Daily Current Affairs for UPSC CSE
Topics Covered
- Aadhaar Based Payment System MGNREGA
- Ujjwala Scheme
- Study on impact of imposing health taxes and warning labels on food products
- Unlawful Body and Designated Terrorist under UAPA
- Facts for Prelims
1 . Aadhaar Based Payment System MGNREGA
Context: From the New Year, wages under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) will be paid only through an Aadhaar-based payment system (ABPS), which requires the Aadhaar details of workers to be seeded to their job cards.
About the News
- The first order to enforce the system was issued on January 30, 2023, followed by extensions till February 1, March 31, June 30, August 31, and December 31.
- Decision not to extend the deadline again is mainly guided by active workers, rather than job card holders. Active workers are those who have worked for at least one day over the last three financial years. Till December 27, 12.7% of these active workers are still not eligible for ABPS. Of the 25.25 crore registered workers under the flagship rural jobs scheme, 14.35 crore are categorised as active workers.
- Union Rural Development Ministry data show that 34.8% of the job card holders remain ineligible for this mode of payment.
- According to sources, in its communication making ABPS mandatory, the Ministry has also asked State governments to take a generous view, allowing for cases where linking has not been done for any genuine reason.
- Facing pressure from the Union government to have 100% ABPS-eligible job cards, States have deleted a number of cards which were not eligible for Aadhaar payments. This includes cases where there were discrepancies between the two documents, the Aadhaar and the job card, such as different spellings of workers’ names. The cards have been deleted citing various reasons, including that the worker was “not willing to work”.
What is Aadhaar-based bridge payment system (ABPS)
- ABPS is a unique payment system which uses Aadhaar number as a central key for electronically channelizing government subsidies and benefits in the Aadhaar-Enabled Bank Accounts (AEBA) of the beneficiaries.
- To opt for the ABPS, a NREGA job Card holder must link his bank account with Aadhaar.
- The same account must also be connected to the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) mapper.
What is NPCI mapper?
- The NPCI mapper is a repository of Aadhaar numbers maintained by the APBS and used for the purpose of routing the APB transactions to the destination banks.
- The NPCI mapper contains Aadhaar number along with IIN of the bank to which the customer has seeded their Aadhaar number.
- Banks need to upload Aadhaar number in the NPCI mapper in a specified file format through the NACH portal.
Requirements for Aadhaar-based bridge payment system:
- Seeding a bank account with Aadhaar and mapping it with NPCI mapper requires providing KYC details, biometric and demographic authentication and resolving possible inconsistencies between the Aadhaar database and the bank account.
- In case of any inconsistencies between any of those two and the NREGA Job Card, the wage payment may get struck.
Requirement for Workers
- To be be paid under ABPS, a worker’s Aadhaar details must be seeded to her job card; her Aadhaar details must be seeded to her bank account; her Aadhaar must be mapped with the National Payments Corporation of India (NCPI) database; and finally, the bank’s institutional identification number must itself be mapped with the NPCI database.
Benefits
- Aadhaar linkage aims to minimize leakages, enhance transparency, and ensure timely payments to workers engaged in rural employment, impacting their livelihoods directly.
Concerns
- Compelling the use of ABPS with more than one-third of the total MNREGA registered workers rendered ineligible will inevitably lead to the denial of the right to work. This stands in direct contravention to the Act passed by the Parliament
2 . Ujjwala Scheme
Context: PM visits 10th crore beneficiary of Ujjwala LPG scheme in Ayodhya.
About the Scheme
- It is a flagship scheme of the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MOPNG).
- Objective: to make clean cooking fuel such as LPG available to the rural and deprived households which were otherwise using traditional cooking fuels such as firewood, coal, cow-dung cakes etc. as usage of traditional cooking fuels had detrimental impacts on the health of rural women as well as on the environment.
- Under the Union Budget for FY 21-22, provision for release of additional 1 Crore LPG connections under the PMUY scheme has been made. In this phase, special facility has been given to migrant families.
Benefits
- Rs. 1600 for a connection 14.2kg cylinder or Rs. 1150 for a 5 kg cylinder.
- All PMUY beneficiaries will be provided with first LPG refill and Stove (hot plate) both free of cost along with their deposit free connection.
Eligibility
- An adult woman belonging to a poor household and not having an LPG connection in her household will be eligible under UJJWALA 2.0. The beneficiaries should belong to any of the following categories:
- Eligible as per SECC 2011 list
- Belongs to SC/ST households, be a beneficiary of Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY), Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY), Forest dwellers, Most Backward Classes (MBC), Tea and Ex-Tea Garden Tribes, People residing in river islands (Beneficiary will submit supporting document)
- If she is not falling in the above 2 categories, then she can stake her claim to be a beneficiary under Poor household by submitting 14-point declaration (as per prescribed format)
- Male Member from a household cannot apply for the scheme.
3 . Study on impact of imposing health taxes and warning labels on food products
Context: Levy 20-30% health tax on food high in sugar, salt, fat: study.
About the Study
- The recommendation is an outcome of a study commissioned by Niti Aayog, which is studying the impact of imposing health taxes and warning labels on food products to encourage healthy eating practices
- The recommendation is an outcome of a UNICEF-funded project, and the authors hope that this study along with others will influence policies aimed to reduce consumption of sugar and related products. Niti Aayog is interested in understanding the impact of imposing health taxes and warning labels on food products for encouraging healthy eating practices in Indian consumers.
Findings of the study
- Global average consumption of sugar is 22 kg per person per year, an average Indian consumes 25 kg per year which includes regular sugar, free sugar from sugar sweetened beverages, traditional sources like jaggery, which is five times the WHO recommended threshold for free sugar intake.
- Researchers have applied the metric of ‘Price Elasticity’ to determine if there will be any reduction in demand if the prices of the product go up. For sugar sweetened beverages, a health tax of 10-30% could result in a 7-30% decline in demand, while a 10-30% health tax for High Fat Salt and Sugar products would result in a 5-24% decline in demand.
- Additional taxes would increase tax revenues for the government by 12-200% across different scenarios.
- India is facing a sugar epidemic with a rise in sales of aerated drinks by 22.5% and a rise in all soft drinks by 24.8% from 2016 to 2019.
- High in Fat salt or sugar HFSS food products account for 10-30% of the average total caloric intake in rural and urban households respectively.
- Imposing a health tax on sugar and related products can help control obesity, tooth decay, risk of type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and certain cancers.
- If people continue to consume sugar sweetened beverages year-on-year the overweight and obesity prevalence is expected to rise from 39% to 49% from 2014 to 2023 and type 2 diabetes incidence is expected to rise from 319 to 336 per 1,00,000 in the same period.
4 . Unlawful Body and Designated Terrorist under UAPA
Context: Geelani-founded outfit declared ‘unlawful body’
About the news
- The Union Home Ministry declared Tehreek-e-Hurriyat, Jammu and Kashmir (TeH) an “unlawful association” under Section 3 of the anti-terror law, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
- The TeH is one of the constituents of the All Party Hurriyat Conference (APHC) and was founded by separatist Syed Ali Shah Geelani, who died in 2021.
- The Ministry said that many criminal cases had been registered against this organisation under various Sections of the UAPA, the Arms Act, the Ranbir Penal Code, and the Indian Penal Code.
- The Union government directed that this notification shall, subject to any order that may be made under Section 4 of the UAPA, has effect for a period of five years from the date of its publication in the official gazette.
About Unlawful Activities Prevention Act
- UAPA law is aimed at effective prevention of unlawful activities associations in India.
- Its main objective was to make powers available for dealing with activities directed against the integrity and sovereignty of India
- The National Integration Council appointed a Committee on National Integration and Regionalisation to look into, the aspect of putting reasonable restrictions in the interests of the sovereignty and integrity of India.
- Pursuant to the acceptance of recommendations of the Committee, the Constitution (Sixteenth Amendment) Act, 1963 was enacted to impose, by law, reasonable restrictions in the interests of the sovereignty and integrity of India.
- In order to implement the provisions of 1963 Act, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Bill was introduced in the Parliament.
Provisions and Amendments
- Main objective of the original bill was to make powers available for dealing with activities directed against the integrity and sovereignty of India
- In 2004, the government chose to strengthen The Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967. It was amended to overcome some of the difficulties in its enforcement and to update it in accordance with international commitments. By inserting specific chapters, the amendment criminalised the raising of funds for a terrorist act, holding of the proceeds of terrorism, membership of a terrorist organisation, support to a terrorist organisation, and the raising of funds for a terrorist organisation. It increased the time available to law-enforcement agencies to file a chargesheet to six months from three.
- The law was amended in 2008 after the Mumbai attacks, and again in 2012. The definition of “terrorist act” was expanded to include offences that threaten economic security, counterfeiting Indian currency, and procurement of weapons, etc. Additional powers were granted to courts to provide for attachment or forfeiture of property equivalent to the value of the counterfeit Indian currency, or the proceeds of terrorism involved in the offence.
- In 2019 Act was again amended to designate an individual as a “terrorist”
What is Unlawful Activity as per the Act
- Section 2(o) of UAPA as it stands today, defines “unlawful activity”
- Unlawful activity, in relation to an individual or association, means any action taken by such individual or association (whether by committing an act or by words, either spoken or written, or by signs or by visible representation or otherwise),—
- which is intended, or supports any claim, to bring about, on any ground whatsoever, the cession of a part of the territory of India or the secession of a part of the territory of India from the Union, or which incites any individual or group of individuals to bring about such cession or secession; or
- Which disclaims, questions, disrupts or is intended to disrupt the sovereignty and territorial integrity of India; or
- Which causes or is intended to cause disaffection against India;
Who is designated as a Terrorist under the act
- Section 15 defines a “terrorist act” as any act committed with intent to threaten or likely to threaten the unity, integrity, security, economic security, or sovereignty of India or with intent to strike terror or likely to strike terror in the people or any section of the people in India or in any foreign country.
- Section 35 of UAPA: It seeks to empower the central government to designate an individual a “terrorist” if they are found committing, preparing for, promoting, or involved in an act of terror through a notification in the official gazette, and add his name to the schedule 4 0f the act.
- The government is not required to give an individual an opportunity to be heard before such a designation.
- At present, in line with the legal presumption of an individual being innocent until proven guilty, an individual who is convicted in a terror case is legally referred to as a terrorist, while those suspected of being involved in terrorist activities are referred to as terror accused. The act does not clarify the standard of proof required to establish that an individual is involved or is likely to be involved in terrorist activities.
- Insertion to schedule of treaties: The Act defines terrorist acts to include acts committed within the scope of any of the treaties listed in a schedule to the Act. The Schedule lists nine treaties, including the Convention for the Suppression of Terrorist Bombings (1997), and the Convention against Taking of Hostages (1979). Act has added another treaty to the list- International Convention for Suppression of Acts of Nuclear Terrorism (2005).
What happens when an individual is declared a terrorist?
- The designation of an individual as a global terrorist by the United Nations is associated with sanctions including travel bans, freezing of assets and an embargo against procuring arms However UAPA act does not provide any such detail.
- The act also does not require the filing of cases or arresting individuals while designating them as terrorists.
- The act also seeks to give the central government the power to remove a name from the schedule when an individual makes an application. The procedure for such an application and the process of decision-making will also be decided by the central government.
- If an application filed by an individual declared a terrorist is rejected by the government, the act gives him the right to seek a review within one month after the application is rejected.
- Under the act, the central government will set up the review committee consisting of a chairperson (a retired or sitting judge of a High Court) and three other members. The review committee will be empowered to order the government to delete the name of the individual from the schedule that lists “terrorists”, if it considers the order to be flawed.
- Apart from these two avenues, the individual can also move the courts challenging the government’s order.
5 . Facts for Prelims
Aromatic Plants & Examples
- The medicinal and aromatic plants (MAPs) are well known for the production of various bioactive compounds and essential oil, and possess highly antioxidant and antimicrobial properties.
- The presence of these properties makes a huge demand for MAPs in pharmaceutical, food, and cosmetic industries, but also become the major reason for their over-exploitation from nature.
- Aromatic plants include : Dhavana, Geranium, Lemon Grass , Mints, Patchouli, Vettiver.
Exclusive economic zone (EEZ)
- An “exclusive economic zone,” or “EEZ” is an area of the ocean, generally extending 200 nautical miles (230 miles) beyond a nation’s territorial sea, within which a coastal nation has jurisdiction over both living and non-living resources.
- The concept of an exclusive economic zone (EEZ) was adopted through the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
- EEZ does not define the ownership of any maritime features (islands, rocks and low-tide elevations) within the EEZ.
Supplementary Demands for Grants
- Supplementary Demand for Grants (SDG) refers to the statement of supplementary demands laid before Parliament, showing the estimated amount of further expenditure necessary for a financial year, over and above the expenditure authorised in the Annual Financial Statement for that year.
- The demand for supplementary grants may be token, technical or substantive/cash.
India-China border road project (ICBR):
- India–China Border Roads (ICBRs, ICB Roads) is a Government of India project for developing infrastructure along the Sino-Indian border by constructing strategic roads, including bridges and tunnels.
- It is largely in response to Chinese infrastructure development along the borderlands with India.
- The first phase of the Indo-China border road project (ICBR) was initiated in 2005 when it was decided that the MHA would construct 27 priority roads with a total length of 608 km along the border with China. The second phase of the ICBR project was approved on September 21, 2020.
- India is constructing at least 177 roads in two phases of over 10,023 km (6,228 mi) total length along its Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China under the “Border Infrastructure and Management Fund” (BIMF) of Ministry of Home Affairs.
- This includes 73 roads of 3,323 km (2,065 mi) length under ICBR-I (Phase-I) approved in 2005 and additional 104 roads of more than 6,700 km (4,200 mi) length under ICBR-II (Phase-II) approved in 2020.