‘Below normal’ Monsoon

 

News Flash

According to Skymet (private weather forecaster) , India is headed for deficient monsoon.

 

Findings

• East and Central India face high risk during the first half of the season.
• Below normal and about 7% short of monsoon rain (from June to September)
• Rain in July is expected to be nearly 9% short (July-key month for agriculture)
• There is a 15% chance of a drought (seasonal rainfall less than 90% of the average), 30% chance of normal (seasonal rainfall that is between 96%-104% of the long period average or LPA), and 55% chance of below normal (seasonal rainfall that is between 90%-95% of LPA).
• The second half of the season would see better rainfall wherein August is expected to be a shade better than September.

 

Factors associated

• According to Skymet, El-Nino is frequently associated with drying monsoon rains.
• An El Niño is declared when three straight months register a 0.5-1 degree C rise in sea surface temperatures in the Central Pacific.
• The Pacific Ocean has become strongly warmer than average.
• It is expected that 80% chance of El Niño during March-May, dropping to 60% for June to August.
• El Niño would form from March to May and there was a “less than 50% chance” of a strong El Niño from June-August.

 

Favourable parameter

• The Indian Ocean Dipole appeared favourable to the Indian monsoon.
• Indian Ocean Dipole – when the western Indian ocean is warmer and has more rain clouds than the east.

 

Factors affected Indian climate

• India’s climate is affected by two seasonal winds viz. the north-east monsoon (known as winter monsoon blows from land to sea) and the south-west monsoon (known as summer monsoon blows from sea to land).
• The south-west monsoon brings most of the rainfall during the year.
• La Nina is thought to be favourable to India as it brings rains.
• El-Nino causes wide spread floods and droughts in tropical regions of the world.
• Other Factors: Distance from the sea, Latitude, Altitude, Location, Direction of surface wind, Upper air current, EL-Nino & La Nina.

 

Importance of monsoon rains for India

• The monsoon is the lifeblood for India’s farm.
• Approx $2 trillian economy is dependent upon monsoon.
• About 800 million people live in villages and depend on agriculture, which accounts for about 15% of India’s gross domestic product (GDP) and a failed monsoon can have a rippling effect on the country’s growth and economy.
• Whereas, a normal to above-normal and well-distributed monsoon boosts farm output and farmers’ income.

 

In case of poor monsoon

• The monsoon has a direct impact on the country’s agricultural GDP.
• The planting of key kharif, or summer, crops like rice, sugar cane, pulses and oilseeds begins with the arrival of monsoon rains in June.
• Summer crops account for almost half of India’s food output.
• Poor monsoon means supply issues and acceleration in food inflation.
• It also influences Reserve Bank of India’s decision on interest rates.
• A deficit monsoon could also lead to a drought-like situation.
• Affecting the rural household incomes, consumption and economic growth.
• Leads to weak demand for fast-moving consumer goods.
• Increases the imports of essential food staples and forces the government to take measures like farm loan waivers, thereby putting pressure on finances.

 

Source: The Hindu

 

 

Euro-VI fuel

 

News Flash

Supply of ultra-clean Euro-VI grade petrol and diesel has begun in cities adjoining the national capital region.

• Delhi became the first city in the country to leapfrog from Euro-IV grade petrol and diesel to Euro-VI fuels.
• Whole of India shift to Euro-VI fuel by 2020.

 

BS-VI or Euro VI

• The Bharat Stage (BS) is standards instituted by the government to regulate emission of air pollutants from motor vehicles.
• The norms were introduced in 2000.
• They limit the release of air pollutants such as nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons, particulate matter (PM) and sulphur oxides from vehicles.
• The sulphur content in BS VI fuel is substantially lower than that of BS IV fuel.
• These norms are based on similar norms in Europe called Euro 6.

 

BS-IV v/s BS-VI

• The extent of sulphar is the major difference between Bharat Stage IV and Bharat Stage VI norms.
• BS-IV fuels contain 50 parts per million (ppm) sulphur, the BS-VI grade fuel only has 10 ppm sulphur.
• BS VI can bring PM in diesel cars down by 80 per cent.
• The new norms will bring down nitrogen oxides from diesel cars by 70 per cent and in petrol cars by 25 per cent.
• BS VI also make on-board diagnostics (OBD) mandatory for all vehicles.
• OBD device informs the vehicle owner or the repair technician how efficient the systems in the vehicle are.

 

Source: Business Standard

 

 

Ways and Means Advances (WMA)

 

News Flash

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) set the limits for WMA for the first half of the financial year 2019-20 at Rs.75000 crore.

• The interest rate on WMA will be Repo Rate and overdraft will be 2% above the Repo Rate.
• RBI provides an overdraft facility when the WMA limit is breached.

 

WMA

It is a mechanism used by Reserve Bank of India under its credit policy. Under WMA, the Reserve Bank provide temporary loan to the centre and state government. This WMA scheme was introduced in 1997.

 

WMA for state governments

There are two types of WMA:

• Special WMA : It is extended against the collateral (mortgaging) of the government securities held by the State Government.
• Normal WMA : The normal WMA limits are based on three-year average of actual revenue and capital expenditure of the state.

 

Source: The Hindu

 

 

The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act

 

News Flash

Madras High court asks Centre to ban use of TikTok app

• Governments of Indonesia and Bangladesh have already banned TikTok and USA has passed ‘Children Online Privacy Act’ to prevent children from becoming cyber victims.
• The court order said the government has the the social responsibility to prevent these kinds of applications and take action against people using it.

 

What

• Madras High court issued an interim direction to the central government to prohibit downloading of the application like TikTok, as such apps made available inappropriate contents and pronography.
• It also sought to prohibit media from airing TikTok videos.
• TikTok is a China-made app with over 104 millions users in India.

 

Why such move needed

• Everyday, the Cyber crimes including economic crimes are increasing. The security of our country is also threatened.
• Prevent children from becoming cyber victims.
• Suicide games like ‘Blue Whale’ was “responsible for suicide of many youngsters in our country.
• There is a possibility of children contacting strangers who can lure them.
• Many persons have become victims and some of them have committed suicide because of use of TikTok mobile app.

 

The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, 1998 (COPPA)

This law protects the interest and misuse of information provided by children under 13 years of age on various websites while availing certain digital service.

The Act was passed by the U.S. Congress in 1998 and took effect in April 2000. COPPA is managed by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

 

Electronic Communications Privacy Act.

Wiretapping or telephone tapping is accessing the data being transmitted between two persons without their permission. This Act was enacted to check on this offence and provide security on telephonic conversations.

 

Video Privacy Protection Act.

This law was enacted to ensure the privacy of the rental, purchase, or delivery of video tapes or similar audio visual materials.

 

Source: Indian Express

 

 

Armed Force Special Protection Act

 

News Flash

Congress manifesto promise of changing the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act.

 

AFSPA

• It gives armed forces the power to maintain public order in “disturbed areas”.
• Under the Act, armed forces have the authority to prohibit a gathering of five or more persons in an area.
• The army can also arrest a person without a warrant; enter or search a premises without a warrant; and ban the possession of firearms.

 

Disturbed area

• A disturbed area is one which is declared by notification under Section 3 of the AFSPA. An area can be disturbed due to differences or disputes between members of different religious, racial, language or regional groups or castes or communities.
• The Central Government, or the Governor of the State or administrator of the Union Territory can declare the whole or part of the State or Union Territory as a disturbed area.

 

Source: Indian Express

 

 

Credit discipline in the banking system

 

News Flash

The Supreme Court order quashed a circular issued by the RBI on resolution of bad loans.

The voiding of the February 12, 2018 circular could slow down and complicate the resolution process for loans aggregating to as much as ₹3.80 lakh crore across 70 large borrowers, according to data from the ratings agency ICRA.

 

What the RBI circular proposed ?

• It had forced banks to recognise defaults by large borrowers with dues of over ₹2,000 crore within a day after an installment fell due.

• If not resolved within six months after that, they had no choice but to refer these accounts for resolution under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code.

 

Why it was done 

• Mounting bad loans, which crossed 10% of all advances.
• The failure of existing schemes such as corporate debt restructuring, stressed asset resolution and the Scheme for Sustainable Structuring of Stressed Assets (S4A)
• The circular was aimed at breaking the nexus between banks and defaulters, both of whom were content to evergreen loans under available schemes.

 

What were the problems with the circular?

• It failed to take into account the peculiarities of specific industries or borrowers and came up with a one-size-fits-all approach.

• Not all borrowers were deliberate defaulters, and sectors such as power were laid low by externalities beyond the control of borrowers. The RBI could have addressed these concerns when banks and borrowers from these sectors brought these issues to its notice.

 

Way Ahead

The RBI should study the judgment closely, and quickly reframe its guidelines so that they are within the framework of the powers available to it under the law.

Source: The Hindu

 

 

Collegium and judicial Autonomy

 

News Flash

Opening up the “highly-sensitive” correspondence of the Supreme Court’s collegium and its workings to the Right to Information (RTI) regime would make judges and the government “shy” and “destroy” judicial independence.

 

What is the issue?

A petition demanding that the RTI Act should to be applied to the collegium. And a Constitution bench yesterday here the matter.

 

What’s the problem ?

• It will pose a threat to the free and frank discussion among the sitting Judges because of the fear of their confidential views coming into the public domain.
• Besides, the career, family and even continuance in office of a person against whom adverse remarks were made would be ruined.
• For the past decade, the Supreme Court has refused to divulge information under the RTI Act about the collegium’s confidential communications with the government.

 

Collegium

The collegium recommends the names for the High Courts and the Supreme Court. Collegium consists of CJI and the four senior most judges of the supreme court. On the advice rendered by the collegium president appoints the judges.A High Court collegium is led by its Chief Justice and four other senior most judges of that court. Names recommended for appointment by a High Court collegium reaches the government only after approval by the CJI and the Supreme Court collegium.

The appointment of the judges in the High Courts and the Supreme Courts is done by the President of India and the powers are given to him under Articles 124(2) and 217 of the Indian Constitution. The President is just required to hold consultation with judges of Supreme court and High Court as it may deem necessary.

 

According to Article 124(2): “Every Judge of the Supreme Court shall be appointed by the President by warrant under his hand and seal after consultation with such of the Judges of the Supreme Court and of the High Courts in the States as the President may deem necessary for the purpose and shall hold office until he attains the age of sixty-five years. Provided that in the case of appointment of a Judge other than the Chief Justice, the Chief Justice of India shall always be consulted.”

 

Article 217 says: “Every Judge of a High Court shall be appointed by the President by warrant under his hand and seal after consultation with the Chief Justice of India, the Governor of the State, and, in the case of appointment of a Judge other than the Chief Justice, the Chief Justice of the High Court.”

 

Evolution of the Collegium System 

1. In S. P. Gupta v. Union of India  (also known as the Judges’ Transfer case): it was found that CJI does not have any primacy. Constitution Bench held that the term “consultation” used in Articles 124 and 217 was not “concurrence” — meaning that although the President will consult these judges, his decision was not bound to be in concurrence with all of them.

2. In Supreme Court Advocates-on Record Association vs Union of India – 1993: The majority verdict accorded primacy to the CJI in matters of appointment and transfers while also ruling that the the term “consultation” would not diminish the primary role of the CJI in judicial appointments. The court said that the recommendation should be made by the CJI in consultation with his two senior-most colleagues, and that such recommendation should normally be given effect to by the executive.

3. In 1998, President K R Narayanan issued a Presidential Reference to the Supreme Court over the meaning of the term “consultation” under Article 143 of the Constitution (advisory jurisdiction). The question was whether “consultation” required consultation with a number of judges in forming the CJI’s opinion, or whether the sole opinion of CJI could by itself constitute a “consultation”

 

The Supreme Court laid down guidelines for the functioning of the of appointments and transfers — this has come to be the present form of the collegium.

• The recommendation should be made by the CJI and his four senior-most colleagues, instead of two.

• It also held that Supreme Court judges who hailed from the High Court for which the proposed name came, should also be consulted.

The Supreme Court, after losing legal battles before the Central Information Commission (CIC) and the Delhi High Court, finally had to appeal to itself to protect the collegium’s workings.

After nine years, the appeal is now being heard by the Constitution Bench. It is hearing the broad question whether it would be deleterious to judicial independence to bring the collegium under RTI.

Source: The Hindu

 

 

 

Kerala floods worsened by the mismanagement of the dams

 

News Flash

The amicus curiae appointed by the Kerala High Court to assist it in flood-related cases informed the court on Wednesday that the sudden release of water simultaneously from different reservoirs during the heavy rain in August 2018 had aggravated the damage during the floods.

• Dams in the State did not have an effective flood control zone and flood cushions. The flood cushion or flood control zone was a temporary storage space for absorbing high flow for alleviating downstream flood damage.
• None of the 79 dams in the State were operated or used for the purpose of flood control and moderation, despite the obligation to utilise them for flood control as per the stipulations under the National Water Policy,

 

National Disaster Management Authority guidelines on flood and RTIO (real-time integrated operation).

• None of the dams had EAP (Emergency Action Plan) despite the mandate of the National Disaster Management Authority to have it by 2009. Various alerts (blue/orange/red) were issued not in accordance with the EAP (Emergency Action Plan) guidelines.
• No proper follow-up action and effective precautionary steps, especially for evacuating people and accommodating them in safe locations, were taken after the issue of red alert.

 

What is an EAP

It is a written document prepared by the dam operator and it contained plans to prevent or lessen the impact of a failure of the dam or appurtenant structure.

Source: Indian Express

 

 

MH-60R Romeo

 

News Flash

The U.S Department of State has approved the sale of 24 MH-60R ‘Romeo’ multi-mission helicopters to India under its Foreign Military Sales (FMS) programme. The principal contractor for the deal will be Lockheed Martin.

 

How it will benefit India ?

• It will provide India the capability to perform anti-surface and antisubmarine warfare missions.
• The ability to perform secondary missions, including vertical replenishment, search and rescue, and communications relay.
• India will use the enhanced capability as a deterrent to regional threats and to strengthen its homeland defence,
• A vital capability for the Navy in the Indo-Pacific region,

 

Source: The Hindu

 

ATTENTION

Amicus curiae

An impartial adviser to a court of law in a particular case.

OR

An amicus curiae is someone who is not a party to a case and may or may not have been solicited by a party and who assists a court by offering information, expertise, or insight that has a bearing on the issues in the case; and is typically presented in the form of a brief

 

 

Kashi Vishwanath Corridor

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, last month, has laid the foundation stone for the Kashi Vishwanath Corridor.

• The proposed corridor will directly connect Ganga’s Manikarnika and Lalita Ghat to the Kashi Vishwanath Jyotirlinga Temple.
• The Kashi Vishwanath temple located on the left bank of the holy river Ganga is surrounded by narrow and small, claustrophobic lanes.

 

 

Lord Howe Island

Bleaching Has Struck the Southernmost Coral Reef in the World. This month corals in Lord Howe Island Marine Park began showing signs of bleaching. The 145,000 hectare marine park contains the most southerly coral reef in the world, in one of the most isolated ecosystems on the planet. has been hit by bleaching this summer, Australian scientists said on Wednesday, as they warned rising sea temperatures from climate change were affecting even the most isolated ecosystems.

 

 

Infoclinic

It is a popular social media platform operated by a group of doctors to bust unscientific information and superstitions related to health care, is now a fullfledged website.https://infoclinic.in/.

• It will be officially launched on April 7 to mark World Health Day.