Re-merger of India Pakistan desks under consideration
The state department of US is considering a merger of India and Pakistan desks after its exit from Afghanistan.
De-hyphenating refers to a policy started by the U.S. government under President Bush, but sealed by the Obama administration, of dealing with India and Pakistan in different silos, without referring to their bilateral relations. It enabled the U.S. to build closer military and strategic ties with India without factoring in the reaction from Pakistan, and to continue its own strategy in Afghanistan with the help of the Pakistan military without referring back to India.
A proposal to re-merge the office of the Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan (SRAP) back with the Bureau of South and Central Asia (SCA) that handles India, the rest of the subcontinent and Central Asian republics is under “active†consideration.
Analysis
What is SRAP? Â – It is the Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan. It was setup in 2009 under President Obama. Richard Holbrooke became the first SRAP.
Why India is opposed to the de-hyphenation? – India has disapproved of hyphenation with Pakistan. Inclusion of India with Pakistan would make US third party in India-Pak disputes. And inclusion with Afghanistan would make India support US policy on Afghanistan indirectly.
India still strictly stands by its Shimla agreement where both countries decided to “settle their differences by peaceful means through bilateral negotiations”.
There are indications, however, that even as the U.S. is planning to bring the desks back together, India may not object as strenuously as it did in 2009.
To begin with, India has dropped its objections to talks with the Taliban in the past few months, instead asking to be “kept in the loop†on developments in the U.S. talks on Af-Pak.
In a major shift in December 2015, India decided to supply 4 Mi35 attack helicopters to Afghan security forces, the first such transfer of lethal military hardware, and a move that would have required U.S. approval.
Source: TheHindu
India part of Spaceward Bound Programme
A team of scientists from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Mars Society Australia and the Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany, Lucknow, will mount an expedition to Ladakh this August to study the similarities of certain parts of the region’s topography and microbial life to Martian surroundings.
According to the programme’s website, Ladakh offers a “high UV (ultra-violet) exposed, dry ecosystem with Mars analogue topological features that tell us heaps about the origin and evolution of our planet’s topological features…â€.
The Spaceward Bound Program is an educational program developed at NASA Ames Research Center. The objective is for participating scientific researchers, educators and students to visit remote and extreme environments in different parts of the world and conduct astrogeological/biological experiments, make observations and learn about the origin, sustenance and adaptation of living organisms within such biospheres.
Analysis
The success of India’s low-cost mission to Mars, in 2014, has led to heightened international interest in collaborating with India’s upcoming space missions. India now has an orbiter that’s still circling Mars and taking pictures – with five instruments on board – in hopes of finding methane, carbon dioxide and the effect of solar winds on its surface.
Greater international collaboration could help in knowledge sharing, cost sharing of expeditions and provide exposure to Indian scientists. It can also showcase India’s competencies and lead to greater revenues for Antrix, the commercial arm of ISRO.
Source: TheHindu
SC to decide on Section 377 of IPC
On 2nd February the Supreme Court will take a final call on whether Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), which criminalises consensual sexual acts of Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual and Transgender (LGBT) adults in private, amounts to denial of their rights to privacy and dignity and results in gross miscarriage of justice.
A Bench of the three senior-most judges – Chief Justice of India T.S. Thakur and Justices Anil R. Dave and J.S. Khehar – will hear a batch of eight curative petitions filed by parents, civil society, scientific and LGBT rights organisations against a January 28, 2014 judgment by the Supreme Court dismissing their review petitions on the ground that Section 377 is constitutional and applies to sexual acts irrespective of age or consent of the parties.
Analysis
Section 377 in Chapter XVI of the IPC was introduced during the colonial rule criminalising any sexual activity ‘against the order of Nature’.
Lawyers Collective, on behalf of Naz Foundation filed a writ petition in the Delhi High Court in 2001, challenging the constitutionality of section 377 on the grounds that the draconian law grossly violates the right to privacy, dignity and health under Article 21, equal protection of law and non-discrimination under Articles 14 and 15 and freedom of expression under Article 19 of the Constitution.
In 2009, the Delhi High Court, much to the relief of the LGBTQI community passed a judgement that Section 377 indeed was violative of Articles 21, 14 and 15 of the Constitution as it criminalised the consensual sexual acts of adults in private.
The Supreme Court quashed Delhi High Court judgement in 2013 and declared that it was a judicial overreach and that it was not “for courts to create the law” said the two-judge bench headed by Justice GS Singhvi. The Supreme Court backed out, but passed the ball to the Parliament to review a law that considered private sexual activity criminal.
Why is it wrong? – Naz Foundation in its petitions and documents has maintained that this section is dangerous to a community because the law sought to criminalise someone’s sexual identity and expression, putting them at the risk of extortion, blackmail and harassment. Since the law condemns them as “criminals”, they have no legal recourse but only stigma and prejudice. Many homosexual men with HIV do not get tested because of fear of discrimination and prosecution.
What is a curative petition? The constitution of India guarantees appeals to judgements passed by courts and also apex court through Article 136 of the Constitution of India, 1950. The Supreme Court in its discretion may grant “special leave to appeal from any judgment, decree, determination, sentence or order in any case or matter passed or made by any Court or tribunal in the territory of India except the Court or tribunal constituted by or under any law relating to armed forces.”
Source: Firstpost
Considering roads as priority sector
The government will soon approach the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Raghuram Rajan with a proposal to include road projects under the priority sector list for lending purposes and review the non-performing assets norms to revive Rs. 40,000-crore worth of highway projects that have not taken off due to bureaucratic delays and cost overruns.
The Road Transport and Highways Ministry has decided to take up the priority sector route with the central bank,following a consultation with the Indian Banks’ Association. “Considering the importance of road sector in supporting the economic growth and nation building, it should be classified as ‘priority sector,’†Indian Banks’ Association (IBA), the industry body of banks, suggested
Non-Performing Asset Roads Sector – In a separate move, the Union government may ask the RBI to ease non-performing asset norms for bank loans to revive projects. It may ask the RBI to not classify bank loans as NPAs if the project has failed to take off beyond two years from its original date of commencement.
At present, bank loans, extended for infrastructure projects, become NPAs if the project has been delayed for two years from its original schedule even for reasons beyond the control of promoters such as land acquisition approvals. This will, however, be done for road projects which are found viable after assessment.
Analysis
What is priority sector lending ? –  The banks provide a certain portion of ‘priority sector’ lending in the form of small value loans to farmers for agriculture, micro and small enterprises, poor people for housing, students for education and low income groups and weaker sections.
At present, 40 per cent of loans given by banks should go to priority sectors defined by the RBI. Out of this, 18 per cent should go toward agriculture lending.
The government is finding it hard to revive the 19 highway projects worth Rs. 40,000 crore and it recently met road developers and bankers to address the issues. The move to consider roads under priority sector could help in kickstarting the lagging infrastructure sector. But at the same time it would lead to diversion of funds intended for agriculture and small loans. This could increase the borrowing costs for retail investors.
Q1) Which of the following is not a part of the Priority Sector Lending?
A) Housing Loans
B) Education Loans
C) Medium Enterprises
D) Micro-credit
Ans) C. PSL is available for small scale industries and enterprises only.
Q2) Which of the following organisations has an initiative known as Spaceward Bound Programme?
A) Indian Space Research Organisation
B) National Aeronautics and Space Administration
C) European Space Agency
D) None of the above
Ans) B. The Spaceward Bound Program is an educational program developed at NASA Ames Research Center.
Q3) Which of the following is true regarding the Special Representative for Afghanistan and  Pakistan(SRAP)?
1) It was started in 2009
2) It comes under US department of State
3) India was opposed to being clubbed under SRAP
A) 1 only
B) 2 only
C) 1,2,3
D) 1,2
Ans) C. It is the Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan. It was setup in 2009 under President Obama. Richard Holbrooke became the first SRAP. India was opposed to being a part of SRAP.
Q4) Consider the following statements regarding Special Leave Petition of the Supreme court.
- Special Leave Petition comes under Article 163 of the Indian constitution
- Supreme court can grant leave to appeal against any judgment in case any substantial constitutional question of law is involved, or gross injustice has been done.
Which of the following is correct?
A) 1 only
B) 2 only
C) Both
D) None
Ans) B. Special Leave Petition comes under Article 136 of Indian constitution.
Q5) Consider the following statements regarding recent IMF Reforms.
- India and China are the biggest gainers in terms of quota and voting rights
- There is an overall increase in the capital base of IMF
Which of the following is correct?
A) 1 only
B) 2 only
C) Both
D) None of the above
Ans) C. The combined capital that its 188 member-countries of IMF will increase to approximately $659 billion from nearly $329 billion. Other winners are India and China, who have respectively increased their voting shares by 0.292 and 2.265 percentage points.
