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With the Varanasi administration moving swiftly on the district court’s direction to let a priest perform puja in the southern cellar of the Gyanvapi mosque complex, part of a barricade was removed to enter the cellar where puja began late and continued in intervals. In the mosque above, namaz continued to be offered during the day.
There was heavy police presence in the area around the mosque complex which is adjacent to the Kashi Vishwanath temple. Officers monitored security arrangements and the flow of people in and out of the two premises.
District Magistrate S Rajalingam, who was made receiver of the southern cellar by the district court, said, “We have complied with the court’s directives.”
The Anjuman Intezamia Masajid Committee, which manages the mosque, moved an urgent application before the Supreme Court seeking its intervention against the district court’s order, but was told to first approach the Allahabad High Court.
New IT Rules on fact check unit: HC gives split verdict (Page no. 1)
(GS Paper 2, Judiciary)
A division Bench comprising two judges of the Bombay High Court delivered a split verdict on a batch of petitions that challenged the amended Information Technology (IT) Rules, which empowered the government to identify “fake news” on social media platforms through a Fact Check Unit (FCU).
One of the judges, Justice Gautam Patel, agreed with the contentions of the petitioners and struck down the amendment. The other judge, Justice Neela Gokhale, upheld the government’s arguments.
Justice Patel held that the amended Rules were “nothing but censorship”. Justice Gokhale, on the other hand, said the Rules “did not bring any chilling effect” on the fundamental rights of citizens.
In April 2022, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MEiTY) promulgated the IT (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Amendment Rules, 2023 (2023 Rules), which amended the Information Technology Rules, 2021.
Express Network
Centre plans to introduce bill to prevent unfair means in public examination (Page no. 9)
(GS Paper 2, Education)
The government is likely to introduce in the Lok Sabha on Monday a Bill aimed at curbing leaks and organised cheating in public examinations and entrance tests such as NEET, JEE, and CUET.
According to the revised list of business for the day, the Minister of State for Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, Dr. Jitender Singh, will introduce the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Bill, 2024.
Sources said the Bill will cover entrance examinations held by the Union Public Service Commission, the Staff Selection Commission, the Railways, banking recruitment examinations and all computer-based examinations conducted by the National Testing Agency.
Over the past few years, leaks of question papers of public examinations led to cancellation of tests, affecting lakhs of students.
The Bill scheduled to be introduced is aimed at preventing organised gangs and institutions that are involved in unfair means for monetary gains.
Editorial
Marathon not sprint (Page no. 10)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
The first advance GDP estimates from the National Statistical Office indicate that the Indian economy will grow 7.3 per cent this fiscal year, faster than the Economic Survey’s prediction of 6.5 per cent made in January 2023. The survey had then noted that the Indian economy appeared more upbeat than most.
India will continue to be the fastest-growing major economy despite a sharp slowdown in agriculture and various risks and uncertainties playing out globally.
The Russia-Ukraine conflict and the intensifying Middle East crisis have so far not dented the country’s growth trajectory.
Most other macros are also broadly in balance, with current account deficit in the safe zone, the currency being stable, and headline inflation expected to nudge down over the next few quarters.
Economic policies, specifically fiscal policy, have played a key role in shaping the post-pandemic growth recovery. The fiscal policy transitioned from a focus on welfare during the pandemic towards a public investment-driven growth strategy to accelerate a buildup in infrastructure. This was achieved while staying on the glide path of a reducing fiscal deficit/gross domestic product (GDP) ratio.
Ideas Page
One versus the other (Page no. 11)
(GS Paper 1, Culture)
The Ram Temple in Ayodhya was consecrated by the Prime Minister of India. The moment has been discussed as being phenomenal and as a watershed moment in Indian politics.
In the conversation around the politico-religious significance of the consecration of the temple, however, the question of whose temple it is and who can safely distance themselves from it, remains unaddressed.
The ruling governments of India have made it clear that the Ram temple in Ayodhya is a national project. Since the Supreme Court judgment, the government has pushed a narrative of “national heritage” around it.
The explanation of design and construction of the temple involved nationalist rhetoric. This included stories about material and labour sourced from across the country, the design being representative of all Indian cultures, the involvement of institutes of national importance such as IIT Chennai and CBRI at IIT Roorkee and contribution from some of the biggest names in the construction industry.
The consecration conducted by the PM featured performances by some of the best known artists, and was attended by popular celebrities who are household names.
Institutionally, weeks before the consecration, government employees were given leave on the 22nd to take part in the celebrations, some universities issued notices barring protests, and businesses were urged to stay closed. The phrase “Ram sabke hain” (Ram belongs to everyone) became part of a widely dispersed rhetoric.
Economy
Fiscal deficit at 55% full year target at Dec end 2023: CGA (Page no. 13)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
The Union government’s fiscal deficit touched Rs 9.82 lakh crore or 55 per cent of the annual Budget target at December-end 2023, according to data released by the Controller General of Accounts (CGA).
In the corresponding period last year, the deficit was 59.8 per cent of the budget estimate of 2022-23. For 2023-24, the government’s fiscal deficit is estimated to be at Rs 17.86 lakh crore or 5.9 per cent of the GDP.
The government’s total revenue stood at Rs 20.71 lakh crore (76.3 per cent of corresponding BE 2023-24 of total receipts) as of December 2023.
This comprised Rs 17.29 lakh crore tax revenue (net), Rs 3.12 lakh crore of non-tax revenue and Rs 29,650 crore of non-debt capital receipts.
Non-debt capital receipts consist of the recovery of loans and miscellaneous capital receipts.
Three full time on part time members of 16th FC appointed (Page no. 13)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
After the appointment of Arvind Panagariya as Chairman of the 16th Finance Commission, the government has now announced the appointment of three full-time members and one part-time member of the Commission.
Former Finance and Expenditure Secretary Ajay Narayan Jha, who was also the member of 15th Finance Commission, has been appointed as full-time member along with Annie George Mathew, former Special Secretary in Department of Expenditure and Niranjan Rajadhyaksha, Executive Director of Artha Global.
Soumya Kanti Ghosh, Group Chief Economic Advisor of public sector lender State Bank of India (SBI), has been appointed as a part-time member in the Commission.
Among the members, Jha, a former 1982 batch IAS officer of the Manipur cadre, has served in several positions in the earlier Finance Commissions.
Before being a member of the 15th Finance Commission, Jha also served as Member Secretary of 14th Finance Commission, which was headed by former RBI Governor YV Reddy.
Explained
Why bird flu deaths of Antarctica penguins is a flashing danger sign (Page no. 15)
(GS Paper 2, Health)
A deadly type of bird flu has been found in gentoo penguins for the first time, according to the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR), stoking concern that the virus could spread among Antarctica's huge penguin colonies.
Researchers found, opens new tab about 35 penguins dead in the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic on Jan. 19. Samples taken from two of the dead penguins came back positive for the H5N1 avian influenza virus, said Ralph Vanstreels, a veterinarian who works with SCAR.
The Falkland Islands government told Reuters that many more gentoos were dying under similar circumstances. As of Jan. 30, "there are over 200 chicks dead alongside a handful of adults", said government spokesperson Sally Heathman.
The deaths confirm that gentoo penguins are susceptible to the lethal disease that has decimated bird populations across the world in recent months.
However, gentoos rarely travel between the Falklands off Argentina's coast and the Antarctic Peninsula, which lies some 1,300 kilometres (800 miles) to the south.
That means traveling penguins are unlikely to drive the spread to the southern continent, said Vanstreels, a researcher affiliated with University of California-Davis.