Agriculture: An Inclusive Model of Madhya Pradesh

GS Paper- III

Context – India’s economy is now worth $3.5 trillion. According to the IMF, if present growth rates continue, the country would have a $5.4 trillion GDP by 2027. Little surprise Prime Minister Narendra Modi has dubbed the next 25 years, when India will celebrate its 100th anniversary of independence, Amrit Kaal. The agriculture model of Madhya Pradesh can teach us about inclusive, sustainable growth.

India’s Growth trajectory

• India appears to be on the right track and performing well, especially when compared to its success in the first six decades following 1947.
• According to the IMF, it took India about 59 years from independence to reach a GDP of $0.95 trillion in 2006. Nonetheless, it grew to a $2.3 trillion economy by 2016, adding $1.35 trillion in ten years.
• It grew to a $3.5 trillion economy in 2022 after adding $1.2 trillion in only six years. If India continues on its current path, it might have a $25 to $30 trillion GDP by 2047.

How inclusive is this growth?

• Inclusiveness is determined by looking at the success of the lagging states, particularly the so-called BIMARU states (Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh), as well as the performance of the agricultural sector, which employs the biggest percentage of the workforce (46.5%) in 2020-21.
• During this time, the country’s GDP grew at a rate of 6.7% per year, while agri GDP grew at a rate of 3.8% per year. This is respectable, but not as amazing as China’s performance.
• Gujarat led the way with 8.9 percent total GDP growth, followed by Uttarakhand (8.7 percent), Telangana (8.6 percent), and Haryana (8 per cent). Jammu & Kashmir (5.2%), Assam (5.4%), West Bengal (5.5%), Uttar Pradesh (5.6%), and Jharkhand were at the bottom of the list (5.7 per cent).
• MP is the only state whose agriculture contribution to overall GDP has climbed to 40%, compared to 18.8% at the national level; its strategy is accurately defined as inclusive and sustainable.
• Jharkhand has fared remarkably well in agriculture, with an annual growth rate of 6.4%, owing primarily to diversification into horticulture and cattle.
• Punjab, the Green Revolution champion, has fared poorly. Throughout this time, its Agri-GDP growth rate was a paltry 2% each year.

Madhya Pradesh’s Inclusive and Sustainable Model

• Madhya Pradesh has fared well, with the greatest agricultural growth rate of 7.3%. Its overall GDP growth rate is a solid 7.5%.
• The state’s agri-GDP growth outpaces that of the rest of India, and the state is a shining example of doubling the contribution of horticulture to the value of agriculture and associated sectors.
• MP has established itself as a major participant in tomato, garlic, mandarin orange, pulses, particularly gramme and soyabean farming. MP is also the second-largest producer of wheat after Uttar Pradesh, and the third-largest producer of milk after Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan.
• It has followed a well-diversified agricultural portfolio while increasing irrigation coverage from 24 to 45.3% of its gross cultivated area over the previous two decades.

Conclusion

The Madhya Pradesh agricultural model reveals that a well-diversified crop portfolio is driving the farm sector’s rapid expansion. This is inclusive and sustainable, and it paves the way for other Indian states to follow.

Source – The Hindu

Organ transplant rules In India: A Significant Step

GS Paper- II

Context- The modifications to organ transplant guidelines announced last week by the Union health ministry are minor but crucial steps towards offering many patients with failing organs a fresh lease on life. Despite completing the third-highest number of transplants in the world, only approximately 0.01 percent of Indians give their organs after death, according to the World Health Organization.

What are the changes introduced?

• Patients 65 and older can now register to receive organs from a deceased donor, according to the new rules. Anybody of any age can now register for an organ transplant.
• Formerly, the top age restriction for enrolling patients in need of organs from dead donors was 65 years, but that barrier has now been lifted.
• Remove the residence requirement for registering to receive organs, allowing patients in need to register in any state.
• Presently, several states limit or offer priority to registered dead organ donors who are residents of the state. Organs extracted in one state are initially shared with other hospitals in that state, then in the area, and finally nationwide if no match is discovered.
• The ministry has also recommended that states not charge patients seeking organ transplant registration fees, as this would be a violation of the 2014 Transplantation of Human Organs and Tissues Regulations.
• States like Maharashtra, Kerala, Gujarat, and Telangana charge between Rs 5,000 and Rs 10,000 to register people who require organ transplants. The health ministry has correctly instructed these states to discontinue charging this tax.

Where does India stand?

• Every year, India performs the third greatest number of transplants in the world. Despite this, just 4% of individuals in need of a liver, heart, or kidney transplant receive one.
• According to the most recent government data, the number of organ transplants has climbed dramatically over the last decade. There were 4,990 organ transplants in 2013, but there will be 15,561 in 2022, a 211 percent increase.
• The number of kidney transplants from living donors grew by almost 181% from 3,495 in 2013 to 9,834 in 2022. From 542 in 2013 to 1,589 in 2022, the number of kidney transplants from dead donors climbed by nearly 193 percent.
• The overall number of liver transplants from living donors climbed by roughly 350 percent, from 658 in 2013 to 2,957 in 2022, and from dead donors increased by approximately 217 percent, from 240 in 2013 to 761 in 2022. In India, deceased donors account for roughly 17 percent of all transplants.
• The overall number of heart transplants climbed by nearly 733 percent from 30 in 2013 to 250 in 2022, while lung transplants increased by approximately 500 percent from 23 to 138.
• Additionally, private hospitals are the leaders in organ transplants, while numbers at government institutions remain relatively low, according to reports.

Challenges to Organ Donation in India

• The general population is unaware of the significance of organ donation, the legal framework that governs it, and the processes involved. This has the potential to reduce the number of possible donors.
• There are various cultural beliefs and superstitions in India that impede organ donation. Some people feel that organ donation violates their religious beliefs or has an influence on their soul or eternity.
• There aren’t enough hospitals and medical facilities in India that can handle organ transplants. This may reduce the number of organs available for transplantation.
• While the legal foundation exists, the legislation is not being implemented or enforced. This can lead to problems like organ trafficking and black market activity.

It has following two divisions:

• It serves as the country’s apex coordinating and networking centre for the procurement and distribution of organs and tissues, as well as the register of organ and tissue donation and transplantation.
• The major focus and goal of creating the centre is to bridge the gap between ‘Demand’ and ‘Supply’ while also providing ‘Quality Assurance’ in the availability of diverse tissues. Tissue allografts such as bone and bone products, skin transplant, cornea, and heart valves and vessels will be handled by the centre.

Conclusion

The percentages are extremely likely to rise after the regulatory changes announced last week go into force. The organ scarcity problem, on the other hand, is a complicated one that continues to confuse planners, even in countries with considerably better equipped healthcare systems than India’s. There is a need to increase the number of facilities that do procedures and transplants. A unified policy would let patients to seek transplants from deceased donors at any hospital in the country, providing them more options.

Source – The Hindu

GST Appellate Tribunal gets nod

GS Paper-II

Context– The GST Council gained a broad consensus on the establishment of a GST Appellate Tribunal, which is expected to be included in the Budget Bill 2023.

What exactly is the GST Appellate Tribunal?

• The GST Appellate Tribunal is a quasi-judicial organisation that is being proposed to be formed in India to address issues relating to the Goods and Services Tax (GST).
• It will consider challenges against orders issued by the GST authorities or the Appellate Authority as an independent body.
• The tribunal will be made up of a national bench and many regional benches, all of which will be led by a chairman selected by the central government.
• The planned tribunal is designed to assist speed Tax dispute resolution and lessen the strain on the judiciary.
• If a person is dissatisfied with a lower court’s ruling, he or she may file an appeal with a higher court, the hierarchy of which is as follows (from low to high):
• Adjudicating Authority
• Appellate Authority
• Appellate Tribunal
• High Court
• Supreme Court

Why need such Tribunal?

• The GST Appellate Tribunal will assist in resolving the growing number of complaints arising from the 68-month-old indirect tax regime, which are now cluttering High Courts and other legal forums.
• Overall, the GST Appellate Tribunal is projected to increase the efficiency and efficacy of India’s GST system.
• The proposed Tribunal would serve as an independent and efficient means of addressing GST-related issues.
• It will serve to speed up dispute settlement, lessen the strain on the judiciary, and promote better clarity and predictability in the GST system.

Issues with present litigation

• The GST system was adopted in India in 2017, and there have been various challenges with compliance and interpretation of laws and regulations.
• As previously stated, the existing dispute resolution procedure comprises numerous stages of adjudication, beginning with the GST officer.
• This procedure can be time-consuming, expensive, and burdensome for taxpayers, particularly small and medium-sized businesses.

How is it being established?

• The GST Appellate Tribunal is scheduled to be incorporated in the 2023 Budget Bill.
• This implies that it will be included in the budget of the central government and will have legal validity.

Appellate Tribunal for Income Tax

• The Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) was the first tribunal in India, established on January 25, 1941, and is also known as the “Mother Tribunal”! And it reports to the Ministry of Law and Justice rather than the apparent Ministry of Finance.

What is a Finance Bill?

• A Finance Bill is proposed legislation filed by the government to execute the Union Budget’s financial plans for the upcoming fiscal year in India.
• It is a detailed document that covers the government’s revenue and spending for the fiscal year, as well as changes in tax legislation, tariffs, customs taxes, and other fiscal policies.
• Because the Union Budget addresses these issues, it is referred to as a Finance Bill.

Finance Bill Types

• There are several types of Financial Bills, the most important of which is the Money Bill. Article 110 defines the Money Bill in detail.
• There are three kinds of Financial Bills that can be introduced in India’s Parliament:
• This is the most popular form of Finance Bill, and it is proposed by the government every year to put the tax plans stated in the Union Budget into action. It includes provisions for the upcoming fiscal year’s taxation, spending, and revenue collection.
• A Money Bill is a sort of Finance Bill that contains solely measures about taxation and expenditure and nothing else. Money Bills are believed to have been passed by the Lok Sabha, the lower house of Parliament, and do not need to be approved by the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of Parliament.
• This sort of Finance Bill includes measures concerning taxation as well as other issues, such as changes in the organisation of regulatory agencies or the implementation of new policies. Non-Money Bills, unlike Money Bills, must be approved by both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha in order to become law.

What distinguishes the Money Bill from the Finance Bill?

• A Money Bill is certified as such by the Speaker; in other words, only Financial Bills with the Speaker’s certification are Money Bills.
• According to Article 110, a Bill is regarded to be a Money Bill if it contains solely provisions dealing with all or all of the following:
• The imposition, abolition, remission, alteration, or regulation of any tax; the regulation of the borrowing of money or any financial obligations undertaken in the custody of the consolidated Fund or the Contingency Fund of India, the payment of moneys into or withdrawal of moneys from any such Fund; the appropriation of moneys out of the consolidated Fund of India; the declaration of any expenditure to be expenditure charged on the Consolidated Fund of India or the incumbency Fund of India.

Source – The Hindu

One year of India-UAE CEPA

GS Paper – III

Context- Recently, India and the UAE marked the one-year anniversary of the signing of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, which aims to promote bilateral commerce.

About

• On February 18, 2022, India and the UAE signed the historic Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).
• The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) recently held a special business event in Dubai to commemorate the first year of CEPA signature.
• The CEPA has already begun to bear fruit, with bilateral commerce in goods set to reach USD 100 billion and services expected to reach USD 15 billion within five years.
• Earlier, India signed CEPAa with Singapore (2005), South Korea, Japan, Malaysia, ASEAN (2011), Sri Lanka, Thailand, Mauritius, and Indonesia.
• India is also discussing CEPAs with Australia, Canada, the European Union, and New Zealand.

CEPA:

• It is India’s first bilateral agreement in the Middle East/North Africa (MENA) area.
• It covers a wide range of themes, including business, investments, healthcare, digital trade, government procurement, and intellectual property rights.
• With the UAE’s huge Indian diaspora, the CEPA aspires to improve not just business and trade links, but also people-to-people relationships.
• The historic India-UAE Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) went into effect on May 1, 2022.

Impact of CEPA:

• In the current fiscal year, bilateral trade between India and the UAE expanded dramatically.
• Goods trade was valued at USD 57.8 billion, a 27.5% increase year on year.
• The CEPA is assisting company groupings in an extraordinary manner, and business houses are the pillars of the CEPA agreement’s success.
• After CEPA, numerous Indian business titans are extending their activities in the UAE, and further investment from both sides is expected.
• Over the same period, India’s exports to the UAE increased by 19.32%, reaching $20.8 billion from $17.45 billion, a $3.35 billion rise in value terms.
• CEPA has made it simpler to get jewellery from India and sell it in other nations.

Importance of UAE:

• After China and the United States, the UAE is India’s third-largest trading partner, and CEPA is projected to enhance bilateral commerce in products and services over the next five years.
• Because of its strategic position, world-class infrastructure, and ease of doing business, the UAE is an appealing destination for Indian firms and investors. Indian Diaspora: The UAE has a sizable Indian diaspora, estimated at 3.5 million people, that can act as a bridge between the two nations.
• Because India and the UAE have a strategic alliance that spans many areas such as military, security, energy, and technology, the two nations can collaborate closely on regional and global concerns such as terrorism, climate change, and trade.
• Both nations have a long-standing historical and cultural link that extends back several centuries, making the UAE a natural ally of India in the Mediterranean area.

Conclusion: 

• Because of its economic linkages, investment opportunities, Indian diaspora, strategic relationship, and cultural ties, the UAE is an important country for India.
• CEPA has created new opportunities in bilateral commerce, and both India and the UAE have begun to take advantage of the duty exemptions and expanded market access provided by the pact.
• CEPA is likely to benefit both countries in the future because both countries have a strong and expanding connection.

Source – Indian Express

Solar Panel Manufacturing

GS Paper- III

Context– The amount for the Production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for high-efficiency solar modules has been enhanced in the Union budget.

What exactly is a solar panel?

• A solar panel is a grouping of photovoltaic (PV) cells that convert sunlight into electric current.
• As sunlight strikes the semiconductor in a solar PV cell, the energy from the light is absorbed in the form of photons.
• This energy absorption excites a large number of electrons, which then float freely within the cell.
• The solar cell is purpose-built to generate an electric field. This electric field pushes electrons to travel in a specific direction—toward the cell’s electrical terminals.
• This flow is referred to as an energy current, and its strength is governed by how much electricity each cell can create. When electrons reach terminals, current is channelled through wires, converting the panel into a source of electrical energy.

India’s Manufacturing Sector:

• From less than 10 MW in 2010, India has built substantial PV capacity over the last decade, with the goal of reaching more over 50 GW by 2022.
• India plans to deploy 500 GW of renewable energy by 2030, with solar PV accounting for 280 GW of the total. This requires 30 GW of solar capacity per year until 2030.
• India’s present solar module production capacity is restricted to roughly 15 GW per year, with the remainder supplied by imports.
• China, together with Vietnam and Malaysia, are anticipated to meet 85 percent of this import requirement. During 2014, the value of imported solar has totaled $12.93 billion, or Rs 90,000 crore.

Challenges for Manufacturing in India:

• Manufacturing solar cells is a complex and technologically demanding operation. Access to technology is required for the establishment of cutting-edge industrial facilities. Companies who have invested millions of dollars on R&D are unlikely to make it easy or cheap for India to obtain the latest technologies.
• Manufacturing solar cells necessitates a substantial investment.
• The cost of debt in India (11%) is the highest in the Asia-Pacific region, whereas it is below 5% in China.
• Solar cell technology is upgraded every 8-10 months, making new entrants’ production inefficient.
• Although 100% FDI in the renewable energy sector, the lack of an integrated setup and economies of scale results in higher local production costs.
• The availability of raw materials for solar panel manufacturing is severely constrained. The most expensive raw element in the panel, silicon wafer, is not made in India.

Initiatives of the government

• The Union Government launched a Rs 19,500-crore production linked incentive (PLI) initiative on the ‘national programme on high efficiency solar PV modules,’ with the goal of attracting Rs 94,000 crores in investment.
• To address raw material shortages in silicon wafers, the Centre has agreed to give consistent fiscal support of 50% of the project cost for the establishment of semiconductor production units.
• The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology’s Modified Special Incentive Package Scheme (M-SIPS) provides a 20-25 percent subsidy for capital expenditures for the establishment of a manufacturing plant.
• The government has mandated that a solar power producer get a particular amount of solar cells and modules from domestic producers in order to benefit from the government’s promise to purchase the energy generated.

Source – Indian Express

Land Monetisation

GS Paper -III

Context- The National Land Monetisation Corporation (NLMC) has chosen to bring in foreign property consultant companies to assist develop and implement deals from start to finish in order to hasten the monetisation plans for government-owned land assets across the country.

About

• Land Monetisation refers to the process of transferring the revenue rights of an asset (which might be idle land, infrastructure, or a PSU) to a private player for a predetermined length of time.
• In exchange for payment from the private business, the government receives a part of the revenue generated by the asset, a commitment of consistent investment in the asset, and title rights to the monetized asset.
• Monetisation is used to harness the potential of idle or underutilised assets by involving institutional or private parties, as well as to produce resources or cash for future asset development, such as utilisingmonetisation proceeds to fund new infrastructure projects.
• Land can be monetised through a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT), which is a firm that owns and runs a land asset and occasionally finances income-producing real estate.
• Government assets can potentially be monetized via the Public Private Partnerships (PPP) model.

Benefits of Land Monetisation

• The monetisation process seeks to capture the monetary worth of unused public land in order to enhance or strengthen the budget of government organisations and local governments.
• The monetisation of several lakh acres of the land pool with different central government agencies is projected to boost the Rs 111-trillion National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP) and Gati Shakti connectivity projects, as well as the housing industry, over the next five years.
• The 13th Finance Commission of India also emphasised the significance of land monetisation, which has the potential to generate extra income from underutilised prime lands of Public Sector Undertakings, Port Trusts, Airports, Railways, municipal corporations, and so on.
• The quantity of land controlled by various government organisations is estimated to be in excess of 5 lakh hectares, with over 160,000 hectares held across numerous airports, seaports, and railroads.
• It enables the creation and financing of certain State/Center-funded initiatives from otherwise defunct assets or underutilised land tracts.
• For example, the Airports Authority of India (AAI) intends to partially monetize 7591 acres of idle land owned near eight major airports in order to maximise revenue. The area might be used for commercial uses such as hotels and storage.

Challenges faced in Land Monetization

• The capacity of the government to accomplish its disinvestment objectives will be critical to the success of NLMC. The government has previously failed to reach its objectives, which may have an impact on the NLMC’s performance.
• Land ownership, land use, and land development legal and regulatory frameworks are frequently complicated and vary by location, making it challenging for CPSEs to negotiate the process of monetising their land.
• In the lack of a clear property title, continuing litigation, and encroachments, estimating excess land may be a controversial problem.
• More than 60% of all litigation in India is land-related, and these conflicts must be settled quickly in order for land to be monetised on schedule.
• To ensure the asset’s growth and sustainability, private parties must spend appropriately in it. The government must guarantee that private investors meet their investment promises.
• The employment of PPPs as a monetisation strategy can be difficult, as seen by the Railways’ PPP project, which received little interest from private companies.
• The value of land is determined by market conditions, which can be unpredictable and fluctuating. Furthermore, the large disparity between official gazette valuation and market rate appraisal might cause issues.

Way Forward

• To produce more money, the government must simplify its disinvestment process and satisfy its disinvestment objectives. This may be accomplished by providing investors with assurance and setting reasonable disinvestment objectives.
• It will make the land records management system more transparent, digitise maps and surveys, update all settlement records, and reduce the scope of land disputes.
• To avoid the formation of a monopoly or duopoly in the operation of excess government land, private players should be chosen through a competitive bidding procedure.
• Land monetization in stages adds value to developers and investors while increasing market desire. This will make the land more appealing to potential buyers, resulting in a greater value and better profits.
• Working with the government under a PPP model to assist pay land holding expenses and simplify project clearances. This will expedite and improve the procedure.
• Establish a dispute resolution framework to handle any disagreements that may develop between the government and private entities on revenue sharing or other problems linked to asset monetisation.
• Perform market research and valuation to ensure that the government is receiving a fair price for the assets being monetised and is not undervaluing its assets or handing away an excessive amount of revenue share to private entities.

Source – Indian Express

Facts for Prelims

Male contraceptive pill

Context: Weill Cornell Medical researchers in the United States have developed an experimental contraceptive medication candidate that “temporary freezes sperm in their tracks and prevents births in preclinical mice.”

Additional information about the experimental study:

A single dosage of TDI-11861, a cellular signalling protein termed soluble adenylyl cyclase – sAC inhibitor, was discovered to immobilise its sperm for up to two and a half hours, and effects remain in the female reproductive tract after mating.

Some sperm begin to restore motility after three hours, and by 24 hours, virtually all sperm have resumed normal movement.

Rhododendrons

Context: According to a recent Botanical Survey of India (BSI) study, the Darjeeling and Sikkim Mountains contain more than one-third of all rhododendron species known in India.

Rhododendron Facts:

Name: Rhododendron, which means “rose tree” in Greek. Ecological Importance: It is regarded as an indicator plant for climate change.

• Nature varies from evergreen to deciduous (can be in form of dwarf shrubs to large trees)
• Threats: Rampant construction
• Habitat: Cold, moist deep valleys of the eastern Himalayas
• Uttarakhand’s state tree and Nagaland’s state flower
• It is in bloom in the Garhwal Mountains and is celebrated as ‘Phool Sankranti,’ a flower festival.
• Several parts of the world are home to it, including Asia, Europe, North America, and Australia.

Vinyl chloride

Context: Vinyl chloride, a substance found in some of the railway carriages that derailed and burnt in Ohio, is toxic to the human liver.

About Vinyl Chloride:

• Vinyl chloride is a colourless gas that quickly burns. It does not exist naturally and must be manufactured industrially for commercial use.
• Vinyl chloride is primarily used to produce polyvinyl chloride (PVC), a hard plastic resin used to manufacture a wide range of plastic items such as pipes, wire and cable coatings, and packaging materials.
• Its health dangers were found in the 1970s, when four individuals involved in the polymerization process for creating polyvinyl chloride there acquired angiosarcoma of the liver, a very unusual kind of tumour.