26 August 2024, The Indian EXPRESS
SC panel stressed on environmental study for Gangotri route, BRO says not needed
Page no- 1
GS3- Conservation; environmental impact assessment
- THE BORDER Roads Organisation (BRO) has told the Uttarakhand forest department and an Environment Ministry panel that the Chardham road project on the Gangotri-Dharasu route does not require either environment impact assessment (EIA) study or environmental clearance (EC), according to official records.
- This submission, made by the BRO last week, runs contrary to recommendations of a Supreme Court-appointed high powered committee.
- The Gangotri-Dharasu route falls in the Bhagirathi Eco-Sensitive Zone (BESZ).
- In its report to the apex court in July 2020, the high powered committee had said that with regards to the BESZ, “road widening should only be undertaken after detailed EIAs and mitigation measures”.
Now buy seeds and planting material online from govt’s NSC
Page no- 2
GS3- e-technology in the aid of farmers
- The state-run National Seeds Corporation (NSC) has initiated the onboarding of its area and regional offices on MyStore, an online marketplace connected to the Government’s Open Network for Digital Commerce.
- The move aimed at easing access to quality seeds will enable farmers across the country to buy seed and planting material online.
- An official at the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare said the NSC has 48 area offices, 11 regional offices, and five farms across the country.
- Of these, 12 offices and farms (six area offices, four regional offices and two farms) have been onboarded on the MyStore platform, and started selling seeds and planting materials.
- The remaining offices will be onboarded by the first week of September, the officer added.
A riverside citadel, symbol of a king’s ambitions: The ruins here tell a story
Page no- 6
Prelims Syllabus- Art & Culture
- From Sunil Gavaskar’s record-equalling test century in 1983 to Anil Kumble’s thrilling 1999 outing that saw him clinching all 10 wickets against Pakistan, some of Indian cricket’s most iconic moments have been witnessed at the Feroz Shah Kotla stadium, which was later renamed Arun Jaitley Stadium.
- While the stadium has seen some historic moments, its first name is a reminder of India’s rich history — the stories of which have been passed from one generation to another.
- A short walk from the stadium leads to a 14th-century monument built by Firoz Shah Tughlaq, ruler of the Tughlaq dynasty who succeeded his cousin Muhammad bin Tughlaq.
Reframing Pension
Page no- 8
GS3- Government Budgeting
- In recent years, the multiparty consensus that had led to the ushering in of pension reforms in the 2000s appeared to have unravelled.
- Several state governments such as Rajasthan, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Chhattisgarh had announced a shift back to the old pension scheme, as the clamour against the new pension scheme by a small but vocal section of the electorate gained traction.
- In response, the Union government announced in March 2023 the setting up of a committee to look into the entire gamut of issues, and suggest a way forward.
- On Saturday, a few months after the fractured result of the general election, and in the run-up to key assembly elections, the Union cabinet approved a new Unified Pension Scheme (UPS) for central government employees.
- While the scheme has incorporated elements from both the old and the new pension scheme, it has partially rolled back some of the more fiscally appealing, hard-won features of the National Pension System.
On an upward arc
Page no- 8
GS2- India and its bilateral relations
- India is arguably better placed than most of America’s partners to deal with the incipient political change of guard in Washington.
- Whether it is the Republican candidate, former President Donald Trump, or the Democratic nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris, who wins the November election, India’s relations are unlikely to face any disruption.
- Unlike America’s allies in Europe and Asia who worry about the return of Trump, India has strengthened its relationship with the US under both the Trump and Biden administrations.
- Delhi, therefore, has reasons to be confident about continuity in its ties with the US.
- Yet, change is the only enduring law of the universe, and Delhi must be prepared to deal with either incremental or radical changes within domestic US politics that could affect relations.
Momentous in Kyiv
Page no- 8
GS2- India and its bilateral relations
- Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has told Prime Minister Narendra Modi that India can be a possible venue for a peace summit, and New Delhi is examining the offer to bring together the warring parties of Russia and Ukraine, The Indian Express has learnt.
- This comes even as Zelenskyy said that he needed India on his side and “not balancing between US and Russia”.
One election, many questions
Page no- 9
GS2- Elections; Salient features of the Representation of People’s Act
- The issue of simultaneous elections, which has been hanging fire for over a decade, has now been placed on the precipice of the Red Fort by the Prime Minister in his Independence Day speech this year.
- He has renewed his resolve to implement the idea as soon as possible, most likely by the 2029 general elections.
- As far back as in 2013, even before becoming the prime minister, Narendra Modi had reiterated the demand for simultaneous elections for several reasons, mainly because of the exorbitant costs and disruption of normal development activity.
- Since then, several committees have gone into the subject and have not been able to find an acceptable solution.
- The last such effort is a high-level committee headed by the former president of India, Ram Nath Kovind.
- The mandate of this committee was not to debate the pros and cons of the proposal, but to suggest concrete ways to implement it.
India, Singapore to identify new areas to elevate strategic ties
Page no- 10
GS2- India and its bilateral relations
- India and Singapore are going to hold the second round of ministerial roundtable Monday, which will review various aspects of their Strategic Partnership and identify new avenues to further elevate and broaden it.
- According to a statement by the MEA, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, and Minister of Railways, I&B, and Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw will participate in the roundtable.
Why Sebi fined Anil Ambani and banned him from the markets
Page no- 11
GS3- Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment
- Securities markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has banned ADAG chairman Anil Ambani and 24 other entities, including former key managerial personnel (KMPs) of Reliance Home Finance Ltd (RHFL), from the securities market for five years for diversion of funds from the company.
- Sebi has also slapped a Rs 25 crore fine on Ambani for orchestrating a fraudulent scheme that adversely affected RHFL’s stakeholders, as well as confidence in the integrity of governance structures in regulated financial sector entities.
- The total penalty imposed on Ambani and the other 24 entities works out to more than Rs 625 crore.
Chile’s Atacama Salt Flat Sinking due to Lithium mining: New Study
Page no- 11
GS3- Environmental pollution and degradation
- According to a new study, Chile’s Atacama salt flat is sinking at a rate of 1 to 2 centimetres per year due to lithium brine extraction — a process in which salt-rich water is pumped to the surface and into a series of evaporation ponds to eventually obtain lithium.
- The study, which was published in the journal IEEE Transactions on Geoscience and Remote Sensing last week, was carried out by researchers at the University of Chile.
UPS vs NPS vs OPS
Page no- 11
Prelims Syllabus- Current Affairs
- The Union Cabinet on Saturday (August 24) approved the Unified Pension Scheme (UPS), which will provide government employees with assured pension after retirement.
- The scheme will be effective from April 1, 2025, according to the government’s announcement.
- Over the last few years, the political opposition has tapped into the unhappiness of government employees about the National Pension Scheme (NPS), which is popularly known as the new pension scheme.
- The Congress governments in Himachal Pradesh in 2023, and Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh in 2022, as well as the AAP government in Punjab (in 2022) have reverted to the Old Pension Scheme (OPS).
Govt announces three new Ramsar sites: Why do wetlands need protection?
Page no- 11
GS3- Environment conservation
- Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav announced three new Ramsar sites in Tamil Nadu and Madhya Pradesh earlier this month, taking the total of such sites in India to 85.
- The new additions are the Nanjarayan Bird Sanctuary and the Kazhuveli Bird Sanctuary in Tamil Nadu, and the Tawa Reservoir in Madhya Pradesh.
Financial sector sees Rs. 23K-cr pull out by FPIs on credit-deposit gap concerns
Page no- 13
GS3- Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment
- The financial services sector witnessed outflows to the tune of Rs 23,000 crore by foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) between July 16 and August 15, according to National Securities Depository Ltd (NSDL) data.
- While in the first fortnight of August (from August 1-15), FPIs pulled out Rs 14,790 crore of shares, they offloaded equities worth Rs 8,119 crore worth of stocks between July 16 to 31 from the financial services sector, the data showed.
- Analysts said that selling by FPIs in the financial sector was mainly on concerns over slower deposit growth compared to loan growth, which can affect profitability of banks.
