Table of Contents
Shimla Agreement
Bending the rules
National GreenTribunal suspended the environmental clearance granted to the
India-based Neutrino Observatory (INO),
ExpertAppraisal Committee of Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change has
overturned the NGT verdict and granted environmental clearance for the project.
Come up in BodiWest Hills in Tamil Nadu
Symbol not just of India‟s push for research in particle physics.
Neutrinos are subatomic particles that are extremely difficult to detect
Laboratory cavern will be located 1,300 metres underground, with an access tunnel.
Rock cover is necessary to minimise the naturally occurring cosmic ray backdrop.
Controversial -Mathikettan Shola National Park in Kerala‟s Western Ghats
However, considering the project‟s national importance, the Environment Ministry
had taken up the proposal for clearance as a “special case”.
Green signal is conditional on getting the consent of the
Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board and
National Board forWildlife.
Construction projects under Schedule to the Environmental Impact Assessment
(EIA) Notification, 2006
EIA was done by the Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology and Natural History
Treating it as a special case and bypassing the environmental clearance protocol sets a wrong precedent
First step in a long journey
National Medical Commission Bill
Indian Medical Association getting ready later this month to challenge the National Medical Commission (NMC) Bill, 2017 (now before a parliamentary standing committee), it is pertinent to look at the Bill‟s highlights.
Article 47 of the Constitution makes it clear that the state is duty-bound to improve public health, but India continues to face a health crisis, with an absolute shortage of and an inequitable presence of doctors and overburdened hospitals.
India has 10 lakh medical doctors, it needs 3,00,000 more in order to meet World Health Organisation standard of the ideal doctor-population ratio.
There is an 81% shortage of specialists in community health centres (CHC)
Most affected by this are poor and rural patients
Another fact is that 82.2% of providers of “modern medicine” in rural areas do not have a
medical qualification.
Rural India, which accounts for 69% of population, faces another issue only 21% of the
country‟s doctors serve them
Ironic that, while India is a hub for medical tourism (in 2016, India issued 1.78 lakh medical visas), it is a common sight in government hospitals to have patients sleep in corridors waiting for their outpatient department appointments.
The Bill, among other things, seeks to address these problems.
Insertion of Section 10A in the Indian Medical Council Act was followed by an exponential rise in the number of private medical colleges.
This was encouraged as there was, and still is, a shortfall in the number of medical practitioners.
However, the high capitation fees charged by these colleges can have a negative effect in
terms of affordability of medical services .
Regulatory authority has been unable to act despite the fact that over half the 60,000 medical students graduating every year are from private medical colleges
With corruption in the issuing of licences and regulatory requirements, many such academic institutions have a faculty of questionable standards, with obvious repercussions on the quality of education imparted.
For instance,Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram,and Nagaland do not have a single medical college.
Bill has facilitated this by providing for a bridge course for AYUSH doctors
Bill- is no magic bullet, it should be looked at as a step in the right direction
A move to equivalence
Several Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) and agreements were signed between France and India recently on French President Emmanuel Macron‟s visit.
After the agreement with France, India must hold bilateral talks for degree recognition
with other countries
Most important MoU of these was the landmark agreement signed at the „Knowledge Summit‟ between two countries on mutual recognition of educational qualifications
Estimated 5 lakh Indian students pursuing degrees in higher education abroad in 2017
, mostly in the U.S., the U.K., and the European Union.
World-class institutions in their area of interest in which Indian universities have very little to offer.
bilateral pact with France is a good start that needs to be taken forward.
Time to move beyond subsidies
U.S. complaint to the WTO against India‟s export promotion schemes is a wake-up call
Complaint of USTR is that India is violating its commitments under the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measures (SCMAgreement) using five of the most used
export promotion schemes, namely
Electronics hardware technology parks scheme, merchandise exports from India scheme, export promotion capital goods scheme, special economic zones
Main argument of the USTR is that India‟s five export promotion schemes violate Articles 3.1(a) and 3.2 of the SCMAgreement, since the two provisions prohibit granting of export subsidies.
Gross National Product (GNP) had not crossed $1,000
India had crossed the $1,000 GNP per capita threshold in 2015
India must eliminate export subsidies immediately
To be fighting fit
Government must order a comprehensive strategic review of the future threats to India
Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, India was the largest arms importer
in the last five years, accounting for 12% of global imports.
The Indian defence budget has now overtaken that of the U.K. to become the fifth largest in the world.
Despite this, as theVice-Chief of Army Staff pointed out to Parliament‟s standing committee on defence, the current capital allocation is insufficient
Equally worrying is the adverse impact on infrastructure development and strategic roads where there is a severe shortage of funds.
An insufficient defence budget impacts not only modernisation but also the current operational readiness of the force.
Reduction in revenue allocation means cutting down on training requirements and Routine replacement of items like surveillance and protective equipment.
Strategic environment in Asia is well known.
Asia is developing into a multipolar system, with Russia, China, India
J & K Problem- China (Doklam) & Pakistan-risk of war between India and Pakistan
Afghanistan‟s uncertain prospects, extremism
A comprehensive and an integrated approach to border management could result in considerable savings.
On its part, the military must focus on capability for future war fighting, not mere numbers
Prelims Focus Facts-News Analysis
Page-2-Lalu Prasad convicted in fourth fodder scam case
Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) president Lalu Prasad was on Monday convicted in the fourth fodder scam case by the special CBI court in Ranchi.
Mr. Prasad is an accused in a total of six fodder scam cases: five in Jharkhand and one in Bihar.
Page-2- Jail inmates‟ skill training gets a boost in Rajasthan
It has enabled the inmates to learn new vocations and lead a life of dignity and selfrespect
The skill training of jail inmates in Rajasthan has received a boost with the State Skill and Livelihoods Development Corporation identifying more areas of skills for them. New training partners have also been invited to work with the Jails Department
State nod for religious minority tag for Lingayats
In a significant move ahead of the Assembly elections, the Karnataka Cabinet on Monday decided to accord „religious minority‟ recognition to Lingayats
It also decided to recommend to the Centre to notify the status under the Central Minority Commission Act
U.S. wants India on board to ease Rohingya crisis
Offers to work together to help Bangladesh with refugee camps ahead of the monsoon