In News: Five more Indian wetlands have recently got Ramsar recognition as “wetlands of international importance”.

About the News:

• With the addition of these five wetlands, the number of Ramsar Sites in India has gone up to 54, the highest for any country in South Asia.
• The Ramsar Convention, which came into existence in 1971, is an intergovernmental treaty that provides the framework for national action and international cooperation for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources.

Brief on the New Ramsar Sites:

1. Karikili Bird Sanctuary (Tamil Nadu):
   • The sanctuary is spread over a five-kilometre-wide belt and is home to cormorants, egrets, grey heron, open-billed stork, darter, spoonbill, white lbnis, night herons, grebes, and grey pelican among others.

1. Pallikaranai Marsh Reserve Forest (Tamil Nadu):
   • The Pallikaranai Marsh is one of India’s few natural coastal aquatic habitats that qualify as a wetland.
   • Being one of the last remaining natural wetlands, the marsh drains an area of 250 square kilometres encompassing 65 wetlands.
2. Pichavaram Mangrove (Tamil Nadu):
   • It is one of the last mangrove forests in the country.
   • It has an island of a vast expanse of water covered with mangrove forests.
3. Sakhya Sagar (Madhya Pradesh):
   • Created from the Manier river in 1918, Sakhya Sagar is located near Madhav National Park. 
4. Pala Wetland in Mizoram (Mizoram):
   • Its geographical location falls under the Indo-Burma biodiversity hotspotand is therefore rich in animal and plant species.
   • It is home to a wide range of animals, birds, and reptiles.
   • The lake is a major component of the Palak Wildlife Sanctuaryand supports the sanctuary's major biodiversity.

Wetlands in India

• Globally, wetlands cover 6.4 per cent of the geographical area of the world. In India, wetlands are spread over 1,52,600 square kilometres (sq km) which is 63 per cent of the total geographical area of the country.
  • Of the 1,52,600 sq km, inland-natural wetlands account for 43.4% and coastal-natural wetlands 24.3%.
  • The countries with the most Ramsar Sites are the United Kingdom (175) and Mexico (142), as per the Ramsar List. Bolivia has the largest area with 148,000 sq km under the Convention protection. Canada, Chad, Congo and the Russian Federation have also each designated over 100,000 sq km.
  • India has 19 types of wetlands. In state-wise distribution of wetlands, Gujarat is at the top with 34,700 sq km (17.56% of total geographical area of the state), or 22.7% of total wetlands areas of the country thanks to a long coastline. It is followed by Andhra Pradesh (14,500 sq km), Uttar Pradesh (12,400 sq km) and West Bengal (11,100 sq km).

For details on Wetlands and India’s policies on wetlands, refer to the link below:

India's Wetland Policies

What is Ramsar Convention?

Source:

• Explained: What are Ramsar Sites, and what is the significance of the listing?
• India adds five more Ramsar sites, ups tally to 54

Image source:

• Explained: What are Ramsar Sites, and what is the significance of the listing?

In News: Expressing concern over “media running kangaroo courts”, the Chief Justice of India has recently said that ill-informed and agenda-driven debates and biased views are weakening democracy.

About the News:

• The CJI has said that the kangaroo courts being run by the media are detrimental to the health of the country’s democracy.
• He also expressed that such agenda-driven debatesin the media on issues pending in courts are affecting judicial functioning especially, justice delivery.
• He had also opined that while Print mediastill has a certain degree of accountability, electronic media has zero accountability as to what it shows vanishes in thin air. 
• Worse than this is social media. 
• He has demanded for stricter media regulations and accountability owing to the frequent transgressions and consequent social unrest in the country.

Understanding Trial by Media:

• What is it?

• • ‘Trial by media’ is a recently coined term and is used to denote a facet of ‘media activism.’ 
  • It means “the impact of television and newspaper coverage on a person’s reputation by creating a widespread perception of guilt regardless of any verdict in a Court of law. 
  • Constitutionality: Though the word media trial is not directly defined anywhere in the Constitution, indirectly, this power is given to the media under Article 19 of the Constitution which provides freedom of speech to every person.
• What has been its impact on justice delivery:
  • Pressure on judges: Media activism imposes indirect pressureon the adjudicating authorities to deliver justice to victims who may interfere with the trial proceedings and may cause prejudice to the accused and the chance of proving his innocence. 
  • Right to privacy: They invade their privacy which causes a breach of the Right to Privacy guaranteed under Article 21. 
  • The news is whatever sells the best: The need to compete for commercialization and more views has transformed the media today into a full-fledged game for viewership. The name of the game is ratings, viewership, eyeballs, and commercials.
  • Difficult to distinguish between Fake and Real: New media tools have an enormous amplifying ability but appear to be incapable of distinguishing between the right and the wrong, the good and the bad and the real and the fake.
  • Sensationalism: Media, of late, has been observed to prioritiseunimportant news than those which need immediate attention.
  • Instigate Hatred and Violence: Paid news and fake newscan manipulate public perception and can instigate hatred, violence, and disharmony among the various communities within society.
    • The absence of objective journalism leads to the false presentation of truth in a society which affects the perception and opinions of people.

Regulation of media in India:

• The existing bodies for the regulation of media in India are thePress Council of India -a statutory body and the News Broadcasting Standards Authority- a self-regulatory organization.
• Print Media: Is regulated by the Press Council of India (PCI) which helps newspapers maintain their independence; build a code of conduct for journalists and news agencies; helps maintain “high standards of public taste” and foster responsibility among citizens; and Review developments likely to restrict the flow of news.
• Electronic Media: It is regulated by agencies like:
  • News Broadcasters Association (NBA) that warns, admonishes, censures, expresses disapproval and finesthe broadcaster for violation of the Code.
  • Broadcast Editors’ Association
  • The Advertising Standards Council of India has also drawn up guidelines on the content of advertisements. 
    • These groups govern through agreements and do not have any statutory powers.
• Social Media:
  • IT Rules 2011, IT Rules 2021, Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules 2021, help regulate social media.

Source:

• Media is running kangaroo courts: CJI Ramana
• Kangaroo courts by media, agenda-driven debates weakening democracy, says CJI

Image source:

• https://www.binged.com/streaming-premiere-dates/trial-by-media-web-series-streaming-online-watch-on-netflix/

In News: The United Nations-backed agencies have recently issued guidelines to provide the first-ever global policy framework to protect children displaced due to climate change.

About the News:

• The new guidelines launched aim to protect and empower children forced to flee their homes due to climate-related emergencies,
• The guidelines were launched by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), the

UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and others.

The Guidelines:

• ‘The Guiding Principles for Children on the Move in the Context of Climate Change’ contain a set of nine principles that address the unique vulnerabilities of children who have been uprooted due to climate change.

• • The guidelines cover both internal as well as cross-border migrations.
• They provide national and local governments, international organisations, and civil society groups with a foundation to build policies that protect children’s rights.

Climate Change and Children:

• One billion children live in 33 countries classified as being at extremely high risk to the impacts of climate change.
• Nearly 10 million children were displaced due to weather-related events in 2020
• Such children may be exposed to a variety of risks, such as abuse, trafficking, exploitation and other forms of maltreatment.
• 36% of all deaths among children (aged (0-14) are, in part, caused by environmental factors.
• 14% of the total migrant population were children in 2019.

Source:

• UN lays down guidelines to protect children displaced by climate change
• New guidelines provide the first global policy framework on protecting children on the move in face of climate change

Image source:

• https://kingcounty.gov/services/environment/climate/our-changing-climate/infographics.aspx

On July 28, 1921, the Congress decided to boycott the upcoming visit of the Prince of Wales in November as part of the Non- Cooperation Movement. The visit of the Prince of Wales in November 1921 was marked with demonstrations, hartals and political meetings. The programme of "non-violent non-cooperation" included the boycott of councils, courts and schools, set up by the British and of all foreign cloth. The Non-cooperation movement was organised to induce the British government to grant self-government, or swaraj, to India.

Source:

• Non-violent Non-co-operation:

• Context: Over a year since the Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry had circulated the Model Tenancy Act (MTA), four States had revised their tenancy laws to be in line with the MTA.
• The states include Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, and Assam.
• The Model Tenancy Law seeks to enable the institutionalization of rental housing by gradually shifting it towards the formal market.

• The primary objectives of the Act include:
  1. It aims to regulate renting of residential and commercial premises by establishing conditions for tenancy, eviction, and management of the property.
  2. In regulating tenancy, it proposes mechanisms to balance and protect the rights of landlords and tenants.
  3. It proposes a three-tier adjudicatory mechanism for speedy adjudication of tenancy-related disputes.
• The Act was needed because of the fact that existing various state laws are unclear on property issues, poor contract enforcement, and rent control laws.
• As per the census 2011, about 1.1 crore houses are lying vacant which can be used for housing purposes.

Source:

• A year on, only four States adopt Model Tenancy Law

Image source:

• A year on, only four States adopt Model Tenancy Law

• Context: The recent UNICEF report on severe wasting among children, called for urgent action against rising cases of severe acute malnutrition in South Asia.
• Child wasting refers to a child who is too thin for his or her height, and is the result of recent rapid weight loss or the failure to gain weight.
• Children who are severely wasted succumb to those diseases because their bodies provide virtually no protection against the bacteria, virus or fungi that infect them. They die because their digestive systems can no longer absorb nutrients.
• The UNICEF has alerted that, India has 5,772,472 children below five years affected by severe wasting, the most in the world.

• • Indonesia ranked second with 812,564 children suffering from severe wasting
• According to Global Hunger Index report 2021, child wasting in India stands at 17.3%.
  • India is ranked 101 among 116 countries in the Index, and the level of hunger in India was ‘serious’ according to the report.
  • Globally, India ranked among the worst in ‘child wasting’ or ‘weight for height’. Its performance was worse than Djibouti and Somalia.
• Reasons for high level of Wasting in India:
  • poor nutritional status of women during pregnancy
  • poor breastfeeding and feeding practices
  • lack of sanitation and hygiene
  • poor access to quality health services and food insecurity

Source:

• India slips 7 spots to rank 101 among 116 countries on Global Hunger Index
• Over 3 lakh children in Bangladesh affected by severe wasting- UNICEF

Image source:

• https://www.indiatoday.in/diu/story/mapping-child-malnutrition-levels-india-assembly-up-bihar-jharkhand-food-1880984-2021-11-26

• Context: The Indian Prime Minister said, that India aims to roll out a 6G telecom network by end of the decade.
• 6G is built upon the infrastructure of 5G and it is hoped that it will accomplish more than 5G in terms of adoption, reduction of cost, and better service.
• While 5G provided less than 1ms latency, 6G provides less than 0.1ms latency.
• The important areas that will benefit from this technology are the likes of smart devices and self-driving cars.

• Also, 6G will be beneficial to the advancement of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning.
• 6G will operate on the mid bands (7 – 20 GHz) for places that are crowded, low bands (460 – 694 MHz) for long-distance coverage, and use sub-THz for peak data rates in the short range of up to 100 Gbps.
• 6G will also be used significantly in advanced network devices, including MIMO (multiple input, multiple output) antennas.
• While 5G uses around 200 antenna elements, 6G may support up to 1024 antenna elements.

Source:

• What is 6G, the next level in communication
• India to roll out 6G technology by end of this decade, says PM Modi

Image source:

• https://www.highspeedinternet.com/resources/6g-internet

• Context: The Environment Ministry’s Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) has recently sought a report about forest clearances granted in the past, for hydroelectric projects in Arunachal Pradesh.

• The 2,000MW Lower Subansiri hydroelectric power project (LSHEP) is located on Subansiri River, which is on the border of India’s two north-eastern states, Arunachal Pradesh and Assam.
• The project is being developed by the state-run National Hydro Power Corporation (NHPC).
• Dibang is a flood control cum hydroelectric power project planned to be developed on the Dibang River, a tributary of the Brahmaputra River, in Arunachal Pradesh, India.
• The project is being developed by India’s state-run National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC).
• Expected for commissioning in 2028, the Dibang hydropower project is expected to generate up to 11,222 million units (MU) of electricity a year, while moderating flood to the extent of 3000m³/s in the downstream areas, during the monsoon period.

source:

• Lower Subansiri Hydroelectric Power Project
• Dibang Hydropower Project, Arunachal Pradesh

Image source:

• https://stringfixer.com/files/51134197.jpg

Essence: In a recent address, the prime minister shared his anguish on what he called the “revdi” or the freebies culture. This comes immediately on the back of widespread concerns among domain economists, including a recent report of the RBI on states’ finances. The report highlighted the perilous condition of states’ finances and enhanced debt stress on account of these flawed policies.

Freebies lead to several problems like it upsetting India’s quest for sustainable development, affecting government programmes and so on.

It was Aristotle who said, “the worst form of inequality is to try to make unequal things equal.” The freebie culture is not a road to prosperity, but a quick passport to fiscal disaster.

Why should you read this article?

• To know the reason why freebies are in news
• To understand the challenges due to freebies.

Source:

• From freebies to welfare:

Essence: The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has lowered its growth projection for India by 0.8 percentage points to 7.4% in 2022-23. This could throw the country's fiscal and current account positions further out of balance.

The global economy is starting at the lower economic activity as central bankers go about anchoring inflation expectations. IMF sees a very real risk of economies stalling in 2023, with depleted household savings not providing cushion for further shocks.

Why should you read this article?

• To know about the latest IMPF projections

Source:

• IMF announcement: Wear your seat belts:

Background

Researchers at IIT-Madras have launched India’s first indigenous Polycentric Prosthetic Knee, which aims to improve the quality of life for thousands of above-knee amputees.

About the indigenous Polycentric Prosthetic Knee

• On 8 April 2022, researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras launched India’s first indigenously developed Polycentric Prosthetic Knee called ‘Kadam’ (meaning ‘step’ in Hindi).

• To improve the quality of life for thousands of above-knee amputees, this ‘Made-in-India’ polycentric knee for Above Knee Prosthesis was developed by the TTK Center for Rehabilitation Research and Device Development (R2D2) at IIT-Madras in association with the Society for Biomedical Technology (SBMT) and Mobility India.
  • SBMT, which supported the development process, was set up under Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) by former President Dr APJ Abdul Kalam to enable indigenous medical device development.
• Kadam has advantages over a hinge joint because of the multiple axes of rotation and is specifically optimized to provide the user greater control over the prosthesis while walking, and a maximum knee flexion of 160 degrees to make it easy to sit in cramped spaces like buses and autos. It is designed for durability with high-strength stainless steel and aluminium alloy along with hard chrome plated EN8 pins and high fatigue life polymer bushings.
• What Kadam does is help above-knee amputees to walk with a comfortable gait. It’s not just merely about mobility, but also about improving the users’ quality of life through greater participation in their local communities, access to education, livelihood opportunities, etc.

Quote:

“Alone we can do so little, together we can do so much." -Helen Keller.

Source:

• 5 Times Cheaper Than Imports, IIT-M’s ‘Kadam’ Helps Amputees Walk Comfortably: