🚨 Attention: UPSC Key is now all 7 Days a Week!🚨 Important topics and their relevance in UPSC CSE exam for May 26, 2024. If you missed the May 25th, 2024 UPSC CSE exam key from the Indian Express, read it here. 🚨 The Indian Express UPSC Essentials brings to you the May edition of its monthly magazine. Click Here to read. Share your views and suggestions in the comment box or at manas.srivastava@indianexpress.com🚨 Govt & Politics Cyclone Remal: Flight operations suspended at Kolkata airport UPSC Syllabus: Preliminary Examination: Indian and World Geography-Physical, Social, Economic Geography of India and the World. Mains Examination: GS-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. What’s the ongoing story- A deep depression over the Bay of Bengal intensified into a cyclonic storm, named Remal, on Saturday evening and is likely to turn severe before making landfall between the coasts of West Bengal and Bangladesh on Sunday (May 26) midnight, the IMD said Saturday. Prerequisites: — What is a cyclone and what are its types? — What is the eye of the cyclone? — Read about the cyclone Remal and check the list of previous cyclones in the Bay of Bengal. — Organisations to look for: India Meteorological Department (IMD), World Meteorological Organisation (WMO), Panel on Tropical Cyclones. Key takeaways: — Cyclone Remal, which has developed in the Bay of Bengal, is expected to make landfall between Sagar islands in West Bengal and Khepupara in Bangladesh, the department said. — North and South 24 Parganas, Purba Medinipur, Howrah, Hooghly districts in West Bengal have been placed under red alert, as the storm gets closer Sunday. Extremely heavy rainfall (over 204mm in 24 hours)with gusty winds over these districts. For Your Information: — Cyclone Remal is a tropical cyclone. The name Remal, meaning ‘sand’ in Arabic, was chosen Oman, and assigned according to the standard convention of naming tropical cyclones in the region. — The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) classifies cyclones broadly into two categories: extratropical cyclones and tropical cyclones. — 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). Points to Ponder: — What are the favourable conditions for the formation of tropical cyclones? — What areas can be affected by the Cyclone Remal? (Thought Process: Check the location of the Sagar Islands, Khepupara, and states to be affected by cyclone Remal.) — What is the “landfall” of a cyclone? — What can be the potential impact of cyclone Remal? — How does the naming of the cyclone convention work? — Why does the Bay of Bengal receive more cyclones than the Arabian Sea? — What is the difference between cyclones and anti-cyclones? Post Read Question: Prelims In the South Atlantic and South-Eastern Pacific regions in tropical latitudes, cyclone does not originate. What is the reason? (UPSC CSE 2015) (a) Sea surface temperatures are low (b) Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone seldom occurs (c) Coriolis force is too weak (d) Absence of land in those regions Mains Tropical cyclones are largely confined to the South China Sea, Bay of Bengal and Gulf of Mexico. Why? (UPSC CSE 2014) Other Important Articles Covering the same topic: Cyclone Remal may hit West Bengal: What is a cyclone and what are its types? First heatwave alert in Assam in yrs, Guwahati sizzles at 40.1 degrees Celsius UPSC Syllabus: Preliminary Examination: General issues on Environmental Ecology, and Climate Change – that do not require subject specialisation. Mains Examination: GS-I, GS-II, GS-III: Important Geophysical Phenomena, Climate Change Environmental Pollution & Degradation, Government Policies & Interventions. What’s the ongoing story- The IMD on Saturday issued its first heatwave warning for Assam in recent years. The northeastern region is experiencing extreme heat conditions and witnessing the country’s most severe departure from normal temperatures. Prerequisites: — What are heatwaves and the criteria for declaring them? — What are the heatwave-prone areas in India? — Institutions to look for: India Meteorological Department (IMD), National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). Key takeaways: — On Saturday, Guwahati recorded the highest maximum temperature in May since 1960 at 40.1 degrees Celsius – a departure of 8 degrees from the normal temperature. On May 1 1960, the city had experienced a maximum temperature of 40.3 degrees, which is the highest recorded temperature here ever, said a scientist at the Regional Met Centre (RMC), Guwahati. — Not just Guwahati, all 18 Met stations – except Imphal – in the region experienced maximum temperatures more than 3 degrees above the normal on Saturday. — Noting the extreme departures from normal temperatures, scientist at RMC said, “In the northeastern region, we are suddenly seeing that temperature recordings are higher everywhere. I would say we all know the reason. The region is badly affected by deforestation.” For Your Information: — The IMD declares a heatwave when the maximum temperature is recorded at 45 degree Celsius or above. — According to the IMD- “A heatwave is a period of abnormally high temperatures, more than the normal maximum temperature that occurs during the summer season in the North-Western parts of India. Heatwaves typically occur between March and June, and in some rare cases even extend till July. The extreme temperatures and resultant atmospheric conditions adversely affect people living in these regions as they cause physiological stress, sometimes resulting in death.” Points to Ponder: — What causes heatwaves? — What are heatwave conditions in India? — What are the impacts of heatwaves? — What measures should be taken to mitigate the impacts of heatwaves? Post Read Question: Consider the following statements: 1. Heatwaves typically occur between March and June, and in some rare cases even extend till July. 2. Heatwaves need not be considered till the maximum temperature of a station reaches at least 40°C for Plains and at least 30°C for Hilly regions. 3. A severe heatwave is declared when the departure from normal is more than 6.4 degrees Celsius. How many of the statements given above is/are not correct? (a) One only (b) Two only (c) All three (d) None Other Important Articles Covering the same topic: UPSC Issue at a Glance | Heatwaves: 5 Key Questions You Must Know for Prelims and Mains Decision 2024 In SC/ST quota debate, Narendra Modi now attacks Jawaharlal Nehru. What was the former PMs stand? UPSC Syllabus: Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development Mains Examination: GS-II: Welfare schemes for vulnerable sections of the population by the Centre and States What’s the ongoing story- There is an ongoing debate around the quota for SC Prerequisites: — What is the requirement of reservation in India? — What is the significance of the constituent Assembly? — What is the historical background to the provision of reservation to SC/STs in India? — What are the constitutional provisions related to SC/STs reservation? Key takeaways: — The Constitution, when it first came into force, included provisions to provide reservations in political institutions and public employment for people belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. — What is now Article 16 of the Constitution was initially known as “draft Article 10”, when the members of the Constituent Assembly debated it on November 30, 1948. — The Congress’s Chandrika Ram and Dharam Prakash, one of the first Dalit lawyers in the country and a future Rajya Sabha MP from Uttar Pradesh, respectively, advocated to explicitly include the term “Scheduled Caste” in the place of (or in addition to) the term “backward class” to clarify which groups of people could avail the benefits of reservations. — On the other hand, members such as Lokanath Misra and Damodar Swarup Seth, who were also part of the Congress, sought deletion of the reservations provided for “backward classes”. — Addressing the debate around the word “backward”, Ambedkar acknowledged that it is a “generic principle.” He argued that the word “backward” was a necessary qualifier to make sure that the “exception” of reservations provided to oppressed communities did not “eat up” the right to equality of opportunity altogether. — Jawaharlal Nehru wrote a letter in June 1961 to chief ministers, where he emphasised the need for empowering backward groups by giving them access to good education and not by reserving jobs based on caste and creed. — In the letter, he went on to say that reservations on communal and caste basis “swamp the bright and able people while the society remains second-rate or third-rate”. — The Constitution introduced reservations for SCs and STs in the Lok Sabha and state Assemblies under Articles 330 and 332 respectively. — Some members of the Constituent Assembly, including Brajeshwar Prasad and H J Khandekar, argued that reservations were an inadequate measure and would not result in any progress for oppressed communities. — Objections were also raised regarding the 10-year time limit for reservations under Article 334 (draft Article 295-A). — Article 334 has been the subject of a host of Constitutional amendments, where the 10-year limit has been extended by an additional 10 years each time. Most recently, in 2020, following the Constitution (104th) Amendment Act, the time limit for SC and ST reservations in legislatures was extended till 2030. For Your Information: — The Constitution, while providing for special treatment of SCs and STs to achieve equality, does not specify the castes and tribes that are to be called Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. This power is left to the central executive — the President. — As per Article 341, those castes notified by the President are called SCs and STs. A caste notified as SC in one state may not be a SC in another state. These vary from state to state to prevent disputes as to whether a particular caste is accorded reservation or not. Points to Ponder: — What initiatives have been taken by the government for the upliftment of SC/STs community? — What is caste census? — What are the arguments for and against the reservation in India? — Does reservation help in bringing equality in society? Post Read Question: Consider the following statements: 1. The 104th Constitutional Amendment Act removed the reserved for the Anglo Indian communities in the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies. 2. Article 243D provides for the reservation of seats for SCs and STs in every panchayat. Which of the statements given above is/are correct? (a) 1 only (b) 2 only (c) Both 1 and 2 (d) Neither 1 nor 2 Other Important Articles Covering the same topic: Explained: The ‘quota within quota’ debate Economy Brazil, Canada, EU urge India to submit timely notifications on sugar subsidies in WTO UPSC Syllabus: Preliminary Examination: Economy Mains Examination: GS-III: Economy What’s the ongoing story- A group of WTO member countries, including Brazil, Canada and the European Union, have urged India to submit timely notifications on sugar subsidies in the World Trade Organisation, an official said. Prerequisites: — What is the function of WTO? — What is WTO’s Appellate Body? — What are the issues of subsidies at WTO? — What is the agreement on agriculture? Key takeaways: — These countries are also major sugar exporters like India and they allege that support measures by India distort global sugar trade. — India has stated that the Indian central and state governments neither paid for nor procured sugarcane from farmers, as all purchases were made by private sugar mills, hence, this information was not included in its notifications of domestic support. — The discussion assumes significance as in 2022, India has appealed against a ruling of the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) trade dispute settlement panel which ruled that the country’s domestic support measures for sugar and sugarcane are inconsistent with global trade norms. — According to their study, over the four-year period from 2018-19 to 2021-22, India has provided market price support on sugarcane in excess of the limits set out in the Agreement on Agriculture (10 per cent of the total value of sugarcane production) by a margin of 92-101 per cent. Points to Ponder: — What is the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT)? — What are the issues concerning India’s subsidies regime? — What is the Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP) of sugarcane? — What is the significance of a domestic support system for the agricultural sector? Post Read Question: What are the key features of the World Trade Organization’s Agreement on Agriculture (AoA)? Critically analyze its impact on the agricultural sector in India. Other Important Articles Covering the same topic: Express View on WTO and attacks on India’s foodgrain policy: Point of the subsidy Corporate governance for insurers: Regulator lists new guidelines UPSC Syllabus: Preliminary Examination: Current events of national importance and economy. Mains Examination: GS-II, GS-III: Governance, Government Policies & Interventions, Indian Economy. What’s the ongoing story- The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (Irdai) has directed insurance companies to take prior approval for the appointment of board chairperson. Prerequisites: — What do you understand by corporate governance? — What is IRDAI? — What is IRDAI (Corporate Governance for Insurers) Regulations, 2024? Key takeaways: — The regulator said the present board chairperson can continue up to March 31, 2026 or till they complete their current tenure. To promote checks and balances, it is good practice for the chair of the board to be a non-executive board member and not serve as chair of any board committee, Irdai added. — In a master circular on corporate governance for insurers, issued on May 22, Irdai said the board in consultation with the key management persons need to ensure that the overall direction of the business of the insurance company, policies and strategies should shape the level of risk adoption, standards of business conduct and ethical behaviour of the insurer at the macro level. — It said that the chief executive officer should be responsible for the conduct of the insurer’s affairs in a manner which is not detrimental to the interests of policyholders. — The board of the insurance companies should monitor and manage potential conflicts of interest of policyholders, management, members of the board of directors and shareholders, including misuse of corporate assets and abuse in related party transactions. They should also ensure fair treatment of policyholders and employees. — The insurer should also ensure independence of control functions including compliance, risk, audit, actuarial and secretarial function, it said. — The Irdai said that the board of every insurer should set up an Investment Committee comprising at least two Non-Executive Directors, the Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Investment Officer, Chief Risk Officer and the Appointed Actuary. — The master circular applies to all insurers except foreign company engaged in re-insurance business through a branch established in India. Irdai has given insurers time up to June 30, 2024 to ensure compliance with the provisions. Points to Ponder: — What is the significance of the corporate governance guidelines in promoting transparency, accountability, and ethical practices in the insurance sector? — What are the challenges faced by India's insurance sector? — How can we revitalise India's insurance sector? — What is IRDAI (Bima Sugam - Insurance Electronic Marketplace) Regulations, 2024? Post Read Question: What do you understand by the terms ‘governance’, ‘good governance’ and ‘ethical governance’? (UPSC CSE 2016) Other Important Articles Covering the same topic: IRDAI approves 8 principle-based regulations I-T dept notifies cost inflation index for current fiscal UPSC Syllabus: Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development. Mains Examination: GS-III: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization, of resources, growth, development and employment. What’s the ongoing story- The Income Tax Department has notified the Cost Inflation Index for the current fiscal beginning April 2023, for calculating long-term capital gains arising from sale of immovable property, securities and jewellery. Prerequisites: — What is inflation? — What is the Cost Inflation Index? — Organisation to look for: Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) Key takeaways: — The Cost Inflation Index (CII) is used by taxpayers to compute gains arising out of sale of capital assets after adjusting inflation. — The CII for FY 2023-24 relevant to AY 2024-25 stood at 348, as per a notification of the CBDT. — Usually, the income tax department notifies CII in the month of June. — CII is notified under the Income-tax Act, 1961 every year. It is popularly used to calculate “indexed cost of acquisition” while calculating capital gains at the time of sale of any capital asset. — Normally, an asset is required to be retained for more than 36 months (24 months for immovable property and unlisted shares, 12 months for listed securities) to qualify as ‘long-term capital gains’. — Since prices of goods increase over time resulting in a fall in the purchasing power, the CII is used to arrive at the inflation adjusted purchasing price of assets so as to compute taxable long-term capital gains (LTCG). Points to Ponder: — How inflation-adjusted purchase price is calculated? — What do you understand by long-term capital gains (LTCG)? — What are the differences types of inflation? (Thought Process: Read about the Galloping Inflation, Hyper-Inflation, Stagflation, Deflation, Core Inflation etc.) — What are the causes of inflation? — What is the impact of Inflation? — What are the different methods to measure inflation in India? (Thought Process: Read about the consumer price index (CPI), wholesale price index (WPI), producer price index for manufacturing (PPIM)) Post Read Question: Consider the following statements: (UPSC CSE 2020) 1. The weightage of food in Consumer Price Index (CPI) is higher than that in Wholesale Price Index (WPI). 2. The WPI does not capture changes in the prices of services, which CPI does. 3. Reserve Bank of India has now adopted WPI as its key measure of inflation and to decide on changing the key policy rates. Which of the statements given above is/are correct? (a) 1 and 2 only (b) 2 only (c) 3 only (d) 1, 2 and 3 Microsoft’s new hard sell: GenAI that lives inside laptops than in the cloud UPSC Syllabus: Preliminary Examination: General Science Mains Examination: GS-III: Science and technology What’s the ongoing story- AI is becoming highly significant today. Integrated into laptops, it demonstrates remarkable potential by organizing tasks, optimizing code, assisting with presentations, and debugging software, greatly enhancing productivity and hinting at a transformative future in computing. Prerequisites: — What is GenAI? — What is Open AI-4o? — What are neural processing units or NPU? — What is interference? — What is latency? — What is edge computing? Key takeaways: — AI PCs are essentially personal computers that incorporate specialised processors or accelerators called neural processing units or NPUs, which are optimised to run AI apps locally on the device rather than relying on cloud-based services such as a ChatGPT or a Gemini. — An NPU is almost entirely optimised for AI computation at the hardware level to improve performance and energy efficiency. — Inference is the process that follows AI training, where a trained model is then fine-tuned for practical, and sometimes more specific, use and new applications are built on it. — With edge computing, the ML model processes input data—like images, text, or audio— on a device, rather than sending that data to an external server. That really is the new frontier, which hardware and software makers in the personal computing space are pushing. — The advantages of on-device ML includes lower latency, since there is no round trip to the server and back, and that there is much greater privacy, since the data processing is happening on the user’s device itself. Disadvantages include on-device models needing to be much smaller than their server counterparts. For Your Information: — On-device machine learning happens when the user performs AI inference with models directly on a device using a mobile app or web browser. The advantages include lower latency, since there is no round trip to the server and back, along with greater privacy as the data processing is happening on the user’s device itself. Points to Ponder: — What is quantum computing? — What are the key initiatives taken by the government in quantum computing? — What is the significance of edge computing over traditional systems? — How can the government use the new advantages of AI for governance? Post Read Question: Prelims Which one of the following is the context in which the term "qubit" is mentioned? (UPSC CSE 2022) (a) Cloud Services (b) Quantum Computing (c) Visible Light Communication Technologies (d) Wireless Communication Technologies Mains “The emergence of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (Digital Revolution) has initiated e-Governance as an integral part of government”. Discuss. (UPSC CSE 2020) Other Important Articles Covering the same topic: AI-gorithm: GenAI promises a booster dose for Indian pharma to scale up the value game Subscribe to our UPSC newsletter and stay updated with the news cues from the past week.
