SHANGHAI COOPERATION ORGANISATION (SCO)
1.Context
Pakistan Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari will attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) foreign ministers’ meeting in Goa on May 4-5. This was announced by Pakistan Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch
The political temperature in New Delhi and Islamabad will determine the diplomatic and military response to the attack. A tough response from Delhi has the potential to scuttle the Pakistan foreign minister’s visit the first in over six years
2.EVOLUTION
- Before the creation of SCO in 2001 Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and Tajikistan were members of the Shanghai Five.
- Shanghai Five (1996) emerged from a series of border demarcation and demilitarization talks that the four former soviet republics held with China.
- It was after the accession of Uzbekistan to the organization in 2001, the Shanghai Five was renamed the SCO.
- India and Pakistan became members in 2017
- On 17 th September 2021, it was announced that Iran would become a full member of the SCO.
3.HOW DOES THE SCO WORK
- The Heads of State Council (HSC) is the highest decision–making body in the SCO
- It meets once every year to take decisions and give instructions on all important issues regarding SCO activity.
- The Heads of Government Council meets once per year to discuss a strategy for multilateral cooperation and priority directions within the organization‘s framework, to solve important and pressing cooperation issues in economic and other areas, as well as to adopt the organization’s annual budget.
- In addition to sessions of the HSC and HGC, there are also mechanisms of meetings on the level of speakers of Parliament, secretaries of the security council, Foreign Ministers, Ministers of Defence, Emergency Relief, Economy, Transportation, Culture, Education, Healthcare, Heads of Law Enforcement Agencies, Supreme Court and Courts of Arbitration and prosecutors General.
- The organization has two permanent bodies –the Secretariat in Beijing and the Regional Anti–Terrorist Structure (RATS) in Tashkent.
- OFFICIAL LANGUAGES-RUSSIAN and CHINESE
4.SCO BUSINESS COUNCIL
- The Business Council of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization was founded on June 14, 2006, in Shanghai.
- It is a non-government entity that unites the highly authoritative business community representatives of the SCO member states intending to expand economic cooperation, establish direct relations and a dialogue between the business and financial communities, and facilitate the practical promotion of multilateral projects.
- In addition to energy, transport, telecommunication, lending, and the banking sector, the council focuses on such priorities of interstate cooperation between the SCO countries as education, research, and innovative technology, as well as healthcare and agriculture.
- The SCO Business Council‘s Permanent Secretariat is headquartered in Moscow.
5.INDIA AND SCO
- India, Pakistan, and other member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization May 2022 deliberated on boosting cooperation in combating various regional security challenges at a meeting hosted by New Delhi.
- The three-day meeting took place under the framework of the SCO'S Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS).
- A major focus of the discussion was to be on the situation in Afghanistan, especially in dealing with the threat from terror groups active in the Taliban-ruled country.
- India assumed chairmanship of the council of Regional Anti Terror structure of SCO (RATS SCO) on October 28 last year for one year. India has shown keen interest in deepening its security-related cooperation with the SCO and its Regional Anti–Terrorism Structure, which specifically deals with issues relating to security and defense.
- While participating in the SCO Foreign Minister’s meeting at Tashkent in Uzbekistan, Jaishankar said –Zero tolerance for terrorism in all its manifestations is a must.
- Also reiterated India's position on Afghanistan and highlighted India's humanitarian support including wheat, medicines, vaccines, and clothing.
- He also underlined the potential of Chabahar port for SCO’S economic future and spoke of the economic progress in India, stressing the relevance of start-up and innovation, cooperation in traditional medicine is in the common interest of SCO members.
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MEMBERS-India, Pakistan, Russia and China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan OBSERVER STATUS-Afghanistan, Belarus, Iran, Mongolia DIALOGUE PARTNER-Azerbaijan, Armenia, Cambodia, Nepal, Turkey, Sri Lanka RELEVANCE-India has raised the issue of terrorism from this platform Also, often questioned whether SCO can stabilize the situation in Afghanistan |
Source:indianexpres
ASSAM ARUNACHAL BORDER DISPUTE
1. Context
Last month, just days after Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma met with his Arunachal Pradesh counterpart, Pema Khandu, to discuss a solution to the decades-old boundary dispute between the two states, fresh tensions were reported along the border. While the flashpoint this time was the ongoing construction of the Likabali-Durpai road being built under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY), the boundary dispute between Assam and Arunachal Pradesh dates back to colonial times.
2. Bone of Contention:1951
- Before Arunachal Pradesh was carved out of Assam, a sub-committee headed by then Assam chief minister Gopinath Bordoloi submitted a report in 1951. The report made some recommendations in relation to the administration of NEFA (under Assam).
- Based on this report, around 3,648 sq km of the plain area of Balipara and Sadiya foothills was transferred from Arunachal Pradesh (then NEFA) to Assam’s then Darrang and Lakhimpur districts.
- This remains the bone of contention as Arunachal Pradesh refuses to accept this notification as the basis of demarcation.
3. Historical Background of the Dispute
- The dispute dates back to the British era when in 1873 British announced inner line regulation. British demarcated planes and frontier Hills, which were later designated as North-East frontier tracts in 1915. These Northeast frontier tracts make up today’s Arunachal Pradesh.
- The administrative jurisdiction was passed over to Assam, with frontier tracts renamed as Northeast Frontier Agency (NEFA) in 1954.
- Later in 1972, Arunachal Pradesh was declared as a union territory, and it gained statehood in 1987.
- However, in 1951, a subcommittee headed by Assam Chief Minister made some recommendations about the administration of NEFA.
- Based on the committee report, 3648 sq. km of the plain area was transferred from Arunachal Pradesh to Assam’s then Darrang and Lakhimpur districts. Arunachal Pradesh refuses to accept this notification, and this has become a bone of contention.
4. Assam-Arunachal Pradesh Border Dispute
- Arunachal Pradesh, which was earlier a part of Assam, shares a boundary of roughly 800 km with the state.
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Disputes between the two states came to the fore after the establishment of Arunachal Pradesh as a Union Territory in 1972.
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The dispute in question is over 123 villages that stretch across 12 districts of Arunachal Pradesh and eight of Assam.
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The Process of demarcation of the boundary between Assam and Arunachal Started in 1972 and by 1979, 396 km of the boundary was demarcated.
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However, a number of anomalies and disputes regarding the border surfaced during the survey. As a result, the process of demarcation had to be suspended.
5. Efforts at demarcation
- Between 1971 and 1974, there were multiple efforts to demarcate the boundary but it did not work out. In April 1979, a high-powered tripartite committee was constituted to delineate the boundary on the basis of Survey of India maps.
- By 1983-84, out of the 800 km, 489 km, mostly in the north bank of the Brahmaputra, were demarcated. However, further demarcation could not commence because Arunachal Pradesh did not accept the recommendations.
- Formal talks over the issue had begun between the CMs of both states in January 2022.
- Following their second meeting in April 2022, it was resolved to set up 12 district-level committees to undertake joint surveys in the disputed areas to find a solution.
6. Legal fighting between the two states
- After Arunachal Pradesh did not accept the recommendations, Assam filed a case in the Supreme Court in 1989, highlighting an “encroachment” made by Arunachal Pradesh.
- The apex court-appointed a local boundary commission in 2006, headed by a retired SC judge. In September 2014, the local commission submitted its report.
- Several recommendations were made and it was suggested that both states should arrive at a consensus through discussions. However, nothing came of it.
7. MoU between the states
- An MoU, aimed at resolving the boundary dispute between Assam and Arunachal Pradesh was signed by Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma and his Arunachal Pradesh counterpart Pema Khandu in the presence of the Union Home Minister.
- As per this MoU, disputes over 34 of these villages stand resolved. The disputes over 37 villages had been resolved through the Namsai Declaration of July 2022.
- The state governments agree that no new claim area or village will be added in the future beyond these 123 villages.
- Both governments also agreed to effectively prevent any new encroachment in the border areas.
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For Prelims: Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY), Northeast Frontier Agency (NEFA), Darrang and Lakhimpur districts, and boundary dispute between Assam and Arunachal Pradesh.
For Mains: 1. What is the historical background of the boundary dispute between Assam and Arunachal Pradesh? Why did the demarcation become a bone of contention between the two states? (250 Words).
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Source: The Indian Express
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION THROUGH ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI)
1. Context
New tools like ChatGPT have generated a huge amount of interest in artificial intelligence in the past few months. But AI-powered technology has already been playing a growing role in our lives and economies for some time. And while there are concerns about the potential downsides that it could lead to job losses, project bias, or be misused AI has also been touted as a powerful tool to help tackle global crises, such as climate change.
2. What is an AI?
AI refers to systems or machines that perform tasks that typically require human intelligence, and can iteratively improve themselves over time, based on the information they collect, says David Jensen, coordinator of the United Nations Environment Program's (UNEP's) Digital Transformation sub-program.
3. There are six ways AI being put to use to help the environment:
3.1 Saving trees with AI guardians
- Deforestation and land use changes cause more than 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
- Trees absorb carbon dioxide and store it for long periods of time, and when they’re cut down, much of that CO2 escapes into the atmosphere.
- To curb illegal land clearing, the nonprofit Rainforest Connection attaches acoustic monitoring sensors to trees that “eavesdrop” on the surrounding forest and transmit that audio in real-time to the cloud.
- The data is analyzed by a machine learning model that has been trained to recognize sounds linked to illegal logging, such as a chainsaw or truck. Alerts are then sent out to authorities on the ground.
- Almost 600 of these devices, dubbed “guardians,” have been installed in 35 countries, from Brazil to Indonesia, Congo to the Philippines. It says they’ve collected more than 107 million minutes of audio data, covering more than 400,000 hectares of land.
3.2 Shrinking the carbon footprint of steel
- Materials such as steel and cement are important components in construction. But they’re also heavy CO2 emitters, making decarbonizing these industries a priority.
- Steel production alone accounts for around a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions from the manufacturing sector.
- A big part of this share comes from the mining and transportation of ingredients used in the production process.
- US company Fero Labs has been working with five American steel plants and AI to reduce the amount of mined ingredients or alloys by up to a third.
- Fero Labs AI-driven optimization software learns from historical data to recommend the minimum amount of new additional material if any that needs to be added.
3.3 Cutting energy waste in Building
- In Hong Kong, energy use in buildings is responsible for about 60% of the city’s carbon emissions.
- With 7.5 million inhabitants, the financial hub is one of the most densely populated places in the world.
- About a quarter of its total electricity consumption comes from heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems in commercial buildings.
- Design firm Arup came up with an app called Neuron that uses 5G and Internet of Things sensors to gather real-time data from a building’s energy management system.
- It then uses an algorithm to analyze this data and optimize the heating and cooling system, as well as make predictions for the building’s future energy demand.
- According to the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence report, these tweaks can save 10-30% of the energy used in a typical commercial building.
3.4 Fighting poaching with algorithms
- Poaching and habitat destruction caused rhino numbers to dwindle throughout the 20th century. Most species are now considered endangered and mainly survive in protected reserves or sanctuaries, but they’re still targeted for their horns.
- The South Africa-based company Rouxcel Technology has developed AI-enabled bracelets that fit around rhinos’ ankles to help conservation teams easily locate the animals and monitor their behavior in real time.
- The company’s algorithms use machine learning to spot when an animal is exhibiting abnormal movement patterns a signal that it might be distressed, for example, if poachers are close.
- It then sends an alert to wildlife operations centers and anti-poaching teams. The devices are being used at different sites from Kenya down to South Africa.
3.5 Smart farming
- Agriculture is vulnerable to climate change, with unpredictable temperatures, more frequent extreme weather events, and invasive pests all posing a risk to crop yields.
- At the same time, the farming sector itself contributes to the problem- agriculture, forestry, and land use account for around 18% of global CO2 emissions.
- And then there’s the fact that agricultural irrigation is responsible for 70% of water use worldwide.
- Fertilizers and pesticides used on fields can also end up in groundwater and nearby rivers.
Germany-based startup Agvolution has developed an AI system that draws on data from solar-powered sensors monitoring the microclimate around crops. - The devices measure temperature, humidity, radiation, and soil moisture in the field, while algorithms use these insights to make precise recommendations about plant health and exactly how much water and fertilizer to use.
- This can both boost yields and reduce wasted resources. The company says this can increase ecological and economic efficiency by up to 40%.
3.6 Using computers to plot clouds
- Ramping up renewable energy is a crucial step in transitioning away from fossil fuels. But with clean energy sources such as solar making up a bigger share of the energy mix, ensuring power grids are stable becomes more tricky.
- When clouds move over solar panels, the power supply can suddenly drop off. That’s a problem for network operators who are trying to balance the grid and prevent blackouts.
- To fill any gaps, they need to have generation reserves running in the background that can quickly be ramped up when there’s a risk of a power shortage.
- And these reserves usually come from fossil fuels. Nonprofit Open Climate Fix has teamed up with the UK’s National Grid and uses AI to provide a precise picture of how clouds develop the goal being to reduce the reliance on fossil-powered reserves.
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For Prelims: Artificial Intelligence (AI), ChatGPT, United Nations Environment Program's (UNEP's) Digital Transformation sub-program, Carbon footprint, and AI guardians.
For Mains: 1. Discuss how Artificial Intelligence (AI) is helping to tackle environmental Challenges. (250 Words).
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Source: The Indian Express
CITIZENSHIP
1. Introduction
Citizenship is an allegiance of person to a state. Each state determines the conditions under which it will recognize persons as its citizens, and the conditions under which that status will be withdrawn
Indian citizenship can be acquired by birth, descent, registration, and naturalization.
India does not allow dual citizenship, and taking up the citizenship of another country automatically results in the cancellation of Indian citizenship
2. How to acquire Citizenship
The conditions and procedure for the acquisition of Indian citizenship as per the provision of the Citizenship Act, 1955 are given below:
2.1.By birth
- A person born in India on or after January 26, 1950, but before July 1, 1987, is a citizen of India by birth irrespective of the nationality of his parents
- A person born in India on or after July 1, 1987, but before December 3, 2004, is considered a citizen of India by birth if either of his parents is a citizen of India at the time of his birth
- A person born in India on or after December 3, 2004, is considered a citizen of India by birth if both the parents are citizens of India or one of the parents is a citizen of India and the other is not an illegal migrant at the time of his birth
2.2.By Descent
- A person born outside India on or after January 26, 1950, but before December 10, 1992 is a citizen of India by descent, if his father was a citizen of India by birth at the time of his birth
- A person born outside India on or after December 10, 1992, but before December 3, 2004, is considered a citizen of India if either of his parents was a citizen of India by birth at the time of his birth
- A person born outside India on or after December 3, 2004, shall not be a citizen of India unless the parents declare that the minor does not hold a passport of another country and his birth is registered at an Indian consulate within one year of the date of birth or with the permission of the Central Government, after the expiry of the said period
2.3. By Registration
- Persons of Indian origin who are ordinarily resident in India for seven years.
- Persons of Indian origin who are ordinarily resident in any country or place outside undivided India.
- Persons who are married to a citizen of India and who are ordinarily resident in India for seven years.
- Minor children whose both parents are Indian citizens.
- Persons of full age whose both parents are registered as citizens of India.
- Persons of full age and capacity who have been registered as an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) for five years and residing in India for one year.
2.4. By Naturalisation
Citizenship of India by naturalization can be acquired by a foreigner (not illegal migrant) who is ordinarily resident in India for twelve years (throughout the period of twelve months immediately preceding the date of application and for eleven years in the aggregate in the fourteen years preceding the twelve months) and other qualifications as specified in Third Schedule to the Act
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For Prelims: Citizenship, Indian Citizenship Act 1955, RPA 1951 For Mains: 1. Issuing Citizenship through Communal Prism is against the soul of the Indian Constitution. Comment (250 Words) |
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Previous Year Questions: 1.Consider the following statements: (2018)
Which of the statements given above is/are correct? (a) 1 only (b) 2 only (c) Both 1 and 2 (d) Neither 1 nor 2 Answer (d) 2. According to the Indian Citizenship Act, 1955, Which of the following is not a method of acquiring Indian citizenship? A. Children of the diplomatic personnel or alien enemies born in India on or after 26th January 1950 B. Children born of Indian citizens abroad C. Incorporation of territory not forming part of India at the commencement of India at the Commencement of the Constitution D. Naturalisation Answer (A) |
Source: indianexpress
HAKKI-PIKKI
1. Context
More than 181 members of the Hakki Pikki tribal community from Karnataka are stuck in violence-hit Sudan, even as the government is making efforts to bring them back.
2. About Hakki Pikki
- The Hakki Pikki is a tribe that lives in several states in the west and south of India, especially near forest areas.
- Hakki Pikkis (Hakki in Kannada means "bird" and Pikki means "catchers") are a semi-nomadic tribe, traditionally of bird catchers and hunters.
- According to the 2011 census, the Hakki Pikki population in Karnataka is 11, 892 and they live majorly in Davangere, Mysuru, Kolar, Hassan and Shivmogga districts.
- In different regions, they are known by different names, such as MelShikari in northern Karnataka and Maharashtra.
- The Hakki Pikki move in groups from place to place in search of livelihood.
They are divided into four clans, called Gujaratia, Panwar, Kaliwala and Mewaras. - These clans can be equated with castes in traditional Hindu society.
- In the olden days, there was a hierarchy among the clans, with the Gujaratia at the top and the Mewaras at the bottom. The forest is the main natural resource of the Hakki Pikki.
- Hakki Pikki people are believed to hail originally from the bordering districts of Gujarat and Rajasthan.
- They came to the South in search of a game. To Karnataka, they seem to have arrived via Andhra Pradesh, as they still remember a place called Jalapally near Hyderabad as their ancestral home, where their forefathers lived for a considerable period. They are now spread across south India.
- Till a few years ago, women used to wear the ghagra (skirt) common in Rajasthan, although now they wear saris and other garments.
3. Traditional jobs
- Traditionally, Hakki Pikkis lived in forest areas, leading a nomadic life for nine months a year and coming back to their permanent camps for three.
- Locals in Pakshirajapura, a Hakki Pikki village in the Mysuru district. Men of the tribe would hunt while women begged in villages.
- But as the wildlife protection laws became stricter, the Hakki Pikkis in Karnataka started selling spices, herbal oils and plastic flowers in local temple fairs.
- The community moved to villages from the forests in the 1950s. Earlier, They killed animals to make a living.
But then some of the community members were booked and jailed under wildlife laws. - So they shifted to selling herbal oils and other materials in villages and towns.
- The herbal oil business took off and now the tribe members go to many places across the globe to sell their products.
- The Hakki Pikkis in Tamil Nadu travelled to Singapore, Thailand and other places about 20-25 years ago to sell some marble, in the process, discovering there was a huge demand for Ayurvedic products in the African continent.
- They started selling their products in Africa and Karnataka Hakki Pikkis followed them.
- People from the state have been travelling to African countries for the past 20 years now.
- Education levels among the Hakki Pikkis are still low. For example, in the 2, 000 strong population of Pakshirajapura, only eight people have completed graduate-level courses and one person works as a police constable.
4. Rituals and customs
- Hakki Pikkis in Karnataka follow Hindu traditions and celebrate all Hindu festivals.
- They are non-vegetarians. The eldest son in a family is not supposed to cut his hair so that he can be identified easily.
- The tribe prefers cross-cousin marriages. According to locals, the usual age of marriage is 18 for women and 22 for men.
The society is matriarchal, where the groom gives a dowry to the bride's family.
5. Their earnings in African countries
- African countries offer them an opportunity to escape poverty faster.
- There is a demand for their products in the African continent. If a person invests say Rs 5 lakh or raw materials (hibiscus powder, oil extraction, gooseberry, Ayurvedic plants, etc.), they have a chance to double or triple it in a matter of 3-6 months in African countries.
- But in India, you don't have such a market and business.
- They do sell online and promote products on social media, including Facebook and Youtube.
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For Prelims: Hakki Pikki tribal, Ayurvedic products, Sudan
For Mains:
1. Who are Hakki-Pikki Tribes? Discuss why this tribe of bird catchers travels to Africa from Karnataka. (250 Words)
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Previous year questions
1. Hakki, Pikki and Siddi are ______ from Karnataka. (SSC CHSL 2021)
A. dance forms
B. theatre forms
C. languages
D. music types
Answer: C
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Source: The Indian Express
