DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS IAS | UPSC Prelims and Mains Exam –25th May 2024

Syllabus

• Mains – GS 2 & GS 3

Context: The Indian Armed Forces have been fine tuning the final draft for the creation of integrated theatre commands.

Background:-

• The ambitious defence reform is aimed at integrating the three defence services — the Indian Army, the Indian Navy, and the Indian Air Force (IAF) — to operate jointly in specific adversary-based theatres with defined military goals during a limited conflict or war.

Key takeaways

• The three defence services currently operate individually under their individual operational commands.
• Theaterisation would entail putting specific units of personnel from all the three services under a single theatre commander so that they fight jointly as a single unit in a war, or conflict, rationalising the manpower and resources of individual services in the process.
• Each of the three services has its own culture and ethos. With the creation of the theatre commands, their personnel, assets, infrastructure, and logistics would be integrated, so they can operate cohesively to attain defined military goals in specific theatres covering laid-down operational areas.
• The Armed Forces have already been taking steps to bring in greater integration among the three services. There are plans to make Mumbai the first tri-service common defence station, and to set up additional joint logistics nodes across the country to boost integration in logistics needs, and to streamline supply chains and inter-service postings of officers.
• Currently, the Army and the IAF have seven commands each, while the Navy has three. In addition, there are two tri-service commands — the Andaman and Nicobar Command, and the Strategic Forces Command (SFC). There is also the Headquarters Integrated Defence Staff (HQIDS).
• Post the creation of the theatre commands, three command headquarters of the services are likely to be transformed into theatre command headquarters.
• The existing Andaman and Nicobar Command may be subsumed into one of the theatre commands and the HQIDS will likely operate under the CDS.

Source: Indian Express

Syllabus

• Prelims & Mains – International Relations

Context: U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Thursday that she wants market-driven countries to present a “wall of opposition” to China over its state-driven industrial policies, a key issue she is pushing at a G7 finance meeting this week.

Background:

• Many countries beyond the G7 advanced industrial democracies were concerned about China’s overinvestment in electric vehicles, solar products, semiconductors, steel, and other strategic industries, including Mexico, India, and South Africa.
• Without changes in Chinese policy, including a shift from increasing production to boosting domestic demand, market-driven economies face a flood of cheap exports from China that will threaten the viability of their manufacturers.

About G7

• G7 stands for “Group of Seven” industrialized nations.
• G-7 countries include United States, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United Kingdom.Additionally, the European Union (EU) is a “non-enumerated member”.

Origin of G7

• The G7 draws its roots from a meeting between the current G7 members, excluding Canada, that took place in 1975. At the time, the global economy was in a state of recession due to the OPEC oil embargo.
• As the energy crisis was escalating, US decided that it would be beneficial for the large players on the world stage to coordinate with each other on macroeconomic initiatives.
• After this first summit, the countries agreed to meet annually and a year later, Canada was invited into the group which marked the official formation of the G7 as we know it.
• The President of the European Commission was asked to join the meetings in 1977 The EU is not a member of the G7 but attends the annual summit.
• Following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 and a subsequent warming in relations between the East and West, Russia was also invited to join the group in 1998. Thereafter the group was named the G8 until 2014, when Russia was expelled for its annexation of Crimea from Ukraine.

Other key details:

• The bloc meets annually to discuss issues of common interest like global economic governance, international security and energy policy.
• The G-7 does not have a formal constitution or a fixed headquarters. The decisions taken by leaders during annual summits are non-binding.
• The presidency of the G7 rotates annually among the member states, with the presiding state setting the group’s priorities and hosting the summit.
• Members share common values like democracy, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, free markets, and respect for international law.
• Together the member countries represent 31% of global GDP, 10% of the world’s population and 21% of global carbon dioxide emissions, according to the Summit website.
• When the group was created in 1975, they represented 70% of global GDP.
• China has never been a member, despite its large economy.
• The G7 has been behind very concrete achievements including the creation of
  • Financial Action Task Force (FATF)
  • European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD)
  • Deauville Partnership launched after the “Arab Springs”
  • Muskoka Initiative to reduce maternal and infant mortality

Source: Reuters

Syllabus

• Prelims – Current Event

Context: Nearly a month after a Special Investigation Team (SIT) began probing allegations of sexual assault and abuse against Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna, sources in the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) have confirmed that the Karnataka government’s request to revoke the diplomatic passport of the suspended Janata Dal (Secular) leader is “being processed.”

Background:

• Members of Parliament , when using diplomatic passports, are required to apply for prior political clearance directly to the MEA.This is also applicable for private visits. For a private visit to a foreign country requiring a visa, the MEA issues visa notes after the member submits a specific request with the necessary political clearance.
• Diplomatic passport holders do not need a visa note from the MEA when travelling to any of the 34 countries with which India has mutual visa waiver agreements for diplomatic passports. Under this exemption, the permitted period of stay ranges between 30 and 90 days.
• Germany, where Mr. Revanna allegedly fled to in April, is one of the countries that has an operational ‘Visa Exemption Agreement’ for diplomatic passport holders. A person travelling to Germany on a diplomatic passport can stay in the country without a visa for up to 90 days.
• Notably,the MEA has clarified that Mr. Revanna did not seek the necessary political clearances before his travel, nor did the Ministry issue any visa note for his travel to Germany.

What is a diplomatic passport?

• Under the Passport Act of 1967, the Central government issues three classes of passports — ordinary, official and diplomatic — and travel documents such as emergency certificate and certificate of identity, to those who wish to leave the Indian mainland by land, water or air.
• The deep blue-coloured ‘ordinary passports’ are issued for personal travel for adults with a validity of 10 years for adults and five years for minors or till they attain the age of 18.
• Official passports with white jackets are issued to designated Government officials and other individuals specifically authorised by the Centre to work abroad on official assignments.
• A diplomatic passport, or Type ‘D’ passport, is for designated members authorised by the Centre to represent the country. These include senior government officials, Members of Parliament and their spouses. Such a passport has a maroon jacket and is valid for five years or less, depending on the position of the holder and the nature of their assignment and visit.
• While ordinary passports are issued through a network of passport offices across the country, the Consular, Passport & Visa (CPV) Division of the MEA exclusively handles matters related to the issuance of diplomatic and official passports.

Are MPs entitled to diplomatic passports?

• According to the MEA, diplomatic passports are issued to individuals with diplomatic status, those on diplomatic assignments abroad, and those in “certain positions” as determined by the Central Government.
• Diplomatic passport holders travelling abroad for official purposes typically do not pay visa fees. They have immunity from arrest under international law and expedited immigration.
• Besides officials working at Indian missions, Members of Parliaments and their spouses are entitled to diplomatic passports along with ordinary passports.

What are the conditions under which a diplomatic passport can be revoked?

• The passport authority can impound or revoke a passport if the holder has provided wrong information, has been convicted in a criminal case, or there are pending criminal proceedings in an Indian court, or if it is in the overall national interest.
• Section 10(3) of the Passport Act of 1967, which deals with ‘variation, impounding and revocation’ of passports and travel documents mentions the circumstances in detail
• As per the Act, a passport can be impounded or revoked if the holder is in wrongful possession or has provided wrong information to the authority; or if the authority believes that impounding or revoking the passport will be in the interests of the country’s sovereignty, integrity, security, maintaining friendly relations with a foreign country, in the interests of the general public; or any of the conditions of the passport have been unfollowed.
• The passport of a person convicted by an Indian court of an offence involving “moral turpitude” and sentenced to at least two years in prison after the passport was issued can also be confiscated.
• Further, a passport can also be impounded or revoked if there are pending proceedings against the holder in a criminal court, or if a court has issued a warrant or summons for the holder’s appearance or arrest, or if there is a court order prohibiting their departure from India, as in the case of Prajwal Revanna.
• Last week, a Special Court for Elected Representatives issued an arrest warrant against the absconding MP in the sexual assault case against him on a plea by the SIT investigating the case.

Source: Hindu

Syllabus

• Prelims & Mains – Agriculture

Context: The southern African region is battling with drought at present. The drought has hit the region’s agricultural productivity hard. Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe have declared a state of disaster with respect to their current agricultural outputs.Sweet sorghum is a hardy, nutritious, biofuel crop that offers solutions in drought-hit southern Africa.

Background:

• Governments should be using their agriculture extension services to raise awareness among farmers, consumers about benefits & practical applications of sweet sorghum in people’s diet.Sweet sorghum is viewed as a preferred alternative as it can provide both food and biofuel from the same land.

ABOUT SWEET SORGHUM

• Sorghum (Jowar) is a large stout grass.Sweet sorghum is like any ordinary sorghum but with a high content of sweet juice in its stalks. While the juice is used to produce ethanol biofuel, the grains can be used as food or feed
• The grains from sweet sorghum are prepared as steamed bread or porridge malt for traditional beer, as well as in commercial beer production.
• They’re nutritionally rich, with high energy values (342 calories/100 g), proteins (10g/100 grains), carbohydrates (72.7g/100 grains), and fibre (2.2g/100 grains) as well as essential minerals such as potassium (44mg/100 grains), calcium (22mg/100 grains), sodium (8mg/100 grains) and iron (3.8mg/100 grains).
• It produces a lot of plant material (biomass) as it grows, which is left over after harvest. That’s why it’s useful as animal feed too.
• Animal feed is made from what remains once the sweet sorghum crop has been harvested and its grains and stem juice stripped off. The residue is high in nutritional content, which can improve the quality of diets of animals, including cattle. The grains can also be used for animal feed.
• The sweet juice in the crop’s stalks is what’s used to create bioethanol. Sweet sorghum contains sucrose, glucose and fructose, which are essential for bioethanol production.

Resilient

• One of the key characteristics of sweet sorghum varieties is their drought resistance. It allows them to enter a dormant state during extended periods of dryness and resume growth afterwards.
• Sweet sorghum’s ability to withstand low water and nitrogen inputs, as well as its tolerance for salinity and drought stress, makes it an ideal crop for farmers in arid regions.

Indian Context

• The sweet sorghum varieties were first introduced in India from the US in the 1970s.
• India has achieved more than 10% blending of petrol with ethanol and the next target is 20% blending by 2025. The fact remains that ethanol production from sugarcane molasses alone does not ensure optimum supply levels needed to meet the demand at any given time owing to reasons such as the cyclical nature of sugarcane cultivation, difficulty in increasing sugarcane area due to high water intensiveness of the crop, erratic monsoon and power supply.
• Increasing the area under sugarcane at the cost of diverting land from other staple food crops is undesirable. Sweet sorghum, a widely adapted sugar crop with high potential for bioenergy and ethanol production and which produces higher biomass yield with fewer inputs is listed as a candidate crop for biofuel production in our National Policy on Biofuels 2018.
• Sweet sorghum is an attractive crop for biofuel production and in the era of climate change

Source: Down To Earth

Syllabus

• Prelims – GEOGRAPHY

Context: China ended two days of war games around Taiwan, in which it simulated attacks with bombers and practiced boarding ships.

Background:

• China, which claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory, launched the “Joint Sword – 2024A” exercises three days after Lai Ching-te became Taiwan’s President, a man Beijing says is a “separatist”.
• Beijing said the exercises were “punishment” for Mr. Lai’s Monday inauguration speech, in which he said the two sides of the Taiwan Strait were “not subordinate to each other”, which China viewed as a declaration the two are separate countries.

About TAIWAN :

• Taiwan (also known as Republic of China,ROC ) is a country in East Asia.
• It is located at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People’s Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northeast, and the Philippines to the south.
• The main island of Taiwan, also known as Formosa, has an area of 35,808 square kilometres (13,826 square miles), with mountain ranges dominating the eastern two-thirds and plains in the western third, where its highly urbanized population is concentrated.
• The capital, Taipei, forms along with New Taipei City and Keelung the largest metropolitan area.
• With around 23.9 million inhabitants, Taiwan is among the most densely populated countries.
• Taiwan’s export-oriented industrial economy is the 21st-largest in the world by nominal GDP and the 20th-largest by PPP measures, with a focus on steel, machinery, electronics, and chemicals manufacturing. Taiwan is a developed country

History

• It was a colony of the Netherlands for about 40 years in the early to mid-17th century and was subsequently independent again for about two decades. China gained control there in the late 17th century and ruled Taiwan for some two centuries. Japan acquired Taiwan in 1895 following the first Sino-Japanese War, and it became a colony.
• Taiwan was returned to Nationalist Chinese control in 1945 following Japan’s defeat in World War II. However, in 1949 Chinese communist armies defeated Nationalist forces on the mainland and established the People’s Republic of China there.
• The Nationalist government and armies fled to Taiwan, resulting in the separation of Taiwan from China. In the ensuing years the ROC claimed jurisdiction over the Chinese mainland as well as Taiwan, although in the early 1990s Taiwan’s government dropped this claim to China.
• The Chinese government in Beijing has maintained that it has jurisdiction over Taiwan and has continued to propound a one-China policy—a position that few countries in the world dispute.
• Taiwan is claimed by the PRC, which refuses to establish diplomatic relations with countries that recognise the ROC.
• Taiwan maintains official diplomatic relations with 11 out of 193 UN member states and the Holy See.
• Many others maintain unofficial diplomatic ties through representative offices and institutions that function as de facto embassies and consulates.
• International organizations in which the PRC participates either refuse to grant membership to Taiwan or allow it to participate on a non-state basis.

Source: Hindu

Syllabus

• Mains – GS 3

Context: Recently, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) has expressed strong opposition to Google’s delisting of certain applications from the Play Store.

Background:

• The dispute is over Google imposing a fee of 11 to 26 per cent on in-app payments after anti-competition body CCI ordered scrapping of an earlier system of charging 15 to 30 per cent.
• Google went ahead to remove the apps not paying the fee after the Supreme Court did not provide interim relief to companies behind these apps in their battle against the search giant’s app marketplace fee.

Digital Monopoly:

• It refers to a situation where a single company or platform holds significant control over their respective digital ecosystems and markets.
• Its examples include big tech companies like Google, Amazon, Facebook, Apple, and Microsoft.

Threats Posed by Digital Monopolies:

• Exclusionary behaviour hinders business users and consumers from switching to third-party service providers. E.g., App stores mandating the use of their payment systems.
• A digital enterprise according to the favourable treatment of its products on its platform, thus creating a conflict of interest.
• Combining or bundling core or essential services with complementary offerings, thus forcing users to buy related services.
• Using personal data for consumer profiling to offer targeted online services and products, thus raising data privacy concerns.
• Predatory pricing strategies, or intentionally setting prices below cost price to exclude competitors.
• Exclusive agreements with business users or sellers, thus preventing them from dealing with other enterprises. E.g., Apple restricts installation of third-party applications on iPhones.

India’s Initiatives to Prevent Digital Monopolies:

• Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules of 2020 were introduced to govern the operations of e-commerce platforms and digital marketplaces. These rules aim to prevent anti-competitive practices, ensure transparency, and protect consumer interests.
• The Competition (Amendment) Act of 2023 introduced new merger notification thresholds and deal value thresholds to capture acquisitions of high-value, data-rich firms that can potentially lead to digital monopolies.
• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) also investigates and takes action against anti-competitive practices by digital platforms.
• The Digital Personal Data Protection Act of 2023 emphasizes the importance of data to prevent the concentration of data in the hands of a few dominant players.
• The proposed Digital India Act (DIA) proposes to regulate a vast array of digital enterprises including social media websites, artificial intelligence-based platforms, and e-commerce enterprises.
• Draft National Data Governance Framework Policy aims to create standardized data management and security for non-personal and anonymised data across all government bodies.

Way Forward:

• (It is based on the recommendations of the Committee on Digital Competition Law of 2024).
• Introduction of a Digital Competition Act with ex-ante measures (using a form of financial analysis that uses forecasting for future events as against the prevailing practice of ex-post framework in most cases).
• Identification and designation of certain large digital platforms as Systemically Important Digital Intermediaries’ (SIDIs). They would be subject to ex-ante regulations and obligations.
• Introduction of a deal value threshold and the consideration of non-price factors like data and innovation in merger assessments.
• Strengthening the Competition Commission of India (CCI) by enhancing the institutional capacity and expertise to effectively deal with competition issues in the digital domain.
• Better coordination among various regulatory authorities, such as the CCI, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), etc.
• Increased international cooperation and alignment with global best practices in digital competition regulation.

Source: Indian Express

Q1.) Consider the following

1. Taiwan
2. Hawaii
3. Hainan Island

How many of the above are located in pacific ocean?

1. Only one
2. Only two
3. All three
4. None

Q2.) Consider the following statements about sweet sorghum:

1. Sweet sorghum is an attractive crop for biofuel production.
2. One of the key characteristics of sweet sorghum varieties is their drought resistance.
3. It produces a lot of plant material (biomass) as it grows which can be used as animal feed.

How many of the statements given above are correct?

1. Only one
2. Only two
3. All three
4. None

Q3.) Consider the following statements about G7

1. The G-7 does not have a formal constitution or a fixed headquarters.
2. China has never been a member of G7.
3. European Union (EU) is a “non-enumerated member”.

Which of the statements give above is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 2 and 3
3. 1 and 3
4. All of the above

Comment the answers to the above questions in the comment section below!!

ANSWERS FOR ’  25th  May 2024 – Daily Practice MCQs’ will be updated along with tomorrow’s Daily Current Affairs.st

Q.1) – d

Q.2) – b

Q.3) – c