UPSC Key: Olive Ridley Turtles, Electoral Trusts and ‘Shock and Awe’ Approach

Carnage to Good Morning: How to get ready for Trump’s shock & awe

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Main Examination: General Studies II: Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India’s interests, Indian diaspora.

What’s the ongoing story: C. Raja Mohan Writes: Migration to trade: 5 areas to watch for first moves by Trump

Key Points to Ponder:

• What is “shock and awe” approach in international relations?

• How “shock and awe” approach will shape the US’s engagement with allies and rivals during the Trump administration?

• Assess the impact of President Trump’s “America First” policies on global trade and multilateralism?

• What challenges were faced by international organizations like NATO, WTO, and the UN during the Trump 1.0 administration’s era of “shock and awe” diplomacy?

• Discuss the role of unpredictability as a strategy in global governance.

• How Trump 2.0 can affect India’s trade with the US?

Key Takeaways:

Raja Mohan Writes:

• As he takes charge of the White House for a second time Monday, Donald Trump has a more sweeping electoral mandate, greater political legitimacy, and more ambitious plans to govern America – and rearrange the world than in 2017 when he was sworn in for the first time.

• Delhi, like the rest of the world, must be prepared to discard many of its assumptions, old and new, about the nature of America and deal with the consequences of the deep changes in the internal and external orientation of the United States.

• Unlike in the 2016 elections, Trump has won the popular vote in 2024 and led his party to majorities in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.

• While some view his foreign policy forays in the last few weeks–from Gaza to Greenland–as political bluster, others see them as producing results.

• The ceasefire in Gaza, which began today, is attributed at least in part to Trump’s threat that “all hell will break loose in the Middle East” if there was no agreement to release the hostages.

• If his outrageous claim to Greenland was widely dismissed as an imperialist fantasy, the Greenlanders have signalled their readiness to discuss a new relationship with Trump’s Washington.

Do You Know:

C. Raja Mohan Says— Delhi and the other world capitals will be looking at major Trump moves in five distinct areas in the next few days.

• Action on immigration that has been central to Trump’s campaign in 2024. Trump is expected to begin the process of deporting illegal immigrants and criminal gangs. It will not be easy to implement his promise to launch the biggest deportation in American history.

• Trump has repeatedly underlined his intention to impose wide-ranging tariffs on US imports–some universal and some directed at specific countries like China.
—Trump and many of his advisers see tariffs as an instrument to produce substantial changes in the behaviour of other states.
—The aims include the reduction of trade deficits and promotion of manufacturing at home.

• Dismantling the expansive green agenda of the Biden Administration including the reversal of several executive orders issued in the last few days on limiting the development of energy resources.

• Deconstructing the administrative state. Trump is expected to move quickly towards a downsizing of the US government at three levels–spending, head count, and regulations.

• Peace through strength. Trump is emphatic in rejecting the “globalism” of the traditional foreign policy establishment that he believes has pushed America into squandering blood and treasure around the world.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍TRIUMPH & TRAGEDY

📍The Trump Inauguration 2.0

UPSC Practice Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
1.What does the term “shock and awe” typically refer to in political or strategic contexts?
(a) A military strategy based on overwhelming power
(b) A diplomatic approach emphasizing gradual negotiations
(c) An economic policy focusing on austerity
(d) A cultural movement promoting innovation

GOVT & POLITICS

After electoral bond ban, funding through trust route up: EC data

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Indian Polity and Governance

Main Examination: 

• General Studies II: Important aspects of governance, transparency and accountability

• General Studies II: Salient features of the Representation of People’s Act.

What’s the ongoing story: After the Supreme Court’s decision to scrap electoral bonds last year, donations to political parties significantly increased through electoral trusts, as indicated by the electoral trust contribution reports released by the Election Commission of India (ECI) for the previous financial year.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What are Electoral Trusts?

• How Electoral Trusts is different from that of the electoral bond scheme?

• How do donations through electoral trusts stack up against donations made through EBs?

• Why and when electoral bonds were introduced?

• Electoral Bonds-Key Features

• What are the pros and cons of Electoral Trusts?

• Find out the ruling on electoral bonds from the Supreme Court of India.

Key Takeaways:

• On February 15, 2024, the Supreme Court ruled that the electoral board scheme was unconstitutional and ordered the banks to cease issuing bonds immediately.

• Nearly three-fourths of the donations to the Prudent Electoral Trust, which has received the highest contribution, were made after the Supreme Court’s decision on February 15. Out of Rs 1,075.7 crore donated to the trust, Rs 797.1 crore was received following the court’s ruling.

• The contribution to the Prudent Electoral Trust also increased almost three-fold compared to the previous year — it increased to Rs 1075.7 crore in the last financial year compared to Rs 363.16 crore the year before, according to the report.

• The top contributors to the trust for the year 2023-24 included ArcelorMittal Nippon (Rs 100 crore), DLF (Rs 99.5 crore), Maatha Projects (Rs 75 crore), Maruti Suzuki (Rs 60 crore), and CESC (Rs 60 crore), according to the report.

• The highest donation through the trust went to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at Rs 723.8 crore. This was followed by the Congress with Rs 156.35 crore, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) with Rs 85 crore, and YSR Congress with Rs 72.5 crore.

• Another Rs 132.5 crore worth of donations came through Triumph Electoral Trust. Again, Rs 130 crore of the 132.5 total donated through the trust came in after February 15, according to the report.

• The total donation through the trust increased from just Rs 0.5 crore last year. The top contributors to the trust were Cholamandalam Investment with Rs 50 crore, CG Power Industrial with Rs 30 crore, and Coromandel International with Rs 25.5 crore. Of the total, Rs 127.5 crore went to the BJP, and the remaining Rs 5 crore went to Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK).

Do You Know:

• Under the scheme notified by the UPA-2 government on January 31, 2013, any company registered under Section 25 of the Companies Act, 1956, can form an electoral trust.

• Under Section 17CA of the Income-tax Act, 1961, any citizen of India, a company registered in India, or a firm or Hindu Undivided Family or association of persons living in India, can donate to an electoral trust.

• The electoral trusts have to apply for renewal every three financial years. They must donate 95% of contributions received in a financial year to political parties registered under the Representation of the People Act, 1951.

• The contributors’ PAN (in case of a resident) or passport number (in case of an NRI) is required at the time of making contributions.

• The electoral trusts route is transparent on contributors and beneficiaries. Where there is only one contributor and one beneficiary of a particular trust, the public can know for sure who is funding whom. For instance, in 2018-19, the Janhit Electoral Trust had just one contribution of Rs.2.5 crore from Vedanta, and the entire amount was donated to the BJP, as per the trust’s annual contribution report.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Electoral Bonds and Electoral Trusts: What are they, and how do they differ?

UPSC Practice Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
2.What is the primary criticism of electoral bonds that led to an increased reliance on Electoral Trusts?
(a) High administrative fees for processing donations
(b) Lack of transparency in donor identities
(c) Limited scope for corporate donations
(d) Overregulation by the government

THE EDITORIAL PAGE

For better health

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Indian Polity and Governance

Main Examination: General Studies II: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.

What’s the ongoing story: K. Srinath Reddy Writes: India’s digital strengths must be used to bridge gap between primary care and publicly funded health insurance programmes that support secondary and tertiary hospital care

Key Points to Ponder:

• What is meant by primary health care?

• Discuss the importance of health as a critical determinant in achieving a Viksit Bharat by 2047.

• Analyse the role of initiatives like Ayushman Bharat in strengthening India’s healthcare system.

• Examine the importance of public health expenditure in transforming India into a developed nation.

• Highlight the significance of the “One Health” approach in addressing emerging global health challenges, such as pandemics and antimicrobial resistance.

• How Government of India address disparities in rural and urban healthcare?

Key Takeaways:
K. Srinath Reddy Writes:

• India’s aspiration to become an economically developed nation by 2047 is intertwined with the goal of having a healthy and productive population.

• If such a robust health system is to function with youthful vigour in 2047, it should spring to life in 2025. The double helix of financial and human resources must provide the DNA for its growth and development.

• Primary healthcare-led universal health coverage (UHC) is the vehicle on which our health systems must drive towards 2047. This requires higher levels of public financing, with a rise in allocations across central and state budgets. For achieving UHC, we must simultaneously perform well on two sets of indicators — financial protection and service coverage.

• We need to ensure that health services across the country can delivering a wide range of quality assured health services to meet age relevant health needs of all families.

• Given shortages of highly-skilled doctors and the time lag for bridging those gaps, the immediate priority is to train a large number of technology-enabled frontline health workers and allied health professionals.

Do You Know:

• Universal health coverage (UHC) means that all people have access to the full range of quality health services they need, when and where they need them, without financial hardship. It covers the full continuum of essential health services, from health promotion to prevention, treatment, rehabilitation, and palliative care across the life course.

• The delivery of these services requires health and care workers with an optimal skills mix at all levels of the health system, who are equitably distributed, adequately supported with access to quality assured products, and enjoying decent work.

• All people, everywhere, have the right to achieve the highest attainable level of health. This is the fundamental premise of primary health care (PHC).

• Primary health care is a whole-of-society approach to effectively organize and strengthen national health systems to bring services for health and wellbeing closer to communities. It has 3 components:
—Integrated health services to meet people’s health needs throughout their lives
—Addressing the broader determinants of health through multisectoral policy and action
—Empowering individuals, families and communities to take charge of their own health.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Why strengthening primary health care is a key goal of India’s G20 presidency

UPSC Practice Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
3. Ayushman Bharat is an umbrella scheme aimed at which of the following objectives?
1. Providing health insurance coverage to vulnerable sections
2. Establishing Health and Wellness Centres across the country
3. Reducing out-of-pocket healthcare expenses
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 1 and 2 only
(c) 1, 2, and 3
(d) 2 and 3 only

JOIN THE EDUCATION DOTS

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Indian Polity and Governance

Main Examination: General Studies II: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health, Education, Human Resources.

What’s the ongoing story: J S Rajput Writes: Could one even talk about BHU, AMU, Vishwa Bharati or Jamia Malia Islamia without referring to Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya, Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, Rabindranath Tagore or Zakir Husain?

Key Points to Ponder:

• Growth of Education in the Post-Independence Period-Reforms taken so far

• Education was initially a state subject but following an amendment (42nd) to the Constitution in 1976, it became a concurrent subject-True or False?

• The gains in terms of the literacy rates of the Indian population since independence-Know in detail

• How the quality of primary education impacts the overall standard of higher education in India.

• Examine the provisions of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.

• Highlight the challenges faced in ensuring a seamless progression from primary to higher education in India.

Key Takeaways:
J S Rajput Writes:

• A sudden expansion in any organisation often leads to dilution in the quality of its products, ushering in a serious loss of institutional credibility. In academic circles, it has been witnessed in reputed universities, well-established schools, and also the systems managing large numbers of institutions.

• The trust deficit suffered by government schools is a case in point, of which almost every family in India is convinced.

• The Indian education system observed a big attitudinal change from “why educate” to the demand for “good education in a good school not only for boys but also for girls”.

• Recently, the UGC has floated a draft regulation suggesting an amended framework to recruit vice-chancellors. Unfortunately, the dialogical tradition of which we were once proud, stands totally ignored.

• The quality of higher education institutions, including their leadership, is a direct product of the quality of elementary education. Imagine a primary school soaked in a culture of punctuality, respect for hard work and total devotion to the value of every minute, and using it all in contribution to nation building. Learners observe it, participate in it and experience every day the thrill of being nation-builders.

• The Central Advisory Board on Education (CABE), presided over by the Union education minister has a very wide national representation of state education ministers, academics, and major institutions. They could discuss and resolve issues like education policy or the procedure for selecting vice-chancellors, besides thinking of how to prepare leaders at every stage in educational institutions, including primary schools.

Do You Know:

• In Classes 1 to 5, Haryana, Manipur, Telangana, and Puducherry (Union Territory) have more children studying in private schools than in government ones, according to the Comprehensive Annual Modular Survey (CAMS) 2022-23, released last month.
This survey, the first of its kind, confirms findings of the 2021-22 UDISE survey (Unified District Information System for Education) from these three states.

• According to the latest CAMS survey, the national average for children enrolled in private (or unaided) schools in primary classes is 23.4%, compared to 66.7% for government schools.

• Education in India is primarily overseen by the state-run public education system, administered at three levels: central, state, and local.

• According to the Indian Constitution and the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, children aged 6 to 14 are entitled to free and compulsory education as a fundamental right. Public schools outnumber private schools in India by an approximate ratio of 10:3.

• Education in the country encompasses various stages and types of learning, including early childhood education, primary, secondary, higher, and vocational education. However, access and quality of education vary widely based on factors such as urban or rural location, gender, caste, religion, language, and disability.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍A Kerala model for universal education

UPSC Practice Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
4. Which global initiative aligns with the focus on foundational learning and its impact on higher education?
(a) Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 4
(b) Universal Primary Education Initiative
(c) Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
(d) International Literacy Day

THE IDEAS PAGE

The welfare India needs

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development

Main Examination: General Studies III: Issues related to direct and indirect farm subsidies and minimum support prices

What’s the ongoing story: Ashok Gulati writes: MSP framework needs a revisit. The competitive populism to give free food, power, or highly subsidised fertilisers, or pocket money in the name of Ladli Behna, is a race to the bottom

Key Points to Ponder:

• MSP (minimum support price) and effectiveness of MSP implementation-discuss

• Which are the Crops Covered under MSP?

• How MSP is calculated (paid out costs, labour etc.) and Crops covered under the MSP

• Discuss the challenges and limitations of the current MSP framework in India.

• “Subsidies in agriculture, while beneficial in the short term, often lead to long-term inefficiencies.” Critically evaluate this statement with reference to free food, power, and fertiliser schemes.

Key Takeaways:
Ashok Gulati writes:

• It may be worth recalling that the MSP system was introduced by the Centre with the setting up of the Agricultural Prices Commission (APC) in January 1965. It was meant to focus primarily on wheat and rice as India was hugely short of basic staples.

• India was importing 10 million tonnes (MT) of wheat in the mid-1960s under PL 480 from the US against rupee payments. It did not have enough foreign exchange to buy food from the global markets. • Food aid from the US came with political strings, a taste of which was experienced when food shipments to India were suspended for 72 hours by Lyndon Johnson as India issued a statement in favour of Vietnam when the US was at war with the Southeast Asian country.

• In 1966, India also imported high yielding varieties of wheat seeds from Mexico (18,000 tonnes), which ushered in the Green Revolution. It was in that backdrop that the policy of MSP for wheat and paddy came into existence. India’s population was roughly about 500 million in 1965.

• Given that India has digitalised much of the food system, both at the consumer’s end and the farmer’s end, it will be much more frugal and efficient to move towards direct cash transfers to targeted beneficiaries, who really deserve support.

Do You Know:

• The entire MSP framework needs a revisit. Not in the direction of making it legal but freeing up prices of products as well as that of major inputs like fertilisers and power.

• Land markets also need to be opened up, starting with land lease markets. A highly regulated land market, and the pricing of inputs and some outputs (rice and wheat), with massive procurement, is leading to huge inefficiencies in the system.

• Part of this problem stems from the Public Distribution System that gives free wheat/rice to almost 57 per cent of the population even as the government claims that it has lifted 248 million people out of poverty in the last 10 years.

• It has become a chicken and egg problem. Since India has locked itself in free grain distribution, it has to procure roughly 60 MT of grains each year to feed that system.

• According to the report of the Commission for Agricultural Costs & Prices (CACP), 22 lakh wheat farmers, 1.13 lakh lentil farmers, 5 lakh mustard farmers, and 15,409 gram farmers have been benefited by the MSP during the ongoing RMS 2024-25. In the RMS 2022-23 and RMS 2023-24, 11.68 lakh and 10.29 lakh gram farmers benefited from the MSP.

• The procurement of pulses and oilseeds is done by the NAFED and NCCF under the Price Support Scheme. The dip in the number of gram farmers who availed the MSP in the ongoing RMS season was low because gram prices were higher than the prices prevailing in the market since the beginning of the harvesting season, said a source.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Explained: What is minimum support price (MSP), and how is it fixed?

UPSC Practice Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
5. Which of the following factors/policies were affecting the price of rice in India in the recent past? (UPSC GS1, 2020)
(1) Minimum Support Price
(2) Government’s trading
(3) Government’s stockpiling
(4) Consumer subsidies
Select the correct answer using the code given below:
(a) 1, 2 and 4 only
(b) 1, 3 and 4 only
(c) 2 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2, 3 and 4

A restricted upward mobility

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Economic and Social Development

Main Examination: General Studies III: Inclusive growth and issues arising from it.

What’s the ongoing story: Ishan Bakshi Writes: The fallout of limited job creation and muted wage growth can be seen in the greater recourse to debt

Key Points to Ponder:

• What is the economic cycle slowdown?

• Discuss the policy challenges in addressing job creation and wage growth in India.

• How can these issues impact socio-economic stability?

• Analyse the role of government initiatives such as Skill India and Make in India in tackling unemployment and enhancing wage growth.

• Examine the correlation between limited job creation, wage stagnation, and rising household debt in India.

• Highlight the challenges faced by India’s labour market in generating high-quality jobs.

• Suggest measures to align job creation with economic growth.

Key Takeaways:

• Some have viewed the sharp deceleration in growth in the second quarter as a “temporary blip”. But the pick-up thereafter isn’t robust.

• GST collections have, for instance, moderated further — from 8.9 per cent in the second quarter to 8.3 per cent in the third quarter. And while the first advance estimates have been weighed down by the second quarter slump, forecasts for next year aren’t any brighter.

• Many have pegged the economy to grow in line with its pre-pandemic decadal average of 6.6 per cent. This is hardly encouraging.

• The fallout of limited job creation and muted wage growth can be seen in the greater recourse to debt.

• Household debt had risen to 43 per cent by June 2024. While this may well be lower when compared to other emerging economies, it must surely be of concern that not only is the share of loans being taken to finance consumption rising, but roughly 60 per cent of those taking personal loans in the second quarter already had more than three live loans.

• With little demand visibility and uncertainty over government policy, investment activity continues to remain subdued. New project announcements have slowed down as per CMIE. F

Do You Know:

• In a new working paper published by Harvard University’s Center for International Development, Arvind Subramanian, who was India’s chief economic advisor between October 2014 and August 2018, and Josh Felman, former IMF resident representative to India, give a detailed understanding of how the Indian economy lost its way.

• In a nutshell, they argue that Indian economy is facing both structural (that is, more long-term issues related to the overall framework of the economy such as the flexibility or inflexibility of labour laws etc.) and cyclical (that is, more short-term issues such as a bad monsoon that disrupts production of food articles etc.) challenges.

• Since the causes are both structural and cyclical, they say, arresting this economic slowdown is proving to be so difficult – measures that would have alleviated a cyclical slowdown fall flat because structural reasons are also involved.

• The authors build on Subramanian’s analysis of the twin-balance sheet (TBS) problem that India faced since 2014. They show that as the years rolled by the TBS problem morphed into a “four balance sheet challenge” for the economy.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍What sluggish salaries and slowdown in Indian economy might mean

ECONOMY

Davos turns into fortress with 5,000 army personnel, air traffic restrictions, drones

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance

Main Examination: General Studies II: Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests.

What’s the ongoing story: The World Economic Forum (WEF) is holding its Annual Meeting from January 20 to 24 in Davos, Switzerland. Attendees will include European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, China’s Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang, and other leaders in business and politics.

Key Points to Ponder:

• Who initiated the World Economic Forum?

• What is the purpose of the World Economic Forum?

• Where is World Economic Forum held?

• What happens at WEF?

• Who funds the WEF and why is the WEF Meeting held at Davos?

• What else happens at WEF?

• World Economic Forum and India-connect the dot

Key Takeaways:

• Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw will head the Indian delegation. Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu Chief will also attend. “There will be a detailed discussion in the WEF Annual Meeting World Economic Forum about inclusive growth, investment in social, physical and digital infrastructure and democratising technology,” Vaishnaw said.

• In the past, it has been used as a location for pivotal international diplomacy as leaders can break tensions in the town. The WEF website states that North and South Korea held their first ministerial-level meetings in Davos. At the same Meeting, East German Prime Minister Hans Modrow and German Chancellor Helmut Kohl met to discuss German reunification.

• In 1992, South African President de Klerk met Nelson Mandela and Zulu prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi at the Annual Meeting, their first joint appearance outside South Africa and a milestone in the country’s political transition.

• In 1998, participants emphasised the need to include major developing countries in the process. One idea was to set up a body to include 20 countries – half developed economies and the other developing ones. Such a meeting of what became known as the G20 was held in Bonn, Germany, later that year. Participation was restricted to finance ministers and its scope was limited to global finance.

• The G20 meeting was eventually elevated to a summit. This happened in 2008 when the US hosted a G20 summit in Washington DC to address the impact of the global economic crisis.

• The WEF also went on to regularly publish global rankings and indices, such as the Global Competitiveness Report and the Global Gender Gap Report.

Do You Know:

• German professor Klaus Schwab founded the WEF. He was a mechanical engineering graduate who then earned a Master of Public Administration degree from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

• From 1972 to 2003, Schwab was a professor of business policy at the University of Geneva. He founded WEF in 1971, originally known as the European Management Forum. It introduced the concept of “stakeholder capitalism.”

• According to Schwab, “It is a form of capitalism in which companies do not only optimize short-term profits for shareholders, but seek long term value creation, by taking into account the needs of all their stakeholders, and society at large.”

• The WEF website says of the idea: “A company should serve all its stakeholders, not just its shareholders: employees, suppliers, and the community it is part of.”

• Two years later, the organisation introduced a system of membership for ‘the 1,000 leading companies of the world’. The European Management Forum was the first non-governmental institution to initiate a partnership with China’s economic development commissions in 1979 – the same year China and the US established diplomatic ties.

• Davos brings together some 3,000 participants (including paying members and selected invitees), among whom are investors, business leaders, political leaders, economists, celebrities and journalists, for up to five days to discuss global issues across 500 sessions. Thus, the WEF has become a forum for various stakeholders to meet and discuss global and regional socio-economic issues.

• The WEF is largely funded by its partnering corporations. These are generally global enterprises with annual turnover greater than $5 billion. Davos was the setting for Thomas Mann’s novel The Magic Mountain. The book is the story of a young man who goes to Davos to stay at a sanatorium for three weeks and ends up spending seven years.
Relaxed in its serene environs, it seeks to cut through the many distractions of global politics to succeed in its mission to create a more prosperous global economy.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍How to land a high-paying job in 2025: Top AI skills that could make you irreplaceable

Previous Year UPSC Prelims Question Covering Similar theme:
6. Which of the following gives ‘Global Gender Gap Index’ ranking to the countries of the world? (2017)
(a) World Economic Forum
(b) UN Human Rights Council
(c) UN Women
(d) World Health Organization

EXPLAINED

Abetment to suicide: Why SC advised caution in using the provision

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Indian Polity and Governance

Main Examination: General Studies II: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation.

What’s the ongoing story: The Supreme Court on Thursday highlighted the need to sensitise investigation agencies and courts in abetment of suicide cases under Section 306 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 (IPC).

Key Points to Ponder:

• Discuss the Supreme Court’s recent observations on the invocation of abetment of suicide charges under Section 306 of the IPC.

• Examine the legal definition of ‘abetment’ as per Section 107 of the IPC.

• How has the judiciary interpreted ‘instigation’ in the context of abetment of suicide? Support your answer with relevant case laws.

• What are the challenges faced by investigating agencies in distinguishing between legitimate cases of abetment of suicide and instances where charges are invoked mechanically.

• What measures can be taken to prevent the misuse of Section 306?

• The Supreme Court has cautioned against the mechanical invocation of abetment of suicide charges to assuage the feelings of the deceased’s family. Discuss the ethical and legal implications of this statement.

• Evaluate the significance of establishing ‘mens rea’ in prosecuting abetment of suicide cases.

Key Takeaways:

• A Bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and K V Viswanathan stated that “It is time that investigating agencies are sensitised to the law laid down by this Court under Section 306 IPC so that persons are not subjected to abuse of process of a totally untenable prosecution”.

• The apex court made this statement while clearing charges against a bank manager accused of abetting the suicide of a man who allegedly took his own life after he was unable to repay his bank loans.

• A Bench of Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra stated that the bar for proof would be higher in cases where the deceased and the accused have an official relationship (such as between an employer and employee), and both the courts and prosecuting agencies must see if there is evidence to show that the accused intended to cause the suicide.

• The court also held that there must be “direct and alarming encouragement/ incitement by the accused” to prosecute someone for abetment to suicide.

• The requirement for direct evidence can be found in other SC cases as well. In M Mohan v The State (2011), the SC set a high bar for proving abetment of suicide under Section 306 IPC, including specific intent — it “requires an active…or direct act which led the deceased to commit suicide seeing no option and this act must have been intended to push the deceased into such a position that he/ she committed suicide”.

Do You Know:

• The term “abetment” is defined under Section 107 of the IPC, which is the same as Section 45 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS).

• A person abets the doing of a thing, if she (i) instigates any person to do that thing, or (ii) engages with one or more others in a conspiracy for the doing of that thing, or (iii) intentionally aids, by any act or illegal omission, the doing of that thing.

• To prove abetment of suicide, one has to effectively show that the accused directly instigated or aided the deceased to die by suicide. The punishment for abetment of suicide provided under Section 306 IPC (Section 108 BNS) can be up to 10 years imprisonment along with a fine.

• According to the National Crime Records Bureau’s annual Crime in India report, the conviction rate in abetment of suicide (Section 306 IPC) cases was 17.5% in 2022, the year for which the latest data are available. For comparison, the overall conviction rate for all crimes under the IPC was 69.8%. It was 54.2% for cognizable offences — which includes abetment to suicide — where an arrest can be made without a warrant.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Explained: What is abetment of suicide, and how does the court determine if it took place?

UPSC Practice Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
7. Which section of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) deals with abetment of suicide?
a) Section 302
b) Section 306
c) Section 309
d) Section 304

WHAT IS THE SVAMITVA SCHEME, WHO BENEFITS FROM IT AND HOW

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Mains Examination: General Studies III: Land reforms in India.

What’s the ongoing story: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday (January 18) said once property cards under the Centre’s SVAMITVA scheme have been distributed in all the villages of the country, it could unlock economic activity worth over Rs 100 lakh crore.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What is the SVAMITVA (Survey of Villages and Mapping with Improvised Technology in Village Areas) scheme?

• Discuss the objectives and significance of the SVAMITVA Scheme in addressing rural land ownership issues in India.

• “The SVAMITVA Scheme is a step towards rural empowerment and digital transformation.”-Analyse

• Evaluate the role of technology, particularly drone-based mapping, in the implementation of the SVAMITVA Scheme.

• What are the socio-economic benefits of implementing the SVAMITVA Scheme in rural India?

Key Takeaways:

• According to the Ministry of Panchayati Raj, the scheme benefits rural residents in many ways. First, it enables rural households to use their property as a financial asset for taking loans and other financial benefits.

• PM Modi on Saturday also mentioned this. “After getting legal documents, lakhs of people have taken loans from banks on the basis of their houses and property. With this money, they have started their small business in the village. Many of these are small and medium farmer families. For them, these property cards have become a big guarantee of economic security,” he said.

• Second, it helps in determination of property tax, which accrues to the Gram Panchayats directly in states where they are empowered to collect such taxes. The cards help increase liquidity of land parcels in the market and increase the financial credit availability to the village.

• The scheme also paves the way for creation of accurate land records for rural planning. All the property records and maps are available at the Gram Panchayat level, which helps in taxation of villages, construction permits, elimination of encroachments, etc.

• In May 2025, the Ministry is also planning to participate in the World Bank Land Governance Conference in Washington to highlight
India’s achievements and encourage international adoption of the model,” the ministry said in a statement on January 17.

Do You Know:

• SVAMITVA, a Central Sector Scheme of Ministry of Panchayati Raj was nation-wide launched by the Hon’ble Prime Minister on National
Panchayati Raj Day, 24th April 2021 after successful completion of pilot phase of scheme ( 2020-2021) in 9 states.

• So far, 2 crore property cards have been issued, said an official, adding that all households have been covered in several states like Haryana and Uttarakhand. The scheme aims to cover the entire country by the end of financial year 2025-26.

• The scheme is being implemented with the collaborative efforts of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj, Survey of India (SoI), State Revenue Department, State Panchayati Raj Department and National Informatics Centre. States need to sign Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with SoI for implementation of the scheme.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍PM tells ministers to attend property card distribution events on Dec 27

Why dead olive ridley turtles are washing up on Tamil Nadu’s beaches

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment.

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

What’s the ongoing story: Over the past two weeks, numerous dead olive ridley turtles have washed ashore in Tamil Nadu, particularly in Chennai. Experts have estimated that so far, between 300 and 350 turtles have been found dead.

Key Points to Ponder:

• Olive Ridley turtles are classified as a vulnerable species by the IUCN Red List-True or false?

• What is happening in Tamil Nadu?

• Where have carcasses been found?

• What are the factors that contribute to the mortality of Olive Ridley turtles along India’s eastern coastline?

• The term ‘Arribada’ is associated with what?

• Discuss the significance of Olive Ridley turtles in maintaining marine ecosystem balance.

• Analyse the effectiveness of current conservation efforts aimed at protecting Olive Ridley turtles in India.

• Examine the role of community participation and awareness in the conservation of Olive Ridley turtles.

Key Takeaways:

• Olive ridley turtles arrive near the Tamil Nadu coast around September-October to breed. Their nesting season begins in late November and ends in March. Although deaths during nesting season are not unusual, the large number of turtle carcasses found this early in the nesting period has sparked concerns among conservationists and citizens.

• Speaking to The Indian Express, Supraja Dharini, founder of the Tree Foundation, a non-profit which works on sea turtle conservation, said that dead olive ridley turtles have been found across Chennai and neighbouring Kancheepuram district. “Dead turtles have been reported in Neelankarai, Besant Nagar, Kovalam right up to areas of Kancheepuram district,” she said.

• Officials of the state Forest Department said that they were still collating exact data on the mortalities. Deaths have also been reported from Pulicat in Thiruvalluvar district, north of Chennai, according to officials.

• Finding carcasses of olive ridley turtles is not uncommon during their mating season. The turtles mate near shore areas and females arrive in small batches for nesting on Tamil Nadu’s beaches. As a result, they often get trapped in long fishing nets of commercial trawlers as bycatch — the unintentional capture of non-target marine life — and die, according to experts.

Do You Know:

• Olive ridley turtles lay eggs across several coastal states on India’s east coast and west coast. However, mass nesting takes place in Odisha, followed by Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.

• Odisha’s Gahirmatha and Rushikulya beaches witness the arrival of lakhs of female olive ridley turtles every year. They make nests in the sand using their flippers and lay between 100 and 110 eggs each. After laying the eggs, they cover the nests with sand to prevent predation and return to the sea.

• After 45-60 days, thousands of hatchlings make their way to the ocean. At nesting sites where human disturbance and predation are likely, Forest Departments create hatcheries. The eggs are retrieved from the nests with care and are placed in hatcheries. After the eggs hatch, the juveniles are placed in baskets and released near the sea.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Odisha bans marine fishing in Olive Ridley turtle habitation corridors

UPSC Practice Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
8. Which one of the following is the national aquatic animal of India? (2015)
(a) Saltwater crocodile
(b) Olive ridley turtle
(c) Gangetic dolphin
(d) Gharial

PRELIMS ANSWER KEY

1. (a)  2. (b) 3. (c) 4. (a) 5. (d) 6. (a) 7. (b) 8 (C)

For any queries and feedback, contact priya.shukla@indianexpress.com

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