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China and the Philippines said they have agreed to work on lowering tensions after a year of public and tense confrontations in the South China Sea between their ships that have raised concerns of armed engagement in the region.
China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the two sides agreed to continue to improve communication and use friendly negotiations to manage their differences at sea, “especially to manage well the situation at Ren’Ai reef.” Ren’Ai reef is the Chinese name for what the Philippines call Ayungin Shoal and the US calls the Second Thomas Shoal, the site of multiple confrontations between the two countries’ ships in recent months.
In November, Manila said that a Chinese coast guard ship and accompanying vessels conducted dangerous maneuvers and blasted a Philippine supply ship with a water cannon in disputed waters. China disputed the account, saying it acted appropriately.
China and the Philippines said they agreed to limit tensions at a meeting on the South China Sea on Wednesday in Shanghai, the eighth in a series that began in 2017.
“The two sides had frank and productive discussions to de-escalate the situation in the South China Sea and both sides agreed to calmly deal with incidents, if any, through diplomacy,” the Philippines’ Department of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Wednesday.
Front Page
Pak launches strikes on militant groups in Iran (Page no. 3)
(GS Paper 2, International Relation)
At least 11 people were killed as Iran and Pakistan launched missiles and drones targeting specific militant groups in each others’ territories.
Two bases of Baluchi militant group Jaish al Adl in Pakistan were targeted by missiles on Tuesday, and in retaliation Pakistan’s army carried out precision strikes in Iran using killer drones and rockets that struck “terrorist” groups Balochistan Liberation Army and the Balochistan Liberation Front.
Islamabad denounced the attack as a “blatant violation” of its airspace, and lodged a strong protest with the Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Tehran. It also recalled its ambassador to Iran and suspended all planned high-level bilateral visits.
The United States condemned the Iranian strikes in Pakistan, Iraq and Syria. Addressing reporters, US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said Iran has violated the sovereignty of multiple countries in the region in just the past couple of days.
China Thursday offered to play a “constructive role” to ease tension between Pakistan and Iran following their missile strikes against each other over the last two days and asked the two countries to “exercise restraint and calmness and avoid escalation”.
Editorial
Young and struggling (Page no. 12)
(GS Paper 2, Education)
In the past two decades, schooling and basic learning (or foundational literacy-numeracy as it is now called) have been at the forefront of educational debates and discussions in India.
These deliberations have influenced significant shifts in policies and priorities in recent times. More than 10 years ago, the Right to Education (RTE) Act became a law; it gave legislative backing to the goal of universal elementary schooling.
More recently, the new National Education Policy (NEP) was launched in 2020. This policy takes a more comprehensive view on how to provide quality education for the entire age range — age three to university — in order to strengthen our education system and prepare students well for the future.
Unlike the usual country-wide ASER surveys, ASER 2023 is not large in scale; only one or two rural districts in each state have been surveyed.
The main aim was to understand the current status of the age group 14 to 18 with a wide-angled lens. The launch of this report provides a timely opportunity to look at policies and practices from the point of view of this relatively understudied age group.
Ideas Page
Compete to thrive (Page no. 13)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
The dawn of Amrit Kaal marks an era of rapid technological advancements and global economic shifts. This series aptly captures the spirit of this transformative period. As the chairperson of the Competition Commission of India (CCI), I want to take this opportunity to share insights into the role our institution will play in navigating these complex changes.
India’s journey since Independence has been a remarkable story, transitioning from a closed economy to one that is integral to the global market. Today, we are at a pivotal juncture, facing both unprecedented challenges and opportunities.
The digital revolution, the rise of new business models, and the increasing interconnectedness of global markets define our current economic landscape. These changes, while promising, also bring forth new complexities that require oversight to ensure fair competition.
CCI has been at the forefront of promoting fair competition and curbing anti-competitive practices. We aim to foster an ecosystem where innovation thrives and consumer interests are protected.
CCI’s approach is twofold — enforcement actions and advocacy measures. Enforcement actions are taken to address potential anti-competitive practices by issuing suitable punitive and remedial solutions, whereas advocacy measures are undertaken with the stakeholders to foster a culture of competition in the markets and to nudge market participants towards competition compliance.
Express Network
Ban on commercial release of GM crops will be against national interest, Govt tells SC (Page no. 15)
(GS Paper 3, Science and Technology)
India already imports and consumes oil derived from genetically modified (GM) crops and “opposition to such technology based on such unfounded fears of adverse impact is only hurting farmers, consumers and industry” and “will be detrimental…for Indian agriculture”, the Centre told the Supreme Court, which reserved its judgment on PILs challenging the government move for commercial release of the GM mustard variant Dhara Mustard Hybrid-11 (DMH-11).
A bench of Justice B V Nagarathna and Justice Sanjay Karol reserved its verdict saying “in our view this cannot be an adversarial issue” but “what is good for the country, good for the people”.
Appearing for the Centre, Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta told the court, “Mustard is the most important edible oil and seed meal crop of India. Approximately 55-60 percent of edible oil in India is imported.
Strengthening of plant breeding programmes, including use of new genetic technologies such as GE technology is critical for meeting emerging challenges in Indian agriculture and ensuring food security while reducing foreign dependency”.
Explained
Iran, Pak the Baloch militancy (Page no. 18)
(GS Paper 2, International Relation)
The relationship between Iran and Pakistan has taken serious hits over the last two days. Iranian missiles and drones struck two alleged bases of the Jaish al-Adl, an anti-Iran Baloch militant group, in Pakistan’s Balochistan province.
Pakistan reacted strongly to the “blatant breach” of its sovereignty, recalled its envoy to Tehran, said the Iranian ambassador (who is now in Iran) “may not return”, and then, early on Thursday, carried out its own cross-border missile strikes on alleged terrorist sanctuaries in Iran.
Iran has summoned a senior Pakistani diplomat in response, and will hold large-scale military exercises near its eastern borders, Al Jazeera reported. Both countries have claimed civilian casualties in attacks by the other side.
Before the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran, both countries were firmly allied to the United States and had, in 1955, joined the Baghdad Pact, later known as the Central Treaty Organization (CENTO), a military alliance modelled on NATO.
History of Somnath temple; Why Nehru opposed President inaugurating it (Page no. 18)
(GS Paper 1, Culture)
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Ram temple in Ayodhya on January 22. Seventy-three years ago, another temple was inaugurated in a grand ceremony by the President of India, even as the Prime Minister opposed the government associating closely with a religious event.
While the story of Jawaharlal Nehru expressing his reservations about President Rajendra Prasad’s participation in the ceremony is well-known, often missed out in popular accounts are the reasons Nehru gave for this. Also ignored is the role the British played in painting Somnath as a symbol of Hindus’ victimisation by Muslims.
Located in Prabhas Patan, Veraval, in Gujarat, Somnath is an important Hindu pilgrimage. According to the temple’s website, it is “the holy place of the First Aadi Jyotirling Shree Somnath Mahadev and the sacred soil where Lord Shri Krishna took his last journey…”
By most historical accounts, the temple faced several attacks from raiders, with the most damaging by Mahmud of Ghazni in 1026 CE.
Economy
Permanent solution for public stockholding top priority for India (Page no. 19)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
Even as developed countries continue to flag concern over India’s food security programme for distorting global food prices, New Delhi is set to keep up the pressure for a permanent solution on public stockholding for food grains at the 13th ministerial conference of the World Trade Organization (WTO) next month in Abu Dhabi, a senior government official said.
The public stockpiling of food grain is the longest pending issue. Promise was made by the members in the Bali ministerial and then later endorsed by subsequent conferences.
Without that, we will not take part in any discussion on any other issue on agriculture, unless the mandated issue is settled.
This comes as developed and developing nations continue to differ on the subject of domestic support for farmers so much so that the WTO Director-General, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala in November last year said that ongoing agriculture negotiations have “failed to achieve” the progress WTO members have called for.