India Remittance 2022

Paper 3 –Economy

Why You Should Know?

India is expected to receive a record $100 billion in remittance in 2022, the top recipient this year, the World Bank has said.

In detail –

About the Report

• In its Migration and Development Brief, the World Bank has said India’s remittance will grow 12 per cent from 7.5 per cent last year, resulting in $100 billion flow as compared to $89.4 billion in 2021.
• It attributed the feat to the large share of Indian migrants earning relatively high salaries in the United States, United Kingdom and East Asia.
• The report has noted, “Despite reaching a historic milestone at $100 billion and retaining its position as the top recipient of remittances globally, India’s remittance flows are expected to account for only 3 per cent of its GDP in 2022.”
• Led by strong performances in India and Nepal, the World Bank has predicted that remittance flows to South Asia this year will grow 3.5 per cent to reach $163 billion in 2022.
• This is, however, a slowdown from the 6.7 per cent gain of 2021, reflecting “the impact of an amalgam of external global shocks (inflation, slowing demand) in destination and source countries alike, as well as domestic factors.”
• The overall remittance growth in South Asia reflects a disparity in individual country results; while India has gained 12 per cent and Nepal 4 per cent, other countries have reported an aggregate decline of 10 per cent, the report states.
• The report also says that despite global challenges in 2022, remittances to low- and middle-income countries will grow by 5% to $626 billion.

Why is remittance to India so high this year?

• According to World Bank, there’s been a “gradual shift in destinations” for Indian migrants aided by a “structural shift in qualifications” that helped them move into the “highest-income-earner-category”, especially in services.
• “Higher education mapped on to high income levels with direct implications for remittance flows,” the World Bank says.
• Migrants moved “from largely low-skipped, informally employment in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries to a dominant share of high-skilled jobs in high-income countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, and East Asia (Singapore, Japan, Australia, New Zealand).”
• During the Covid-19 pandemic, Indian migrants in high-income countries benefited from work-from-home and large fiscal stimulus packages, the report said.
• As the pandemic eased, the wage hikes and “record-high employment conditions” helped migrants send money home despite high global inflation, the report added.
• Despite Indian migrants in the Gulf Cooperation Council returning to India during the pandemic, “price support policies kept inflation at bay… and demand for labour increased with higher oil prices, which in turn increased remittances for Indian labourers.”
• The report says, “Remittances to India were enhanced by wage hikes and a strong labour market in the United States and other OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development] countries.
• In the GCC destination countries, governments ensured low inflation through direct support measures that protected migrants’ ability to remit.”
• Depreciation of the Indian rupee to the US dollar — it fell 10 per cent between January and September 2022 — may have also proven to be advantageous for Indian migrants and increased remittance flows, according to the brief.
• In 2022, vaccinations and the resumption of travel helped migrants resume work, increasing remittance to the country.

What is remittance?

• The World Bank defines it as “the sum of worker’s remittances, compensation of employees, and migrants’ transfers as recorded in the IMF Balance of Payments.
• Workers remittances are current transfers by migrant who are considered residents in the source.
• Remittances are a vital source of household income for low- and middle-income countries.

Global remittance

• The growth of remittance flows into South Asia in 2023 is expected to slow to 0.7 per cent. “The year will stand as a test for the resilience of remittances from white-collar South Asian migrants in high-income countries,” the report notes.
• Remittance flows in India, specifically, are predicted to decrease due to inflation and an economic slowdown in the United States.
• Decline in economic growth in the GCC coupled with a fall in oil prices will further pull remittance flows down to all South Asian countries, the report states.

Source – IE

Employees’ Pension Scheme (EPS), 1995

Paper 3 – Economy

Why You Should Know?

On November 4, a three-judge Bench of SCupheld the Employees’ Pension (Amendment) Scheme, 2014, and said the amendments to the scheme shall apply to employees of exempted establishments as they do for the employees of regular establishments.

In detail –

• The three-judge Bench consist of then Chief Justice of India U U Lalit, and Justices Aniruddha Bose and Sudhanshu Dhulia.
• There are about 1,300 companies in the list of the EPFO’s exempted establishments.
• The SC allowed another opportunity to EPFO members who have availed of the Employees’ Pension Scheme (EPS), to opt for higher annuity over the next four months.
• Employees who were existing EPS members as on September 1, 2014 can contribute up to 8.33 per cent of their ‘actual’ salaries — as against 8.33 per cent of the pensionable salary capped at Rs 15,000 every month — towards pension.
• Exercising its power under Article 142, the SC extended the time to opt for the new scheme by four months.
• the SC said that There was uncertainty regarding the validity of the post amendment scheme, which was quashed by the High Courts.
• Thus, all employees who did not exercise the option but are entitled to do so, but could not due to interpretation of the cut-off date, ought to be given certain adjustments.
• Under the pre-amendment scheme, the pensionable salary was computed as the average of the salary drawn during the 12 months prior to exit from membership of the Pension Fund.
• The amendments raised this to an average of 60 months prior to exit from the membership of the Pension Fund.

What was the Employees’ Pension Scheme (EPS), 1995?

• The Employees’ Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952 originally did not provide for any pension scheme.
• In 1995, through an amendment, a scheme was formulated for employees’ pension, wherein the pension fund was to comprise a deposit of 8.33 per cent of the employers’ contribution to be made towards the provident fund corpus.
• At that time, the maximum pensionable salary was Rs 5,000 per month, which was later raised to Rs 6,500.
• The EPS, which is administered by the EPFO, aims to provide employees with pension after the age of 58.
• Both the employee and the employer contribute 12 per cent of the employee’s basic salary and dearness allowance to the EPF.
• The employee’s entire part goes to EPF, while the 12 per cent contribution made by the employer is split as 3.67 per cent contribution to EPF and 8.33 per cent contribution to EPS.
• Apart from this, the Government of India contributes 1.16 per cent as well for an employee’s pension. Employees do not contribute to the pension scheme.

What was the amendment in 2014?

• The EPS amendment of August 22, 2014 had raised the pensionable salary cap to Rs 15,000 a month from Rs 6,500 a month, and allowed members along with their employers to contribute 8.33 per cent on their actual salaries (if it exceeded the cap) towards the EPS.
• It gave all EPS members, as on September 1, 2014, six months to opt for the amended scheme.
• This was extendable by another six months at the discretion of the Regional Provident Fund Commissioner.
• The amendment, however, required such members (with actual salaries over Rs 15,000 a month) to contribute an additional 1.16 per cent of their salary exceeding Rs 15,000 a month towards the pension fund.
• Those who did not exercise the option within the stipulated period or extended period, were deemed to have not opted for contribution over the pensionable salary cap and the extra contributions already made to the pension fund were to be diverted to the Provident Fund account of the member, along with interest.
• Referring to the case of RC Gupta dealing with the pre-2014 position of the scheme, the Supreme Court observed that a beneficial scheme ought not be allowed to be defeated by reference to a cut-off date in a situation where the employer was not following the ceiling limit of Rs 5,000 or Rs 6,500, and had deposited 12 per cent of the actual salary.

Earlier court judgments

• The High Courts of Delhi, Kerala, and Rajasthan have earlier given judgments on this matter.
• The Kerala High Court in its judgment delivered on October 12, 2018 set aside the EPS (Amendment) Scheme, 2014.
• The Delhi High Court in its judgment on May 22, 2019 followed the view expressed by the Kerala High Court and quashed a circular issued by the provident fund authorities on May 31, 2017, precluding exempted establishments from the benefits of higher pension.
• In a decision on August 28, 2019, the Rajasthan High Court also expressed the same opinion.
• As many as 54 writ petitions have been filed by employees belonging to both exempt and unexempt establishments under Article 32 of the Constitution seeking invalidation of the notification of August 22, 2014.

Sources – IE

Child Pornography

Paper 2 – Social Issues

Why You Should Know?

A Tiruchi resident, was questioned by the Central Bureau of Investigation in a child pornography case recently.

In detail –

• The agency has registered a case against the man on charges of possessing and sharing child pornography content through online platforms.
• It has emerged that the CBI, acting on an alert received from Germany via Interpol channels, had conducted the searches on the premises of Raja Subramanian alias Sam John alias Adithya Karigalan, a resident of Manapparai.
• The charges against Mr. Raja and unknown others include sharing, collecting, seeking, browsing, downloading, exchanging or distributing material depicting children in sexually explicit act in electronic form.

What is Child Pornography?

• According to the Ministry of Women and Child Development (POCSO Act 2012), child pornography is defined as “any visual depiction of sexually explicit conduct involving a child which includes photographs, videos, digital or computer generated image indistinguishable from an actual child and an image created, adapted or modified but appear to depict a child.”
• The punishment under the new amended Act is also more severe for depicting a child or children in any pornographic content.
• A minimum of five years’ jail, with a fine, is imposed after the first conviction.
• The amendment imposes a minimum of seven years’ imprisonment, with a fine for subsequent convictions.

What is Interpol?

• The International Criminal Police Organization, commonly known as Interpol is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and crime control.
• It is the world’s largest international police organization, with seven regional bureaus worldwide and a National Central Bureau in all 195 member states.
• Interpol was conceived during the first International Criminal Police Congress in 1914, which brought officials from 24 countries to discuss cooperation in law enforcement.
• It was founded on September 7, 1923, at the close of the five-day 1923 Congress session in Vienna as the International Criminal Police Commission (ICPC), and adopted many of its current duties throughout the 1930s.
• It is Headquartered in Lyon, France.

Funtions

• Interpol provides investigative support, expertise, and training to law enforcement worldwide, focusing on three major areas of transnational crime: terrorism, cybercrime, and organized crime.
• Its broad mandate covers virtually every kind of crime, including crimes against humanity, child pornography, drug trafficking and production, political corruption, intellectual property infringement, and white-collar crime.
• The agency also facilitates cooperation among national law enforcement institutions through criminal databases and communications networks.
• Contrary to popular belief, Interpol is itself not a law enforcement agency.

Interpol notices

• Interpol issues eight different types of international notices, most of them colour-coded. They include the Red Notice, Green Notice, Yellow Notice, Orange Notice, Blue Notice, Purple Notice, Black Notice, and an INTERPOL–United Nations Security Council Special Notice.
• Red Notice: It is issued to seek the location and arrest of wanted persons for prosecution or sentencing.
• Yellow Notice: To help locate missing persons or to help identify persons who are unable to identify themselves. 
• Blue Notice: To collect additional information about a person’s identity, location, or activities in connection with a crime. 
• Black Notice: To seek information on unidentified bodies. 
• Green Notice: To issue warning about a person’s criminal activities, in case the person is considered a possible threat to public safety. 
• Orange Notice: To warn about an event, a person, an object, or a process that poses a serious and imminent threat to public safety. 
• Purple Notice: To collect or provide information on modus operandi, objects, devices, and concealment methods used by criminals.

Sources – TH

National Commission for Backward Classes

Paper 2 – Polity

Why You Should Know?

Recenlty Shri.Hansraj Gangaram Ahir assumed charge as Chairperson, National Commission for Backward Classes.

In detail –

About National Commission for Backward Classes

• India’s National Commission for Backward Classes is a constitutional body.
• it works under the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment and it was established on 14 August 1993.
• It was constituted pursuant to the provisions of the National Commission for Backward Classes Act, 1993.
• The 123rd Constitutional Amendment Bill, 2017 and 102nd Amendment Act, 2018 in the constitution to make it a constitutional body under Article 338B of the Indian Constitution
• According to article 340 of the Indian Constitution, President shall establish a commission to examine the condition of social and backward class.

Composition

According to Article 338B.

• 338B(2) Subject to the provisions of any law made in this behalf by Parliament, the Commission shall consist of a Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and three other Members and the conditions of service and tenure of office of the Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and other Members so appointed shall be such as the President may by rule determine.
• 338B(3) The Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and other Members of the Commission shall be appointed by the President by warrant under his hand and seal.
• 338B(4) The Commission shall have the power to regulate its own procedure.

Functions and power

• The National Commission for Backward Classes, National Commission for Scheduled Castes as well as National Commission for Scheduled Tribes have the same powers as a Civil Court.
• According to Article 338B(5) It shall be the duty of the Commission—
• to investigate and monitor all matters relating to the safeguards provided for the socially and educationally backward classes under this Constitution or under any other law for the time being in force or under any order of the Government and to evaluate the working of such safeguards;
• to inquire into specific complaints with respect to the deprivation of rights and safeguards of the socially and educationally backward classes;
• to participate and advise on the socio-economic development of the socially and educationally backward classes and to evaluate the progress of their development under the Union and any State;
• to present to the President, annually and at such other times as the Commission may deem fit, reports upon the working of those safeguards;
• to make in such reports the recommendations as to the measures that should be taken by the Union or any State for the effective implementation of those safeguards and other measures for the protection, welfare and socio-economic development of the socially and educationally backward classes; and
• to discharge such other functions in relation to the protection, welfare and development and advancement of the socially and educationally backward classes as the President may, subject to the provisions of any law made by Parliament, by rule specify.

Sources – PIB

EOS-06Satellite

Paper 3 – Science & Tech

Why You Should Know?

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has shared images from the recently launched EOS-06 satellite. The Prime Minister further added that these advancements in the world of space technology will help in better prediction of cyclones and promote the coastal economy as well.

In detail –

EOS-06

• EOS-06 is third generation satellite in the Oceansat series, which provides continued services of Oceansat-2 with enhanced payload capability.
• The satellite onboard carries four important payloads viz. Ocean Color Monitor (OCM-3), Sea Surface Temperature Monitor (SSTM), Ku-Band Scatterometer (SCAT-3), ARGOS.
• The Oceansat-2 which was a launched during Sept-2009 configured to cover global oceans and provide continuity of ocean colour data with global wind vector and characterization of lower atmosphere and ionosphere.
• The mission resulted in many research collaborations nationally and internationally on various areas global chlorophyll distribution, Kd 490 distribution, ocean color images, oil spillages, wind vector products.
• The EOS-06 is envisaged to observe ocean color data, sea surface temperature and wind vector data to use in Oceanography, climatic and meteorological applications.
• The satellite also supports value added products such as potential fishing zone using chlorophyll, SST and wind speed and land based geophysical parameters.

PSLV-C54 Mission

On 26 November, 2022 The Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro) successfully placed earth observation satellite EOS-06 and eight nanosatellites in multi-orbits.

Other satellites

the seven commercial satellites from NSIL were deployed successfully.

• Astrocast is a 3U spacecraft with 4 nos. of Satellites from Spaceflight Inc, USA.
• The Thybolt is a 0.5U spacecraft bus that includes a communication payload to enable rapid technology demonstration and constellation development for multiple users from Dhruva Space using their own Orbital Deployer with a minimum lifetime of 1 year.
• The Anand three axis stabilized Nano satellite is a technology demonstrator for miniaturized electro-optical payload and all other sub-systems like TTC, power, onboard computer and ADCS from Pixxel, India.
• INDIA-BHUTAN SAT a collaborative mission between India and Bhutan is INS-2B satellite for Bhutan with two payloadsviz. NanoMx, a multispectral optical imaging payload developed by Space Applications Centre (SAC) and APRS-Digipeater which is jointly developed by DITT-Bhutan and URSC.

Sources – PIB

National Anti-Doping Agency of India (NADA)

Paper 2 – Health

Why You Should Know?

The National Anti-Doping Agency of India (NADA) is developing Apps to assist athletes to verify medicines with prohibited substances.

In detail –

• NADA India is developing Apps to spread awareness and address queries of athletes and support personnel as well as to help them recognise if any medicine they were being prescribed contains prohibited substances.
• NADA would make all attempts to spread awareness towards making Indian sports, including sports for Athletes with Disabilities, dope-free

What is NADA?

• The National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA) is the national organization responsible for promoting, coordinating and monitoring the doping control programme in sports in all its forms in India.
• Nada’s job is to adopt and implement anti-doping rules and policies that are in line with the World Anti-Doping Code.
• Collaborating with other sports-related organizations and other anti-doping organizations.
• Encourage mutual testing between national anti-doping organizations and emphasize anti-doping research and education.
• Users can get information related to NADA’s anti-doping rules, testing in competition/out-of-competition, list of items banned by the World Anti-Doping Code (WADA).
• NADA is constituted by the Central Government on November 24, 2005 under the Societies Registration Act. NADA comprises scientists and representatives of the Indian Olympic Association (IOA).

World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) –

• The World Anti-Doping Agency is a world-class independent body created to curb the growing trend of drugs in international sports.
• It was founded on November 10, 1999 in the city of Lucen, Switzerland. WADA is currently headquartered in Montreal, Canada.
• This organization keeps its eye on scientific research around the world, increasing the ability to develop antidoping and the World Anti-Doping Code around the world.
• Wada releases a list of banned drugs every year, whose use is banned during the Games in all countries of the world.

Sources – PIB

G-20 Sherpa Meeting

Paper 2 – International Relations

Why You Should Know?

Udaipur city in Rajasthan will host the first G-20 Sherpa Meeting from 4 to 7 December 2022.

In detail –

• The meeting will be presided over by the Indian Sherpa Amitabh Kant.
• The Sherpa are the personal emissaries of the leaders of the members of the G-20 group. 
• They oversee negotiations over the year, discussing agenda items for the Summit and coordinating the substantive work of the G20.
• The Ministry of External Affairs reviewed the arrangements related to the event in Udaipur recently.
• The g-20 Sherpa meeting will also help in projecting Udaipur as an international tourist destination.
• India formally assumed the presidency of the G-20 on the Ist of this month. India as a host nation will set the agenda of the G-20 summit meeting to be held in September 2023 in New Delhi.

About the G20

• The G20 is a formal organization of 20 major economies of the world, including 19 countries and 1 European Union.
• The G-20 is seen as an extension of the G-7, a group of the world’s most powerful countries.
• The G-7 comprises France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK, the US and Canada.  In 1998, the group also joined Russia and it became G-8 from G-7.
• Russia was separated from the group in 2014 due to the annexation of Ukraine’s Crimea region and once again became the G-7.  In 1999, the G-8 countries met in Cologne, Germany, in which asia’s economic crisis was discussed.
• After this, it was decided to bring the countries with twenty powerful economies of the world on one platform.
• In December 1999, the G-20  group met for the first time in Berlin. Later, the G-8  was recognized as a political and the G-20 as an economic forum.

Significance

• The G20 is composed of most of the world’s largest economies, including both industrialized and developing nations, and accounts for around 80% of gross world product (GWP), 75–80% of international trade,
• Two-thirds of the global population,and roughly half the world’s land area.

Function

• It works to address major issues related to the global economy, such as international financial stability, climate change mitigation, and sustainable development.
• The G20 does not have a permanent secretariat or Headquarters. Instead, the G20 president is responsible for bringing together the G20 agenda in consultation with other members and in response to developments in the global economy.
• The G20 Presidency rotates annually according to a system that ensures a regional balance over time.
• Every year when a new country takes on the presidency, it works hand in hand with the previous presidency and the next presidency and this is collectively known as TROIKA.

Member Countries

• USA, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa,  South Korea, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the European Union.
• Spain is a permanent guest who is specially invited every year.
• Every year, in addition to Spain, g20 guests include the president of ASEAN countries including two African countries (president of the African Union and representative of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development) and one country (sometimes more than one)  invited by the president of the G20.

Sources – AIR

ISRO Spy Case

Paper 3 –Internal Security

Why You Should Know?

Recently The Supreme Court set aside the Kerala High Court’s order granting anticipatory bail to former officials of the Intelligence Bureau and state police facing charges of conspiracy to frame ISRO scientist Nambi Narayanan in an espionage case.

In detail –

What is the ISRO Spy case

• The ISRO spy case dates back to October 20, 1994, when the Kerala police registered a case against Mariam Rasheeda, a Maldivian national, under Section 14 of the Foreigners Act 1946 and Section 7 of the Foreigners Order, 1948.
• The initial charges were of overstaying in India following the cancellation of her flight to Maldives.
• Following interrogation, the police said that Rasheeda contacted ISRO space scientists who were suspected of having transferred cryogenic engine technology to Pakistan through her.
• The following month, police registered another case against ISRO scientists D Sasikumaran and Nambi Narayanan, Russian Space Agency Glavkosmos’s India representative Chandrasekhar, Maldivian national Fauzia Hassan, and Bangalore-based labour contractor S K Sharma.
• The case was initially probed by Inspector S Vijayan. A special team headed by DIG Siby Mathew arrested Narayanan and other accused.
• The case was that Narayanan and Sasikumaran had passed on secret documents to other countries, especially Pakistan.
• They accused Chandrasekhar, Sharma, and inspector-general of Kerala police Raman Srivastava of passing on secrets of the Aeronautical Defence Establishment, Bangalore.
• They alleged that Chandrasekhar, Sasikumaran, and the two Maldivian women had met secretly to exchange papers and money.
• The arrested scientists were grilled by Intelligence Bureau sleuths, including Gujarat-cadre IPS officer R B Sreekumar, who was then IB additional director in Kerala.

Who is Nambi Narayanan?

• Working as the in-charge of the cryogenics division at ISRO, Nambi Narayanan is claimed to have foreseen the need for liquid fuelled engines for ISRO’s future civilian space programs and introducing the technology in India as early as the 1970s — the same technology which later he was accused of selling.
• Though he was later acquitted by a CBI court and the Supreme Court in 1998, he spent a total of 50 days in jail along with fellow scientist D Sasikumar and four others.
• The rocket scientist has been fighting legal battles since 1994, first to clear his name in the case and then for compensation and now for action against the police officers who had implicated him.

About CBI report

• Within 20 days of the case being registered, the probe was handed over to the CBI in 1996.
• In its report to the Chief Judicial Magistrate, in Ernakulum, the CBI stated that “the evidence collected indicated that the allegations of espionage against the scientists at ISRO, including the appellant herein, were not proved and were found to be false”.
• This report was accepted by the court and all accused were discharged on May 2, 1996.
• The CBI submitted that Siby Mathew (who was part of the investigation) had “indiscriminately” ordered the arrest of the scientists and others without conducting a thorough interrogation or adequately verifying disclosures.
• The agency said it had not recovered any evidence from the ISRO or the money allegedly paid to the accused by their foreign contacts.
• The CBI report also blamed the Intelligence Bureau for conducting the probe in an unprofessional manner.
• The IB did not verify the statements of the accused, which the CBI said could have saved the reputation of the scientists. The IB did not share with the Kerala police the basis of their allegations against Srivastava, the CBI said.

What Happened Next?

• in May 1996, the Government ordered a reinvestigation of the case. Narayanan and others challenged this in Kerala High Court, which refused to stay the government order for reinvestigation.
• Narayanan then appealed to the Supreme Court, which quashed the state government order in 1998.
• After this, Narayanan moved the National Human Rights Commission seeking compensation of Rs 1 crore from the Kerala police officials who implicated him. In 2001, the NHRC had ordered an interim relief of Rs 10 lakh.
• In 2006, the state government challenged it in the high court, which in 2012 upheld Narayanan’s contention and ordered the government to give him interim relief of Rs 10 lakh.
• In October 2013, the then government decided to give the compensation.
• Then in 2015, the scientist approached the Supreme Court seeking criminal and disciplinary action against Kerala police officials led by Siby Mathew.
• Mathew had taken voluntary retirement in 2011 and gone on to become the state’s chief information commissioner.
• And in September 2018, the Supreme Court, while awarding compensation of Rs 50 lakh to Nambi Narayanan, set up a committee headed by its former judge Justice D K Jain to “find out ways and means to take appropriate steps against the erring” police personnel who allegedly framed Narayanan.
• In April 2021, the SC had asked the CBI to probe the matter after the Centre pointed out that the Jain Commission report stated that “it’s a serious matter which needs deeper investigation”. The CBI subsequently registered cases against the accused, one of whom was RG Sreekumar.

Supreme Court’s order

• The Supreme Court’s order came on a plea by the CBI challenging the Kerala HC order granting pre-arrest bail to former Kerala Director General of Police Siby Mathews, former Gujarat ADGP RB Sreekumar, PS Jayaprakash, S Vijayan and Thampi S Durgadutt.
• A bench of Justices M R Shah and C T Ravikumar asked the High Court to consider their pleas afresh and decide the matter preferably within 4 weeks from the date of receipt of its order.
• The apex court also directed that the accused shall not be arrested for 5 weeks subject to them cooperating with the investigation so that the HC can finally decide their anticipatory bail petitions.
• “As an interim arrangement….it is directed that for a period of five weeks from today, i.e till the bail applications are finally decided by the High Court upon remand, the respondent accused shall not be arrested subject to their cooperation with the investigation,” the bench said.

Source – IE

Erra Matti Dibbalu

Paper 1 –Geography

Why You Should Know?

The city of Visakhapatnam is blessed with a number of sites that have geological importance. One among them is the coastal red sand dunes, popularly known as ‘Erra Matti Dibbalu’.

In detail –

• These Erra Matti Dibbalu are nature’s assets to Visakhapatnam.
• The site is located along the coast and is about 20 km north-east of Visakhapatnam city and about 4 km south-west of Bheemunipatnam.
• This site was declared as a geo-heritage site by the Geological Survey of India (GSI) in 2014 and the Andhra Pradesh government has listed it under the category of ‘protected sites’ in 2016.
• Geologists say that this site has much significance geologically, archaeologically and anthropologically and it needs to be protected for further study and evaluation.
• Primarily this site needs to be protected to study the impact of climate change, as Erra Matti Dibbalu have seen both the glacial and the warm periods.
• The site is about 18,500 to 20,000 years old and it can be related to the last glacial period.

A rare site

• Such sand deposits are rare and have been reported only from three places in the tropical regions in south Asia such as Teri Sands in Tamil Nadu, Erra Matti Dibbalu in Visakhapatnam and one more site in Sri Lanka.
• They do not occur in equatorial regions or temperate regions due to many scientific reasons.
• The Erra Matti Dibbalu are spread across an area of about 20 sq km and the entire area has been notified as a Geo Heritage Site.
• The uniqueness of this site is that the red sediments are a part of the continuation of the evolution of the earth and represent the late quaternary geologic age.
• With a height of up to 30 m, they exhibit badland topography with different geomorphic landforms and features, including gullies, sand dunes, buried channels, beach ridges, paired terraces, the valley in the valley, wave-cut terrace, knick point and waterfalls.
• It is a lively scientific evolution site, which depicts the real-time effects of climate change. About 18,500 years ago, the sea (Bay of Bengal) was at least 5 km behind from the present coastline.
• Since then it has been undergoing continuous active changes till about 3,000 years ago and still the changes are on.

Geochemically unaltered

• The top light-yellow sand unit, which is estimated to have been deposited around 3,000 years ago, could not attain the red colouration as the sediments were geochemically unaltered.
• These sediments are unfossiliferous and deposited over the khondalite basement.
•  The dunes consist of light yellow sand dunes at the top followed by a brick red sand unit, a reddish brown concretion bearing sand unit with yellow sand at the bottom.
• The earlier studies indicate that the bottom-most yellow sand unit is fluvial while the other overlying three units are aeolian in origin.

Significance

• The site also has archaeological significance, as studies of artefacts indicate an Upper Palaeolithic horizon and on cross dating assigned to Late Pleistocene epoch, which is 20,000 BC.
• the site was home to the pre-historic man as the excavations at several places in the region revealed stone implements of three distinctive periods and also the pottery of the Neolithic man.
• Keeping all these in mind, the scientists from the GSI, the NIO and the varsity and heritage enthusiasts from INTACH say that it is the responsibility of the State government to see that the site is protected at all costs from all vagaries.

Sources – TH

Swargadeo Saulung Sukapha

Paper 1–History

Why Should You Know?

Union Minister Sarbananda Sonowal Pays homage to Sukapha on Assam Divas on December 2 in New Delhi.

In details –

• Assam celebrates second December as Sukapha Divas or Assam Divas to commemorate the arrival of Sukapha in Assam, who went on to become the founder of the Ahom kingdom.
• He is hailed as “architect of Assam”. The day is also known as “Sukapha Diwas” in honour of the founder of the Ahom kingdom, which lasted nearly 600 years.

Who was Chaolung Sukapha?

• Swargadeo Saulung Sukapha or ChaolungSukapha was a 13th-century ruler who founded the Ahom kingdom that ruled Assam for six centuries.
• A prince of the Su/Tsu (Tiger) clan of the Mao-Shan sub-tribe originally from present-day Mong Mao, Yunnan Province, China, the kingdom he established in 1228 existed for nearly six hundred years and in the process unified the various ethnic groups of the region that left a deep impact on the region.
• In reverence to his position in Assam’s history the honorific Chaolung is generally associated
• Sukapha was a leader of the Ahoms. He reached Brahmaputra valley in Assam from upper Burma in the 13th century with around 9,000 followers.
• Sukapha is said to have left a place called Maulung in AD 1215 with eight nobles and 9,000 men, women and children — mostly men. He had with him two elephants, and 300 horses.
• In 1235, Sukapha and his people settled in Charaideo in upper Assam after wandering about for years, defeating those who protested his advance, and temporarily staying at different locations.
• It was in Charaideo that Sukapha established his first small principality, sowing the seeds of further expansion of the Ahom kingdom.

The Ahoms

• The founders of the Ahom kingdom had their own language and followed their own religion.
• Over the centuries, the Ahoms accepted the Hindu religion and the Assamese language.
• most of those who came with Sukapha were men. the men later married women from communities living in Assam.
• Today, the Ahom community is estimated to number between 4 million and 5 million.
• Sukapha developed very amiable relationships with the tribal communities living here — especially the Sutias, the Morans and the Kacharis. Intermarriage also increased assimilation processes.

Why is Sukapha important?

• Sukapha’s significance — especially in today’s Assam — lies in his successful efforts towards assimilation of different communities and tribes.
• He is widely referred to as the architect of “Bor Asom” or “greater Assam”.
• “Sukapha and his people could consolidate power, culture and religion in the region in a manner which brought a diverse mix of jati and janajatis (multiple tribes and communities) together who at different points of history offered their allegiance to the Ahom king.
• For this very reason that the Ahoms managed to group a diverse mix of people in such a politically sensitive region criss-crossing South Asia and South-East Asia, the first Ahom King Sukapha is hailed as an architect of Bor (larger) Assam in popular culture.
• To commemorate Sukapha and his rule, Assam celebrates “Asom Divas” on December 2 every year.

Sources – AIR