UPSC Essentials: Weekly news express with MCQs — Lothal’s Maritime Heritage Complex to Global Multidimensional Poverty Index to Study on global warming

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: History of India and Indian National Movement.

Mains Examination: General Studies I- Indian culture will cover the salient aspects of Art Forms, literature and Architecture from ancient to modern times.

Why in news?

—Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday evening reviewed the construction of the National Maritime Heritage Complex (NMHC) site at Gujarat’s Lothal via video conferencing. “There are many such tales of our history that have been forgotten,” the PM said. “Lothal was not only a major trading centre of the Indus Valley Civilisation, but it was also a symbol of India’s maritime power and prosperity.”

Key takeaways

Where is Lothal?

—Lothal was one of the southernmost sites of the Indus Valley civilization, located in the Bhāl region of what is now the state of Gujarat. The port city is believed to have been built in 2,200 BC. Lothal was a thriving trade centre in ancient times, with its trade of beads, gems and ornaments reaching West Asia and Africa. The meaning of Lothal (a combination of Loth and (s) thal) in Gujarati is “the mound of the dead”.

—Incidentally, the name of the city of Mohenjo-daro (also part of the Indus Valley Civilisation, now in Pakistan) means the same in Sindhi.

—Indian archaeologists started the search for cities of the Harappan Civilisation post-1947 in Gujarat’s Saurashtra. Archaeologist SR Rao led the team which discovered a number of Harappan sites at the time, including the port city of Lothal. Excavation work was carried out in Lothal between February 1955 and May 1960. According to the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), Lothal had the world’s earliest known dock, connecting the city to an ancient course of the Sabarmati river.

—Additionally, the National Institute of Oceanography in Goa discovered marine microfossils and salt, gypsum crystals at the site, indicating that sea water once filled the structure and it was definitely a dockyard.

—In later excavations, ASI unearthed a mound, a township, a marketplace, and the dock. Adjacent to the excavated areas stands the archaeological site museum, where some of the most prominent collections of Indus-era antiquities in India are displayed.

Heritage Value

—Lothal was nominated in April 2014 as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and its application is pending on the tentative list of UNESCO. As per the nomination dossier submitted to UNESCO, “The excavated site of Lothal is the only port-town of the Indus Valley Civilisation. A metropolis with an upper and a lower town had in on its northern side a basin with vertical wall, inlet and outlet channels which has been identified as a tidal dockyard.

—Satellite images show that the river channel, now dried, would have brought in considerable volume of water during high tide, which would have filled the basin and facilitated sailing of boats upstream. The remains of stone anchors, marine shells, sealings which trace its source in the Persian Gulf, together with the structure identified as a warehouse further aid the comprehension of the functioning of the port.”

—Its heritage value is comparable to other ancient port-towns around the world – including Xel Ha (Peru), Ostia (Port of Rome) and Carthage (Port of Tunis) in Italy, Hepu in China, Canopus in Egypt, Gabel (Byblos of the Phoenicians), Jaffa in Israel, Ur in Mesopotamia, Hoi An in Vietnam, as per the dossier. In the region, it can be compared with other Indus port towns of Balakot (Pakistan), Khirasa (in Gujarat’s Kutch) and Kuntasi (in Rajkot).

The Project

—The project began in March 2022, and is being developed at a cost of Rs 3,500 crore. It will have several innovative features such as Lothal mini-recreation, which will recreate Harappan architecture and lifestyle through immersive technology; besides four theme parks – Memorial theme park, Maritime and Navy theme park, Climate theme park, and Adventure and Amusement theme park.

—It will also house the world’s tallest lighthouse museum, 14 galleries highlighting India’s maritime heritage starting from the Harappan time till today, as well as a coastal states pavilion displaying the diverse maritime heritage of Indian states and UTs.

—The Prime Minister said that the National Maritime Heritage Complex at Lothal will act as a centre for learning and understanding India’s maritime history. The NMHC is being developed with the aim of displaying India’s diverse maritime heritage and also help Lothal emerge as a world-class international tourist destination.

(source: Lothal, ‘oldest dock in the world’, to get heritage complex: Features, significance of the project by Divya A)

Point to ponder: What can you tell about the people of the Indus Valley Civilisation? 

1. MCQ:

Which of the following characterizes/ characterize the people of Indus Civilization? (2013)

1. They possessed great palaces and temples.
2. They worshipped both male and female deities.
3. They employed horse-drawn chariots in warfare.

Select the correct statement/ statements using the codes given below.

(a) 1 and 2 only

(b) 2 only

(c) 1, 2 and 3

(d)  None of the statements given above is correct

 

Global Multidimensional Poverty Index 2022

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development

Mains Examination: 

• General Studies II: Issues relating to poverty and hunger

• General Studies III: Inclusive growth and issues arising from it

Why in news?

—Around 415 million people in India climbed out of poverty between 2005-06 and 2019-21, with the incidence of poverty falling from 55 per cent to just over 16 per cent over this period, according to the Global Multidimensional Poverty Index 2022.

Key takeaways

—Despite the significant reductions, however, the largest number of poor people in the world —  228.9 million — lived in India in 2020, said the MPI report, released Monday by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) at the University of Oxford.

—India’s MPI value and incidence of poverty were both more than halved. The MPI value fell from 0.283 in 2005-2006 to 0.122 in 2015-2016 to 0.069 in 2019-2021. The incidence of poverty fell from 55.1 per cent in 2005-2006 to 27.7 per cent in 2015-2016 to 16.4 per cent in 2015-2016.

—The data do not, however, reflect post-pandemic changes. The Covid-19 pandemic could set back the progress made in poverty reduction globally by 3-10 years, the report said, adding that the most recent data on food security from the World Food Programme suggest that the number of people living in food crises or worse increased to 193 million in 2021.

—The incidence of poverty fell from 36.6 per cent in 2015-2016 to 21.2 per cent in 2019-2021 in rural areas and from 9.0 per cent to 5.5 per cent in urban areas, said the MPI report.

—The drop in poverty demonstrates that the “Sustainable Development Goal target 1.2 of reducing at least by half the proportion of men, women and children of all ages living in poverty in all its dimensions according to national definitions by 2030 is possible to achieve—and at scale,” said the report.

—The report said that the poorest states in the country reduced poverty the fastest and deprivations in all indicators fell significantly among poor people. Poverty among children fell faster in absolute terms, although India still has the highest number of poor children in the world. More than one in five children in India are poor (21.8 per cent, or 97 million) compared with around one in seven adults (13.9 per cent).

—The Global Multidimensional Poverty Index is a key international resource that measures acute multidimensional poverty across more than 100 developing countries and was first launched in 2010 by the OPHI and the Human Development Report Office of the UNDP.

—The MPI monitors deprivations in 10 indicators spanning health, education and standard of living and includes both incidence as well as intensity of poverty.

—The most common profile, affecting 3.9 percent of poor people, includes deprivations in four indicators: nutrition, cooking fuel, sanitation, and housing. More than 45.5 million poor people are deprived in only these four indicators. Of those people, 34.4 million live in India, 2.1 million in Bangladesh and 1.9 million in Pakistan—making this a “predominantly South Asian profile”—said the MPI report.

—“India’s progress shows that this goal (Sustainable Development Goal 1.2 to reduce poverty) is feasible, even at a large scale,” said the report, adding that India shows significant reduction in all 10 indicators.

—The 2019-2021 data show that about 4.2 per cent of the population live in severe poverty and about 18.7 per cent people, roughly the same proportion as in 2015-2016, are vulnerable to poverty.

—“Two-thirds of these people live in a household in which at least one person is deprived in nutrition—a worrying statistic. Based on 2020 population data for India, it has by far the largest number of poor people worldwide (228.9 million), followed by Nigeria (96.7 million projected in 2020),” it said.

Point to ponder: How China reduced poverty can be a lesson for India to learn?

2. MCQ:

Which of the following statements is not true?

1. According to World Bank anyone living on less than $2.15 a day is considered to be living in extreme poverty.

2. MPI report is released by the World Bank and the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) at the University of Oxford.

a) Only 1                         b) Only 2

c) Both 1 and 2             d) Neither 1 nor 2

 

Strengthening dollar, weakening rupee

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development-Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector Initiatives, etc.

Mains Examination: General Studies III: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment.

Why in news?

—Hit by rising global inflation and strengthening dollar, the rupee breached the 83 level to close at a fresh low of 83.02 against the US dollar on Wednesday amid large dollar demand from corporates and oil companies, raising the spectre of further rise in imported inflation.

—Opposition parties have been trolling Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman for saying in the United States that the fall in the value of the rupee was the result of the strengthening of the dollar.

Key takeaways

Is the dollar strengthening?

—Yes, it has been strengthening “incessantly”, as Sitharaman said. To take the example of the rupee, a dollar was Rs 74.50 on January 1, it is more than Rs 82.30 now. The value of the dollar has been racing upward for more than a year now — against nearly every currency around the world.

—So, the euro, which was 0.88 against the dollar on January 1, is now 1.02, and the British pound, which was 0.73 against the dollar at the beginning of the year is now 0.89. Over this same period, the Australian dollar has gone from 1.37 to 1.61, and the Japanese yen has zoomed from 115 to 148 against the dollar.

Why is the dollar strengthening?

—At a very fundamental level, the US economy is doing better than other economies. Despite very high rates of inflation, the American job market has done extremely well and sectors like services have remained resilient. This has increased confidence in the market, and offset concerns such as those over a slowdown in the housing sector.

Is the Indian rupee doing better than other currencies?

—Yes, it is. While the rupee lost 2.6% against the dollar in September, breaching the psychological marks of 81 and 82, it has been among the more stable currencies in the current environment that has impacted, in varying degrees, almost all currencies and economies.

—Therefore, the Korean won declined about 6 per cent against the dollar in September, and the British pound lost almost as much. The Australian dollar declined 4.8%, and the Swedish krona, Chinese yuan, and Philippine peso fell 4.6%, 4.1%, and 4.1% respectively.

—As mentioned above, the rupee by contrast declined comparatively less — 2.6%. This was comparable to the decline in the euro, which lost 2.4% in September.

Point to ponder: We are witnessing a period of dollar strength and not rupee weakness. Do you agree?

3. MCQ:

Which of the following statements is /are true with respect to inflation?

1. In an inflationary environment, unevenly rising prices inevitably reduce the purchasing power of some consumers, and this erosion of real income is the cost of inflation.

2. Inflation can distort purchasing power over time for recipients and payers of fixed interest rates.

a) Only 1                                   b) Only 2

c) Both 1 and 2                       d) Neither 1 nor 2

 

Pakistan is off FATF’s grey list

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Mains Examination: General Studies II- India and its neighbourhood

Why in news?

—Pakistan is off the ‘grey list’ of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) after four years, a development that has been welcomed across the country.

Key takeaways

—The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is commonly referred to as the world’s “terrorism financing watchdog”, which means it is the author — and custodian — of an international regime that works to ensure that the flows of money in the global financial system are not misused to fund terrorist activities.

—FATF describes itself as an inter-governmental body that works to “set standards and promote effective implementation of legal, regulatory and operational measures for combating money laundering, terrorist financing and other related threats to the integrity of the international financial system”.

—FATF maintains a “grey list” of countries that it watches closely. In essence, these are countries that have, in the assessment of the FATF, failed to prevent international money laundering and terrorist financing, and are, therefore, on a global watchlist for bad behaviour.

—Until Friday (October 21), Pakistan was the most important country on the list. After it (along with Nicaragua) was taken off the list, 23 countries remain under watch.

—Among these countries are the Philippines, Syria, Yemen, the United Arab Emirates, Uganda, Morocco, Jamaica, Cambodia, Burkina Faso, and South Sudan, and the tax havens of Barbados, Cayman Islands, and Panama.

What are countries on the grey list expected to do?

—FATF calls these countries “jurisdictions under increased monitoring”. Basically, these countries have to comply with certain conditions laid down by the FATF, failing which they run the risk of being “black listed” by the watchdog. Their compliance is periodically reviewed by the FATF.

—According to the FATF, when a jurisdiction is placed under increased monitoring, “it means the country has committed to resolve swiftly the identified strategic deficiencies within agreed timeframes and is subject to extra checks”.

—Specifically, these jurisdictions are now “actively working with the FATF to address strategic deficiencies in their regimes to counter money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing”.

So has Pakistan done all this to the FATF’s satisfaction?

—Yes, says the FATF.

—In June 2018, when it was first grey-listed, Pakistan made an international commitment at the highest political level that it would “work with the FATF to strengthen its AML/CFT regime, and to address deficiencies in its counter-terrorist financing-related actions”.

“AML/CFT” is FATF jargon for “Anti-Money Laundering/Combating the Financing of Terrorism”.

—On October 21, the FATF announced that “Pakistan has strengthened the effectiveness of its AML/CFT regime and addressed technical deficiencies to meet the commitments of its action plans regarding strategic deficiencies that the FATF identified in June 2018 and June 2021, the latter of which was completed in advance of the deadlines, encompassing 34 action items in total.”

—Therefore, it said, “Pakistan is no longer subject to the FATF’s increased monitoring process.”

OK, but is that really true?

—Technically speaking, in the assessment of the FATF, Pakistan has completed the tasks that it was given.

—In an official statement, India has noted that “as a result of FATF scrutiny, Pakistan has been forced to take some action against well-known terrorists, including those involved in attacks against the entire international community in Mumbai on 26/11”.

—However, “It is in global interest that the world remains clear that Pakistan must continue to take credible, verifiable, irreversible and sustained action against terrorism and terrorist financing emanating from territories under its control.”

What practical benefits can Pakistan get as a result of the FATF de-listing?

—Ahead of the FATF’s meeting, the Pakistani daily Dawn had said that “If removed from the [grey] list, Pakistan would essentially receive a reputational boost and get a clean bill of health from the international community on terrorist financing.”

—There is research that suggests grey-listing negatively impacts the relationship of the concerned countries with international funders including banks and financial institutions that take note of FATF rankings, as well as existing and potential overseas investors in those countries.

—The Pakistani economy is in dire straits, and in desperate need of help and investment. On October 21, just ahead of the FATF announcement, the global ratings agency Fitch cut the country’s sovereign rating to ‘CCC+’ from ‘B-’, following Moody’s, which had earlier in the month cut Pakistan’s rating to ‘Caa1’ from ‘B3’.

Point to ponder: India, Bangladesh, Pakistan: What east can teach west?

4. MCQ:

Which of the following statements is not true with respect to FATF?

a) The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is the global money laundering and terrorist financing watchdog.

b) FATF provides list of countries that are considered low tax jurisdiction or tax shelters.

c) The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) was established in July 1989 by a Group of Seven (G-7) Summit in Paris.

d) The FATF currently comprises 37 member jurisdictions and 2 regional organisations.

 

A new study on global warming

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: General issues on Environmental ecology, Bio-diversity and Climate Change – that do not require subject specialization.

Mains Examination: General Studies III: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment.

Why in news?

—While the world is worried about restricting global warming to within 1.5 degree or 2 degree Celsius, a new study has found that even the current level of average global temperatures — about 1.1 degree Celsius higher than preindustrial times — is enough to trigger catastrophic changes in several climatic systems.

—The study, published recently in Science journal, has warned that the thresholds for many of these systems could be crossed at the current levels of warming, setting off self-perpetuating changes that could put living beings at serious risk.

—The research is an updated assessment of important climate tipping points, or the thresholds beyond which changes in the earth’s systems become uncontrollable and irreversible. Its findings could lead to a reassessment of global efforts to fight climate change, and are being widely discussed in scientific circles.

Key takeaways

—The discussion on climate tipping points is not new, and several studies in the past 15 years have identified different tipping points such as the disintegration of Greenland ice sheet, a spontaneous reduction in Amazon forest cover, melting of glaciers, or softening of the permanently frozen grounds in the polar regions that have large amounts of carbon trapped in them.

—Over the years, researchers have identified at least 15 tipping points, each correlated with different levels of temperature rise. The latest study has identified nine global and seven regional tipping points, and has re-assessed their dynamics and correlation with global warming.

Tipping points at work

—Rising temperatures are causing largescale changes in these climatic systems. Glacial melt, thinning of Arctic ice, rise in sea-levels are all well-documented and visible changes. However, it is still possible, at least theoretically, to arrest these changes, or even reverse them over time. But once the tipping points are crossed, this possibility no longer exists. It is like the dam burst moment.

—The process of change becomes self-perpetuating. It feeds into itself and accelerates the process. What is worse, it also feeds into and accelerates other linked processes.

—The Greenland ice sheet, which is already melting, is a good example to illustrate this process. As it melts, the height of the ice sheet gradually reduces. In the process, a larger part of it gets exposed to warmer air. That is because air is warmer at lower altitudes than at higher altitudes. The exposure to warmer air expedites the process of melting. Once the tipping point is crossed, this becomes a self-sustaining and cyclic system. The system does not reverse even if the global temperatures stop rising.

—Similar is the case with Amazon forests. These play a very important role in causing rains in the region. If deforestation continues unabated, there would be fewer and fewer trees, which would reduce rainfall, causing further stress on the trees. Once again, it develops into a self-perpetuating process.

—Several areas of the world remain frozen throughout the year. These are known as permafrost. Because they have remained in this state for centuries, they hold large amounts of carbon — from plants and animals that died and decomposed over the years — trapped in them. It is estimated that the permafrost layers hold as much as 1,700 billion tonnes of carbon, mainly in the form of carbon dioxide and methane. In comparison, the global emissions of carbon in a year are in the range of 40 billion tonnes.

—The softening or melting of permafrost layers is already releasing some carbon into the atmosphere. This release of carbon is adding to the warming, which in turn is expediting the process of softening of permafrost layers. This too has a tipping point beyond which it would become a self-perpetuating cycle.

New findings

—When the discussion on tipping points had first emerged about two decades ago, most of these were considered plausible only in warming scenarios exceeding 5 degree Celsius. But more recent information, including those presented by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), suggest that most of these tipping points would be crossed between 1 and 2 degree Celsius temperature rise.

—The latest study has presented evidence to suggest that some of these tipping points could be met even at the current levels of warming. It has shown that the present 1.1 degree Celsius warming was within the lower end of temperature ranges for at least five tipping points. It means that these self-perpetuating changes could possibly have already begun. For warming between 1.5 degree and 2 degree Celsius, six tipping points become “likely” and four more become “possible”, the study has said.

Policy response

—The findings of this study are expected to further amplify the voices asking for increase in efforts to restrict global warming. The sixth assessment report of the IPCC released earlier this year had said that global emissions of greenhouse gases needed to peak by 2025, and reduce by 43 per cent from current levels by 2030, if the 1.5 degree Celsius target was to be achieved. With the current level of efforts, the world is on the path to become more than 2 degree warmer by the year 2100.

—However, it is unlikely that countries would significantly increase the ambition of their climate action in the next few years. If anything, the progress is only likely to slow down because of the impacts of the Ukraine war on the energy supply chains across the world.

(source: Tipping points of global warming by Amitabh Sinha)

Point to ponder: The challenge today is to develop technologies that supply the food and nutritional needs of the world while also addressing climate change imperatives. Comment.

5. MCQ: 

On the planet earth, most of the freshwater exists as ice caps and glaciers. Out of the remaining freshwater, the largest proportion (2013)

(a) is found in atmosphere as moisture and clouds

(b) is found in freshwater lakes and rivers

(c) exists as groundwater

(d) exists as soil moisture

Answers to the MCQs: 1 (b), 2 (b), 3 (d), 4 (b), 5 (c)