There are indications that the Government is likely to increase healthcare spending in the forthcoming budget announcement. This is most laudable as healthcare is a national priority sector today and we need a dedicated national health fund which can provide all necessary resources and support to fix existing gaps, upgrade healthcare infrastructure, equip district-level hospitals and primary health centres with oxygen supplies, increased beds and medical equipment," Dr Ashutosh Raghuvanshi, Managing Director and CEO, Fortis Healthcare.

“We also need to invest more in medical education and training to address the shortage of healthcare professionals in the country and strengthen the operational modalities to boost digital health and telemedicine services," he said.

With a systematic restructuring of India’s entire healthcare infrastructure already in the works, it is highly likely that the Union Budget 2021 will earmark funds for the growth of telemedicine, which has already proved its mettle during the viral outbreak.

“Schemes like Ayushman Bharat and projects that are being initiated under the National Digital Health Mission are painting a promising picture that the Modi government is dedicated towards taking specialist medical care to Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities. Preferential policies and adequate financing will support research and technological innovations, paving the way for a more agile healthcare ecosystem in the country," said Shashank ND, CEO and CO-founder, Practo.

India has also been looking at atmanirbhar bharat scheme in various sectors including medical devices and exports of the medical equipment, covid-19 vaccines and ayurvedic products.

“Given the rapid technological evolution of medical sciences, access and availability of quality and affordable medical devices are very critical. Hence, the budget 2021 must rationalize the tax liability on the sector to promote availability of affordable care, facilitate Make in India for Atmanirbhar Bharat and encourage exports in the sector to be able to contribute effectively to the economy," said Shravan Subramanyam, President and CEO of GE Healthcare, an American multinational conglomerate.

Currently, India spends 1.15% of the GDP on health. For meeting sustainable development goals (SDGs), India needs to step up public funding for ensuring successful implementation of the National Health Policy (2017). To reach the stated goal of 2.5% of GDP as public financing for health by 2025 from the present 1%, union budgets from now on have to allocate more funds for health in each annual budget. The health budgets in recent years have witnessed a marginal increase. In 2019-20 the health budget was ₹64,559 crores, in 208-19 it was ₹55,959 crore (revised estimate), while ₹48,853 crore was allocated for health in 2017-18. (Source: Livemint)

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Will upcoming budget address the needs of ailing healthcare sector in India?.

India seventh on index of countries impacted by climate change in 2019 - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

India seventh on index of countries impacted by climate change in 2019.

'Extremely severe' cyclone Fani affected 28 million people, killing 90 people in India and Bangladesh, and causing economic loss to the tune of US$8.1 billion, the report added.

India ranks seventh among countries most affected in 2019 by climate change, according to the Global Climate Risk Index, 2021, released Monday by Germanwatch — an NGO based in Bonn, Germany.

In 2019, monsoon continued for a month longer than normal in India. From June to the end of September 2019, 110% of the long-period average was recorded. Flooding caused by heavy rain was responsible for 1,800 deaths across 14 states and led to the displacement of 1.8 million people, the report said. There were eight tropical cyclones in India. Six of them intensified to become “very severe.”

‘Extremely severe’ cyclone Fani affected 28 million people, killing 90 people in India and Bangladesh, and causing economic loss to the tune of US$8.1 billion, the report added.

The report said that between 2000 and 2019, over 4,75,000 people lost their lives as a direct result of more than 11,000 extreme weather events globally, and economic losses amounted to around US $2.56 trillion (in purchasing power parities).

Globally, 11.8 million people were affected by intense monsoon with the economic damage estimated to be US $10 billion.

Dr Anjal Prakash, research director and adjunct associate professor at Bharti Institute of Public Policy, said, “It is not surprising to know that India appears to be in the top 10 most affected countries. As IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) scientists, we have been pointing towards extreme risk an emerging market like India is going to face due to very rapidly changing climatic conditions. India is blessed by many ecologies – glaciers, high mountains, long coastlines as well as massive semi-arid regions which are the hotspots for climate change. Global warming is leading to an increase in the frequency of cyclones, melting of glaciers at much faster rates, and heatwaves. A majority of the Indian population is dependent on agriculture, which is being severely affected by the impact of climate change. This year, India saw many of its cities drowning due to variability of the monsoon system.”

Prakash further said a country and state-specific plan to deal with climate change events was necessary.

“A national adaptation plan was prepared in 2008 followed by state action plans. However, most of the plans lack resources to be integrated into the district development and disaster risk reduction plan. It is high time that the government commissions India’s state and district specific climate-risk maps to further disaggregate this information to understand which areas need more attention than others,” he said.

The Global Climate Risk Index (CRI) analyses quantified impacts of extreme weather events both in terms of the fatalities and economic losses. The index is based on data from Munich Re’s NatCatSERVICE. (Source: The Indian Express)

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India seventh on index of countries impacted by climate change in 2019.

Ageing, unsafe dams growing threat in India: UN report - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

Ageing, unsafe dams growing threat in India: UN report.

In India, there are over 1,25 large dams that will be about 50 years old in 2025.

According to a United Nations (UN) report, more than a thousand large dams in India will be about 50 years old in 2025 and increase the risk of such aging embankments around the world, adding that by 2050 the Earth But most people will stay downstream. Thousands of dams built in the 20th century.

A report titled “Aging Water Infrastructure: An Emerging Global Risk” and compiled by the Canadian-based Institute of Water, Environment and Health of the United Nations University, states that most of the 58,700 large dams worldwide were constructed between 1930 and 1970 A design was done with life. 50 to 100 years.

It said that in 50 years, a large concrete dam would “begin to express the most aging signs.”

The signs of aging include increasing cases of dam failure, progressively increasing dam repair and maintenance costs, increased reservoir sedimentation and decreased dam performance and effectiveness, “strongly interconnected” manifestations, the report said.

“By 2050, most people on Earth will live below the tens of thousands of large dams built in the 20th century, many of them already running into or beyond their design life,” according to an analysis by U.N. University.

The analysis includes case studies of dam demotion or aging from the United States, France, Canada, India, Japan, and Zambia and Zimbabwe.

According to the report, another major dam construction revolution is unlikely in the mid-20th century in the world, but the dams built then will inevitably see their age.

The report states that 32,716 large dams (55 percent of the world’s total) are found in just four Asian countries: China, India, Japan and South Korea – most of which will soon reach the 50-year limit.

The same is true of many large dams in Africa, South America and Eastern Europe.

In India, there are over 1,25 large dams that will be about 50 years old in 2025, more than 4,250 large dams in the country will be more than 50 years old in 2050 and 64 large dams will be more than 150 years old in 2050, it said Happened.

The report states that if the Mullaperiyar Dam in Kerala was built 100 years ago in India, around 3.5 million people are in danger.

“The dam in the seismically active region exhibits significant structural flaws and its management is a controversial issue between the states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu,” he said.

The report states that dams that are well designed, built and maintained “can easily reach 100 years of service” but predict an increase in “decommissioning” – in the USA and Europe A phenomenon gaining momentum – as economic and practical limitations prevent aging dams. Being upgraded or if their original use is now obsolete.

In the US, the average age of 90,580 dams is 56 years. In 2020, more than 85 percent of US dams were running at or beyond their life expectancy, and 75 percent of US dam failures occurred after the age of 50. The estimated cost of renovating American dams is approximately $ 64 billion. About 1,275 dams were removed in 21 US states over the past 30 years; In 2017 alone 80 were removed.

Worldwide, the vast amount of water stored behind large dams is estimated to be 7,000 to 8,300 cubic kilometers – enough to cover about 80 percent of Canada’s landslides under water meters.

The report’s co-author Vladimir Smukhtin, director of UNU-INWEH, said the report was intended to draw global attention to the issue of aging water storage infrastructure and international efforts to combat this emerging, increasing water risk To encourage.

“Underlined is the fact that increasing frequency and severity of floods and other extreme environmental events can increase the design range of a dam and speed up the aging process of a dam. Therefore, decisions about decommissioning are therefore , Should be taken in the context of a changing climate. ” Mr. Smkhtin said.

Lead author and UNU-INWEH senior researcher Duminda Perera said the problem of aging large dams today faces a relatively small number of countries – 93 percent of all large dams in the world are located in just 25 countries.

“Large dam construction accelerated in the mid-20th century and peaked in the 1960s – 70s, particularly in Asia, Europe and North America, while the peak in Africa occurred in the 1980s. Thereafter continued and progressively larger Number of dams. He refused.

The pace of large dam construction has decreased dramatically over the last four decades and continues to decline in part because “globally the best locations for such dams are becoming progressively lower as nearly 50 percent of global river volume is already Is fragmented or regulated with dams. ”States the report.

There are also strong concerns about the environmental and social impacts of dams, and particularly emerging dams and practices on large dams, as well as alternative types of energy production beyond water storage, nature-based solutions and hydroelectricity, it said.

Public safety, rising maintenance costs, sedimentation of the reservoir, and restoration of a natural river ecosystem are among the reasons driving the dam decommissioning, the report notes, as the dam is built overall in the overall planning process. Decommissioning should be considered important. Water storage infrastructure development.

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Ageing, unsafe dams growing threat in India: UN report.