Important topics and their relevance in UPSC CSE exam for January 5, 2023. If you missed the January 4, 2023 UPSC key from the Indian Express, read it here FRONT PAGE Green hydrogen mission gets Cabinet nod, initial outlay Rs 19,744 crore 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. • General Studies III: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment. Key Points to Ponder: • What’s the ongoing story- WITH THE aim to make India energy independent and decarbonise major sectors of the economy, the Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the National Green Hydrogen Mission (NGHM), with an initial outlay of Rs 19,744 crore. A flagship programme of the Centre, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had first announced the NGHM in his Independence Day speech in 2021, after which the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) was tasked with formulating a draft plan. • National Green Hydrogen Mission (NGHM) aims what? • What are the key highlights of National Green Hydrogen Mission (NGHM)? • What is green hydrogen? • Hydrogen and its Types • How green hydrogen differs from traditional emissions-intensive ‘grey’ hydrogen and blue hydrogen? • Do You Know-The sources and processes by which hydrogen is derived are categorised by colour tabs. Hydrogen produced from fossil fuels is called grey hydrogen, which constitutes the bulk of the hydrogen generated today. Hydrogen generated from fossil fuels with carbon capture and storage options is called blue hydrogen, while hydrogen generated using electrolysers powered by renewable power sources is called green hydrogen. • How is the policy set to boost domestic production of green hydrogen production? • What are the facilities to boost export of green hydrogen? • For Your Information- Green hydrogen is produced by splitting water through electrolysis, using an electrolyser that is powered by renewable energy. Green hydrogen has specific advantages. One, it is a clean burning molecule, which can decarbonise sectors including iron and steel, chemicals, and transportation. Two, renewable energy that cannot be stored or used by the grid can be channelled to produce it. • National Green Hydrogen Mission (NGHM) also includes Rs 17,490 crore for the SIGHT programme-What is the SIGHT programme? • Strategic Interventions for Green Hydrogen Transition (SIGHT)-Know the features • A public-private partnership framework for R&D (Strategic Hydrogen Innovation Partnership – SHIP) will be facilitated under the National Green Hydrogen Mission (NGHM)- What is Strategic Hydrogen Innovation Partnership (SHIP)? • Green hydrogen has specific advantages-What are those? Other Important Articles Covering the same topic: 📍India’s green hydrogen push SC expands Art. 19 ambit: Not just state, even pvt. citizens can face challenge Syllabus: Preliminary Examination: Indian Polity and Governance-Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc. Mains Examination: General Studies II: Structure, organization and functioning of the Executive and the Judiciary-Ministries and Departments of the Government; pressure groups and formal/informal associations and their role in the Polity. Key Points to Ponder: • What’s the ongoing story- By ruling that a citizen can seek enforcement of the fundamental rights to freedom of speech not just against the state, the Supreme Court has, effectively, extended the ground for seeking these rights against other citizens. “A fundamental right under Article 19/21 can be enforced even against persons other than the State or its instrumentalities,” said the 4-1 majority ruling by the Constitution Bench Tuesday. • Whether “a fundamental right under Article 19 or 21 of the Constitution of India be claimed other than against the ‘State’ or its instrumentalities?” • “The right to free speech means nothing unless it includes the right to be heard, recognised, acknowledged”-What is exactly free speech? • What is freedom of expression? • What is Article 19 of the Constitution? • For Your Information-Article 19 which guarantees freedom of speech and expression is a right invoked against the state. Some fundamental rights such as those prohibiting untouchability, trafficking and bonded labour are explicitly against both the state and other individuals. • ‘The court, extending free speech against private citizens, opens up a range of possibilities in Constitutional law’-How the verdict will change the definition of Article 19? • “The original thinking of this court that these rights can be enforced only against the State, changed over a period of time”-What is a State especially in the context of Fundamental Rights? Other Important Articles Covering the same topic: 📍Hate speech denies right to dignity: Justice Nagarathna THE IDEAS PAGE No city for women Syllabus: Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance. Mains Examination: • General Studies I: Social empowerment, • 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- Kalpana Visvanath Writes: Designing our cities in ways conducive to women's travel patterns and needs is crucial. Women’s restricted mobility is largely due to fear of violence, reflected in their low participation in the workforce • The horrendous case of a young woman being dragged by five men in a car for several kilometers on January 1 is a terrible start to 2023. There are so many elements of this incident that are problematic-What are those elements? • Why is women’s safety important in India? • Women have significantly contributed in the economic empowerment of nation over the years. Despite the significant social and physical development, there has been an increasing concern for safety of women-Why? • Women safety and security has emerged as a key concern especially in the New Delhi over the recent years-why? • What is the rate of crime against women in India? • What are the causes of crime against women in India? • How safe is India for women? • Key issues and challenges of women safety impacting employment scenario in Delhi-Brainstorm • “For women the fear of sexual assault is another cause for concern when they traverse public spaces after dark”-Analyse • “The woman was a 20-year-old returning home from work. It is heartbreaking to think of this horrific death and the predicament of her mother and other family members. Road safety is a big concern in India, and the more vulnerable face greater danger”- Why Road safety is a big concern in India? • “Transport planning generally focuses on male travel patterns during peak hours to work and back. Meanwhile, the World Bank’s report on women’s mobility in India has shown that women’s travel patterns can often be quite different due to their caregiving roles”-Discuss • Do You Know-Over 1.5 lakh people died from road accidents just in 2021, and this has been the trend for several years. According to NCRB data from 2021, driving under the influence of drugs/alcohol contributed to 1.9 per cent of deaths from accidents. These accidents have resulted in injuries to 7,235 persons and caused 2,935 deaths in the country. Further, nearly 90 per cent of deaths on the road were due to speeding, overtaking, and dangerous driving. According to the World Bank’s data from 2019, India ranked first among the top 20 countries for road accidents. • Road Accidents in India-Know Broad Profile of Road Accidents 2020 vis-a-vis 2019 • Why Road Safety is must in India? • What position does India have in terms of Road safety? • What are the Initiatives Related to Road Safety? • What actions are being taken by the Supreme Court of India in the matter of Road Safety? • For your Information-Road network in India, of about 63.71 lakh km in March 2019, is one of the largest in the world. The country’s road network consists of National Highways, State Highways, Districts roads, Rural and Village Roads. • What are the Initiatives Related to Road Safety at national as well at international level? • What is ‘Brasilia Declaration on Road Safety’? • Know in detail about Motor Vehicles Amendment Act, 2019 • Do you Know-India’s road density at 1890.75 per 1000 sq.km of area in 2017-18 was higher than that of many developed countries though surfaced/paved road constituting 64.6 vehicles per kilometre of road length has increased from 28 vehicles in 2010 to 46 in 2020. This is indicative of the growing road traffic congestion in the country. • What is the Significance of Road Safety in India? • Which Ministry has notified the compensation to victims of hit and run Motor accidents Scheme 2022? • “India has the highest rate of fatality in road accidents in the world and a high rate of violence against women in public places. Our streets must be safer in terms of both accidents and crime”-What can be the way ahead? Other Important Articles Covering the same topic: 📍WHERE WERE THE POLICE? Turning the spotlight on health Syllabus: Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development Main Examination: General Studies II: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources. Key Points to Ponder: • What’s the ongoing story- R. S. Sharma Writes: Under the scheme, citizens can link, store, and share their health records, which creates a longitudinal health history for patients, allowing doctors to provide better diagnoses and treatment. • “India has demonstrated its digital prowess by building digital public goods (DPG)”-What are those digital public goods? • Digital public goods during pandemic-Analyse • How does the pandemic affect health services? • How does the impact of the pandemic on health services put the spotlight on the benefits of digital innovation and technology-enabled solutions? • Know in detail about the Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) • How implementation of Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM) united all stakeholders in the digital healthcare ecosystem? • Public Health Systems in India-Know the Background • Current state of India’s health infrastructure- What World Bank data says? • COVID-19 Pandemic and India’s Healthcare System-Connect the dots • Steps required to strengthen the existing state of Health infrastructure in India • What do you understand by Universal Health Coverage (UHC)? • PM Atma Nirbhar Swasth Bharat Yojana and Ayushman Bharat Scheme-Key Highlights • Is there any explicit/implicit recognition of the right to health or healthcare under the Constitution? (Hint: Directive Principles of State Policy in Part IV of the India Constitution provide a basis for the right to health) • What is Supreme Court of India stand on Right to Health? • What are the key issues faced by the healthcare sector of India? • India’s Health Budget-Know the Statistics Other Important Articles Covering the same topic: 📍Digital health mission is much-needed. Challenges of privacy, doctor shortage must be addressed EXPRESS NETWORK Mamata demands national status for Gangasagar Mela Syllabus: Preliminary Examination: History of India Mains Examination: General Studies I: Indian culture will cover the salient aspects of Art Forms, literature and Architecture from ancient to modern times. Key Points to Ponder: • What’s the ongoing story- Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday reiterated her demand that the Centre should accord national status for the annual Gangasagar Mela that will be held next week. She asserted that the Centre had not paid any heed to her repeated requests to build a bridge over the Muri Ganga river to help pilgrims reach Sagar Island easily. • What is Gangasagar mela? • Why is Gangasagar Mela famous? • Map Work-Gangasagar • What Mythology says about Gangasagar Mela? • Why there is demand for the Gangasagar Mela to be declared as a national event? • After the event is designated as a national event, what happens? Other Important Articles Covering the same topic: 📍Gangasagar Mela: Mamata govt presses ahead with its big celebration, Covid checks in place Gender inequality exists even in judiciary: Justice Nazeer Syllabus: Preliminary Examination: Indian Polity and Governance-Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc. Main Examination: General Studies I: Social empowerment Key Points to Ponder: • What’s the ongoing story- Outgoing Supreme Court judge Justice S Abdul Nazeer on Wednesday said that gender inequality exists in the judiciary while acknowledging the “very low” representation of women. Speaking at a farewell function organised in his honour by the Supreme Court Bar Association, Justice Nazeer said “there is always room for improvements and changes… for instance, if I were to say that Indian judiciary is immune from gender inequality that exist within our society, I can’t be further away from the reality. The representation of women in judiciary is still very low”. • What is the difference between gender equality and gender parity? • How many women judges are there in Supreme Court of India? • What is the Status of Women in the Indian judicial System? • What causes the low representation of women in the Indian judicial system? • Why do we need women judges? • For Your Information-The apex court had its first woman judge in 1989, when Justice M Fatima Beevi was appointed after her retirement as a judge of Kerala High Court. She was followed by Justices Sujatha Manohar, Ruma Pal, Gyan Sudha Misra, Ranjana Prakash Desai, R Banumathi, Indu Malhotra, Indira Banerjee, Kohli, Nagarathna and Trivedi. The last three were sworn-in on the same day — September 2, 2021 — during the tenure of then Chief Justice of India N V Ramana, taking the number of serving women judges to a historic four, including Justice Banerjee. • “Despite women’s increased engagement in public life, they remain significantly underrepresented in decision-making positions especially in judiciary”-Comment • “In order to attain gender equality, more female judges should be appointed”-do you agree? • Know some facts- In most European countries, there are more women than men professional judges or magistrates; however, women represent 41 per cent of the judges in national supreme courts and only 25 percent of court presidents. (United Nations) Other Important Articles Covering the same topic: 📍All-woman bench today, third time in SC history; to hear transfer pleas, bail matters Meeting on SYL ends in stalemate as Punjab, Haryana stick to old stance Syllabus: Preliminary Examination: Indian Polity and Governance-Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc. Mains Examination: General Studies II: Functions and responsibilities of the Union and the States, issues and challenges pertaining to the federal structure, devolution of powers and finances up to local levels and challenges therein. Key Points to Ponder: • What’s the ongoing story- No consensus could be reached on the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal water-sharing issue between Punjab and Haryana during a meeting that Union Water Resources Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat held with the chief ministers of the two states in New Delhi on Wednesday. • Sutlej-Yamuna Link Canal Project-Know the background of this issue • Why has the Sutlej-Yamuna Link Canal (SYL) come up again now? • Map Work-Sutlej, Yamuna and Sutlej-Yamuna Link Canal • What is Punjab’s argument in this issue? • What is Haryana’s argument in this issue? • Sutlej-Yamuna Link Canal (SYL) and Central Government’s Stand-know in detail • What are the Constitutional Provisions for interstate water disputes? • What Article 262 of the Constitution says about interstate water disputes? • Do You Know-The SYL canal, once completed, will enable sharing of the waters of the rivers Ravi and Beas between Punjab and Haryana. Punjab was opposed to sharing the waters of the two rivers with Haryana, citing riparian principles. On April 8, 1982, then PM Indira Gandhi launched the construction of the canal with a ceremony in Kapoori village in Patiala. A stretch of 214 km was to be constructed, of which 122 km was to cross Punjab and 92 km in Haryana. But SAD launched an stir in the form of Kapoori Morcha against the construction. In 1990, a chief engineer and a superintending engineer who were working on the canal were killed by militants. The construction came to a halt. Other Important Articles Covering the same topic: 📍Explained: Canal to nowhere — Why the SYL is a stalemate with no winners EXPLAINED MERCURY SOARS IN EUROPE WINTER: WHAT IS A HEAT DOME? 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 (including water-bodies and ice-caps) and in flora and fauna and the effects of such changes. Key Points to Ponder: • What’s the ongoing story- Several parts of Europe witnessed an unprecedented winter heat wave over New Year’s weekend, The Washington Post reported on Monday. Calling it an “extreme event”, experts said that temperatures increased 10 to 20 degrees Celsius above normal. According to the report, at least seven countries recorded their hottest January weather ever. These included Poland, Denmark, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Belarus, Lithuania and Latvia. • What is a heat dome? • What is the relationship between heat domes and the jet stream? • What are some previous instances of heat domes? • For Your Information-A heat dome occurs when an area of high-pressure traps warm air over a region, just like a lid on a pot, for an extended period of time. The longer that air remains trapped, the more the sun works to heat the air, producing warmer conditions with every passing day. Heat domes generally stay for a few days but sometimes they can extend up to weeks, which might cause deadly heat waves. Other Important Articles Covering the same topic: 📍Explained: What’s behind the record-breaking heatwave in Europe? How 50 centrally protected monuments went missing, what next Syllabus: Preliminary Examination: History of India Mains Examination: General Studies I: Indian culture will cover the salient aspects of Art Forms, literature and Architecture from ancient to modern times. Key Points to Ponder: • What’s the ongoing story- Fifty of India’s 3,693 centrally protected monuments have gone missing, the Ministry of Culture has told Parliament. The submissions were made by the ministry on December 8 to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture as part of a report titled ‘Issues relating to Untraceable Monuments and Protection of Monuments in India’. • What are centrally protected monuments? • So how can a monument go “missing”? • Is this the first time monuments have been reported missing? • Which monuments are missing? • Could there be more missing monuments? • So does India now have fewer protected monuments? • Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)-Powers, Functions, Role and Mandate • “Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) failed to act as guardian of India’s heritage” once observed by Supreme Court in the context of Taj Mahal-Do you think that ASI has failed to preserve other monuments and Heritage of India? • Archaeological Survey of India (ASI)-Significance • Do you Know-A ‘monument of national importance’, if designated by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), authorises the central government to “maintain, protect and promote the site”, which may be considered of significant historical importance, as mandated by the Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958. Currently, there are around 3,600 monuments of national importance being protected by the ASI. Other Important Articles Covering the same topic: 📍50 centrally protected monuments ‘missing’: Govt For any queries and feedback, contact priya.shukla@indianexpress.com The UPSC KEY Indian Express is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel and stay updated with the latest Updates.
