[Mission 2023] INSIGHTS DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS + PIB SUMMARY 12 April 2023 – INSIGHTSIAS

GS Paper 1

 Syllabus: World History

Source: IE

 Context: The US President is to visit Belfast, the capital of Northern Ireland, to mark the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement.

What is the Good Friday Agreement?

• Signed on April 10, 1998, between factions of Northern Ireland and the governments of Britain and Ireland, to end 30 years of the violence known as ‘The Troubles’ in Northern Ireland.
• The Agreement has been hailed as a model deal to end long-standing conflicts and fetched a joint Nobel peace prize.

What were ‘The Troubles’?

• Northern Ireland was created in 1921 and in 1922 the rest of Ireland gained independence from the British (the today’s Republic of Ireland, with its capital in Dublin).
• Northern Ireland remained with the UK, but tensions simmered between those who wished to remain with the UK (Protestants) and those who wanted to join Ireland (Catholics).
• By the 1960s, the Protestants had become more powerful and the Catholics started facing discrimination.
• The violence erupted between both factions – The Troubles, claiming the lives of more than 3,500 people.

Terms of the Good Friday Agreement:

• Northern Ireland would continue to be a part of the UK.
• It could join Ireland if a majority of voters on both sides supported it in a referendum.
• People born in Northern Ireland could have Irish or British nationality or both.
• Northern Ireland would get a new government, which would have powers over local matters, while the UK government would look after security, foreign policy, tax laws, immigration rules, etc.
• On May 22 1998, a referendum was held in Ireland and Northern Ireland, and the agreement was approved by 94% of voters in Ireland and 71% in Northern Ireland.

What is the status 25 years on?

• The most important achievement of the Agreement has been an end to bloodshed and enduring peace in the region.
• However, Brexit has created an obstacle paralysing the agreement for more than a year.
• This is because Northern Ireland shares a land border with an EU country – Ireland. As the EU and the UK have different product standards, checks would be necessary for sending goods from Northern Ireland to Ireland.
• Britain’s intelligence agency (MI5), recently increased the threat level in Northern Ireland from domestic terrorism to “severe”.
• Several pro-Union political parties in N. Ireland (like the DUP) started boycotting the agreement.

Steps taken to solve this crisis:

• Checks would be conducted between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
• The UK and the EU reached an agreement known as the Windsor Framework – which seeks to address the aforementioned disruptions to trade between Northern Ireland and the rest of the U.K.

Why is the US so enthusiastic about the Agreement?

• The US had played a key part in negotiations building up to the agreement.
• The USA’s current President (Biden) is descended from Irish immigrants (second after John F Kennedy) and is vocally proud of his Irish heritage.

Insta Links:

Brexit Britain’s challenges remain

GS Paper 2

 Syllabus: Polity – Governor

Source: TH, TH

 Context: The Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly has passed a resolution urging the Union Government and President to issue instructions to Governor R.N. Ravi to give his assent to bills passed by the Assembly (nearly 20 bills are pending) within a specific period.

Other Examples of Governor- CM conflict:

Issues with the post of Governor:

• There are no clear provisions for the manner in which the Governor and state government must engage publicly when there is a difference of opinion.
• Constitutional loopholes in case of appointment of the Chief Minister or dissolving the Assembly or for how long a Governor can withhold assent to a Bill.
• Critics refer to governors as the ‘agents of the Centre’: Politicians and former bureaucrats affiliated with the ruling party have been appointed in several instances as Governors
• Governors have passed negative remarks on state administration, law and order, and political violence, which has led to conflicts with state governments.
• There is no clear distinction between the constitutional and statutory roles of the Governor

Reforms Proposed:

Mains Links

Whether the Supreme Court Judgment (July 2018) can settle the political tussle between the Lt. Governor and the elected government of Delhi? Examine. (UPSC 2018)

Discuss the essential conditions for the exercise of the legislative powers by the Governor. Discuss the legality of the re-promulgation of ordinances by the Governor without placing them before the Legislature. (UPSC 2022)

Prelims Links:

GS Paper 3

Syllabus: Linkages between Development and Spread of Extremism

Source: TH

 Context: The extremist threat seems to be resurfacing in Punjab, three decades after sectarian conflict devastated the region.

Signs of extremism resurfacing in Punjab:

• Pro-Khalistan protests in areas of the globe where a sizable concentration of the Sikh diaspora exists (Australia, Canada, the UK and the US).
• The emergence of self-styled Sikh extremist preachers (like Amritpal Singh).

What needs to be done?

• Stop treating the issue as a foreign conspiracy (of Pakistan’s ISI, drug mafias, etc).

• Facing up to the reality that this may be more than a mere emotional outburst of the Sikh extremist fringe.
• Prioritising intelligence analysis:

• The central and State intelligence agencies cannot miss signs of

• • Growing insecurity among sections of Sikh youth
  • Discontent prevailing among the Sikh peasantry over the decline in their economic conditions, and
  • The threat posed to the Sikh religion by conversions to other religions, such as Christianity.

• Sharing intelligence with friendly intelligence agencies, especially in countries where the Sikh diaspora is present in strength.

Conclusion:

India should not yield to the temptation of resorting to strong-arm methods. It needs to ensure a greater sense of unity within the country while upholding due respect for individual dignity and human progress.

Insta Links:

A brief history of the Khalistan movement

Mains Links:

 What are the determinants of left-wing extremism in the Eastern part of India? What strategy should the Government of India, civil administration and security forces adopt to counter the threat in the affected areas? (UPSC 2020)

GS Paper 3

 Syllabus: Indigenization of Technology/Awareness in the Fields of Space/Various Security Forces and Agencies and their Mandate.

Source: TH

 Context: According to the CDS (General Anil Chauhan), the very nature of warfare is on the cusp of major transformation with space being used to enhance combat capabilities in land, sea and cyber domains.

Initiatives by India towards the militarisation of space

• In 2019, India concluded the first table-top joint war game called ‘IndSpaceEx’ – run by the military and space scientists.
• Demonstration of India’s Anti-Satellite (ASAT) capability under Mission Shakti.
• Establishment of the new tri-service Defence Space Agency (DSA) – tasked with operating the space-warfare and Satellite Intelligence assets of India.
• Mission DefSpace was launched in 2022 for the development of innovative solutions in the space domain by the industry.
• Indian DefSpace Symposium, organised by the Indian Space Association (ISpA) and the DRDO under Mission DefSpace, to create a platform for all stakeholders who have a keen interest in boosting India’s military space capability and plans.
• Indian Space Association (ISpA) is a voluntary association of leading space industries established with the objective of providing advisory and advocacy support to the space industry in India.

Way ahead:

• The need to explore the field of miniaturisation of satellites and reusable launch platforms to mitigate cost challenges and accelerate the pace of augmenting India’s space-based capabilities.
• Enhancing space situational awareness capability to safeguard assets with counter space capabilities.
• Building resilience and redundancy in a space-based infrastructure.
• Working very closely with industry as well as academia right from the development stage.

Conclusion:

• Space is the future for all action and capabilities – the real force multiplier. Therefore, the time to invest more and prepare is now.
• “Victory smiles upon those who anticipate the changes in the character of war, not upon those who wait to adapt themselves after the changes occur.”

Insta Links:

Weaponisation of Space

GS Paper 3

 Syllabus: Environment

Source: DTE

 Context: The EIA Notification, 2006 has been amended over 100 times in the past five years (as per the records of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change)

What is EIA Notification 2006?

The Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) Notification, 2006, is the governing legal instrument to grant green clearance for the establishment or expansion of an industry on the basis of the expected environmental impact of the project.

• The notification was introduced in 1994, and after several amendments, was revised in 2006.

Major changes introduced in the EIA Notification, 2006 over the past five years:

For the significance of EIA for India: Click here

The way forward and Conclusion:

EIA Notification changes were made without public consultation and could harm the environment, disturbing the balance between ecology and development. Upgrading the status of the EIA from a notification to a rule under the Environment Protection Act will ensure parliamentary scrutiny and maintain the integrity of the assessment process.

Insta Links:

EIA Amendments

Mains Link:

Environmental Impact Assessment studies are increasingly undertaken before a project is cleared by the Government. Discuss the environmental impacts of coal-fired thermal plants located at coal pitheads. ( UPSC 2014)

Content for Mains Enrichment (CME)

Facts for Prelims (FFP)

Source: IE

Context: The Parkash Purab of Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur, the ninth guru of the Sikhs, is being celebrated on April 11.

What is Prakash Purab?

Parkash Purab is a term used in Sikhism to refer to the birth anniversary celebrations of the ten Sikh gurus. “Parkash” means “illumination” or “light,” while “Purab” means “day.”

About Guru Tegh Bahadur:

Tegh Bahadur was born in Amritsar in 1621 to Guru Hargobind and Mata Nanki. Tegh Bahadur’s writings are housed in the ‘Guru Granth Sahib’ as 116 poetic hymns. He founded the town of Chak-Nanki and played a key role in setting up preaching centres throughout the Indian subcontinent. However, he was executed in Delhi in 1675 under the orders of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb.

About Ten Gurus of Sikhism:

Source: PIB

 Context: The Prime Minister has paid tribute to the great social reformer, Mahatma Jyotiba Phule on his birth anniversary

About Jyotiba Phule (1827 to 1890)

Source: TH

 Context: The Cumbum grapes recently earned the Geographical Indication tag or GI tag.

About the grapes:

Cumbum Panneer Thratchai, also known as Cumbum grapes, is a variety of grapes grown in the Cumbum Valley located at the Western Ghats in Tamil Nadu, India.

Features:

• The grapes are medium to large in size, compact, and suitable for making wine, spirits, jams, canned grape juice, and raisins.
• Introduced in Tamil Nadu in 1832 by a French priest, these grapes are rich in vitamins, tartaric acid, and antioxidants, and reduce the risk of some chronic diseases.

Source: HT

 Context: SC has said that “Preventive detention laws in India are a colonial legacy that has great potential to be abused and misused by the State and any slightest error in compliance of procedure by authorities should result in favour of the detenue”

Previously the Court had observed that:

• The State should not arbitrarily resort to “preventive detention” to deal with all and sundry “law and order” problems
• Preventive detention could be used only to prevent public disorder.
• Courts must analyse cases arising from such laws with extreme caution to ensure there are checks and balances on the exercise of the power of the government.
• Every procedural rigidity must be followed in its entirety by the government in cases of preventive detention.
• Preventive detention must fall within the four corners of Article 21(due process of law) read with Article 22 (safeguards against arbitrary arrest and detention) and the statute in question.

About Preventive Detention:

Source: TH

 Context: After the Parliamentary Standing Committee (PSC) pointed out ‘zero insurance coverage’ of livestock in 2022-23, the central government is considering a comprehensive livestock insurance scheme modelling the Prime Minister’s Fasal Bima Yojana.

• The proposed Comprehensive livestock insurance will replace the present Livestock Insurance Scheme (LIS)

Status:

Less than 1% of the country’s cattle population is currently insured, with the average yearly premium at 4.5% of the insured amount.

The proposal: 

• Waive off premiums for cattle rearers from Scheduled Caste-Scheduled Tribe communities
• Reduce premiums so that more farmers can enrol in the scheme
• Ensure maximum coverage of livestock to protect them from pandemics such as lumpy skin disease.

About Livestock Insurance Scheme (LIS)

Source: TH

 Context: The Supreme Court has called for a “uniform national policy” to ensure menstrual hygiene for girls in schools.

What is menstrual hygiene?

Menstrual hygiene refers to the practices and conditions that help maintain menstrual health and well-being. It includes using clean and safe menstrual products, washing and changing them regularly, having access to clean water and sanitation facilities, and managing menstrual pain and discomfort.

SC directive:

• The policy should include provisions for sanitary pads, disposal mechanisms, and exclusive washrooms for girls.
• SC emphasized the importance of sanitation and menstrual hygiene in government-aided and residential schools
• It called on States and Union Territories to submit menstrual hygiene plans within four weeks.

Source: DTE

 Context: March 2023 saw variations on several meteorological fronts, according to the Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) (data gathered from the satellite under the Copernicus programme)

What is C3S?

The C3S is a monthly climate bulletin of the European Commission to report the changes observed in global surface air temperature, sea ice cover and hydrological variables.

About Copernicus programme