The Hindu Editorial News Analysis 4th Dec 2017

Table of Contents

Capturing Crime

National Crime Records Bureau data for 2016
Two important aspects, violent crime and crime against women
State governments to make a serious study of the underlying causes.
Not all States are equally affected; UP and Bihar record maximum number of murders
Crimes against women, which includes rape, abduction(अपहरण), assault(हमला) and cruelty by
husband and relatives, is up by 2.9% over that of 2015.
Delhi and Mumbai appearing the least safe:
Delhi recorded a rate of crime that is more than twice the national average.
Viewed in perspective, the murder rate today has declined to the level prevailing in
the 1950s, which was 2.7 per 1,00,000 people, after touching a peak of 4.62 in 1992
Q-One question that needs to be analysed is, how much does social development
influence a reduction in crime?
Since the Delhi gang rape case of 2012-
1)-Police forces have been directed to record the crime with greater sensitivity, and
2)-Some measures initiated to make public places safer for women
A focussed programme to universalise education and skills training would potentially
keep juveniles from coming into conflict with the law.
Lat year‟s data indicate that there is a rise in the number of cases involving juveniles
Need urgent reform, such as
1)-Modernising the police,
2)-Recruiting right candidates and
3)-Teaching them to uphold human rights
Supreme Court on police reforms issued in 2006 have not been implemented(Committee)
Increase in crimes against women must prompt better policing and all-round reform

Barter system to Bitcoin

A misleading hunger index

Global Hunger Index (GHI) is a multidimensional statistical tool used to describe the state of
countries„ hunger situation.
The GHI measures progress and failures in the global fight against hunger
Per capita food production in India has increased by 26% (2004-05 to 2013-14),
Doubled in the last 50 years.
Growth rate in food production is expected to reduce hunger significantly over time,
GHI prepared by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), shows India‟s
hunger level in very poor light.
2017 GHI score has India ranked 100 out of the 119 countries listed.
India being among
1)- Worst performers and
2)-Underachievers in addressing food and nutrition security
India still faces a problem of
1)-Undernourishment(आधेपेि खाना) and
2)-Poor child health.
GHI for 2017 is calculated as a weighted average of four standardised indicators, i.e.
1)-The percentage of population that is undernourished(आधेपेि खाना);
2)-Percentage of children under •five years who suffer from wasting- Low weight for height
3)-Percentage of children under •five who suffer from stunting(prevent from growing)- Low
height for age
4)-Child mortality(under-5 mortality or death of children under the age of five)
Undernourishment and child mortality each make up a third of the GHI score,
While child stunting and child wasting make up a sixth of the score, and together make up
a third of the score.
3/4 indicators, refer only to children below 5 who constitute only 11.5% of India‟s population.
“Hunger Index” is highly biased towards undernutrition of children rather than representing
the status of hunger in the overall population.
“Global Hunger and Child Health Index” than as a “Global Hunger Index”.
Evidence shows that weight and height of children are not solely determined by food intake
but are an outcome of a complex interaction of factors related to genetics, the environment
, sanitation and utilisation of food intake.
If child health indicators are not included in the GHI, India will move to the 77th spot.
India‟s ranking in terms of child mortality, child stunting and child wasting is 80, 106 and
117, respectively.
Calculating hunger
The incidence of hunger is taken as proportion of the population whose food intake provides
less than its minimum energy requirements.
Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) has an average norm
of 1,800 kcal, while the Indian Council of Medical Research-National Institute of Nutrition
(ICMR-NIN) specfied average norm of 2,400 kcal for rural areas 2,100 kcal for urban areas
and in varies across
1)-Age, 2)-Gender and 3)-Activity-level.
To avoid confusion about the status of hunger and undernourishment, India should regularly prepare and publish official estimates of hunger, like that of poverty.
It will also help in tackling hunger.

Disability rights over time

A quick recap of how legislation for disabled persons has evolved
In 1992, the United Nations announced that December 3 would be observed every year as International Day of Persons with Disabilities
While disabled persons continue to struggle to secure employment and navigate their way
around with poor infrastruture.
Disability rights movement gained momentum in the 1970s – Human Rights Issue.
1983-1992 was marked as the United Nations Decade of Disabled Persons.
The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), 2006 was
a big step towards viewing persons as “subjects with rights” and not “objects of charity”.
India is a signatory to the UNCRPD and ratified it in 2007.
2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development pledges to “leave no one behind”.
It states that persons with disabilities must be both “beneficiaries and agents of change”.
However, attitudinal, institutional, and infrastructural barriers remain, World Bank stating that 15% of the world’s population experience some form of disability and that they “.
2011, the World Health Organisation came up with a world report on disability
for the •first time
In India, according to the 2011 Census, 2.21% of the population has one or multiple types of disabilities, making the country home to one of the largest disabled populations in the world.
Legislation moved forward last year in India when the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act
was passed, replacing the Persons with Disabilities Act, 1995.
The 2016 Act recognises 21 kinds of disabilities compared to the previous seven, including
dwarfism(बौनापन), speech and language disability, and three blood disorders.
New Act also increased the quota for disability reservation in higher educational institutions
from 3% to 5% and in government jobs from 3% to 4%
Legislation alone is not enough; implementation remains abysmal
Data from the National Centre for Promotion of Employment for Disabled People
show that 84% of seats for persons with disabilities lie vacant in top universities.
While we have a long way to go in implementing these laws, we must also keep in mind that
A one-size-•fits-all approach is unhelpful for disabled persons.
Levels and types of disabilities differ and so do needs.

Prelims Focus Facts-News Analysis

Page-1- First phase of Chabahar port opened
India said the construction of the Chabahar port in Iran will contribute to regional trade and provide Afghanistan with “alternate access” to global markets, after inauguration
of the
first phase by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani on Sunday.India and Afghanistan to bypass obstacles posed by Pakistan for trade on the direct route.