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The Supreme Court refused to stop the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) from continuing with its “scientific investigation” of the Gyanvapi mosque premises at Varanasi, though it asked the expert body to stick true to its assurance to use only “non-invasive methodology” for its survey.
There should not be any excavation on the premises nor any damage to any structure. The ASI had already started the survey at Varanasi by the time the case came up for hearing in Delhi.
The Allahabad High Court had given its nod for the ASI to go ahead with the survey ordered by the Varanasi District Judge on July 21.
States
Bihar govt. schools are at risk of being replaced by tuition centres: Survey (Page no. 4)
(GS paper 2, Governance)
Government schools in Bihar are in danger of being “replaced by cheap and dingy tuition centres, this is just one of the many jaw-dropping realities flagged by a survey conducted on 81 government primary and upper primary schools, selected randomly, in two districts — Araria and Katihar — of north Bihar.
The curious case of government schools in Bihar’, was conducted by Jan Jagran Shakti Sangathan, a non-government organisation, early this year under the guidance of noted economist Jean Dreze.
Given the sorry state of government schools, many students rely on private tuition. Private tuitions are very popular and have started acting as a replacement to a failing schooling system in rural north Bihar.
The survey found that 50% of the students were from disadvantaged groups such as Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes and Muslims.
The report comes close on the heels of Education Department Additional Chief Secretary K.K. Pathak’s recent directive to private coaching institutions asking them not to operate during school hours (from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.) on all working days.
Education is important for all and everything depends on quality education. It is sad that government school students go to private tuition at the time of school.
The report said that attendance in schools is barely 20% and none of these schools meet the norms of the Right to Education (RTE) Act.
Bengal passes Bill on search panel for appointment of V-Cs (Page no. 6)
(GS paper 2, Governance)
The West Bengal Legislative Assembly passed The West Bengal University Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2023, which reconstitutes the search-cum-selection committee for the appointment of Vice-Chancellors of the universities in the State.
The search-cum-selection committee will now have nominees of the Chancellor, Chief Minister, University Grants Commission (UGC), State government and the Chairman, West Bengal State Council of Higher Education.
Earlier, the search committees had three nominees which included nominees of the Chancellor, State government and the university.
In 2018, it was made mandatory to include the UGC nominee in the selection committee for the appointment of V-Cs.
State’s Education Minister Bratya Basu, who tabled the Bill in the Assembly, said that the move would bring in more transparency in the appointment of Vice-Chancellors and resolve the imbroglio relating to the appointment.
The Minister said that the State government’s move is in line with the changes made in the search committees for the appointment of Vice-Chancellors of Central universities. The legislation changes the time period for appointment of the V-Cs from a period of six months to one year.
The legislation comes at a time when the State government and Raj Bhavan are at loggerheads over the appointment of V-Cs. Governor C.V. Ananda Bose had appointed about 15 people as officiating V-Cs to the State-run universities without allegedly consulting with the State governments
Editorial
The lessons of Hiroshima must not drift away (Page no. 8)
(GS paper 2, International Relation)
The morning of August 6, 1945, dawned clear and sunny as the Enola Gay wheeled over Hiroshima and dropped its payload on the city centre.
The 15kt uranium bomb exploded 600 metres above the Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall, instantly flattening everything and everyone below.
Only the skeletal structure of the hall remained, bearing witness to the moment when our beliefs about weapons and wars changed.
In the intervening 78 years, we have witnessed the rise and fall of nuclear threats. The concept of nuclear deterrence attracted the sharpest minds in countries that both possessed nuclear weapons and abjured them.
Especially as nuclear weapons became more powerful, it became clear that any nuclear use would be a global problem.
This allowed a parallel development to occur: even as nuclear weapons states developed ever more destructive nukes, a taboo against their actual use began to develop.
The political scientist Nina Tannenwald has defined the nuclear taboo as a coalescing norm against using nuclear weapons because these weapons are seen as so beyond the pale that there are almost no circumstances in which their use can be justified.
Crucially, this taboo extends across the whole class of weapons, regardless of their yield, leading to a blanket prohibition of use that each passing year reinforces. However, this taboo has no legal basis; it rests on ideas of morality, proportionality and responsibility.
The taboo is grounded firmly in our treating nuclear weapons as different: nuclear weapons, in Bernard Brodie’s celebrated phrase, are the ‘absolute weapon’.
This special treatment is grounded not so much in the power of the atomic bomb — we are able to dial up or down the destructive capability of modern nukes, and we have developed conventional munitions that rival some nuclear destructiveness; or even in the ability to flatten a city in moments.
America’s pursuit of Saudi-Israel rapprochement (Page no. 8)
(GS paper 2, International Relation)
The proverbial propensity of the ‘Middle East’ to spring surprises is on call again. This time it is about the chances of success of dogged, albeit quiet, United States diplomacy to reconcile two regional powerhouses, viz. Saudi Arabia and Israel.
Ironically, this quest by the Biden administration is taking place under challenging circumstances. The White House has had tepid relations with leaders of both countries, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman.
Mr. Netanyahu heads an extreme right-wing coalition determined to accelerate the Jewish settlements in the Occupied West Bank and curb the judiciary’s independence — the U.S. strongly opposes both.
Under the Saudi Crown Prince, initially ostracised by the Biden Administration for his alleged involvement in the Jamal Khashoggi murder, the Kingdom has been nonchalant towards Washington.
After nearly eight decades of the U.S.-Saudi “Energy for Security” compact of 1945, Riyadh has been assiduously diversifying its strategic options.
It has reconciled, at least tactically, with its arch-enemy Iran through Chinese mediation, hosted the Chinese President for three summits in Riyadh (President Xi Jinping met separately with his counterparts in Saudi Arabia, the Gulf Cooperation Council and the Arab Countries), cooperated with Russia under the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries-Plus (OPEC+) rubric for higher oil prices and facilitated the return of Syria to the Arab fold.
All these in-your-face Saudi initiatives challenge the U.S. interests. They disserve President Joe Biden’s bid for re-election next year. Against this obstructive backdrop, the White House has waged a concerted campaign to persuade Saudi Arabia to normalise its relations with Israel.
The proposal has been on the Saudi table since November 2020 when the Saudi Crown Prince and Mr. Netanyahu had an unpublicised meeting in Neom, Saudi Arabia, in the presence of the then-U.S. Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo.
It has gained traction in recent months with the U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and U.S. Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken visiting Saudi Arabia to be received by the Saudi Crown Prince.
News
‘ISO Bill paves way for more integration of 3 Services’ (Page no. 10)
(GS paper 3, Science and Technology)
As momentum gains for the proposed reorganisation of the Indian military into integrated theatre commands, the Lok Sabha on Friday passed the Inter-Services Organisation (Command, Control and Discipline) Bill, 2023.
It seeks to empower Commander-in-Chief and Officer-in Command of Inter-Services Organisations (ISOs) with all disciplinary and administrative powers in respect of the personnel serving in or attached to such organisations, a Defence Ministry statement noted.
The ‘ISO Bill-2023’ is essentially an ‘enabling Act’ and it does not propose any change in the existing Service Acts/Rules/Regulations which are time-tested and have withstood judicial scrutiny over the last six decades or more, the Ministry said.
The Ministry further stated that the Bill would also pave the way for much greater integration and jointness amongst the three Services.
Nursing students can opt to study foreign language (Page no. 12)
(GS paper 2, Education)
The Union Health Ministry for the first time has initiated the addition of foreign languages as an optional subject/course in B.Sc. Nursing and Midwifery (GNM) programmes.
The Indian Nursing Council (INC) has issued a notification on August 2, announcing the new initiative aimed at promoting internationalisation in education.
The programme also hopes to enhance the overall personality development of nursing students and equip them with a valuable skill set for their future careers.
The optional foreign language courses will provide nursing students with an additional advantage during their degree/diploma programme.
Students will have the opportunity to choose from a range of foreign languages including French, German, Greek, Latin, Irish, Korean, Spanish, and Portuguese, among others.
This diverse array of language options ensures that students can select a language that aligns with their interests and career aspirations, said a senior official.
The language courses will be conducted by hiring specific language teachers, and the expenses for hiring these teachers will be borne by the respective nursing institutions.
The INC has emphasised that participating students shall not be charged exorbitant fees for these optional language modules.
World
Pakistan passes Bill to meet FATF demands (Page no. 13)
(GS paper 2, International Organisation)
Pakistan’s Senate gave its nod to a Bill to establish a new authority to curb money laundering and terror financing, a legislation which is expected to help the country not to be on the grey list of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) again.
The National Assembly passed the Bill, which seeks to form a central authority to curb money laundering and terror financing, bringing all institutions related to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) under one command.
State Minister for Foreign Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar moved the “National Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Financing of Terrorism Authority Bill” in the Senate, a day after it was passed by the National Assembly.
According to the draft Bill, the authority will be headed by a chairman who will be appointed by the Prime Minister. The authority can convene meetings on the requisition of the chairman or half of its members.
Pakistan was placed on the grey list of the FATF in 2018 and had to make a huge effort to get out of it in 2021.