Gaps in Enforcement of Green Legislations

Why in the News?

Between 2014 and 2019, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) has granted over 11,500 environment and forest clearances.

• However, the Government’s development roadmap is criticised for ignoring the climate change conservation commitments on account of weak political will and the absence of an effective compliance mechanism.

What is the Legal Framework of Environment Protection in India?

• Constitutional Provisions:
  • Article 48A of the Constitution specifies that the State shall endeavour to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the forests and wildlife of the country.
  • Article 51A further provides that every citizen shall protect the environment.
• Statutory Provisions:
  • Wildlife Protection Act, 1972
  • Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980
  • Environment (Protection) Act, 1986
  • National Green Tribunal (NGT) Act, 2010
  • Coastal Regulation Zone Notification, 2011
  • Environment Impact Assessment(EIA), 2006

What are Issues in Enforcement of Environmental Laws in India?

• Shortage of Personnels: The Union Environment Ministry has less than 80 officials for field verification under green laws, who are expected to visit thousands of project sites at least once a year.
• Lack of Political Will: In 2006, a report by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) blamed the “absence of strong political will” for significant funding limitations faced by all environmental institutions in India.
  • This condition has remained the same more or less.
• Dilution of Green Clearances: Instead of strengthening the monitoring mechanism and applying effective punitive tools, successive governments have relied on amnesty (post-facto clearance), incentives (subsidies) or self-certification that helped cut non-compliance.
• No Public Participation: The Green legislations in India are silent about the public participation as regards environmental protection.
  • There is a need to involve the citizens in environmental protection to check arbitrariness and raise awareness and empathy towards the environment.

What are some examples of Violations of Green Legislations in India?

• Ken-Betwa Link Project (KBLP):
  • Ever since it was proposed in the mid-90s, KBLP has been considered unviable by several experts for its immense environmental cost.
  • The project was rejected in 2011, only to be revived with a techno-economic clearance in 2016.
  • In 2017, its forest clearance was made conditional on compensating for the diversion of 60.17 sq km of forest land by adding an equal extent of revenue land to the Panna tiger reserve.
• Arunachal Pradesh:
  • For 17 years, both the Environment ministry and the state have been ignoring the most crucial condition imposed by the Supreme Court in 2004 for clearing the 2,000-MW Subansiri project
  • The Ministry issued the final forest clearance to the twice-rejected 3,000-MW Dibang multipurpose project despite being made aware that Arunachal had not complied with the key precondition of declaring the catchment forests as a national park.

Way Forward

• Separate Independent Regulation: Independence in standard-setting, monitoring, and enforcement are important characteristics of an effective regulatory body.
  • Setting-up of a stand-alone independent body must precede fragmented revamping of environmental laws.
• Second Generation Reform: A second-generation reform for environmental regulation, which will safeguard environment and community rights as well as reduce time and transaction costs for the industry is the need of the hour.
• Simplification of Laws: It is needed to reduce multiplicity, remove archaic laws and streamline the regulatory procedure.

Source: IE

Promoting Blue Economy

Why in News?

Recently, the union minister of science and technology and earth science said that the Blue Economy is the sixth dimension of Government of India’s Vision of New India by 2030.

• A Draft Policy document on Blue Economy has been prepared by the Ministry Of Earth Sciences taking into consideration the reports of the expert working groups which emphasizes holistic development and growth of India’s Blue Economy.

What is the Blue Economy?

• The concept was introduced by Gunter Pauli in his 2010 book- “The Blue Economy: 10 years, 100 innovations, 100 million jobs”.
• It is the sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods and jobs, and ocean ecosystem health.
• It advocates the greening of ocean development strategies for higher productivity and conservation of ocean's health.
• Blue Economy emphasizes on integration of development of the ocean economy with social inclusion, environmental sustainability, combined with innovative business models.
• It encompasses–
  • Renewable Energy: Sustainable marine energy can play a vital role in social and economic development.
  • Fisheries: Sustainable fisheries can generate more revenue, more fish and help restore fish stocks.
  • Maritime Transport: Over 80% of international goods traded are transported by sea.
  • Tourism: Ocean and coastal tourism can bring jobs and economic growth.
  • Climate Change: Oceans are an important carbon sink (blue carbon) and help mitigate climate change.
  • Waste Management: Better waste management on land can help oceans recover.

What is the Significance of the Blue Economy?

• High Return on Investment: According to a research commissioned by the high-level panel for a sustainable ocean economy shows that USD1 invested in key ocean activities yields five times i.e. USD5 in return, often more.
• Synergy With SDG: It supports all of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially SDG14 ‘life below water’.
• Sustainable Energy: Supporting the increasing demand for renewable energy, offshore regions have tremendous potential in the form of offshore wind, waves, ocean currents including tidal currents, and thermal energy.
• Importance For India: With an over 7,500-km-long coastline spread across nine coastal states, 12 major, and 200 minor ports, India's blue economy supports 95% of the country's business through transportation and contributes an estimated 4% to its Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

What are the Steps taken to Promote Blue Economy?

• Deep Ocean Mission: It was launched with an intention to develop technologies to harness the living and non-living resources from the deep-oceans.
• India-Norway Task Force on Blue Economy for Sustainable Development: It was inaugurated jointly by both the countries in 2020 to develop and follow up joint initiatives between the two countries.
• Sagarmala Project: The Sagarmala project is the strategic initiative for port-led development through the extensive use of IT enabled services for modernization of ports.
• O-SMART: India has an umbrella scheme by the name of O-SMART which aims at regulated use of oceans, marine resources for sustainable development.
• Integrated Coastal Zone Management: It focuses on conservation of coastal and marine resources, and improving livelihood opportunities for coastal communities etc.
• National Fisheries Policy: India has a National Fisheries policy for promoting 'Blue Growth Initiative' which focuses on sustainable utilization of fisheries wealth from marine and other aquatic resources.

Way Forward

• With its vast maritime interests, the blue economy occupies a vital potential position in India’s economic growth.
• It could well be the next multiplier of GDP and well-being, provided sustainability and socio-economic welfare are kept center-stage.
• India should look to adopt the Gandhian approach of balancing economic benefits with sustainability for meeting the broader goals of growth, employment generation, equity and protection of environment.

Source: PIB

Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana

Why in News?

Recently, the Government has clarified that Aadhaar of Husbands is not mandatory under the Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana, PMMVY, to facilitate the inclusion of single mothers and abandoned mothers.

What is PMMVY ?

• It is a maternity benefit programme being implemented in all districts of the country with effect from 1^st January, 2017.
• It is a centrally sponsored scheme being executed by the Ministry of Women and Child Development.
• Cash benefits are provided to pregnant women in their bank account directly to meet enhanced nutritional needs and partially compensate for wage loss.

What makes this Scheme Different ?

• Implementation of the scheme is closely monitored by the central and state governments through the Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana - Common Application Software (PMMVY-CAS).
• PMMVY-CAS is a web based software application that enables tracking the status of each beneficiary under the scheme, resulting in expedited, accountable and better grievance redressal.

Who are the Beneficiaries ?

• All Pregnant Women and Lactating Mothers (PW&LM), excluding those who are in regular employment with the Central Government or the State Governments or PSUs or those who are in receipt of similar benefits under any law for the time being in force.
• All eligible Pregnant Women and Lactating Mothers who have their pregnancy on or after 1^st January 2017 for the first child in the family.

What are the Benefits under the Scheme ?

• Beneficiaries receive a cash benefit of Rs. 5,000 in three installments on fulfilling the following conditions:
  • Early registration of pregnancy
  • Ante-natal check-up
  • Registration of the birth of the child and completion of the first cycle of vaccination for the first living child of the family.
• The eligible beneficiaries also receive cash incentive under Janani Suraksha Yojana (JSY). Thus, on an average, a woman gets Rs. 6,000.

What are the Other Schemes related to Women ?

• Indira Gandhi Matritva Sahyog Yojna (IGMSY).
• Kudumbashree in Kerala.
• Poshan Abhiyaan.
• Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) Scheme.

Source: PIB

Saffron Bowl Project

Why in News ?

North East Center for Technology Application and Reach (NECTAR) under Saffron Bowl project has identified a few locations in Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya for saffron cultivation.

• The total cost of the whole project is Rs. 17.68 lakhs for Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya.
• NECTAR is an autonomous body under the Department of Science & Technology (DST) , which supported a pilot project to explore the feasibility of growing saffron in the North East region of India, with the same quality and higher quantity.

What is the Reason for Extending Saffron Cultivation to the North- East?

• Initially, Saffron production was confined to very few and specific regions of Kashmir.
• Though the National Saffron Mission brought in several measures, the area of production was too low. There were not enough bore wells in the saffron growing regions.
• India cultivates about 6 to 7 tonnes of saffron while the demand is 100 tonne.
• To meet the growing demand of saffron the Ministry of Science and Technology, through the DST, is now looking at extending its cultivation to some states in the Northeast (Sikkim now, and later to Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh).
• There is a huge similarity of climate and geographical conditions between Kashmir and few regions of Northeast.
  • In Arunachal Pradesh, there is a good growth of organic saffron with flowers. In Meghalaya, sample plantations were grown at Cherrapunji, Mawsmai and Lalingtop sites.
• It will also diversify agriculture and provide new opportunities to the farmers in the North-East.

What is Saffron and Why is it Important?

• Saffron:
  • Saffron is a plant whose dried stigmas (thread-like parts of the flower) are used to make saffron spice.
  • Saffron cultivation is believed to have been introduced in Kashmir by Central Asian immigrants around the 1^st Century BCE.
  • It has been associated with traditional Kashmiri cuisine and represents the rich cultural heritage of the region.
  • It is a very precious and costly product.
  • In ancient Sanskrit literature, saffron is referred to as ‘bahukam’.
  • It is cultivated and harvested in the Karewa (highlands) of Jammu and Kashmir.
• Importance:
  • It rejuvenates health and is used in cosmetics and for medicinal purposes.
  • It has been associated with traditional Kashmiri cuisine and represents the rich cultural heritage of the region.

What are the Seasons and Conditions of Cultivation ?

• Season:
  • In India, saffron Corms (seeds) are cultivated during the months of June and July and at some places in August and September.
  • It starts flowering in October.
• Conditions:
  • Altitude: Saffron grows well at an altitude of 2000 meters above sea level. It needs a photoperiod (sunlight) of 12 hours.
  • Soil: It grows in many different soil types but thrives best in calcareous (soil that has calcium carbonate in abundance), humus-rich and well-drained soil with a pH between 6 and 8.
  • Climate: For saffron cultivation, we need an explicit climatological summer and winter with temperatures ranging from no more than 35 or 40 degree Celsius in summer to about –15 or –20 degree Celsius in winter.
  • Rainfall: It also requires adequate rainfall that is 1000-1500 mm per annum.

What are the Major Saffron Producing Regions in India ?

• Saffron production has long been restricted to a limited geographical area in the Union territory of Jammu & Kashmir.
• Pampore region, commonly known as Saffron bowl of Kashmir, is the main contributor to saffron production.
  • Pampore Saffron Heritage of Kashmir is one of the Globally Important Agricultural Heritage systems (GIAHS) recognised sites in India.
• Other districts producing saffron are Budgam, Srinagar, and Kishtwar districts.
• Recently, the Kashmir saffron got Geographical Indication (GI) tag status.

What are Other Initiatives to Promote Saffron Cultivation ?

• The National Saffron Mission was sanctioned by the central government in the year 2010 in order to extend support for creation of irrigation facilities through tube wells and sprinkler sets which would help in production of better crops in the area of saffron production.
• Recently, the Institute of Himalayan Bioresource Technology (CSIR-IHBT) and the Government of Himachal Pradesh, have jointly decided to increase the production of the two spices namely, Saffron and Heeng (asafoetida).
  • Under this plan, IHBT will be introducing new varieties of saffron and heeng from the exporting countries and will be standardized under Indian conditions.

Source: PIB

Motion of Thanks

Why in News

Recently, amendments to the Motion of Thanks to the President’s Address were proposed (However, not passed).

• The amendment proposal mentioned the government’s alleged use of Pegasus spyware and its handling of the Covid-19 pandemic.

What is the Motion of Thanks?

• Article 87 provides for the special address by the President.
• The article provides that at the commencement of the first session after each general election to the House of the People and at the commencement of the first session of each year, the President shall address both Houses of Parliament assembled together and inform Parliament of the causes of its summons.
• Such an Address is called 'special address', and it is also an annual feature.
• This Address has to be to both Houses of Parliament assembled together.

What is the Content of the President of Address?

• The President's Address is the statement of policy of the Government and, as such, is drafted by the Government.
• The Address contains a review of various activities and achievements of the Government during the previous year and sets out the policies, projects and programmes which the Government of the day wishes to pursue with regard to the important national and international issues.
• The Address also indicates, in broad terms, items of legislative business which are proposed to be brought during the sessions to be held in that year.
• The address of the president, which corresponds to the ‘speech from the Throne in Britain’, is discussed in both the Houses of Parliament on a motion called the ‘Motion of Thanks’.
• If any of the amendments are put forward and accepted then the Motion of Thanks is adopted in the amended form.
  • Amendments may refer to matters contained in the Address as well as to matters which, in the opinion of the member, the Address has failed to mention.
• At the end of the discussion, the motion is put to vote.

What is the Significance of Motion of Thanks?

• The Motion of Thanks must be passed in the House. Otherwise, it amounts to the defeat of the government. It is one of the ways through which the Lok Sabha can also express a lack of confidence in the government. The other ways are:
  • Rejection of a money bill.
  • Passing a censure motion or an adjournment motion.
  • The defeat of the government on a vital issue.
  • Passing a cut motion.

Other Motions in Indian Parliament
Privilege Motion	It is moved by a member when he feels that a minister has committed a breach of privilege of the House or one or more of its members by withholding facts of a case or by giving wrong or distorted facts. Its purpose is to censure the concerned minister. It can be moved in Rajya Sabha as well as Lok Sabha.
Censure Motion	It should state the reasons for its adoption in the Lok Sabha. It can be moved against an individual minister or a group of ministers or the entire council of ministers. It is moved to censure the council of ministers for specific policies and actions. It can be moved only in Lok Sabha.
Call-Attention Motion	It is introduced in the Parliament by a member to call the attention of a minister to a matter of urgent public importance, and to seek an authoritative statement from him on that matter. It can be moved in Rajya Sabha as well as Lok Sabha.
Adjournment Motion	It is introduced in the Lok Sabha to draw the attention of the House to a definite matter of urgent public importance. It involves an element of censure against the government. It can be moved only in Lok Sabha.
No-Day-Yet-Named Motion	It is a motion that has been admitted by the Speaker but no date has been fixed for its discussion. It can be moved in Rajya Sabha as well as Lok Sabha.
No Confidence Motion	Article 75 of the Constitution says that the council of ministers shall be collectively responsible to the Lok Sabha. In other words, the Lok Sabha can remove the ministry from office by passing a no-confidence motion. The motion needs the support of 50 members to be admitted. It can be moved only in Lok Sabha.
Cut Motions	A cut motion is a special power vested in members of the Lok Sabha to oppose a demand being discussed for specific allocation by the government in the Finance Bill as part of the Demand for Grants. If the motion is adopted, it amounts to a no-confidence vote, and if the government fails to jot up numbers in the lower House, it is obliged to resign according to the norms of the House. A motion may be moved to reduce the amount of a demand in any of the following ways: Policy Cut Motion: It is moved so that the amount of the demand be reduced to Re.1 (represents disapproval of the policy underlying the demand). Economy Cut Motions: It is moved so that the amount of the demand will be reduced by a specified amount. Token Cut Motions: It is moved so that the amount of the demand is reduced by Rs.100 (expresses a specific grievance). It can be moved only in Lok Sabha.

Source: TH

Chandrayaan-3 MIssion

Why in News ?

Recently, the Department of Science has stated that India plans to execute the Chandrayaan-3 mission in August 2022.

What is the Chandrayaan-3 Mission ?

• The Chandrayaan-3 mission is a follow-up of Chandrayaan-2 of July 2019, which aimed to land a rover on the lunar South Pole.
• The subsequent failure of the Vikram lander led to the pursuit of another mission to demonstrate the landing capabilities needed for the Lunar Polar Exploration Mission proposed in partnership with Japan for 2024.
• It will have an orbiter and a landing module. However, this orbiter won’t be loaded with scientific instruments like the Chandrayaan-2.
  • Its job will only be confined to carry the lander to the moon, oversee the landing from its orbit and communicate between the lander and the earth station.”

What was the Chandrayaan-2 Mission ?

• Chandrayaan-2 consisted of an Orbiter, Lander and Rover, all equipped with scientific instruments to study the moon.
  • The Orbiter would watch the moon from a 100-km orbit, while the Lander and Rover modules were to be separated to make a soft landing on the moon’s surface.
  • ISRO had named the Lander module as Vikram, after Vikram Sarabhai, the pioneer of India’s space programme, and the Rover module as Pragyaan, meaning wisdom.
• It was sent aboard the country’s most powerful geosynchronous launch vehicle, the GSLV-Mk 3.
• However, lander Vikram, instead of a controlled landing, ended up crash-landing and prevented rover Pragyaan from successfully travelling on the surface of the moon.

What is GSLV-Mk 3 ?

• Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark-III was developed by Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), is a three-stage vehicle, designed to launch communication satellites into geostationary orbit.
• It has a mass of 640 tonnes that can accommodate up to 8,000 kg payload to Low Earth Orbit (LEO) and 4000 kg payload to GTO (Geo-Synchronous Transfer Orbit).

Source: TH

Philosopher-saint Ramanujacharya

Why in News ?

The Prime Minister will inaugurate the Statue of Equality, a statue of Ramanujacharya, on the outskirts of Hyderabad, Telangana.

• India is celebrating his 1,000^th birth anniversary as the ‘Festival of Equality’, upholding the view that the world is one family, ‘vasudhaiva kutumbakam’,”

What Are the Basic Facts About Statue ? 

• It is a 216-feet tall statue, which is made of 'panchaloha', a combination of five metals: gold, silver, copper, brass, and zync.
• It is among one of the tallest metallic statues in sitting position in the world.
• The statue is mounted on a 54-feet high base building named 'Bhadra Vedi'. It has floors devoted for a vedic digital library and research center, ancient Indian texts, a theater, an educational gallery detailing many works of Sri Ramanujacharya.

Who was Ramanujacharya ?

• Born in 1017 in Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu, Ramanujacharya is revered as a Vedic philosopher and social reformer.
• He was named Lakshmana at the time of his birth. He was also referred to as Ilaya Perumal which means the radiant one.
• He traveled across India, advocating equality and social justice.
• He revived the Bhakti movement, and his preachings inspired other Bhakti schools of thought. He is considered to be the inspiration for poets like Annamacharya, Bhakta Ramdas, Thyagaraja, Kabir, and Meerabai.
• He is famous as the chief proponent of Vishishtadvaita subschool of Vedānta.
  • VishishtAdvaita (literally "Advaita with uniqueness; qualifications") is a non-dualistic school of Vedanta philosophy.
  • It is non-dualism of the qualified whole, in which Brahman alone is seen as the Supreme Reality, but is characterized by multiplicity.
• He went on to write nine scriptures known as the navaratnas, and composed numerous commentaries on Vedic scriptures.
  • Ramanuja’s most important writings include his commentary on the Vedanta Sutras (the Sri Bhasya, or "True Commentary"), and his commentary on the Bhagavad-Gita (the Gitabhasya, or "Commentary on the Gita").
  • His other writings include the Vedartha Samgraha ("Summary of the Meaning of the Veda"), the Vedantasara ("Essence of Vedanta"), and Vedantadipa ("Lamp of Vedanta").
• He has also stressed the need of being in tune with nature and not to over-exploit.

Why is it called the Statue of Equality ?

• Ramanuja was an advocate of social equality among all sections of people centuries ago, and encouraged temples to open their doors to everyone irrespective of caste or position in society at a time when people of many castes were forbidden from entering them.
• He took education to those who were deprived of it. His greatest contribution is the propagation of the concept of “vasudhaiva kutumbakam”, which translates as “all the universe is one family”.
• He traveled across India for several decades, propagating his ideas of social equality and universal brotherhood from temple podiums.
• He embraced the socially marginalized and condemned, and asked royal courts to treat them as equals.
• He spoke of universal salvation through devotion to God, compassion, humility, equality, and mutual respect, which is known as Sri Vaishnavam Sampradaya.
• Ramanujacharya liberated millions from social, cultural, gender, educational, and economic discrimination with the foundational conviction that every human is equal regardless of nationality, gender, race, caste, or creed.

Source: IE