Discuss the merits of government’s decision to bar taxpayers earning more than Rs 10 lakh per annum from availing of subsidy on LPG cylinder sales. (200 Words)

Government has finally changed its status quo of voluntary “Give it up” slogan to mandatory debarring citizens who have income above 10 lakh per annum to avail LPG subsidy. This is said to be a major step to restructure the overall method of subsidy. 
Few merits are:
1) Beginning of progressive structure for subsidies.
2) Fund saved can be used for other basic necessities of life like Health, Agriculture whose share in Budget has been low.
3) Would lead to lesser consumption of LPG & subsequently lesser wastage in households devoid of subsidy.
4) Nearly all LPG is through imports, CAD can be expected to go further low.
5) Misuse of subsidized cylinders to be stopped.
6) Will make the government to think on other subsidies which may also be removed like electricity, etc.

Apart from this, Government should take more steps to reduce the reliance on LPG & switch to cleaner forms of fuels whose funds can be taken from the cash subsidy saved in the new scheme. Creating a team for R&D should now be the immediate step by Government as the LPG prices are not expected to stay low in years to come, and with the growth of GDP along with depreciation of rupee, 10lpa income slab might not be sufficient in years to come.

Critically analyse the merits and demerits of Facebook’s “Free Basics” service offer in India. (200 Words)

Free basics is an initiative by Facebook where certain Internet services will be provided free of cost to everyone. In India, reliance Telecom has partnered with Facebook where Facebook will act as a gatekeeper and Reliance will be the service provider.

Demerits of Free basics:
-Free basics covers selected websites and ignores other websites and content providers. Thus it goes against principle of net neutrality.
-In the long run free basics can be misused for price manipulation for providing same services which once used to be free.
- It also helps one particular service provider, for example Reliance telecom will use it for promoting its services thus discriminating other service providers like BSNL, Aircel, Airtel etc.
-The nexus between "service providers" and "content providers" might be misused for anti-state propaganda.

Merits:
-Its not neutral internet if majority doesn't have access to it.Free basics will work on this principle.
-India is a large country where basic internet services are still to be made available to millions and especially to the rural India.Hence free basics will make an inclusive internet regime. This ultimately will lead to people empowerment.
-Recently GoI launched Digital India program. Free basics will help in making this programme effective by providing last mile connectivity.

Thus the debate boils down to "access" vs "neutrality". In absence of " access to internet " there is a lack of "internet inclusiveness" where as violating net neutrality will ultimately create a "digital caste system". Given India's current digital ambitions free basics certainly augments the government work,besides being pro-poor. However it goes wrong on many commercial and regulatory fronts. Hence first a strict regulatory regime, periodic government scrutiny over contents being provided and having a say over the websites selection should precede before allowing any such initiative.

Memorandum of Understanding on the Conservation of Migratory Birds of Prey in Africa and Eurasia

The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has given its approval to sign Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) on the Conservation of Migratory Birds of Prey in Africa and Eurasia, also called the ‘Raptor MOU‘ with the Convention on Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS).

• With the signing of this MOU, India will become the 54th signatory to the MOU.

About Raptor MoU:

• The Raptor MOU is an agreement under the Convention on Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS) and is not legally binding.
• The MOU seeks willingness of the signatory Range States for working for conservation of the raptor species and their habitats. Under this, an action plan has been formulated which primarily envisages the conservation action for Raptor species.
• The Raptors MoU extends its coverage to 76 species of birds of prey out of which 46 species including vultures, falcons, eagles, owls, hawks, kites, harriers, etc. also occur in India.
• Raptor MOU was concluded on in October 2008 and came into effect on 1st November 2008.
• India’s neighbours Pakistan and Nepal are also signatories to this MOU.

Benefits for India:

Considering that the Raptor MOU is also in conformity with the provisions of the existing Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, wherein the birds have been accorded protection, India would gain domain knowledge which would be helpful in effectively managing the habitats of these Raptors, including concerted trans-boundary efforts for conservation through interaction with other range countries by signing of the MOU with the CMS.

The CMS or Bonn Convention, under the auspices of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), aims to conserve migratory species throughout their range. India had become a party to the CMS since 1st November 1983.

sources: pib.

Criticas argue that there are many different ways by which internet can be made available to vast majority of unconnected people in developing countries rather than opting for Facebook’s Free Basics offer. Discuss. (200 Words)

The different ways other than the zero rating apps which can make internet accessible for all are-

1.Some amount of data should be provided free of cost or at discounted rates and the companies paying for it should get only a 'brought to you by' attribution.This model is being practiced in many African countries and Middle Eastern countries.

2.People watch ads in order to get access to other websites.Mozilla is working with Grameenphone in Bangladesh where users get 20 MB data free after watching short ads.

3.When financially well off people recharge their internet account, they can be asked to donate small amounts of money (Rs 1 to Rs 10) for providing internet services to the poor.

4.Donating money towards free internet access for the poor should be encouraged as a part of CSR initiative of the telecom companies.

5.Effective utilization of the Universal Service Obligation Fund which has been lying unutilized as indicated in the recent CAG report.

6.Even modification in the zero rating schemes like delinking free internet access from specific content and limit it by volume or time.

7.Increasing competition and countering monopolies will automatically reduce the cost of access to internet and even the poor will be able to afford it.

Increasing the income of people through higher economic growth is a long term solution to make internet accessible to all.

18 States agree to revoke ‘no detention policy’ in RTE

A committee headed by Rajasthan Education Minister Vasudev Devnani has sent recommendations to the Central government, stating that the ‘no detention policy’ under the Right to Education (RTE) Act should be revoked.

• The committee had received the consent of 18 States for required amendments in the ‘no detention policy’ under the Right to Education (RTE) Act.
• Under the no detention policy, no student can be failed or expelled till Class VIII. However, States, including Rajasthan, have already done away with the policy.

What has the committee recommended?

• The committee, formed by the Central government, stated that a ‘learning level’ must be fixed for each class to check whether a student is eligible for the class that he or she is in.
• The committee also notes, “Students must not be detained in Classes VI and VII. However, they must meet the required ‘learning levels’. A month’s time would be given to students to retake tests and attain the required learning levels, failing which the students would have to be detained.”

What next?

• Now, for this to happen, the Centre will have to amend the Right To Education law — which prescribes the no-detention policy for students till Class 8.

A key component of the RTE Act, the no-detention policy was enforced on April 1, 2010, with the intention of ensuring that every child between the age of six and 14 gets a school education.

sources: the hindu

Editorial:The Double Mistake – Alcohol Prohibition

The Supreme Court of India recently upheld Kerala Government’s decision to restrict alcohol consumption in the state. In doing so, the court invoked the Directive Principles in the Constitution and claimed that “strict state regulation is imperative” to discourage regular and excessive consumption of alcohol.

• Kerala government came out with this policy with the noble objective of protecting public health and nutrition.
• The closure of hundreds of bars across the State despite substantial loss in state’s revenue deserves praise.

However, according to few, this is a misguided policy. Why?

Arguments, against this decision:

• Historical evidence shows that prohibition does not encourage or enable people to quit drinking. Rather, prohibition tends to drive the trade underground and creates a market for spurious liquor.
• This policy is just a populist decision impelled by factional politics within the ruling party.
• The policy may only help to shift the drinking space from bar to home or other private spaces.
• This policy may lead to increase in the sale of consumption of beer and wine, which is a gateway to the consumption of hard liquor.

Arguments, in support of this policy:

The following arguments indicate that such ban was the need of the hour-

• The Constitution places a responsibility on all state governments to “at least contain, if not curtail, consumption of alcohol” (Article 47).
• Strict state regulation is imperative to discourage regular and excessive consumption of alcohol.
• Alcohol denudes family resources and reserves and leaves women and children as its most vulnerable victims. A social stigma at least as far as the family unit is concerned is still attached to the consumption of alcohol.
• Vulnerable persons, either because of age or proclivity towards intoxication or as a feature of peer pressure, more often than not, succumb to this temptation.
• According to the Alcohol and Drug Information Centre of Thiruvananthapuram, 44% of Kerala’s road accidents, 19% of stays in government hospitals and 80% divorces are linked to alcohol abuse.
• The drinking age is dangerously coming down. This clearly indicates alcohol has become a social sickness and we have to treat it.
• Alcoholism does also critically impacts the household budgets of the poor and may lead to domestic violence.

Differential treatment:

The liquor policy, upheld by the apex court, allows service of liquor at bars in five star hotels only. Under the policy, the sale and consumption of liquor at the bars in hotels below five star is prohibited.

Why five-star hotels are excluded?

• The exemption was sought by the government on the grounds that it was necessary to protect the tourism industry.
• The apex court has also held that there was no hostile discrimination by the state government in making an exception for only five star hotels, as it is not the state which has imposed the classification of star gradation of hotels. This is done by the Ministry of Tourism, which in turn is further guided by the criteria established in the hospitality trade.
• The court also notes that there is a “reasonable nexus” between the policy exempting five-star hotels and the State’s objective to rescue public health.
• Five-star hotels account for just .08% of alcohol consumption in the State and the prices/tariff of alcohol in five-star hotels is usually prohibitively high, which acts as a deterrent to individuals going in for binge or even casual drinking.
• Also, the patrons of five-star hotels are of a mature age and do not visit these hotels with the sole purpose of consuming alcohol.

Arguments, against this exemption:

• The apex court’s decision to exclude five-star hotels from the ambit of prohibition seems unreasonable and arbitrary. Such preferential treatment discriminates against a large segment of the tourism industry and ignores their right to a level playing field.
• If the consumption of liquor is a social problem, it should be so for all. Halfway measures can complicate issues.

Previous experiences:

Neither government nor the court appears to have studied the experience of states like Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, which have tried to implement prohibition in the past — unsuccessfully so.

Gujarat:

• Prohibition has been in place ever since statehood in 1960, first under Bombay Prohibition Act, 1949, and now under the Gujarat Prohibition Act, 2011, following several amendments. The latest version, which followed 150 deaths caused by hooch in Ahmedabad in 2009, includes the death penalty for those found guilty of making and selling spurious liquor.
• The law allows for temporary and long-term drinking permits to foreigners, NRIs and tourists, with outlets and purchase limits specified. A resident can get a permit only on health grounds. At special economic zones, the government allows consumption against three-year permits.
• Every city, however, has bootleggers and an illegal interstate business thrives, estimated at around Rs 1,500 crore annually.

Mizoram:

• Total prohibition for 18 years, relaxed by a new law in July. Rules allowing regulated sale and consumption of alcohol being framed, liquor shops and bars may take a few more months to open.
• Government figures show high seizures of alcohol and several arrests of bootleggers and drunkards between 1995 and the end of the first quarter this year. Opponents of prohibition say these show prohibition has been a “failure” and has done little to reduce the availability of alcohol.

Andhra Pradesh:

• Experimented with prohibition from 1994 to 1997. Following a movement by women who vandalised liquor shops and beat up people drinking in public, N T Rama Rao promised prohibition, won elections from that plank and kept the promise after becoming CM in January 1995. The experiment failed.
• Though consumption by the poor came down drastically, there were many leaks. It also led to corruption in police, administration and politics and liquor was available although in very limited quantities.

Haryana:

• Prohibition in the state was imposed in 1996. In the very first year, estimates say, revenues dropped Rs 1,200 crore, ruling party leaders started voicing protests, and women complained about their husbands deserting their homes for places where they could drink.
• More than a lakh cases were registered, thousands of vehicles impounded, lakhs of bottles recovered and destroyed, but illicit brewing and smuggling continued, and drugs made their way into the state. The government withdrew prohibition after 19 months.

Nagaland:

• The Nagaland Total Liquor Prohibition Act, 1989, followed a movement launched by Naga Mothers’ Association (NMA) and church bodies. It exempts prohibition for traditional liquor forms ‘Zu’ and ‘Rohi’. The Army and paramilitary forces too are exempted under an amendment of 1995. From Rs 600 lakh in 1988-89, liquor-related revenue has fallen to about Rs 250 lakh a year.
• However, liquor is clandestinely available all over the state, with reports of seizure of liquor coming in regularly. In 2013, the then CM Neiphiu Rio admitted in the assembly that prohibition has been a failure.

Conclusion:

While total prohibition may be a laudable objective and one of the Directive Principles of State Policy, it is doubtful whether confining drinking to homes and private spaces by itself will bring down consumption. In a non-permissive society, it may only result in converting drinking into a covert activity, a phenomenon requiring policing and also bringing corruption in its wake. The verdict places a heavy burden on the State to rehabilitate those left unemployed by the closure of hundreds of bars, as well as to make its policy succeed. It also needs to ensure that the sweeping discretion conferred on it to differentiate between classes of licensees is not misused for any extraneous considerations

Maiden Attempt – Barak 8 Missile

India has successfully test-fired a long-range surface-to-air missile, jointly developed with Israel, from its warship in its maiden attempt.

With this, India joined a select group of countries which has such an anti-air warfare capability for their navies.
The Barak 8 missile fired by the INS Kolkata on the western seaboard successfully intercepted an aerial target at extended ranges.

Factsheet:

LRSAM is also called Barak 8 missile in Israel which in Hebrew language means Lightning.

Barak 8 is being considered to be a major asset for the Indian Navy because it would add a potent system designed to destroy any anti-ship missile launched by Pakistani or Chinese Navy.

Key to Barak 8’s ability to intercept incoming missiles is Israel-made MF-STAR radar system, which is capable of simultaneously tracking hundreds of airborne targets to a range of more than 250 kilometers.

The Barak-8 has been designed to defend against a variety of short-to-long-range airborne threats, including fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, drones and projectiles.

The LRSAM programme consists of missiles, weapon control system, MFSTAR (radar), vertical launcher unit and two-way data link.

The LRSAM system has been jointly developed by the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) and Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd.(IAI), Israel.

sources: the hindu, drdo.