Daily Current Affairs for UPSC CSE
Topics Covered
- IPCC Report
- Fundamental Duties
- Emergency Provisions in Sri Lanka
- International Criminal Court
- Facts for Prelims
1 . IPCC Report
Context : A consortium of scientists as part of the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) said on Monday that all coal-fired power plants, without the technology to capture and store carbon (CCS), need to be shuttered by 2050 if the world aspired to limit global temperature rise to 1.5 degrees Celsius. These scientists were part of the Working Group 3, or those with expertise to analyse how best the impact of greenhouse gas emissions could be mitigated.
About the Report
- The Summary for Policymakers of the IPCC Working Group III report, as the document is known, was approved by 195 member-governments of the IPCC, through a virtual approval session that started on March 21.
- It is the third instalment of the IPCC’s Sixth Assessment Report (AR6), which will be completed this year.
Key Findings of the Report
- “Having the right policies, infrastructure and technology in place to enable changes to our lifestyles and behaviour can result in a 70% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. This offers significant untapped potential
- Limiting warming to around 1.5 degrees Celsius requires global greenhouse gas emissions to peak before 2025 at the latest and be reduced by 43% by 2030; at the same time, methane would also need to be reduced by about a third. Even if this happened, it was almost inevitable that this ceiling would be temporarily breached but, with appropriate action, it could again dip down by the end of the century.
- Limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius without immediate and deep emissions reductions across all sectors, will be impossible.
- The global temperature will stabilise when carbon dioxide emissions reach net zero. For 1.5 degrees Celsius, this meant achieving net zero carbon dioxide emissions globally in the early 2050s; for 2°C, it is in the early 2070s. Even limiting warming to around 2 degrees Celsius would still require global greenhouse gas emissions to peak before 2025 at the latest and be reduced by a quarter by 2030, their report emphasised.
Impact on India
- According to the Central Electricity Authority, India has about 211 GW of operational coal-fired power plants — roughly 10% of global capacity. As per Global Energy Monitor data, another 31 GW was being constructed and about 24 GW in various pre-construction phases. None of the existing under construction coal-fired power plants in India have CCS facilities.
- The latest IPCC report is a stark reminder to all developed countries to significantly bring forward their transition to a net-zero economy. This would leave additional carbon space for countries like India to meet their development priorities on the path to achieving their net-zero target. Further, to accelerate the low-carbon transition, developed countries should ensure higher flows of finance and technology transfer in critical areas such as renewables, electric vehicles, and others
About IPCC
- The Geneva-based IPCC is the United Nations body for assessing the science related to climate change.
- It was created “to provide policymakers with regular scientific assessments on climate change, its implications and potential future risks, as well as to put forward adaptation and mitigation options”.
- This is the first time that the IPCC, whose job it is to assess already-published scientific literature to update our knowledge of climate change science, has focused its attention solely on the land sector. It is part of a series of special reports that IPCC is doing in the run-up to the sixth edition of its main report, blandly called the Assessment Reports, that is due around 2022.
- Last year, the IPCC had produced a special report on the feasibility of restricting global rise in temperature to within 1.5 degrees Celsius from pre-industrial times. These reports were sought by governments to get a clearer picture of specific aspects of climate change.
Benefits of IPCC reports
- IPCC reports form the scientific basis on which countries across the world build their policy responses to climate change. These reports, on their own, are not policy prescriptive: They do not tell countries or governments what to do. They are only meant to present factual situations with as much scientific evidence as is possible. And yet, these can be of immense help in formulating the action plans to deal with climate change.
- The detailed nature of this latest report, with respect to regional and sectoral impacts, presents actionable intelligence, particularly for countries that lack the resources or the capacity to make their own impact assessments. The fact that these findings are the product of the combined understanding of the largest group of experts on climate science lends it a credibility greater than any individual study.
- These reports also form the basis for international climate change negotiations that decide on the responses at the global level. It is these negotiations that have produced the Paris Agreement, and previously the Kyoto Protocol.
2 . Fundamental Duties
Context : Attorney-General K.K. Venugopal on Monday said there was no need to enact specific laws to “enforce” fundamental duties on citizens. Mr. Venugopal, in his capacity as a constitutional office, said the Supreme Court cannot issue mandamus to Parliament to make such laws.
About the Petition
- A public interest litigation (PIL) petition was filed to enforce the fundamental duties of citizens, including patriotism and unity of nation, through “comprehensive, well-defined laws”.
- Petitioner wanted to know what the government had done to comply with the Supreme Court’s direction in the Ranganath Mishra judgment of 2003 regarding the implementation of the Justice J.S. Verma Committee’s report on the “operationalisation of fundamental duties”. The committee’s work was a part of a report of the National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution. The report had urged the government to sensitise people to, and create general awareness of, their duties and the protection of minorities and freedom of religion.
Writ of Mandamus
- In India Article 32 and 226 of the Constitution gives power to the Supreme Court and High Court to issue writs in case of breach of Fundamental rights of any citizen by the state. By such writs the Judiciary can control the administrative actions and prevent any kind of arbitrary use of power and discretion.
- A writ of mandamus or mandamus (which means “we command” in Latin), or sometimes mandate, is the name of one of the prerogative writs in the common law, and is “issued by a superior court to compel a lower court or a government officer to perform mandatory or purely ministerial duties correctly”
About Fundamental Duties
- The Fundamental Duties were incorporated in Part IV-A of the Constitution by the Constitution 42nd Amendment Act, 1976, during Emergency under Indira Gandhi’s government.
- Today, there are 11 Fundamental Duties described under Article 51-A, of which 10 were introduced by the 42nd Amendment and the 11th was added by the 86th Amendment in 2002, during Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s government.
- These are statutory duties, not enforceable by law, but a court may take them into account while adjudicating on a matter.
- The idea behind their incorporation was to emphasise the obligation of the citizen in exchange for the Fundamental Rights that he or she enjoys.
- The concept of Fundamental Duties is taken from the Constitution of Russia.
What are the Fundamental Duties?
The 11 Fundamental Duties are:
- To abide by the constitution and respect its ideals and institutions, the National Flag and the National Anthem
- To cherish and follow the noble ideals which inspired our national struggle for freedom
- To uphold and protect the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India — it is one of the preeminent national obligations of all the citizens of India.
- To defend the country and render national service when called upon to do so
- To promote harmony and the spirit of common brotherhood amongst all the people of India transcending religious, linguistic and regional or sectional diversities; to renounce practices derogatory to the dignity of women
- To value and preserve the rich heritage of our composite culture — our cultural heritage is one of the noblest and richest, it is also part of the heritage of the Earth
- To protect and improve the natural environment including forests, lakes, rivers and wild life and to have compassion for living creatures
- To develop the scientific temper, humanism and the spirit of inquiry and reform
- To safeguard public property and to abjure violence
- To strive towards excellence in all spheres of individual and collective activity so that the nation constantly rises to higher levels of endeavour and achievement
- Who is a parent or guardian to provide opportunities for education to his child or, as the case may be, ward between the age of six and fourteen years.
Note : It is the one on children’s education that was added in 2002 by the 86th Amendment that provided for the Right to Free and Compulsory Education for children in the age group 6-14, with the insertion of Article 21A. It also cast an obligation on parents to provide such opportunities under Article 51A(K).
3 . Emergency Provision in Sri Lanka
Context : Sri Lanka’s President Gotabaya Rajapaksa declared an Emergency on April 1 as thousands of people came out on the streets to protest the crippling power cuts and shortages of essential commodities caused by the country’s economic meltdown. This is the second time within a year that Rajapaksa has resorted to this measure — he declared an Emergency on August 30 last year to deal with hoarding of essential commodities when the economic crisis had begun to manifest itself in all its severity, but lifted it within a few weeks.
Emergency Provision in Sri Lanka
- The power to declare a state of Emergency is vested in the President, who is the head of government, under Article 155 of the Constitution. The 1947 Public Security Ordinance (PSO) provides the legal framework for the proclamation of Emergency.
- Under the ordinance, a state of Emergency can be proclaimed “where, in view of the existence or imminence of a state of public Emergency, the President is of opinion that it is expedient so to do in the interests of public security and the preservation of public order or for the maintenance of supplies and services essential to the life of the community
- The PSO empowers the President to frame Emergency regulations — for detention, taking possession of property or undertaking; authorisation to enter and search any premises; for amending any law, suspending the operation of any law, and for applying any law with or without modification, without reference to Parliament. The regulations can override all existing laws
- The Emergency (Miscellaneous Provisions and Powers) Regulations (EMPPR), give special powers of search, arrest, and detention to the national security forces and law enforcement agencies.
Role of Parliament
- Emergency regulations are valid for a month, but the President must seek ratification for the proclamation or extension beyond a month, every 14 days. The Emergency lapses if it is not brought before Parliament.
- 1978 Constitution limits parliamentary debate on a proclamation’s validity and does not enable it to debate the actual emergency regulations, the PSO does have a provision under which Parliament may revoke, alter, or amend a regulation through a resolution.
4 . International Criminal Court
Context : U.S. President Joe Biden on Monday called for a war crimes trial over the alleged atrocities against civilians in Bucha, Ukraine, and said he wants more sanctions imposed on Russia.
About International Criminal Court
- The International Criminal Court is an intergovernmental organization and international tribunal seated in The Hague, Netherlands.
- It is the first and only permanent international court with jurisdiction to prosecute individuals for the international crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and the crime of aggression.
- The members of the court include 123 countries. Russia and Ukraine are omitted as they signed the statute but did not ratify it.
- It is distinct from the International Court of Justice, an organ of the United Nations that hears disputes between states.
Crimes within the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court
- War crimesWar crimes include torture, mutilation, corporal punishment, hostage taking and acts of terrorism. This category also covers violations of human dignity such as rape and forced prostitution, looting and execution without trial. War crimes, unlike crimes against humanity, are always committed in times of war.
- GenocideThis includes all acts committed with the intent to destroy a national, ethnic or religious group.
- Crimes against humanityCrimes against humanity are acts committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against any civilian population, such as murder, deportation, torture and rape. The ICC prosecutes the perpetrators even if the crimes were not committed in times of war.
Consequences of the crime of aggression
- The states that are party to the Rome Statute have not yet reached consensus on the definition of and punishment for aggression. Until they do, the ICC is unable to prosecute individuals for acts of aggression.
The powers of the ICC
The ICC is only competent to hear a case if:
- the country where the offence was committed is a party to the Rome Statute; or
- the perpetrator’s country of origin is a party to the Rome Statute.
The ICC may only exercise its jurisdiction if the national court is unable or unwilling to do so. The ICC only has jurisdiction over offences committed after the Statute’s entry into force on 1 July 2002.
Referring a case to the International Criminal Court
- Various parties have the right to refer a case to the ICC :
- any State Party to the Rome Statute, irrespective of any involvement in the alleged offence;
- the Prosecutor of the ICC;
- the United Nations Security Council
- The United Nations Security Council may ask the ICC to defer investigation of a case for a limited period if it considers that the proceedings would constitute an obstruction to its powers.
5 . Facts for Prelims
National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR)
- The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) was set up in March 2007 under the Commissions for Protection of Child Rights (CPCR) Act, 2005, an Act of Parliament (December 2005).
- National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) is a statutory body under the Commissions for Protection of Child Rights (CPCR) Act, 2005 under the administrative control of the Ministry of Women & Child Development ,Government of India.
- The Commission’s Mandate is to ensure that all Laws, Policies, Programmes, and Administrative Mechanisms are in consonance with the Child Rights perspective as enshrined in the Constitution of India and also the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. The Child is defined as a person in the 0 to 18 years age group.
- The Commission visualizes a rights-based perspective flowing into National Policies and Programmes, along with nuanced responses at the State, District and Block levels, taking care of specificity and strengths of each region. In order to touch every child, it seeks a deeper penetration to communities and households and expects that the ground experiences gathered at the field are taken into consideration by all the authorities at the higher level.
- Commission sees an indispensable role for the State, sound institution-building processes, respect for decentralization at the local bodies and community level and larger societal concern for children and their well-being.