UPSC Key— 17th April, 2024 | LWE, EVM, ballot paper, digital infrastructure and more

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Mains Examination: Linkages between development and spread of extremism, role of external state and non-state actors in creating challenges to internal security

What’s the ongoing story- At least 29 Maoists were killed and three security personnel were injured in a gunbattle Tuesday in a forest in Kanker district of Bastar division in Chhattisgarh. This comes days before Lok Sabha elections in the area — Bastar will vote on April 19 and Kanker on April 26.

Prerequisites: 

— What is Left-wing Extremism?

— What is the difference between terrorism and Naxalism?

— What is a Red corridor region?

— Role of the District Reserve Guards (DRG) and Border Security Force (BSF)

— Map Work: Location of  Chhote Bethiya in Bastar and the Gadchiroli Forest Reserve on the map of India. Also, the regions that are called the Red corridor.

Key takeaways: 

— Bastar Inspector General Sundarraj P confirmed that this is the highest maoist casualties in a single operation in the Bastar region.

— “The encounter site is a trijunction area between Abujhmad, Gadchiroli district in Maharashtra, and north Bastar.”

— Data of Moists killed in Chhattisgarh since 2019: 65 in 2019, 36 in 2020, 47 in 2021, 30 in 2022, 24 in 2023 and 79 in 2024 till date.

— Bastar IG said, “Naxalism is the biggest enemy of development, peace and the bright future of the youth. Due to the offensive policy of the government and the efforts of the security forces, Naxalism has been confined to a small area today. Soon, Chhattisgarh and the entire country will be completely Naxal-free.”

— “On the question of the strategy of the new government to curb LWE, he responded that the main focus area is effective operations and better inter-state operations against the banned CPI (Maoist).”

— “The second focus is on development. The third is communication outreach to clear the wrong perception created by the Naxals to exploit the jal, jungle and zameen (water, forest, and land).”

For Your Information: 

From the explained section,

— Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in 2004 has called the Maoists violence as the “greatest internal security threat for the country”.

— Between 2018 and 2020, Chhattisgarh has accounted for 45% of all incidents in the country and 70% of security personnel deaths in such incidents.

— According to the data provided by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in Lok Sabha (2022), Left Wing Extremism (LWE) violence has decreased from 2,258 in 2009 to 509 in 2021.

— Prakash Singh writes: that there are two fundamental flaws in our anti-Naxal strategy. First, in most states, there is a tendency to outsource the operations against Naxals to the central armed police forces. Second, “the development paradigm pursued since independence has always been ‘imposed’ on the tribal communities and has been insensitive to their needs and concerns”

Points to Ponder: 

— Strategies of the government to curb the LWE

— Why do Naxals continue to hold out in Chhattisgarh?

— Who are the urban Naxals ?

— How does LWE impact the electoral process in India?

Post Read Question:

1. Naxalism is a social, economic and developmental issue manifesting as a violent internal security threat. In this context, discuss the emerging issues gets a multilayered strategy to tackle the menace of Naxalism. [UPSC 2022]

2. What are the determinants of left-wing extremism in the Eastern part of India? What strategy should the Government of India, civil administration and security forces adopt to counter the threat in the affected areas? [UPSC 2020]

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

Explained: Fighting Left Wing Extremism in Chhattisgarh, and elsewhere

Left wing extremism violence down in country, but force personnel deaths rising in Chhattisgarh

Maoism should be seen as a social and economic problem

 

Supreme Court rejects return to ballot paper, poses questions on EVMs, counting process

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Indian Polity and Governance

Mains Examination: General Studies II: Governance, Constitution and Polity.

What’s the ongoing story- On Tuesday, the Supreme Court dismissed the idea of a return to the ballot paper era and questioned petitioners who raised doubts about the sanctity of voting through electronic voting machines (EVMs), with the judges stating that they have not yet forgotten what used to happen when votes were cast through ballot papers.

Prerequisites: 

— Know about the ballot box election. 

— What is an electronic voting machine (EVM)? How does it work?

— When were EVMs first used in elections?

— In which Lok Sabha election were EVMs used in every booth?

— What are VVPATs?

— Read Article 324 of the Indian Constitution.

Key takeaways: 

— The petition for 100% verification of EVM votes with VVPAT slips is being heard at a time when the Lok Sabha election process is underway. The Opposition has been asking questions about the foolproof nature of the EVMs and some have even suggested a return to the ballot paper. At present, 5 EVMs are randomly verified against VVPAT slips per Assembly segment.

— EVMs are manufactured by Public Sector Undertakings. 

—  EVMs are assembled by two PSUs — Electronics Corporation of India Ltd and Bharat Electronics. 

For Your Information: 

—  EVMs are used to cast a vote without revealing voters identity. It is used in Indian General and State Elections. It has replaced paper ballots in local, state and general (parliamentary) elections in India. 

— EVMs have a life of 15 years, that is why all units manufactured during 2001 have been discarded now.

— The idea of the VVPAT machine first emerged in 2010, when the EC held a meeting with political parties to discuss the EVM and ways to make the polling process more transparent. 

— The VVPAT was used for the first time in all 21 polling stations of the Noksen Assembly constituency of Nagaland in 2013, after which the EC decided to introduce VVPATs in a phased manner. From June 2017, 100% of VVPATs began to be used in polls, and the 2019 Lok Sabha elections became the first general election to have 100% of EVMs being attached to VVPATs.

Points to Ponder: 

— Which public sector undertaking manufactures the EVMs?

— What are the demerits of Ballot box Election?

— What are the benefits of EVM in the Elections as compared to the Ballot box?

— What are the concerns associated with the use of EVMs?

— What measures can be taken to secure EVMs?

— Who can access VVPAT machines?

— What are the Postal Ballots?

Post Read Question:

Prelims

Consider the following statements: (2017)

1. The Election Commission of India is a five-member body.

2. The Union Ministry of Home Affairs decides the election schedule for the conduct of both general elections and bye-elections.

3. Election Commission resolves the disputes relating to splits/mergers of recognised political parties.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 and 2 only 

(b) 2 only 

(c) 2 and 3 only

(d) 3 only

Mains

In the light of recent controversy regarding the use of Electronic Voting Machines (EVM), what are the challenges before the Election Commission of India to ensure the trustworthiness of elections in India? (2018)

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

What is an EVM? How does it work?

What are VVPATs, and why has Jairam Ramesh written to EC about them?

Why VVPAT was brought in, why Opposition wants all slips verified

 

Editorial Page

Moving past bonds

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current Events of national and international importance,  Indian Polity and Governance- Constitution, Political System. 

Mains Examination:  General Studies II: Governance and Polity. 

What’s the ongoing story- S.Y Quraishi writes- “The Prime Minister’s anguish over the Supreme Court declaring electoral bonds unconstitutional and the consequences of this decision needs to be considered seriously and with a broad perspective.”

Prerequisites: 

— What is the electoral bonds scheme? 

— Why did the Supreme Court Strike Down the Electoral Bonds Scheme?

— Know about the Article 14, 19 and 21 of Indian Constitution. 

Key takeaways: 

— In his  previous article (‘An opaque bond’, IE, April 8, 2021), S Y Quraishi suggested a “30 second reform” (for electoral bonds)— declaring the names of donors and recipients. He writes if the government had heeded this simple advice, the SC may not have come down on the scheme. 

— In the context where the electoral bond scheme has been striked down by the SC, S.Y Quraishi writes- “The pre-2018 situation is certainly not acceptable. I think the government should pull out the reform proposals put forward by civil society groups and the ECI over the last two decades and come up with fresh solutions. I have been advocating a workable solution, namely, the introduction of a National Election Fund (NEF), to which all the donors can make their contributions. To make it attractive, liberal income tax concessions can be offered.” 

— Some suggested electoral finance reforms are:

1. A ceiling for political parties’ expenditure. 

2. Creation of Independent National Election Fund where all tax-free donations could be made.

3. Enforce internal democracy and transparency in the working of political parties and bring them under RTI.

4. Legally empower ECI proposal to cancel elections where credible evidence of abuse of money is found.

5. Debar from contesting elections persons against whom cases of heinous offences are pending in courts. 

6. Empower the ECI to de-register political parties that haven’t contested an election for 10 years, but have benefited from tax exemptions. 

7. Make paid news an electoral offence with two years’ imprisonment, by declaring it a “corrupt practice” (Section 100 of the Representation of the People Act) and “undue influence” (Sec 123(2)). 

For Your Information: 

— First announced during the Union Budget session in 2017, “electoral bonds” were interest-free “bearer instruments”, which means that they were payable to the bearer on demand, similar to a promissory note.

Points to Ponder: 

— What concerns were raised with regard to the Electoral  Bonds?

— What is crony capitalism? 

— What measures have been taken to make elections in India more democratic.

Post Read Question:

What reforms can be done in Electoral Funding in India?

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

What are electoral bonds, how has govt defended them, what Supreme Court has to decide

Why did the Supreme Court strike down the Electoral Bonds Scheme?

What are Electoral Bonds?

 

A good augury

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination:  Indian and World Geography – Physical, Social, Economic geography of India and the World.

Mains Examination: GS-I, Important Geophysical phenomena such as earthquakes, Tsunami, Volcanic activity, cyclones. etc., geographical features and their location-changes in critical geographical features (including water-bodies and ice-caps) and in flora and fauna and the effects of such changes.

What’s the ongoing story- The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast a “most likely to be above normal” southwest monsoon this year. Rainfall over the country during June-September is expected to be 106 per cent of the “normal” long period average for this four-month season.

Prerequisites: 

— How ocean currents impact the monsoon in a region?

— Impact of good monsoon on the food security

— What is the Southwest Monsoon?

— What is the Indian Ocean Dipole?

Key takeaways: 

— The favorable conditions of the monsoon developed due to weakening of the current El Nino conditions to “neutral” in the first half of the monsoon and development of La Nina during the second half.

— El Niño — an abnormal warming of the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean waters towards South America — is generally known to suppress cloud formation and rainfall activity in India, while La Niña has the opposite effect.

— There is a hope of development of  “positive” Indian Ocean Dipole conditions — warmer temperatures in the Arabian Sea waters relative to that in the eastern Indian Ocean — bringing favorable monsoon conditions.

— A good monsoon will bring growth in the economy, availability of drinking water (think Bengaluru) and reservoir levels for hydel power generation.

— The third impact is on sentiment. For the government taking over in June after the Lok Sabha elections, a good monsoon would be manna from heaven — providing just the right start.

— According to Express view, the government’s options are limited: It has done both right (slashing import tariffs on pulses and edible oils) and wrong (banning/curbing exports of wheat, rice, sugar and onions, besides imposing stocking limits). The one thing it could do is to abolish the 40 per cent import duty on wheat.

For Your Information: 

— A positive Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) event is often seen developing at times of an El Nino, while a negative IOD is sometimes associated with La Nina. 

— During El Nino, the Pacific side of Indonesia is cooler than normal because of which the Indian Ocean side also gets cooler. That helps the development of a positive IOD.

Points to Ponder: 

— Impact of stocking limit on containing inflation

—  World Trade Organization (WTO) reaction to India’s decision on the ban of export of wheat.

Post Read Question:

How imposing a stocking limit on export of foodgrains is not an effective policy to control inflation?

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

Explained: Monsoon and food inflation

Explained: With better monsoon, what is the outlook for India’s farm sector?

Monsoon uncertainty: Centre imposes stock limits on wheat, after tur and urad

Explained: Why ban of wheat exports is knee-jerk reaction, hits farmers and dents policy credibility

 

The Ideas Page

India’s experiences with clean energy, digital solutions offer important lessons

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development – Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector Initiatives, etc

Mains Examination: GS-II, GS-III; Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation, e-governance, Achievements of Indians in science & technology; indigenization of technology and developing new technology

What’s the ongoing story- Anna Bjerde, Managing Director Operations, World Bank writes my recent trip to India showed me a bright spot amid a weak global outlook: A country with 7.5 per cent growth estimated for the past fiscal year. While this growth has been largely driven by public investments, it is clear that the private sector is shaping the future of India

Prerequisites: 

— What is the Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) initiative?

— What is Indiastack?

— National Rural Livelihood Mission

— World Bank

Key takeaways: 

— “India has made important progress on the energy transition, with renewable energy making up 42 per cent of its total power generation capacity. India is currently the world’s fourth largest renewables market and home to 3 percent of the global solar manufacturing capabilities.”

— “The World Bank has contributed with investments of about $1 billion in solar parks and rooftop solar in the country, having leveraged 40 times that amount in commercial investment.”

— “With its digital public infrastructure (DPI) initiative, India has pioneered the use of technology for inclusion. The use of digital payments has also reduced delays in the payment of maternal health conditional cash transfers by 43 per cent.”

— “Safe urban housing combined with improved access to finance have helped boost the female labour force in industry to 43 per cent of the national level.”

— “The National Rural Livelihoods Mission, supported by the World Bank, has empowered millions of rural women by organising them into self-help groups. More than $4 billion in commercial credit has been mobilised to support women-led cooperatives and rural enterprises.”

Points to Ponder: 

— Role of DPI in e-governance

— Initiatives for empowering women

— Different World Bank projects in India

Post Read Question:

Public and private initiatives are driving India’s development path. Analyse.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

Digital Public Infrastructure: The story of India’s digital revolution

Indian women are working more. Here’s why

 

Explained Page

Israel’s weapons that thwarted Iran attack

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance

Mains Examination: General Studies III: Technology and Security.

What’s the ongoing story- Israel’s multi-layered air defence system has defended the country from a major attack, with Iran launching over 300 armed drones and long-range missiles launched towards it on April 13.

Prerequisites: 

— What is a ballistic missile?

— What is an Intercontinental ballistic missile?

— What is Iron Dome?

— Read about Arrow 2, Arrow 3, David’s Sling (Stunner), Patriot Advanced Capability-2, PAC-3. 

— What is the Akash air defence missile system?

Key takeaways: 

— Israel’s air defence system is meant to provide multi-layered defences against a range of aerial threats, which includes aircraft, cruise and ballistic missiles as well as unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). 

— Arrow System: Anti-ballistic missiles, capable of intercepting long-range missiles. Developed in collaboration with the US. Arrow-2 can intercept ballistic missiles within the atmosphere. Arrow-3 has the capability of intercepting missiles outside the Earth’s atmosphere.

— David’s Sling (or Stunner): Israel’s medium-range air defence system, which can intercept cruise missiles, ballistic missiles, and aircraft. Its range is 300 kilometres. 

— Iron Dome: Israel’s indigenous short-range air defence system which can intercept rockets, artillery shells, and mortar bombs. Its range is 70 kilometers.

— Patriot PAC-2 and PAC-3:  The US-made Patriot PAC-2 and PAC-3 are air defence systems that can intercept a range of missiles and target aircraft and drones. 

— Spyder: Family of multi-range mobile air defence systems to defend large areas against aerial attack. It’s an all weather system and can be activated within seconds of the target being declared hostile. 

— Israel is developing the Iron Beam to intercept incoming threats with laser technology. It is yet to be fully operational.

For Your Information: 

—  Iron Dome is a short-range, ground-to-air, air defence system that includes a radar and Tamir interceptor missiles that track and neutralise any rockets or missiles aimed at Israeli targets. It is used for countering rockets, artillery & mortars (C-RAM) as well as aircraft, helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles. The Iron Dome was deployed in 2011.

— S-400 Triumf is an important part of India’s air-defence system. S-400 Triumf is considered one of the most advanced and potent air defence systems in the world. It has the capability to protect against almost all sorts of aerial attacks, including drones, missiles, rockets and even fighter jets. The system, intended to act as a shield over a particular area, is a long-range surface-to-air missile system.

Points to Ponder: 

— What are the major air defence systems of India? 

— Read about the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system (THAAD).

— What is the Kusha Project? 

— What is the Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP)?

— Why does India need the S-400 TRIUMF missile system?

Post Read Question:

What is “Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD)”, sometimes seen in the news? (2018)

(a) An Israeli radar system

(b) India’s indigenous anti-missile programme

(c) An American anti-missile system

(d) A defence collaboration between Japan and South Korea.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

What is Israel’s Iron Dome, how does it intercept rockets?

Explained: How Israel’s Iron Dome air defence system intercepts rockets

What is the S-400 Triumf?

 

Gopi Thotakura to be the first Indian space tourist

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance

Mains Examination: GS-III, Science and Technology- developments and their applications and effects in everyday life.

What’s the ongoing story- Entrepreneur and pilot Gopi Thotakura is set to become the first Indian to venture into space as a tourist on the NS-25 mission of Blue Origin — a company founded by Jeff Bezos, who is also the founder of Amazon.

Prerequisites: 

— What is space tourism?

— What is Kármán line?

— Space X

— Space Launch vehicles

Key takeaways: 

— Thotakura has been selected as one of the six crew members for the mission. He would be the second Indian to go into space. The first one was Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma, who flew to the Salyut 7 space station on a Soviet spacecraft in 1984.

— According to the book ‘Air Transport: A Tourism Perspective’, Space tourism is a section of the aviation sector which seeks to provide tourists with the opportunity to become astronauts and experience space travel for recreational, leisure, or business purposes.

— According to media reports, in 2023, the space tourism market was valued at $848.28 million. It is expected to grow to $27,861.99 million by 2032.

— There are two main types of space tourism, sub-orbital and orbital. NS-25 mission is a sub-orbital mission.

— There are several challenges associated with space tourism–expensive, environmental damage and safety concerns. 

For Your Information: 

— The Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN-SPACe) has been created as a single window agency under the Department of Space to promote, handhold and authorise the activities of the private sector in the space domain, including those by young entrepreneurs and students. 

— IN-SPACe will come up with mechanisms to enable sharing of technical facilities and expertise available across ISRO centres with private entities.

— The government of India has introduced the India Space Policy, 2023. 

Points to Ponder: 

— Scope for India in space tourism

— Collaboration with private sector for the development of Space tourism in India

— Gaganyaan Mission

Post Read Question:

Consider the following statements:

1. Gopi Thotakura would be the first person of Indian origin to go in space on the NS-25 mission of SpaceX.

2. NS-25 is a sub-orbital mission.

3. Rakesh Sharma was the first Indian to go in space on  Salyut 7 space station.

How many of the above statements are correct?

(a) Only one

(b) Only two

(c) Only three

(d)None

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

Who is the first Indian space tourist and where did gold come from?

India is about to join the elite club of nations such as the USA, Russia and China to venture into space tourism.

A larger role for private sector in new space policy is a step in right direction

 

Ethics Snippets

The Vibhishan moment is when a person has chosen truth and risk over the lies and comforts of inherited loyalty. Walked away from so-far unbeaten power, to stand on the side of courage and uncertainty. The danger of the Vibhishan moment is that you may feel so overwhelmed by the asymmetry of a contest that your perception of reality shrinks.

 (Thought Process- An honest IAS officer comes across several Vibhishan moments in their career— Ram tells Vibhishan, one who has this chariot of righteousness triumphs over the cycle of life and death — by comparison, victory over Ravan is a trivial matter. This example can be cited in highlighting the significance of taking the right path from individual level to International Relations. Similarly, it can be used as an example in an Ethics paper emphasizing the significance of Ethics and Morality.)

Subscribe to our UPSC newsletter and stay updated with the news cues from the past week.