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In the 19th century, the German biologist August Weismann argued that the machinery of life inevitably wore out with time. Death had evolved “for the need of the species,” he declared. It cleared away weak, old individuals so they wouldn’t compete with young ones.
That explanation never made sense to George Williams, an American evolutionary biologist. Natural selection acts only on the genes that are passed down from one generation to the next. What happens at the end of an animal’s life can have no effect on the course of evolution.
It occurred to Williams that growing old might instead be an inescapable side effect of natural selection. In 1957, he proposed a new theory: Genetic mutations that increased an animal’s fertility could also cause harm late in life. Over many generations, those mutations would create a burden that would lead eventually to death.
A new study, published on Friday in the journal Science Advances, bolsters Williams’s theory using a trove of human DNA. Researchers found hundreds of mutations that could boost a young person’s fertility and that were linked to bodily damage later in life.
China continues water cannon assault on our vessels: Philippines (Page no. 2)
(GS Paper 2, International Relation)
The Chinese coast guard assaulted Philippine vessels with water cannon blasts and rammed one of them, causing damage and endangering Filipino crew members off a disputed shoal in the South China Sea, just a day after similar hostilities at another contested shoal.
The Philippines and its treaty ally, the United States, immediately condemned the latest confrontation near the Second Thomas Shoal, where two Philippine navy-operated supply boats and two Philippine coast guard escort ships sailed to deliver food and other supplies to Filipino forces in a long-marooned navy ship that serves as a territorial outpost.
“We condemn, once again, China’s latest unprovoked acts of coercion and dangerous maneuvers against a legitimate and routine Philippine rotation and resupply mission to Ayungin Shoal that has put the lives of our people at risk,” a Philippine government task force that deals with the territorial disputes said in a statement, using the Filipino name for the shoal.
Front Page
Article 270: 4yrs after J&K special status scrapped, SC verdict today (Page no. 3)
(GS Paper 2, Governance)
Over four years after Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) lost its special status following the abrogation of Article 370, and the state was reorganised into the two Union territories of J&K and Ladakh, the Supreme Court is scheduled to deliver its verdict on a batch of petitions challenging the constitutional validity of the Centre’s decision.
On September 5, a five-judge Constitution Bench presided by Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud had reserved its judgment after hearing the petitioners, the Centre and J&K administration for 16 days.
The Bench includes Justices S K Kaul, Sanjeev Khanna, B R Gavai and Surya Kant. Justice Kaul will retire on December 25 while the other three Judges are in line to be the Chief Justice of India.
The court heard a clutch of 23 petitions. These included some which were filed before the August 5, 2019 changes, challenging Section 35A of the Constitution that empowered J&K to make special laws for its permanent residents.
Express Network
IEA on UAE’s success claims: Not enough to bridge even 30% of emission gap by 2030 (Page no. 7)
(GS Paper 3, Environment)
The climate pledges made by countries and corporate entities in the opening days of the COP28 climate meeting — which, according to host UAE, have already made this conference successful — are not enough to bridge even one-third of the emissions gap likely to exist by 2030, a new analysis from the International Energy Agency (IEA) said Sunday.
A pledge by more than 100 countries to triple global renewable energy capacity by 2030 and double the growth in energy efficiency, and a promise by about 50 oil and gas corporations to eliminate methane emissions from their production processes, were hailed as important breakthroughs — even though these were voluntary pledges made outside the formal COP process.
COP28 Director General Majid Al Suwaidi had said Saturday that along with the operationalisation of the loss and damage fund, the pledges on renewables and methane had already made this climate summit a success.
IEA, the global energy watchdog, said the pledges were welcome but, in themselves, not adequate to enforce the required emission cuts by 2030. “IEA analysis shows that the full delivery on these pledges — covering renewables, efficiency and methane — by the current signatories would result in global energy-related greenhouse gas emissions in 2030 being around 4 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent lower than would be expected without them.
This reduction in 2030 emissions represents only around 30 per cent of the emissions gap that needs to be bridged to get the world on a pathway compatible with limiting global warming to 1.5 degree Celsius.
Editorial
Flight to well-being (Page no. 8)
(GS Paper 2, Social Justice)
Women’s empowerment is the key to building a strong and developed nation. This is especially the case when women flourish economically and contribute to rural prosperity.
NAMO Drone Didi — an initiative announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 30 during interaction with beneficiaries in Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra — aims to supply drones to 15,000 women Self Help Groups (SHGs) to rent to farmers for agriculture purposes. It is an excellent example of harnessing technological innovation to empower rural women.
This multifaceted scheme effectively addresses the need to modernise our agricultural practices and increase agricultural productivity by placing cutting-edge technology in the hands of rural women.
This makes them the epicentre of the rural economy, spearheading the new agricultural revolution. The scheme also opens up new opportunities for the country’s young and dynamic start-ups to enter the emerging field of drone aeronautics, which has huge untapped potential.
Ideas Page
A new judicial imagination (Page no. 9)
(GS Paper 2, Polity and Constitution)
This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Kesavananda Bharati case and the laying down of the “Basic Structure Doctrine” by the Supreme Court of India in April 1973.
This doctrine has withstood the test of time and has been consistently upheld by the SC. However, at times doubts have been raised about its constitutional validity, especially its open-ended nature.
It has been argued that the doctrine gives exclusive powers to the SC to determine what constitutes the “Basic Structure” or the “Basic Features of the Constitution” and in that process, undermines the mandates of other institutions.
The former Union Finance Minister, Arun Jaitley, while critiquing the NJAC judgment of the Supreme Court, famously observed, “The judgment has upheld the primacy of one basic structure — independence of judiciary — but diminished five other basic structures of the Constitution, namely, parliamentary democracy, an elected government, the council of ministers, an elected Prime Minister and the elected leader of the opposition.”
Express Network
House panel recommends prayers, rituals at protected sites of religious significance (Page no. 10)
(GS Paper 2, Polity and Constitution)
A parliamentary panel has recommended the government to explore the possibility of permitting puja and worship at monuments protected by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) that have religious significance.
The report on ‘Issues relating to Untraceable Monuments and Protection of Monuments in India’ was presented in both Houses.
If that happens, it will open a Pandora’s Box since many of the protected monuments include dilapidated temples, dargahs, churches and other religious sites.
As of now, ASI only permits worship and rituals at monuments wherein such traditions were on at the time of the monument coming to the agency’s custody.
In its recommendations, the committee — headed by YSR Congress Rajya Sabha MP V Vijaisai Reddy and including more than a dozen MPs from across political parties — said that “several historical monuments across the country hold immense religious significance to a large number of people and allowing pujas/worship/certain religious activities at such monuments can fulfil legitimate aspirations of the people”.
Economy
MNRE plans long term exemption for green hydrogen projects for solar PV (Page no. 11)
(GS Paper 3, Environment)
The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), a key player in the Indian government’s decarbonisation goals, has proposed an exemption for green hydrogen developers from adhering to its list of authorised manufacturers to enable them to import solar PV modules and wind turbine models from China.
Additionally, in a meeting with green hydrogen developers, MNRE also proposed an exemption on duties and taxes up till 2035 on equipment imports for setting up export-oriented green hydrogen projects, according to the minutes of the meeting on October 19 accessed through the RTI.
As per the minutes, MNRE noted that a separate meeting shall be convened with the Department of Revenue to discuss the same.
During the meeting, developers also sought an exemption from a Ministry of Finance order dated February 8, 2021 that had barred public procurement of equipment from countries sharing land border with India, a move aimed at China.
The MNRE, according to the minutes, has proposed examining the possibility of exempting green hydrogen developers from its list of authorised manufacturers, which will allow them to import solar PV modules and wind turbine models from China in order to make exports of green hydrogen competitive.
Currently, MNRE’s Approved List of Models and Manufacturers (ALMM) and Revised List of Models and Manufacturers (RLLM) do not include Chinese manufacturers as a consequence of the ministry’s policy to boost domestic manufacturing of renewable energy equipment.
Explained
Art – 370 verdict: What happened in SC hearings (Page no. 12)
(GS Paper 2, Polity and Constitution)
Was Parliament within its powers to make changes to Article 370 of the Constitution and take away Jammu and Kashmir’s special status, or could it only have been done on the recommendations of the Constituent Assembly of the erstwhile state?
On Monday (December 11), the Supreme Court will deliver its verdict on petitions challenging the Centre’s decision to make changes to the provision, and reorganise the state into the two Union Territories of J&K and Ladakh.
After a 16-day hearing, during which it considered submissions for and against the Centre’s August 2019 move, the Supreme Court had reserved its decision on September 5 this year.
Chief Justice of India (CJI) D Y Chandrachud presided over the Bench, which also comprised the four other most senior judges of the court — Justices S K Kaul, Sanjeev Khanna, B R Gavai, and Surya Kant.
Here are some of the key arguments of the 23 petitioners, the contentions of the Centre and J&K administration, and statements made by the Constitution Bench.
Article 370 was meant to be temporary until the constituent assembly for J&K which existed from 1951 to 1957, took a decision on whether to abrogate it. Since no decision was taken, it became permanent.
Thereafter, there was no constitutional process left to touch Article 370 and changes, if any, could only have been made through a political process.
Behind legal challenge: Promise to J&K by framers of constitution (Page no. 12)
(GS Paper 2, Polity and Constitution)
At the heart of the legal challenge before the Supreme Court to the Centre’s amendments to Article 370 of the Constitution is the sanctity of a legal promise carefully negotiated by the framers of the Constitution and the state of Jammu and Kashmir.
In the 16-day hearing, the Supreme Court heard arguments that the constitutional promise in Article 370 is premised on three basic guarantees — asymmetric federalism, autonomy, and consent of the people of J&K, represented through its legislature.
On May 27, 1949, the Constituent Assembly of India cleared the draft Article 370, as per the terms in the Instrument of Accession which was signed in 1947.
While other provisions of the Constitution were debated in the Constituent Assembly after deliberations in its drafting committee, the situation with Article 370 was different.
According to constitutional scholar AG Noorani, Article 370 was discussed for five months by then Prime Minister of India Jawaharlal Nehru and his colleagues, with then Prime Minister of Jammu and Kashmir Sheikh Abdullah and his colleagues, from May to October 1949.
The state of Jammu and Kashmir is the only state in the Union of India which negotiated the terms of its membership with the Union. In 1949, the Constituent Assembly granted its imprimatur to this agreement.
Historic deal by EU: What world’s first law o regulating AI Proposes: Its significance (Page no. 12)
(GS Paper 3, Science and Technology)
The EU becomes the very first continent to set clear rules for the use of AI,” Breton declared on social media after officials reached a provisional deal on the world’s first set of comprehensive laws to regulate the use of artificial intelligence (AI) after a marathon 37-hour negotiation between the European Parliament and the EU member states. The European Parliament will now vote on the proposed AI Act early next year, and a legislation is likely to come into force by 2025.
The European Union’s legislative framework assumes significance given that the US, the UK, and China are also jostling for the lead to set the template for AI regulations and publish their own set of guidelines.
The legislation includes safeguards on the use of AI within the EU, including clear guardrails on its adoption by law enforcement agencies, and consumers have been empowered to launch complaints against any perceived violations.
The deal includes strong restrictions on facial recognition technology, and on using AI to manipulate human behaviour, alongside provisions for tough penalties for companies breaking the rules.
Governments can only use real-time biometric surveillance in public areas only when there are serious threats involved, such as terrorist attacks.