Important topics and their relevance in UPSC CSE exam for December 5, 2023. If you missed the December 4, 2023 UPSC CSE exam key from the Indian Express, read it here FRONT PAGE Aspirational districts, among India’s poorest, boost BJP’s poll victory Syllabus: Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development-Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector Initiatives, etc. Mains Examination: • General Studies II: Important aspects of governance • General Studies II: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation. • General Studies III: Inclusive growth and issues arising from it. Key Points to Ponder: • What’s the ongoing story- In his speech after the BJP swept to power in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi called it a victory of the poor, the deprived and the tribals, among others. The acknowledgment is with a reason — aspirational districts, some of the most backward in the country, and constituencies reserved for tribals have fuelled the BJP’s win in the three states whose results were declared on Sunday. • What is the Aspirational District Programme? • What are the key areas in the Aspirational District Programme? • What are the 49 indicators of aspirational districts? • How many Aspirational Districts are there in India? • What are the criteria for aspirational district? • How the Aspirational Blocks Programme (ABP) will be different from Aspirational District Programme? • What is the rationality behind Aspirational Blocks Programme (ABP)? • What will be the key features of Aspirational Blocks Programme (ABP)? Other Important Articles Covering the same topic: 📍Niti Aayog’s Aspirational Districts Programme is a laboratory for governance reform IN PARLIAMENT Cybercrime cases up by 25%, fraud most common motive: NCRB data Syllabus: Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development-Sustainable Development, Poverty, Inclusion, Demographics, Social Sector Initiatives, etc. Mains Examination: General Studies II: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation. Key Points to Ponder: • What’s the ongoing story- India saw a rise of 24 per cent in cybercrimes registered in 2022 compared to 2021, whereas other categories of crime – including economic offences (11%), crimes against senior citizens (9%), against women (4%) – too recorded an increase, as per the latest data released by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) Sunday. • What are the key takeaways from ‘Crime in India’ report? • What does the NCRB report say? • What is the State of Crime in India? • How are the data for NCRB reports compiled? • What are the headline trends in state-wise data in the report? • Does this mean that these states are more crime-prone than others? • Is that the only issue with the data? • For Your Information-India saw a rise of 24 per cent in cybercrimes registered in 2022 compared to 2021, whereas other categories of crime – including economic offences (11%), crimes against senior citizens (9%), against women (4%) – too recorded an increase, as per the latest data released by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) Sunday. According to the report ‘Crime in India’, 65,893 cases were registered under cybercrime, showing an increase of 24.4 per cent compared to 52,974 cases in 2021. “Crime rate (per lakh population) under this category has increased from 3.9 in 2021 to 4.8 in 2022. During 2022, 64.8 per cent of cybercrime cases registered were for the motive of fraud – 42,710 out of 65,893 cases – followed by extortion with 5.5 per cent – 3,648 cases – and sexual exploitation with 5.2 per cent – 3,434 cases,” it said. According to the NCRB data, a total of 1,93,385 cases were registered under economic offences, showing an increase of 11.1 per cent compared to 1,74,013 cases in 2021. “Out of three specified categories of economic offences; criminal breach of trust, FCF (forgery, cheating & fraud) and counterfeiting, FCF accounted for maximum of such cases, with 1,70,901 cases, followed by criminal breach of trust with 21,814 cases and counterfeiting with 670 cases in the last year,” the report said. As many as 57,582 cases were registered for crimes against SCs, a surge of 13.1 per cent compared to 50,900 cases in 2021. “A total of 10,064 cases were registered last year for crimes against STs, showing an increase of 14.3 per cent compared to 8,802 cases in 2021. Crime rate registered increased from 8.4 in 2021 to 9.6 in 2022,” the report stated. Cases of crime against senior citizens increased to 28,545 compared to 26,110 the previous year – an increase of 9.3 per cent in registration. In 2022, a total of 4,45,256 crimes against women were registered, showing an increase of 4 per cent compared to 4,28,278 cases in 2021. “Majority of cases under crime against women were registered under ‘cruelty by husband or his relatives’ at 31.4 per cent followed by kidnapping and abduction of women at 19.2 per cent, assault on women with intent to outrage her modesty at 18.7 per cent, and rape at 7.1 per cent. The crime rate registered per lakh women population was 66.4 in 2022 in comparison with 64.5 in 2021,” according to the data. The data showed that a total of 192 crimes were registered against foreigners (tourists and residents) compared to 150 cases in 2021, showing an increase of 28 per cent. “Most of the cases registered were theft (34) and rape (28). Out of 222 victims in 192 registered cases, 56.8 per cent of the victims were from the Asian continent (126) followed by 18 per cent of victims from African countries (40),” it added. Last year, 58,24,946 cognizable crimes – comprising 35,61,379 under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and 22,63,567 Special & Local Laws (SLL) crimes – were registered. “It shows a decline of 2,71,364 – 4.5 per cent – in registration of cases compared to 60,96,310 cases in 2021. Crime rate registered per lakh population has declined from 445.9 in 2021 to 422.2 in 2022. “During 2022, registration of cases under IPC and SLL Crimes have declined by 2.8 per cent and 7 per cent, respectively over 2021. Percentage share of IPC was 61.1 per cent while percentage share of SLL cases was 38.9 per cent of total cognizable crimes during 2022,” the report further said. In 2021, a total of 1,07,588 cases of kidnapping and abduction were registered, showing an increase of 5.8 per cent compared to 1,01,707 cases in 2021. • What is the National crime Rates Bureau? • How can the Functioning of the NCRB be Strengthened? Other Important Articles Covering the same topic: 📍Uptick in cybercrime, cases triple over last 3 yrs in city 📍How to read the NCRB 2022 report on crime in India EXPLAINED The fossil fuel question Syllabus: Preliminary Examination: General issues on Environmental ecology, Bio-diversity and Climate Change Mains Examination: General Studies III: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment. Key Points to Ponder: • What’s the ongoing story-It may sound incredible, but none of the hundreds of decisions that have been taken at the annual climate change conferences over the last three decades have ever acknowledged the role of fossil fuels in global warming, or the need to eliminate their use. Fossil fuels have always been the elephant in the room that everyone has chosen not to see. But the furore created by the remarks of Sultan Al Jaber, who is presiding over the ongoing COP28 climate meeting in Dubai, may force countries to include, for the first time, a reference to a fossil fuel phase-down in the final outcome of a climate conference. • Role of fossil fuels in global warming-comment • What caused the uproar caused by Sultan Al Jaber's remarks? • What is the Fossil fuel debate in COP28? • For Your Information-Fossil fuels — oil, gas, coal and their derivatives — account for at least 80 per cent of all greenhouse gas emissions. There is no way that emissions can be reduced without substantially cutting down the use of these fuels. But that is exactly what influential countries have been attempting to do in the climate negotiations — aiming to cut emissions without touching its source. Efforts to cut emissions have so far been focused mainly on reducing the relative consumption of energy or on improving energy efficiencies. And global production of fossil fuels continues to rise. No wonder then that none of the climate targets have ever been achieved. And the current targets too seem way beyond reach right now. According to the latest projections, all the current climate actions being taken by countries are estimated to bring down annual emissions by just 2 per cent from 2019 levels by 2030 — science says this figure must be at least 43 per cent if any hope of keeping global temperature rise to within 1.5 degree Celsius from pre-industrial averages is to be entertained. Installation of renewable energy sources like solar or wind, which do not have emissions, are now outpacing new fossil fuel projects, but most of these are meant to cater to increased demand. The replacement of fossil fuel capacity with renewable energy is not happening at a fast enough pace. • “It was India that set the cat among the pigeons at the COP27 meeting in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, last year by calling for a phase-out of fossil fuels to be included in the final outcome of the meeting”-What is India’s stand now? • How ‘phase-out’ is different from ‘phase-down’? • India’s stand on coal phase-out-Know in detail • From “phase-out” of coal to “phase-down” of Coal-what you understand by this? • What was India’s Stand at the annual climate change conference in Glasgow for the “phase-out” of coal? • What is India’s stand on renewable energy at COP 28? • What is the total electricity generation in India? • What is India’s main source of electricity? • How much of India’s electricity is generated by coal? • Do you think that India should decrease its reliance on coal? • Why is India so heavily dependent on coal? • How can India reduce its reliance on coal for power generation? • What is ‘Transition to clean electricity’? • What is India’s energy transition plan? • What is India’s New Renewables Energy Target? • How can net zero be achieved? • Public-Private partnership frameworks to achieve ‘net zero’-issues and challenges • India’s emission Status-Present Scenario Other Important Articles Covering the same topic: 📍Experts Explain: What it will take to fulfill India’s solar power dream 📍Why banning new coal-run power plants is a good idea 📍COP28: India to adopt wait-and-watch approach on proposal to phase-out fossil fuels PILATUS PC-7 MK II Syllabus: Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance. Mains Examination: General Studies III: Various Security forces and agencies and their mandate. Key Points to Ponder: • What’s the ongoing story- Two Indian Air Force (IAF) pilots were killed today (December 4) after their Pilatus PC-7 Mk II trainer aircraft crashed during a routine training sortie from the Air Force Academy at Dundigal, Telangana. The aircraft which took off from the Dundigal Air Force station in the morning, was found completely charred near the town of Toopran in the Medak district, some 40 km away. A Court of Inquiry has been ordered to ascertain the cause of the accident, an IAF statement said. • What is a trainer aircraft? • For Your Information-A trainer is a class of aircraft designed specifically to facilitate flight training of pilots and aircrews. Modern military aircraft are notoriously difficult to master for rookie pilots. Hence, they must first be trained on other, more basic aircraft. Trainer aircraft are far more forgiving than the aircraft military pilots will eventually fly — they fly slower, have less complex systems, and are designed to be resistant to and recoverable from stalls and spins, a common challenge for rookie pilots. They are also much cheaper, allowing air forces to buy them in bulk to train cadets. This is the first accident involving a PC 7 Mk II trainer aircraft. The IAF had procured 75 Pilatus PC-7 Mk II planes from Switzerland under a contract signed in 2012 to meet the critical shortfall in basic pilots’ training. All the aircraft were delivered by 2015 by the Swiss manufacturer. The IAF also had the option of placing a follow-on order for another 38 aircraft, but this contract was not signed after the Swiss firm was blacklisted for a year by the Ministry of Defence on charges of corrupt practices employed by the firm to bag the deal for the IAF in 2012. The ban was, however, partially lifted a few months later for the IAF to maintain its fleet of 75 basic trainer aircraft. In March, the Ministry of Defence signed a contract with the state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) to procure 70 HTT-40 basic trainer aircraft for the IAF at a cost of over Rs 6,800 crore. Manufactured by HAL and indigenously designed and developed by its Aircraft Research & Design Centre, HTT-40 is powered by a four-bladed turboprop engine. The aircraft is aimed at meeting the shortage of basic trainer aircraft of the Indian Air Force for the training of newly-inducted pilots and the contract includes procurement of associated equipment and training aids including simulators. The aircraft are scheduled to be delivered over six years. • How many types of trainer aircraft does the IAF have? • What kind of an aircraft is the Pilatus PC-7 Mk II? • Why did the IAF obtain the PC-7 Mk II? • Will the PC-7 Mk II be replaced by the IAF anytime soon? • Aircraft Accidents in Indian Air Force by Public Accounts Committee-Know about it • Air safety measures for Pilots in defence-Know in detail • “A soldier serves with the concept of unlimited liability”-What do you understand by this statement? Other Important Articles Covering the same topic: 📍2 pilots killed in Pilatus PC 7 Mk II trainer aircraft crash near Hyderabad, inquiry ordered Why is Cyclone Michaung, headed to Andhra coast, an unusual storm? Syllabus: Preliminary Examination: Indian and World Geography-Physical, Social, Economic Geography of India and the World. Mains Examination: General Studies I: Important Geophysical phenomena such as earthquakes, Tsunami, Volcanic activity, cyclone etc., geographical features and their location-changes in critical geographical features and in flora and fauna and the effects of such changes. Key Points to Ponder: • What’s the ongoing story- Tropical cyclone Michaung will cross the Andhra Pradesh coast in Bapatla district between the cities of Nellore and Machilipatnam in the forenoon of Tuesday (December 5), the India Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Monday (December 4) evening. The storm, which was centred around 80 km southeast of Nellore and 120 km north-northeast of Chennai at 5.30 pm on Monday and moving northward along the Andhra Pradesh coast, has brought heavy rain to most of Tamil Nadu, parts of Andhra Pradesh, and southern Odisha. • Why cyclone Michaung is an unusual cyclone? • Cyclone Michaung-What you know about the same so far? • Know about Cyclone Michaun • What has the IMD said about Cyclone Michaun? • Where is Michaung headed? • What is the potential threat from Cyclone Michaung? • For Your Information-Due to unfavourable ocean conditions, storms that develop over the North Indian Ocean in December don’t usually attain destructive intensities. High-intensity cyclones — packing high speeds and bringing heavy and widespread rain — such as Michaung are not common at this time of the year. The IMD had initially predicted that Michaung would remain a ‘tropical cyclone’ (wind speeds of 62 kph to 87 kph) until it crossed the Andhra Pradesh coast. On Sunday, however, the IMD upgraded it to the intensity of a ‘severe’ storm (wind speeds of 88 kph to 166 kph). Such intensification of a December cyclone is unique, the IMD said. The above-normal value of the heat index off the southern Andhra Pradesh coast led to the strengthening of Michaung, IMD officials said. Climatologically, about five cyclones develop in the North Indian Ocean basin — comprising the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea — every year. Of these, an average of four cyclones develop over the Bay of Bengal and one over the Arabian Sea. However, Arabian Sea storms often reach higher intensities and carry the potential to cause widespread damage. The North Indian Ocean basin is most prone to cyclone development during the pre-monsoon (April-June) and post-monsoon (October-December) months. Due to favourable ocean conditions, cyclones that form in May and November usually reach higher intensities than storms that form at other times. Tropical cyclones are fueled by ocean heat (in addition to other factors). Ocean temperatures of 26 degrees Celsius or more, prevailing at depths between 50 metres and 100 metres, are conducive for cyclogenesis, which refers to the processes that lead to the development and strengthening of a cyclone. Warm oceans contribute to a cyclone’s rapid intensification while at sea. An oceanographic parameter called the Tropical Cyclone Heat Potential (TCHP) is considered an important factor in cyclone genesis, intensification, and propagation. The intensification process is highly complex, and is also influenced by a combination of various favourable atmospheric conditions including boundary layers (the fluid layer adjacent to a bounding surface), wind shear (changes in wind direction and/or speed over a vertical or horizontal distance), convection (transfer of heat within a fluid), Rossby waves (which occur in rotating fluids), upper ocean circulation, and air-sea interaction. • What after landfall? • What is Cyclone? • For Your Information-A “Cyclonic Storm’ or a “Cyclone” is an intense vortex or a whirl in the atmosphere with very strong winds circulating around it in anti-clockwise direction in the Northern Hemisphere and in clockwise direction in the Southern Hemisphere. Tropical cyclones are also referred to as ‘Hurricanes’ over Atlantic Ocean, ‘Typhoons’ over Pacific Ocean, ‘Willy-Willies’ over Australian Seas and simply as ‘Cyclones’ over north Indian Ocean (NIO). Also known as mid-latitude cyclones, extratropical cyclones occur outside the tropics (that is beyond the areas that fall under the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn). They have “cold air at their core, and derive their energy from the release of potential energy when cold and warm air masses interact”, according to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). It added that such cyclones always have one or more fronts connected to them. A front is a weather system that is the boundary between two kinds of air masses, where one front is represented by warm air and the other by cold air. Such cyclones can occur over land and ocean. Tropical cyclones are those which develop in the regions between the Tropics of Capricorn and Cancer. They are the most devastating storms on Earth. Such cyclones develop when “thunderstorm activity starts building close to the centre of circulation, and the strongest winds and rain are no longer in a band far from the centre,” NOAA noted. The core of the storm turns warm, and the cyclone gets most of its energy from the “latent heat” released when water vapour that has evaporated from warm ocean waters condenses into liquid water, the agency added. Moreover, warm fronts or cold fronts aren’t associated with tropical cyclones. Tropical cyclones have different names depending on their location and strength. For instance, they are known as hurricanes in the Caribbean Sea, the Gulf of Mexico, the North Atlantic Ocean and the eastern and central North Pacific Ocean. In the western North Pacific, they are called typhoons. • Classification of cyclonic disturbances-how they are classified? • Cyclone, Tornado, Hurricane and Typhoon-How they are different from each other? • Cyclone and Super Cyclone-Compare and Contrast • Cyclone and Anti-Cyclone-Compare and Contrast • Types of Cyclones or Classification of Cyclones-Know in detail • What are the Stages of Formation of Cyclones? • Structure of Tropical Cyclone-Know in detail • What are Air Masses and Fronts? How they associated with the formation of Cyclones? • What is eye of the Cyclone? • What is the average lifespan of a cyclonic storm? • Storm Intensity, Expected Damage and Suggested Actions-Know in detail • Deep Depression (DD), Cyclonic Storm (CS), Severe Cyclonic Storm (SCS), Very Severe Cyclonic Storm (VSCS), Extremely Severe Cyclonic Storm (ESCS) and Super Cyclone (SuCS)-how they are different? • India’s Vulnerability to Cyclones-Know in Detail • Why October is month of cyclone for India’s eastern coast? • The IMD issues warnings in four stages for the Indian coast-What are they? • World Meteorological Organisation (WMO)-About, Role, Vision and Mission • India Meteorological Department (IMD)-About, Role, Vision and Mission Other Important Articles Covering the same topic: 📍Cyclone Michaung to make landfall in Tamil Nadu: What is a cyclone — and its different types? ECONOMY Over half of FY23 bank loan write-offs linked to large industries, services sector 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. Key Points to Ponder: • What’s the ongoing story-Over half of the total loans written off by Scheduled Commercial Banks in the financial year 2022-23 (FY23) belonged to large industries and services sector, as per data presented by the Ministry of Finance in Parliament on Monday. • What is a write-off of a loan? • What is the difference between write-off and loan waiver? • Why do banks write off loans? • What is the amount written off by private banks? • Who is at the forefront of write-offs? • How much did PSU banks write off? • For Your Information-A total of Rs 2.09 lakh crore worth of loans were written off by banks in FY23, out of which 52.3 per cent were linked to large industries and services, Minister of State for Finance Bhagwat Karad said in response to a question in the Lok Sabha. In the previous year, there was a dip in total written-off loans to Rs 1.75 lakh crore, out of which 39.8 per cent accrued to the large industries and te services sector. A closer look at the data for the last five years shows that the share of large industries and services was the highest at 62.3 per cent out of the total written-off loans amounting to Rs 2.03 lakh crore in 2020-21. In July this year, the banks had written off bad loans worth over Rs 2.09 lakh crore during the year ended March 2023, taking the total loan write-off by the banking sector to Rs 10.57 lakh crore in the last five year. This huge loan write-off aided banks to bring down gross non-performing assets (GNPA) – or loans defaulted by borrowers — to a 10-year low of 3.9 per cent of advances in March 2023. Gross NPAs of banks had fallen from Rs 10.21 lakh crore in FY2018 to Rs 5.55 lakh crore by March 2023, mainly on the back of loan write-offs by banks. Banks have written off a whopping Rs 15,31,453 crore since FY2012-13, as per RBI data. However, what is to be noted is that loans written off by banks will remain in the books of banks as unrecovered loans. The central bank RTI reply had said that the banks recovered only Rs 1.09 lakh crore from Rs 5.87 lakh loans written off in the last three years, revealing that they could only recover 18.60 per cent of the write-offs during the three-year period. The total defaulted loans (including write-offs but excluding loans recovered from write-offs in three years) amount to Rs 10.32 lakh crore, according to back-of-the-envelope calculations. Including write-offs, the total NPA ratio would have become 7.47 per cent of advances as against 3.9 per cent reported by the banks. • What is bad loans? • What are the causes of bad loan? • India’s public sector banks have struggled with high levels of non-performing assets (NPAs)- What are the Non-Performing Assets (NPAs)? • What are the reasons for assets becoming non-performing assets? • What are the impacts of High level of non-performing assets (NPAs) on India’s Economy? Other Important Articles Covering the same topic: 📍What is a loan write-off and why do banks do it? THE WORLD Indonesia’s Mount Marapi erupts, 11 dead, 12 missing Syllabus: Preliminary Examination: Indian and World Geography-Physical, Social, Economic Geography of India and the World. Mains Examination: General Studies I: Important Geophysical phenomena such as earthquakes, Tsunami, Volcanic activity, cyclone etc., geographical features and their location-changes in critical geographical features and in flora and fauna and the effects of such changes. Key Points to Ponder: • What’s the ongoing story-Eleven climbers were found dead in Indonesia on Monday and 12 were missing after the Marapi volcano erupted in West Sumatra, a rescue official said, as search operations - which were halted temporarily over safety concerns - resumed. Three survivors were found on Monday along with the bodies of the 11 climbers, out of 75 who were in the area at the time of Sunday's eruption, said Jodi Haryawan, spokesperson for the search and rescue team, adding they were all local climbers. • Map Work-Marapi volcano in West Sumatra and "Ring of Fire" • Do You Know-Marapi is one of the most active volcanoes on Sumatra island and its most deadly eruption was in April 1979, when 60 people were killed. This year, it erupted between January and February and was spewing ash around 75 metres-1,000 metres from the peak. Indonesia sits on the Pacific's so-called "Ring of Fire" and has 127 active volcanoes, according to the volcanology agency. • Volcanoes and Volcanic Landforms-Know in detail • Know the Types of Volcanoes • Plate Tectonics, Volcanoes and Earthquake-connect the dots • How can volcanic eruptions affect the environment and natural ecosystem? Other Important Articles Covering the same topic: 📍Human and Environmental Impacts of Volcanic Ash Previous Year Mains question based on Same theme: 📍Mention the global occurrence of volcanic eruptions in 2021 and their impact on regional environment. (GS-1, 2021) For any queries and feedback, contact priya.shukla@indianexpress.com The Indian Express UPSC Hub is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel and stay updated with the latest Updates. Subscribe to our UPSC newsletter and stay updated with the news cues from the past week.
