CURRENT AFFAIRS 22 NOVEMBER 2019

CURRENT AFFAIRS

22 NOVEMBER 2019

NATIONAL:

1.E-Cigarette(gs-2)

Context:E-Cigarette bill banning production, import & sale of E- Cigarette, related products introduced in Lok Sabha
Mains Question: What are E-cigarettes? What are the potential health risks involved by smoking them? How do these differ from the conventional cigarettes? Explain.
Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan today introduced a bill to prohibit the production, manufacture, import, export, transport, sale, distribution, storage and advertisement of electronic cigarettes. He said, this has been done to protect the people from harmful effects of e-cigarettes.
The Union Cabinet in September had approved an ordinance to ban production, import, distribution and sale of electronic cigarettes. The decision was taken considering impact of e-cigarettes on the youth.
A punishment of one-year imprisonment and a fine of one lakh rupees have been proposed for first-time offenders. The storage of e-cigarettes is punishable with imprisonment of up to six months or a fine of up to 50 thousand rupees or both.
E-cigarettes are the most common form of Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems.
These are basically devices that do not burn or use tobacco leaves. Instead, they vaporise a solution using a battery. This vapour is then inhaled by the user.

Mains Question: What are E-cigarettes?

What are the potential health risks involved by smoking them? How do these differ from the conventional cigarettes? Explain.

E-cigarettes :

What are e-cigarettes? An electronic cigarette (or e-cig) is a battery-powered vaporizer that mimics tobacco smoking. It works by heating up a nicotine liquid, called “juice.”
Nicotine juice (or e-juice) comes in various flavors and nicotine levels. e-liquid is composed of five ingredients: vegetable glycerin (a material used in all types of food and personal care products, like toothpaste) and propylene glycol (a solvent most commonly used in fog machines.) propylene glycol is the ingredient that produces thicker clouds of vapor.
Proponents of e-cigs argue that the practice is healthier than traditional cigarettes because users are only inhaling water vapor and nicotine.

Why its hard to regulate them? As e-cigarettes contain nicotine and not tobacco, they do not fall within the ambit of the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production, Supply and Distribution) Act, 2003 (COTPA), which mandates stringent health warnings on the packaging and advertisements of tobacco products.

Need for regulation: The current unregulated sale of e-cigarettes is dangerous for a country like India where the number of smokers is on the decline (WHO Global Report, 2015) as it increases the possibility of e-cigarettes becoming a gateway for smoking by inducing nicotine addiction and perpetuating smoking by making it more attractive, thereby encouraging persons to become users of tobacco as well as e-cigarettes.

WHO report on e- cigarettes and effects:

As per the report, Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS) (also known as e-cigarettes) emits nicotine, the addictive component of tobacco products. In addition to dependence, nicotine can have adverse effects on the development of the foetus during pregnancy and may contribute to cardiovascular disease.
The WHO report further says that although nicotine itself is not a carcinogen, it may function as a “tumour promoter” and seems to be involved in the biology of malignant disease, as well as of neurodegeneration.
Foetal and adolescent nicotine exposure may have long-term consequences for brain development, potentially leading to learning and anxiety disorders.
The evidence is sufficient to warn children and adolescents, pregnant women, and women of reproductive age against ENDS use and nicotine.

Why ban them? Studies say ENDS have cancer-causing properties, are highly addictive and do not offer a safer alternative to tobacco-based products. Experts say e-cigarettes are just a mechanism to deliver nicotine in an attractive format.

Way ahead:

The government should also impose appropriate restrictions on the sale and advertisement, online and otherwise, of e-cigarettes, including proper health warnings, in order to plug the existing regulatory vacuum. This should be done with immediate effect, and simultaneously the government should also commission independent scientific research on the benefits and risks posed by these products in the Indian context.

2.(PM-KISAN) scheme(gs-2)

Context:Over 7 crore farmers benefited under PM-KISAN scheme: Govt
Over seven crore farmers have been benefited under Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme.
Under this scheme, six thousand rupees per year are being given in three instalments to the farmers.
In a written reply in the Rajya Sabha Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister, Narendra Singh Tomar said, from 1st December of this year, the release of benefits will be made to beneficiaries only on the basis of Aadhar authenticated data under this scheme.

Mains Question:DISCUSS THE SIGNIFICANCE OF PRADHAN MANTRI KISAN SAMMAN NIDHI (PM-KISAN)?

WHAT ARE THE BOTTLENECKS IN THE SCHEME?

DO YOU THINK IT CAN SERVE AS A PATH-BREAKING SUPPORT INCENTIVE FOR FARMERS?

(PM-KISAN) scheme::

About Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi:
Under this programme, vulnerable landholding farmer families, having cultivable land upto 2 hectares, will be provided direct income support at the rate of Rs. 6,000 per year.
This income support will be transferred directly into the bank accounts of beneficiary farmers, in three equal installments of Rs. 2,000 each.
The complete expenditure of Rs 75000 crore for the scheme will borne by the Union Government in 2019-20.

Definition:

For the purpose of the calculation of the benefit, the Centre has defined a small and marginal landholder family as the one comprising of husband, wife and minor children up to 18 years of age, who collectively own cultivable land up to two hectare as per the land records of the concerned states.

Significance:

Around 12 crore small and marginal farmer families are expected to benefit from this. It would not only provide assured supplemental income to the most vulnerable farmer families, but would also meet their emergent needs especially before the harvest season. It would pave the way for the farmers to earn and live a respectable living.

Similar programmes by states:

Bhavantar Bhugtan Yojana in Madhya Pradesh was sought to provide relief to farmers by providing the differential between MSPs and market prices.
The Rythu Bandhu schemeof the Telangana government provides ₹4,000 per acre for every season to all the farmers of the state. Similar initiatives have also be framed in Jharkhand and Odisha.
In December 2018, Odisha launched the Krushak Assistance for Livelihood and Income augmentation (KALIA). KALIA is more complicated in design and implementation. It commits to give Rs 5,000 per SMF, twice a year, that is Rs 10,000 a year.

Benefits of direct cash transfers:

It has immediate impact on reducing hunger and rural poverty.
They can help households to overcome credit constraints and manage risk. This can increase productive investment, increase access to markets and stimulate local economies.
Income support can be used to make a repayment or at least activate a bank account which can then receive a loan.
It can increase investment in agricultural inputs, including farm implements and livestock.
It can serve as an important complement to a broader rural development agenda, including a pro-poor growth strategy focusing on agriculture.

Challenges with cash transfers- criticisms:

Landless labourers are not being covered under PM-KISAN.
Cash transfers are not greatly superior in terms of leakagescompared to other schemes of in-kind transfer such as the public distribution system (PDS).
A targeted cash transfer scheme envisions the role of the state to only providing cash income to the poor. This kind of approach seeks to absolve the state of its responsibility in providing basic services such as health, education, nutrition and livelihood.
Cash transfer scheme such as PM-KISAN cannot be substituted for subsidies and other institutional support systems such as the National Food Security Act-powered public distribution system. In fact, such cash transfer schemes could be counterproductive and may lead to more distress.
Cash transfers do not solve the following problems which are the reasons for the current agrarian crisis. The Agrarian crisis is not just of low incomes in agriculture. The genesis of the current crisis lies in the faulty and ad hoc export-import policy, lack of infrastructure and cartelisation and collusion in agricultural markets, which have prevented farmers from realizing the market prices for agricultural produce.
Cash transfer is neither a substitute for the structural reforms needed in agriculture, nor does it adequately compensate the farmer for the risks and uncertainty of crop cultivation.
In the absence of proper tenancy records, it will also benefit the absentee landlords.

3.Special Protection Group(gs-2)

Context:SPG (Amendment) Bill to be introduced in Lok Sabha next week, says Arjun Ram Meghwal
Lok Sabha will take up the proposed amendment to the Special Protection Group (SPG) Act next week, Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal said on November 22.
Elite SPG commandos protect the Prime Minister and his/her immediate family, former Prime Ministers and their immediate family for a certain period depending on the threat perception.

Why in News

Recently, the central government has withdrawn the Special Protection Group (SPG) cover of the President of Congress.
The SPG was raised in 1985 with the intention to provide proximate security cover to the Prime Minister, former Prime Ministers and their immediate family members.
It was created after the assassination of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. Parliament passed the SPG Act (1988) dedicating the group to protecting the Prime Ministers of India.
After Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination (1991), the SPG Act was amended, offering SPG protection to all former Prime Ministers and their families for a period of at least 10 years.

International:

1.India- China relations(gs-2,3)

Context:India, China to hold celebratory activities to mark 7th anniversary of diplomatic ties
India and China will jointly hold 70 celebratory activities to mark the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two nations.
External Affairs Ministry said that the year-long activities starting from 2020 will demonstrate historic connect between two civilisations as well as growing bilateral relations

Mains Question:FROM DOKLAM TO WUHAN, INDIA – CHINA RELATIONSHIP

HAS COME A LONG WAY. DISCUSS THE DEVELOPMENTS IN THIS PERIOD

India-China Relations: An Analysis :

The rise of India and China as two major economic and political actors in both regional and global politics has caught global attention. The two emerging and enduring powers representing two modes of civilization signify a complex and dynamic relationship in world politics. The Wuhan meeting (April 2018, “informal summit”) between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping is being hailed as a ‘new chapter’ in relations as the two countries engage in the wake of post-Doklam rhetoric.

India-China Relationship: Evolution

For thousands of years, Tibet was the buffer that kept India and China geographically apart and at peace. It is only after China invaded and occupied Tibet in 1950, the two countries are sharing a common border.
The extensive mutual historical experience was not there between the two nations and each country had a poor understanding of the psyche and system of the other.
Before the mid-20th century, India-China relations were minimal and confined to some trade and exchange of pilgrims and scholars. Interactions began after India’s independence (1947) and the Communist revolution in China (1949).
Nehru’s views supporting an independent Tibet gave rise to Chinese mistrust. Nehru accepted China’s suzerainty over Tibet but wanted Tibet to remain autonomous.
Tibetan regard for India (where Buddhism originated) as their spiritual mentor and the holy land was a concern for China.
China showed no concern for McMohan Line (1914 Simla Convention signed between the British and the Tibetan representatives) which it said was imposed by “imperialists.”
Nehru and Zhou signed the Panchsheel treaty on 29 April 1954 to lay the roadmap for stability in a region (Hindi-Chini Bhai-Bhai) as India acknowledged Chinese rule in
Tibet: Mutual respect for each other's territorial integrity and sovereignty; Mutual non-aggression; Mutual non-interference; Equality and mutual benefit; and, Peaceful co-existence.
As China tightened its grip on Tibet, India gave asylum to the Dalai Lama (1959).
In 1962, China's People's Liberation Army invaded India in Ladakh, and across the McMahon Line in the then North-East Frontier Agency. After the conflict, relations were in a freeze.
Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s landmark visit in 1988 began a phase of improvement in bilateral relations. India-China relations normalized through the regular exchange of high-level visits.

India-China Competition, Cooperation, Discord

India-China relationship is dotted with competition, cooperation, and discord. In 2017 these played out in India’s critique of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), India’s entry into the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), the dramatic crisis in Doklam, the acceleration of multilateral cooperation in the BRICS and attempts to foster economic engagement.

External Balancing

External balancing is the forging of military cooperation with one state to deter or defeat a threat posed by another, is one of the principal means by which states cause and enhance security for themselves. It emerged as a component in India’s foreign policy during the last stages of the 1962 War with China and persisted until the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. During these years, India sought or concluded three agreements with other states to deal with the threat perceived from China. India-China relations have continued to be subject to an underlying security dilemma.
India-China Relations: Reset Needed in 2018
There is a systematic buildup of negative images of how each side viewed the other’s foreign policies along with a collapse in geopolitical trust.
China’s attempt to raise its economic and political profile in the subcontinent was seen as a challenge to India’s authority in the region. India’s military engagements with the U.S. and Japan (China’s main strategic rivals) was seen as a serious challenge to Chinese security.
Both Delhi and Beijing seemed to be convinced that only an assertive policy will work and for past few years, they have been exploiting leverages and pressures particularly with respect to India’s US tilt and China’s Pak tilt.
PM Modi with his visit to China attempted a course correction. It is being called a ‘reset’.

India’s Policy Towards China: An Analysis

India has adopted a two-pronged policy for dealing with China. The first prong involves continued engagement, both bilaterally and in multilateral forums such as BRICS, SCO and the Russia-India-China trilateral, in order to maintain overall stability, deepen economic ties, and foster diplomatic cooperation on regional and international issues. Thus, during the Doklam crisis, India not only insisted on a diplomatic settlement based on a return to the status quo ante but did not let the crisis come in the way of scheduled bilateral visits and meetings despite China’s state-controlled media warning India of a repeat of the 1962 war and more troubles.
India has also sustained efforts to enhance its military and deterrent capabilities as the second prong of policy.
There is an emerging third prong in India’s China policy in the form of new external balancing effort. The evolution of India-US relations in particular but also of India’s relationships with Japan and Australia as well as the quadrilateral cooperation among them indicates a growing convergence in their views regarding stability in the Indo-Pacific region particularly with respect to China’s intentions in laying territorial claims to more than 80 per cent of the South China Sea as well as to the sovereign territories of India and Japan.
Tension or conflict between the two countries takes away from the prospects of the Asian century that their leaders speak of. A regular pattern of more informal summits between the leaders of the two countries is needed.

2.CHINA-PAKISTAN ECONOMIC CORRIDOR (CPEC)(gs-2,3)

Context:US warns Pakistan of long-term consequences for pursuing China's Economic Corridor project
The United States warned Pakistan that it faced long-term economic damage with little return if China keeps pursuing its giant infrastructure push.
The top US diplomat for South Asia said the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor heralded as a game-changer by both Asian countries but this would profit only Beijing and said that the United States offered a better model.

Mains Question: How will the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) transform Pakistan? Does CPEC come at a cost to the bonhomie between India and China? Critically examine.

CHINA-PAKISTAN ECONOMIC CORRIDOR (CPEC):
The CPEC is the flagship project of the multi-billion dollar Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a pet project of Chinese President Xi Jinping, aimed at enhancing Beijing’s influence around the world through China-funded infrastructure projects.
The 3,000 km-long China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) consisting of highways, railways, and pipelines is the latest irritant in the India–China relationship.
CPEC eventually aims at linking the city of Gwadar in South Western Pakistan to China’s North Western region Xinjiang through a vast network of highways and railways.
The proposed project will be financed by heavily-subsidised loans, that will be disbursed to the Government of Pakistan by Chinese banking giants such as Exim Bank of China, China Development Bank, and the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China.

But, why is India concerned?

It passes through PoK. Any Indian participation would inextricably be linked to the country’s legitimate claims on PoK.
CPEC rests on a Chinese plan to secure and shorten its supply lines through Gwadar with an enhanced presence in the Indian Ocean. Hence, it is widely believed that upon CPEC’s fruition, an extensive Chinese presence will undermine India’s influence in the Indian Ocean.
It is also being contended that if CPEC were to successfully transform the Pakistan economy that could be a “red rag” for India which will remain at the receiving end of a wealthier and stronger Pakistan.
Besides, India shares a great deal of trust deficit with China and Pakistan and has a history of conflict with both. As a result, even though suggestions to re-approach the project pragmatically have been made, no advocate has overruled the principle strands of contention that continue to mar India’s equations with China and Pakistan.

3.South China Sea(gs-2,3)

Context:U.S. warships sail in disputed South China Sea, angering China

U.S. Navy warships twice sailed near islands claimed by China in the South China Sea in the past few days, the U.S. military told Reuters on Thursday, at a time of heightened tension between the world's two largest economies.

The busy waterway is one of a number of flashpoints in the U.S.-China relationship, which include a trade war, U.S. sanctions, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Earlier this week during high-level talks, China called on the U.S. military to stop flexing its muscles in the South China Sea and adding “new uncertainties” over democratic Taiwan, which is claimed by China as a wayward province.

South China Sea:

South China Sea is an arm of western Pacific Ocean in Southeast Asia.

It is south of China, east & south of Vietnam, west of the Philippines and north of the island of Borneo.

Bordering states & territories (clockwise from north): the People’s Republic of China, the Republic of China (Taiwan), the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, Singapore and Vietnam.

It is connected by Taiwan Strait with the East China Sea and by Luzon Strait with the Philippine Sea.

It contains numerous shoals, reefs, atolls and islands. The Paracel Islands, the Spratly Islands and the Scarborough Shoal are the most important.

What makes it so important?

This sea holds tremendous strategic importance for its location as it is the connecting link between the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. (Strait of Malacca)

According to the United Nations Conference on Trade And Development (UNCTAD) one-third of the global shipping passes through it, carrying trillions of trade which makes it a significant geopolitical water body.

According to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Philippines, this sea has one-third of the entire world’s marine biodiversity and contains lucrative fisheries providing food security to the Southeast Asian nations.

South China Sea is believed to have huge oil and gas reserves beneath its seabed.

United Nations Conference on Trade And Development (UNCTAD)

Permanent intergovernmental body established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1964.

Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.

Part of the UN Secretariat and the United Nations Development Group.

Main UN body dealing with trade, investment and development issues.

South China Sea

South China Sea is an arm of western Pacific Ocean in Southeast Asia.

It is south of China, east & south of Vietnam, west of the Philippines and north of the island of Borneo.

Bordering states & territories (clockwise from north): the People’s Republic of China, the Republic of China (Taiwan), the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, Singapore and Vietnam.

It is connected by Taiwan Strait with the East China Sea and by Luzon Strait with the Philippine Sea.

It contains numerous shoals, reefs, atolls and islands. The Paracel Islands, the Spratly Islands and the Scarborough Shoal are the most important.

What makes it so important?

This sea holds tremendous strategic importance for its location as it is the connecting link between the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean. (Strait of Malacca)

According to the United Nations Conference on Trade And Development (UNCTAD) one-third of the global shipping passes through it, carrying trillions of trade which makes it a significant geopolitical water body.

According to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Philippines, this sea has one-third of the entire world’s marine biodiversity and contains lucrative fisheries providing food security to the Southeast Asian nations.

South China Sea is believed to have huge oil and gas reserves beneath its seabed.

United Nations Conference on Trade And Development (UNCTAD)

Permanent intergovernmental body established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1964.

Headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.

Part of the UN Secretariat and the United Nations Development Group.

Main UN body dealing with trade, investment and development issues.

Timeline

1994 – The Convention on the Law of the Sea went into effect. The United States called this treaty the “Law of the Sea Convention.”

1997 – Beijing shared the first rendering of its “Nine-dash Line” extending roughly 1,118 miles from Hainan Island to waters off equatorial Borneo under China’s historical claim of having it in the past.

2002 – ASEAN and China signed the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea.

2009 – China issued two diplomatic notes that appear to claim a majority of the South China Sea.

2013 – The Philippines challenged China’s claims of historic rights and other actions in an arbitration case under the Law of the Sea Convention.

2016 – The Arbitration Tribunal ruled in favor of the Philippines and rejected China’s maritime claims that go beyond the entitlements set out in the Convention.

Issues Involved

China claims most of the contested sea, reaching almost to the philippines shores and has built artificial islands with heavy military developments on them which worries the neighbouring nations and it rejects the UN backed international tribunal ruling as well.

The nine dash line asserted by China violates the principle of Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ).

The stalled negotiations between China and ASEAN made headway on Code of Conduct as four of the ASEAN nations also made territorial claims on the disputed waters which adds to the problem with already non-negotiable behaviour of China

Nine Dash Line

Stretches hundreds of kilometers south and east of China’s southerly Hainan Island, covering the strategic Paracel and Spratly island chains.

China claims it by citing 2,000 years of history when the two island chains were regarded as its integral parts.

Issues Involved

China claims most of the contested sea, reaching almost to the philippines shores and has built artificial islands with heavy military developments on them which worries the neighbouring nations and it rejects the UN backed international tribunal ruling as well.

The nine dash line asserted by China violates the principle of Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ).

The stalled negotiations between China and ASEAN made headway on Code of Conduct as four of the ASEAN nations also made territorial claims on the disputed waters which adds to the problem with already non-negotiable behaviour of China.

Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ)

It is a formula based on compromise and was recognized by the UN Conference on the Law of the Sea in 1976.

It covers an area beyond and adjacent to the territorial sea: it can extend to a maximum of 200 nautical miles from the baselines.

Activities allowed in EEZ are -

creation and use of artificial islands, installations and structures.

marine scientific research.

the protection and preservation of the marine environment.

Challenges

China’s behavior of negligence, denial and the sense of superiority while overlooking international laws and regulations like the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Along with China’s bullying tactics, North Korea’s provocative behaviour has attracted US aircrafts in the already troubled waters. The growth of military vessels and planes in the area makes it more challenging to handle.

Undefined geographic scope of the South China Sea; disagreement over dispute settlement mechanisms; different approaches to conflict management (self-restraint, mutual trust, and confidence building); and the undefined legal status of the Code of Conduct (COC) add to it.

The different histories of distant, largely uninhabited archipelagos of the sea make the matter more complicated and multifaceted.

Achievements

The members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and China engaged in discussions on a potential COC to manage the South China Sea maritime and territorial disputes for a very long time and finally settled for a non-binding Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC) in 2002. In 2005, the first draft of guidelines to implement the DOC was drawn up, but not adopted until 2011. However, problems still linger so a plan for more robust policies is needed.

After the consultations of 2016, in 2017 ASEAN and China adopted a bare-bone framework for the COC.

Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC), 2002

ASEAN and China agreed to promote a peaceful, friendly and harmonious environment in the South China Sea for the enhancement of peace, stability, economic growth and prosperity in the region.

It reaffirms respect for and commitment to the freedom of navigation and overflight above the South China Sea as provided for by the universally recognized principles of international law, including the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.