Sources of the Constitution

Review of Gas Pricing Formula

Why in News?

The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has set up a committee under noted energy expert Kirit Parikh to review the current pricing formula for domestically-produced gas.

What is the Need to revisit the Gas-Pricing Formula?

• High Prices:
  • Local gas prices are at a record high due to the surge in global prices because of the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict and are expected to rise further.
  • Skyrocketing global natural gas prices lifting energy and industrial costs and derailing the efforts to contain inflation are raising concerns.
    • The country has been battling inflation above the Reserve Bank of India's tolerance band of 2%-6% for seven consecutive months.
• Current Formula is Myopic:
  • The current formula is “myopic” and does not incentivise gas producers.
  • In India, gas penetration in its energy mix is 6% as against a global average of 23%.
  • The objective is to improve this number to 15% over the next few years.
• Underpricing Penalizes the Producers:
  • India’s gas price is determined at an average price of LNG imports into India and benchmark global gas rates.
  • India is simply underpricing a scarce resource.
  • At current prices, the producer is penalised and somehow the consumer trumps the producer.

What is the Scenario of Gas Market in India?

• Total consumption in India is 175 million standard cubic meters a day (MMSCMD).
  • Of this 93 MMCMD is met through domestic production and 82 MMSCMD through LNG imports. Gas consumption is directly linked to supply availability.
• Of natural gas consumed in the country, almost 50% is imported LNG.
• Fertiliser sector is the largest consumer of gas, accounting for a third of the consumption, followed by city gas distribution or CGD (23%), power (13%), refineries (8%) and petrochemicals (2%).
• The industry fears that the world’s third largest energy consumer could see its natural gas consumption decline from the current levels if LNG (imported gas) prices in the international market continue to rule in the range of USD 45 an mmBtu (Metric Million British Thermal Unit).

What is the Current Gas Pricing in India?

• About:
  • Gas priced under APM (Administered Price Mechanism) is set by the Government of India.
    • Under this system, the oil and gas sector are controlled at four stages viz. production, refining, distribution and marketing.
  • Non-APM or Free Market Gas is further divided into two categories, namely, domestically produced gas from Joint Venture fields and imported LNG.
    • The pricing of JV gas is governed in terms of the PSC (Production Sharing Contract) provisions.
    • While the price of LNG under term contracts is governed by the SPA (Sale and Purchase Agreement) between the LNG seller and the buyer, the spot cargoes are purchased on mutually agreeable commercial terms.
  • Further, there is differential pricing existing for different sectors. Subsidized sectors such as power and fertilizer get relatively less prices as compared to other sectors.
  • Also, region specific pricing exists in the country with North Eastern states getting gas at relatively cheaper prices as compared to other parts of the country.
    • Pricing of a major share of gas supplies in the Indian market is controlled and is not market driven as government approval is required before changing the price.
• Issues:
  • Controlled pricing may result in disincentivizing investments in the sector in terms of limited participation from foreign players, who have access to technology, much required in deep-water E&P activities.
  • Also, controlled pricing hampers the competitiveness of consumer sectors (power/ fertilizer/ domestic) to compete with global energy markets as it leads to low investments in energy efficiency on the demand side.

Way Forward

• As multiple pricing regimes exist in the country, pooling of gas from different sources has been deliberated by the policy makers.
• A sectoral pool was being considered with separate pools of power and fertilizer customers. Separate pools were considered in view of avoiding cross subsidies between the customer groups and related administrative issues arising.
• Rangarajan Committee has suggested a uniform gas-pricing, at ‘unbiased arms-length’.
• The formula of domestic gas pricing should be 12-month trailing average of volume-weighted average at well-head (on net-back basis) for gas imports and volume-weighted average of US Henry Hub, UK NBP and Japanese Crude Cocktail prices.

Source: HT

India’s Climate Pledges

Why in News?

Recently, a study has ranked India’s updated climate pledge to the Paris Agreement fifth in compliance and fourth in ambition.

What are the Key Highlights of the Study?

• About:
  • The study was published in the scientific journal Nature Climate Change.
  • It included eight countries — India, the US, China, Australia, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Australia and Brazil — and the European Union.
  • Nearly all signatories to the Paris Agreement updated their climate commitments during the 26th session of the United Nations Conference on Climate Change (COP 26).
• Outcomes:
  • European Union (EU) took the lead while the United States was ranked last in compliance and second to last in ambition.
    • Compliance: In the compliance category, the EU took the lead which was followed by China, Australia, South Africa, India, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Brazil and the US.
  • Ambition:
    • In the Ambition category, the EU was followed by China, South Africa, India, Australia, Brazil, Russia, the United States and Saudi Arabia.
• Parameters:
  • Nations likely to meet their climate pledges or the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) were ranked high in compliance.
    • The countries with bold commitments were ranked high in ambition.
• Statistical Analysis:
  • Nations with more stable governments are more likely to have bold and highly credible pledges.
  • Besides, China and other non-democracies are also likely to honour their commitments.
    • Their administrative and political systems enable them to implement complex national policies.

What is the Paris Agreement?

• About:

  • The Paris Agreement (also known as the Conference of Parties 21 or COP 21) was adopted in 2015.

  • It replaced the Kyoto Protocol which was an earlier agreement to deal with climate change.

  • It is a global treaty wherein some 200 countries agreed to cooperate to reduce Green House Gas (GHG) Emissions and rein in climate change.

    • It seeks to limit global warming to well below 2°C, preferably to 1.5°C, compared to pre-industry levels.

• Working:
  • The Paris Agreement works on a 5- year cycle of increasingly ambitious climate action carried out by countries. In 2020, countries had submitted their plans for climate action known as nationally determined contributions (NDCs).

  • Long-Term Strategies:

    • Long-term low greenhouse gas emission development strategies (LT-LEDS) provide the long-term horizon for the NDCs. Unlike NDCs, they are not mandatory.

• Tracking Progress:
  • With the Paris Agreement, countries established an enhanced transparency framework (ETF). Under ETF, starting in 2024, countries will report transparently on actions taken and progress in climate change mitigation, adaptation measures and support provided or received.
    • It also provides for international procedures for the review of the submitted reports.
    • The information gathered through the ETF will feed into the Global stocktake which will assess the collective progress towards the long-term climate goals.

Way Forward

• To achieve this long-term temperature goal, countries should aim to reach global peaking of greenhouse gas emissions as soon as possible to achieve a climate-neutral world by mid-century.
• There is a need for credible short-term commitments, with a clear pathway to medium-term decarbonization, that takes into account the multiple challenges states face, such as air pollution, and development might well be the more defensible choice for some.

Source: DTE

Healthcare Sector in India

Why in News?

Healthcare has become more focused on innovation and technology over the past two years and 80% of healthcare systems are aiming to increase their investment in digital healthcare tools in the coming five years.

What is the Scenario of the Healthcare Sector in India?

• About:
  • Healthcare industry comprises hospitals, medical devices, clinical trials, outsourcing, telemedicine, medical tourism, health insurance and medical equipment.
  • India’s healthcare delivery system is categorised into two major components - public and private.
    • The government (public healthcare system), comprises limited secondary and tertiary care institutions in key cities and focuses on providing basic healthcare facilities in the form of Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs) in rural areas.
    • The private sector provides a majority of secondary, tertiary, and quaternary care institutions with major concentration in metros, tier-I and tier-II cities.
• Market Statistics:
  • The Indian healthcare sector is expected to record a three-fold rise, growing at a CAGR (Compound Annual Growth Rate) of 22% between 2016–22 to reach USD 372 billion in 2022 from USD 110 billion in 2016.
  • In the Economic Survey of 2022, India’s public expenditure on healthcare stood at 2.1% of GDP in 2021-22 against 1.8% in 2020-21 and 1.3% in 2019-20.
  • In FY21, gross direct premium income underwritten by health insurance companies grew 13.3% YoY to Rs. 58,572.46 crore (USD 7.9 billion).
  • The Indian medical tourism market was valued at USD 2.89 billion in 2020 and is expected to reach USD 13.42 billion by 2026.
  • Telemedicine is also expected to reach USD 5.5 billion by 2025.

What are the Challenges with the Health Sector?

• Inadequate Access:
  • Inadequate access to basic healthcare services such as shortage of medical professionals, a lack of quality assurance, insufficient health spending, and, most significantly, insufficient research funding.
  • One of the major concerns is the administrations' insufficient financial allocation.
• Low Budget:
  • India’s public expenditure on healthcare is only 2.1% of GDP in 2021-22 while Japan, Canada and France spend about 10% of their GDP on public healthcare.
    • Even neighbouring countries like Bangladesh and Pakistan have over 3% of their GDP going towards the public healthcare system.
• Lack of Preventive Care:
  • Preventive care is undervalued in India, despite the fact that it has been shown to be quite beneficial in alleviating a variety of difficulties for patients in terms of unhappiness and financial losses.
• Lack of Medical Research:
  • In India, R&D and cutting-edge technology-led new projects receive little attention.
• Policymaking:
  • Policymaking is undoubtedly crucial in providing effective and efficient healthcare services. In India, the issue is one of supply rather than demand, and policymaking can help.
• Shortage in Professionals:
  • In India, there is a shortage of doctors, nurses, and other healthcare professionals.
  • According to a study presented in Parliament by a minister, India is short 600,000 doctors.
• Paucity of Resources:
  • Doctors work in extreme conditions ranging from overcrowded out-patient departments, inadequate staff, medicines and infrastructure.

What is the Potential of the Indian Health Sector?

• India's competitive advantage lies in its large pool of well-trained medical professionals. India is also cost competitive compared to its peers in Asia and western countries. The cost of surgery in India is about one-tenth of that in the US or Western Europe.
• India has all the essential ingredients for the exponential growth in this sector, including a large population, a robust pharma and medical supply chain, 750 million plus smartphone users, 3^rd largest start-up pool globally with easy access to VC (Venture Capital Fund) funding and innovative tech entrepreneurs looking to solve global healthcare problems.
• India will have about 50 clusters for faster clinical testing of medical devices to boost product development and innovation.
• The sector will be driven by life expectancy, shift in disease burden, changes in preferences, growing middle class, increase in health insurance, medical support, infrastructure development and policy support and incentives.
• As of 2021, the Indian healthcare sector is one of India’s largest employers as it employs a total of 4.7 million people. The sector has generated 2.7 million additional jobs in India between 2017-22 -- over 500,000 new jobs per year

Way Forward

• There is an urgent need to improve the infrastructure of public hospitals, which are overburdened as a result of India's large population.
• The government should encourage private hospitals because they make a significant contribution.
• Because the difficulties are severe and cannot be tackled just by the government, the private sector must also engage.
• To improve the sector's capabilities and efficiency, more medical personnel must be inducted.
• In order to connect the dots in the health system, technology must be used.
  • Medical gadgets in hospitals and clinics, mobile health apps, wearables, and sensors are only a few examples of technology that should be included in this area.

Source: PIB

The Gender Snapshot 2022

Why in News?

Recently, the report entitled “Progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG): The Gender Snapshot 2022” was launched by United Nations (UN) Women and the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA).

What are the Key Findings of the Report?

• The report highlighted that Substainable Development Goal-5 (SDG-5), or achieving gender equality, will not be met by 2030 at the current pace of progress.
• By the end of 2022, around 383 million women and girls will live in extreme poverty (on less than USD 1.90 a day) compared to 368 million men and boys.
• It will take close to 300 years to achieve full gender equality at the current rate of progress.
  • It will also take at least 40 years to achieve equal representation of women in national parliaments.
• Progress must be 17 times faster than last decade’s progress of the last decade, to eradicate child marriage by 2030.
  • Girls from the poorest rural households and in conflict-affected areas are expected to suffer the most.
• In 2021, about 38% of female-headed households in war-affected areas experienced moderate or severe food insecurity, compared to 20% of male-headed households.
• Globally, women lost an estimated USD 800 billion in income in 2020 due to the pandemic.
• More women and girls are now forcibly displaced than ever before, some 44 million women and girls by the end of 2021.
• Over 1.2 billion women and girls of reproductive age (15-49) live in countries and areas with some restrictions on access to safe abortion.

What are the Challenges?

• Global challenges, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath, violent conflict, climate change and the backlash against women’s sexual and reproductive health and rights further exacerbate gender disparities.
• The invasion of Ukraine and the war, there is further worsening food insecurity and hunger, especially among women and children.
• In most parts of the World, still legal systems don’t ensure uniform protection of women rights in all spheres such as denying women’s rights in marriage and family, unequal pay and benefits at work and unequal rights to own and control land. Unfortunately, this may continue to exist for generations to come.

What should be the Way Forward?

• The data showed undeniable regressions in their lives made worse by the global crises in incomes, safety, education and health. The longer we take to reverse this trend, the more it will cost us all.
  • Gender equality is a foundation for achieving all SDGs and it should be at the heart of building back better.
• Cascading global crises are putting the achievement of the SDGs in jeopardy, with the world’s most vulnerable population groups disproportionately impacted, in particular women and girls.
  • Cooperation, partnerships and investments in the gender equality agenda, including through increased global and national funding, are essential to correct the course and place gender equality back on track.

Source: DTE

International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies

Why in News?

Recently, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&C) organized 3^rd International Day of Clean Air for blue skies as ‘Swachh Vayu Diwas (“Swachh Vayu Neel Gagan”) ’today to raise awareness and facilitate actions to improve air quality under National Clean Air Programme (NCAP).

• 20 cities selected out of 131 for its National Clean Air Programme (NCAP) have attained the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (60 microgram per cubic meter) in 2021-22, compared to their 2017 levels.

What are the Key Points?

• Theme:
  • The theme is “The Air We Share”.
  • It highlights the need for immediate and strategic international and regional cooperation for more efficient implementation of mitigation policies and actions to tackle air pollution.
• About:
  • During its 74^th session, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution to hold an International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies on 19th December, 2019.
  • The resolution also encouraged the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) to facilitate the day’s observance in collaboration with other relevant stakeholders.
  • In the lead-up to the passing of the resolution, the Climate and Clean Air Coalition collaborated with UNEP and the Republic of Korea to advocate for the day.
• Significance:
  • The United Nations commemorates the International Day of Clear Air for Blue Skies by hosting summits with member states.
  • Attendees put forth their perspectives and discuss the data on the impacts of air pollution and air quality around the globe.

What are the Findings of NCAP?

• Ninety-five of these 131 cities have shown air quality improvement,
  • Varanasi recorded the most marked improvement — of 53% — in air quality levels.
  • Varanasi had an annual average concentration of PM10 of 244 in 2017, which dropped to 144 in 2021.
• PM10 for all metropolitan cities, Delhi, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata and Hyderabad, have shown significant improvement in air quality in 2021-22 compared to 2017.
  • Other major cities to have shown an improvement include Noida, Chandigarh, Navi Mumbai, Pune, Guwahati, etc.
• But 27 cities have shown a deterioration in air quality over the same period.
  • Among them is Korba — the district in Chhattisgarh houses 10 thermal coal power plants.
• Among states, Madhya Pradesh has been the poorest performer, as six of seven cities from the state selected by the Centre for NCAP have shown a deterioration in air quality.
  • These are Bhopal, Dewas, Indore, Jabalpur, Sagar, Ujjain and Gwalior.
• Howrah and Durgapur in West Bengal, Aurangabad and Thane in Maharashtra, Gaya in Bihar, Rajkot and Vadodara in Gujarat, Bhubaneswar (Odisha), Patiala (Punjab) and Jammu, among others, have also shown a worsening of air quality.

Source: IE

Foundational Learning Survey

Why in News?

Recently, the nationwide Foundational Learning Survey (FLS) was carried out jointly by the Union Ministry of Education and the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT).

• More than 50% of the assessed class III children from Delhi have either “limited” foundational numeracy skills or “lacking the most basic knowledge and skills”.
• In the National Achievement Survey (NAS) also Delhi featured in the five states with the lowest average scores in both Math and Language at the class III level.

What do we need to know about the Foundational Learning Survey?

• About: Foundational Learning Survey (FLS) aims to set-up benchmarks for reading with comprehension in 22 Indian languages.
• Background: FLS was undertaken in 2022 as a crucial step towards strengthening efforts for Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) under the NIPUN Bharat Mission.
• Samples Size: FLS was carried out among 86,000 class III children in 10,000 schools in the country.
  • In Delhi, the sample size was 2,945 students from across 515 schools.
• Categorization:
  • Based on children’s performances, they were placed in four categories:
    • Those who lacked the most basic knowledge and skills
    • Those who have limited knowledge and skills
    • Those who have developed sufficient knowledge and skill
    • Those who have developed superior knowledge
• Findings:
  • National:
    • Overall Figures:
      • 11% of students lack the most basic knowledge and skills.
      • 37% of the students have limited knowledge and skills.
    • Language:
      • English:
        • 15% of students were found to be lacking even basic skills.
        • 30% had limited skills.
        • 21% had sufficient skills.
        • 34% had fairly superior skills.
      • Hindi:
        • 21% fell under the worst performing bracket
        • 32% had limited proficiency.
    • States: In numeracy, Tamil Nadu (29%) had the maximum number of students who could not complete the most basic grade-level tasks, followed by Jammu and Kashmir (28%), Assam, Chhattisgarh and Gujarat (18%).
• Basis of Findings:
  • Findings of the FLS are based on interviews with each individual participant.
    • While the National Achievement Survey evaluated learning outcomes based on Multiple Choice Questions.

What are the Government’s Initiatives for the Education Sector?

• NIPUN Bharat Mission
• Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan
• Mid Day Meal Scheme

Source: IE

Legionellosis Disease

Why in News?

Recently, a mysterious pneumonia outbreak in Argentina has been identified as Legionellosis.

What is Legionellosis?

• About:
  • Legionellosis is a pneumonia-like illness that varies in severity from mild febrile illness to a serious and sometimes fatal form of pneumonia.
  • The causative agents are Legionella bacteria from water or potting mix.
• Symptoms:
  • It included fever, muscle and abdominal pain and shortness of breath. 
• Spread:
  • The disease typically spreads via inhalation of contaminated aerosols from contaminated water, which could come from — air conditioning cooling towers, evaporative condensers associated with air conditioning and industrial cooling, hot and cold-water systems, humidifiers and whirlpool spas.
• Risk Population:
  • The people who have comorbidities like hypertension, diabetes, obesity, respiratory problems, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), or those who follow poor habits like smoking are more prone to the condition.
• Treatment:
  • Treatments exist, but there is no vaccine currently available for Legionnaires’ disease.
  • Patients with Legionnaires’ disease always require antibiotic treatment following diagnosis.
  • The public health threat posed by legionellosis can be addressed by implementing water safety plans by authorities responsible for building safety or water system safety.

Source: DTE

New branches of the National Centre for Disease Control

Why in News?

Recently, the Union Health Minister virtually laid the foundation stone for National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) branches in Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Kerala, Maharashtra, Tripura, and Uttar Pradesh.

What is National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC)?

• About:
  • The National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC), formerly National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD), had its origin as the Central Malaria Bureau, established at Kasauli (Himachal Pradesh) in 1909.
  • NICD was transformed into the National Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) with a larger mandate of controlling emerging and re-emerging diseases in 2009.
  • It is under the administrative control of the Director General of Health Services, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Govt. of India.
• Function: It functions as the nodal agency in the country for disease surveillance facilitating the prevention and control of communicable diseases.
  • In coordination with the State Governments, NCDC has the capacity and capability for disease surveillance, outbreak investigation, and rapid response to contain and combat outbreaks.
• Services: The Institute provides referral diagnostic services to individuals, communities, medical colleges, research institutions and state health directorates.
• Headquarters: The Institute has its headquarters in Delhi.
• Branches: It has eight branches located at Alwar (Rajasthan), Bengaluru (Karnataka), Kozikode (Kerela), Coonoor (Tamil Nadu), Jagdalpur (Chattisgarh), Patna (Bihar), Rajahmundry (Andhra Pradesh) and Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh).

What are the Benefits of having multiple branches of NCDC?

• The regional branches of NCDC will play a pivotal part and will provide a boost to public health infrastructure with prompt surveillance, rapid detection and monitoring of diseases thereby enabling early interventions.
• The State branches will coordinate with NCDC (Delhi) with real-time sharing of data and information aided by cutting-edge technology.
  • Further, the NCDC branches would also be crucial in ensuring the timely availability of updated guidelines.
• New branches are being added with the mandate for integrated disease surveillance activities, dealing with Anti-Microbial Resistance (AMR), multi-sectoral and entomological investigations etc.

Source: TH

US Start-up SETU

Why in News?

The Union Minister of Commerce and Industry recently launched the US Startup SETU - Supporting Entrepreneurs in Transformation and Upskilling programme in the Bay Area of San Francisco, United States of America.

What is Startup SETU?

• About:
  • SETU or Supporting Entrepreneurs in Transformation and Upskilling is an Indian government initiative under Ministry of Commerce & Industry.
  • The initiative would connect start-ups in India to US-based investors and start-up ecosystem leaders with mentorship and assistance in various areas including funding, market access and commercialization.
• Significance:
  • To break the geographical barriers between US mentors willing to invest in entrepreneurship and sunrise startups in India.
  • The interaction will be supported through the mentorship portal under the Startup India initiative MAARG, or the Mentorship, Advisory, Assistance, Resilience, and Growth program, which is a single-stop solution finder for startups in India.
    • The portal has been developed with the idea to be accessible from every corner of the country to connect with a mentor.
• Need:
  • It is estimated that about 90% of the start-ups and more than half of the well-funded startups fail in their early days. Lack of experience in handling the business is a key issue, and founders require the right guidance for taking a decision and moral support.
  • As India becomes a leading start-up destination, the proper guidance at the right time is paramount.
  • Further, the Government of India invites stalwarts, seasoned experts, and industry leaders to give back to the nation by adding value to a startup’s journey.

Source: PIB