UPSC Key: Rafale-M Deal, National Mission for Clean Ganga and Carbon Credit Trading Scheme, 2023

India, France sign agreement for procurement of 26 Rafale-M for Navy

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: India and France inked an Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) Monday for the procurement of 26 Rafale-M aircraft – 22 single-seater and four twin-seater – for the Indian Navy.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What is Rafale-M Jets?

• How many Rafale jets does India have?

• Why did India wants Rafale Fighters?

• What Is India’s Rafale M Deal?

• What will India’s Rafale M have?

• How Rafale M deal will strengthen Indian Navy?

Key Takeaways:

• The procurement includes training, simulator, associated equipment, weapons and performance-based logistics. It also includes additional equipment for the existing Rafale fleet of the Indian Air Force (IAF), a statement from the Ministry of Defence stated.

• The Rafale-Marine is a carrier-borne combat-ready aircraft with proven operational capabilities in maritime environments.

• Officials told The Indian Express that a key India-specific enhancement will be that the aircraft will be able to take off and land from a short deck with a ski jump, which is a feature of Indian aircraft carriers.

• French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle has a large, flat flight deck design with steam catapults and arresting gears.

• Officials said that among other weapons, ASTRA Mk1 air-to-air Beyond Visual Range Missile will be integrated into the aircraft.

• The deal for 26 Rafale-M fighter jets, estimated at over Rs 63,000 crore, includes four trainer aircraft. The agreement includes Transfer of Technology for integration of indigenous weapons in India.

• It also includes setting up of a production facility for Rafale fuselage as well as Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul facilities for aircraft engine, sensors and weapons in India.

• The delivery of these aircraft would begin between the next three to four years and is likely to be completed by 2030, with the crew undergoing training in France and India.

Do You Know:

• Sources said that the Rafale-M jets include 22 single-seater jets that can operate from aircraft carriers and four twin-seater trainer jets, which are not carrier-compatible. The delivery of the jets will begin in 2028-29 after the contract is signed and is expected to be completed by 2031-32.

• In July 2023, the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) had approved proposals to procure 26 Rafale Marine aircraft, and the approval had
coincided with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s two-day Paris visit.

• The Rafale-M fighter jets would come along with associated ancillary equipment, weapons, simulator, spares, documentation, crew training and logistic support. Their procurement from the French Government is on an Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) basis.

Rafale specifications.

• The state-of-the-art 4.5 Generation Rafale jet can reach almost double the speed of sound, with a top speed of 1.8 Mach. With its multi-role capabilities, including electronic warfare, air defence, ground support and in-depth strikes, the Rafale lends air superiority to the Indian Air Force.

• While China’s J20 Chengdu jets are called fifth generation combat jets, compared to 4.5 generation Rafale, the J20 have no actual combat experience. Whereas the Rafale is combat proven, having been used by the French Air Force for its missions in Afghanistan, Libya and Mali. It has also been used for missions in Central African Republic, Iraq and Syria. Rafale can also carry more fuel and weapons than the J20.

• The Rafale jets, which were acquired after the Balakot aerial strike, have added to the Indian Air Force’s firepower. The 36 Rafael fighter jets have been stationed in India’s strategic air bases bordering Pakistan and China. The two sides have always prioritised co-production, co-development of military hardware with a focus on India’s self-reliance goals.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍India, France all set to sign Rafale-M deal on Monday; 26 jets worth Rs 63,000 crore

📍Explained: From speed to weapon capabilities of India’s Rafale fighter jets

GOVT & POLITICS

National Mission for Clean Ganga now ‘authority’ under I-T law, gets tax relief

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

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 Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has notified the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) as an authority under clause 46A of section 10 of the Income Tax Act, 1961, granting it exemptions from taxes on income. NMCG implements the Union government’s ambitious Namami Gange scheme.

Key Points to Ponder:

• National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG)—What you know about the same?

• What are the development projects initiated under the National Mission for Clean Ganga?

• Under which section of the Income Tax Act, 1961, has the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) been granted tax exemption?

• What was the primary reason for the Income Tax Department’s scrutiny of NMCG’s financials?

• Which ministry oversees the National Mission for Clean Ganga?

• Which Act provides the legal framework for constituting authorities like NMCG for environmental protection?

Key Takeaways:

• The notification was issued on April 22, 2025. The clause allows tax exemption for any income arising to a body, authority, board, trust, or commission, not being a company, which has been established or constituted by or under a Central or State Act for specified purposes.

• “In exercise of the powers conferred…the Central Government hereby notifies the “National Mission for Clean Ganga”, an authority constituted under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 (No.29 of 1986), for the purposes of the said clause,” states the notification.

• “This notification shall be effective from the assessment year 2024-25, subject to the condition that the assessee continues to be an authority constituted under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 (No.29 of 1986), with one or more of the purposes specified in sub-clause (a) of clause (46A) of section 10 of the Income-tax Act,” it reads.

• CBDT, which comes under the Ministry of Finance, has also allowed NMCG’s application seeking condonation of the delay in filing revised return of income for assessment years 2021-22, 2022-23 and 2023-24. The move will allow NMCG to avail of income tax exemptions for previous assessment years.

Do You Know:

• According NMCG website, National Mission for Clean Ganga(NMCG) was registered as a society on 12th August 2011 under the Societies Registration Act 1860.It acted as implementation arm of National Ganga River Basin Authority(NGRBA) which was constituted under the provisions of the Environment (Protection) Act (EPA),1986.

• NGRBA has since been dissolved with effect from the 7th October 2016, consequent to constitution of National Council for Rejuvenation, Protection and Management of River Ganga (referred as National Ganga Council).

• The Act envisages five tier structure at national, state and district level to take measures for prevention, control and abatement of environmental pollution in river Ganga and to ensure continuous adequate flow of water so as to rejuvenate the river Ganga as below;
—National Ganga Council under chairmanship of Hon’ble Prime Minister of India.
—Empowered Task Force (ETF) on river Ganga under chairmanship of Hon’ble Union Minister of Jal Shakti (Department of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation).
—National Mission for Clean Ganga(NMCG).
—State Ganga Committees and
—District Ganga Committees in every specified district abutting river Ganga and its tributaries in the states.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Namami Gange: In The Name of Ganga

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
1. Consider the following statements: (2014)
1. Animal Welfare Board of India is established under the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
2. National Tiger Conservation Authority is a statutory body.
3. National Ganga River Basin Authority is chaired by the Prime Minister.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 2 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Previous year UPSC mains Question Covering similar theme:
📍Discuss the Namami Gange and National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) programmes and causes of mixed results from the previous schemes. What quantum leaps can help preserve the river Ganga better than incremental inputs? (2015)

EXPRESS NETWORK

SC asks Govt to do ‘something legislative’ over OTT obscenity

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Mains 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 Monday agreed with concerns about obscenity on OTT platforms and social media, and said the Centre must do something within the law to address it.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What is OTT?

• How OTT is Delivered?

• How Do Over The Top Media Services Work?

• Examples of OTT-know them

• What is obscenity?

• Is there any law related to OTT platforms?

• What laws govern obscenity in online content in India?

• Is YouTube regulated under the Digital Media Ethics Code outlined in the IT Rules?

• How has the Indian judiciary’s view on what constitutes obscenity evolved over the years?

Key Takeaways:

• While hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) by journalist and former information commissioner Uday Mahurkar and others, a bench of Justices B R Gavai and A G Masih also issued notice to the Centre and OTT platforms such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, AltBalaji, Ullu Digital, and Mubi, and social media platforms X Corp, Google, Meta Inc, and Apple.

• Advocate Vishnu Shankar Jain, who appeared for the petitioners, said the litigation is not adversarial and raises a genuine concern. Jain also submitted that the content was floating on social media platforms without any restriction.

• Justice Gavai then told Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who appeared for the Centre, “Do something… Something legislative.”

• Pointing out that objectionable content appeared even in some regular programmes, Mehta said some are so perverted that even two respectable people cannot sit and watch them together. Mehta also said there should not be censorship and added, “There is some regulation in place, some is in contemplation.”

• Issuing notice, the bench said in its order, “This petition raises an important concern with regard to the display of various objectionable, obscene, and indecent contents on OTT platforms and social media. Learned Solicitor General fairly states that the contents go to the extent of perversity. He submits that certain more regulations are in contemplation.”

• “A growing number of online spaces, including social media giants like X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, and Meta (formerly Facebook), openly facilitate the dissemination of explicit content without adequate restrictions/censorship. Simultaneously, OTT platforms such as Netflix, Amazon Prime, Ullu, ALTT (formerly, ALT Balaji), etc. continue to stream highly explicit content, some of which violates child rights and safety due to such sexually deviant material,” said the plea.

Do You Know:
Shashank Maheshwari Writes:

• The Supreme Court’s recent observation in a public interest litigation case titled Uday Mahurkar and others v Union of India and others, that there is a requirement to regulate “obscene” content on Over the Top (OTT) and social media platforms, has reignited the debate over the definition of obscenity and the necessity of judicial intervention to curb it down.

• Historically, India’s approach to obscenity has been deeply influenced by colonial morality. Section 294 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), a successor to Section 292 of the Indian Penal Code, criminalises acts deemed lascivious or appealing to prurient interest.

• What is deemed “obscene” has not remained constant. Initially judged through the Victorian-era Hicklin test, to the contemporary Community Standards test laid down in Aveek Sarkar v State of West Bengal (2014), the judiciary has moved toward a more contextual understanding of obscenity. The Supreme Court has also clarified, notably in the College Romance case, that the mere use of profanity does not constitute obscenity unless it arouses sexual thoughts.

• In 2021, the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) took action against the Netflix series Bombay Begums, accusing it of showing minors engaging in inappropriate and obscene behaviour. Similarly, producer Ekta Kapoor and her mother, Shobha Kapoor, were booked under the POCSO Act for allegedly showing obscene scenes involving minors in shows aired on their OTT platform ALT Balaji.

• In 2023, the Modi government released a draft bill, the Broadcasting Services (Regulation) Bill, 2023, to replace the three-decades-old Cable Television Networks Regulation Act of 1995, for regulating content on such platforms.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Supreme Court’s comments on obscenity in OTT make us think again: What is obscene?

📍Govt examines if new legal framework is needed to regulate digital platforms 

SC finds no error in HC impleading Centre and ASI in Shahi Idgah case

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance and History of India

Mains Examination: General Studies II: Structure, organization and functioning of the Executive and the Judiciary

What’s the ongoing story: The Supreme Court on Monday found no error in the Allahabad High Court’s decision to implead the Centre and the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) in suits filed by Hindu worshippers seeking removal of the Shahi Idgah mosque from the Mathura site they claim to be Lord Krishna’s birthplace.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What is exactly Supreme Court said in Shahi Idgah mosque complex?

• What is the latest plea in Shahi Idgah mosque complex?

• What are the disputes about?

• What are the claims and counterclaims over Shahi Idgah mosque complex?

• Discuss the implications of the Supreme Court’s decision to uphold the Allahabad High Court’s order to implead the Centre and ASI in the Shahi Idgah-Krishna Janmabhoomi case.

• Know the constitutional and legal significance of involving the Archaeological Survey of India in religious site disputes.

Key Takeaways:

• “One thing is clear. The amendment to the original plaint by the Hindu plaintiffs has to be allowed,” said Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna, presiding over a two-judge bench.

• The bench, also comprising Justice Sanjay Kumar, was hearing an appeal by the mosque committee against the March 5, 2025, high court order allowing the Hindu side to amend its petition and to add the Centre and ASI as parties to the case.

• The Hindu side had sought to implead the ASI saying the mosque was under the agency and hence exempt from the application of the Places of Worship Act 1991, which requires preserving the religious character of a place of worship as it was on August 15, 1947.

• On April 4, the Supreme Court issued a notice to the Hindu petitioners. Hearing the plea again on Monday, the CJI said, “This plea is absolutely wrong…The High Court should have allowed the amendment to add the parties to the suit.”

• The court added that it would, however, assess whether the order was effective and also its impact on the mosque side seeking the rejection of the plaint.

• The Hindu side had approached the Allahabad High Court seeking impleadment of the ASI and the Centre pointing to the existence of a notification under sub-section (3) of section 3 of Ancient Monuments Preservation Act (VII of 1904) published in the official gazette on December 27, 1920, declaring the property as a protected monument.

Do You Know:

• The mosque was built by Aurangzeb in 1670 on the site of an earlier temple. The area was regarded as nazul land — non-agricultural state land owned by the Marathas, and then the British. Before the mosque was built, Raja Veer Singh Bundela of Orchha had also built a temple on the same premises in 1618.

• In 1815, Raja Patni Mal of Benaras bought the 13.77 acres in an auction from the East India Company. The Raja’s descendants — Rai Kishan Das and Rai Anand Das — sold the land to Jugal Kishore Birla for Rs 13,400, and it was registered in the names of Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya, Goswami Ganesh Dutt, and Bhiken Lalji Aattrey.

• The Shri Krishna Janmabhoomi Trust was set up by Birla, and it acquired the ownership rights over the Katra Keshav Dev temple. In 1951,
the 13.77 acres were placed in the trust, with the condition that the “trust property will never be sold or pledged.”

• In 1956, the Shri Krishna Janmasthan Sewa Sangh was set up to manage the affairs of the temple. In 1977, the word ‘Sangh’ in the registered society’s name was replaced with ‘Sansthan.’

• In Ayodhya, the Babri Masjid stood atop what many Hindus believe is the birthplace of Lord Ram, an opinion that the Sangh Parivar began building into a sustained campaign starting the late 1980s, leading eventually to the mosque’s demolition in 1992.

• In November 2019, the Supreme Court held the destruction “illegal” but awarded the land title to the Hindu side. On January 22, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lead the consecration ceremony for a temple at this site.

• In Varanasi, the Gyanvapi Mosque stands cheek-a-jowl with the Kashi Vishwanath Temple. The Sangh wants the mosque brought down, saying it was built on the ruins of a temple. Meanwhile, the temple complex, which falls in the PM’s constituency, has seen a complete makeover. In the case of Mathura, the Hindu petitioners who have gone to court argue that the Shahi Idgah Mosque was built atop the birthplace of Lord Krishna, on the orders of Emperor Aurangzeb, in 1670. Today, it lies adjacent to the Krishna Janmasthan Temple.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Explained: The Krishna Janmabhoomi case in Mathura, and the challenge to the 1968 ‘compromise’ between the Hindus and Muslims

THE EDITORIAL PAGE

The Pahalgam moment

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Main Examination: General Studies III: Security challenges and their management in border areas – linkages of organized crime with terrorism

What’s the ongoing story: Jawed Ashraf Writes: More than military force, eliminating terrorism from Pakistan would require the world to come together to strengthen the democratic forces and loosen the military’s grip and militants’ sway on the country.

Key Points to Ponder:

• Map Work—Pahalgam

• The 2025 Pahalgam attack—What is the present situation?

• The 2025 Pahalgam attack—What you know so far?

• What are the implications of the 2025 Pahalgam attack on India’s internal security and its bilateral relations with Pakistan?

• What are the role of civil society and local communities in peacebuilding efforts in Jammu and Kashmir?

• Current events shaping India-Pakistan Relations-What are they?

• India-Pakistan Relations-Know the Historical Background

• What is the role of Indian Army in Jammu and Kashmir?

Key Takeaways:

• Pakistan-sponsored and assisted terrorist attacks in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) have a repetitive course. Every few years, there is an attack in Kashmir or elsewhere in India whose scale, brutality, visibility and toll triggers enormous national pain and rage. Even by the standards of the barbaric attacks we have seen, Pahalgam crossed many lines.

• Every major attack draws a set of measures from India. The Parliament attack in December 2001, coupled with Kaluchak in May 2002, led to one of the largest military mobilisations, Operation Parakram; the downgrading of diplomatic, commercial and people-to-people ties; and intense diplomatic efforts for international censure of Pakistan.

• By January 2004, an agreement between Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and President Pervez Musharraf led to a period of peace. The 26/11 terror attack in Mumbai in 2008 shattered that. India responded with familiar steps — to freeze bilateral ties and launch a massive international effort against Pakistan — but a major military response was eventually not pursued.

• After 2014, India’s approach has been a more aggressive mixture of counter-terrorism operations and heavy, disproportionate and unpredictable firing across the LoC, coupled with diplomatic initiatives, including at the UNSC and Financial Action Task Force (FATF).

• The attack in Pathankot followed his spontaneous stopover in Lahore. With Uri and Pulwama, India once again took the usual diplomatic measures. But its military response demonstrated its willingness to retaliate beyond the boundaries of anticipated war-gamed steps.

• The global context and international responses also changed over time. It was not until the Kargil and the Chittisinghpura massacre in 2000 that the US and others began to accept the existence of cross-border “militancy” from Pakistan.

• The US withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021, Pakistan’s rapidly diminishing strategic value and the weariness of Gulf countries facing their own terror threats from radical Islamist groups have reduced tolerance for Pakistan.

• China remains its principal external lifeline. The world, preoccupied with geopolitical shifts, has low patience for the dangerous distraction of cross-border terrorism. On the other hand, India’s global stature has risen. International support for India after Pahalgam has been the strongest ever.

Do You Know:

• The Resistance Front (TRF) has claimed responsibility for the Pahalgam attack that killed 26 tourists, sources in central agencies said. The Resistance Front (TRF) is an offshoot of the Pakistan-based terror group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).

• The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) declared the TRF a “terrorist organisation” under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in January 2023. The government said it was engaged in propaganda on terror activities, recruitment of terrorists, infiltration of terrorists and smuggling of weapons and narcotics from Pakistan into Jammu and Kashmir.

• But the TRF first started making headlines in 2020. In May of that year, five Army commandos were killed in a gunbattle in Keran, in which five TRF militants were also killed. Similar clashes occurred around that time in Handwara and Sopore, killing security personnel.

• The first was the revocation of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370 in August 2019. The second was the decapitation of the LeT in Kashmir in 2018.

• The Lashkar-e-Taiba was founded around 1985, and one of its main goals was merging the whole of Kashmir with Pakistan. However, by the end of 2018, it had suffered significant reverses at the hands of Indian security forces.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Pahalgam attack: How ‘The Resistance Front’ grew, spread in Kashmir

📍2000, ’02, J&K terror’s old ghost: attack during high-profile US visit

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
2. Hand-in-Hand 2007’ a joint anti-terrorism military training was held by the officers of the Indian Army and officers of Army of which one of the following countries? (2008)
(a) China
(b) Japan
(c) Russia
(d) USA

Previous year UPSC Mains Question Covering similar theme:
📍The scourge of terrorism is a grave challenge to national security. What solutions do you suggest to curb this growing menace? What are the major sources of terrorist funding? (2017)

ECONOMY

Govt working with airlines to assess extent of impact, find solutions

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance.

Main Examination: General Studies II: India and its neighbourhood- relations.

What’s the ongoing story: Flight tracking data shows that some of Air India’s ultra-long-haul flights to and from North America are now taking technical halts—planned stops for refueling or crew change—at European airports, breaking the journey of the otherwise non-stop flights.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What can be the economic implications of Pakistan’s airspace closure on Indian airlines and the broader aviation industry.

• How geopolitical tensions can impact civil aviation, with reference to the recent airspace closure between India and Pakistan?

• What is the primary reason for the increased operational costs for Indian airlines due to Pakistan’s airspace closure?

• How airspace closures can affect cargo transport and supply chain logistics for Indian exporters and importers.

• Evaluate the operational challenges faced by airlines due to sudden airspace restrictions and suggest mitigation strategies.

Key Takeaways:

• The government is working with Indian airlines to get a better assessment of the impact of Pakistani airspace closure, and to work out the best possible solutions for both passengers and carriers, Civil Aviation Minister K Ram Mohan Naidu said recently.

• According to Naidu, options on alternative routes will also be discussed in arriving at potential solutions, and the government’s priority is to try and see that the airspace closure does not adversely impact the average Indian passenger too much.

• “The very next day (after Pakistan closed its airspace to Indian carriers), we sat with the airlines. We got all the initial feedback, but I told them to work out more thoroughly what the assessment is going to be if this continues for six months or one year, what routes are going to be affected, and how the difference is going to be in future between the Indian carriers and the foreign carriers. We need to have a thorough understanding on all of this before we decide,” the minister told reporters.

• With Pakistan closing its airspace to Indian airlines from Thursday evening, over 800 international flights a week operated by Indian carriers are likely to be impacted by longer durations, increased fuel burn, and a few other complexities related to crew and flight scheduling, shows an analysis of airlines’ schedule data. All these flights were routinely overflying Pakistan on their way to various destinations to the west of India. The initial impact is already visible with Indian airlines’ flights from North India to West Asia, the Caucasus, Europe, the UK, and North America’s eastern region switching from their routine paths to longer routes.

Do You Know:

• Flight tracking data shows that some of Air India’s ultra-long-haul flights to and from North America are now taking technical halts—planned stops for refueling or crew change—at European airports, breaking the journey of the otherwise non-stop flights.

• The Indian carriers are working to adjust their schedules to factor in the ban from Pakistani airspace.

• IndiGo has already suspended its flights to Central Asian cities of Almaty and Tashkent as the closure of Pakistani airspace renders these destinations beyond the range of its aircraft.

• According to industry insiders, Indian airlines’ costs are bound to rise, which could translate into higher airfares for passengers. Additionally, airlines from other countries will get cost and time advantage over Indian airlines as the Pakistani airspace remains open for them.

• All major Indian airlines operate international flights to destinations to the west of the country, and many of these flights were routinely overflying Pakistan. Air India operates flights to West Asia, Europe, the UK, and North America, while IndiGo operates flights to West Asia, Turkey, the Caucasus, and Central Asia. Air India Express, Akasa Air, and SpiceJet’s west-bound international flights are to destinations in West Asia

• When Pakistan closed its airspace for over four months in 2019 following the Balakot airstrikes by the Indian Air Force, Indian airlines are estimated to have lost around Rs 700 crore due to higher fuel expenses and operational complications that came with longer routes and additional stopovers some of their flights were forced to take.

• Air India was the worst affected Indian carrier at the time, as it operated more west-bound international flights than other airlines. Moreover, it was and continues to be the only Indian airline that operates long-haul and ultra-long-haul flights to Europe and North America.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Pakistan airspace closure to hit Indian carriers as flight durations, fuel burn, cost for west-bound flights set to jump

EXPLAINED

Emissions intensity targets

Syllabus:

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

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

What’s the ongoing story: The government has notified draft Rules introducing targets for the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by “obligated entities” in energy-intensive sectors and industries.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What is the Draft Greenhouse Gases Emissions Intensity (GEI) Target Rules, 2025?

• What is Carbon Credit Trading Scheme, 2023 (CCTS)?

• What Draft Greenhouse Gases Emissions Intensity (GEI) Target Rules, 2025 says about Carbon Credit Trading Scheme, 2023 (CCTS)?

• What is meant by greenhouse gases emissions intensity (GEI)?

• How do these draft Rules tie into India’s carbon credit trading scheme?

• What is India’s updated Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs)?

• The ‘Panchamrit’ strategy announced by India at COP26 includes what?

Key Takeaways:

• The Draft Greenhouse Gases Emissions Intensity (GEI) Target Rules, 2025, notified by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change on April 16, puts in place a compliance mechanism for the Carbon Credit Trading Scheme, 2023 (CCTS).

• The CCTS was launched to create a framework for the trading of carbon credits, to facilitate the reduction of emissions in energy intensive industries, and to support India’s climate commitments under the Paris Climate Agreement of 2015.

• The draft Rules are open for objections and suggestions in a 60-day window from the date of their notification.

Do You Know:

• GHGs are gases that trap heat in the atmosphere and contribute to the “greenhouse effect” that raises surface temperature on Earth.
The five most abundant GHGs in the atmosphere are water vapour, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone. Other GHGs include synthetic fluorinated gases such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs).

• GHG emissions intensity, or GEI, is the amount of GHGs that are emitted per unit of product output — the amount of GHGs that are released in the production of, say, 1 tonne of cement, aluminium, or paper, etc.

• The draft Rules define GEI as “greenhouse gases emission intensity in tCO2e/ equivalent output or product”. tCO2e, or tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent, is the standard unit used to measure the impact of all GHGs, not just CO2, based on their potential to warm the planet.

• The Rules set forth baseline emissions for 2023-24 and define gradual reduction targets for the years 2025-26 and 2026-27 as part of the mechanism to make India’s Carbon Credits Trading Scheme, 2023, operational.

• GHG intensity reduction targets and benchmarks have been set for the highly energy-intensive aluminium, chlor-alkali, pulp and paper, and cement industries.
These targets, for a two-year period starting 2025-26, cover 282 entities or industrial units in these industries — 13 aluminium plants, 186 cement plants, 53 pulp and paper plants, and 30 chlor-alkali plants.

• Among the large corporations that have been assigned targets under the Rules are Vedanta, Hindalco, Bharat Aluminium, JSW Cement, Ultratech, Nalco, JK Cement, Dalmia Cement, Shree Cement, Grasim Industries, and JK Paper.
The Rules also lay down the mechanism for industries to comply with these targets, and specify penalties for their failure to do so.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Explained: India’s emissions inventory & efforts at mitigation

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
3. Regarding “carbon credits”, which one of the following statements is not correct? (2011)
(a) The carbon credit system was ratified in conjunction with the Kyoto Protocol
(b) Carbon credits are awarded to countries or groups that have reduced greenhouse gases below their emission quota
(c) The goal of the carbon credit system is to limit the increase of carbon dioxide emission
(d) Carbon credits are traded at a price fixed from time to time by the United Nations Environment Programme

Amid Stalin federalism push, recalling Rajamannar’s blueprint for state autonomy

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

What’s the ongoing story: With Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin setting up a high-level committee on safeguarding the rights of states and improving Centre-state relations, the question of federalism that the DMK, Tamil Nadu’s ruling party, has been pushing to the centre of national politics is back in the news.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What was Rajamannar Committee recommendations?

• Which of the committee recommended the abolition of Articles 356, 357, and 365 of the Indian Constitution?

• What Punchhi Commission recommended regarding the appointment of Governors?

• Which commission suggested the establishment of a permanent Inter-State Council under Article 263 of the Constitution?

• What Punchhi Committee, constituted in 2007 on Centre-state relations said on selection the Governor?

• The Punchhi Committee recommended deleting the “Doctrine of Pleasure” from the Constitution-What is “Doctrine of Pleasure”?

Key Takeaways:

• “India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States,” says Article 1 of the Constitution. However, the Constitution makes the polity quasi-federal, wherein legislative powers are divided into the Union List, the State List and the Concurrent List, with executive powers
coextensive with legislative powers.

• However, the Centre has been offered more powers to preserve territorial unity. All residuary powers — on any subject not falling under any of the three lists — are with the Centre, and a Central law prevails when there is a clash with a state law on matters in the Concurrent List. Parliament can also alter the boundaries of any state with just a simple majority, and the office of the Governor also enhances the power of the Centre vis-à-vis the states.

• Given the diversity in the country and the formation of linguistic states, the tilt in the Constitution in favour of the Centre has often brought federal concerns to the fore, with states over the decades accusing the Centre of bias, particularly when Article 356 has been used to dismiss elected state governments and impose President’s Rule. The problems became more acute with the rise of the regional parties, when the Central and state governments were being run by different, and often antagonistic, parties.

Do You Know:

• Rajamannar Committee—In 1969, then Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C N Annadurai established the Centre-State Relations Inquiry Committee under the leadership of P V Rajamannar, former Chief Justice of the Madras High Court. The three-member committee was asked to study the Constitution and recommend steps to ensure the “utmost autonomy of the state in the executive, legislative and judicial branches … without prejudice to the integrity of the country as a whole”.

• Sarkaria Commission—The Sarkaria Commission was set up in 1983 to review the evolution of Centre-state relations, to identify persistent problems and seek solutions, for, as per the Commission’s report, “stresses, strains and irritations… may stifle the working of the system and endanger the unity and integrity of the country”.

• Punchhi Commission—In 2007, the UPA government constituted the Punchhi Commission to “look into the new issues of Centre-state relations, keeping in view the changes that have taken place in the polity and economy of India since the Sarkaria Commission had last looked at the issue of Centre-state relations over two decades ago”. The five-member commission was headed by former Chief Justice of India Madan Mohan Punchhi.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Centre set to invite state views again on Punchhi panel

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:
4. Which one of the following is not a feature of Indian federalism? (2017)
(a) There is an independent judiciary in India.
(b) Powers have been clearly divided between the Centre and the States,
(c) The federating units have been given unequal representation in the Rajya Sabha.
(d) It is the result of an agreement among the federating units.

5. Which one of the following suggested that the Governor should be an eminent person from outside the State and should be a detached figure without intense political links or should not have taken part in politics in the recent past? (2019)
(a) First Administrative Reforms Commission (1966)
(b) Rajamannar Committee (1969)
(c) Sarkaria Commission (1983)
(d) National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution (2000)

 

PRELIMS ANSWER KEY

1.(b) 2.(a) 3.(d) 4.(d) 5.(c)

  

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