The Hindu PDF 08 April 2023 Analysis

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The Hindu Newspaper Analysis Today

Key points:

• The Union government of India is set to hold talks with a senior Ukrainian Minister, Emine Dzhaparova.
• This is the first visit by a Ukrainian Minister since the Russia-Ukraine war began last February.
• Ms. Dzhaparova is likely to invite Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit Kiev.
• The visit is aimed at building support for Ukraine in India.
• Ukraine has requested India for more humanitarian aid.
• Ms. Dzhaparova will expand on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s “10-point Peace Formula” during her talks.
• Ukraine has invited India to be one of the “security guarantors” for a future peace process.
• Ms. Dzhaparova will call upon India to send a “strong message for peace” directly to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is due to visit India in early July for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit.

Key points:

• The Eastern Bench of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has ordered a stay on the Great Nicobar Island (GNI) project, a mega project to be implemented at the southern end of the Andaman and Nicobar islands.
• The NGT has set up a committee to revisit the environmental clearance granted by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) and a report is expected within two months.
• The project has faced appeals challenging its adverse impact on the rich biodiversity of the area, including damage to habitats of endangered species and the nesting ground for birds in the Galathea bay.
• One appeal challenged the forest clearance on the ground that the impact of diversion of 130.75 square km of pristine tropical rainforests on biodiversity and tribals has not been considered.
• The Congress has criticized the Modi government, alleging that it is promoting “ecocide” and pushing through an “ecological nightmare.”

Key points:

• The Reserve Bank of India’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has decided to keep the repo rate unchanged to pause its inflation-battling monetary tightening.
• This decision was influenced by the current banking sector turmoil and volatility and uncertainty in the global financial system.
• The RBI’s policymakers have chosen to subordinate their concerns over inflation for now to ensure that the growth momentum is not undermined.
• However, the MPC still faces a challenge in achieving durable disinflation, as core inflation remains elevated across a range of goods and services.
• Upside risks to the inflation outlook come from factors such as higher global crude and commodity prices, extreme weather conditions, and deficient monsoon rains.
• Price stability still remains “the best guarantee for sustainable growth,” and policymakers must remain vigilant about achieving this goal.

Key points:

• The Union Cabinet has approved the setting up of a gravitational-wave detection facility in Maharashtra, India, as part of the LIGO-India collaboration.
• The LIGO detector will be built in the image of the twin LIGO instruments already operational in the U.S. and will aid in detecting gravitational waves and pinpointing their sources in the sky.
• The approval presents two opportunities for India: to become a global site for gravitational physics research and to demonstrate an ability to reckon intelligently with Indian society’s relationship with science.
• India has had a contested relationship with Big Science projects in the past, particularly regarding land use change and land rights.
• LIGO-India has a responsibility to define its public value beyond benefits to national industry and research and engage in good faith with concerns about access to land and other resources.
• LIGO-India can contribute to the communities from which it requires sustenance and knowledge and conduct public outreach on par with the international LIGO Scientific Collaboration.

Key points:

• The proposed Investment Facilitation Agreement (IFA) is meant to create legally binding provisions aimed at facilitating investment flows, requiring states to augment regulatory transparency and predictability of investment measures.
• The IFA is different from investment protection agreements such as bilateral investment treaties (BITs) that allow foreign investors to bring claims against the host state for alleged treaty breaches (investor-state dispute settlement or ISDS).
• India is not a party to IFA negotiations due to the apprehension that foreign investors could use a future IFA to bring claims under existing BITs, but this is unlikely for several reasons.
• The IFA can be firewalled from BITs by unequivocally stating that it cannot be used to interpret or apply any rule for the protection of investment contained in any investment treaty and does not create rights for non-signatory countries and their investors.
• Countries can also reform their respective BITs to exclude the IFA from their scope, and the BIT reform process is already underway.
• The possibility of an ISDS tribunal interpreting provisions broadly cannot be ruled out, but this cannot be a basis to oppose international lawmaking.
• India should not be opposed to joining the IFA negotiations at the WTO due to fear of ISDS claims.

Key points:

• The Indian Navy currently has around 130 ships and submarines, with a target of having a 200-ship Navy.
• However, the Chief of Defence Staff and Secretary, Department of Military Affairs, General Anil Chauhan has said that given the current trajectory, the Indian Navy is likely to have 155-160 ships instead.
• The Chinese Navy, with around 355 ships, has grown to be the world’s largest Navy in terms of numbers.
• The Parliamentary standing committee on defence was apprised of the possible collusive threat from both China and Pakistan, and the former’s role in expansion of the Pakistan’s Navy.
• The Indian Navy currently has a shortfall of planes and helicopters for reconnaissance and transport.
• China is projected to expand its Navy to around 555 ships in the next four-five years.
• From now to 2030, the Pakistani Navy is projected to expand by 50% with China playing the biggest role in the expansion.
• The committee urges the Ministry to assess the threat perception and increase the Indian Navy’s capability in view of hostile nations in the neighborhood and the increase in trade in the Indian Ocean Region.

Key points:

• The Indian government has identified and documented distinctive features of more than one lakh villages across the country to harness their unique cultural heritage.
• The villages have been broadly divided into seven-eight categories based on their ecological, developmental, or scholastic importance, whether they produce a famous textile or product, and if they are connected to some historical or mythological events.
• The entire exercise has been carried out under the Mera Gaon Meri Dharohar (My Village My Heritage) programme of the National Mission for Cultural Mapping (NMCM).
• The NMCM aims to develop a comprehensive database of art forms, artists, and other resources across the country.
• The survey documents the cultural identity of the villages by involving citizens to share what makes their village, Block or district unique.
• The survey process involves a CSC Village Level Entrepreneur (VLE) conducting meetings with locals and then uploading interesting facts about their village, its places of interest, customs and traditions, famous personalities, festivals and beliefs, art and culture, etc., on to a special application.
• The IGNCA plans to cover all the 6.5 lakh villages in the country.

Source: The Hindu Epaper

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