UPSC Key: Reciprocal tariffs, Shiv Shakti point and Belt and Road Initiative

Preliminary Examination: Indian Polity and Governance-Constitution, Political System, Panchayati Raj, Public Policy, Rights Issues, etc.

Main Examination: General Studies-II: Functions and responsibilities of the Union and the States, issues and challenges pertaining to the federal structure, and Elections.

What’s the ongoing story: Ending its 27-year exile from power in the national Capital and handing the ruling AAP a stunning defeat, the BJP swept the Delhi Assembly elections Saturday, bagging 48 of the 70 seats in the House. The remaining 22 seats went to AAP. 

Key Points to Ponder:

• What are the special provisions under Article 239AA of the Indian Constitution for Delhi?

• What are the powers and functions of Delhi’s Chief Minister (CM), and how are they limited compared to other state CMs?

• What are the powers and functions of the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi?

• Read about the Election commission of India.

• How is Delhi’s administrative structure different from that of other Union Territories?

Key Takeaways:

• Over its decade-long tenure in the Delhi government, the AAP has been locked in a constant battle with the office of the Lt Governor. This intensified under the tenure of the present Lt Governor V K Saxena with enquiries being ordered into the Delhi excise policy scheme, the reconstruction of the official residence of Kejriwal when he was Chief Minister.

Do You Know:

• The governance structure of Delhi is unique because it is a Union Territory and largely operates under the provisions of the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi Act, 1991.

• Delhi is a Union Territory as per the First Schedule of the Constitution of India and Article 239AA of the Constitution provides special provisions for Delhi. 

• Inserted into the Constitution by the 69th Amendment Act, 1991, Article 239AA conferred special status on Delhi following the recommendations of the S Balakrishnan Committee that was set up in 1987 to look into Delhi’s demands for statehood.

• According to Article 239AA, the NCT of Delhi will have an administrator and a Legislative Assembly. Subject to the provisions of the Constitution, the Legislative Assembly, “shall have the power to make laws for the whole or any part of the NCT concerning any of the matters in the State List or Concurrent List in so far as any such matter applies to Union territories,” except on the subjects of police, public order, and land.

• According to Article 239AA(b), “The total number of seats in the Legislative Assembly, the number of seats reserved for Scheduled Castes, the division of the National Capital Territory into territorial constituencies (including the basis for such division) and all other matters relating to the functioning of the Legislative Assembly shall be regulated by law made by Parliament.”

• In 1991, when Article 239AA was inserted, the Parliament also passed the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCT) Act, 1991, to provide a framework for the functioning of the Assembly and the government of Delhi. It highlights the powers of the legislative Assembly, the discretionary powers of the Lieutenant Governor (LG), and the Chief Minister’s duty to provide information to the LG. 

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍UPSC Issue at a Glance | Delhi Chief Minister and LG: 4 Key Questions You Must Know for Prelims and Mains

UPSC Prelims Practice Question Covering similar theme:

(1) With reference to the Article 239AA, consider the following statements:

1. It conferred special status on Delhi following the recommendations of the S Balakrishnan Committee.

2. It was inserted into the Constitution by the 69th Amendment Act, 1991.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

EXPRESS NETWORK

Region on the Moon where India’s Chandrayaan-3 landed is 3.7 billion years old: ISRO study

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national importance, science and technology

Mains Examination: General Studies-III: Science and Technology,  Achievements of Indians in science & technology; indigenization of technology and developing new technology.

What’s the ongoing story: A study by scientists of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has estimated the age of the region where the Chandrayaan-3 landed on the moon is located to be 3.7 billion years — an age that coincides with the period when primitive microbial life first emerged on Earth. 

Key Points to Ponder:

• What are the Chandrayaan missions?

• Read about the Chandrayaan-3 mission?

• What are its components and payloads?

• What is soft landing?

• What is Shiv Shakti point?

• What are the different kinds of moon missions that have been launched so far?

• What is the significance of Chandrayaan-3 mission?

• Read about the ISRO

Key Takeaways:

• A team of scientists from Isro’s Physical Research Laboratory (PRL), Ahmedabad, has performed morphological and topographic analysis within the Chandrayaan-3 landing site, now known as the Shiv Shakti point. 

• On August 23, 2023, India became the first country to successfully achieve a soft landing on the moon’s south pole. With the help of data generated by the Pragyan rover housed inside the Vikram lander onboard Chandrayaan-3, Indian scientists have been uncovering new interpretations and insights into the moon’s evolution.

• PRL scientists deployed high-end imaging techniques, such as the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter wide-angle camera and terrain camera, to gather crater and rock distribution data from the lunar surface near Shiv Shakti. They noted that the Pragyan rover encountered several rock fragments (over 1 cm in size) at the landing site. 

• The chains of secondary craters and crater ejecta rays were used to infer the potential source of materials within the landing area. Numerous craters with three distinct terrain types were studied: high-relief rugged terrain, high-relief smooth plains, and low-relief smooth plains.

The landing site is surrounded by craters Manzinus to the north, Boguslawsky to the southeast and Schomberger to the south. (Credit: PRL)

• The latest study, published in the Advances in Space Research, described the regional geography around the Shiv Shakti point. The Chandrayaan-3 landing site is enclosed between multiple large-impact craters: Manzinus (diameter about 96 km, age about 3.9 billion years) to the north, Boguslawsky (diameter about 95 km, age about 4 billion years) to the southeast, and Schomberger (diameter about 86 km, age about 3.7 billion years) to the south.

• Further interpretations by the PRL scientists now suggest that these large impact craters would have spewed massive ejecta in the area surrounding the landing site. Previous geological mapping had revealed significant influence of Schomberger crater secondary cratering on the terrain, about 35 km south of the landing site.

Do You Know:

• The Moon is believed to have formed as a result of a collision between a massive asteroid and Earth approximately 4.2 to 4.3 billion years ago.

• The Moon is believed to have been composed of magma during its early life. As it cooled over millions of years, heavier silicon and magnesium-rich minerals such as Olivine and Pyroxene sunk and created the Moon’s interior layers. The outer layer was made up of lighter minerals containing calcium and sodium compounds.

• The Chandrayaan-3 mission was India’s third lunar mission and second attempt to make a soft landing on the surface of the Moon. It was launched by Launch Vehicle Mark-III (LVM3). 

• The propulsion module carried the lander and rover configuration to a 100 km lunar orbit. The propulsion module had a Spectro-polarimetry of Habitable Planet Earth (SHAPE) payload to study the spectral and Polari metric measurements of Earth from the lunar orbit.

• Objectives of the Chandrayaan-3 Mission: According to ISRO, the mission’s three objectives were:

(i) to demonstrate a safe and soft landing on the lunar surface,

(ii) to demonstrate a Rover roving on the Moon and

(iii) to conduct in-situ scientific experiments.

• The success of the Chandrayaan-3 mission is of great significance to India, as it established India’s reputation as a serious player in planetary exploration. It consolidated India’s position as a space power. 

• Compared to other countries, India has a comparatively low-budget aero-space programme. But the efficiency and cost-effectiveness with which ISRO carries out its projects have helped in building a formidable brand name for the space agency. Chandrayaan-3 was accomplished at a cost of Rs 615 crore (a fraction of the cost of an Airbus).

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍What the first findings from ISRO’s Chandrayaan 3 mission tell us about the Moon

📍National Space Day: All you need to know for Prelims and Mains

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:

(2) Consider the following statements: (UPSC CSE 2016)

The Mangalyaan launched by ISRO

1. is also called the Mars Orbiter Mission

2. made India the second country to have a spacecraft orbit the Mars after USA

3. made India the only country to be successful in making its spacecraft orbit the Mars in its very first attempt

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 and 3 only

(c) 1 and 3 only

(d) 1, 2 and 3

Previous year UPSC Mains Question Covering similar theme:

What is India’s plan to have its own space station and how will it benefit our space programme? (UPSC CSE 2019)

No glitch in SpaDeX, says ISRO chairman

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance

Mains Examination: General Studies-III: Achievements of Indians in science & technology; indigenization of technology and developing new technology.

What’s the ongoing story: ISRO Chairman V Narayanan Saturday said there were no glitches in the agency’s maiden space docking mission, SpaDeX, as reported in a section of media and that it was going step by step.

Key Points to Ponder:

• Read about the SpaDeX mission

• What is the significance of the SpaDeX mission?

• What are ISRO’s space missions to the moon, sun, and Mars?

• Why does India want to build a space station?

• Read about the ISRO.

Key Takeaways:

• On January 16, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) successfully performed the docking of satellites as part of the Space Docking Experiment (SpaDeX) and the agency also announced that post docking, control of two satellites as a single object was successful.

• In this mission, NVS-02 navigation satellite was successfully injected into the intended Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO).

• However, on February 2, the ISRO issued an update that the orbit raising operations towards positioning the satellite to the designated orbital slot could not be carried out as the valves for admitting the oxidizer to fire the thrusters did not open.

Do You Know:

• SpaDeX mission was lifted off from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota on December 30 by PSLV-C60 and successfully placed two satellites in the desired lower earth orbit (below 2000 Km).

• Two small satellites, the SDX01 Chaser and SDX02 Target, injected in a 475-km circular orbit after the launch, have successfully demonstrated docking. In the mission, after the initial 20 km inter-satellite separation, the Chaser satellite approaches the Target satellite by reducing the distance to 5 km, 1.5 km, 500 m, 225 m, 15 m, and 3 m before the final docking of the two spacecraft.

• The Chaser satellite has a high-resolution camera on board – a miniature version of a surveillance camera. The Target is carrying a multispectral payload that will be used for monitoring natural resources and vegetation along with a radiation monitor that will study space radiation and create a database.

• Notably, Docking is a process by which two fast-moving spacecraft are brought to the same orbit, brought closer to each other manually or autonomously, and finally joined together. This capability is necessary for carrying out missions that require heavy spacecraft that a single launch vehicle may not be capable of lifting off with

• Several types of docking mechanisms have been used by space agencies over the years, including some interoperability. The spacecraft that go to the International Space Station follow the International Docking System Standard (IDSS), which was first baselined in 2010.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Express View on ISRO’s SpaDeX mission: A tryst in space

📍Knowledge nugget of the day: SpaDeX Mission

UPSC Prelims Practice Question Covering similar theme:

(3) The term “Docking” with reference to the space refers to:

(a) when a spacecraft changes its position to prevent collision with other spacecraft.

(b) where two spacecraft are parked at different positions in space.

(c) where two spacecraft moving at extremely high speeds but not relative to each other, are aligned in a precise orbit and joined together.

(d) when two spacecraft are launched together in the same orbit with different purposes.

ECONOMY

‘Reciprocal tariffs on many nations next week’

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.

What’s the ongoing story: President Donald Trump said Friday that he plans to announce reciprocal tariffs on multiple countries next week, escalating his trade war. “I’ll be announcing that next week—reciprocal trade—so that we’re treated evenly with other countries,” Trump said. “We don’t want any more, any less.”

Key Points to Ponder:

• What are tariffs?

• Why are tariffs imposed?

• How are tariffs retaliated?

• How Trump’s tariff threats can affect global trade dynamics?

• How India’s trade strategy in future will adapt in response to these recent tariff impose developments?

• What strategies should India employ to navigate potential trade negotiations with the U.S.?

• What can be the implications of protectionist trade policies, such as tariffs, on emerging economies like India.

Key Takeaways:

• The move aligns with Trump’s campaign promise to impose tariffs matching the rates foreign countries place on US exports. He made the announcement during a meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, adding that auto tariffs were still under consideration.

• As per the report by Reuters, Trump informed Republican lawmakers of his plans during budget discussions at the White House on Thursday. His administration sees higher tariffs on foreign imports as a way to help fund extensions of the 2017 tax cuts, which independent analysts warn could significantly increase US debt.

• Tariffs currently account for about 2% of annual US revenue, but Trump’s team believes increasing them could offset some costs.

• On Saturday, Trump announced 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico but later delayed them after negative market reactions. The two countries instead agreed to enhanced border enforcement, a key Trump priority.

Do You Know:

• Despite repeatedly criticising India’s tariff structure, Trump’s first executive order on February 1 to impose trade tariffs did not mention India, signalling that bilateral trade negotiations may be on the cards later this month when Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit the US.

• International trade experts said that India has already begun lowering tariffs to favour US exports in a bid to avoid Trump’s tariffs. Duties on items primarily exported by the US, such as motorcycles with an engine capacity below 1,600cc, ground installations for satellites, and synthetic flavouring essences, among others, were slashed in the Union Budget 2025-26 presented on Saturday.

• Meanwhile, exporters said that the current 10 per cent tariffs imposed on Chinese goods would create an opportunity for more Indian goods to enter the US market.

• According to an analysis by Oxford Economics, India was the fourth-largest beneficiary of the trade diversions that occurred between 2017-2023 after Trump launched a tariff war with China in his first term.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Trump, tariffs and a trade war with China

UPSC Previous Year Mains Question Covering similar theme:

📍What are the key areas of reform if the WTO has to survive in the present context of ‘Trade War’, especially keeping in mind the interest of India? (UPSC CSE 2018)

Security, logistics, labour: Major hurdles facing Rs 21,000-crore transmission project linking Ladakh to Haryana

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national importance and economic development 

Mains Examination: General Studies-III: Infrastructure: Energy, Ports, Roads, Airports, Railways etc.

What’s the ongoing story: With work set to commence on a massive Rs 21,000 crore transmission project to evacuate power from one of the country’s largest planned renewable energy parks in Ladakh, there are three unprecedented challenges of the sort that no major project of this scale has had to tackle so far.

Key Points to Ponder:

• What is India’s Green Energy Corridor (GEC) initiative?

• How do extreme climatic conditions in Ladakh impact the design and execution of renewable energy transmission infrastructure?

• What is the strategic significance of the Ladakh-Haryana transmission project?

• Why is battery storage capacity critical for the financial viability of large-scale renewable energy projects?

• What environmental and socio-economic concerns arise from the development of large renewable energy parks in ecologically sensitive regions?

Key Takeaways:

• One is a demand by the state-owned executing agency for ensuring round-the-clock security for site personnel, then there is the need for sourcing skilled labour into Ladakh from other states to meet the 1,200-odd workforce requirement, and lastly, the need for a mega road infrastructure upgradation plan to transport over-dimensional heavy equipment to the project site near the China border.

• Beyond this, there is a larger question of the viability of the link envisaged from the upper reaches of avalanche-prone Ladakh all the way down to Haryana, given all of the additional costs that need to be padded in. Approved for around Rs 8,300 crore in Central government assistance in 2023 under the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy’s Green Energy Corridor (GEC) scheme, the strategic transmission link initially faced internal scrutiny over concerns around financial viability, documents obtained by The Indian Express reveal.

• Meanwhile, tendering for the 13 gigawatt (GW) solar and wind hybrid park, to be developed by private players, is yet to begin as officials try to address concerns around nomadic herders relying on the identified land for livestock grazing.

• Strategic considerations: In its detailed project report, Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd, which was handed over the transmission project, flagged security issues and the possibility of work interruptions. 

• Technical, logistical challenges: Ladakh’s high solar irradiation and low temperatures are ideal for efficient solar PV generation, but its geography also presents unique challenges. With temperatures going as low as minus 45 degrees celsius coupled with heavy snowfall, the transmission equipment will use specialty steel to withstand extreme weather. It will also be reinforced with special foundations and avalanche protection structures.

• Financial viability: The financial viability of the entire project hinges on the planned 12 GWh of battery storage at the Pang renewable energy park, which will enhance the transmission system’s capacity utilisation from 35 per cent to 76 per cent. Importantly, India currently has less than 1 GWh of grid-connected battery storage, with much of the supply chain dominated by China.

Do You Know:

• The transmission project was conceptualised after the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) was directed in August 2020 to prepare a detailed plan for establishing a 7.5 GW solar park in Ladakh in consultation with the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI), documents reveal. By 2022, its scope grew to include 9 GW of solar, 4 GW of wind, and 12 GWh of battery storage. Alongside supplying power to the national grid at Kaithal in Haryana, the hybrid park will also connect to the existing Ladakh grid and the Leh-Kargil-Alusteng line to ensure reliable power to Jammu and Kashmir.

THE WORLD

China summons Panama ambassador for pulling out of BRI after Trump’s threat 

Syllabus:

Preliminary Examination: Current events of national and international importance

Mains Examination: General Studies-II: Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India’s interests

What’s the ongoing story: China has summoned Panama’s ambassador to the country for pulling out of the multi-billion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), following US President Donald Trump’s threat to take back the Panama Canal. 

Key Points to Ponder:

• What is the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)?

• In what ways does the BRI shape China’s global economic and political influence?

• What are the major criticisms leveled against the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)?

• How does the withdrawal of countries like Panama from the BRI impact global power equations?

• Read about the Panama Canal. (When and why was the Panama Canal constructed, and which country was responsible for its construction?)

• When and under what circumstances did the United States relinquish control of the Panama Canal to Panama?  

• What is the strategic significance of the Panama Canal?  

• How is the neutrality of the Panama Canal ensured?

• Map work: Locate Panama Canal on world map. (Refer Atlas)

Key Takeaways:

• Assistant Foreign Minister Zhao Zhiyuan on Friday summoned ambassador Miguel Humberto Lecaro Barcenas over Panama’s decision to not renew the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on cooperation with China on the BRI, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

• Panama recently announced the termination of the MOU on the BRI, to which the Chinese side expressed deep regret, Zhao said.

• Under the framework of the BRI, pragmatic cooperation between China and Panama has rapidly developed across various sectors and achieved a series of fruitful results, bringing tangible benefits to Panama and its people, Zhao said.

• The minister said more than 150 countries actively participate in the BRI, with achievements benefiting the people of various nations, including Panama.

• Under the BRI, a signature initiative of Chinese President Xi Jinping, China has made huge investments in various countries around the world to build major infrastructure projects by extending loans. The BRI projects attracted criticism of being debt traps as many countries struggled to pay back Chinese loans.

Do You Know:

• Panama Canal: The United States built the Panama canal in the early 1900s as it looked for ways to facilitate the transit of commercial and military vessels between its coasts. Washington relinquished control of the waterway to Panama on Dec. 31, 1999, under a treaty signed in 1977 by President Jimmy Carter. The canal depends on reservoirs to operate its locks and was heavily affected by drought during the past two years that forced it to substantially reduce the number of daily slots for crossing ships.

• Belt and Road Initiative (BRI): China’s ambitious infrastructure funding project, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), was first outlined by President Xi Jinping. Spanning from Africa to Asia and seeing investments worth billions of dollars, it has also come under criticism over the years

• President Xi Jinping announced the Silk Road Economic ‘Belt’ during his visits to Kazakhstan in 2013. The ‘Belt’ plan was to revitalise a series of trading and infrastructure routes between Asia and Europe. Connectivity through Central Asia was a key element of the initiative.

• Initially, the BRI was based on five principles: (1) policy coordination (2) infrastructure connectivity (3) trade (4) financial integration and (5) people-to-people connections. Later, the sixth principle of ‘Industrial cooperation’ was also added. Basically through the BRI, China wanted to resolve two major concerns, viz capital surplus and industrial overcapacity. It was also about increasing Chinese political influence in broader regions.

Other Important Articles Covering the same topic:

📍Knowledge nugget of the day: Panama Canal

📍The Panama Canal: Trump’s bold claims and the history behind the waterway

Previous year UPSC Prelims Question Covering similar theme:

(4) “Belt and Road Initiative” is sometimes mentioned in the news in the context of the affairs of : (UPSC CSE 2016)

(a) African Union

(b) Brazil

(c) European Union

(d) China

 

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