GD-WAT Bible

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GD-WAT Bible

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GD-WAT Bible

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Sr. No. Topic Pg No.

1 Can India become a 5 Trillion Dollar Economy by 2024? 4

2 Slowdown in Indian Economy- Reasons and Solutions 12
3 India-A Dangerous Country for Women 26
4 Agricultural Crisis in India - e Root Cause and Consequences 29
5 Sabarimala Issue: Tradition vs. Women’s Democratic Rights 35
6 How Can We Handle and Prevent Online Harassment ? 41
7 Are Streaming Platforms (Net ix etc.) a reat to Conventional TV ? 44
8 Globalization is Dead and We Need to Invent a New World Order. 47
9 Does India Need a Bullet Train? 51
10 Will Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code Fix the Bank NPA Issue? 54
11 Is Arti cial Intelligence “the worst event in the history of civilization”? 63
12 e Impact of Brexit on the Politics and Policies of the European Union 67
13 Umbrella Revolution in Hong Kong 71
14 Demonetisation and GST: What India Gained and Lost 74
15 Citizenship Amendment Act – What is at Stake? 82
16 Death Penalty for Rape -Is It Justi ed? 84
17 Politics of Statues- Recon guring India’s Nationalism 88
18 Chandrayaan 2: A Failed Mission or A Stepping Stone for Future Glory? 91
19 Will Online Classes Replace Traditional Physical Classrooms? 94
20 e US-China Trade War 97
21 Is Social Media Bad for Society? 107
22 Sexual Harassment – A Year Aer e # Metoo Backlash 113
23 e Menace of Fake News and Paid News 118
24 Climate Protests and the Green Generation 126
25 Article 370 Abrogation: Correcting Old Folly
or rusting Nationalistic Agenda? 129
26 Triple Talaq: Landmark Verdict for Muslim Women or An Eyewash? 133
27 Does India Need a Benevolent Dictator or a Strong Democracy? 138

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1. Can India become a 5 trillion Dollar Economy by 2024?

Over last year and half, there has been a lot of buzz around the claim of making India a
5 trillion dollar economy by 2024. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman also emphasised
the goal in her budget speech presented in July 2019. There was a mention in her budget
speech that by 2019, India had become 2.7 trillion dollar economy. Simple back of the
envelope calculations reveal that India will have to grow annually by more than 13%
every year for the period 2019-24 in order to reach 5 trillion dollar mark by 2024.

On this background, let us see how fast Indian economy has grown over the years. The
following line chart shows the rate of growth of Indian economy since 1961 (Chart plotted
using the World Bank data, taken with thanks from GDP Growth of India | India GDP
Growth 2019)

We can see that Indian economy has never grown substantially more than 10% in any
year since 1961. When the size of the economy is already the third largest in the world
in terms of Purchasing Power Parity, growing at that high rate is even more dif cult due
to ‘large base effect’. We rely only on numbers, it seems dif cult to achieve the goal at
the moment.

This is not to paint a pessimistic picture but to set the expectations right. Moreover, aims
are always set at higher levels, which bring out the best and in the process one achieves
the goals that seem unrealistic, though the ultimate goal is not achieved. As they say-
“Aim for the moon and if you miss, you will still be among the stars”. Therefore, in
this write-up, we will discuss the challenges and opportunities for getting that 5 trillion
dollars mark, say by 2025 or 2026, if not by 2024.

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Historic Perspective
India grew at more than 8% between 2003-04 and 2007-08 till India’s growth march was
halted by the global economic crisis of 2008. This was the fastest continuous 5-years
growth period in the history of independent India. The factors that contributed to this
rapid growth were a combination of domestic as well as international factors. In order to
grow at a high rate in the next 5 years, we will need similar (if not the same) con uence
of favourable domestic and external factors.

First let us revisit the domestic and international factors that contributed to India’s growth
story in the period 2003 to 2008.

Domestic factors
1. The latter half of Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s government saw some really good economic
reforms. In 2001, the Vajpayee government launched the ambitious ‘Golden Quad-
rangular’ project to connect four metros with continuous good quality highways. The
Vajpayee government gave impetus to Public Private Partnership in highway building,
which paved the way for rapid construction of highways. The Vajpayee government
also initiated ‘Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana’ for building all weather roads in
the rural area. Manmohan Singh’s government that followed the Vajpayee government
continued these good policy measures. The Golden Quadrilateral project was nally
completed in 2012.
Upto late 1990s and early 2000s, the state of highways in the country was really bad.
Importance of good road network for economic progress cannot be overemphasised.
These efforts paved the way for rapid economic growth in that period.
2. The Vajpayee government continued the policy of P.V.Narasimha Rao’s govern-
ment and diluted the government shareholding from several PSUs (this is called the
process of ‘disinvestment’). Manmohan Singh’s government continued the policy of
disinvestment and disinvested from the Airport Authority of India. However Man-
mohan Singh’s rst term was constrained in disinvestment due to the opposition of
Communist parties, on whom the government was dependent for survival.
3. The Vajpayee government brought much awaited reforms in the power sector through
the Electricity Act of 2003. It was an important milestone for attracting Public Private
Partnership in the power sector.
4. The Vajpayee government undertook very important policy measures in the telecom
sector. Mobile phones were introduced in India in 1996 and calling rates were as
high as Rs.16 per minute in 1996. Signi cant part of these high rates was due to
high government taxes. Vajpayee government cut the taxes on telecom services and
also permitted the entry of private players in the telecom market. The competition
signi cantly reduced the prices. At one point of time up-to early 1990s, there was
a waiting period of as much as 10 years for getting a landline phone. However by
2003-04, almost everyone in the country had mobile phones. It was a great progress

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by any standards in a relatively short time. Progress in the telecom industry paved
the way for rapid economic progress in the following years.
5. In 2002, India’s scal de cit was about 6% of GDP. Due to the efforts of Vajpayee
and Manmohan Singh governments, it was brought below 3% in 2008. The crisis of
2008-09 required the government to hike expenditure, as a result of which there was
a steep increase in the scal de cit post 2008-09.

(Reference: India Consolidated Fiscal Balance: % of GDP [1998 - 2019] [Data & Charts])

Similarly the efforts of both Vajpayee and Manmohan Singh governments in the time
period 2000 to 2006 contained in ation in manageable limits.

Since 1999, there was relative political stability in the country. That enabled the governments
to continue with their policies without any hindrance.

International Factors
In the year 2000-01, the US economy was hit by ‘dot com crash’. The attacks of 9/11
followed soon. As a result, by March 2002, the US economy plunged into a mild recession.
In response to the recession, the US Fed under Alan Greenspan cut interest rates multiple
times. By 2004, the interest rates in the US were at record low levels at almost 1%.

Whenever the interest rates in the US are low, the US nancial institutions invest in other
countries that hold a promise of better returns. Due to good policy initiatives by the
government, India held the promise of better returns. Therefore, the foreign institutions
pumped in dollars in record quantity in India in that period. The data collected from the
‘Handbook of Statistics on Indian Economy’ published by RBI reveals that the foreign
exchange reserves of India rose from about $ 48 billion in late December 2001 to $101
billion in late December 2003 to $273 billion in late December 2007. (Reference: Statistical
Supplement)

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To summarize, there was a favourable con uence of the domestic and international factors
that contributed to the growth of Indian economy from 2003 to 2008.

Current situation
In this background, it is important to understand how the domestic and international
scenario is unfolding. These developments will determine how fast Indian economy can
grow.

A. Domestic factors
1. Health of Banking industry
Banking industry is critical for any economy. Banks perform the important task of
lending to corporates that play an important role in the economy. Rapid growth of Indian
economy prior to 2008 and the developments from 2008 to 2014 sowed the seeds of what
later emerged as the crisis for the banking.

The problem of stalled projects

Assuming that the growth would continue for the foreseeable future, various corporations
went for new projects and/or expansion of their capacity. Banks also lent to these companies
aggressively with the assumption that the repayment would not be a problem because
economic progress would help these companies generate enough funds for repayment.

The second term of Manmohan Singh’s UPA government was marred by policy paralysis
to a great extent. Electricity Act of 2003 permitted private companies to install thermal
power plants. However, the coal required for these plants was to be procured from Coal
India Ltd. The procedure was to allot ‘coal linkage’ to the private companies, which were
decided in the meeting of a cabinet committee. From 2010 to 2012, the cabinet committee
did not meet regularly, which delayed the allotment of coal linkages. After the allegations of
corruption in coal linkages were made in 2012 (so called Coal Scam), there was even more
hesitancy on the part of the government in granting coal linkages. Important government
clearances such as environmental clearances took time. Similar were the woes of many
highway projects, which were held up for want of land acquisition.

The problem was that banks had already lent for these projects and construction was also
underway with repayments expected to start, usually 3 years after releasing the amount
by the bank. If a power plant could not start operations due to unavailability of coal,
where would the plant generate the amount required for repayment? This resulted in
piling up of NPAs in banks.

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On http://164.100.117.97/WriteReadData/user les/89.pdf, you can get an idea about the

quantum of the projects that were stalled for one reason of the other. The total expected
investment of all the stalled projects ran into Lakhs of Crore rupees.

Allegations of corruption in banking

There have been serious allegations that various corporates got loans from PSU Banks
through their political connection without any regard to credit-worthiness. This reason
also contributed to the problem of NPAs.

Disclosure of NPAs
For a number of years, banks had misused the loopholes in RBI regulations on disclosing
the NPAs. However, in 2016, the RBI under the then governor Raghuram Rajan made the
disclosure norms more stringent which banks could not easily bypass. As a result from
2016 onwards, banks were forced to disclose the real NPA numbers.

As we can see on Bank NPAs: June 2019, the total NPA in top 36 banks in the country
increased from 6.71 Lakh Crore rupees in March 2017 to 9.66 Lakh Crore rupees in March
2018. In reality, NPAs were already there but they were correctly reported.

Consequences of bad health of the banks

1. Banks become less willing to lend to new borrowers. RBI can temporarily prevent
the banks from lending through a mechanism called ‘Prompt Corrective Action’ (PCR) in
case NPAs pile up signi cantly. In the following graph, we can clearly see the effect of
slow-down in credit growth in 2017-18.

(Source: https://www.ceicdata.com/datapage/charts/ipc_india_domestic-credit-growth/?ty
pe=line&period=max&lang=en)

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Lending is an important and essential activity for ensuring economic growth. Any
reluctance by banks can put a spanner in the growth engine.
2. Banks occupy a very important role in the economy and lie at the core of the economy.
Any large scale failure of banks would lead to signi cant disruptions in the economy.
At present, about 70% banking in India is controlled by PSU banks. Therefore, in
case of any trouble in PSU banks, it becomes imperative for the government to infuse
more funds and avert crisis in the PSU banks. Over last 11 years, the government
had to infuse about 3.15 Lakh Crore rupees in PSU banks (reference: https://www.
bloombergquint.com/economy- nance/psu-bank-recapitalisation-government-infused-
rs-315-lakh-crore-in-public-sector-banks-in-last-10-years). Chunk of this was infused in
last 2 years. For example, in October 2017, the government infused 2.11 Lakh Crore
in PSU banks (Reference: https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/banking/
nance/modi-govt-announces-mega-rs-2-lakh-11-thousand-crore-bank-recapitalisation-
and-rs-7-lakh-crore-road-plan/articleshow/61202075.cms?from=mdr) and announced
infusion of additional 70,000 Crores in the budget of 2019-2020.
These funds could have been better utilized by the government for building mean-
ingful infrastructure in the country or for any other productive usage. In a way, this
was a waste of taxpayers’ money.

2. Bankruptcy Code
We have to live with the fact that the chunk of the amount stuck in NPA will be lost
and will not come back. The best course of action is to salvage whatever possible from
the borrower and remove that loan from the balance sheet of the bank. This process is
called ‘cleaning of balance sheet’ of the bank.

The problem was that all these years the laws of the country were not stringent enough
to force bankruptcy on the defaulter companies and recover the amount owed. In 2016,
Government of India implemented Bankruptcy Code to address this important lacuna.

More than 10,000 cases have been referred under Bankruptcy Code. Initially the cases of
large borrowers were focussed on. So far resolution of 94 large cases with total outstanding
of 1.7 Lakh Crore rupees has been completed, out of which about 70,000 Crore rupees
have been realised. (Reference:
https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/indl-goods/svs/steel/ibc-resolves-cases-of-
94-companies-with-liabilities-of-rs-1-7-lakh-crore/articleshow/69877266.cms?from=mdr)

3. Goods and Services Tax

GST is the single biggest tax reform undertaken in the post-independent India. All the
indirect taxes such as Service Tax, Excise Duty etc have been combined into one GST.
Old system of having multiple taxes was time-consuming and led to signi cant loss of

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ef ciency. This is a very important step by the government. However, there have been
concerns about the implementation of the scheme. During last 2.5 years, the implementation
of ling the tax returns under GST have been progressively simpli ed.

One important fallout of GST is that it has become very dif cult to evade taxes under
GST. As a result, several transactions that were not included in the measure of economic
activity will be progressively reported.

All in all, GST is a significant step in the economic reforms in the country. It has a
potential to boost the growth in the coming years.

4. Other government policies

Government’s performance on other policies has been a mixed bag. First of all, the aim
of streamlining infrastructure in cities by building metros is de nitely a big plus point.
Government is also focusing big time on widening the highway infrastructure in many
places in the country. Some important road infrastructure work that was pending for years
such as Bogibil bridge in the North-East that signi cantly reduces travel time between
Assam and Arunachal Pradesh and Kollam bypass road have been completed. These steps
have the potential of ensuring long time growth.

However, on the other hand, certain steps taken by the government are inexplicable. No
matter all the tall claims made, demonetization exercise does not seem to have yielded
the results. Moreover during demonetization period, rules underwent multiple changes.
Initially, going for cashless (or less cash) economy found no mention in Prime Minister’s
address to the nation on 8th November 2016. However, later the cashless economy was
hailed as one grand aim of the exercise. All this seems inexplicable.
Government’s handling of the telecom sector is also inexplicable. When Jio was launched
in 2016 and initially everything was offered for free and later at very cheap prices, there
is a reason to suspect that the step was intended at capturing the market share through
predatory prices. The government, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India and the Competition
Commission should have stepped in to avert that, which did not happen. As a result, all
other players in the telecom industry have had to face the brunt.
Government’s approach seems more on the long term. The budget of 2019-2020 contained
a number of provisions to boost Electric vehicles. However, the concerns of the automobile
industry that is currently facing slowdown have not been addressed. On the other hand,
import duty on certain spare parts used in automobiles has been hiked. Electric vehicles
may be the future. However, giving all the emphasis on electric vehicles, while neglecting
the short-term concerns of the automobile industry seems baf ing.

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B. International Factors
International situation is not as stable as it was in the 2003-2008 period. The US under
Donald Trump has become more protective. The US has imposed tariffs on imports from
China. As a result, China also retaliated, leading to a trade war between the US and
China. There has been a lot of talk of agreement being reached between the US and
China, which has not yet culminated. There are protectionist tendencies in other parts of
the world, as can be seen from the Brexit referendum. This new wave of protectionism
can harm the ow of capital into India.
The situation in the Middle East, especially Syria continues to be volatile. Russia is solidly
backing Assad and helped him survive despite all odds. Further, Russia under Vladimir
Putin is very aggressive and is not willing to give in to the pressure of the West.
In the neighborhood of India also things are not very rosy. China is trying to encircle
India through efforts such as OBOR. Any repeat of an incident such as Pulwama attack
can potentially lead to escalation between India and Pakistan, which can derail India’s
growth engine.

Verdict
Considering the combination of domestic and international factors as well as government
policies, reaching the 5 trillion dollar mark by 2024 seems dif cult. However, the government
is taking some right initiatives, which will help us to reach the mark, if not by 2024, may
be by 2026 or 2027. In order for that to materialize, the international situation should not
deteriorate in terms of war or con icts. Moreover, the government should desist from
taking inexplicable decisions.

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2. Slowdown in Indian Economy- Reasons and Solutions

Meaning of Economic Growth:

The term economic growth is associated with economic progress and advancement.
Economic growth can be de ned as an increase in the capacity of an economy to produce
goods and services within a speci c period of time. An important characteristic of economic
growth is that it is never uniform or same in all sectors of an economy For example,
in a particular year, the telecommunication sector of a country has marked a signi cant
contribution in economic growth whereas the mining sector has not performed well as
far as the economic growth of the country- is concerned.

Type of Economic Growth:

1. Boom and Bust Business Cycles: If economic growth is high-speed and in ationary,
then the level of growth will become unsustainable. This could lead to a recession
like the Great Recession in 2008. However, this type of growth is typical of a busi-
ness cycle.
2. Export-led: The Japanese and Chinese economy have experienced export-led growth
thanks to a high current account surplus. This is because they have signi cantly more
exports than imports.
3. Consumer-led: The US economy is dependent on consumer spending to stimulate
economic growth. As a result, they also have a higher current account de cit.
4. Commodity-led: These economies are dependent on their natural resources like oil or
iron ore. For example, Saudi Arabia has had a very prosperous economy thanks to
its oil exports. However, this can cause a problem when commodity prices fall, and
there aren’t other industries to balance things out.

In economics, economic growth refers to a long-term expansion in the productive potential

of the economy to satisfy the wants of individuals in the society. Sustained economic
growth of a country’ has a positive impact on the national income and level of employment,
which further results in higher living standards.
Apart from this, it plays a vital role in stimulating government nances by enhancing tax
revenues. This enables the government to earn extra income for the further development
of an economy. The economic growth of a country can be measured by comparing the
level of Gross National Product (GNP) of a year with the GNP of the previous year. In
real sense, economic growth is related to increase in per capita national output or net
national product of a country that remain constant or sustained for many years.
Economic growth can be achieved when the rate of increase in total output is greater
than the rate of increase in population of a country. For example, in 2005-2006, the rate
of increase in India’s GNP was 9.1%, while its population growth rate was 1.7%.
In such a case, per capita increase in GNP would be 7.4% (=9.1-1.7). On the other hand,

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if the rate of increase in GNP and population is same then the actual growth of GNP
would be zero, which implies that there is a decrease in per capita income.
As a result, there would be no economic growth. Therefore, in such a case, standard of
living of people would not improve even when there is an increase in the total output
of a country. However, such a growth is better than the stagnation of an economy.
The economic growth of a country is possible if strengths and weaknesses of the economy
are properly analysed.Economic analysis provides an insight into the essentials of an
economy. It is a systematic process for determining the optimum use of scarce resources
and selecting the best alternative to achieve the economic goal. Moreover, economic analysis
helps in assessing the causes of different economic problems, such as in ation, depression,
and economic instability. It is performed by taking into consideration various economic
variables, such as demand, supply, prices, production cost, wages, labor, and capital.

The economic growth of a country may get hampered due to a number of factors, such
as trade de cit and alterations in expenditures by governmental bodies. Generally, the
economic growth of a country is adversely affected when there is a sharp rise in the
prices of goods and services.

Following are some of the important factors that affect the economic growth of
a country:

(a) Human Resource/ Human Capital:

Refers to one of the most important determinants of economic growth of a country. The
quality and quantity of available human resource can directly affect the growth of an
economy.
The quality of human resource is dependent on its skills, creative abilities, training, and
education. If the human resource of a country is well skilled and trained then the output
would also be of high quality.
On the other hand, a shortage of skilled labor hampers the growth of an economy,
whereas surplus of labor is of lesser signi cance to economic growth. Therefore, the human
resources of a country should be adequate in number with required skills and abilities,
so that economic growth can be achieved

(b) Natural Resources:

Affect the economic growth of a country to a large extent. Natural resources involve
resources that are produced by nature either on the land or beneath the land. The resources
on land include plants, water resources and landscape.
The resources beneath the land or underground resources include oil, natural gas, metals,
non-metals, and minerals. The natural resources of a country depend on the climatic and
environmental conditions. Countries having plenty of natural resources enjoy good growth

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than countries with small amount of natural resources.

The ef cient utilization or exploitation of natural resources depends on the skills and
abilities of human resource, technology used and availability of funds. A country having
skilled and educated workforce with rich natural resources takes the economy on the
growth path.
The best examples of such economies are developed countries, such as United States,
United Kingdom, Germany, and France. However, there are countries that have few natural
resources, but high per capita income, such as Saudi Arabia, therefore, their economic growth
is very high. Similarly, Japan has a small geographical area and few natural resources, but
achieves high growth rate due to its ef cient human resource and advanced technology.

(c) Capital Formation/ Infrastructure:

Involves land, building, machinery, power, transportation, and medium of communication.
Producing and acquiring all these manmade products is termed as capital formation. Capital
formation increases the availability of capital per worker, which further increases capital/
labor ratio. Consequently, the productivity of labor increases, which ultimately results in
the increase in output and growth of the economy.

(d) Technological Development:

Refers to one of the important factors that affect the growth of an economy. Technology
involves application of scienti c methods and production techniques. In other words,
technology can be de ned as nature and type of technical instruments used by a certain
amount of labor.
Technological development helps in increasing productivity with the limited amount of
resources. Countries that have worked in the eld of technological development grow
rapidly as compared to countries that have less focus on technological development. The
selection of right technology also plays a role for the growth of an economy. On the
contrary, an inappropriate technology- results in high cost of production.

(e) Social and Political Factors:

Play a crucial role in economic growth of a country. Social factors involve customs, traditions,
values and beliefs, which contribute to the growth of an economy to a considerable extent.
For example, a society with conventional beliefs and superstitions resists the adoption
of modern ways of living. In such a case, achieving becomes dif cult. Apart from this,
political factors, such as participation of government in formulating and implementing
various policies, have a major part in economic growth.

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Factors limiting Economic Growth:

1. Poor health and low levels of education
People who don’t have access to healthcare or education have lower levels of pro-
ductivity. This lack of access means the labor force is not as productive as it could
be. Therefore, the economy does not reach the productivity it could otherwise.
2. Lack of necessary infrastructure
Developing nations often suffer from inadequate infrastructures such as roads, schools,
and hospitals. This lack of infrastructure makes transportation more expensive and
slows the overall ef ciency of the country.
3. Flight of Capital
If the country is not delivering the returns expected from investors, then investors
will pull out their money. Money often ows out of the country to seek higher rates
of returns.
4. Political Instability
Similarly, political instability in the government scares investors and hinders investment.
For example, historically, Zimbabwe had been plagued with political uncertainty and
laws favoring indigenous ownership. This instability has scared off many investors
who prefer smaller but surer returns elsewhere.
5. Institutional Framework
Often local laws don’t adequately protect rights. Lack of an institutional framework
can severely impact progress and investment.
6. The World Trade Organization
Many economists claim that the World Trade Organization (WTO) and other trad-
ing systems are biased against developing nations. Many developed nations adopt
protectionist strategies which don’t help liberalize trade.

Current Scenario of Indian Economy

The crisis brewing within the Indian economy has gained unanimous acceptance by now.
Even the latest annual report of the RBI for the scal year 2018-19 (or FY19) con rmed that
the Indian economy has indeed hit a rough patch. The GDP growth rate of the economy
has slipped to 5 per cent in the rst quarter of FY20, the lowest in over six years. This is
an indication of tougher times ahead. Be it the recent collapse of the automobile sector or
the rising number of non-performing assets (NPAs),sluggish consumer demand or failing
manufacturing sector; all have a hand in this deceleration of growth rate.
The spurt in instances of job losses from automobile manufacturers to biscuit makers has
led to the general acceptance of the downturn. This is the third instance of an economic
slowdown for India in the past decade after the ones that began in June 2008 and March
2011. The technical term for the same is growth recession. A recession is defined in

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economics as three consecutive quarters of contraction in GDP. But since India is a large
developing economy, contraction is a rarity. The last instance of negative growth for India
was in 1979. A growth recession is more commonplace where the economy continues to
grow but at a slower pace than usual for a sustained period, what India has been facing
nowadays.

Reasons behind India’s economy slowdown:

1. Collapse in Private Consumption and Investment Freeze Leading to Double Whammy:

The growth of the Indian economy had been predominated by consumption inclusive
of both -- Private Final Consumption Expenditure (PFCE) as well as the Government
Final Consumption Expenditure (GFCE), given that it forms around three- fths of the
Indian economy. And any slowdown here is bound to affect the overall economy.
Except for perhaps retail loans given by banks, there is a contraction in all other pa-
rameters which measure consumption in different ways. Over the last ve years, the
total consumption expenditure by Indian households had accelerated with an average
growth rate of 7.8 per cent compared to an average of 6.1 per cent in 2011-14. But
the recent sharp fall in PFCE in the June quarter to 3.1 per cent compared to 7.2 per
cent in the March quarter has signi cantly contributed to the recent slowdown.
That being said, any fall in consumption expenditure, as and when it would happen,
would escalate the crisis even more. If consumption spending falls, then output and
employment levels also fall since consumption expenditure directly impacts the other
two. As a consequence, the economy would stagnate, and prices de ate. Lower prices,
if unable to recover the costs, would halt the operations of any rm and would
initiate the layoff process. This, in turn, reduces earnings further. Hence this vicious
cycle keeps on repeating itself until the economy slips into a deeper state of shock.
In addition, another major component of India's GDP is investment, induced by both
-- private and government sectors. It has been a key driver of growth since the liber-
alisation of 1991. Though gross xed capital formation (GFCF), the main constituent
of investment in the economy, increased, yet its contribution to growth fell by 6.2
percentage points in 2014-19 than in 2011-14. The slackening of investment lowers
the level of infrastructure development, causes hesitation in creating small businesses,
stop entrepreneurs from investing in research and development, and thus stagnates
technological development. Capital Investments are long-term gains that generate
pro tability for many years by improving operational ef ciency and boosting inno-
vation. It goes without saying that for holistic growth of the economy and to gain
competitive edge over others, the economy must innovate.

Performances of different sectors:

Domestic car sales: During April to June 2019, car sales fell by 23.3% in comparison to the
same period in 2018. This is the biggest contraction in quarterly sales since 2004 (that’s how

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far back the quarterly data in the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy database goes).
A slowdown in car sales negatively impacts everyone from tyre manufacturers to steel
manufacturers to steering manufacturers etc., when it comes to the backward linkages that
car manufacturers have. As far as forward linkages are concerned, many auto dealerships
are shutting down or shrinking. At the same time, the vehicle loans growth has slowed
down to 5.1%, the slowest it has been in ve years.

Two-wheeler sales: These have not been as badly hit as car sales. Between April and
June 2019, two-wheeler sales contracted by 11.7%. This is the biggest fall since October
to December 2008, when two-wheeler sales had contracted by 14.8%, in the aftermath of
the start of the nancial crisis. In fact, even mopeds are not selling, with their sales down
19.9% between April and June 2019 (In 2018-2019, a total of 880,000 mopeds were sold,
suggesting there is still good demand for them).

Tractor sales: A good indicator of rural demand, tractor sales during April to June 2019,
fell by 14.1%, the highest fall in nearly four years.

Domestic commercial vehicle sales: This is seen as an economic indicator of industrial

activity. Faster sales indicate a robust activity on the infrastructure and industrial front.
Commercial vehicles are used to move around nished as well as semi- nished goods.
Sales of these vehicles during April to June 2019 fell by 9.5%, the highest contraction in
ve years, telling us that all is not well on the investment front. Between April to June
2018, sales had gone up by 51.6%.

Housing sales: As per Liases Foras, a real estate research company, India’s top 30 cities
had 1.28 million unsold housing units as of March 2019, a jump of 7% from March 2018,
when the number was at 1.2 million. This means that builders are building new houses
at a faster pace than people are buying them. The real estate sector has forward and
backward linkages with 250 ancillary industries. So, when the real estate sector does well,
many other sectors, right from steel and cement to furnishings, paints, etc., do well too.
This is something which isn’t happening currently. The fact that real estate prices haven’t
gone up in years makes people feel less wealthy and as a result spend less.

Bank retail loans: This data point goes against the trend. During April to June 2019, the
retail loans of banks grew by 16.6% in comparison to the same period last year. During
the same period last year, they had grown by 17.9%. There has been a marginal fall in
growth. Housing loans form more than half of the retail loans—they grew by 18.9% during
the quarter against 15.8% last year.
How does one explain the fact that housing loans are growing and so is the number of
unsold homes? A possible explanation for the fact is that people are now buying homes
from investors who had bought many homes between 2003 and 2012, instead of buying

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directly from a builder. To that extent these are not new homes and hence, cannot create
the kind of economic activity that the building of a new home can.
Other than home loans, credit card outstanding grew by 27.6% between April and June
2019, against 31.3% in April to June 2018. Again, a marginal fall at best. This also explains,
why every time you tell someone there is a slowdown, they reply, but the malls and
restaurants are packed. Credit cards are used by a certain section of the population and
at least, when it comes to them, they haven’t slowed down on spending on small ticket
items.

FMCG companies: The volume growth or the number packs sold, of fast-moving consumer
goods (FMCG) companies has slowed down over the last one year. If we look at Hindustan
Unilever Ltd, the volume growth between April and June 2019 was at 5%. It was 12%
during the same period last year. There are other examples as well. Dabur India posted
a volume growth of 6% during April and June 2019, against 21% last year. Britannia was
down to 6% against 13% last year. Indeed, this is worrying, given that people seem to
be going slow on making everyday purchases.

Non-oil non-gold non-silver imports: This is a good indicator of consumer demand as it

indicates when people buy more imported goods. During April to June 2019, these imports
fell by 5.3%, the biggest contraction in three years. They had risen by 6.3% during the
same period last year.
Investment insight:Fresh investments are very important for the GDP of any economy to
keep growing, for the simple reason that they create new jobs, which in turn leads to
higher incomes and higher spending, creating economic growth. Unfortunately, things are
not looking good on the investment front. Consider:

Bank lending to industry: This crucial indicator had remained almost at for a couple
of years, and it has improved in the recent past. For April to June 2019, it went up by
6.5% against 0.9% between April to June 2018. This was largely on account of lending to
large industries, which grew by 7.6%, against 0.8% last year. When it comes to lending
to micro and small industries, the growth was almost at at 0.6% against 0.7% last year.
While lending to big industry is important, it is the micro and small industries which
tend to create the bulk of any jobs in any economy, as they grow bigger.

Revenue-earning rail freight: The bulk of the freight operations of Indian Railways is
concentrated around moving certain commodities like coal, pig iron, cement, petroleum,
fertilizers, iron ore etc. If the Railways is moving more of these commodities around the
length and breadth of this country, it’s a good indicator of investment and industrial
activity picking up. How do things look on this front? This indicator grew by 2.7%
between April and June 2019, the slowest in nearly two and a half years. It had grown
by 6.4% between April and June 2018.

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Final consumption of nished steel: Creation of any new physical infrastructure requires
steel. Hence, a faster increase in steel consumption than in the past shows increased
investment activity than in the past. The consumption of nished steel grew by 6.6%
between April and June 2019, in comparison to the same period during the last year,
when it had grown by 8.8%. This was the slowest in two years.
New investment projects announced: The value of new projects announced during April
to June 2019 fell by 79.5% year on year. This is the highest fall since September 2004. In
absolute terms, the value of new investment projects announced during April to June 2019
stood at ₹71,337 crore, the lowest since September 2004. This is a great indicator of the
fact that businesses really do not have faith in the economic future of India, irrespective
of what they say in the public domain.
Investment projects completed: The investment projects completed fell by 48% in comparison
to the last year. This is the highest fall since September 2004. In absolute terms, the value
of the projects completed during the quarter stood at ₹69,494 crore, the lowest in nearly
ve years.

Expenditure and net exports: Government expenditure tends to form around 10-11% of the
Indian economy (in current terms, without adjusting for in ation). In the last two scal
years, the growth in government expenditure was at 19.1% and 13.2%, the highest since
the nancial crisis years of 2008-09 and 2009-10 and was instrumental in driving economic
growth to some extent. How do things look in 2019-20? To drive economic growth, the
government needs to spend more and for that the tax growth is important. During April
to June 2019, the gross tax revenue of the central government went up by just 1.4% to  4
lakh crore. During the same period last year, the gross tax revenue had jumped by 22.1%.
What this tells us very clearly is that the government is clearly feeling the heat of the
economic slowdown. In this scenario, whether it will have the ability to increase its
spending like it did over the last two years, is a question well worth asking.

Finally, net exports: This gure for April to June 2019 stood at -$46 billion. This was
almost similar to the net exports for April to June 2018 at -$46.6 billion. This is primarily
because both exports and imports during the period were at almost similar levels as last
year. Given this, there hasn’t been any increased economic activity on the exports front
either.

2. The Effect of Demonetization:

Indeed, Demonetization can be said to have contributed too much of the slowdown
as the Double Whammy of demand collapsing, and supply bottlenecks mean that
there is a broad slowdown across the entire value chain of the demand and supply
dynamics.
Thus, what we have is a situation wherein cash has dried up leading to a slowdown

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in the economy, consumers suddenly prefer to hoard cash or keep it in the bank
instead of spending on consumer goods.
Moreover, demand has also collapsed in the rural areas as the entire rural economy
runs on cash and Demonetization led to the loss of jobs as well as incomes thereby
squeezing the rural consumer who now prefers to wait and watch as well as post-
pone consumption except that of essential goods and services.
Next, Demonetization has also led to small and medium businesses or the so-called
SMEs to withhold investment since they too operate on a cash basis and the cash
crunch has left them high and dry.
One must also take note of the fact that it is not only private consumption and small
enterprises causing the slowdown.
Indeed, the Big Corporates are as much to blame since they are drowning in debt
that they accumulated during the Boom Years of the rst decade of the 21st century.
It is also a fact that this has contributed to a freeze on investment by industrial houses
and corporates who are now paying down the debt or postponing debt repayments
to ensure that their present cash ow is suf cient to remain in business.

3. Too Much Debt:

Added to this is the fact that most Public Sector Banks are saddled with high NPAs
or Non-Performing Assets that have resulted in them tightening lending and instead,
seeking deposits and otherwise repairing their balance sheets by making provisions
for Bad Loans.
Indeed, absent recapitalization of such banks by the government, one might very well
see a vicious cycle wherein bad debts and demand collapse lead to no lending and
no fresh investment in addition to any consumption.
The cycle has to be broken somewhere, and this is where the Government and the
RBI or the Reserve Bank of India have to take concerted action.

4. Rollout of GST:
Fourth, the fact that the rollout of the GST or the Goods and Services Tax on a
nationwide basis has led to the slowdown cannot be denied.
Indeed, GST has hampered the small businesses more than Demonetization by forcing
them to withhold inventory until they migrate to the GSTN or the GST Network and
become compliant with the numerous rules and regulations that are part of this tax.
It can be said that the implementation of GST is also awed thereby exacerbating
some of the factors that have contributed to the slowdown.

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5. Global Slowdown:
It is not these factors alone, and the most important factor is that there is also a
global economic slowdown that is happening and given the fact that India is a net
commodity exporter, there has been a slump in the volumes of exports.
Apart from that, the global slowdown has also been accompanied by a retreat of
globalization which has resulted in FDI or Foreign Direct Investment being only in
the areas of speculative nance and distressed assets purchases rather than into in-
vestments that help the Real Economy.
Thus, it can be said that ongoing global headwinds also have contributed to the
slowdown in the Indian Economy.

6. Retreat of Globalization:
Hence, what the slowdown means for professionals and fresh graduates is that they
would be nding it harder to land jobs as well as see their salaries rise year on year
basis. In addition, the policies of the Trump Administration have contributed to a
decline in the number of students and professionals going to the United States and
added to this, Brexit uncertainties have compounded the situation.
It looks as though that the combined effect of all these factors means that the Indian
Economy is likely to remain in the doldrums for some time to come.

7. Ride out the Storm:

Lastly, the slowdown is also part of a longer-term structural shift wherein the Economy
is shifting gears from the high investment era to a low investment era as well as a
transition from being cash-driven economy to a digitally enabled economy.
Indeed, this can be seen most in the Real Estate Sector that has come to a grind in
recent months and hence, has also contributed to the slowdown. All in all, all the
factors have caused a Perfect Storm for the Indian Economy, and there has to be a
time lag before one can reasonably and realistically expect a turnaround.
To conclude, the best option now for all stakeholders would be to Ride out the Storm.

Almost all these economic indicators suggest that we are well into an economic slowdown,
and it can possibly get worse from here. The irony is that this slowdown seems to be
obvious to everyone except the government. The question this leaves us with is, how do
you solve a problem without acknowledging it rst?

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Solutions for the current slowdown:

Rising oil prices could hold up fund-based measures:
Policymakers should approach the various crises from a different angle.
The economy has not faced in a decade — from around the 2008 global nancial crisis
and its aftermath — the kind of headwinds it is confronting now. The rst symptom was
visible over ve years ago, when exports began to stagnate at, a time when the global
economy was pulling its weight.
More recently has come the GDP growth slowdown, just when the country’s leaders were
in a gung-ho about India becoming a $5-trillion economy. The fact that of cialdom had
no foreboding of a slowdown has now been admitted by the central bank governor. So,
efforts will rst have to be made to nd what went wrong before devising measures to
set things right.
This exercise will be further complicated by the fact that the GDP gures themselves may
be inaccurate. You need one set of policies to boost the growth rate from 5 per cent and
a different set of policies and emphasis to address a near-crisis situation of 2-3 per cent
growth.
On top of the twin slowdowns, the serious prospects of a sharp rise in global energy
prices emerged after the attack on Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities. If things do not return to
normal soon, domestic energy prices will go up signi cantly (they have just been upped
already by 14-15 paise per litre).

Ease of doing business:

So, what kind of a policy regime will be needed to address these headwinds? The best
thing policymakers can do, and it is not a fund-based measure, is to look all around to
improve the ease of doing business, keeping in mind the way progress on this front was
celebrated not so long ago.
A small beginning has been made by the Finance Minister assuring urgent efforts to reduce
the turnaround time at Indian ports and airports, so that they conform to international best
practices. Otherwise, Indian exporters cannot be ef cient participants in global value chains.
From looking outwards, if we turn around a full 180 degrees, we will nd that the Indian
farmer can hugely bene t if instead of having to rely on government-supported prices
for his produce, he is able to sell it to whomever he chooses and thus get a better price
from the market itself. The Centre and States have to put their heads together to remove
all impediments in the way of the country becoming an integrated market for agricultural
produce, which may then be traded across the border easily. This solution may even save
the government some price support spending.
When the corporate sector sees a business opportunity for itself by, for example, looking
at the currently prevailing farm-to-fork mark-up for food, it will be ready to invest in the
supply chain by laying out the infrastructure (cold chain, godowns, etc) and owning it.
Again, there is little need for government spending and it can be a life changer for the

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farmer with a stagnating income.

Better incomes for farmers will boost demand for consumer goods and remove the cloud
currently hanging over FMCG companies, which are seeing a fall in demand for even
the cheapest biscuits. Just a small rise in demand from the 50 per cent of Indians living
off agriculture (better price realisation by farmers will lead to better farm wages) will do
much to address the slack in consumer demand.
Policy tweaks:
In boosting consumer demand, the government should go all out to make the rural
employment guarantee scheme better. To take one example, cashew-nut processing farms
are currently facing challenges from two quarters — price competition from imported nuts
mechanically processed and higher wages to be on par with the employment guarantee
scheme. If the scheme works better, it will produce enormous welfare gains (improve
the quality of spending) at only marginally higher government expenditure, in relation
to total expenditure.
Another small-ticket item which can have a large impact on the emerging water famine in
India is promoting small irrigation works like excavation of local ponds and construction
of small bandhs, which will harvest rain water and recharge groundwater. Enhanced micro
watershed management will boost the rain-fed farm sector, home to the poorest who
depend on the yearly monsoon without any backup for a drought year.
If we again turn our heads and look at the nancial sector comprising banks and non-
banking nance companies (NBFCs), addressing their liquidity needs and helping individual
NBFCs avoid default will boost business across sectors which were hurt by credit drying
up post the IL&FS collapse. Recapitalisation of banks need not fully impact the scal
arithmetic, and more liquidity to NBFCs can come from an easier market and some easing
of rules by the monetary authorities.
The entire discussion has been focussed on ensuring that the scal burden does not become
onerous. Until the oil disruption, some loosening of scal purse strings could have been
easily considered as in ation had been low. But if oil global prices keep ruling high
leading domestic prices to be raised signi cantly, then there will be impact on in ation,
and the space for scal action will be reduced.
Growth has momentum and slowdown has inertia. The Indian GDP growth has fallen to
5 per cent in the April-June quarter, from 8 per cent. This slowdown can only be reversed
if both short-term and long-term reforms are undertaken.
The fall in GDP growth is sudden and dramatic. Till now, while only businesses were
talking about the slowdown, it is now a reality for the country. People worry about how
bad things are and is this bottom or the beginning of a slowdown.
There is concern about the speed and nature of the government and industry's response,
and will these actions turnaround things immediately, or not.
These concerns and perceptions need answers as they affect consumer con dence and
consumption. Acknowledging the problem is not a sign of weakness or acceptance of any

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blame. It's a fact that leadership in the corporate sector has failed to recognize the major
transition taking place in their sector that has affected consumer demand.
Take the auto sector, for example. It did not prepare for shifts in consumer behaviour
and market needs. They contribute almost 6 per cent to the GDP and offer employment
to 37 million people and are clamouring for stimulus on behalf of their employees.
The stimulus has to be for both employees and corporates. The sector is asking stimulus
to protect jobs, but it does not mean it will happen as they move to electric vehicles (EV).
EVs have a fraction of moving parts as compared to an internal combustion engine. The
engine and drive line are two crucial components of the internal combustion engine that
contribute 50 per cent of the auto component industries' revenues. The move to EV will
disrupt the supply chain of components at one end and maintenance and repair on the
other. This needs speci c incentives to upskill employees to maintain, repair or make
electric vehicles.
Upskilling of mid-level workers is the core component of all sectoral stimulus packages.
The disruption in industries is not cyclical or because of economic slowdown. There is a
structural shift in many industries because of technology or shift in consumer preferences.
Automation is affecting jobs in both manufacturing and services, which displacement is
also affecting the consumption cycle.
The stimulus for auto companies has to promote investment. India needs an investment
of $40 billion in batteries for EVs. Auto companies can get incentives for making this
investment. They can be incentives to shift existing production lines to electric cars.
These are, however, palliative measures and will not turnaround the economy. The bigger
issue is revival of consumption demand.
The government has had discussions with several sections of business and economists
over the last few weeks. It has plucked out all the prickly issues which created a negative
perception and eroded trust. But if a tyre is losing air pressure removing nails from the
road ahead will not stop the air from leaking.
Action has to inspire con dence among consumers to spend and for industry to invest.
Removing taxation on foreign portfolio investor and other prickly issues is a hygiene factor.
It shows the government is correcting mis-steps faster. Addressing it within a week, which
the Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman did shows the speed of response.
This is important as it will bring back the con dence in the industry, investors and market.
But the con dence to spend or even pay EMIs has to be restored.
It is equally important to set the right expectations for a return to normalcy or a turnaround
in the growth. The massive mandate this government received shows the expectation of the
common man. Not setting the expectation right or distorting the timelines will not serve
to inspire consumer con dence. People are pragmatic and patient if they understand the

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time it will take to come out of the current situation. They know there are no shortcuts
out of slowdowns.
The current initiatives are either short-term measures or long-term reforms. The consolidation
of Public Sector Banks (PSBs) announced on August 30, falls into the latter category. It will
not turnaround the banking sector, ease the credit ow or even improve the transmission
of interest cuts -- the three most important problems contributing to the slowdown. The
consolidation will take time.
The consolidation of the PSBs is a structural reform much needed, long overdue and
may reduce the recapitalisation requirements. The governance reforms will improve the
process of supervision, hiring and compensation. It will not change the credit evaluation,
disbursement and monitoring of loans, which is the core problem in PSBs.
The culture of poor evaluation of borrowers and lack of risk mitigation has contributed to
the non-performing asset (NPA) mess in the PSBs. This culture cannot vanish overnight
as it's entrenched in processes and behaviour.
Banking leadership can use the disruption to overhaul the culture and build a new system
and processes. If they get sucked into the merger and take their eyes off credit growth,
customer retention, their merged entity will be weaker than the sum of the parts.
Both merger and governance reforms were important but are obviously not suf cient from
the slowdown point of view.
To kick-start the consumption cycle money has to go into the common man's pocket. This
can happen by reducing income tax for the lowest slab, as recommended by the Direct
Tax Code report. It can be done by making GST ling quarterly for MSMEs with less
than Rs 10 crore turnover to ensure they survive the slowdown. The GST Council can
look at reducing rate slabs and reduce the overall burden on corporates.

Immediate steps:
1. Give auto sector incentives to invest and shift to electric vehicles.
2. Incentives to auto sector employees to upskill on electric vehicles.
3. Change GST collection to quarterly for companies below Rs 1 crore.
4. Reduce the GST slab rates.
5. Adopt the Direct Tax Code, cut income tax for the bottom slab.
6. Improve credit ow to both consumer and industry.
7. Reduce real interest rates by 135 basis points as cost of capital has to come down.
8. Change the credit culture in public sector banks.
9. Stimulus should drive investment, upskilling for displaced employees.
10. Factor market reforms, including bringing the cost of land down.

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3. India-A Dangerous Country For Women

A macabre rape-murder dents Hyderabad’s image as a safe city, once again highlighting
the continuing national epidemic of sexual assault and the chronic failure of our criminal
justice system! In the later weeks after this case, we observed a familiar pattern unfold-
public anger, media frenzy and promises of stricter laws by legislators. There was a strong
sense of déjà vu in the air, accompanied with a sinking feeling that the needle hadn’t
moved forward in all these years. Supposedly, women were more likely to report abuse
and sexual attacks after the 2012 Delhi gang-rape, but unfortunately, there has been little
or no impact on arrests and conviction rates, according to a study published in February
2019.
The national outrage over the Hyderabad incident echoes the public response after the
Nirbhaya episode of 2012, suggesting widespread concern about such crimes against
women, particularly in the cities. The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), which
released its 2017 data this October, says a total of 3,59,849 cases of crimes against women
were reported, a 6 per cent rise over the previous year. Of these, assault on women with
'intent to outrage her modesty' comprised 21.7 per cent and rape comprised 7 per cent.
The criminal justice delivery system is still not equipped to cope with this. The NCRB
data indicates that in 86 per cent rape cases, the police le charge-sheets but trial courts
are able to dispose of only 13 per cent of the pending cases, with the conviction rate as
low as 32 per cent. In child rape cases, the conviction rate is 34.2 per cent and pendency
82.1 per cent. Over two years to 2015, the annual average reporting of rape cases in Delhi
was 23% higher compared to the annual average over a decade to 2011. The average
annual reporting of molestation and sexual harassment during 2013-2015 was 40% higher
compared to the annual average reporting before the Nirbhaya case.
Recently, a survey conducted by the Thomson Reuters Foundation, has ranked India as
the world's most dangerous country for women, ahead of Afghanistan, Syria and Saudi
Arabia. According to the report, India is the most dangerous country for women in terms
of human traf cking, including sex slavery and domestic servitude and for customary
practices such as forced marriage, stoning and female infanticide. Debate over the state
of women in India has intensi ed after the survey results were presented by Thomson
Reuters Foundation.The methodology used was a survey of 548 respondents on six different
indices -healthcare, discrimination, culture traditions, sexual and non-sexual violence, and
human traf cking. However, the question arises that was it right for the Foundation to
rank the nations just on the basis of perceptions of experts without even disclosing their
names and without using any government data?
While the government has criticized the survey’s ranking, many have questioned how
countries like Saudi Arabia and Afghanistan, which grant far fewer rights to women,

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managed to perform better. The country's National Commission for Women rejected it
outright, saying that countries where women could not speak out, had done better. They
have also pointed out that rape, harassment and other forms of violence against women
have risen in India because more cases are being reported, driven by public outrage.
Additionally, an interesting data says that Thomson Reuters Foundation declares female
genital mutilation (FGM) as one the parameters in cultural traditions where India has been
ranked the worst. But, according to a report of WHO, India is not even mentioned in the
list of 29 countries where female genital mutilation is prevalent. This data itself re ects
the validity of the new survey.
However, many women welcomed this survey as well. RoopRekhaVerma, a college professor
and social activist said, “A better methodology, rooted in intensive data and empirical
work, could have been used of course, but if more than 500 gender specialists view it
like this, it has to be taken seriously. These aren't perceptions from people on the streets
- these are well-informed experts”. Though the government has been quick to question
the Reuters survey, but India has no reason to gloat - a look at the of cial crime statistics
shows a woman is raped every 13 minutes; six women are gang-raped every day; a bride
is murdered for dowry every 69 minutes; and 19 women are attacked with acid every
month. Adding to that, there are thousands of reported cases of sexual harassment, stalking,
voyeurism and domestic violence. Actually, this ranking does matter - because it shows
that India has lost the battle of perceptions. And sometimes, perceptions do matter. So,
instead of being a scapegoat, India should do some soul-searching to see how things can
be improved from the grass root level for the women. India has to convince the world
that it's not a hostile territory for the female gender and gets off from lists like these.
Apart from all these surveys and rankings, there is one question that is dwelling in people’s
mind- Is India safe for women? The most shocking thing is that most of the Indian women
who came across the news that India has been ranked the most dangerous country for
women by a Thomson Reuters survey, was not lled with shock. The reality is women
in India grow up, very aware of their position – inside the home and outside it. Even
if a few of them are lucky enough to be given some freedom, they are immediately told
that they are privileged – something not many Indian women or girls are given. Every
day, horrendous news of rapes, assaults and violence against women make them furious,
anguished and enraged. It makes them question humanity, the law, government, security
forces, and the whole existence of mankind. Why do the 49% of the country’s population,
who are identi ed as women, have to ght for a basic right like the right to safety? The
successful veterinarian from Hyderabad, who was mercilessly gang-raped and murdered,
or the minor girl in Unnao, Uttar Pradesh did not deserve such a horri c fate. However,
these are the cases, which have been reported and covered by the media. We cannot even
imagine the life stories of endless such girls whose tragedies remain untold.
But, it’s unbelievable how the government have turned a blind eye towards the pain and

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suffering of the women of the country. Forget taking action, some still remain mum about
the ongoing situation of the country, believing that the outcry would eventually fade with
time. Anything and everything that is critical about the country is being dealt with this
exact attitude—denial and name calling. And if there is something more outrageous than
the above denial about data, it is about ‘personal experiences’.So, since no one has tried
to molest a particular person, India should be declared as the safest nation in the world.
Ironically, it is like I just had food, so world hunger is cured. While every party is keen
to include women in their agendas, they are not going beneath the surface. There are
so many unresolved issues within the sphere of gender in India. For any government,
women’s rights have always been a game; after all, women constitute an important vote-
bank. The problems of women exist not only in the rural areas of the country but also
in the urban setup. Infact, the urban setup is a monster of a different sort. For every
Kathua and Unnao case, there’s a Nirbhaya to go with it.
While we do see efforts being made to make society a safer place for women, we don’t
see any results. The reason is that this toxic culture is so deep-rooted that mere encounters
or death sentences cannot eradicate the violence against women. We have grown up
hearing tales of women as powerful goddesses. But, what we are witnessing is a totally
different tale. Our personal experiences have built in us a fear of the Indian society. It’s
so brutal that women often become oppressors of other women.The current situation in
India portrays that the number of crimes and the extent of cruelty against women is on
a constant rise. Let’s not forget that if the valor, courage, and esteem of women like
SushmaSwaraj, SwaraBhaskar, RanaAayub, Sonia Gandhi etc. can be reduced to grime, what
safety can the average Indian women expect? So, irrespective of the rankings, right now,
women’s safety in India and also across the world is like a cure for Cancer—WHICH
DOESN’T EXIST!
As it wasn’t until every radio channel, advertisement, banner and speech talked about the
Swachh Bharat Abhiyan that we gained consciousness of the importance of keeping our
country clean. What if that same voice declares a national emergency and tells the people
to clean their minds now? Isn’t it time that after Swachh Bharat, the nation should go on
its revolutionary path towards a Surakshit Bharat (Safe India)? So, instead of relying on
the government, let the change begin from within us!!

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4. Agricultural Crisis in India - The Root Cause and

Consequences

A study by a premier social sciences research institute reinforces what policymakers and
media have been talking about the past few years - that India is going through a deep
agrarian crisis. The Centre for Study of Developing Societies (CSDS), based in Delhi, found
that given an option majority of farmers in the country would prefer to take up some other
work. Poor income, bleak future and stress are the main reasons why they want to give
up farming. Around 18 per cent of respondents surveyed said it was because of family
pressure that they are continuing with farming. Why they want to give up farming. The
survey of 5,000 farm households across 18 states says that 76 per cent farmers would prefer
to do some work other than farming. Sixty-one per cent of these farmers would prefer to
be employed in cities because of better education, health and employment avenues there.
A high percentage of farmers complained of repeated losses; 70 per cent of respondents
said their crops were destroyed because of unseasonal rains, drought, oods and pest
attack. Is agriculture no longer a viable occupation? Let us look at some facts:
• Extreme distress in Rural India in the farm sector has resulted in an average 10,000
to 12,000 farmer suicides every year. In the recent months, the rural distress has also
led to widespread protests in certain states. Farmers across India also mobilized in
New Delhi to protest against the policies (or the lack of) of the government.
• A large number of farmers are living below the poverty line and incidents of suicides
are frequent.
• In May 2017, the Centre informed the Supreme Court that despite a multi-pronged
approach to improve income and social security of farmers, over 12,000 suicides have
been reported in agricultural sector since 2013.
• 20 lakh hectares of cultivable land is understood to have been acquired for non- agri-
cultural purposes. Further, 42% of farmers are ready to quit agriculture as occupation,
even as almost 70 crore of our population is dependent on agriculture. Agriculture
sector absorbs too many people. It is oversaturated with workers and farmers who
are depending on ever smaller returns from it.

What is Agrarian Crisis?

Starting in the 1990s, agriculture in India - particularly in rural India - has declined at
a devastating rate. This has had a calamitous impact on the livelihoods associated with
agriculture. A symptom of this agrarian distress, unprecedented in post-Independent
India, is a high rate of suicides amongst farmers. The crisis is characterized by low
institutionalized credit to small farmers. Between 1995 and 2014 -: 296,438 farmers have
committed suicide in India. On Starting in the 1990s, agriculture in India - particularly in
rural India - has declined at a devastating rate. This has had a calamitous impact on the

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livelihoods associated with agriculture. According to P. Sainath, a leading Indian journalist

who reports on the rural India and its unprecedented economic crisis, for the rst time
as per 2011 Census of India urban India added more to its population than rural India.
This implies that millions of people earlier engaged in agriculture are roaming around
the India in "footloose migration" search for daily wages. This points to the destruction
of livelihoods in the predominantly agrarian rural India. Another evidence for a major
agrarian crisis in India is the very high rate in which people are leaving occupations
associated with farming.

Why has the situation become so bad?

1. Poor Growth and falling farm incomes - The verge annual growth rate of agricul-
ture has remained very low at 1.5% or even below that. This is abysmally low as
compared to the growth rate of GDP. So, farm incomes have grown slower than the
rate of in ation. This has resulted in an overallfall in standard of living for smallas
well as marginalfarmersand they have been pushed below the poverty line.
2. Climate change impacting the monsoon - In the new millennium, Indian economy
has been experiencing tremendous uctuations in monsoon. The frequency of drought
years and excess rainfall years has increased. For example, 2002 was the year of
drought. 2003 had normal rainfall. 2005 and 2006 were years of excess rainfall. 2009
was characterized by drought followed by 2010, which had excess rainfall. 2014 and
2015 were the years of drought and 2016 and 2017 were the years of excess rainfall.
Also, there are seasonal variations. Areas such as Assam and coastal areas receive
excess rainfall whereas the plains receive less rainfall.
3. Flawed targets - The governments have insisted on 4% s the growth target for agri-
culture sector to ensure food security, inclusive growth and also to reduce the income
inequality that exists between ruralandurbanareas. However, with the growth in Indi's
population and rapid urbanization, this target is highly unrealistic and underestimated.
4. No policy innovation - Governments after governments have been carrying out old
policies to revive agriculture without taking into consideration the challenges posed
by changing environmental, strategic and technological considerations. Rather than
ensuring the steady growth in farm income, governments have been resorting to
populist measures such as loan waivers.
5. Farm Size - Over the years, the per capita agricultural land holding is on a decline
in India. In 2010-11, the farm size per capita was 1.6 hectares as compared to 2.26
hectares in 1970-71. Number of farm holdings has gone up but average size has
drastically reduced. This has resulted in decline in per farm output as like any other
industry, agriculture also gets bene tted by scale. In case of small farmers, their output
is reduced but number of dependents on farm has gone up, resulting in reduction
in marketable surplus (output that can be sold in the market) and they have become
subsistence agriculturists (producing suf cient only for their own survival).

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6. Lack of institutionalized credit - One of the major reasons of nationalization of banks

in 1969 was the reluctance of banks to set up branches in ruralareas. After that,
rural branches have gone up but still the credit availability is not as it should be.
Also, banks are reluctant to extend credit to farmers because of the low probability
of loan repayment. Due to political in uences and credit norms by the RBI, agricul-
tural credit creation gets hampered. Due to all these factors, farmers have to borrow
from moneylenders and other non-institutional players who take advantage of their
predicament and chargeusurious rates of interest, resulting in farmers getting into
debt traps.
7. Rapid and mindless urbanization - India, owing to the growth since liberalization of
economy since 1991, is one of the fast urbanizing countries in the World. However,
this urbanization process is often unplanned and mindless, resulting in indiscriminate
setting up of industrial clusters, factories, workshops and so on. This has resulted in
water resources such as rivers and ponds getting polluted and thereby affectingwa-
teravailability for agriculture. It has also resulted in rapidtransformation of land for
agricultural to non-agricultural.
8. Middlemen - Supply chain of agriculture in India has given a lot of power in the
hands of the middlemen such as arhatiys, brokers and agents. The ends of the supply
chain - producers i.e. farmers and consumers - both get exploited by the middlemen.
They purchase the output of farmers at lower price and sell it to consumers after
adding a hefty margin. So, neither the farmers get compensated for their efforts, nor
the consumers can buy food at a reasonable price.

Where is the problem?

Major States in Indiaare suffering from agrarian crisis:
1. Maharashtra - The state of Maharashtra is also one of the most industrialized and
urbanized states of Indiaand as such, the speed of transformation of land from ag-
ricultural to non-agricultural is also very fast. Vidarbhaand Marathwada regions of
Maharashtra have seen rise in farmer suicides over the years.
2. Andhra Pradesh and Telangana -The chief reasons for agrarian crisis here are - lack
of access to institutional credit, and high input costs and rapid urbanization. Telan-
gana, which wasa region in the state at that time suffered from it the most, owing
to its proximity to Hyderabad, the IT hub. It was further fuelled by unscrupulous
methods used by micro nance organizations which had extended credit to farmers.
3. Uttar Pradesh - The consecutive droughts of 2015 and 2016 created unprecedented
problems for farmers in Uttar Pradesh. Over the period of times, a lot of farmers
have switched from traditional crops like wheat, rice, millets and pulses to cash crops
such as sugarcane. These farmers were the worst affected by the droughts. Besides,
indiscriminate urbanization has resulted in widespread contamination of water re-
sources, including large rivers such as Gangaand Yamuna.

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4. Punjab and Haryana - Punjab was at the forefront of the famous Green Revolution
in 1960s. However, over the period of time, due to excess use of pesticides, fertil-
izers, high-yield seeds and ground water, agricultural productivity in Punjab is on a
steady decline.

Farm loan waivers - Do they solve the problem?

In November 2017, thousands of farmers gathered at the Ramlila Maidan in New Delhi.
Banners and ags of different organisations were waved, but what brought them together
was a common demand - a one-time complete waiver of farmer loans and fair prices
for their produce. Under a common umbrella of All India Kisan Sangharsh Coordination
Committee (AIKSCC) around 184 farmer groups from across states such as Tamil Nadu,
Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, and Telangana participated in the
protest walk. Yogendra Yadav, the national president of Swaraj India political party and
a member of the Swaraj Abhiyan, spearheaded the march from the Ramlila Maidan till
Parliament Street for the 'Kisan Mukti Sansad'. Waivers from farm loans have become a
politically contentious issue. For gaining political mileage, practically every political party
promises these waivers in its manifesto.
There are 2 very important questions that should be asked regarding farm loan waivers –
1. Are they really going to be helpful to farmers and
2. How long are the governments going to give them?
Since agriculture is a state topic and therefore decisions regarding agriculture are to be
taken by the states. Union Finance Minister has categorically stated that if the states are
willing to give farm loan waivers to the farmers, then the resources have to be generated
by the states themselves and they cannot expect the central government to provide them
with resources. However, experts across Indiaas well as the World have cautioned the
state governments that farm loan waivers cannot be a permanent solution and therefore,
should be used sparingly. They are de nitely going to put strains on the nances of the
states as the states will have to repay the loans to lending institutions.

Problems associated with Farm Loan Waivers:

1. These waivers are typically helpful to only those farmers who have borrowed from
lending institutions like banks. However, a large class of farmers remain beyond the
measures as they have not borrowed from these banks, and majority of these farmers
are small and marginal farmers, who are the most vulnerable to the crisis and need
waivers the most. In other words, those who need the waivers re the ones deprived
of them.
2. Using farm loan waivers is similar to using bandages when the patient is suffering
from a terminal disease. The major problem af icting Indian agriculture is that it's
extremely crowded. More than 50% of the population is directly dependent on it for
its livelihood whereas its contribution to the country's GDP is barely 15%. This situ-
ation is not sustainable and farm loan waivers do not address this malaise at all.

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3. Farm loan waivers put considerable strains on the states' resources. Due to them,
scal de cit rises and the states cannot undertake capital expenditure as there is a
resource crunch.
4. Repeated waivers create an incentive for default and encourage reckless behavior
from the borrowers.
5. Waivers affect the ow of credit to agricultural sector in the long run as lending
institutions will be naturally apprehensive to extend credit. It also affects innovations
and research and development in this sector.

Swaminathan Committee recommendations –

The government of India constituted the National Commission on Farmers (NCF) on
November 18, 2004. The NCF was chaired by Professor M.S. Swaminathan. It submitted
ve reports to the government. The rst was submitted in December 2004 and the fth
and final report was submitted on October 4, 2006. NCF's Swaminathan Commission
Report aimed at working out a system for food and nutrition security, sustainability in
the farming system, enhancing quality and cost competitiveness of farm commodities and
also to recommend measures for credit and other marketing related steps. Dr. Swaminathan
had requested the government to implement the recommendations given in the report so
that it could provide minimum support price for grains, safeguard the interest of small
farmers and addressing the issue of increasing risk overtaking agriculture as a profession.

What were the Commission's observations?

The Commission observed that farmers needed to have an assured access to and control
over rightful basic resources-land, water, bio resources, credit and insurance, technology and
knowledge management, and markets. It observed that agriculture must be implemented
in the concurrent list from the state list.

What are the Commission's key recommendations?

One of the key reforms was, of course, land reforms. It was aimed to address the issue
of access to and for both crops and livestock. The commission said that the inequality
in landholdings in shown starkly in land ownership. It said that in 1991-92, the share of
the bottom 50 per cent of the rural households in the country's total land ownership was
only three per cent. The top 10 per cent owned as much as 54 per cent.
1. Land Reforms: Distribution of ceiling-surplus and waste lands; prevention of diver-
sion of prime agricultural land and forest to corporate sector for non-agricultural use;
to ensure grazing rights are provided and seasonal access is allowed in forests to
tribals and pastoralists. It recommended access to common property resources. One
main case was establishing a National Land Use Advisory Service. The purpose of
this service would be to connect land usage decisions with ecological meteorological
and marketing factors.

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2. Irrigation Reforms: It recommended framing a set of reforms to provide farmers with

"sustained and equitable" access to water for irrigation. Ensuring boost in water sup-
ply by rainwater harvesting, water level recharging by mandatory aquifers; Million
Wells Recharge programme to be initiated targeted at private wells. To target increase
in investment in irrigation sector under 11th ve year plan.
3. Productivity Growth: NCF said that with the objective of achieving higher productiv-
ity growth, it recommended "Substantial increase in public investment in agriculture-
related infrastructure particularly in irrigation, drainage, land development, water
conservation, research development and road connectivity etc." It also recommended
a national network of advanced soil testing labs with an aim to test areas for apt
micronutrient levels.
4. Credit and Insurance: Expand outreach of formal credit system; reduce crop loan
interest rates to 4%; provide moratorium on debt recovery; agricultural risk fund;
kisan credit cards for women farmers; integrated credit-cum-crop-livestock human
health insurance package; crop insurance across country for all crops with reduced
premiums; sustainable livelihoods for the poor, investment in human development;
institutional development services etc.
5. Food Security: The commission recommended Implementation of a universal public
distribution system; reorganising delivery of nutrition support programmes on a
life-cycle basis with panchayat participation and that of local bodies; elimination of
micronutrient de ciency induced hunger and food cum forti cation; community food
and water banks to be operated by women self-help groups; help small and marginal
farmers; formulate national food guarantee act with features as food for work and
employment guarantee programmes.
6. Prevention of Farmer Suicides: Providing affordable health insurance at primary
healthcare centers in villages; national rural health mission to be extended to suicide
hotspots on priority basis; state level farmers' commissions with representatives of
farmers, restructuring of micro nance policies that may serve as a sort of livelihood
nance; covering all crops by crop insurance; village to be the assessor and not the
block, social security net that gives old age support with health insurance and aquifer
recharge and rain water conservation; plans for decentralized water usage etc.

Conclusion: The tens of thousands of farmers who protested in Delhi said that the
Swaminathan Committee had recommended some measures that the central government
needs to take to avert the agrarian crisis in India. However, after many years since the
recommendations were tabled, nothing has been done. It thus raises a question: If the
government’s attitude towards farming is not serious can it (farming) be a viable occupation
for the people of the country?

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5. Sabarimala Issue: Tradition vs. Women’s Democratic Rights

By allowing women of all ages to enter the Sabarimala Temple, the Supreme Court has set
a positive precedent regarding questions of religious equality. It is a signi cant milestone in,
• Unconditional respect for the equality of women and men
• Respect for the Constitution and the institutions the constitution has created
• Respect for the rights of religious adherents to follow their beliefs and practices, so
long as they do no harm to others; and the rule of law.

What is unusual about Sabarimala is that it offers the rst example of these invaluable
and seemingly unchallengeable principles clashing with each other. Constitutionalistsand
liberalsand democrats can easily uphold the above principles.

The problem is that the some of these admirable values are diametrically opposed to each
other on Sabarimala.

The Temple:

Sabarimala is a prominent Hindu temple in Kerala. The temple is dedicated to Ayyappa

or the God of growth. The temple attracts pilgrims from Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka
and Andhra Pradesh and from various parts of the country and the world. The temple
is open for worship only in the rst ve days of each Malayalam month; during specials
occasions during November-December, then on January 14 and again on April 14. It is
an ancient temple mostly unreachable till it was rediscovered in 12th century. The
pilgrims of Sabarimala have to reach the temple through dif cult treks in the forest as
the vehicles cannot reach there. The pilgrims have to observe celibacy for 41 days before
going to Sabarimala. They are also required to strictly follow a lacto-vegetarian diet,
refrain from alcohol, not use any profanity and allow the hair and nails to grow without
cutting. They are expected to bath twice in a day and visit the local temples regularly.
They wear black or blue clothes, do not shave until the completion of the pilgrimage,
and smear sandal paste on their forehead.

Controversy over women entry:

The ban on women entering the temple premises is being practised for centuries, as
devotees consider Lord Ayappa, the presiding deity of the temple, to be celibate.

History: 1991 Photograph

A plea was led in Kerala High Court in 1991 after a photograph showing a rice-feeding
ceremony at the Sabarimala temple was published in a newspaper. The photograph was
from the rst rice-feeding ceremony of the grand-daughter of an ex- commissioner of the

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temple board. The photo showed women relatives present at the function in the temple.
In 1991, the Kerala High Court restricted entry of women above the age of 10 and below
the age of 50 from Sabarimala temple as they were of the menstruating age.
27 years later on September 28, 2018, the Supreme Court lifted the ban, saying that
discrimination against women on any grounds, even religious is unconstitutional, which
kick started the current controversy.
The protests took a political turn after BJP ally Shiv Sena warned of "mass suicides" if
women set foot inside the Sabarimala temple. The protests intensi ed as the date of opening
neared. On October 17, when the doors to Sabarimala opened, the protesters camped at
the base of the trek and at the last stretch of the trek (at Pamba) to stop women from
entering the temple.

In favor of Women’s Rights:

4:1 Verdict – SC ruled that not allowing women was in violation of the Constitution.
(Justice InduMalhotra dissented)

• Patriarchy of religion cannot be permitted to triumph over faith

• Dualistic approach against women degrades the status of women.
• The right guaranteed under article 25 has nothing to do with gender or physiological
factors.
• Devotees of Ayyappa do not constitute a separate religious denomination.

Articles 25 to 28 of Indian Constitution guarantee the right to freedom of religion to all

citizens within the territorial boundaries of the country.
1. Freedom of conscience and free profession of religion (Article 25)
2. Freedom to manage religious affairs. (Article 26)
3. Freedom from payment of taxes for promotion of any particular religion. (Article 27)
4. Freedom to attend religious instructions. (Article 28)

• Rules disallowing women in Sabarimala are unconstitutional and violative of Article

21
(Article 21 of the Indian Constitution guarantees life and personal liberty. No per-
son shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to procedures
established by law.)
• The fact that women have physiological feature to menstruate has nothing to do with
her right to pray.
• To treat women as children of lesser god is to blink at the constitution.

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For centuries, women were not allowed to enter the Sabarimala shrine based on the
biological ground of menstruation. The Rule of the Kerala Hindu Places of Public Worship
states that “Women at such time during which they are not by custom and usage allowed
to enter a place of worship” was the basis of the practice of excluding women of the
age group of 10 through to 50 years to enter the temple. The KHC had further held that
only the chief priest was empowered to decide on traditions.
There is a practice of exclusion of menstruating women from social and religious functions.
At times, it takes the form of untouchability. In rural Nepal, religious Hindus believe that
menstruating women are unclean and should be banished from the family home – many
women have died. This is despite the Nepalese government passing a law and making it
illegal. Such notions of purity and pollution, which stigmatise women in what is essentially
a biological process, are anathema to human rights.
Such a practice has certainly no place in our constitutional order. When we, the people of
India, gave ourselves the Constitution of India, we sought to break the onerous shackles
of inequities, injustice, and social hierarchies and entrenched structures that perpetuate
discrimination and prejudice. It is indeed shocking that we had to wait 70 years after
independence to provide equity to half the population of the country.

In favor of tradition:
• Issues of deep religious sentiment should not be interfered in by the court.
• Notion of rationality should not be seen in matters of religion.
• Worshippers of Sabarimala have attributes of religious denomination.

Judges should not impose their personal views, morality or rationality with respect to
the form of worship of a deity. A pluralistic society and secular polity would re ect
that the followers of various sects have the freedom to practise their faith in accordance
with the tenets of their religion. It is irrelevant whether the practice is rational or logical.
Notions of rationality cannot be invoked in matters of religion by courts. Ayyappa is in
the form of a NaishtikBrahmachari. The belief in a deity, and the form in which he has
manifested himself is a fundamental right protected by Article 25(1) of the Constitution.
The prohibition in vogue for time immemorial quali ed to be an “essential practice”. A
religion can lay down a code of ethics, and also prescribe rituals, observances, ceremonies
and modes of worship. Imposing the court’s morality on a religion would negate the
freedom to practise one’s religion according to one’s faith and beliefs. It would amount
to rationalising religion, faith and beliefs, which is outside the ken of courts. India is a
country comprising diverse religions, creeds, sects each of which have their faiths, beliefs
and distinctive practices. Constitutional morality in a secular polity would comprehend
the freedom of every individual, group, sect, or denomination to practise their religion in
accordance with their beliefs and practices.

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Equality is not the problem in Sabarimala. Instead, it is an issue concerning the holiness and
the rituals of the temple. In Kanyakumari, there is a temple where men are not allowed
to enter. Nobody has gone to court saying that they want to enter the temple. There
are other Ayyappa temples for women, for those who want to pray to him. Eeveryone
should respect the speciality of Sabarimala. Democracy, one must respect religious beliefs,
the Constitution, the law and so on. Balancing all of this is what democracy is all about.
Sabarimala has now become a police camp. How can anyone pray peacefully there.

The noti cations issued by the Travancore Devaswom Board in 1955 and 1956, which refer
to the devotees as “Ayyappans”. The worshippers of Lord Ayyappa together constitute a
religious denomination, or sect thereof, as the case maybe, follow a common faith, and
have common beliefs and practices. They are designated by a distinctive name wherein
all male devotees are called “Ayyappans”; all female devotees below the age of 10 and
above the age of 50 are called “Malikapurams”. A pilgrim on his maiden trip is called
a “KanniAyyappan”. The devotees are referred to as “Ayyappa Swamis”. A devotee has
to observe the “vratham” and follow a code of conduct, before embarking upon the
“PathinettuPadikal” to enter the temple. Thus, Ayyappa devotees are a separate religious
denomination and their rights need to be protected and not interfered with.

Popular sentiment and political con ict

The state government’s decision to implement the Supreme Court verdict has given
opportunist politicians the chance to sh in troubled waters.
The BJP seeks to reassert anew its role as the self-appointed custodian of Hindu sensitivities,
creating outrage and violence by leading an agitation to prevent women from accessing the
temple. Congress is playing the soft hindutva. Meanwhile, the ruling party CPI-M blows
hot and cold, saying one day that it will implement the Court order by escorting women
to the shrine, then ordering its police not to do so and indeed to escort them back if they
attempt it. They have converted a sacred spot into an unseemly stage of political theatre.
The reactions in Kerala have demonstrated that abstract notions of constitutional principle
also have to pass the test of societal acceptance — all the more so when they are applied
to matters of faith. Judges are, of course, rational beings applying legal principles and
precedents. Worshippers have no such constraints. The overwhelming majority of Kerala
Hindus, including a signi cant majority of women, have now demonstrated that their faith
is offended by the Supreme Court verdict. Informal surveys suggest that opposition to
the court judgment among Kerala Hindus is above 75 per cent and perhaps as high as
90 per cent. The intensity of emotions on display have surprised many liberals, not least
because so many women seem outraged that other women might be allowed to go into
the Sabarimala temple and disturb its sanctity.
It is all very well to say that religions must adhere to the normal rules of liberal democracy,
but the truth is they don’t. Gender equality is a vital principle in civic society and in
political democracy, but it is by no means universally observed in the religious world.

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Muslim mosques don’t allow men and women to pray together in the same space. The
Catholic Church does not permit female priests. Some Shinto monasteries are off-limits
to women altogether. There are Hindu temples which do not allow men to enter during
speci ed periods, and the Kumari Amman temple situated in Kanyakumari does not permit
them at all. The law does not interfere in such matters.
In implementing the Supreme Court verdict, politicians should have sought to reconcile
the principles upheld by the Court with the believers’ sense of the sanctity of their faith.
There is a need for mutual engagement between the liberals and the traditionalists on
what their convictions and doctrines mean in a changing world.

Conclusion:
With its Sabarimala verdict, the SC underlines the Constitution’s transformative power. The
Constitution protects religious freedom. The legal challenge to the exclusion of women in
the 10-50 age group from the Sabarimala temple in Kerala represented a con ict between
the group rights of the temple authorities in enforcing the presiding deity’s strict celibate
status and the individual rights of women to offer worship there. The decision reaf rms
the Constitution’s transformative character and derives strength from the centrality it
accords to fundamental rights. Liberals are thus torn between their basic respect for
gender equality and their democratic duty to respect the beliefs and wishes of the people.
In religious matters, beliefs must prevail; in a pluralistic democracy, legal principles and
cultural autonomy must both be respected.

40 Odd review petitions have been led against the September 2018 ruling in which Justice
Malhotra famously used the diversity logic to dissent against the majority verdict on the
ground that courts should not sit in judgement over religious practices unless these are
as abhorrent as sati.In February 2019, the court reserved its judgment on pleas seeking
a review of its September 2018 verdict. In November 2019, The Supreme Court referred
review pleas to a larger seven-member bench.

The larger bench is also expected to hear issues relating to other communities’ right to
practise, profess and follow their own religious fundamental rights, guaranteed under Articles
25 and 26 of the Constitution. “The debate about the constitutional validity of practices
entailing… restriction of entry of women generally in the place of worship is not limited
to this case, but also arises in respect of entry of Muslim women in a Durgah/Mosque
as also in relation to Parsi women married to a non-Parsi into the holy re place of an
Agyari,” the judgment said. “There is yet another seminal issue pending for consideration
in this court regarding the powers of the constitutional courts to tread on (the) question
as to whether a particular practice is essential to religion or is an integral (part) of the
religion, in respect of female genital mutilation in DawoodiBohra community.”

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The judgment suggested that a decision by a larger bench would “instill public con dence”
and “put at rest recurring issues touching upon the rights owing from Articles 25 and 26”.

On December 13, 2019, the Supreme Court declined to pass any order on pleas by two
women activists seeking a direction to the Kerala government to ensure safe entry of
women in the Sabarimala temple under police protection.The top court said the issue was
"very emotive" and it did not want the situation to become "explosive".A bench, headed
by Chief Justice S A Bobde, said the "balance of convenience" required that no orders
are passed in the mater today as the issue had already been referred to a 7-judge bench.

The apex court said it would endeavour to constitute the larger bench at the earliest to
hear the matter.

Further Reading:

https://thewire.in/law/watch-sabarimala-verdict-what-the-judges-said
https://thewire.in/women/sabarimala-women-entry-supreme-court-judgement-kerala
https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/ban-on-entry-of-women-facts-controversies-
about-kerala-s-sabarimala-temple/story-K4Xi6GKMacPDmQO2jAmjNO.html
https://timeso ndia.indiatimes.com/india/what-is-sabarimala-case/articleshow/66054724.cms
https://www. rstpost.com/india/why-women-are-barred-from-sabarimala-its-not-because-
they-are-unclean-2583694.html
https://www.thehindu.com/opinion/editorial/keep-the-peace/article25265690.ece
https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/why-the-sabarimala-verdict-allowing-women-
s-entry-is-not-against-mass-opinion/story-TbhvfuhI8myB0SW3qoAxeM.html
https://www.financialexpress.com/india-news/the-constitutional-and-legal-bases-of-the-
sabarimala-verdict-october-17-2018/1352605/
https://www.telegraphindia.com/india/sabarimala-to-bigger-bench/cid/1719399

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6. How Can We Handle and Prevent Online Harassment

The Internet is not short of people who instead of winning arguments based on reason,
resort to abuse, threats, insults and bullying, to prove their point. You must have come
across such people everywhere, especially while browsing through social media. Trolls
are individuals who post abusive and controversial remarks or comments on social media
platforms to bother other people, with the sole malicious intention to hurt the sentiments
and feelings of others and provoke an angry reaction. Their messages are such that they
can shift everyone’s attention from the subject matter.
Trolling is the new generation cybercrime and trolls are the new generation of criminals
on the internet who derive sadistic pleasure in spreading abuse and hate. One should not
ignore the trolls, but should ght against them.
Is trolling punishable? We do not have a speci c law that directly addresses this growing
concern, but we do have a few sections in different laws such as Indian Penal Code (IPC)
and Information Technology (Amendment) Act (IT Act) which make trolling a criminal act.
These are some of the speci c actions that one can take in different situations:
• Violation of Privacy – If any person takes your photograph, makes your videos,
records and publishes your private pictures or sends them electronically to anyone
without your consent, then you can take legal action against them. Any violation of
privacy is punishable by a prison term of three years.
• Publishing Sexually Offensive Material on the Internet – Nowadays, we can see large
amounts of improper and offensive content on the Internet which, no doubt, attracts a
lot of attention. If any person publishes any offensive sexual content on the internet,
he or she can be jailed for up to seven years.
• Sexual Harassment – If any person tries to make physical contact or sexual advances
with you, or demand for sexual favours from you, or shows pornography, or makes
sexual comments about you, then you can take legal action against them by ling a
complaint. Posting sexually offensive comments against other people on social media
and other platforms also makes a person liable for sexual harassment.
• Defamation – If any person who intentionally uses any words, signs or visible repre-
sentations, or publishes anything only to harm your reputation, they can be punished
for defamation. Acts such as defaming a woman online, commenting on social media
platforms, posting obscene remarks or images or videos are all covered under the
offence of defamation.
• Criminal intimidation by anonymous communication – If a person conceals his/her
identity to threaten another, they can be jailed for up to two years. This is very
helpful and effective in dealing with online trolls.
• Insulting the Modesty of a Woman – If you are a woman and any person insults
or outrages your modesty, uses any word, makes any sound or gesture, or displays
any object which can violate your privacy, then you can sue him. Posting sexually

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offensive comments or pictures or videos on social media or other platforms are also
covered under the offence of trolling.
• Voyeurism – If you are a woman and any person watches or captures an image of
you when you are engaged in a private act, under circumstances where you would
not expect anyone to watch you and if such person publishes those images, then you
can take legal action against them.
• Stalking – If you are a woman, and bothered by a man who follows you and contacts
or attempts to contact you to make personal relations despite your lack of interest;
or keeps an eye on your activities on the internet or any other form of electronic
communication, then you can take action against them by ling a case under the IPC
with the help of a lawyer.
• Monitoring social media exchanges so that they stay within de ned limits: Trolling
has real and dangerous consequences for those who do face it. They live with the
fear of actually having to face the violence suggested online. They feel incapable of
expressing themselves freely. Hence, the government should have laws in place that
are speci c about what kinds of trolling can face legal action. The threat of legal
action will stop or at least instil fear as a deterrent.
• Trolls are often people who cannot tolerate dissent from their own opinions. Their
abuse and threats to those they troll should be taken seriously as they may act on
their threats. Even their verbal abuse causes fear in someone expressing an honest
opinion.
• Non-abusive and politely expressed disagreements are not something most people
are capable of - they will have to be coerced to learn it by strict and punitive laws
that restrain their loosely directed anger.
• Trolling took on international proportion religious s with the story of how Russian
operatives secretly manipulated Facebook, Twitter, Google, and other social-media
platforms during the 2016 US election. Recently executives from Twitter; Alphabet, Inc.,
which runs Google, and Facebook- were grilled about alarming new reports-including
a series of revelations from inside Russia itself-about Moscow's covert purchase of
political ads, use of countless Internet bots and trolls, and creation of fake American
users, all as part of an effort to instigate racial and con ict and spread conspiracy
theories during election campaign and beyond. It compelled the biggest social-media
platforms to archive and maintain a public le of all political ads for buyers who
spend more than $500 and require them to "make all reasonable efforts to ensure
that foreign individuals and entities are not purchasing political advertisements in
order to in uence the American electorate.
• "It's only going to expand. We have to muster a self-defense, just as we would from
a military or a cyberattack." – Senator Richard Blumenthal.
It seems clear now that, at the very least, one consequence of Russiagate will be a
whole new set of rules and regulations for the corporate giants of the online world,

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who until now have coasted along in a mostly regulation-free Wild, Wild West.
• Union Minister for Women & Child Development, Maneka Gandhi has decided to
take action against troll-abuse on social media, particularly against women. She has
requested the Union Home Ministry as well as the I&B ministry to take possible
steps to control the abusive trolling community. She has also asked social networking
platforms like Twitter, Facebook and other social media platforms for their assistance
in tackling this troll menace. Maneka Gandhi became proactive following complaints
by troll victims.
In any society freedom is never absolute. Freedom always comes with a rider. You
have freedom to speak/express. But, at the same time, you must take care of the fact
that your exercising of the right to freedom must not abuse anybody, must not hurt
anybody's sentiments, must not be provocative and nally it must not be indecent. The
SC rightly scrapped the law relating to 66A as it was dif cult to implement. But then,
the Supreme Court never said that acts shouldn't be there to control such violations. The
SC, on numerous occasions has said that the right to freedom is not absolute. We should
consider the introduction of a "report abuse" tab on social networking sites like many
newspaper websites provide. If the abuse tab is hit beyond the threshold number (set as
per assessment), the account could be blocked by the social media administrator and an
inquiry by the police initiated. One may not be booked at that moment, but an inquiry
can name and shame the trolling person and that would be enough for many to control
their language on social media. For repeat offenders, a 24-hour detention in a police station
would be suf cient because all such trollers probably do not understand what spending
a night at a police station means.

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7. Are Streaming Platforms (Net ix etc.) a Threat to

Conventional TV ?

In the 1980s, TV was the centerpiece of almost every living room around the world. In India,
owning a TV also had the tag of af uence attached to it, and there were ad campaigns,
such as the Onida ad with a tagline that said, “Neighbour’s envy, Owner’s pride”. The
square box back then was the biggest source of entertainment and information. With
the launch of Star TV and ZeeTV in India in the 1990s India witnessed a sharp rise in
demand for cable TV. However, in the 90s and in 2000s no one could imagine that there
would be a time not too far off in the future when cable TV could become redundant
and would be on the verge of being replaced by something even better. And that iswhat
happened with the advent of Net ix, Hotstar and Amazon Prime. In India, we are seeing
a major boom in the number of streaming subscribers, and among these include three
big and popular players—Net ix, Hotstar and Amazon Prime. Video streaming services
have made us realise that we don’t need a dish or a cable connection to enjoy great TV
content. They deliver content on multiple platforms. So we can enjoy watching our TV
shows whenever we want and wherever we want.Primarily the reason for a surge in
streaming services was connected with the sharp fall in mobile data price in India with
Reliance Jio spearheading this price war in 2016 as it began to offer bulk of data at no
charge to customers for a certain period of time.

Popularity of Streaming Services

The streaming services allow the consumer to watch a full season of their favourite show
and that has given rise to binge watching or marathon watching. Releasing all the shows
at once grants freedom to viewers to watch their favourite series as per their convenience.
Consumers are free to press pause and take a break from their show whenever they want.
They can also refer to previous plot-points if they’re lost. Another very important point
is that the streaming services is subscription-based, thus it removes the annoyance of ad-
breaks and does not ruin the viewing experience by preventing any form of disturbances
and manipulative ad-breaks to break the narrative.
To understand the popularity of these three streaming services we need to dig deeper into
the facts and services that they are providing. Hotstar owns the streaming rights to the
vast majority of cricket tournaments played in India and by the Indian cricket team in
different parts of the world, and this is a great lead for Hotstar considering the popularity
of cricket amongst Indians. Apart from this, Hotstar also distributes popular TV shows
like Game of Thrones andHow I Met Your Mother. It has a regional movie collection of
around 600 Hindi, 200 Bengali, 400 Telugu, 850 Malayalam, 100 Tamil, and 400 Kannada
movies. Now coming to Net ix and Amazon, both have a wide range of series to offer and
have interesting exclusive series to offer such as The Man in the High Castle is Amazon
exclusive andpopular shows such as Stranger Things and Orange is the New Black are

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exclusives to Net ix. Apart from that Net ix has partnered with some Indian production
houses to get popular titles and has started looking at original regional content. Sacred
Games, Net ix’s breakout series in India is one such example. Coming toAmazon Prime,
they are rolling out not just Hindi movies and few Hindi TV shows, but also catering to
Tamil, Telugu, Marathi and Bengali audience. At the moment the movie titles are limited
across the dialects but Amazon plans to invest heavily on its service for the Indian market,
thus one can expect a lot more premium content from Amazon in the recent future.

Price Points
Let’s talk about the price points, although both Amazon Prime and Net ix has hit shows
like The Man in the High Castle and Goliath on Amazon, and House of Cards and Sacred
Games on Net ix, if you compare the pricing of the two services, Prime scores a point here
because it is cheaper than Net ix. At present the annual Prime subscription in India costs
Rs 999 and Rs 129 per month. Now, Net ix has nally launched the cheapest subscription
plan in India at Rs 199 for a month. The catch for the low-price is that the streaming is
limited to mobile and tablet only. And, this new plan allows the users to stream only on
one screen. Net ix also offersa basic plan at Rs 499; standard plan at 649 and the premium
plan at 799. The yearly cost of Net ix is higher than that of Prime. In India for many
consumers, Amazon Prime comes free for a year because of bundled offer they get with
their post-paid mobile plan. But Net ix has its pluses as it has more quality international
contents and more originals; it is a more user friendly app and has a separate button
on the set top box. But if you are a huge sports fan then nothing is better thanHotstar.
The Hotstar premium membership grants you access to all their premium titles which are
currently available on the platform. In addition to premium titles, you also get access to
all Live Sports, including Cricket, Premier League and so on. You can get all this for a
yearly plan of Rs 999 or a monthly plan for Rs 299.

End of the road for TV?

With video streaming services consumers all over the world have realised that they don’t
need a dish or cable connection to enjoy good quality entertainment.Net ix, Amazon and
other streaming services have changed the way a person watches TV. With the success of
these streaming services, we can easily deduce that the consumer is ready to experience
something different and is a clear indication that these services can put the cable companies
out of business. The successful and award winning television shows and movies created
and produced by the streaming companies are most watched on the planet. The cable
companies are trying hard to create the same magic as the streaming companies but are
not successful yet. Streaming companies are transforming the entertainment industry and
there is no doubt that both Net ix and Amazon Prime Video will lead the way to the
next development in entertainment. The subscribers of the Net ix and Amazon Prime
Video enjoy shows and movies that would never make it to the standard cable networks
or the traditional commercial broadcast networks. While large broadcast companies are

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restricted to conventional plotlines and characters for most of their shows, Net ix and
Amazon Prime Video create content based on different themes and plotlines to cater to
the large masses, so now there is something for everyone.
The TV business is basically based on two factors: advertising and subscription. Premium
channels, such as, HBO is able to thrive on subscription models alone.However, most of
the other channels work on a hybrid model, so they sell advertising and receive fees from
cable providers in return for allowing them to carry programming. Till the recent past,
cable companies held a lot of leverage because, unlike broadcasters, they had a direct
nancial relationship with the consumer. With streaming television, this business model
needs a major overhaul. Viewers are increasingly moving away from cable and satellite
TV. So, what is the future of Broadcast TV and Cable? It still reaches vast numbers of
consumers but the question is how will the advertisers that are paying for the cost of
producing content reach the young and the af uent viewers? Advertisers are therefore
trying to nd ways of reaching consumers digitally. Cable box is now something of a
redundant item from the past as smart TVs, tablets, mobile phones and a host of other
streaming devices can act as your source of entertainment. The consumer has indeed become
King with the streaming services. Although the future of entertainment looks extremely
exciting, it looks like the future of cable business is not so bright. So, in a nutshell yes,
TVas we know it might be a thing of the past.
To conclude, it won’t be surprising if all televisions become smart TVs within the next
ten years. We might expect these devices to transform into another medium to stream
videos, music and so on, and thus becoming an integral part of virtual reality and future
programming.

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8. Globalization is Dead and We Need to Invent a New World

Order

Globalization is de ned as the increasing interaction of people, states, or countries. This

interaction is often enabled through the growth of the international ow of money, ideas,
and culture. Globalization is primarily a process of integration that has social and cultural
aspects. On the other hand, Isolationism is de ned as a policy or doctrine of trying to
isolate one’s country from the affairs of other nations. This is achieved by not entering
multilateral alliances, foreign economic commitments or international agreements, and
generally attempting to make one’s economy self-reliant. At various points in history,
countries such as Bhutan, Japan and China have adopted a stance that would be called
as isolationist. For the past many years, North Korea, with its policy of Juche, has tried
to achieve sustainability through agricultural independence and a lack of dependency on
other countries. However, recent global events as Donald Trump’s policies, the UK’s exit
from the EU, and the increased strength of the European Right in countries like France,
the Netherlands and Germany has given thrust to the idea that Globalization has had
its day. In the light of these developments, is it fair to assume that globalization is on
the way out? If there appears to be a widespread discontentment with globalization, is
isolationism the answer to that?

No, Isolationism is Not the Answer:

• Countries have always traded with one another, because natural resources are not
equally distributed round the world. As Adam Smith has pointed out in his book
“The Wealth Of Nations”, “Would it be a reasonable law, to prohibit the importa-
tion of all foreign wines, merely to encourage the making of claret and burgundy
in Scotland?” Historically, absolute advantage – a country importing what it cannot
produce itself, or can only produce at inordinate cost – has always been the main
motive for trade.
• Opening up to international trade has helped many countries grow far more quickly
than they would otherwise have done. International trade helps economic development
when a country’s exports drive its economic growth. Export-led growth has been the
centrepiece of the industrial policy that has enriched parts of Asia and Africa.
• The world is undergoing profound changes brought about by globalization. The rapid
advancement of science and technology, continued expansion of international trade
and investment, and economic restructuring have brought new opportunities to the
development of all countries and regions. However, these changes likewise bring in
some amount of uncertainty. Rejecting globalization, rather than resolving those un-
certainties, would be akin to burning one’s agricultural eld to resolve the problems
of weed growth or unwanted grazing animals!

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• Before India embarked on a policy of economic reform and globalization, there was
a massive socioeconomic problem. Globalization’s dramatic success in India consisted
of lifting hundreds of thousands of people out of poverty. However, with it and
automation, many workers were no longer required. This made some of proponents
of Isolationism to argue that Globalization was nothing but a type of colonization.
However, it is now widely believed that it is was the inability of developing countries
like India to skill and protect their workers - and not Globalization - that caused this
distress.
• Globalization’s bene ts have brought many countries food security, scal stability
and energy independence. However, this has also brought about immense social
changes such as immigration. Add to that the global nancial slowdown, and many
people across countries believe that globalization is detrimental to their own and the
country’s economic well-being. There is a belief that Isolationism will help in curbing
any social ills. However, proponents of isolationism do not state how withdrawing
from the global arena will solve these problems. At best, an isolationist stance is a
chimera that has not delivered any solutions as yet.
• Also, governments are motivated to limit and alter market outcomes for political or
social ends. While governments can limit the rise in prices of some products, they
cannot control how much people want to buy or how much rms are willing to sell.
The laws of demand and supply still hold.
• Furthermore, Isolationism may temporarily create jobs for domestic workers. The
protection of tariffs, quotas or subsidies allows domestic companies to hire locally,
but again, if a company in a protectionist state wants to expand, they won’t be able
to. In the long term, trade protectionism weakens the industry. Without competition,
companies within the industry have no need to innovate. Eventually, the domestic
product will decline in quality. It will be lower quality and more expensive than
what foreign competitors produce.
• One example that is often propagated is that China has gained from an Isolationist
policy. It is said that modern day China originated from one of the oldest civilizations
in mankind and has kept its power and solitude by isolating themselves. However, it
is often forgotten that the huge growth in economy was prompted by restructurings
initiated in the 90s by Zhu Rongji, fth Premier of China, who advocated market
reforms, open economy and increased intermingling with the global community. This
lead to double-digit growth of the Chinese economy and its increased assertiveness
in international affairs. Thus, advocates of Isolationism often ignore the bene ts of
Globalization and clamor for chopping off the branch that bore the fruits of nancial
stability in the rst place.

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Yes, Isolationism is the Answer:

• The backlash against globalization draws its force not only from the perceived dam-
age done to developing countries by global market forces but also from the inequi-
ties in the global trading system. Many developing countries, including Venezuela,
Zimbabwe and Greece, have been assisted by multilateral organizations to help them
adjust to crises and imbalances. Unfortunately, this has had a cascading effect which
led to more hunger, discontent and riots in many countries. Even when results were
not so dire and there was some growth for a while - such as in the cases of Haiti,
African countries, Sri Lanka and Pakistan, all of whom bene ted with Chinese and
American help - often the bene ts went disproportionately to the elite, with those at
the bottom sometimes facing even greater poverty.
• In his book ‘Globalization and its Discontents’, noted author Joseph E Stiglitz observes
that, “riots and protests against the policies of and actions by institutions of globaliza-
tion are hardly new. For decades, people in the developing world have rioted when
the austerity programs imposed on their countries proved to be too harsh, but their
protests were largely unheard in the West. What is new is the wave of protests in
the developed countries”. From this, it is clear that even people in developed coun-
tries - the very same which were the torch-bearers of globalization - are agitating
against globalization and pinning for an isolationist stance. In that case, what moral
authority do the developed countries have to carry on with globalization with a
zealous approach? “ Let us view the example of the erstwhile Soviet Union. Global-
ization and the introduction of a market economy have not produced the promised
results in Russia and most of the other economies that were making the transition
from communism to the market. These countries were told that the new economic
system would bring them unprecedented prosperity. Instead, it brought unprecedented
poverty. For most of the people, the market economy proved even worse than their
Communist leaders. Today, many of these countries are wary on getting entangled in
multilateral treaties and like to pursue a balanced approach that does not encroach
on their nancial sovereignty.
• Offshoring is a deliberate policy of multinational corporations to weaken domestic
labor and boost pro ts. The ability of companies to allocate jobs globally changes the
nature of the discussion about the “gains from trade.” In fact, there are no longer
guaranteed “gains,” even in the long run, to those countries that export technology
and jobs. If countries like China combine Western technology with lower labor costs,
trade with them will depress Western wages. Citizens of the West will have cheaper
goods, but being able to purchase groceries 20% cheaper does not necessarily make
up for wage losses.
• Between 1991 and 2013, China’s share of global manufacturing exports increased
from 2.3% to 18.8%. Some categories of US manufacturing production were wiped
out. The United States might gain “eventually.” But the gains might take “decades”
to be realized, and would not be equally shared.

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• Between 1991 and 2013, China’s share of global manufacturing exports increased
from 2.3% to 18.8%. Some categories of US manufacturing production were wiped
out. The United States might gain “eventually.” But the gains might take “decades”
to be realized, and would not be equally shared.
• The election of Donald Trump and his effort to withdraw the United States from the
world stage is another example of the decline of a global order. Since getting elected,
Trump and his secretaries of state have systematically decoupled American leadership
abroad from global problems in the quest of achieving an ‘America First’ vision. . The
United States has been credited with laying the foundations of globalization, but it
is now attempting to dismantle essential elements of that infrastructure, particularly
in trade and defense!

Thus, globalization and isolationism hold many different characteristics. Although both of
them are very different, both have greatly affected many aspects of society such as trade,
employment rate, and diversi cation within the economy. In conclusion, globalization may
not be what it once stood for but each nation and its people must evaluate its pros and
cons to arrive at the right mix of policies that is suitable for their growth and development.

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9. Does India Need a Bullet Train ?

In India, the history of High Speed Rail (HSR) started with an announcement made in the
Rail Budget of 2000-2001 about high speed railways, which resulted in a general feasibility
study done by Rail India Technical and Economic Service (RITES). The signing of a pact
for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad High-speed rail corridor - a massive project involving a cost
of 98000 crore rupees - created news in the mainstream media. Both India and Japan have
invested time, energy and diplomatic resources in this showpiece project for which the
Japanese are committed to advancing a loan of 8 billion dollars. India has inched closer
to getting a bullet train after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Shinzo Abe laid the
foundation for the high-speed train network. It will cost Rs. 1.1 lakh crore to see this
ambitious project through. Indian Railways, with help from Japan government, is now set
to begin work to set up a 500-km route for high-speed trains between Ahmedabad and
Mumbai. Railways Minister Piyush Goyal had indicated that the bullet train project will
be completed by August 15, 2022, one year before the of cial deadline of December 2023.
Japan has offered to lend India a soft loan of Rs. 88,000 crore at an interest of 0.1 per
cent. The loan will have to be paid in the course of 50 years, with a moratorium of 15
years. Although, the bullet train project brings with it several promising prospects, there
also exist hurdles which might hinder them.
The BJP was in power in both Maharashtra and Gujarat states when work began on
project in 2017. Maharashtra is giving a major chunk of money for the project, when most
of the track is in Gujarat. The train will run from Mumbai to Ahmedabad, the main city
in Gujarat state, a distance of 508 kilometres (315 miles). But it has run into obstacles
acquiring land amid opposition from fruit farmers. Moreover, the new state government
of Maharashtra does not appear to be in favour of the project. Any delay of the project
is likely to undermine investor confidence, at a time when growth has slowed to its
weakest pace in years.
Critics say India does not need the high-speed train and investment should go instead to
improve the existing network. "We are not against development or infrastructure projects,
but at the same time farmers' interests can't be ignored. We will rethink about projects
that farmers are opposing," said a senior leader of Nationalist Congress Party, which is a
part of the coalition government. The authorities have acquired 548 hectares land out of
the total requirement 1,380 hectares and the project was targeted to be operational by 2023
, the government told parliament in July. Protests against land acquisitions are common
in India, where tens of millions of farmers till small holdings.

Points in favour of bullet trains:

• High-speed connectivity - The bullet train running between Ahmedabad and Mumbai
will cover the distance of 508 km within two to three hours. The project is supposed
to connect bustling economic corridors in the states of Gujarat and Maharashtra. This
will facilitate economic growth.

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• Convenience and Comfort – The Shinkansen high-speed trains (colloquially called as

bullet trains for their appearance and speed) would provide comfortable journey within
just a few hours. The conventional Indian Railways lag considerably on the comfort
level of train journeys and the introduction of bullet trains would be a great devel-
opment in this factor. The train will have wheelchair-friendly toilets, feeding rooms
for new-borns, and other features for comfort and safety. Also, the bullet train has
several advantages over air transport, including scheduling frequency and exibility,
punctual operation, comfortable seats, and convenient city-centre terminals.
• Safety - Safety has been one of the major concerns of Indian Railways. The record
of bullet trains in the eld of safety has been impeccable. The Shinkansen trains of
Japan, started in 1964, have reported zero fatalities till date.
• Employment - The bullet train project will create employment. The project is expected
to create 4,000 direct job opportunities, along with 20,000 indirect jobs. 20,000 con-
struction workers will also be employed during the set up period.
• Urban expansion - New bullet train stations set to come up along the route will at-
tract urban growth and lessen the burden of settlement and migration in major cities.
• Open new avenues - When completed, the Ahmedabad-Mumbai bullet train project
will present as a favourable destination for high-speed train technologies.
• The purpose of creating an HSR Corridor is not to simply showcase speedy travel.
The main takeaway is stringing in 10 other cities and ushering in development along
the way.
• Once operational in 2023, the high-speed service will cut travel time between the cit-
ies to two hours from the current eight hours. The other advantages include safety,
comfort and reduction in commuting time, addressing issues of regional imbalance
and reducing pressure on growing urban areas.
• Proponents of high speed rail argue that the lines will reduce traf c burdens, provide
an environmental bene t, and create jobs. If people come to favour the high speed
rail lines over transit by car, especially over longer distances, there will be a positive
effect for the environment, as far less pollution will be created overall. In addition,
this will reduce traf c congestion, leaving far less people on the roads.
• The act of the creation of the rail line will in itself provide a bene t - many workers
will be needed to work on the project, providing economic stimulus. In addition, if the
high speed rail does indeed make travel easier and cheaper, many who would have
previously been unable to may be able to get jobs further away from their homes.
Supporters of high speed rail say that the bene t to the community, the environment,
and the economy far outweighs any costs.

Points against bullet trains:

• Land acquisition - Acquiring new land pieces for laying down the tracks for bullet
trains and constructing new stations might face legal hindrances, delaying the process.

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• Stoppages - With limited stoppages (only two in Vadodra and Surat), the Ahmed-
abad- Mumbai bullet train will complete its journey in 2 hours, where increasing the
stoppages will increase the journey time up to three hours.
• Pro tability - The origin stations - Ahmedabad and Mumbai - have airports and pas-
sengers from these cities could consider taking a ight instead of boarding the bullet
train..
• A total of 80 per cent of the funds for the project will come from Japan, and will
have to be returned after a period of 15 years. The pro ts this project make will
decide how easy or dif cult it will be for India to pay this loan back.
• India is seeking loans to build the HSR but is ambivalent in the approach to acquir-
ing technology and indigenous manufacture of high-end components in the traction
chain. Essentially, India's Ministry of Railways projects the image of a buyer of rolling
stock rather than that of a technology seeker.
• The infrastructure projects required for HSR are meant for the elite and not the
middle- class passengers.
• The cost of laying a bullet-train corridor is estimated to cost up to Rs 100 crore a
kilometre. After summing up the costs of signals, rolling stock, etc, the cost can rise
up to Rs 115 crore a km. thus, one of the major disadvantages includes high capital
cost, operation and maintenance cost, and need to change alignment. Another impor-
tant dissuading factor is that planning and implementation could take a long time,
while change of government could upset the project.
• The high speed rail program will just eat the budget and reap no real rewards. Crit-
ics argue that very few people will take the trains, opting instead for the freedom
offered by personal automobiles and/or airlines. Some also claim the prices for high
speed rail tickets might be too expensive for many people to take the trains regularly.
• This lack of riders will render the supposed bene ts of the high speed rail network
moot. Given the amount of government funding that is being used on the project
and the doubter's lack of belief in its success, they argue that the funding should be
instead used for improving the current transportation infrastructure.
• Proposed systems and technologies like Maglev & Hyperloop might make investing
a humongous capital on bullet train seem obsolete.
• Noise pollution - Noise pollution concerns make it dif cult to increase the speed of
these trains. In Mumbai & Ahmedabad, the population density is high leading to
limits on noise levels in residential areas. Thus, it would be necessary to reduce op-
erational noise, particularly the tunnel boom phenomenon caused when trains transit
tunnels at high speed.
Conclusion:
The future of high speed rail is rapidly approaching, with many lines planned and some
already constructed, but whether this future will be a good one is in question. There's no
way of telling at this juncture whether the project is a boon to the country or an albatross
that will weigh the country down.

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10. Will Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code Fix the Bank NPA
Issue ?

What is the IBC?

The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 (IBC) is the bankruptcy law of India which
seeks to consolidate the existing framework by creating a single law for insolvency and
bankruptcy.Certain provisions of the Act have come into force from 5th August and 19th
August 2016. The bankruptcy code is intended to be a one stop solution for resolving
insolvencies which previously was a long process and did not offer an economically
viable arrangement. A strong insolvency framework where the cost and the time incurred
is minimised in attaining liquidation has been long overdue in India. The code is intended
to be able to protect the interests of small investors and make the process of doing
business less cumbersome.

Why the need for the IBC?

India did not have a single bankruptcy code. What we had were age-old laws that were
in con ict with each other. Lack of an insolvency and bankruptcy code had proved costly
for the creditors (mainly banks) in many cases like the recent King sher Airlines and the
Nirav Modi case. The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code seeks to create a uni ed framework
to resolve insolvency and bankruptcy in India.
1. Such a uni ed code was essential because the issue of insolvency was being handled
under at least 13 different laws. This code was designed to replace the Presidency
Towns Insolvency Act, 1909 and Provincial Insolvency Act, 1920. In addition, it sought
to amend 11 laws, including the Companies Act, 2013, Recovery of Debts Due to
Banks and Financial Institutions Act, 1993 and Sick Industrial Companies (Special
Provisions) Repeal Act, 2003, among others.
2. Earlier, if a company defaulted, there were at least four different legal routes avail-
able to the debtors and creditors. This could lead to multiple negotiations, multiple
penalties etc. for the debtor, compounding his plight.
3. Such parallel proceedings had also given rise to numerous instances of con ict be-
tween the laws. Four different agencies, the high courts, the Company Law Board,
the Board for Industrial and Financial Reconstruction (BIFR), and the Debt Recovery
Tribunals (DRTs) had overlapping jurisdiction, which gave rise to the potential of
systemic delays and complexities in the process. This new bill has tried to addresses
these issues, by bringing in a new uniform Code.
4. Prior to the implementation of the IBC, insolvency proceedings used to take years.
This delay would acutely devalue the assets involved, thus making the insolvency
negotiations redundant.
5. The previous disposition involved the institution of of cial liquidator, which was

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prone to red-tapeism, chronic corruption, and nepotism. The IBC seeks to keep the
role of the adjudicator to the minimum.
6. Prior to the implementation of the IBC, only an average 25% of the asset value was
recovered by the creditors even after the liquidation process.
7. All these compounded to the pitiable position our Public Sector Banks nd them-
selves in. Rising NPAs and mounting Stressed Assets have also eroded their pro ts.
The easing of liquidation process can help the banks recover a lot of bad debts.
8. India still fares quite poorly in the Ease of Doing Business index of World Bank.
Easiness of Exit is an important parameter in this index. The previous morass of laws
did not help in easing the exit of trouble-prone entities.
9. According to World Bank data, it takes more than four years to wind up an ailing
company in India, almost twice as long as it does in China.
10. Just like the US Bankruptcy Code that provides for fairly quick liquidation or reor-
ganisation of business, India too needed a new code that would prevent the economy
from tumbling southwards

Key Players & Processes of the IBC

The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India(IBBI): The Code establishes the Insolvency
and Bankruptcy Board of India, to oversee the insolvency proceedings in the country
and regulate the entities registered under it. The Board will have 10 members, including
representatives from the Ministries of Finance and Law, and the Reserve Bank of India.
The IBBI was established on 1st October, 2016 under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code,
2016 (Code).
Bankruptcy and Insolvency Adjudicator: The Code proposes separate tribunals to oversee
the process of insolvency resolution, for individuals and companies: (i) the National
Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) for Companies and Limited Liability Partnership rms;
(ii) the Debt Recovery Tribunal (DRT) for individuals and partnerships and (iii) National
Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) which acts as the Appellate Authority

Insolvency Professionals: Insolvency professionals are licensed professionals, who are

registered with the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India and are enrolled with an
insolvency professional agency. This professional is appointed as an insolvency resolution
professional to manage the resolution process and as a liquidator to conduct liquidation
of a corporate debtor. He or she is appointed by the Adjudicating Authority and is given
the power by the Adjudicating Authority to effectively run and manage the entity as a
going concern, and assets of the entity at all times during the process of resolution. Being
a new legislation, the Code is evolving with every passing day and so are the rights and
duties of the insolvency professionals as interim resolution professionals ("IRP") or resolution
professionals ("RP") as the case may be. The Code provides that the Adjudicating Authority

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shall appoint an IRP within fourteen days from the insolvency commencement date

Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP): The Code outlines separate insolvency
resolution processes for individuals, companies and partnership rms. The process may
be initiated by either the debtor or the creditors. Recently the maximum time limit, for
completion of the insolvency resolution process, has been amended.Prior to the Amendment,
the Code required that the CIRP should be concluded within a maximum period of 180 days
(with a maximum one-time extension of 90 days) from the insolvency commencement date
(the Code denotes this to be the date of appointment of interim resolution professional).
However, many CIRPs were exceeding this overall 270-day limit on account of legal
proceedings initiated either against the corporate debtor, the CoC or the Amendment
provides that the CIRP must mandatorily be completed within an overall timeline of 330
days from the insolvency commencement date (including all or any extensions granted as
well as any litigations and related legal proceedings). Additionally, for an on-going CIRP,
in case the 330-day overall timeline has already been breached at the time the Amendment
comes into force, the Amendment provides for an additional relaxation of 90 days as a
transitionary measure. The minimum default amount to initiate the CIRP is Rs 1 lakh.

Committee of Creditors - “Committee of Creditors” is a committee consisting of the

nancial creditors of the Corporate Debtor. This Committee eventually forms the decision
making body of the various routine tasks involved in Corporate Insolvency Resolution
Process (CIRP), responsible for giving approval to the IRP to carry out actions that might
affect the CIRP.

Corporate Debtor
An individual or corporate (proprietary, partnership or limited rm) that has borrowed
money is referred to as a Corporate Debtor under the IBC. For the purpose of IBC, a
corporate debtor is an entity (individual or corporate) that defaults on the debt repayment
in whole or any part of the instalment of the amount of the debt that has become due.

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The Process to be followed in IBC

Progress of Cases under IBC

Since the coming into force of the provisions of CIRP with effect from 1 December 2016,
2542 CIRPs have commenced by 30th September 2019. Of these, 186 have been closed
on appeal or review or settled; 116 have been withdrawn; 587 have ended in orders for
liquidation and 156 have ended in approval of resolution plans. Resolution of twelve
large accounts was initiated by the banks as directed by the RBI. Together they had an
outstanding claim of Rs. 3.45 lakh crores as against a liquidation value of Rs. 73,220.23
crores.Out of the 12 large accounts ,the seven cases resolved include Bhushan Steel, Essar
Steel and Bhushan Power and Steel. Together these seven cases accounted for Rs 2.14 lakh
crore of outstanding claims. The resolution of these cases helped in the creditors recovering

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a total of Rs 1.02 lakh crore, or a recovery rate of 48 per cent, slightly better than the
average recovery rate of close to 42 per cent across 156 cases resolved till 30 September
2019 (as on November 15th , the amount recovered from the Essar Steel account increased
from 30030 crores to around 42000 crores making the total amount recovered about
1.14 lakh crores out of 2.14 lakh crores from these 7 cases making the total percentage
recovery around 53% for these 7 cases) .However, the recovery of these loans ranges
between a low of 17 per cent for Alok Industries and 85 per cent for Essar Steel.

Is IBC the solution to India's NPA problem ?

Arguments against- Resolution under IBC has not been signi cant so far
The numbers put out by the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) as indicated
above paint a not-so-rosy picture on the progress of cases under IBC.Since the IBC is still
evolving and testing waters, there have been challenges at various stages — right from
admission of the case, expression of interest from parties, to submission of plans and nal
approval by the NCLT. It has certainly delivered, but it could have delivered much more
. A similar set of issues, have been experienced in the past as we do right now, when the
Debt Recovery Tribunals were set up: lack of infrastructure, lack of presiding of cers,
lack of sensitization of other stakeholders, undue delays in litigations etc. Some of the
issues faced in the implementation of the IBC are:

Signi cant delays in the resolution process

IBC has been widely acknowledged as a beacon of hope for creditors who have, for
years, been waiting for justice. However, in most of the cases the previous threshold of
270 days has been breached because of procedural inef ciencies, lack of infrastructure
and other frivolous matters. When the rst attempt was made to dilute the previous
180/270 day timeline (currently timeline has been extended to a strict deadline of 330
days), it should have been nipped in the bud. The slow pace of resolution under the IBC,
even three years after its implementation, is a growing cause for concern. After all it was
the inef cacy of the Debt Recovery Tribunals (DRTs) that had prevented lenders from
expediting recoveries under the earlier regimes. One of the crucial aspects of the IBC was
time-bound resolution Not only does this jeopardise the basic premise of resolution within
a stipulated time period but also results in notional loss of interest income for lenders
with every day of delay. While there is no denying that steady modi cations in the Code
have been made, undue delays in litigations is impacting the ef cacy of the IBC process.

Lack of Infrastructure & Resources

As per Bankruptcy experts, an expansion of infrastructure is a must to keep the process
running smoothly. One of the concerns for the IBC law is that there are too many
cases and lack of suf cient number of resources in terms of IRPs, benches, judicial

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members, technical members at NCLT .Expanding judicial capacity in the NCLT and
NCLAT is critical for the success of the IBC.There are over 2,787 registered insolvency
resolution professionals (IRPs) as on 30th September 2019 .However ,it is not known as
to how many of these individuals are equipped to manage affairs of the business, cash
ows, labour disputes etc. . Some of the IRPs work for the large audit and accountancy
rms, while others are at smaller rms or work as independent professionals. They are
certi ed by the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India. However ,there is a wide
variation in quality and experience, and legal experts demand more consistency .

Lack of Sensitization & Education

Implementation of IBC has continued with the same old mindset, that ‘things will get taken
care of with a new law’. Laws don’t solve problems, it is how those laws get implemented
– which includes education and sensitization – that has been lacking. One critical mistake
in the implementation of the IBC was of choosing the National Company Law Tribunal
(NCLT) as the forum. The NCLT was anyway burdened with other matters, and then IBC
just added to it. Dedicated benches should have been set up for the same. Also, it is not
known how many people in the NCLT actually have an understanding in economics
or nance? The IBC is a law which is hugely driven by nance and economics, so you
can’t do justice to the implementation of this law if people who are responsible for its
implementation don’t have a connect with nance and economics

Lack of momentum from the investor community

The M&A activity in the stressed assets space has not been complemented by the much
spoken enthusiasm of investors and a conducive investment landscape. Many investors
are waiting on the side-lines to gauge the outcome of the settlement of big cases and
evolution of IBC before investing.There are concerns on too little time being allowed to
bidders to do their due diligence. Absence of virtual datarooms, is keeping foreign funds
away from the process as is the relatively small window to conduct due diligence on the
numbers .Furthermore, modi cations to IBC have not put to rest certain looming issues,
which are of concern to investors relating to operations of plants in India following transfer
of assets under the IBC, period of commitment towards the units and expected timelines
to close the allocation process. Certain sector-speci c concerns with companies under the
IBC may require intervention from the Government.

Arguments for: IBC –De nitely a Game Changer

As per data available till 30thSeptember 2019, realisation by FCs under resolution plans
in comparison to liquidation value is 184%, while the realisation by them in comparison
to their claims is 42% (compared with 26.5% through earlier mechanisms). Further, the
average resolution timeline for cases resolved through IBC which is in the range of 325
-350 days, is also much better compared with 4.3 years earlier.

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IBC has also resulted in a slower accretion of new non-performing assets (NPAs) in the
Indian banking system. CRISIL estimates the banking sector’s gross NPA (aggregate) has
declined to 10% in end-March 2019 from 11.5% the year before on the same date.

In the period of time that the insolvency code has been in force, both the NCLT and the
NCLAT have attempted to adapt to new legal concepts and strict procedural timelines.
This must continue, of course, as an ef cient judicial process is also critical in protecting
the going concern value of distressed companies.

Some of the steps taken by the government in the implementation of the IBC are:

Development of Infrastructure to support the implementation of IBC

In less than a year of its enactment, new networks of the National Company Law
Tribunal (NCLT), the new regulator ‘Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India’ (IBBI),
new stream of professionals ‘Insolvency Professionals’ (IPs), new stream of Information
‘Information Utilities’ (IUs) and Insolvency Professional Agencies (IPAs) were established
to control and monitor the IPs’ registrations and proceedings. The IBBI charted the course
of its implementation under the guidance of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA),
Government of India.

Fine tuning the IBC

Constant improvements and updates to IBC have followed in response to the feedback
received and practical experience of processes under execution. To its credit, the Government
has been willing to hear out suggestions.
The introduction of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Second Amendment) Bill, 2019
("Bill"), by the Government, is one such step that will help overcome 'critical gaps in
the corporate insolvency framework'. With these recent changes ,the government has rightly
enhanced the focus on ensuring sustenance and recovery of businesses from bankruptcy,
which is essential to sustain the economy and drive growth as it would de nitely widen
options in terms of interested bidders and encourage more resolution applicants to come
forward to bid for stressed assets, without the Damocles sword of attachment of assets/
criminal proceedings swinging over their heads

Some of the salient features of the recent changes are as follows:

1. Greater emphasis on the need for time-bound disposal at application stage.
A strict deadline has been set for completion of CIRP within an overall limit of 330
days, including litigation and other judicial processes. Cases will have to be admitted
speedily and concluded in 330 days.
2. Minimum threshold for initiating the resolution process: Under the Code, a nancial
creditor (either by itself or jointly with other nancial creditors) may le an applica-

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tion before the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) for initiating the insolvency
resolution process. In 2018, home-buyers were categorised as nancial creditors for
the purpose of IBC. Since then, developers have claimed that this provision has ham-
pered successful completion of various projects as construction was getting stalled
due to ling of insolvency applications by home buyers.As per the Insolvency and
Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) data, since the 2018 amendments till September 2019,
1,821 cases were led under the IBC by home buyers and in almost all cases, by a
single home buyer. The Bill amends this to provide minimum thresholds for certain
class of nancial creditors to initiate the insolvency resolution process.For example,
in case of real estate projects, if an allottee (person to whom a plot, apartment, or
building has been allotted or sold) wants to initiate resolution, the application should
be led jointly by at least 100 allottees of the same real estate project, or 10% of the
total allottees under that project, whichever is less.
3. Liability for prior offences: The Bill provides that corporate debtors will have immu-
nity against offences committed by them prior to the commencement of the resolution
process. In addition, the Bill provides immunity from any action against the property
(such as attachment, seizure, or con scation) of the corporate debtor in relation to
such offences. Such immunity will be granted if the resolution plan approved by the
NCLT results in the change of promoters, or management of the corporate debtor.
The rationale behind the amendment is that the successful bidder should not have
the risk of a corporate debtor being made an accused by any enforcement agency.The
amendments would remove bottlenecks, streamline the corporate insolvency resolution
process and boost investment in nancially-distressed sectors.
4. Extending the scope of Moratorium: To help keep the corporate debtor a ‘going
concern’, the Bill extends the scope of moratorium to prohibitsuspension or termina-
tion of arrangements that involve conferment of rights by any government authority
on the ‘grounds of insolvency’, or any arrangements relating to supply of goods and
services that the resolution professional considers critical to protect the value of the
corporate debtor,so long as there is no default in the payment of current dues aris-
ing out of use of such bene ts during the moratorium period

Conclusion: IBC – A Step in the right direction

The Code has started an interesting journey and is a step in right direction. Earlier, bankers
had little ability to threaten promoters. Debarring wilful defaulters from the IBC process
has also led to a sea-change in the credit behaviour of borrowers. The IBC has shifted
the balance of power to the creditor from the borrower. It has instilled a signi cantly
better sense of credit discipline. Today, there is a sense of urgency and seriousness among
defaulting borrowers because losing their asset is very much a possibility if the resolution
process fails.

It further appears that the intention of the legislature has been to not burden a stressed

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company with tax levies, while it is undergoing reorganisation for survival.

There are various issues/questions being faced by corporates/ investors who embark on
acquisition of these assets. These could go a long way in providing certainty to the acquirer
and support the overall intention of timely, faster and ef cient resolution of NPAs in India
It also true that there will still be some promoters that try to game the system, and hence
steady streamlining of the process is imperative (which if not done can otherwise lead to
delay in the resolution process).
Even so, the following steps can be taken to avoid excessive delays.
1. It is hence essential that the new resolution period of 330 days is strictly adhered
to. Courts must avoid intervening routinely, unless key points of law need clari ca-
tion. There are a few big-ticket accounts for which resolution has not been nalised
for over 400 days.
2. Lack of suf cient and quali ed resources in terms of IPs, benches, judicial members,
technical members at NCLT — needs to be addressed. Currently, there are thousands
of cases admitted by the NCLT under IBC and over 2,000 registered insolvency pro-
fessionals (IPs). But how many of these individuals are equipped to manage affairs
of the business, cash ows, labour disputes etc, is critical.

All in all, avoiding undue delays in the process, and limiting judicial overreach is imperative,
if IBC is to serve its intended purpose.

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11. Is Arti cial Intelligence “the worst event in the history of

civilization”?

Physicist Stephen Hawking said the emergence of arti cial intelligence could be the “worst event
in the history of our civilization.”

“The emergence of arti cial intelligence (AI) could be the worst event in the history of our
civilization unless society nds a way to control its development”: late Stephen Hawking.
Hawking in 2017 talked about the potential of AI to help undo damage done to the natural
world, or eradicate poverty and disease, with every aspect of society being “transformed.”But
he admitted the future was uncertain.
“Success in creating effective AI could be the biggest event in the history of our civilization.
Or the worst. We just don’t know. So we cannot know if we will be in nitely helped by
AI, or ignored by it and side-lined, or conceivably destroyed by it,” Hawking had said
during the speech.
“Unless we learn how to prepare for, and avoid, the potential risks, AI could be the
worst event in the history of our civilization. It brings dangers, like powerful autonomous
weapons, or new ways for the few to oppress the many. It could bring great disruption
to our economy”.

How it helps:
“Wouldn’t it be nice if you can just tell your phone - ‘Uber ride Crowne Plaza San
Francisco’ - and then the Uber app just gives you the car?” - said Dekang Lin, Naturali’s
co-founder and chief technology of cer.
This is possible through bots which either classi es or predicts what’s going to happen.
It has been popularly termed as Arti cial Intelligence.
There has been a signi cant development in the technology sector, which is a consequence of
the substantial improvement in the lifestyle of humans. The concept of arti cial intelligence,
termed earlier as ction, has now become a reality in our lives.
Artificial intelligence is a broad branch of computer science which are designed and
programmed in such a manner that they can think and act like a human. The goal of
arti cial intelligence is to create systems that can function intelligently and independently.
Ithas reduced human effort in many ways, and its role can be observed signi cantly in
our daily life.
In our day-to-day life, we come across different sets of data in different types of organisations.
For example, if you have lots of data for sales versus advertising spend, you can plot
the data to see some pattern.
If the machine can learn this pattern, then it can make predictions based on what it has
learnt. Machines can learn in many more dimensions – like hundreds or even thousands.

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That is why machines can look of high dimensional data and can determine the patterns.
Once it learns these patterns it can make predictions, that human cannot even come
close to. You can use all these machine learning techniques to do one of two things –
classi cation or prediction.
Machine learningaccompanied with neural networksmimics the actual processes of the real
neurons, which allows machines to process complex data and provide accurate information
through arti cial intelligence.
Understanding the scope of arti cial intelligence, you can observe that arti cial intelligence
has penetrated into our daily life. Nowadays in many organisations, humans are using
this technology to speed up the process of completing the work with a greater level of
accuracy. The technique of arti cial intelligence has brought out the idea of error-free
world, with reduced human effort and faster results.

Following are some of the domains where arti cial intelligence is having the greatest of
impacts:

• Automated Transport System

Technological advancement termed arti cial intelligence has helped the transport
system to automate the running of vehicles, popularly known as ‘self-driving cars’.
The technology enables the car to navigate cross-roads and avoid colliding with other
vehicles. It has signi cantly helped in reducing the number of accidents. In most cases,
accidents are attributed to several factors which include thein uence of alcohol and
drugs, over-speeding, and ignorance of road signs, which can be reduced through
self-driving cars. According to the Atlantic, researchers estimate that self-driving cars
could save 29,447 lives a year (taking numberof fatalities in 2013 as the baseline).
For further reading on automated transport system, follow the following links:
• https://interestingengineering.com/the-25-ways-ai-can-revolutionize-transportation-
from-driverless-trains-to-smart-tracks
• https://www.lanner-america.com/blog/examples-arti cial-intelligence-applications-
transportation/

• Bank and Financial System

Banks are using arti cial intelligence in the eld of nancial operations, investment
in stocks,manage and organise statistical data, and nally help customers with quick
solutions.
AI will help in detection of fraud, risk management, digitization and wealth manage-
ment. Follow the links for further reading and expanding knowledge of how AI is
helping the banking industry (and the leading AI companies):
• https://www.analyticsvidhya.com/blog/2017/04/5-ai-applications-in-banking-to-
look-out-for-in-next-5-years/

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• https://www.livemint.com/AI/v0Nd6Xkv0nINDG4wQ2JOvK/Arti cial-Intelli-
gence-in-Indian-banking-Challenges-and-op.html
• https://www.proschoolonline.com/blog/arti cial-intelligence-changing-banking-
sector/

• Medical Science or Healthcare

Arti cial intelligence has changed the face of medical science by providing solutions
to the diagnosis of complex neurological disorders. From being a virtual healthcare
assistant to schedule appointment in hospitals, arti cial intelligence has made sure
that there is twenty-four or seven assistance to both the doctors and patients.
For further reading, follow the links:
• https://novatiosolutions.com/10-common-applications-artificial-intelligence-
healthcare/
• https://www.cabotsolutions.com/how-artificial-intelligence-is-changing-the-
healthcare-industry

• Product Industries and Organisations

The manufacturing companies are using arti cial intelligence in the development of
machines that perform human activities.It has been in the production units, to have
a consistent rate of production with maximum ef ciency and effectiveness. Arti cial
intelligence has brought about increased production, since they can work consistently
without tiring and also due to the different roles they can be employed in. Addi-
tionally, it has also been used to keep employees’ records, extract data which helps
in decision making, and thus has become part of the management system of the
industries.
Hence, arti cial intelligence has not only helped in enabling the processes of produc-
tion industries to complete their tasks in good time, but also has helped in enhancing
business development.
Follow the links for further reading:
• https://www.themanufacturer.com/articles/power-arti cial-intelligence-manufac-
turing/
• https://cis-india.org/internet-governance/ les/AIManufacturingandServices_Re-
port_02.pdf

• Professionals in hazardous environment

Arti cial intelligence has developed an ecosystem where it has taken over some of the
dangerous jobs currently in the world such as defusing of bombs. In coming years,
it will also provide bene t to the labourers or professionals working under intense

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heat and noise. Thus, implementation of arti cial intelligence has helped considerably
to provide protection and offer safety measures to humans.

Thus, we see that arti cial intelligence impacts our day-to-day life ranging from healthcare
system to banks, from transport system to applications in jobs. It also has a wide area of
applications in gaming, air-transport systems, and computerised methods.
Application of Global positioning system (GPS) during travel; prediction of what we are
going to type and correcting it when wrongly-typed; identify and tag a person on social
media;execution of tasks through digital assistants like Cortana, Siri, Alexa; all form essential
components of application of arti cial intelligence.
The development and invention of arti cial intelligence have made a considerable impact
on the humans. Consequently, the advent of the next era of arti cial intelligence also
plays a partin war prediction and hence eradication, proper means of ghting diseases
and thusdeveloping appropriate preventive measures against it. It is predicted to help in
ghting against poverty, which would be one of the signi cant roles of arti cial intelligence
to be played in the coming days.
In conclusion, arti cial intelligence has substantially improved and impacted people’s lives
in different ways, and the world is not the same as before. It has played an essential role
in time-saving and done wonders in the automation process. Evidently, arti cial intelligence
has dramatically in uenced and contributed to the people’s lives and industries. Saying that
it may be the worst event in the history of our civilization may not hold true at present!

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12. The impact of Brexit on the Politics and Policies of the

European Union

Decoding Brexit
Brexit: (an abbreviation for the term “British exit”), explained simply as Great Britain
leaving the European Union (EU) as it was earlier part of the EU.

What is the European Union (EU)

The European Union is a club of 28 European Countries. Each of these countries pays
to be a member and in return, they get access to special ways of working together. This
includes being part of a “single market”, which means that countries can trade with one
another and people can move around freely – as if we were all living together in one
big country.
The EU has its own parliament, laws and currency (the euro – although the UK doesn’t
use this and retained its currency). The EU was set up after World War 2 with the idea
that if countries work together, they are unlikely to go to war again.
Note: Britain had always maintained some distance from the EU. It joined the European
Economic Community (EEC) in 1973 and hence the EU in the 1990s. But Britain never
fully accepted the legitimacy of European control over British institutions in a way that
other EU members did. It refused to join the Schengen Area, which eliminates internal
border controls and opted out of the common currency Euro.

The referendum
A referendum was held in the UK on June 23rd 2016. Contrary to what the economists
were predicting (and hoping), the United Kingdom (UK) voted to leave the European
Union (EU) by 52% to 48%. ‘Leave’ won the majority of votes in England and Wales,
while every council in Scotland voted to remain in the EU

Possible reasons for Britons deciding to leave EU:

● Financial: Each member nation of the EU pays an amount to the EU annually to
continue their membership. As regards the UK, the amount is around $12 billion dol-
lars (£9 billion). This big annual commitment was one possible reason for a ‘leave’
vote where the money can be spent for domestic purposes
● Immigration: One of the many principles laid out while forming the EU was that
of being free members where people can freely move and live in another EU nation
without the hurdles of getting a visa. It is believed that almost 1 million people have
moved to the UK due to the free labour laws. Britain also gives child bene ts and it
is believed that many of these migrants are transferring that money to their children
who aren’t living in the UK.

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● Control & Autonomy: the European Parliament decides on many rules and standards
that EU countries have to follow and critics felt that UK was losing control of our
own affairs and laws.
In essence, it was about autonomy, monetary bene ts, & immigration that got 52% of the
Britons voting to leave the EU.

Immediate impact in 2016:

The referendum results did not mean Britain’s exit by default. This marked the beginning
of the end of Britain’s membership of the EU. In the coming months, British and European
leaders negotiated the terms of Britain's departure. The EU got itself one more crisis to
deal with. As if the Greek crisis, the mass migration and the slow economic growth were
not enough.

2017 was in the news for the two kinds of Brexits:a ‘hard Brexit’ or a ‘soft Brexit’.
Two options were oated since the Brexit referendum - a ‘hard Brexit’ or a ‘soft Brexit’.
The two different terms essentially refer to the kind of relationship and level of participation
the country will have with the EU’s Single Market – the free movement of people, goods
and services – and the Customs Union – the bloc’s trade and tax agreement.

A soft Brexitis generally more favoured by Remain supporters – second to no Brexit, of

course – and a hard Brexit is typically more likely to be supported by those who voted
Leave.

Key elements of a soft Brexit:

It would keep the UK closely aligned with the EU. The UK could gain special access to
the single market but might have to, in return, compromise on immigration agreements. It
aims to minimise the impact on trade and businesses by essentially staying in the customs
union. The result would be that the UK would still be bound by some of the rules of
the bloc, but it would have less of a say in how the rules are made. And it would be
harder for the UK to sign its own new trade deals.

Key elements of a hard Brexit:

It essentially means taking the UK completely out of the EU – including both the single
market and the customs union, so it is free from its regulations and tariffs. It would give
the UK more control over its borders and immigration. It would mean leaving both the
single market and the customs union and accepting the (possibly) short-term disruption
that would cause in order to have the freedom to operate independently. It could cause
more economic damage to both the UK and the EU but supporters think this would be
worth it for the country to be able to then draw up its independent trade agreements.

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Ground Already Covered till 2018: The vote was just the start.The discussions have been
mainly over the "divorce" deal, which sets out exactly how the UK leaves - not what
will happen afterwards.
This deal is known as the withdrawal agreement which covers some of these key points:
● How much money the UK will have to pay the EU in order to break the partnership
● What will happen to UK citizens living elsewhere in the EU, and equally, what will
happen to EU citizens living in the UK
● How to avoid the return of a physical border between Northern Ireland and the
Republic of Ireland when it becomes the frontier between the UK and the EU
● A length of time, called the transition period, has been agreed to allow the UK and
EU to make a trade deal and to give businesses the time to adjust

What happens next afterBoris Johnson's re-election in 2019?

Boris Johnson's got re-elected on the slogan of "get Brexit done".
His victory in the 2019 general election means we the UK is likely to be of cially out of
the EU at the end of January 2020.
Boris Johnson plans to ratify his withdrawal agreement through Parliament to make sure
that the UK leaves the EU by January 31, 2020.
MPs will be carrying out detailed scrutiny of the Withdrawal Agreement Bill - the legal
mechanism for translating the Prime Minister's Brexit deal into law.They need to go through
a committee stage, 'third reading' and the House of Lords before it receives Royal Assent
before January 31, 2020.

Is 1 February 2020 the end?

That is because the deal contains a hard deadline of just 11 months, 31 December 2020,
to secure a Free Trade Agreement with the EU.
Most experts including EU chief Michel Barnier say that is simply not possible.
If that deadline is not extended, UK could be facing a no-deal Brexit on 1 January 2021
when the 'transition period' ends.

What is a no-deal Brexit?

In a no-deal scenario, the UK would immediately leave the European Union (EU) with
no agreement about the "divorce" process.
Overnight, the UK would leave the single market and customs union - arrangements
designed to help trade between EU members by eliminating checks and tariffs (taxes on
imports).

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‘No deal’ also means immediately leaving EU institutions such as the European Court of
Justice and Europol, its law enforcement body.Membership of dozens of EU bodies that
govern rules on everything from medicines to trade marks would end.And the UK would
no longer contribute to the EU budget - currently about £9bn a year.

In conclusion, Boris Johnson's majority may have bought him some time, but the potential
nightmare of a no-deal Brexit still looms.

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13. Umbrella Revolution in Hong Kong

“I tried to purchase umbrellas and I just can’t” on those platforms, said Kelvin Yeung, a 22-year-
old university student who has participated in about half of the marches this summer. “I cannot
put it into my basket if the destination is Hong Kong.”

The story:
Hong Kong, one of the world’s most important nancial hubs, has exploded into protest.
The so-called “umbrella revolution” has turned the city’s gleaming central business district
into a virtual con ict zone, replete with shouting mobs, police in riot gear, and clouds
of tear gas. Tens of thousands of Hong Kong residents – young and old, rich and poor
– have peacefully occupied major thoroughfares across the city, shuttering businesses and
bringing traf c to a halt. They claim that Beijing reneged on an agreement to grant them
open elections by 2017, and demand “true universal suffrage”. Neither side seems prepared
to back off, and nobody knows how the standoff will end.

“Free Hong Kong! Democracy Now!” they chanted.

History:
Demonstrators brought Hong Kong to a virtual standstill in 2014 when they demanded
the right for the territory to pick its own leaders.
For many years, Hong Kong was run by the UK as a part of the former British Empire.
That was until 1997, when control of the city was handed over to China.
But a special agreement with China - called “one country, two systems” - was created to
make sure that Hong Kong had some independence from China.
The protests started in reaction to a decision made by China that it would allow elections
in Hong Kong in 2017, but only from a list of candidates pre-approved by the Chinese
government.
Tens of thousands of people, of whom many were students, camped in the streets and
demanded the right to fully free leadership elections.
It was called “the Umbrella Movement” because protesters used umbrellas to protect
themselves from the tear gas used by police.

“The umbrella has been a symbol since the 2014 Umbrella Movement, and we use it to protect
ourselves. But it gives us power. We stand at the back, but we can donate it to the front. We
pass the power to them.” - Elsa Chan, 30, retail marketing

How this happened

Hong Kong, a former British colony of 7 million people, has been governed under a
“one country, two systems” framework since it was handed back to Chinese control in

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1997. The principle is simple in theory — Beijing is responsible for the city’s defence and
foreign affairs; Hong Kong enjoys limited self-governance and civil liberties, including an
independent judiciary and unrestricted press.
Its top political post – that of chief executive – is chosen by a “nominating committee” of
1,200 people, most of them from pro-Beijing elites. Yet when Beijing regained control over
the city, it promised that the region would be able to elect its top leader by universal
suffrage by 2017. The group guiding the current protests threatened to paralyse the city’s
central business district if Beijing broke its word.

Nobody knew when, or if, the protest would occur, but in August Beijing passed a reform
framework to stipulate universal suffrage on its own terms – only two or three committee-
vetted candidates who “love the country” would be allowed to run. Activists considered
this the last straw. Students began a class boycott and, galvanised by a city-wide surge
in support, staged a large-scale protest outside of the city government headquarters.

Current Protests
In June 2019 new protests were sparked in Hong Kong against a law that could have
seen its citizens tried, or taken to court, for political crimes in China.
Although the law was scrapped the protests continued over issues like democracy and
human rights in Hong Kong.
Benny Tai, a leading activist who was put in prison for his role in the Umbrella movement,
says the campaign switched young people on to protest.
Though the original Umbrella protests died down the action inspired many people in Hong
Kong to take to the streets to protest in ways we have seen once again in recent months.

Call for Democracy

Three months of million-strong peaceful marches and violent clashes with police nally
forced the government to withdraw the legislation recently.
Yet, the fight rages on for an independent inquiry into alleged police brutality in
suppressing the protests, a blanket amnesty for all those charged with offences stemming
from participating in demonstrations, and a retraction of a police claim that protesters are
guilty of rioting - a charge that carries a heavy prison sentence.
Most important of all, the protesters are pressing for a full democracy, as they did during
the Umbrella Movement.
While that movement’s lifeblood was predominantly university students, who stood their
ground, literally, in thousands of tents for months, the current campaign has been more
agile and diffuse. Instead of choking downtown, it has spread to many neighbourhoods
all over the city.

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“The Umbrella Movement has taught them many lessons, including the importance of solidarity
and how to keep the society vibrant by allowing a wide spectrum of people to participate,”
Dixon Ming Sing, an associate professor at the University of Science and Technology, who
investigates comparative political culture, told Al Jazeera.

Frequent skirmishes between the police and the protesters have also exposed the failings
of Hong Kong’s leaders, who remain in power solely on Beijing’s blessing rather than
the people’s consent.
Moreover, widespread outrage against police brutality and sympathy for the mostly peaceful
protesters has helped sustain - and even broaden - public support for the current ght.
Michelle Tsang, 52, wiped off tears as she talked about how young protesters are being
smeared by the authorities as rioters.

“I didn’t know any better back then,” said Tsang. “But this ght is worth ghting.”

The future of ‘One Country, Two Systems’

The Chinese president, Xi Jinping, urged Taiwan to “reunite” with mainland China under
a Hong Kong-style “one country, two systems” framework. His words left many analysts
scratching their heads. Why invoke the system’s virtues when it’s supposed bene ciaries
are in the middle of an unprecedented revolt? Taiwan’s democratic leadership rejected Xi’s
comments, saying that “our government has no way of accepting them”.
This week’s protests may be the most chaotic scenes Hong Kong has experienced since
a violent, anti-British riot racked the city in 1967 – and many residents are taking it as
evidence that the “one country, two systems” framework is fundamentally awed, a recipe
for political gridlock and social unrest. Regardless of the protest’s outcome, Beijing has
almost certainly already lost one of its most valuable assets in the southern city: the trust
of its residents.

“The umbrella is very useful in those protests, protecting the people behind you, and absolutely,
it’s a symbol.” —K, 24

Reference Links:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/sep/30/-sp-hong-kong-umbrella-revolution-pro-
democracy-protests
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/12/modi-summons-ministers-india-protests-death-
toll-increases-191221063611978.html
https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2019-hong-kong-protesters-umbrellas/
https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/49862757
https://www.diggitmagazine.com/papers/social-movements-digital-age
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019_Hong_Kong_protests

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14. Demonetisation and GST: What India Gained and Lost

The Goods and Services Tax or GST came into effect on the 1st of July 2017. The aim of
introducing the tax was to replace all the existing indirect taxes with a single comprehensive
tax. Through GST, all indirect taxes such as central excise tax, service tax, VAT and
entertainment tax were consolidated. This major step has helped the citizens of India to
le their taxes easily without the hassles they faced earlier.
What is GST? - Goods and Services Tax is levied on the manufacturing and sales of goods
and services across the country. The tax is charged at every stage of the manufacturing
process. GST is applicable for both the customer and the manufacturer. It is a destination-
based tax. This means that GST is to be collected at the point of consumption. So, if a
product is manufactured in Bihar and is sold in Bhopal, the tax will be levied in Bhopal.
Moreover, at every stage of the manufacturing process where value is added to the
product, GST is collected.
The types of GST are as follows:
CGST (Central Goods and Services Tax): The tax is collected by the central government on
the intrastate sale of goods and services. SGST (State Goods and Services Tax): The state
government collects this tax based on the intrastate supply of services and products.IGST
(Integrated Goods and Services Tax): The tax is charged on the supply of products and
services between two states. The taxes are shared between the central and state governments.
Demonetization is the act of stripping a currency unit of its status as legal tender. It occurs
whenever there is a change of national currency: the current form or forms of money is
pulled from circulation and retired, often to be replaced with new notes or coins.
On 8th November 2016, the Government of India announced the demonetisation of all ₹500
and ₹1000 banknotes of the Mahatma Gandhi Series. These notes accounted for 86 per cent
of the total value of the currency with the public. It also announced the issuance of new
₹500 and ₹2000 banknotes in exchange for the demonetised banknotes.
The objectives behind demonetization are:
– to destroy fake currency and ght tax evasion
– to do away with black money and thus reduce corruption
– to reduce the excess cash circulation outside the formal economic system
– to reduce In ation and to promote a cashless economy

Three years after the country was wiped out of old currency, the effects of Narendra
Modi’s demonetization can still be felt in the economy. Some of the pros and cons of
both demonetisation and GST are as follows:

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Effects of Demonetisation and GST

• Effects of demonetisation:
1. Demonetization and Personal Finance: Piggybanks have been transformed to savings
accounts as people turn towards increasing bank balances instead of stashing emer-
gency cash in different corners of the house. People nally began to trust the digital
payment systems; because that was the only option they were left with. Demoneti-
zation proved that Indians can strive and adapt to any changes and made people
nancially aware about the different spending options. The government’s efforts to
revamp the currency system provided people with a boost to use the cash that was
lying around and invest it in a more productive way. The more native and conserva-
tive people also opened up towards the era of plastic cash and made several Indians
tech friendly.
2. Demonetization and Black Money: One of the most important points that pushed
peopleto support demonetization was its associating with bringing an end to the black
money problem in India. However, almost 99% of the money was deposited back to
RBI. The statistics revealed that either the hoarders found a way to legitimize their
black money or did not hold them in the form of cash. But this was known by many
before the RBI reports as well. Black money hoarders do not hold the money in cash
according to several nance experts and when this point was highlighted time and
again, other important effects of demonetization were publicized by the government,
like the role of demonetization on curbing terrorism.
3. Demonetization and Terror Funding: The second reason to support demonetization
was its role in curbing terrorism by increasing the obstacles in terror funding. Ter-
rorist organization were known to use fake Indian currency notes for funding their
projects and the government believed that this could be contained with the help of
demonetization. The Income Tax department seized Rs. 474.37 crore in new and old
currency from November 9, 2016 to January 4, 2017 (the demonetization period).
However, there are no reports if the money seized had any association with terror
funding. In spite of these numbers, there is no doubting that the cash reserves of
several terror groups were severely hit in the early days of demonetization.
4. Digitisation: The government pushed for a less-cash society by increasing infrastructure
to allow digital payments. In most of the tier-II and tier-III towns, digital payments
had doubled since demonetisation. From global tech giants such as Google, What-
sApp, to few of the country's biggest mobile wallets, including Paytm, MobiKwik
all adopted the digital payments system around the time demonetisation took place.
Till December 2018, UPI managed transactions of more than Rs 1.02 trillion. National
electronic funds transfer (NEFT) transactions saw an upsurge from Rs 9.88 trillion.
Mobile banking payments also saw a spike since September 2015. All the digital
transactions collectively registered an increase of 440 per cent since demonetisation.
5. Demonetization and Tax Payments: Pushing Indians to deposit and account the cash
lying in their house also meant a rise in the tax payments for the country. Accord-
ing to government reports the income tax payers saw a record increase in the post

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demonetization era. 9.1 million New taxpayers were added to the slab which was an
80% rise over the typical yearly rise. This increase in the number of taxpayingcitizens
in the country has been credited to demonetization. This increase was also resonated
in IT returns ling and advance tax payment.
6. Demonetization and GDP: The ban on old notes is being cited as one of the key
contributors to the economic slowdown. With the gross domestic product (GDP) for
the April-June quarter slipping to 5.7%, the reality of the economic slowdown could
not be ignored. The World Bank has reduced the India GDP growth forecast to 7%
for 2017-18 owing to demonetization and GST (Goods and Service tax). The slowdown
is being cited as a delayed consequence of demonetization by the World Bank and
while there are various other reasons at play, the steep decline has been credited to
be an effect of demonetization.
7. Demonetization and MSMEs: Demonetization had a lasting effect on Indians MSMEs
(Medium, Small and Micro Enterprises). Various medium and small enterprises turned
towards digitalization, however, the micro industries were affected by the worst of
its wrath. The micro industry owners were not a part of the black economy and
they were clearly unprepared for the effects of demonetization. Many micro industry
workers returned back to villages and the growth rate of these companies went as
low as 1%. The MSME sector has been recovering from the drastic changes and its
impact on the revenue, but demonetization forced the MSME sector to be friendlier
and more accommodating towards the digital arenas and made them more accom-
modating towards change.

While these are some of the effects of demonetization on the national and economic front,
demonetization gave individuals several lessons that have changed the way we look at
managing nances. Demonetization made sure that we monetize our earnings to get the
best returns possible whether it is by turning to monthly investment schemes to save
better or by turning our safe cash pile into an easy withdrawal FD ( xed deposit). The
government’s revenue will see an increase because of demonetization and its initial effects
are already prevalent in the income tax lings post note ban. Demonetization has played
a crucial role in bringing digitalization and nancial planning into the forefront for many.
India has withstood the immediate chaotic impacts of demonetization and it is evident
that the returns of the hardships will begin to show in the coming months.

• Effect of GST on the Indian economy: The implementation of GST has signi cantly
affected the Indian economy in the following ways:
1. Simpli cation of the tax structure: GST has simpli ed the taxation system of the
country. As GST is a single tax, calculating taxes at the multiple stages of the sup-
ply chain has become easier. Through this, both customers and manufacturers get a
clear idea of the amount of tax they are charged and its basis. Further, hassles of
handling tax of cials and authorities can also be avoided.

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2. Fostering production: As per the Indian retail industry, the total tax component is
around 30% of the product cost. Due to the impact of GST, the taxes have gone
down. So, the end consumer has to pay lesser taxes. The reduced burden of taxes
has enhanced the production and growth of the retail and other industries.
3. SME support: Small and medium enterprises can now register under the Composition
Scheme introduced by GST. Through this scheme, they pay taxes according to their
annual turnover. Therefore, businesses having an annual turnover of Rs. 1.5 crores
only have to pay 1% GST. Moreover, other enterprises having a turnover of Rs. 50
lakh are required to pay 6% as GST.
4. Enhanced pan India operations: Companies can now avoid taxation roadblocks, such
as toll plazas and check posts. Earlier, these created problems, including damage to
unpreserved products while transporting them. So, manufacturers had to keep buffer
stock to make up for the damages. These overhead costs of storing and warehousing
hampered their pro t. A single taxation system has reduced these problems. They can
now transport their goods easily across India. This has resulted in the improvement
of their pan India operations.
5. Increase in exports: GST has reduced the customs duty on exporting goods. The cost
of production in the local markets has also decreased due to GST. All these factors
have increased the rate of exports in the country. Companies have become more
competitive when it comes to expanding their businesses globally.
The introduction of GST has helped merge the taxes of the state and central govern-
ments. This has helped remove the cascading effect of multiple taxes. Therefore, the
burden of taxes has reduced for companies and customers. Not just this, taxpayers
have increased in number and hence, the tax revenues have also increased signi -
cantly. The overall taxation system is now easier to administer. Moreover, small- and
medium-sized enterprises are able to enhance their businesses. It is expected that
GST will help more Indian organisations to establish themselves in the international
markets.

Demonetisation and GST impacted the Indian Economy adversely.

Demonetization has been one of the most criticized moves by PM Modi and everyone
from former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan
has condemned this move and its effects on the Indian economy. From slowing down
the economic growth in various sectors to giving people nightmares of the long queues
and the inability to spend liquid cash freely, the hullabaloo created by demonetization is
remembered by one and all. Demonetization was initiated with a wide array of motives
like stripping the Indian economy of its black money, push people to pay taxes for the
unaccounted pile of cash, curb terrorism, promote the digital India movement and make
India a cashless economy.

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In the months that followed, even as reports suggested that the government had not come
any close to achieving its stated objectives, the government was seen patting itself on
the back for the country’s move towards becoming a ‘cashless’ economy, or, as the PM
said, a ‘less-cash’ economy. Many called this an act of ‘moving goal posts’ and rushed to
label demonetisation as an economic nightmare.Three years later, we have enough data
to analyse and gauge the impact of the note-ban exercise on various important sectors
of the economy.
1. Jobs: According to Labour Bureau's Sixth Annual Employment-Unemployment Survey,
the unemployment rate rose to a four-year high in 2016-17, when the government
demonetised old currency notes. In 2017-18, the country's unemployment rate stood
at a 45-year-high of 6.1 per cent, according to the National Sample Survey Of ce's
(NSSO's) periodic labour force survey (PLFS).Moreover, demonetisation caused a
2-3-percentage-point reduction in jobs and national economic activity in November and
December 2016, according to a research.Between 2016 and 2018, ve million people
lost their jobs and the labour force participation started declining suddenly between
September and December 2016 for both urban and rural men. The rate of decline
slowed down by the second half of 2017, but the general trend had continued and
there had been no recovery.
2. Income taxpayers: As many as 8.80 million taxpayers did not le tax returns in the
nancial year 2016-17 - the year Modi government demonetised high-value currency
notes. Records accessed by The Indian Express reveal a massive spike in the num-
ber of “stop lers” in the same year, reversing a four-year trend. In 2016-17, the
number of stop lers jumped 10-fold to 8.80 million from 856,000 in 2015-16, the
highest increase since 2000-2001. During 2017-18, there was some positive impact of
demonetisation on the widening of the tax base. The Income Tax department said
it added 1.07 crore new taxpayers while the number of dropped lers' came down
to 25.22 lakh.The Central Board Of Direct Taxes (CBDT) said 6.87 crore Income Tax
Returns (ITRs) were led during FY 2017-18 as compared to 5.48 crore ITRs led
during FY 2016-17, translating into a growth of 25 per cent. Also, during FY 2017-18,
the number of new ITR lers increased to 1.07 crore as compared to 86.16 lakh new
ITR lers added during FY 2016-17.
3. Real Estate: The total number of developers in the top nine Indian cities shrunk by
over 50 per cent by 2017-18. While Gurugram witnessed a decline of 76.8 per cent
in the number of developers from 82 in 2011-12 to 19 in 2017-18, Noida registered a
plunge of 73.2 per cent – from 41 to 11.Financial distress of small developers, lack
of execution capability and over-supply of inventory played a key role in the down-
turn.According to analysts, a large number of y-by-night developers were forced to
leave the market after demonetisation. All major cities with signi cant potential for
real estate development – Mumbai, Pune, Thane, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Hyderabad
– saw a decline in the number of developers.
4. Farm income and wages: Both farmers’ incomes from crop cultivation as well as
wages of farm labourers contracted in 2016-17 despite the above-normal monsoon

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season. On the positive side in agriculture as a whole, output from shing and
livestock grew the fastest in 2016-17. The growth was nearly 10 per cent over the
previous year.In a period of low supply of cash, input suppliers demanded higher
prices. Demonetisation was carried out brie y after the harvest of the kharif season
entered the markets, and when the entire rabi output was yet on the elds. On the
other hand, agriculture had grown (gross value added) the fastest since 2012 in the
demonetisation year due to a bumper crop.
5. Factory investment: In the year when the demonetisation was implemented, investment
in the country’s factories contracted 10.3 per cent over 2016-17, showing their worst
performance since 2002-03. In the year immediately after the note ban exercise, even
as factories in the organised sector witnessed job growth and wage rise consistent
with previous years, their ability to channel funds in productive capital was severely
dented in 2017-18.
6. Spending on milk and milk products: In 2017-18, the amount spent on milk and milk
products (M&MP) dropped 10 per cent. Households, hotels, and halwai shops spent
Rs 6 trillion on M&MP in 2016-17, consumption expenditure reduced to Rs 5.4 tril-
lion in 2017-18, the data released by the National Statistical Of ce (NSO) showed.
7. Digitisation: Pushing India towards becoming a cashless economy was another reason
that demonetization was publicized for. People turned towards digital transactions
for everything from buying groceries from a road side vendor to paying utility bills
during the time of demonetization. However, as the ow of cash into the economy
began to increase, the use of these apps and digital wallets saw a slide once again.
8. Has growth been impacted by de-monetisation? Yes. By any measure, the PM's deci-
sion was incomprehensible and, in view of its adverse effects revealed subsequently
by the Economic Survey 2016-17, the annual report of the Reserve Bank and other
reliable sources, demonetisation turned out to be a monumental failure. The PM had
three objectives in mind: ushing out fake currency, attacking terrorism and, most
importantly, ooding out black money. None of these was ful lled. For instance, as
the RBI revealed, fake currency worth only Rs 41 crore was found out. This was
contradictory to the estimates of about Rs 4-5 lakh crore given by MukulRohatgi,
the then Attorney General, in the Supreme Court on November 23, 2016.Terrorist
activities are far from controlled, let alone eliminated.
9. Demonetisation did not hit illicit wealth held as real estate, shares, gold, silver and
foreign currency. In addition to this, there have been allegations that the information
had been leaked to BJP units and ‘friends of BJP’ prior to its public announcement.
10. The hardships caused by a shortage of new legal tender, and the rush to deposit old
500 and 1,000 rupee (Rs 15.28 lakh crore)notes in bank accounts before the Dec. 31
deadline, took a heavy toll. More than 100 people died in bank and ATM queues,
although it's impossible to con rm if the deaths from heart failure or exhaustion were
directly a result of demonetization.This chaos continued for six to seven months. But
soon the people were to be disillusioned.

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11. When 86 per cent of the total value of cash was withdrawn from circulation, the
economy was bound to suffer. Of the three main functions of money, the "transaction"
function (others being "precautionary" and "speculative") keeps the economy moving
and growing, mainly through the exchange of goods and services. The government
issued Rs 2,000 currency notes. As per RBI data, on March 17, of the total 10,029.3
crore currency notes, Rs 2,000 currency notes constituted only 3.3 per cent but they
accounted for 52.2 per cent of the total value. These high denomination notes lacked
transaction value, which paralysed the mainly cash-dependent informal economy. De-
monetisation brought economic transaction and exchange to a standstill. This affected
growth.
12. The RBI spent close to Rs 13,000 crore over the next two years to remonetise Indian
money market in post-demonetisation phase. New notes of Rs 500 and Rs 2,000 were
introduced. The designs were markedly different from the recalled ones. This escalated
the cost of printing as it had several new features.
13. About 80% of the informal economy - mainly comprising micro, small and a large
part of medium enterprises, small and medium traders, and through that, low-paid,
contract workers - was badly hit. This signi cantly affected employment. During
January-April 2017, about 15 lakh jobs were lost mainly due to demonetisation. The
latest Economic Survey shows that in North India demand for MGNREGA (Mahatma
Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005) increased by 30%. The
government's promise of creating two crore jobs annually has withered away.
14. There is a clear impact on the services sector from the latest numbers. The services
sector grew by 6.8%, the slowest rate in 11 quarters. In terms of speci c sub-segments
within services, 'Finance, insurance, real estate and professional services' grew by a
particularly low rate of 3.1%, the lowest growth rate seen in this sub-segment since
the start of the new series growth rates in 2012-13.
15. Is de-monetisation the only factor playing on growth? It is the counterbalancing fac-
tors that have kept the growth relatively buoyed. These are: (i) A strong agriculture
season and (ii) Festive season demand. Further, the growth in the government spending
has also been quite substantial, in fact, the highest ever at 19.9% in the new series,
which explains the support to overall growth. So, demonetisation would have had a
worse impact were it not for these factors.
16. In March 2017, the RBI revealed that currency notes worth Rs 15.28 lakh crore or 99%
of the total 15.44 lakh crore was deposited in banks. Thus, the objective of attacking
black money fell on its face. In fact, as experts argue, black money constitutes about
25% of India's national income (GDP). If this ratio is applied to the cash deposited
in the banks (Rs 15.28 lakh crore), then, it turns out to be about Rs 3.82 lakh crore.
Thus, far from attacking black money, one may argue that demonetisation allowed
the culprits to convert Rs 3.82 lakh crore into "white" money.

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The GST has been more positively viewed and the few negatives associated with it
include:
1. Proposed GST Rate Is higher than VAT:The rate of GST is proposed to be larger
than the current VAT rate in India. Although VAT implies decreasing the prices in
the long run, it will be of no help in cutting down prices of commodities.
2. Dual Control: A business will be indirectly controlled by both the Centre and the
State in all tax-related cases. The State will lose autonomy to replace the tax rate
which will be regulated by the GST Council.
3. Certain Sectors Will Face a Negative Impact: Sectors that are currently enjoying no
excise duty or have enjoyed a lot of tax bene ts will have to bear the brunt of a
higher tax. These include Textile, Media, Pharma, Dairy Products, IT/ITeS, and Tele-
com. The same goes for products. It is supposed that the prices of the following
commodities will increase – jewellery, mobile phones and credit cards.
4. Loss Incurred by the Manufacturing States: Since GST is commonly related to the
manufacturing segment, most manufacturing states may incur losses.

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15. Citizenship Amendment Act – What is at Stake?

Various parts of India have recently broken out in protest, ironically some for and some
against the CAA. There have been reports of violent clashes: protestors against the police;
and social media is full of debates concerning this act which has become the talk of the
town. So what is this CAA and why is it being opposed by a section and supported by
a section of society at the same time??
The Citizenship amendment bill was rstly introduced in the LokSabha on 19th July 2016
as the Citizenship Bill, 2016. On 12 August 2016, It was referred to the Joint Parliamentary
Committee which submitted its report on 7 January 2019. It was passed in the LokSabha
on 8th January 2019 but it lapsed with the dissolution of the 16th LokSabha. The bill was
re-introduced in the Parliament as Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019. On 9 December
2019, Amit shah introduced the Bill in the LokSabha and it was passed on 10th December
2019. At least 125 lawmakers voted in favour of the bill and 99 against it. After a long
hardship, the bill nally got the assent of President Ram Nath Kovind on December 12,
2019 and it became the Citizenship Amendment Act 2019.
The CAA 2019 amends the Citizenship Act of 1995, which grants Indian Citizenship to
persecuted minorities such as Hindus, Sikhs, Parsis, Jains, Buddhists and Christian eeing
from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. According to the previous act, any person who
doesn’t have proper documents would be termed as an illegal immigrant. But according to
the new act, people of the following religions from three countries will not be treated as an
illegal immigrant: Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians from Afghanistan,
Bangladesh and Pakistan. The previous act had provisions for people living in India to
receive citizenship through naturalization. According to the previous act a person must
have lived in the country for 11 years preceding the application submission of citizenship.
This bill reduces that to 6 years. This act also states that registration of OCI (Overseas
Citizen of India) cardholders will be canceled if they violate any law.
The point to note is that Muslims are conspicuously not listed in this act till date, which
has, in part been a major reason for widespread protests against this act. People feel that
the BJP is trying to push its Hindutva agenda by isolating the Muslims and by trying
to favour only refugees from other religions, whereas the BJP has strongly defended
its intentions by stating that Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan are already Muslim
majority countries and that the scope of persecution of Muslims itself in these countries is
negligible. This is one open weakness of the act that the government has not successfully
managed to defend as its logic is not consistent – the bill does not protect all religious
minorities, nor does it apply to all neighbours. The Ahmedia Muslim sect and even
Shias face discrimination in Pakistan. Rohingya Muslims and Hindus face persecution
in neighbouring Burma, and Hindu and Christian Tamils in neighbouring Sri Lanka but
all have been ignored against any bene ts by this bill. But also in its defense it can be
noted that there has been a considerable reduction in the non Muslim population of the

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aforementioned Islamic majority countries and that the bill is mainly aimed at aiding those
who are persecuted the most there.
The Northeast has been protesting for a slightly different reason as illegal immigration
has been a major issue here right from the beginning and the region has witnessed
many agitations against illegal immigrants for decades now. But, the biggest concern of
people in Northeast is that the bill undermines the effect of the Assam Accord signed in
1985 according to which, any person who can’t prove their ancestor’s presence in India
before March 24 1971 will be deemed as an illegal immigrant. The Assam Accord didn’t
discriminate on the basis of religion and it ended the 6-year long agitation against illegal
immigration in the state of Assam. However, the Citizenship Amendment Bill has tried
to change the de nition of illegal immigrants and excluded religious minorities from the
illegal immigrant list and hence the majority of the northeast fears that its region will
become a dumping ground for foreign immigrants and threatens its language and culture.
This fear is justi ed to an extent but it is unfair on the part of the Northeasteners to
refuse to accept immigrants solely on the basis of such logic as many of them too have
immigrated to all parts of India in search of better education and job prospects.
On the whole this cannot be seen just as a ful llment of a poll agenda by the BJP, as
the persecution of minorities in India’s neighboring countries is an often ignored facet of
reality which has to be addressed immediately. But given the various logical gaps and
loopholes the act contains in its current form, it is up to the ruling party to either offer
a plausible explanation for the formulation of the act the way it is, or bring changes to
inclusively bene t the aggrieved as a whole without a strong undertone of discrimination,
purportedly going against the values of India.

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16. Death Penalty for Rape -Is It Justi ed?

In recent times, headlines have been dominated by cases of sexual violence, rape and
violence. And with these cases has come the common refrain; ‘Hang the rapists’. However,
this time, even the Parliament responded to that slogan. A RajyaSabha MP opined that
rapists should be lynched in public; the head of the Delhi Commission for Women was
reported to havesat on an inde nite hunger strike until the accused in a recent rape case
were sentenced to death.
In his recent address, the Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi reminded citizens that
the government had made provisions for the “strictest punishment” for rapists. Hinting
towards the Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill 2018, he noted, “Those found guilty of raping
girls below the age of 12 years will be awarded the death sentence”. Indeed, the death
penalty may also apply to rape cases where the victim dies or goes into a persistent
vegetative state, or if the perpetrator is a repeat offender. These provisions, along with
stricter rape laws in general, were also set in motion by a case that caused outrage across
India — the 2012 Delhi gang rape.
The debate whether the death penalty for all rapes should be established or not is one
of most long lasting and impassioned debates going on in the civil society and political
sphere in India. Some subscribe to the "eye for an eye" or "life for life" philosophy,
while others believe that the death penalty is grossest form of miscarriage of the justice
system. Most supporters of death penalty believe that it is justi ed on one or more of
the following grounds: as means of revenge or justice, as a deterrent to others, to prevent
any danger of re-offending.
In 2017, a total of 1,46,201 rape cases were in trial, of which trial in 18,333 cases were
disposed of by courts. Of the total 18,099 rape cases where trial was completed in 2017,
5,822 cases resulted in conviction while 1,1453 cases resulted in acquittal and 824 cases
in discharge. Out of the 1,27,868 rape cases pending trial in 2017 in the country, every
third case was older than three years. Moreover, 12,216 rape case trials are pending for
more than ve years, and 1,840 rape case trials are pending for more than 10 years as
per data from the country’s National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB).
Soshould death penalty be awarded to all convicts of rape?

Yes: Death penalty for rape is justi ed

There are three main arguments advanced by proponents of the death penalty for rape:
(i) It is the harshest of punishments and thus the most effective in deterring crimes like
rape; (ii) It makes more sense economically to give death penalty than to incur the cost
of a prisoner which creates extra burden on the exchequer, and (iii) Capital punishment
has certainty. In most cases where life imprisonment is awarded, the prisoner manages
to procure a pardon after a while.
Society has always used punishment to discourage would-be criminals from unlawful action.

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Since society aims to have the highest interest inpreventing rape and murder, it should
use the strongest punishment available to deter murder and that is the death penalty. If
rapists are sentenced to death and executed, other criminally-minded persons will think
twice before executing the crime for the fear of losing their own life.
PinkyAnand, a senioradvocate and women’s rights activist, who is serving as an Additional
Solicitor General of India at the Supreme Court of India opines that the Thirty-fifth
Report of the Law Commission has argued in favour of the retention of death penalty.
The report held the view that experience of other countries could not be conclusive for
India. There is greater danger in India of increase in violent crimes if capital punishment
is abandoned, particularly in respect of professional criminals. Quoting a few landmark
cases, Pinky Anand writes:
• In Mahesh vs State of M.P., the court observed: ‘To give the lesser punishment for
the appellants would be to render the justice system of this country suspect. In such
cases, the accused understands and appreciates the language of deterrence more than
the reformative jargon.’
• In Ashar Lal vs State of U.P., the language of deterrence was used in these terms:
‘As a measure of social necessity and also as a means of deterring other potential
offenders, the sentence of death …is con rmed.’
While we may cry hoarse over ideas of human rights and rights of the accused and while
the world debates the humanity of capital punishment, we still need to balance it with
the rights of the victims themselves. Capital punishment has been vili ed by statistics and
reports of not being an effective deterrent, or that is an archaic and populist measure.
But the truth is also unalienable; the rape of a personimpacts a life irrevocably and has
to be stamped out if we want our citizens to live in a free world.
It is an unquestionable fact that no system is fool proof, no law gives complete protection.
The idea of death penalty is to recommend irrevocable punishment on someone who has
committed the worst that a human being can. A conviction of rape clearly falls in the
category of rarest of the rare.
The strongest argument of all in favour of the death penalty is the deep pain and grief
of the victims, and their natural desire to see punishment meted out to those who
haveplunged them into such agony. A severe violation of the social contract can only
solved by imposing a severe punishment in return. Thus, death penalty should undeniably
be awarded in all cases of rape.

No: Death penalty for rape is unwarranted

The Justice J.S.Verma Committee, set up after the 2012 Delhi gang rape and murder,
did not think adding the death penalty to rape cases was a way to make India safer
for women. Even former Supreme Court judge Ashok Kumar Ganguly said, “Nowhere
ever has capital punishment been helpful in preventing rape. If it had been, why would
there still be so much crime? There was a reason the world moved away from capital

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punishment. It undermined right to life and has proven problematic everywhere that it
was practiced in the world”.
Some human rights organizations also oppose the death penalty. If we look at our national
crime statistics, death penalty has not proved to be a deterrent. The scope of rape laws
was expanded following the ghastly gang rape on a bus in December 2012. The rape law
that was amended in 2013 prescribes the death penalty and life imprisonment for sexual
assaults that result in death or the victim being reduced to a persistent vegetative state.
Many of the pending cases of rape also fall under Section 375 (4) which states that ‘a
man is said to have committed rape if he has sexual intercourse with a woman with
her consent…and that her consent is given because she believes that he is another man
to whom she is or believes herself to be lawfully married’. In other words, sex under
the pretext of marriage is classi ed as rape. The accused, if proven guilty, can face a
punishment of minimum 7 years in jail. Due to no clarity on how the presence of or
absence of consent can be established, it depends on the court’s discretion while deciding
the question of rape on false promise to marry.
Weighing in on this issue, Justice Pratibha Rani of Delhi High Court said in 2017 that
the court has come across cases where women often use rape laws for "vendetta" when a
relationship sours."This court had observed on a number of occasions that the number of
cases where both persons, out of their own will and choice, develop consensual physical
relationship, when the relationship breaks up due to some reason, the women use the law
as a weapon for vengeance and personal vendetta.They tend to convert such consensual
acts as incidents of rape maybe out of anger and frustration, thereby defeating the very
purpose of the provision. This requires a clear demarcation between the rape and consensual
sex, especially in the case where complaint is that consent had been given on promise
of marriage," the judge said.
Research carried out in 2015 by journalist Rukmini Shrinivasan, who worked for the Hindu
newspaper at the time, revealed that when parents discover their unmarried daughters
are in a sexual relationship, their horror at potential “dishonour” to the family name
leads many to make spurious allegations of rape, having rst bullied their children into
submission.By their logic, saying a daughter has been raped is preferable to people thinking
she is sexually active. Shrinivasan’s research into the 460 rape cases that came to trial in
New Delhi in 2013 revealed that “more than one third turned out to be cases of couples
having consensual sex outside marriage but, when the parents found out, they went to
the police to end the relationship”.
Many observers feel that false claims brought by women who argue ‘they were duped into
losing their virginity’ serve only to undermine efforts to promote gender equality. “These
cases should not be treated as rape. If we are talking of women’s agency, then we can’t
have it both ways,” says lawyer and women's rightsactivist Vrinda Grover.
In August 2019, a Supreme Court bench headed by Justice DY Chandrachud held that in
every such case of rape, the accused cannot be held guilty when he fails to marry a woman
despite a promise. It said that the prosecution must prove that the promise to marry was

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a promise given with no intention to honour it, and that such a promise was the only
reason why a woman agreed to a sexual relationship. If these guidelines are implemented,
the number of cases classi ed as rape would drastically decline. Also, experts opine that
the low conviction of such cases also points towards the fact that many of these cases
may not have been legally tenable or would have been lodged for various other reasons.
The death penalty also imposes an irrevocable sentence. Once an inmate is executed,
nothing can be done to make amends if a mistake has been made. Globally, in many
cases, DNA testing has exonerated death row inmates. There too, the justice system had
concluded that these defendants were guilty and deserving of the death penalty. If the
punishment in such cases is increased from a minimum 7 years in jail to death and if
an accused is wrongfully held guilty of rape, it will be the grossest miscarriage of justice
since dead persons can le no appeals or review petitions.
It also betrays ignorance of the phenomena that trial Courts can wrongly convict, and
many a time, the appeal courts reverse their decision.
Those who believe that deterrence justi es the execution of rape offenders bear the burden
ofproving that the death penalty is a deterrent. The overwhelming conclusion from years
of deterrence studies is that the death penalty is, at best, no more of a deterrent than a
sentence o ife in prison.The death penalty is not a deterrent because most people who
commit heinous crimes such as rapes either do not expect to be caught or do not carefully
weigh the differences between a possible execution and life in prison before they act. There
is no conclusive proof that the death penalty acts as a better deterrent than the threat of
life imprisonment in cases of rape.

Conclusion:
We might or might not agree on the need of capital punishment, or its ef cacy as a tool
for deterrence of rape, but there is no question that we should evolve steps to ensure
that justice is carried out. An aggravated assault on the life and liberty of an individual,
in the nature of sexual abuse, is a depraved act which should therefore invite a strict
provision of justice without compromising the stream of an established judicial process.

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17. Politics of Statues- Recon guring India’s Nationalism

India has built the world’s tallest statue, the Statue of Unity, on a river island of the
Narmada River in Gujarat. The statue is of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the rst home minister
of independent India. Other state leaders are also looking at making statues of local icons.
Do such huge monuments matter? After the ribbons have been cut and the political
speeches have concluded, how much do we notice the statues, sculptures and plaques
in our midst? Do they continue to proclaim the signi cance of the individual that they
commemorate, or does indifference gets the upper hand?
To understand the construction of these statues and the government’s promotion of them,
one must carefully examine the ideas behind the Statue of Unity and understand the
identity politics of iconography and its linkages with electoral politics.

Background
Narendra Modi rst announced the project to commemorate Vallabhbhai Patel on 7 October
2013 at a press conference to mark the beginning of his 10th year as the Chief Minister
of Gujarat. At the time, the project was dubbed, "Gujarat's tribute to the nation".
A separate Society named Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Rashtriya Ekta Trust (SVPRET) was
formed under the Chairmanship of Chief Minister, Government of Gujarat, to ensure
seamless execution of the entire project.
An outreach drive named the Statue of Unity Movement was started to support the
construction of the statue. It helped collect the iron needed for the statue by asking farmers
to donate their used farming instruments. By 2016, total 135 metric tonnes of scrap iron
had been collected and about 109 tonnes of it was used to make the foundation of the
statue after processing.
The Statue of Unity is the world's tallest statue at 182 metres (597 ft). It rises 54 metres
(177 ft) higher than the previous record holder, the Spring Temple Buddha in China's
Henan province.

What does the pro-statue side say?

From time immemorial, people asserted their origin, meaning, ethnicity, piety, religion
and power through images.
Monuments such as statues play an important symbolic role in people's lives, with each
monument being built for speci c reasons and intended to serve particular purposes or
interests. Monuments are erected as part of a visual culture that continually reminds us
of something or someone important; yet, the symbolic value of monuments may change.
Such values may acquire or lose importance, depending on fluctuating socio-political
dispensations and dispositions.
Across the USA Lincoln memorials were built to remind a once deeply divided country
about the man who brought it together. It is worth remembering that they were built by

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people worrying about a country where people spoke one primary language and followed
one principal faith — two of the most potent reasons that break nations apart. The same
practice occurs with statues and portraits across the world. Even at home our ancestral
photos and things act as a reminder about our glorious past.
There was, of course, no such uniformity of language or religion in India that more
than ve hundred princely states could be merged — without, as Soviet premier Nikolai
Bulganin noted, eliminating the princes. That no royal head rolled during the integration
of princely states with British India to create the modern nation state was almost entirely
due to Vallabhbhai Patel. Moreover, as Patel biographer P. N. Chopra noted, “Sardar’s
India was greater in size than that of Samudragupta, Asoka and Akbar, and the writ of
the Centre wielded an authority and respect never dreamt of by these great rulers.” This
is why it is apt that the statue of Patel is called the “Statue of Unity”.
True, Patel had a couple of statues to his name, but none that recognised his contribution
to the national movement on par — as it undoubtedly was — with Gandhi and Nehru.
That is why, when Rajmohan Gandhi wrote his book on Patel more than two decades
ago, he complained that while praise given to Gandhi was dutiful, and to Nehru fulsome,
it was niggardly about Patel. This concern is supported by a couple of telling examples.
Nehru got a Bharat Ratna as a sitting prime minister in 1955, while Patel’s award had to
wait till 1991. Gandhi and Nehru even got their own adjectives – Gandhian and Nehruvian
– but there is no ‘Patelian’.
Most Indians do not understand that the map that they have been taught to call India
would not exist, or would look very different, without Vallabhbhai Patel.
But perhaps the most important void that the Statue of Unity might ll is that of the
trio that led India’s struggle for freedom only Patel never told his story. Both Gandhi
and Nehru wrote voluminously about the saga as they saw it. But Patel, when asked by
his daughter why he didn’t write his version, famously said that some write history and
others create it.
But this statue might just ll the gap.
The Statue of Unity, the world’s highest statue is not only a tribute to the Iron Man of India,
but also is the rst such tourist attraction located in India and is termed ‘Pride of Nation’
A sense of patriotism and united India is infused within the hearts of the people who
visit the Statue of Unity or even have a glimpse of it.
The Statue of Unity will help in increasing tourism income and a large area with Hotels,
transport and other services will develop fast.
Thousands of people in Narmada District and nearby areas will get employment opportunity
directly or indirectly.
It is estimated that more than 10 Lakh tourists will visit the Statue of Unity every year.
This will help in generating huge income from tourism and transportation and other
services. Entire money spent on the construction is expected to be recovered in the next
35-40 years.

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What do the critics say?

The Statue of Unity is just one more move on the political chessboard towards the Bharatiya
Janata Party’s (BJP) brand of nationalism.
Whenever Modi has spoken about the statue project, he has projected himself and the BJP
as the rst to accord Sardar Patel his rightful place in history. The dig was invariably at
the Congress. The BJP’s main thrust is to portray itself as a party that accommodates all
great leaders, whereas the Congress is projected as a one-family party.
The cost of this project is nearly Rs. 3,000 crores.
In India, the most visited and popular monument is Taj Mahal. All around the world, 8
million people come to see the Taj Mahal yearly which generates the revenue of Rs. 25
crores. For a second if we considered that the Statue of Unity is as popular as Taj Mahal
then also it will generate only 25 crores per year which will take 120 years to get back
revenue.
Here some people will say that why we are considering ticket cost only why we doesn’t
see that it will generate so many local jobs, business but if we only want to create jobs
there are so many better ways than spending Rs. 3000 crores.
We can open skill development centers or universities and by seeing all this we can assume
that our government has not given any attention to the pro t and it is also wastage of tax.
The Statue of Unity will not be so popular because of its location. We have seen that
the statue of liberty, Eiffel tower they all are in big cities. The Statue of Unity is 4 hours
away from Ahmedabad and 8 hours away from Mumbai.
For the attraction of tourism, there should be some uniqueness in the statue but unfortunately,
we can’t see any uniqueness in the Statue of Unity and by saying it is tallest statue is
not a big deal.
For making the Statue of Unity so many villages, adivasis lost their land. They also left
their houses for the construction of statue.
In the end, would it be fair to say that the monetary and human cost of building such
humongous statues is justi ed?

Conclusion:
The common national symbols such as statues, ag, anthem and national bird, animal, tree,
ower, etcall serve as the monuments that convey the message of either national history
or collectivism. The nation rallies under these symbols to express their cohesion, patriotism
or allegiance. They are the symbols of identity and nationality.People in history, past and
present, always built monuments to memorialise the achievements of either themselves or
others such as their heroes/
It is for this reason that these icons command some indelible power to resuscitate memories.
Beholding them revives the history.
The moment the symbols promote social exclusion, the division becomes inevitable and
national unity and cohesion far-fetched. The problem is not the monuments, but people who
construct them and their motives. The symbols must promote a sense of unity. They must
never promote division and should never be used for theproliferation of hate or disharmony.

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18. Chandrayaan 2: A Failed Mission or A Stepping Stone for

Future Glory?

The word Chandrayaan is derived from two words, Chandra means moon and yaan means
vehicle. Chandrayaan essentially means the lunar spacecraft. Chandrayaan 1, India's rst
deep space mission,made path breaking discoveries. The most signi cant discovery was
the presence of hydroxyl and water molecules on the lunar surface. This mission detected
presence of magnesium, aluminium and silicon on the lunar surface. Global imaging of
the Moon is another achievement of this mission. The success of Chandrayaan 1 set the
ball rolling for ISRO and Chandrayaan 2 is the follow up mission. The objectives of
Chandrayaan 2 were to test new technologies which will be useful for future, demonstrate
ability to soft land and operate a robotic Rover. Scienti c goals of Chandrayaan 2 include
orbital studies of lunar topography, mineralogy, elemental abundance,lunar exosphere and
signatures of hydroxyl and water ice. For the rst time ISRO attempted a controlled soft
landing of the Lander.

India wanted to be the first country to explore the south polar region of the moon,
which is known as the far side of the Moon. According to ISRO “the lunar South Pole is
interesting because of the lunar surface area that remains in shadow is much larger than
that at the North Pole. There could be a possibility of presence of water in permanently
shadowed areas around it. In addition South Pole region has craters that are cold traps
and contain a Fossil record of the early solar system." Also since 1960, Russian scientists
have hypothesized that polar caps, especially South Pole, could harbor frozen water. This
side does not get any exposure to the sun and is cold.

India’s second lunar mission started on July 22nd and Chandrayaan 2 was launched
successfully by GSLV MK3 launch vehicle from Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota.
The spacecraft comprised of an Orbiter, Lander - Vikram and Rover - Pragyan. The rover
was placed inside the Lander. The Orbiter and Lander was integrated and put into Earth's
Orbit by the launch vehicle. Using orbital propulsion module the integrated module reached
moon's Orbit. The purpose of the rover was to test the mineral and chemical composition
on the lunar surface. The orbiter would have completed what Chandrayaan 1 started by
creating 3D map of the lunar surface.

Chandrayaan 2 spacecraft achieved one milestone after another in a phased manner

and the nal phase, soft landing of Vikram lander, was expected on early mornings of
September 7. During the last minutes of descent just 2.1 kilometer above lunar surface the
communication link with Vikram Lander snapped. The lander deviated from its intended
course and had a hard landing on the lunar surface. Had the soft landing been successful
and Pragyan rover made it to the lunar surface India would have been the 4th country
to succeed.

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Through this indigenous mission, India has successfully succeeded in executing the launch
phase, orbiter phase and almost succeeded in the Lander rover phase. These phases required
burns across Earth's orbit, Lunar orbit and Vikram Landing burns. This showed India’s
capability to execute complex maneuvers and demonstrate pro ciency over propulsion,
guidance and navigation technologies. The orbiter has a camera with a resolution of 30
cm, which is perhaps the highest resolution camera going around the moon. The expected
life of orbiter is around 7 years which in itself is a huge feat when compared to 312 days
of operation by Chandrayaan 1 orbiter.

The cost effectiveness of the mission should be appreciated. China’s Chang'e-1 lunar
mission in 2007 cost 1.4 billion yuan (approx 1430 crores), whereas Chandrayaan 1 mission
in 2008 cost 386 crore and Chandrayaan 2 mission in 2019 cost 970 crore. ISRO has seen
success in the past decade like that of Mangalyaan and the record launch of 103 satellites.
Having proved its ability for cost effective missions, ISRO should levy this advantage in
the commercial market for launching heavy satellites into orbits.

India, China and Japan are the dominant players in the Asian space race. China has had
3 successful lunar mission and in 2003 became the third country to put a man in space.
India is lagging behind China in terms of technology as well as capability. The budget
allotted by China for its space exploration, around 8,400 Million of US $, is bigger than
India (1,425 million US $) and Japan (1,699 million US $) combined.

With a dozen people having stepped on Moon, India is quite late in trying to put a man
on the moon. There is a distinct possibility that other countries might plan to establish
colonies or stations in Moon for mining and supporting the exploration of other celestial
bodies. Militarisation of space is also not far ahead and there are chances of keeping
weapons of mass destruction in space though it will violate the principles laid out in
1967 Outer Space Treaty. India should ideally explore space using robotics and arti cial
intelligence.

India already has a cost advantage but has a lot of ground to cover in order to be in the
space race. Through Chandrayaan 2 mission India has captured the attention and earned
goodwill of global players. India should capitalise on this goodwill and start collaborating
with the private companies, similar to the Mitsubishi heavy industries collaborating with
JAXA of Japan, or countries to enhance its capabilities and learn from each other.

With the earlier successes India became a part of elite space club. Through Chandrayaan
2 India has showcased its abilities. Going further India should increase the budget allotted
for space exploration and support ISRO with global alliances in order to get access to
advanced technologies. On the other hand ISRO should learn from the mistakes made
in this mission and continue its focus on space exploration. If India leverages on the

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goodwill of global players and continue its space exploration efforts, Chandrayaan 2 will
be de nitely be a stepping stone for future glory.

Links for further reading

https://www.isro.gov.in/chandrayaan2-home-0

https://www.isro.gov.in/chandrayaan2-mission

https://www.indiatoday.in/information/story/chandrayaan-2-esaay-india-lunar-mission-
landing-all-you-need-to-know-1596301-2019-09-06

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19. Will Online Classes Replace Traditional Physical

Classrooms?

What is your vision of a classroom in the near future? Will online classes replace traditional
physical classrooms? With technology playing a pivotal role in every aspect of human
life, it won’t bea surprise to see its impact on the changing architecture of a classroom in
the next few years. The learning process has already changed in the past few years. For
instance, we do have E-learning tools that help students to access resources they couldn’t
have had otherwise.Moreover, students are already using cloud storage to store their notes;
students from different countries are attending classroom lectures conducted virtually. The
steady rise in E-learning apps shows the popularityof online learningwith students of all
age groups. So yes, there is metamorphosis of education in a big way. Thus, coming back
to the question, are traditional classrooms going to be replaced by online classes? Let’s
look at some of the broad facts.

Layout of the classroom

The traditional classroom setup with rows of desks and chairs with students staring at a
black/ white board with the teacher delivering a lecture will become a thing of the past
as the method to disseminate knowledge is already changing. With E-Learning tools the
online classroom design will not be one template for all. It will be exible. Classrooms will
be designed to understand student’s comfort and how to make the environment conducive
for a student to absorb more knowledge. Private workstations and collaborative work
spaces will be provided. Interactive projectors will replace blackboards/ whiteboards.But
even though e-learning has become an education equalizer, it’s still not a replacement for
the traditional classroom. Sure, the technology is advancing, but it’s not awless. Just like
any new, burgeoning innovation, e-learning faces its own challenges.

MOOCs: A potential game changer

As classrooms go beyond the walls of traditional schools and break all geographical
boundaries, it will make education accessible to all through the rise of Massive Open
Online Courses (MOOCs). With MOOCs, students will be able to master multiple subjects.
By the time they nish high school, they would have already mastered multiple subjects
according to their aptitude. Although MOOCs have been slow on their take off at least for
schools but given another 5 to 10 years, they will become one of the preferred mediums
to disseminate knowledge. Why? Simply because it increasesaccessibility to knowledge
as it isindependent of geographic locations, and as the walls of the traditional schools
disappear or become more exible, MOOC will become a popular choice.

Flexibility in learning style

One size ts all learning style will be a thing of the past. In the present scenario students

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irrespective of their aptitude has to work on assignments in the same way, whereas in
the futurebecause of technological help students will have exibility of assignments and
the teacher’s primary role will be to analyse the competency of the student. For instance,
instead of one way of presenting an assignment, students will be given an overview of
the subject or the concept that they need to demonstrate through the assignments, but they
will have the freedom to use different mediums according to their aptitude to demonstrate
their understanding of the subject.

Virtual and augmented reality

Now, coming to the most crucial aspect of classroom of the future is that classes will
become 3D instead of 2D. Whilebrick and mortar classrooms will still exist, knowledge
will be disseminated in a very different format through interactive projectors. For instance,
if it is a class showing how a volcano erupts, students will be looking at 3D and thus
will be able to understand the different landforms and see the spectacular phenomenon
almost as if they are seeing it in real time. With Augmented Reality (AR) becoming a part
of classroom learning, when students will open a book, instead of seeing a at image of
a planet the students will on a pair of special glasses and a 3D image will pop out at
them. Apps and other educational devices act upon trigger images to create an augmented
reality. So, what does AR do? AR gives humans a computer-generated environment from
“real world” surroundings. AR merges one’s perception of the real world into a digital
format. Thus with Holographic technology, once the image is processed, it looks like a
3-Dimensional object. Lasers create various kinds of holograms and video projections.
There are Universities that are using AR in the classroom. At present, Case Western
University in Cleveland, Ohio, uses holographic technology to teach physics and anatomical
instruction at its Medical school.
So what does this mean for future of education and classrooms? It de nitely means that
geography and nance will largely cease being a barrier for students to access knowledge
and teachers to disseminate knowledge. It also means that learning styles will become
exible catering to individual aptitude. Also, with holographic technology studying several
subjects will become more effective, such as Medicine, Physics, and Geography and so on.
As online classrooms will gain more and more popularity one could assume that the
teachers won’t be the authoritarian gures as they are today, rather their role will be
more of a mentor. And, education system will become more student-centric, in terms
of exibility and making it conducive for their learning. The aim would be not to just
get degrees, but to acquire knowledge and competency in their eld of interests. Having
said that, an online classroom will have its challenges and one of the biggest challenges
would be the lack of engagement for the students, something that a traditional classroom
provides. In a traditional classroom, educators will try to engage their students at every
moment. So, in an online classroom the student might miss out on that, especially if we
take into account a student’s individual attention span. Another factor is being surrounded
by like-minded people, actively participating with peers, and becoming friends with their

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classmates thus building and developing social bonds that you can’t replace—even with AI.
Views from the other side
The virtual classroom cannot replace the traditional classroom because it is by its very
essence or nature not completely 'real.' Does that mean that any type of education given
or received on the Internet is not real? Absolutely not. The teachers are real. The students
are real. The material is real. The atmosphere, however, is not real, and that is why virtual
teaching cannot replace classroom teaching.
The classroom is the real, tangible, touchable place to teach and to learn. It is the place
where teachers engage students, encourage participation from the entire class and expand
on the thoughts and ideas raised by students. These interactions cannot be duplicated in
a virtual classroom.
Teacher-to-student interactions, along with student-to-teacher and student-to-student
interactions, are all part of the learning experience. Spontaneous and random interactions
via questions or stated opinions are necessary in presenting a full scope of the subject
being taught. In the virtual classroom, the teacher is usually able to interact with only
one student at a time and it is from behind a computer screen. Raising questions and
listening to other students' opinions typically takes place through group message boards,
as opposed to real-time, face-to-face communication.
Proponents of MOOC propagate that it is similar to, or the same as a course in a traditional
face-to-face classroom. And that it will bene t learners to be successful by using the same
structure, same content and similar instructional methods. However, this belief has come to
be untrue.Big providers such as Coursera and Udacity have turned towards collaboration
with universities andskill-development courses education which may complement but not
replace university education.

Conclusion:
After looking at both sides of the argument, should be believe that the traditional
classroom would leave no space for the virtual classroom? Or would the reverse occur?
No, traditional classrooms would still be standing and operating, alongside the new age
classrooms for the next decade at least. De nitely, the amalgamation of online and of ine
learning facilities will provide a greater impetus to effective learning. Just the thought
that a student who is struggling with math can use technology that would help to make
equations come alive – with physical representations of what the numbers mean, gives us
a fair idea of the exciting future of knowledge dissemination that awaits us.

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20. The US-China Trade War

What is a Trade War?

A trade war is when countries try to attack each other's trade with tariffs and quotas
on imports.One country will raise tariffs, a type of tax, causing the other to respond, in
a tit-for-tat escalation.This can hurt other nations' economies and lead to rising political
tensions between them. As it escalates, a trade war reduces international trade.

Learning from History

The Smoot-Hawley Act is the Tariff Act of 1930. Smoot-Hawley raised already high U.S.
tariffs on foreign agricultural imports. The purpose was to support U.S. farmers who had
been ravaged by severe droughts. It increased 900 import tariffs by an average of 40 to
48 %.
Rather than helping, it raised food prices for Americans who were already suffering from
the Depression. It also compelled other countries to retaliate with their own tariffs. That
forced global trade down by 65%.
Most economists blame it for worsening the Great Depression. It also contributed to the
start of World War II.Smoot-Hawley showed how dangerous trade protectionism is for
the global economy.

Broadly, a country wages a trade war for two reasons

a. Protect Domestic Industry: When a tariff is levied on imports, it makes the imported
product expensive and hence gives the domestic country a competitive edge. If im-
ported goods are more expensive than domestic ones, consumers may buy more
local goods. In the short term, protectionism gives a boost to domestic industry and
to employment. The long term effects may not be so positive as domestic industries
may not remain competitive in the absence of competition.
b. To get a country mend its ways: When a country (as powerful as the US) wants a
particular country to stop acting in certain ways, it can resort to trade wars. Trade
wars in ict an economic pain on the trading partner and the message sent out is
‘Please mend your evil ways if you want my dollars coming your way’.

There may be some political / strategic reasons for a country to start a trade war - it is
important to note that trade wars also hurt the country that initiates the war - the hope is
that it will be able to withstand the loss better / in ict greater pain to the trading partner.

The Start of the Current World Trade War

Donald Trump’s trade war began in the start of 2018, when he implemented ‘global
safeguard tariffs’—placing a 30% tariff on all solar panels imports (worth US $8.5bn) and
a 20% tariff on washing machines (worth US $1.8bn).

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On March 8, 2018, he signed an executive order calling on the Commerce Department

to impose a 25% tariff on steel imports and a 10% tariff on aluminium.The action being
taken, the president said, follows a 9-month investigation by the Department of Commerce,
documenting a growing crisis in US steel and aluminium production that threatens the
security of the country.
The U.S. Congress is the only body authorized to impose tariffs. But Trump used a special
power granted by Congress in 1962. White House cited Section 232 of the Trade Expansion
Act of 1962, a provision that gives the secretary of commerce the authority to investigate
and determine the impacts of any import on the national security of the US — and the
president the power to adjust tariffs accordingly. Commerce Department reported that
dependence on imported metals threatens the U.S. ability to make weapons.
Nine WTO members - Canada, China, the EU, India, Mexico, Norway, Russia, Switzerland
and Turkey - led initial complaints that allege Trump's tariffs on steel and aluminium
violated WTO rules.

Causes of U.S. Trade War with China

Mr. Trump made a big point on the campaign trail about cutting the country's trade de cits.
He's convinced it hurts US manufacturing, and has said time and time again that the US
must do more to tackle them. A trade de cit occurs when exports are less than imports.
And the US has a massive trade de cit with China.In 2017, it stood at about $375bn.

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In 2017, the United States exported $130 billion to China. The Three largest export categories
are areaircraft ($16 billion); soybeans ($12 billion); and automobiles ($11 billion).U.S. imports
from China were $506 billion for the same year. Most of it is electronics, clothing, and
machinery (a lot of the imports are from U.S. manufacturers that send raw materials to
China for low-cost assembly. Once shipped back to the United States, they are considered
imports. As a result, tariffs hurt U.S. corporations as well as foreign ones.)

Things USA wants from China

On May 4, 2018, the Trump administration presented China with ve demands. It asked
China to:
– End subsidies to tech companies.
– Stop stealing U.S. intellectual property.
– Cut tariffs on U.S. goods by 2020.
– Open China to more U.S. investment.
– Reduce the trade de cit by $200 billion by 2020.
China is unlikely to comply with the rst two demands. They are at odds with China's
goal of becoming a tech leader. On the other hand, China does want to reduce its trade
de cit. China's economic reform plan is to become less reliant on exports. But it cautions
there isn't much it can do, since the de cit is fuelled by high U.S. demand for low-cost
Chinese goods.
On May 10, China agreed to import more U.S. products (which will also reduce the trade
de cit)

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The Hidden Agenda?

Trump is trying to deal with two serious concerns facing the American economy: Counter
the threats to the dollar’s status as the reserve currency, and retain the near monopoly
in Digital and Hi-Tech space. These issues, central to the US power and eminence, are
now under serious challenge
It’s about the Reserve Currency: The dollar has become the reserve currency because over
70% of world trade happens in dollars. This may look strange as the US share in world
trade is less than 15%. The US manages this by ensuring that large trade contracts for
commodities like crude oil are always denominated in dollars.
The dollar’s position as the reserve currency is under strain. Many countries including
China are taking steps to denominate their trade contracts in local currency and reduce
dependence on the dollar. China plans to denominate all Belt and Road Initiative (BRI)
contracts in local currencies. No wonder China is the primary target in the trade war.

Threat to hi-tech
Trump’s second concern is to retain the US lead in digital and high tech space. It is under
threat from China which is going all-out to become a leader in Arti cial Intelligence and
high technology by 2025. Loss of US monopoly in digital space is a worry too.
Many of China’s home-grown rms are large unicorns ready for global operations in direct
competition to the US rms. Worse, the China model of not allowing entry to Google and
Facebook is being copied by Russia, Brazil, and many others. The EU is also thinking of
creating an EU wide internet. All this would mean an end of the dominance of the US
rms in digital space.
The US tariffs on imports from China will impact not only its exports to the US but to
all countries. Most of China’s exports are produced in the tariff-free global supply chains
(GVC) where collaborative manufacturing happens among a group of countries. Tariffs
by partner countries will delay numerous Customs clearances and signi cantly reduce the
effectiveness of GVCs. The US would love to think that this will rock the Chinese boat
and force them to a compromise.

A tit-for tat of tariff announcements

Round 1(March 2018): The Trump administration said it would levy tariffs on $60 billion of
imports from China. The administration also said it would limit U.S. technology transfers
to Chinese companies. China responded by announcing tariffs on $3 billion of US products.
China imposes tariffs (ranging 15-25%) on 128 products (worth US$3 billion) including
fruit, wine, seamless steel pipes, pork and recycled aluminium in retaliation to the US’
steel and aluminium tariffs.

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July 6, 2018: The US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) begins collecting a 25 % tariff
on imported Chinese products valued at US$34 billion – giving effect to the rst round
of tariffs, which were revised and announced on June 15, 2018.
– Retaliatory tariffs by China: China takes retaliatory measures by imposing a 25 % tariff
on 545 goods originating from the US (worth US$34 billion), including agricultural
products, automobiles and aquatic products.
August 23rd, 2018- US implements a 25% tariff on products worth US$16 billion.
Goods targeted include: semiconductors, chemicals, plastics, motorbikes and electric
scooters.
– Retaliatory tariffs by China: China implements retaliatory 25% tariffs on goods worth
US$16 billion, including commodities such as: coal, copper scrap, fuel, buses and
medical equipment.

September 24th, 2018 -The US implements tariffs on US$200 billion worth of Chinese
goods, bringing the total amount to US$250 billion. The tariffs carry an initial rate of 10
%, and will be increased to 25 % by January 1, 2019.
– Retaliatory tariffs by China: China responds to US tariffs by implementing tariffs on
US$60 billion worth of US goods

December 1st, 2018- Following a working dinner at the G20 Summit in Buenos Aires,
China and the US agree to a temporary truce-- a 90-day truce, which ends March 1, 2019.
The US will refrain from increasing the tariffsthat were slated to increase from 10% to
25% on January 1, 2019. For its part, China will purchase more US products – especially
agricultural and energy products.
May 10, 2019- US increases tariffs on US$200 billion worth of Chinese goodsfrom 10% to
25%, as the US and China fail to reach a deal.
– Retaliatory tariffs by China: On June 1st 2019, China increases tariffs on US$60 billion
worth of products. Tariffs of 25%, 20%, and 10% are now in effect on US$60 billion
worth of American goods exported to China.
September 1st, 2019- The US implements tariffs on more than US$125 billion worth of
Chinese imports; goods affected range from footwear, diapers, and food products to smart
watches, dishwashers, and at-panel televisions.
– Retaliatory tariffs by China: began imposing additional tariffs on some of the goods
on a US$75 billion. This includes a ve percent tariff on US crude oil.

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Following a series of trade talks over many months, on October 10-11 in Washington
DC, US President Donald Trump announced that negotiators from the US and China had
reached a “Phase 1” agreement that will take several weeks to nalize.
Total US tariffs applied exclusively to Chinese goods: US$550 billion
Total Chinese tariffs applied exclusively to US goods: US$185 billion

Source: https://www.piie.com/research/piie-charts/us-china-trade-war-tariffs-date-chart

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Implications for American consumers

The trade war has raised the prices of consumer goods that use steel and aluminium.
Half of all Chinese imports are goods used by U.S. manufacturers to make other products.
The most immediate effects were felt by companies like Walmart, which import billions of
dollars of cheap goods that are bought mostly by the people who voted Trump into of ce.
The prices on almost all of these items would quickly skyrocket beyond the reach of the
lower economic brackets—not because of manufacturing costs, but because of the tariffs.
Foreign tariffs on U.S. exports will make them more expensive. U.S. exporters may have
to cut costs and lay off workers to remain competitively priced. If they fail, they may
cuts costs further or even go out of business. The 12 million U.S. workers who owe their
jobs to exports could get laid off.

Implications for China

The trade war with the U.S. could cut China’s export growth by almost half, putting
around 4.4 million jobs at risk. Economists expect the trade war will cut China’s export
growth by almost half, denting GDP growth by 1.04 %points.

Global Implications
Mr Trump's decision to take on China could lead to adverse effects for consumers in the
US and in China, but also worldwide.
An economic showdown between the world's biggest economies doesn't look good for
anyone.
Consultant Oxford Economics predicted the trade war could cost the global economy
$800 billion in reduced trade.
That could slow growth by 0.4%. It's occurring at the same time that oil prices and
interest rates are rising.

Phase 1 Trade Deal

The US and China announced on December 13th, 2019 that they have reached agreement
on their “phase one” trade deal, a major development in the 20-month trade war. In
exchange for tariff relief, China will increase its purchases of U.S. goods and address
U.S. concerns relating to intellectual property (IP) protection, currency manipulation, and
agriculture, among others.
“China and the United States have agreed on the text of a phase one economic and
trade agreement based on the principle of equality and mutual respect,” Xinhua, China’s
state run news agency, reported on the same day. “The text includes nine chapters: the
preface, intellectual property rights, technology transfer, food and agricultural products,
nancial services, exchange rate and transparency, trade expansion, bilateral assessment and

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dispute settlement, and the nal terms, according to a statement issued by the Chinese
side Friday night.”
According to a statement from the Of ce of the US Trade Representative, the phase one
deal “requires structural reforms and other changes to China’s economic and trade regime
in the areas of intellectual property, technology transfer, agriculture, nancial services, and
currency and foreign exchange.”
For its part, China framed any concessions as “generally in line with the main direction
of China’s deepening reform and opening up as well as the internal needs for advancing
the high-quality economic development.”
Xinhua also noted that the “The increase in imports is conducive to boosting the country’s
consumption upgrading and meeting Chinese people’s growing needs for a better life.”
China’s main concern in any trade deal was securing immediate tariff relief. That was
not totally forthcoming. The USTR (United States Trade Representative) made a point
of noting that “The US will be maintaining 25% tariffs on approximately $250 billion
of Chinese imports, along with 7.5% tariffs on approximately $120 billion of Chinese
imports.”
According to the Chinese summary released by Xinhua, the deal also includes a commitment
for the United States to “to phase out its additional tariffs on Chinese products, so as to
achieve a switch from hiking to cutting additional tariffs.” Importantly, no “phase out”
of tariffs was mentioned in the U.S. announcement, hinting at a possible gap that could
cause a relapse into tensions in 2020.
The two sides have yet to release detailed documentation of the pact, making it dif cult
to evaluate.
– China has agreed to boost its U.S. goods imports by $200 billion over two years. That
includes increased purchases of soybeans and other farm goods that would reach $40
billion a year.
– China has also agreed to stop forcing U.S. companies to hand over technology and
trade secrets as a condition for gaining access to China’s vast market, demands that
had frustrated many U.S. businesses.
– In return, the Trump administration dropped plans to impose tariffs on $160 billion
of Chinese goods, including many consumer items such as smartphones, toys, and
clothes. The United States also cut tariffs on another $112 billion of Chinese goods
from 15% to 7.5%.

China announced that Vice Premier Liu He will travel to Washington to sign the rst
phase of the trade deal with the U.S., locking in Beijing’s commitment to a ceremony
already announced by President Donald Trump. Liu, who has acted as Chinese President
Xi Jinping’s top trade negotiator throughout the tariff con ict, will travel to the U.S. from

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Jan. 13 to Jan. 15.

Under the accord, announced Dec. 13, Trump agreed to suspend plans for new tariffs
on Chinese imports and reduced some existing levies, while Beijing agreed to increase
agricultural purchases. The precise terms of the agreement have not been revealed. U.S.
Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer has said he expects the 86-page document will be
publicly released after it is signed.
The move at least temporarily calms fears of an escalating trade war between the world’s
two largest economies, at a time when investors are nervous over con ict in the Middle
East and rising oil prices.

Conclusion:
While many believe that the US is winning the trade war (given how it has got other
countries to open their markets/ revisit tariffs on US goods), economists warn that it is
too early to predict the long-term impact. While a few individual countries may gain, the
global economy is most likely to be hit hard.
Here’s a statement by legendary economist Gary Shilling “When you've got plenty of
supply in the world,plenty of industrial capability, plenty of raw materials a - it's the
buyer that has the upper hand not the seller. The buyer has the ultimate power and who's
the buyer? US is the buyer, China is the seller.
China isn't going to collapse obviously, but the US has the upper hand.China will
begrudgingly give ground. They'll import more US goods, they'll ease up on required
tech transfers, steal less of it.

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In the long term, trade wars slow global economic growth. They create more layoffs, not
fewer, as foreign countries retaliate. Whatever form this con ict takes, and however long
it lasts, there will be no winner.

Recommended Further Reading

https://www.economist.com/ nance-and-economics/2018/06/21/a-full-blown-trade-war-
between-america-and-china-looks-likely

https://www.thebalance.com/trade-wars-de nition-how-it-affects-you-4159973

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-43512098

https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/opinion/columns/ajay-srivastav/the-real-reason-
behind-trumps-trade-war/article24856757.ece

https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=Iwa3vLoeNmQ

https://www.china-brie ng.com/news/the-us-china-trade-war-a-timeline/

https://www.worldscienti c.com/doi/pdf/10.1142/S2377740018500318

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21. Is Social Media Bad for Society?

Introduction:
Humans are social animals. Interacting with friends and family across long distances has
been a concern of humans for centuries. People have always relied on communication to
strengthen their relationships. When face-to-face discussions are impossible or inconvenient,
humans have dreamed up plenty of creative solutions. Social Media has turned out to be
one such impactful solution.
Although it seems like a new trend, sites like Facebook are the natural outcome of many
centuries of social media development. Internet relay chats, or IRCs, were rst used in 1988
and continued to be popular well into the 1990’s. The rst recognizable social media site,
Six Degrees, was created in 1997. It enabled users to upload a pro le and make friends
with other users. In 1999, the rst blogging sites became popular, creating a social media
sensation that’s still popular today. Sites like LinkedIn gained prominence in the early
2000s, and sites like Imgur facilitated online photo sharing. YouTube came out in 2005,
creating an entirely new way for people to communicate and share with each other across
great distances. By 2006, Facebook and Twitter both became available to users throughout
the world. These sites remain some of the most popular social networks on the Internet.
Key aspects of the use of social media that makes it popular:
• Not many restrictions on creatively expressing oneself
• Easy way to share information
• Informal support of other’s work
• General understanding and respect of other people’s forms of expression
• An alternative way of socializing
• Reaching beyond physical and geographical boundaries

Impact:
1. Impact on Politics:
Journalism has always been regarded as the fourth pillar of any democratic society.
In recent times we have seen the growth of social journalism that is fast replacing the
paid, sponsored and controlled journalism that has become the norm of the day in most
countries.Social journalism or social reporting has allowed people from every strata of life
to have a voice of their own.
Key events where social networks have played an increasingly important role in electoral
politics:
• Unsuccessful candidacy of Howard Dean in 2003
• Election of the rst African-American president in 2008
• The Arab Spring revolution that started in 2010
• The election of Donald J. Trump in 2016

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Why?
Because social media allows people to communicate with one another more freely, they
are helping to create surprisingly in uential social organizations among once-marginalized
groups.

2. Impact on Society as a whole:

a. Connectivity:
 It is an effortless way to connect with the like-minded people.
√ Regardless of location and religion, social networks are helpful in reviving and pre-
serving relationships with other people. It has become easier for us to connect with
business people, family and friends.
√ Hiring has become more Social Media dependent. Many top most companies directly
approach candidates through social networking siteslike LinkedIn. We can also interact
with people of authority who might help us in our careers.
x Ease of connectivity has also led to higher instances of stalking, trolling and social crimes
x Cyber-bullying is a threat growing out of the ease of access granted through social media.
Cyberbullying is a social crime committed through electronic communication by attempting
to harass a person by sending messages of threatening nature using personal information,
including pictures of others. The impact of this bullying is that it causes deep mental scars,
depression and possibly even death. Individuals who are bullied over the internet tend to live
in fear and when they nd no way out, they may commit suicide. The Catherine’s Facebook
attack or the Ryan Halligan case, all led to horrifying outcomes, leading to physical violence
and death of the individual respectively. According to a CBS news report, 42% people have
been a victim of cyberbullying and lost their lives.
x Identity theft, the second most common cybercrime, is when people steal personal informa-
tion of others and misuse it by making fake accounts to defame and slander the character
and reputation of the individual and his or her friends and family. At times, your computer
may be affected by a virus that transfers your personal information to others without your
knowledge.
x Fake News: Nowadays, social media allows the spread of falsi ed or incorrect information
that may con ict with actual and true facts. People often tend to believe everything they read
or see on social media without questioning its authenticity. The habit of reading newspapers
and books has witnessed a decline as the use of social media has increased. People use short-
cuts for gathering information without any authentic reasoning and evidence. E.g: In 2016,
AWDnews.com reported that the then Israeli defense minister Moshe Ya’alonhas threatened
to use nuclear force if Pakistan sent troops to Syria. This news soon became viral on social
media as public panicked. In response to this fake news which he thought to be authentic;
Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Mohammad Asif threatened Israel with nuclear war.
x Job Scamming: A growing number of brands have started posting permanent or exible,
part-time jobs on social media that require submission of ‘registration fees’ for the job. Upon

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payment of these amounts, job posters vanish leaving job candidates distressed and without
employment.
x Social Media has started creating a false sense of connection. People are involved in mak-
ing new friends without physical or face-to-face interaction. Individuals tend to spend most
of their time talking to their far away “friends” and tend to neglect their close relations in
the process. As a consequence of this, our closer relations tend to deteriorate at the expense
of the new ones we build.
b. Voice for masses:
√ Without social media, social, ethical, environmental and political ills would have
minimal visibility. Increased visibility of issues has shifted the balance of power from
the hands of a few to the masses
√ Noble Causes: Social media is being used for various noble causes like social wel-
fare activities and promotion of Non-Government Organizations (NGOs). It creates
awareness and helps people to discover various innovations that help them enhance
their own lives. Every individual from a farmer to a teacher can bene t from the
awareness factor of social media.
√ Building Communities: It helps followers of various religions, nationalities and in-
terests to form communities in order to discuss and spread the word. Sports lovers
can follow sports communities while Car lovers, music lovers and movie buffs can
reminisce, converse and keep up to date with their hobbies.
x While Social media has helped in creating communities, it has also led to the rise of the ‘Mob
Mentality’. The large plethora of popular posts and opinion streams messes with individual’s
ability to think independently and thus comes in the mob mentality. It whimsically creates
public opinion on an ongoing issue.
x When it comes to public media, private life becomes public thus, giving ample of chance for
the misuse of your data that includes your pictures, location and others. E.g: the syndicate
in Malaysia who turned rich by using photographs of Asian girls for their call girl service
via Facebook.
c. Education
√ Students can bene t from online tutorials and resources that are shared through social
networks and Learning Management Systems. There are more opportunities outside
of the educational sphere to hone professional, academic, and social skills needed to
succeed in the future.
√ Webinars, online discussion forums and other such platforms can foster collabora-
tions and discussions, create meaningful dialogue, help exchange ideas and boost the
learning experience.
√ Websites like LinkedIn enable students to establish a professional web presence, post
a resume, and connect with job seekers and employers. A lot of employers have also
taken to websites like Facebook and Twitter for posting job openings in their of ces.
Students can easily follow businesses and professional organizations on Facebook,

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Twitter, and LinkedIn to stay updated on news and important developments from
the elds of their career choices.
√ College is a place where students learn a lot of new skills. And social media provides
them with the perfect platform to showcase their talents and that too on a global
level. It allows for them to have a de ned group of followers, people with similar
likes and interests. Moreover appreciation and critique from people with similar in-
terests can help them go a long way.
x Social media also encourages poor grammar and spelling. The use of slang language may be
a cool trend to keep up with, but it tends to foster poor language and communication skills.
x Over indulgence in Social Media and Improper time management is leading to lower academic
and intellectual productivity of growing children.
x Most young individuals are too open about their personal lives, especially on social media.
People post anything of their choice without any restriction. Risks are involved in this sort
of public sharing and display. Since these posts are uncontrolled and unmonitored, they tend
to mislead our youth.
d. Healthcare:
√ Social media helps in expressing emotions and opinions freely. This helps to relieve
social isolation.
√ Social media allows people to share their thoughts without revealing their identity.
And that develops within people an enhanced talent of self-expression without any
fear.
√ Social Media helps in spreading awareness about mental well-being and motivating
people thereby improving quality of life for a lot of people. And simply assuring
people that they are not alone – or the only ones with their set of problems – can
be really important for some.

3. Impact on Business and Commerce:

√ Digital advertising is seen as the future of advertising and social media marketing
forms a signi cant part of it. It has become the primary means of getting the word
out about your business.
√ Social media is one of the mostcost-ef cient digital marketing methods used to syn-
dicate content and increase any business' visibility. It can reach all ages and demo-
graphics or can be targeted towards speci c audiences providing a lot more control
to the businesses.
√ Unlike other advertising media, social media users are active and it promotes two-
way communication with the brand/company
√ Social media is a networking and communication platform. Hence, it provides a rare
platform for companies to engage directly with their customers

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√ One of the most valuable advantages of social media is marketplace insight. Social
media is a reliable means to explore the culture, views and lifestyles that in uence
consumer behaviour. The social media arena is a means to pro le a target audience
to develop marketing and advertising strategies. Social media conversations also alert
companies to issues that may negatively affect current market opportunities.
x Data Leaks -Businesses implement data loss prevention systems and lter at the rewall
(physical or logical) to prevent sensitive data from leaving the organization. Today, however,
employees using personal electronic devices discuss all sorts of work-related topics on social
media — both during and outside of work hours and locations. As a result, data can leak
directly — for example, by people sharing internal email addresses, information about tech-
nologies in use at work, or details about upcoming products.
x Productivity: While businesses are offering internet connectivity to facilitate various tasks
that need to happen online, most employees tend to misuse the access to social media during
of ce hours and therefore report less productivity. A number of studies conducted worldwide
in this connection have revealed that even leading businesses have lost billions due to this
factor.
x Mistakes: Any statement once released on social media channels circulate at lightning speed,
so if you post something by mistake, will be very hard to rectify. Errors like circulating
con dential information about your company are nearly impossible to reverse in social media
channels.

4. Impact on Children and Adolescents:

√ Social Media provides an avenue for socializing and an alternative way to get stu-
dents interested in learning with a new and previously unconventional medium.
√ It helps shy adolescents have a more non-threatening way to interact with peers
because they aren’t interacting face-to-face.
√ Social media sites can provide a place for adolescents to share their interests in art,
music, games and blogs with others.
√ Social networks can be places for teens to turn to for support and advice when going
through challenging experiences. Social networking can be a positive and somewhat
easier way for adolescents to get to know and become accepting of others from “di-
verse backgrounds”.
x There is empirical evidence indicating that compulsive social media use is a growing mental
health problem, particularly among adolescent smartphone users.
x Children and Adolescents are being exposed to un ltered content unsuitable for consump-
tion at their age. Whether clips of violence, torture, bloodshed, death, accidents or wars or
whether posts and blogs with uncouth and abusive language, kids are being overdosed on
adult content.

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5. Impact on Personal lives:

√ Social Media helps people alleviate loneliness.
√ We use these networks to stay in touch with friends and family and to connect to
more people across the globe.
x Spending too much time on social media isn’t just a bad habit; it can have real consequences.
Science shows that we are basically carrying around little dopamine stimulators in our pockets,
so it’s not surprising that we’re constantly distracted by our phones. ChamathPalihapitiya,
former Vice President of User Growth at Facebook, states “The short-term, dopamine-driven
feedback loops that we have created are destroying how society works.”
x Just like a gambling or substance addiction, social media addiction involves broken reward
pathways in our brains. Social media provides immediate rewards — in the form of attention
from your network — for minimal effort through a quick thumb tap. Therefore, the brain
rewires itself, making you desire likes, retweets, emoji applause and so on.
x To make things worse, the reward centers in our brains are most active when we’re talk-
ing about ourselves. In real life, people talk about themselves 30 to 40 percent of the time;
social media is all about showing off your life, so people talk about themselves a whopping
80 percent of the time.

Conclusion
Social media has radically transformed how people receive and send information, creating
a democratized communication infrastructure unlike any of its predecessors. But, with
the powerful innovation has come several serious security risks for both individuals and
businesses. However, it would be wrong to say social media is a universally bad thing,
because clearly it brings myriad bene ts to our lives. As with the many temptations of the
modern age, we need to maintain a strict vigil and an educated control on our individual
behaviour on this platform.

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22. Sexual Harassment – A year after the # Metoo backlash

There has always been imbalance in society. The mark of a truly great society (or one that
has the potential for greatness) is when such imbalances are addressed effectively, and
the members of society strive towards a balance or equilibrium. And while the #MeToo
movement is speci cally to do with calling out sexual assaulters against whom there has
been little or no reckoning, it is part of the broader trend: An attempt to bring balance to
a world that is deeply, irrationally, and worst of all, unconsciously, skewed with respect
to gender.

The Beginnings
The #MeToo movement is not a recent one. The rst recorded instance was back in 2006
by African-American social activist Tarana Burke on the Myspace social platform.But for
her, it was primarily to help women and girls (speci cally black women and girls) who
been subjected to sexual violence, and ensure that they knew that they were not alone
in their experience.

Since then, Burke has been working in her communities, but the movement was still restricted
to her work, which was called “Empowerment through Empathy”. Today, however, the
movement is to encourage all victims of sexual assault – irrespective of gender, race or
orientation – to break their silence, come forward and name their assaulters.

Mainstream attention
The #MeToo movement blew up in the media in October 2017, with The New York Times
reporting decades of sexual misconduct claims against Hollywood lm producer Harvey
Weinstein. Thirteen women, including actresses Mira Sorvino, Asia Argento, and former
actress Lucia Evans, accused Weinstein of sexual assault. This was followed closely by
actress Alyssa Milano urging people to spread the hashtag #MeToo and come forward
with their own stories of sexual assault that they had experienced. Within 24 hours of
Milano’s tweet, the hashtag was used more than 5 lakh times on Twitter, and more than
47 lakh people in 1.2 crore posts on Facebook, clearly indicating that incidents of sexual
assault and harassment were not isolated. In addition, several men also came forward
with their own experiences of being sexually abused, including actors Terry Crews and
James Van Der Beek.

Emboldened by the Weinstein revelations, others in Hollywood, the biggest lm entertainment

industry in the world, too came out with their allegations of sexual harassment and assault;
among actresses who tweeted with #MeToo are Debra Messing, Gillian Anderson and
Anna Paquin. Celebrities such as Ben Af eck, Louis C.K., and Kevin Spacey were accused

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of sexual harassment, with Spacey in particular accused of harassing several male actors
and crew. As a result he has been temporarily ostracized by the entertainment fraternity,
including being dumped by Net ix from a critically successful show.

The movement also birthed others such as the TimesUp movement, started by Hollywood
celebrities. As of December 2018, it has raised more than $22 million for its legal defense
fund, and gathered nearly 800 volunteer lawyers.Moreover, a bill has been tabled in the
US Congress called the #MeToo Bill and is up for legislative debate.

#MeToo allegations are not restricted to the lm industry alone – allegations have been
made by US politicians and police of cers, in the nancial industry against brokers such
as Morgan Stanley’s Douglas Greenberg, in the military where it was reported that 1 out
of 3 victims of sexual assault actually come forward. Other known personalities such as
Monica Lewinsky and music artistes Lady Gaga and Sheryl Crow have also spoken out
on social media with the #MeToo tag.

#MeToo in India
#MeToo has not been restricted by geography either. In India, a Weinstein-like incident
had played out in 2017, before the actual Weinstein allegations had come out. A Malayali
actress was assaulted by a group of men, of whom the prime accused was later arrested
in July 2017. This led to a court case, but unlike the US, the case did not grab national
attention.It did, however, inspire several individuals to speak out against sexual abuse
and stand up for women’s freedom in the Malayalam lm industry.

Another instance of women speaking out against sexual harassment was when a list of
academicians was published on social media by activist InjiPennu and a student named
Raya Sarkar. The academicians were alleged to have harassed women students in their
institutions, and the list was purportedly to warn other students about these individuals.
The revelation sparked national outrage, with many claiming the allegations against the
academicians were unveri ed, but the original publishers of the list con rmed that they
had spoken to each student.

Both these instances had the underlying #MeToo philosophy, but didn’t carry the #MeToo
tag. That particular name gained widespread attention in the Indian media in September
2018 when Tanushree Dutta accused actor Nana Patekar of sexual harassment in a
shoot for a lm over a decade earlier. She also alleged sexual harassment by lmmaker
VivekAgnihotri, adding that actors Irrfan Khan and Sunil Shetty had stood up for her
during that particular episode. Just as with Alyssa Milano, Dutta’s actionsproved to be
the catalyst for the #MeToo movement in India.

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Dutta’s revelations encouraged others to come forward with their own tales as well. In
October 2018, the #MeToo campaign took off strongly, including the following:
• Actress Kangana Ranaut accused director Vikas Bahlof sexual misconduct.
• Director Sajid Khan was accused of abusive and perverse sexual behaviour by several
women.
• The comedic group All India Bakchod saw several allegations of sexual harassment
by its members Utsav Chakraborty and Gursimran Khamba.
• TV producer Vinta Nanda accused veteran actor Alok Nath of rape, with actresses
such as Renuka Shahane, Sandhya Mridul and others also admitting that they had
either known of Nath’s behaviour or had been assaulted themselves.
• Several women accused music director and Indian Idol judge Anu Malik of sexual
harassment.

In the media industry, Resident Editor of The Times of India KR Sreenivas was accused
of sexual harassment and psychological torture and resigned. Others such as Hindustan
Times Bureau Chief and Political Editor Prashant Jhatoo resigned after allegations of sexual
harassment.

But by far the most notable was the sexual assault and trauma in icted by renowned
journalist and the then Minister of State for External Affairs MJ Akbar upon several women
journalists including Priya Ramani, Tushita Patel (wife of Aakar Patel, director of Amnesty
International India) and others. Following Ramani’s allegations, more than 20 women came
forward with their own tales of horror about Akbar. Akbar led a defamation suit against
Ramani, but in the face of national criticism and outrage, nally had to step down.

#MeToo in other countries

The #MeToo movement has picked up in countries across the world, but with varying
degrees of success and impact. For example, in Afghanistan, even though estimates say that
90% of women experience sexual harassment in public, women are afraid to come forward
due to fear of retaliation, and even of death. In China as well, the movement (also under
#WoYeShi) has lost momentum due to the censorship of the Chinese government, and in
Italy (#QuellaVoltaChe) due to lack of discussion in the media and online. However, in
countries like Canada, Australia, France, South Korea, Japan, Norway, etc, the movement
has been going strong.

#MeToo and the changes in 2019-20

A year after the protests, the movement itself has gone deeper, however, and is to a large
extent addressing the gender imbalance in societies across the world, even if indirectly.
In fact, since men too face a lot of sexual harassment, hashtags such as #HimToo have

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gained in prominence, proving that sexual assault is not limited only to women.

The most obvious bene t of the #MeToo movement has been that victims of sexual abuse
came forward and named their assaulter without fear of reprisal and with assurance of
solidarity.

However, there are a few prickly matters of controversy that have become the inevitable
fallout of such a movement. The first is the accusation that any sexual assault and
harassment allegation is made purely for notoriety, to get fame, to be noticed. A lot of
men who have been accused claim that the allegations are false, including the likes of
Nana Patekar and TERI’s former top honcho RK Pachauri.

A lot of discussion has also taken place on whether the #MeToo movement is meant to
inspire a change in all men, or only a speci c percentage of them. Moreover, another
criticism levelled at #MeToo is that it can be used as tool to trapthe male gender, wherein
any action by a man can be interpreted as sexual harassment, either for material gain
or to seek revenge. Several women have also come forward to state that only the worst
types of abuse should be examined in order to prevent casting all men as perpetrators,
or causing people to become numb to the problem.

A Pakistani actor Mahira Khan expressed angst on social media, referring to a case in
which a college professor committed suicide after being wrongly accused of sexual assault,
reported by The News International. She said, "It angers me that an innocent man would
kill himself because of being wrongly accused and it boils my blood that another can
roam around free after raping someone. Whether you misuse the #metoo movement or
delay accountability on it, the result is the same -death," tweeted the 34-year-old actor.

Finally, movements such as #MeToo throw up several other dilemmas as well. Take the
likes of musician R Kelly and actor Kevin Spacey. Both men have been charged with
sexual assault allegations by multiple victims. Author Ari Behn who had accused Spacey
committed suicide. Kevin Spacey has been releasing bizarre unsettling videos where he
slips back into his House Of Cards character Frank Underwood to deliver messages that
can either be interpreted as vaguely or extremely intimidating. Audiences have been
condemning them and their work, and boycotting Kelly’s music and both audience and
industry boycotted Spacey’s lms. When the allegations had still not been made, both
artistes enthralled and captivated audiences, who loved their work. So the question is
this: Should the assaulter be judged separately from his work, so that his actions are
condemned by his work isn’t? Or should both his actions and his work be denounced,
even when one is hateful and the other is delightful?

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Feminism today is very factional and means fundamentally different things to different
women. One consequence of seeing women as victims of patriarchy is to burden them with
a lack of agency. Margaret Atwood, the author of the dystopian novel The Handmaid’s
Tale is often quoted as a feminist icon. Margaret Atwood has argued feminism is not
de ned as the assumption women are always right regardless of the context. She eschews
the feminist label for own books, saying that feminism has dissolved into a catch-all term
used to denote myriad de nitions. At wood did not say which wave or offshoot of the
feminist movement she was referring to but argued one brand of feminism was de ned
as thinking women are “better” than men. She believes that persecution is about misuse
of power and is not exclusively carried out by men.

There are no easy answers to these perceptions. However, we can say without a shred of
doubt that the #MeToo movement is a much needed movement that highlights the depraved
actions of a few, and reminds everyone that no wrongdoings should go unpunished.
Whether the #MeToo campaign manages to uplift our society as a whole is a question
that only time will answer.

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23. The Menace of Fake News and Paid News

The menace of Fake News and Paid News

Fake news refers to false information published under the guise of being authentic news.
Fake news websites and channels push their fake news content in an attempt to mislead
consumers of the content and spread misinformation via social networks and word-of-
mouth. Paid news is the practice of cash payment or equivalent to journalists and media
organizations by individuals and organizations so as to appear in their news articles and
to "ensure sustained positive coverage".

Origin and History of Fake News:

The Sun, founded in 1833, was the rst modern newspaper, funded primarily by advertisers
rather than subscriptions, so it initially pursued readership at all costs. At rst it prospered
from the Moon hoax, even collecting its reports in a bestselling pamphlet. But it was soon
exposed by rival papers.

Giant man-bats that spent their days collecting fruit and holding animated conversations;
goat-like creatures with blue skin; a temple made of polished sapphire. These were the
astonishing sights witnessed by John Herschel, an eminent British astronomer, when, in
1835, he pointed a powerful telescope “of vast dimensions” towards the Moon from an
observatory in South Africa. Or that, at least, was what readers of the New York Sun were
told in a series of newspaper reports.

This caused a sensation. People ocked to buy each day’s edition of the Sun. The paper’s
circulation shot up from 8,000 to over 19,000 copies, overtaking the Times of London to
become the world’s bestselling daily newspaper. There was just one small hitch. The
fantastical reports had in fact been concocted by Richard Adams Locke, the Sun’s editor.
Herschel was conducting genuine astronomical observations in South Africa. But Locke
knew it would take months for his deception to be revealed, because the only means
of communication with the Cape was by letter. The whole thing was a giant hoax – or,
as we would say today, “fake news”. This classic of the genre illuminates the pros and
cons of fake news as a commercial strategy – and helps explain why it has re-emerged
in the internet era.

That fake news shifted copies had been known since the earliest days of printing. In the
16th and 17th centuries, printers would crank out pamphlets, or newsbooks, offering detailed
accounts of monstrous beasts or unusual occurrences. A newsbook published in Catalonia
in 1654 reports the discovery of a monster with “goat’s legs, a human body, seven arms
and seven heads”; an English pamphlet from 1611 tells of a Dutch woman who lived for

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14 years without eating or drinking. So what if they weren’t true? Printers argued, as
internet giants do today, that they were merely providing a means of distribution, and
were not responsible for ensuring accuracy.

De nition:

One of the more colorful de nitions of fake news - "Fake news is made-up stuff, masterfully
manipulated to look like credible journalistic reports that are easily spread online to large
audiences willing to believe the ctions and spread the word."

Fake news (junk news) is a type of yellow journalism or propaganda that consists of
deliberate disinformation or hoaxes spread via traditional print and broadcast news media
or online social media. The term is also at times used to cast doubt upon legitimate
news from an opposing political standpoint, a tactic known as the lying press. The false
information is often caused by reporters paying sources for stories, an unethical practice
called checkbook journalism. The news is then often reverberated as misinformation in
social media, but occasionally nds its way to the mainstream media as well.

Intention:

Fake news is written and published usually with the intent to mislead in order to damage
an agency, entity, or person, and gain nancially or politically, often using sensationalist,
dishonest, or outright fabricated headlines to increase readership. Similarly, click bait stories
and headlines earn advertising revenue from this activity.

The relevance of fake news has increased in post-truth politics. Post-truth politics (also
called post-factual politics and post-reality politics) is a political culture in which debate
is framed largely by appeals to emotion disconnected from the details of policy, and by
the repeated assertion of talking points to which factual rebuttals are ignored. For media
outlets, the ability to attract viewers to their websites is necessary to generate online
advertising revenue. If publishing a story with false content attracts users, this bene ts
advertisers and improves ratings.

Easy access to online advertisement revenue, increased political polarization, and the
popularity of social media, primarily the Facebook News Feed, have all been implicated in
the spread of fake news, which competes with legitimate news stories. Hostile government
actors have also been implicated in generating and propagating fake news, particularly
during elections.

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Fake news undermines serious media coverage and makes it more dif cult for journalists
to cover signi cant news stories. An analysis by Buzz Feed found that the top 20 fake
news stories about the 2016 U.S. presidential election received more engagement on Face
book than the top 20 election stories from 19 major media outlets

During and after his 2016 presidential campaign and election, Donald Trump popularized
the term "fake news" when he used it to describe the negative press coverage of himself. In
part as a result of Trump's use of the term, the term has come under increasing criticism.

The future of fake:

Misinformation, spin, lies and deceit have of course been around forever. But today, we
have a unique marriage between social media algorithms, advertising systems, people
prepared to make stuff up to earn some easy cash and elections which can fund such
stories. The good news is that the ght against misinformation won't go away. Companies
and governments are now starting to take concrete action.

The opaqueness of the platforms such as Facebook and Twitter and their power and
the fact that so much speech has moved on to them is something that we need to pay
attention to and make sure that we don't turn them from places where misinformation is
running rampant to places that are so locked down that they are inhibiting speech. The
consequences of sensationalism have been shocking enough to encourage surveillance on
public speech. This weakens a fundamental aspect of democracy – free speech. Finding a
balance, tolerating differences between different individual values without con ating them
with morality is a necessary skill for citizens to acquire.

Alongside worries about the power of the social media companies, the experts also have
concerns about the power of governments. Sometimes well-intentioned but ill-informed
legislators will overreach and do more harm than the problem they are trying to x, with
legislation on fake news.

Fake news in Indian context:

While it may appear that the advent of social media has caused the rise of fake news,
events of the past prove that such news has always been peddled by those who wanted
to push their narratives.

On 11th January, 1966, Indian PM Lal Bahadur Shastri died of a heart attack in Tashkent,
Uzbekistan (then Soviet Union) one day after signing a peace treaty to end the 1965 Indo-
Pakistan War. Many among Shastri's supporters and close relatives, refused at the time,
and have refused since, to believe the circumstances of his death and allege foul play.
Conspiracy theories appeared within hours of his death and have thereafter had a long
shelf life.

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On 15th January, 1966 while writing an obituary of the PM, editor Russi Karanjia of the
pro-Soviet newspaper The Blitz stated the before going to Tashkent, Lal Bahadur Shastri
had written a letter to him. Karanjia claimed that this was the ‘last letter written by Shastri
before his nal journey’. In the letter, Karanjia quoted Shastri as stating that India was
attending the meeting 'with a rm resolve to succeed and bring lasting peace'. He added
that Shastri's 'last letter came to us unsolicited and without any obvious provocation' and
that it spoke 'volumes for his passion about peace'.

More than a year later, on 25 March 1967, another newspaper March of the Nation run by
Lok Sabha MP Piloo Mody, alleged that Russi Karanjia had fooled the nation by publishing
the fake letter. March of the Nation alleged that the Shastri letter published in Blitz was
a fake and meant to "deceive Indian public opinion into taking a favourable position on
the Tashkent accord" and this "served Moscow well" after Shastri died. March of the Nation
asked for an inquiry into the letter affair, commenting that if the document was original,
a copy would be available at the Prime Minister's Secretariat. It added that if the letter
was found to be fraudulent, it would put "an entirely different view on the Tashkent
affair—and on the Soviet Union's role in pushing the Tashkent Agreement".

The Blitz responded by alleging that Piloo Mody was a ‘CIA agent for he was married to
an American and, consequently, was favorably disposed towards the country and hostile
to the Soviet Union’. Unfortunately, the truth about the letter became the casualty in the
argument between the two editors over who was speaking the truth and which publication
was spreading fake news.

Loss of credibility of the mainstream media:

Since the past few years, the mainstream media has been steadily losing trust as well
as revenues. It is not uncommon to nd them pushing a biased narrative that seeks to
further their own agendas. In 2015, the nation was shocked to know about the Dadri
incident in which a mob of villagers attacked the home of Mohammed Akhlaq, killing
him on suspicion of slaughtering a cow. Media channels had a eld day by broadcasting
the event as a ‘communal violence incident’ where people of one community targeted
others on the basis of their religion. Later, detailed investigation found that it was a case
of personal vendetta and enmity between the deceased and his neighbours which was
turned into something else by the mainstream media.

In 2017, Deputy Superintendent Mohammed Ayub Pandith, who worked in the security
wing of Jammu and Kashmir Police, was lynched and mutilated by a mob near Jamia
Masjid in the Nowhatta area of Srinagar's old city. Mainstream media sought to indirectly
put the blame on the victim by questioning his presence at the holy mosque. A couple
of news channels also alleged that Mohammed Ayub Pandith recorded the sloganeering

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by the crowd and also opened re on them. On further inquiry, both claims were found
to be untrue.
Mainstream media has also been accused of
• editorialising in the news pages,
• heavy slanting of headlines and photo captions,
• censorship of views critical of their nancial backers, and
• blacking out of the coverage of those who do not adhere to their agenda.

Even more unconscionable is the blatantly partisan support in large sections of the media
for certain political parties.

Robbed of authenticity, reliability and credibility, the mainstream media has now ceased
to matter to large numbers of people who depend on social media platforms to debate
and discuss news events. However, social media platforms also suffer from a proliferation
of fake news as vested interests try to propagate their agenda.

The rise of social media platforms and their attempts at trying to ght fake news:

In recent years, peddling fake news via WhatsApp was said to be a factor in inciting
violence in India at least a few times. In July 2018, fake news about foreigners abducting
children led to the beating and lynching of innocent people in the state of Assam in
northeastern India.

WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook were temporarily blocked in Sri Lanka in early 2018
for their misuses which played a role in fanning sectarian violence.

WhatsApp realizes the gravity of the problem. Last year, the application added a feature
that informs the recipient that the message has been forwarded (and, thus, has not been
created by the immediate sender). WhatsApp also withdrew the quick share option for
Indian users. While the announcement, made through a blog post, called the changes a
“test,” and did not make any reference to fake news or incited violence, a remark worth
noting is that the company expressed hope to “keep WhatsApp the way it was designed
to be: a private messaging app.” It was also clear that India stood out in the message.
The announcement called India a country “where people forward more messages, photos,
and videos than any other country in the world” and the limits WhatsApp has introduced
speci cally for Indian users are obviously stricter than the ones imposed everywhere else.

But is WhatsApp to blame for the fake news and the violence they incite and should be
it singled out from other means of modern communication?

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First, it is not just WhatsApp. As mentioned above, fake news, doctored images and videos
representing unrelated events were also shared on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and via
other methods. Politicians, their spin doctors, and radical hate mongers use all the tools
they can. The traditional media may have more mechanisms to separate fake news from
fact, but some newspapers and TV channels play their own role in spreading misinformation
or sheer propaganda, and on a much larger scale than Whats App’s shared messages.

Second, what separates WhatsApp from other means is the technology. As a simple
messaging app, it was designed as much less intrusive on people’s privacy as the deeply
penetrating Facebook. WhatsApp’s administrators reportedly have no access to the content of
messages – they are encrypted unless speci cally reported. Because Facebook (WhatsApp’s
owner), knows much more about its users, it has greater capability to combat fake news
and more means to handle the issue. It seems this is one of the dilemmas of the modern,
electronic world: The more a social medium or a messaging application knows about its
users, the more it can do to limit malicious behavior, but the more it knows, the more it
can be used to spy on people’s lives (and thus be misused in equally evil ways).

In a very simpli ed sense, it is a choice between using tools like WhatsApp and being
exposed to fake news or using tools like Facebook and also being exposed to fake news,
having a bit bigger chance to report it and combat it, but risking that our personal data
can be mined, for example, to manipulate an election campaign. There is a third choice
– not to use any of it at all. The middle way is to be both very careful about one’s
privacy and about trusting news (any news: coming from friends, traditional media or
social media). Once again, it boils down to people, not their tools.

Modern tools such as social media and messaging applications can reinforce the old
stereotypes that some groups harbor about others. The scale of information with which we
bomb our minds is beyond our capacity to equally analyze all of it. What is needed is a
realization of which education tools and awareness campaigns have been most successful
in changing the mindsets of people. The more stereotypes are countered, the lesser the
chance that fake news will fall on fertile ground and lead to tragedy.

How can readers discern between real & fake news?

Fake news refers to deliberate untruths or stories that contain some truth, but which
aren't completely accurate. Some people also claim that truthful stories are "fake news,"
just because they don't agree with them.

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Fake news can have a negative impact on workplace behavior. So, it's vital to know how
to separate the real from the fake. You can do this by following these steps:
1. Develop a critical mindset.
2. Check the source.
3. See who else is reporting the story.
4. Examine the evidence.
5. Look for fake images.

The problem with paid news:

In 2009, the nation was shocked with the publication of what came to be known as the
‘Radia tapes’. The Radia tapes controversy relates to the telephonic conversations between
Nira Radia, a political lobbyist, the (then) Indian telecom minister A. Raja, and senior
journalists, politicians, and corporate houses, taped by the Indian Income Tax Department
in 2008–09. The news gained prominence following sustained pressure on social networking
sites against an attempted blackout orchestrated by many prominent Indian TV channels
and newspapers. “The complete blackout of the Nira Radia tapes by the entire broadcast
media and most of the major English newspapers paints a truer picture of corruption in
the country," wrote G Sampath, the deputy editor of the now defunct Daily News and
Analysis (DNA) newspaper. The Radia tapes have brought to light another issue: the ne
line between source building for information collection and the transgression of journalistic
ethics.

In 2018, Cobrapost, an investigative news site with a penchant for undercover exposes,
posted videos from a secret camera sting operation targeting 27 Indian media outlets,
including some of the country's biggest. "The story's not just about paid news, it is
something beyond, they are getting to defame the political rivals of the client, they agreed
to take compensation in cash," said Aniruddha Bahal, Cobrapost's editor-in-chief.

How should Government respond to the situation?

What should a government do to tackle the menace of fake news and paid news? A
legal framework in which such issues are adjudicated must be put in place. Also, the
government should de ne what constitutes paid political news, so that Press Council of
India can adopt appropriate guidelines. Also, there has to be a focus on accountability and
responsibility on the part of media. Last year, the government responded by conveying its
“deep disapproval” to WhatsApp and urged it to “take accountability and responsibility”
for the spread of “fake and provocative messages” through its platform.

The government can strengthen the Information Technology (IT) Act, 2008, to ensure social
media companies comply with the law and remove “offensive” content. However, if the

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government does so, there could be a backlash over monitoring of private messages and
uproar over social media networks sharing private data with governments.
From a legal angle, too, WhatsApp does not have a data server in India, so it is not bound
by the laws of the country. “WhatsApp is choosing not to comply with Indian laws because
it is governed by US laws. The government, on its part, can without approaching Parliament,
come up with a rule under Section 87 of the IT Act, 2008, to regulate intermediaries,”
says Pavan Duggal, Supreme Court advocate and president, Cyberlaws.net.

According to Duggal, WhatsApp needs to remove offensive content the moment it’s noti ed.
“Besides enforcing Section 79 read with Section 85 (both deal with offensive posts and
regulating intermediaries), India needs a Fake News Law too,” he suggests. Duggal adds
that India needs to “determine punishments” for non-enforcement of such laws and also
“make cyber law part of a school’s curriculum” to create more awareness.

The conclusion is essentially that social networks cater to, amplify, and rapidly spread
information, which may be true, fake or paid, and there’s no obvious way to solve it
because it’s really a human problem made worse by these networks.
Unless, of course, we agree social networks are terrible and get rid of them. That seems
rather obvious.

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24. Climate Protests and the Green Generation

Climate Protests and the Green generation

Australia had a grim start to the year 2020. Record-breaking temperatures and months of
severe drought fuelled a series of massive bush res that started back in July 2019 and
became deadly in December. An estimated 10 million hectares (100,000 sq km or 15.6
million acres) of bush, forest and parks across Australia has burned so far. Although bush
res are not new to Australia this season has been terrible.

So, is this down to climate change? That is a question that Australians are asking, but
the answer is not a simple one. Scientists and climate experts have mentioned that
Australia has warmed overall by slightly more than one degree Celsius since 1910, with
most of the heating occurring since 1950. According to the meteorology department, a
climate phenomenon is behind the heat wave called the Indian Ocean Dipole—where the
temperatures of the sea surface in the western half of the ocean are warmer than the
eastern half. The difference between the two temperatures is currently the strongest in 60
years. As a result, there has been severe droughts and heat wave in Australia. So, yes
the severity of the bush re is due to climate change.

A broad de nition of Climate Change

Broadly speaking, climate change encompasses not only the rising average temperature
but also extreme weather events, shifting or destroying wildlife populations and habitats,
rising seas and other deadly impacts. And all of these changes are emerging as humans
continue to add heat-trapping greenhouse gases to the atmosphere.

What are some of the effects?

To start with, mountain glaciers and ice sheets are melting and that in turn is resulting in
the rising global sea levels by 0.13 inches a year and in the recent years it has been rising
at a faster rate.Antarctica, home to the greatest ice sheets on Earth is melting signi cantly
faster than it was decades ago. Besides the melting north and south poles, the mountain
glaciers of the mighty Hindu Kush Himalayan region are melting too. Rising temperatures
are affecting wildlife and their habitats. As temperatures change, many species are on
the verge of extinction as their natural habitat has drastically changed. Since mountain
glaciers are depleting fast there is scarcity of fresh water. Also, with the rising sea levels,
salination of fresh water has increased with detrimental effects on plant growth and yield,
reduction of water quality for users, sedimentation problems and so on.

In October 2018, when leading climate scientists gave stark warning and the report by
UN intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) said that we only have 12 years

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to limit the impending climate disaster, the world nally woke up. To keep temperature
rises below 1.5C by 2100, emissions of carbon dioxide would have to be dramatically cut,
by 45 per cent in the 12 years to 2030 and to ‘net zero’ – carbon neutral, with no more
greenhouse gases emitted than are disposed of – by 2050.

The world woke up!

Since the warnings by the Climate Scientists young people started to take on to social
media talking about climate change and parents started to tweet about climate emergency.
And then Greta Thunberg, a young schoolgirl, began her strike that soon became a global
movement. Her passionate speech at the UN addressing the world leaders that is famously
known as the ‘How dare you’ speech made her grab headlines everywhere. Since then Greta
Thunberg has become the face of this Climate Protest as social media helped spreading
her message to every nook and corner of the world. Young people from around the world
participated in coordinated global climate crisis strikes after being inspired by her.

Climate Protests

Climate protests made headlines the world over throughout 2019 especially gaining
strength towards the last few months of 2019. These protests were triggered by the young
generation against lack of political initiatives on efforts to reduce greenhouse emissions
and completely ending the use of coal products.

In September 2019, the world saw more than six million people taking to the streets uniting
across timezones, cultures and generations to demand urgent action on the escalating
ecological emergency. There is also FridaysForFuture, an international movement organised
by school students who take time off from class on Fridays to participate in demonstrations
to demand action from political leaders to take action to prevent climate change.

Despite a monumental turnout, it’s not clear whether the demonstrations can in uence
the global forces contributing to climate change or compel leaders to make the choices
necessary to halt the world’s warming. It is also important that we must look at climate
protests objectively. While it is ne for Greta Thunberg to not y and instead sail across
the Atlantic to get to the climate conference in the US and Chile, which in turn gave
her a lot of media attention, but realistically speaking, is it even possible for people to
not take ights anymore? Till we are not nding a green way to y do we stop ying
altogether? This is precisely where activism diverges from economics and of nding realistic
solutions to combat climate crisis.

Also, protests can often become too eeting as it ignores the structural nature of problems
in a modern world and sometimes it only remains active on social media platforms. Thus,
it is now important for climate experts, policy makers and world leaders not to brush

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these issues under the carpet and actually step up and make transformative changes to
nd realistic and sustainable solutions. Otherwise, these protests will turn futile.

Green Generation

Worldwide, the youth today is far more aware of the climate crisis and understand the
importance of being eco-friendly. ‘Green Consumerism’ has become a popular phrase, right
from free-range meat to vegan skincare products, young people all over the world are
regularly considered to be the ones driving the sustainable movement with their lifestyle
and behavioural changes.

Popularly called as the Green Generation, this segment of consumers are now forcing
many popular brands to provide them organic and environment-friendly products and
companies can see the appeal and opportunity in these changes.

What is the road ahead for policy makers?

The broad challenges that lie ahead for world leaders and policy makers would be the
swift shift from fossil fuels toward clean energy, halting deforestation, protecting the
world’s oceans and embracing more sustainable agriculture.

Imposing a price on carbonto reduce greenhouse gas emissions could be one of the
immediate steps. There should be nancial incentives to people so that they can make
their homes climate friendly. Purchasing of electric vehicles can be incentivized. Funding
renewable energy projects, such as wind and solar power can be taken up on a big scale.
Better public transport would automatically help in reducing usage of private cars. More
importantly, policy makers and world leaders need to be fast in taking steps to combat
climate crisis.

After all, we don’t have a Planet B!

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25. Article 370 Abrogation: Correcting Old Folly

or Thrusting Nationalistic Agenda?

Introduction:

Article 370 of the Indian constitution gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir from 1954
to 31 October 2019, conferring it with the power to have a separate constitution, a state
ag and autonomy over the internal administration of the state. On 5 August 2019, the
Government of India issued a constitutional order superseding the 1954 order. It made
all the provisions of the Indian constitution applicable to Jammu and Kashmir based on
the resolution passed in both houses of India’s parliament with 2/3 majority. In addition,
the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act was passed by the parliament, enacting the
division the state of Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories to be called Union
Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and Union Territory of Ladakh. The reorganisation took
place on 31 October 2019.

1949: Article 370 is drafted:

The state of Jammu and Kashmir’s original accession, like all other princely states, was
on three matters: defence, foreign affairs and communications. In the case of Jammu
and Kashmir, the representatives to the Constituent Assembly requested that only those
provisions of the Indian Constitution that corresponded to the original Instrument of
Accession should be applied to the State and that the state’s constituent assembly, when
formed, would decide on the other matters. Government of India agreed to the demands.

In 1949, then Prime Minister of India Jawaharlal Nehru had directed Kashmiri leader
Sheikh Abdullah to consult Dr BR Ambedkar to prepare a draft suitable for Kashmir. Dr
BR Ambedkar, the rst law minister of India and the chairman of the Constitution drafting
committee, refused to draft Article 370 because he was strictly opposed to such an article.
Ambedkar felt that making limited application of laws made by Parliament for the state
of Jammu and Kashmir would create lots of problems rather than solving.

Then Nehru got a member of his cabinet, N Gopalaswami Ayyangar, to do the job. On
the directions of the Prime Minister, Ayyangar – who was a member of the drafting
committee of the Constitution, a leader of the Rajya Sabha and a former diwan to Maharaja
Hari Singh of Jammu and Kashmir – framed Article 370. Ayyangar was born on March
31, 1882 in Tanjore. He was the prime minister of Kashmir from 1937-1943. Ayyangar’s
tenure as a member of the Council of States lasted from 1943-1947. He was also a member
of the Constituent Assembly and the thirteen-member drafting committee. He was also
the head of the delegation that represented India at the United Nations in the persistent
dispute over Kashmir.

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Article 370 becomes a law:

When Article 370 was originally created, only two articles of the Indian Constitution
applied in full to Jammu and Kashmir. Other provisions of the Constitution were appliedas
speci ed by the President in his Orders in 1950, 1952, 1954 in consultation with or the
concurrence of the government of the state. In addition to these original orders, forty-seven
Presidential orders were issued between 11 February 1956 and 19 February 1994, making
various other provisions of the Constitution of India applicable to Jammu and Kashmir.

Article 35A was introduced through a presidential order in 1954 to continue the old
provisions of the territory regulations under Article 370 of the Indian constitution. The
article permitted the local legislature in Indian-administered Kashmir to de ne permanent
residents of the region.

Modi cation of Article 370:

In 2014 and 2019, as part of Bharatiya Janata Party manifesto for the general elections, the
party again pledged to integrate the state of Jammu and Kashmir into the Union of India
On 5 August 2019, Home Minister Amit Shah announced in the Rajya Sabha (upper
house of the Indian Parliament) that the President of India had issued The Constitution
(Application to Jammu and Kashmir) Order, 2019 (C.O. 272) under Article 370, superseding
the Constitution (Application to Jammu and Kashmir) Order, 1954. The order stated that
all the provisions of the Indian Constitution applied to Jammu and Kashmir. Immediately
after placing the Presidential Order 2019 before the Rajya Sabha, Home Minister Amit Shah
moved a resolution recommending that the president issue an order under article 370(3)
rendering all clauses of Article 370 inoperative. The Home Minister also introduced the
Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Bill, 2019 in the Rajya Sabha to convert Jammu and
Kashmir’s status of a state to two separate union territories, namely Union Territory of
Jammu and Kashmir and Union Territory of Ladakh.

Reactions after modi cation of Article 370:

Senior Indian lawyer Harish Salve on Wednesday endorsed Modi government’s decision to
revoke Article 370 to withdraw the special status of Jammu and Kashmir as a means of
correcting a “mistake”. Salve said, “Pakistan-occupied Kashmir is Indian, they (Pakistan) are
squatting there. If there is any disputed territory (in the region), it is PoK. The Kashmir
Constitution says Kashmir is an integral part of India, not just the Indian Constitution.
Kashmir being an integral part of India has never been in doubt, except in certain Pakistani
minds.”

Critics of the decision stated that the ruling party wanted to assert itself and was more
concerned over electoral victories in upcoming state elections. However, in the 3 state
elections that followed the abrogation, the BJP lost power in 2 states.

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Al Jazeera came out with a news article titled “Darkest day: Uproar as India strips Kashmir
special status”. It stated that the decision of the government to snatch the special status of
Kashmir from it was “deceitful and illegal”. Further, the author said that “The revoking of
Article 370 is just the latest step in BJP’s grand plan to transform India into a Hindu only
nation”. Saudi Arabia’s Saudi Gazette also stated the decision of the Indian government
as a dangerous blunder claiming that nothing good could come out of the decision plus
it published that “The violence has been met with even more violence by the beleaguered
Indian security forces ever since the dissolution of State’s assembly in 2018.”

The Pakistan Angle:

India’s decision evoked strong reactions from Pakistan, which downgraded diplomatic ties
and expelled the Indian ambassador.

Pakistan had been trying to internationalise the Kashmir issue after India withdrew the
special status of Jammu and Kashmir on August 5, but New Delhi has asserted the
abrogation of Article 370 was its “internal matter”.

Many security experts expressed concerns over mentioned about Pakistan’s reaction about
the decision. News Middle East in its report titled “Pakistan anger as India ends special
status for Kashmir” wrote about Pakistan’s exasperation in their statements when it
condemned this decision of India and claimed it as an illegal activity.

Recently, Indian Army chief Manoj Mukund Naravane said the Indian Army will take steps
to take Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) from Islamabad’s control if Parliament wanted
and if the Indian government gave such an order. The army chief’s remarks are certain
to rile up Pakistan, which has in recent times failed to push its narrative on Jammu and
Kashmir in the international community.

Six US Congressmen spoke out on the oor of the House in support of India’s initiative
in Jammu and Kashmir in what would re ect strong support for Delhi’s counter-terror
initiatives against cross-border terror.

However, if Pakistan decides to once again train and arm Kashmiri militants and allow
foreign militants into Kashmir, it may face isolation on the international stage. If it keeps
quiet, it loses credibility among its domestic audience which has been fed the narrative
that Pakistan would integrate all of Kashmir with itself.

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Conclusion:

On October 31, 2019 the Centre noti ed geographical boundaries of newly carved Union
Territories (UTs) of Jammu and Kashmir.

Critics argue that the swiftness of the move has shown that through the use of a narrative
of national security, the BJP can break opposition parties and secure overwhelming
parliamentary support, spur its grassroots workers, and keep the jingoist media on board.
However, the widespread support for this act of constitutional amendment shows that
there is considerable backing for the move as well.

While it may be too early to opine about the nal outcome of the amendment or the
intentions behind it, if the move is able to provide equal economic, social, and political
opportunities to all citizens, it may turn out to be a game-changer in the coming decade.

References:

The new Political Map of India prepared by Survey General of India depicting Jammu
and Kashmir and Ladakh, as created on October 31, 2019, along with the map of India
can be accessed here:

https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/india-maps-new-ut-ladakh-jammu-kashmir-
boundaries-photos-1615173-2019-11-02

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26. Triple Talaq: Landmark Verdict for Muslim Women or An

Eyewash?

“Triple talaq”, or talaq-e-biddat as it’s known, allows a husband to divorce his wife by
repeating the word “talaq” (divorce) three times in any form, including email or text
message.

Triple Talaq, as a phenomenon, is perplexing to those who have not grown up with the
social set up that allows it. In most personal laws, divorce is either not recognised or it
takes consistent effort to convince the court of the absolute inability of the spouses to
inhabit one room at the same time. In addition to that everyone has spoken words of anger
towards their loved ones, spouses especially, wishing separation. It seems inconceivable,
therefore, that any religion should allow a person to divorce his spouse in a t of anger,
or worse, pique. No questions asked. Needless to say it is unfair that only the man is
allowed to be this person. This would render every marriage, in that religion, inherently
lopsided. Everyman holds the ability to divorce his wife if she says, does or thinks
anything apparently wrong.

The use of instantaneous triple talaq is heavily frowned upon in many Islamic countries. It
may result in social ostracising of the man and his family, should he do so. This suggests
that the use of instantaneous triple talaq is not as common as one would believe. Just
because it is easy, it doesn’t mean that the use is prevalent and wide-spread.

It is with these considerations, and many legal and constitutional ones that the 5 judges of
the Supreme Court reached a conclusion. The Conclusion and the actions of the Supreme
Court must however be seen, not only as a victory or as a loss, but as something which
is wonderful and yet possibly awed.

Timeline:
On February 16, 2017, a ve-judge constitution bench was be set up by the Supreme
Court to hear and decide on a batch of petitions relating to the practice of triple talaq,
‘nikahhalala’ and polygamy among Muslims.

*’Nikahhalala’ means a man cannot remarry a woman after triple talaq unless she has
already consummated her marriage with another man and then her new husband dies
or divorces her.

The bench, made up of judges from different religious communities -- Sikh, Christian,
Parsi, Hindu and Muslim, had heard seven pleas, including ve separate petitions led
by Muslim women challenging the prevalent practice of ‘triple talaq’ in the community.

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The bench included Justices Kurian Joseph, R F Nariman, U ULalit and S Abdul Nazeer
besides CJI Khehar, who led the group.

In a majority 3:2 judgment, a ve-judge Bench of the Supreme Court on 21st August, 2018
set aside talaq-e-biddat or instant and irrevocable talaq as a “manifestly arbitrary” practice,
which is not protected by Article 25 (freedom of religion) of the Constitution. Justices
Kurian Joseph and Rohinton Fali Nariman gave separate judgments against the validity of
instant talaq, and Justice U.U. Lalit has supported Justice Nariman’s judgment. This makes
up the triumvirate of judges who ruled against instant talaq.Chief Justice J.S. Kheharheld
that talaq-e-biddat is an integral part of Article 25 (freedom of religion). He said it had
been followed for over 1,400 years by the Hana s and become a part of religious pratice.
He held that instant talaq does not violate Articles 14, 19 and 21 of the Constitution, and
passed it on to the legislature within six months to decide a law. Invoking extraordinary
jurisdiction under Article 142, the Chief Justice injuncted Muslim men from divorcing their
wives using instant talaq. This view was endorsed only by Justice S. Abdul Nazeer, thus,
making it the minority judgment.

In July, Parliament gave its nod to The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage)
Bill, 2019. The new law makes talaq-e-biddat or any other similar form of talaq having
the effect of instantaneous and irrevocable divorce pronounced by a Muslim husband
void and illegal.It makes it illegal to pronounce talaq three times in spoken, written or
through SMS or WhatsApp or any other electronic chat in one sitting. According to the
new law, any Muslim who pronounces the illegal form of talaq upon his wife shall be
punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years, and shall also
be liable to ne.

Points in favour of Triple Talaq verdict (ShayaraBano v/s Union of India and others)
1. The verdict is a big step towards eliminating the inequality faced by women due to
personal laws. According to Muslim personal law, a Muslim woman’s right to seek
divorce from her husband is limited. However a man can divorce his wife because he
felt she sneezed wrong. This is because, till date, many people responsible for shap-
ing personal laws believe that a man has ‘greater reasoning ability’ than a woman.
Instant Triple talaq was just one example of how a woman’s wellbeing is subject to
the whim of a man. This state of affairs is true not only in Islam, but in most pa-
triarchal societies of India. This verdict is a signal by the Supreme Court that it is
now willing to do away with many practices that are clearly sexist and not necessary
for the true practice of religion but are kept around to keep the hegemony of men
intact.
2. It ends a manifestly arbitrary practice that allows a man to break down a marriage
whimsically and capriciously. The verdict spells an end to the practice of instantaneous
triple talaq, a method which was frowned upon to begin with. An instantaneous

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triple talaq was generally used by persons who have no sense of society and their
obligations on marriage. Such persons shall now be forced to think through their
actions and the resultant consequences. It shall also give the woman time to gather
her resources before she, and possibly her children, are cast out of her marital home
without any support or with little support from her husband. The practice of instant
triple talaq has been banned in most countries that have a majority Muslim popula-
tion, it is about time India followed in those footsteps.
3. It is a clear indication that the Supreme Court is of the favor of upholding personal
rights over centuries old religious practices. The Supreme Court has, over the last 70
years, helped the evolution of personal laws by doing away with practices that are
manifestly cruel and immoral. However more than it has helped, the Supreme Court
has turned a blind eye to the suffering of a large population of people because of
some practice that started centuries previously. As the guardian of the rights of the
people, it has often cited the fundamental right to religion as an excuse to allow the
suppression of personal rights by the people of same religion. There are times when
the judges of the Supreme Court have openly commented that they would rather not
adjudicate on personal laws, but leave it for the people to manage their affairs. This
judgement could be taken as an indication that the Court is not willing to turn the
blind eye in the name or religion anymore

Points against Triple talaq verdict

1. The Supreme Court setting the validity of customs and practices of a community is
a slippery slope. Articles 25 and 26 of the Constitution speci cally allow for Right
to freedom of religion, which includes the right to practice religion and manage re-
ligious affairs only subject to morality, public order and health. The Supreme Court
is the guardian of the personal rights of the people, not the torch bearer of progress
for all religions. The purpose of fundamental rights in the Constitution, is that they
should be inviolate in the face of State action, not the actions of private citizens. The
Supreme Court has been bestowed with immense power and there is little or no
executive and legislative check on the court, apart from what is politically expedient
for the ruling party. Therefore we must be wary of every line that is crossed by the
Supreme Court, even if such line is crossed for the right reason
2. It is not upon the Supreme Court to legislate on matters. The verdict may be fair,
but it is judicial overreach. It is not the Supreme Court’s place to make laws. The job
of the Court is to adjudicate between parties and to decide the validity of a law in
question. The banning of instantaneous triple talaq has been long overdue in India.
However it is for the legislature to ban the practice.This is a classic case of judicial
overreach where the Supreme Court is trying to create the semblance of the Uniform
Civil Code which was envisioned as a goal for the legislature in the Constitution.
The Supreme Court has increasingly taken on the job of the legislature, by overreach-
ing the authority given to it, under the Constitution. This should be checked by the
Supreme Court itself. In fact, of the 5 judges, who presided over the ShayaraBano
case, 2 judges were of the opinion that while they didn’t agree with the practice,

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and that instantaneous triple talaq was sinful, they could not ban it as that was the
job of the legislature.
3. The ban on instantaneous triple talaq overshadows the fact that the Supreme Court
has not banned all forms of divorce that favour a man, only the most sensational
one. The ban on instant triple talaq was celebrated through the country. However this
ban is not nearly enough. There is still so much gender injustice in personal laws,
including in the practice of divorce in Islam, that the ban is only a band aid on the
gaping wound of such practices. A Muslim woman may still be cast aside by the
uttering of talaq three times, only now such words have to be said over a period
of three months. The dissolving of marriage, on the whim of a man, still exists in
Islam. The road is long and the celebration was premature.
4. The issue of Muslim Personal laws, Muslim marriage in particular, has been a hot
button topic since the last 3-4 decades. Everytime the topic of looking into the personal
laws is brought up, religious organisations go up in arms against the interference
by the State. The idea that religion is a static phenomenon, rather than a dynamic
one has damaged everyone’s trust in the institutions.However the religious institu-
tions, misogynistic as they might look and sound, are not entirely wrong when they
protest State interference. The sheer incompetence of the state can boggle the minds
of the most jaded. We see that with the newly reintroduced Triple Talaq ordinance
(Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Ordinance 2019) is a two-page
document that affects the lives of over 18 to 19 Crores Indian Citizens. While brev-
ity is neither wrong nor unwelcome in legislation, it may result in creating many
loopholes in the law it seeks to create, rendering the law dangerous. The Ordinance
deems any form of instant talaq as void. This means that a Muslim may pronounce
or text or email to his wife the word ‘talaq’ three times, consecutively, but it will
have no effect on his marital status. This is a legislative con rmation of the prin-
ciple that was judicially set by the Supreme Court in the ShayaraBano v. Union of
India & Others judgment.The Ordinance makes it such that the communication of
‘Talaq’ three times consecutively a non-bailable and cognizable offence. To put this in
context,bribery during elections, selling any food or drink as food and drink know-
ing the same to be noxious and voluntarily hurting someone, such that it is a crime,
are non-cognizable and bailable offences. This means that all of the above things are
considered as ‘not-as-bad-as’ saying talaq three times. The most interesting thing,
however, is the fact that the wife or anyone from the wife’s family only need to
complain to the police that such a ‘crime’ has occurred. The husband will be sent to
jail. The result of this is that the police arrest any married Muslim man, on the basis
of a complaint of his wife or any of her family members, without requiring orders
from the magistrate or even a warrant. After the Muslim man is arrested, he has no
right to be bailed out; the magistrate may allow bail or may not allow bail per his
discretion. This upends the current social hierarchy of the Muslim household. The
woman is now given unbelievable powers to turn her husband into a criminal. An
order of a household, where the man is given more rights and protections by the
religion is obviously unfair. However the State’s attempt to solve this situation by

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giving the woman the right to turn her husband into a criminal is not the solution
in any way or form.It is not as if we don’t have precedent of women taking unfair
advantage of the law that was put in place to ‘protect’ them. The burgeoning misuse
of the criminal provisions in the Dowry Prohibition Act 1961 and the Protection of
Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005 is not a secret.

Conclusion:

Article 44 of the Constitution encourages governments to take a policy of social reform.

In the 1950s, various Hindu code bills were passed, some with opposition, some with
unanimity. As a result, the social condition of Hindu women drastically improved in the
coming decades.

It is expected that the ruling on triple talaq will give a similar upshot to Muslim women
hopefully without any negative social outcomes for all the parties involved.

Further Reading:

https://www.news18.com/news/india/triple-talaq-all-you-need-to-know-about-controversial-
muslim-divorce-1349841.html

https://www.financialexpress.com/india-news/govt-tables-triple-talaq-bill-in-lok-sabha-
complete-timeline-of-the-journey-of-the-legislation/1614443/

https://www.telegraphindia.com/opinion/the-law-against-triple-talaq-de es-logic/cid/1700685

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27. Does India Need a Benevolent Dictator or a Strong

Democracy?

Post World War II, quite a few countries including India gained independence from the
British rule. Over past 70 years, India has evolved as a strong democracy, with deep-
rooted respect & belief for democratic notions and tenets established by our constitution.
However, the post-independence era of many of these countries was marked by pseudo-
democracy, i.e. active army rule or army rule under the aegis of democracy (e.g. Pakistan
and Indonesia) or strong militant out ts over a reasonable period of time (e.g. Sri Lanka)

The post-independence India also had a share of struggle in facing issues like poverty,
lack of education, health & employment services, not to forget challenges of its kind posed
by culturally & economically diverse population speaking different languages following
contradictory social customs, at times. India sailed through testing times & the belief in a
democratic system could not be shaken in spite of facing three big wars within the rst
25 years of independence

In such a diverse country, the only binding thread was a strong belief in the core intent
of democracy ‘Of the people, by the people, for the people’. However, such a scale of
diversity also poses its share of challenges & complexity, which leads to a certain faction
of people to ponder whether India needs a benevolent dictatorship instead of a democracy.

A survey conducted by the Pew Research Centre, a non-partisan American think tank based
in Washington, D.C., released an interesting survey report in 2017. The survey revealed
that most Indians might actually be tiring of their seven-decade old democracy. Of the
Indians surveyed, 55% backed autocratic rule by a strong leader unfettered by legislatures
or courts, 53% supported military rule and 65% found technocracy – a government run
by unelected experts – to be a ne idea.

Since its rst election in 1952, India has become a multiparty government with a parliamentary
system and a commitment to free elections.

Points in favour of benevolent dictatorship

• Huge geographic & cultural spread poses considerable challenges to Indian policymak-
ers to build a national consensus on the design of welfare programs serving majority
interests of bene ciary groups having con icting interests. We saw the kind of effort
the Government had to put in to build general agreement on GST implementation or
an ongoing debate on implementing the common civil code. India can’t afford such
delays which have a huge adverse impact on economic growth. Being ‘too democratic’,
thus, has its share of challenges

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• Implementation of large-scale programs is mostly characterized by red-tapism &

unwarranted delays caused by ulterior motives of the bureaucracy. If one wants to
quicken decision-making process by bypassing the red tapism, it comes at a heavy
cost & corruption gets social acceptance as perhaps the best way to get things done
on time. A dictator will use his veto to push through certain agenda without en-
couraging red-tapism or hidden agendas

• In the past, countries have seen charismatic authoritarianism marked by "inde nite
political tenure" by rulers like Fidel Castro (Cuba) or Sukarno (Indonesia). By and
large, they were seen by their countrymen as strong advocates of nationalism, who
dared to take on the West in spite of challenging times such as externally imposed
economic sanctions. They were seen as proponents of social justice & anti-imperialism,
who also pushed through ideologically driven infrastructure projects and several ini-
tiatives around health & education. Hence, there are proven examples of benevolent
dictators

Points in favour of a strong democracy

• A political system based on strong principles of democracy gives many powers to its
citizen, freedom of expression being one. Article 21 of the Indian constitution offers
the right to life & personal liberty to all citizens. In the recent past, a widespread
movement like India against corruption (2011) was marked by a series of demon-
strations and protests across the country. It intended to establish strong legislation
and enforcement against perceived endemic political corruption. The movement was
primarily one of non-violent civil resistance, featuring demonstrations, marches, acts
of civil disobedience, hunger strikes, and rallies, as well as the use of social media
to organise, communicate, and raise awareness. The spontaneous outburst of public
sentiment is largely considered to be one of the key factors that toppled the incum-
bent central government in the next general elections. A dictator, however benevolent
in nature, would have tended to smother such expressions of public dismay & as a
result, would have violated the spirit of personal liberty, a key feature of a strong
democracy.

• The legislature, the government, the judiciary and the press are considered as four
pillars of democracy. Time & again, these pillars have re ected public opinion at large
& helped genuine victims who sought justice. Criminal Law (Amendment) Act-2013
was brought against the backdrop of the country-wide outrage over Delhi gang-rape
case in 2012 to provide a strong deterrent against crimes like rape. Only a model of
strong democracy can entertain & appreciate public demands towards a strong cause.

• In the initial years of NDA governance, it did not hold a majority in the Rajya Sabha,
hence quite a few bills that were important to the government could not be passed
& converted into a law. The government, at times, tried to circumvent the Rajya
Sabha route by proposing ordinances & pushed for the President’s consent to pass

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them. The President, however, turned them down on quite a few occasions narrating
that ordinances should be passed as one-off instances, only when the parliamentary
session is not on & should not become a precedent to take a deviation from the
standard parliamentary norm to ful l vested interests of a ruling party. In case of a
dictatorship, it will be much easier to ful l such vested interests. A similar instance
in 2016 when democratically elected Uttarakhand state government was ousted by
the central government but re-installed later by the Supreme Court, which is another
crucial pillar of democracy. Such controls only make the democracy strong.

Conclusion:
There is a deep-rooted respect for democracy in our country. As a result, India never
faced anarchy unlike a few neighbouring countries & law and order situation, by and
large, remained intact in most parts of the country. People of the country enjoy various
liberties which includes the right to dissent. A dictatorship, however ‘benevolent’ it claims
to be is less likely to give such freedom to judiciary & people against its own interests.

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