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The Lok Sabha passed the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Bill, 2023 amid the scarce presence of Opposition members in the House.
The Bill had been passed by the Rajya Sabha on December 12.
Speaking during a debate before the passage of the Bill, Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal said the Election Commission (Conditions of Service of Election Commissioners and Transaction of Business) Act, 1991 did not have a clause related to the appointment of CEC and other ECs.
Mr. Meghwal said the names of the commissioners were so far decided by the government, but from now on a search and selection committee will overlook the process.
He also asserted that this was in line with the Supreme Court’s directions, adding that the committee mentioned in its judgment was a “stop-gap” arrangement.
Coming soon, a ‘Cafeteria’ for oil spill-hit birds at Ennore Creek (Page no. 1)
(GS Paper 3, Environment)
While casting a net to trap birds is not something wildlife enthusiasts will ever recommend, in Ennore Creek, it has been recommended purely as an act of conservation.
Experts from the Wildlife Trust of India (WTI) and the Besant Memorial Animal Dispensary (BMAD) are planning to establish feeding stations for birds at the creek, where contamination due to an oil spill from industries in Manali has brought down the bird population drastically.
The State Department of Environment, Climate Change and Forests, the nodal agency for the oil spill clean-up, has roped in WTI to work with local volunteers and the Wildlife Warden, Chennai, to assess how the affected birds could be rescued and rehabilitated.
While most of the birds, both healthy and oil-drenched, have flown away to other parts of the city like Pallikaranai and Cooum, the authorities have found that 10 pelicans and painted storks have been badly affected.
After a recce of Ennore, N.V.K. Ashraf, Chief Veterinary Officer and Vice-President at WTI. But some birds will require intervention, and two or three of them are very weak. The challenge will be in capturing them.
States
India skills report finds Kerala most preferred State to work (Page no. 6)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
Kerala has emerged the most preferred State to work in the India Skills Report 2024. Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram have come second and fourth respectively among cities where both men and women prefer to work regardless of their age, according to the report published by talent assessment agency Wheebox in association with various agencies including All India Council for Technical Education, Confederation of Indian Industry and Association of Indian Universities.
The report, which surveyed 3.88 lakh youths through a National Employability Test conducted across the country, indicated the employability in India has improved with 51.25% of the assessed youths found to be employable with the required skills.
Kerala, which was credited for ensuring a balanced approach towards education and honing future skills, also secured the second position in overall employability among the 18-21 age group to reaffirm its status as a robust talent pool in the country.
Editorial
Questionable searches under the Money Laundering Act (Page no. 10)
(GS Paper 3, Internal Security)
The enforcement of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (passed in the background of India’s commitment to the international community to fight the drug menace and terrorism) has caused much consternation especially after its unusual interpretation by the Supreme Court of India in Vijay Madanlal Choudhary and Ors vs Union of India and Ors. (2022).
The Supreme Court of India limited its application to “on the wrongful and illegal gain of property as a result of criminal activity relating to a scheduled offence”. It also held that “the property must qualify the definition of “proceeds of crime” under Section 2(1)(u) of the 2002 Act”.
It went on to hold that “the authority of the Authorised Officer to prosecute any person for offence of money-laundering gets triggered only if there exists proceeds of crime within the meaning of Section 2(1)(u) of the 2002 Act and further it is involved in any process or activity”.
The Court emphatically held that “Not even in a case of existence of undisclosed income and irrespective of its volume, the definition of ‘proceeds of crime’ under Section 2(1)(u) will get attracted, unless the property has been derived or obtained as a result of criminal activity relating to a scheduled offence”.
Opinion
Should an All-India Judicial Service be created? (Page no. 1)
(GS Paper 2, Judiciary)
Recently, President Droupadi Murmu suggested that an All-India Judicial Service (AIJS) will help diversify the judiciary. In the same way that the Union Public Service Commission conducts a central recruitment exam and assigns successful candidates to cadres, the recruitment of judges of the district judiciary is being proposed to be made central, following which they will be assigned to the States.
This idea has been discussed in the past and has also been a part of the Union government’s official policy for years. However, there has been no consensus on the proposal either from the High Courts or the State governments.
Text & Context
Analysing the Post Office Bill, 2023 (Page no. 12)
(GS Paper 2, Governance)
On December 18, the Parliament passed the Post Office Bill, 2023, that seeks to replace the colonial-era Indian Post Office Act, 1898.
According to the government, the legislation is an attempt to ensure the effective functioning of the Postal Department as a messenger service and as a provider of banking facilities.
The Post Office Bill, 2023 allows the interception of articles transmitted via post on grounds such as the security of the state, friendly relations with foreign states, public order, emergency, public safety, or contravention of the provisions of the Bill or any other laws.
The officer-in-charge appointed by the Union government is empowered to ‘intercept, open or detain’ any postal article on the aforementioned grounds.
Such an item can also be disposed of by the government in a manner it deems appropriate. The Union government by notification can also empower any officer of the Post Office to deliver a postal article suspected of containing any prohibited item to the customs authority or any other specified authority.
News
Parliament clears laws to repeal IPC, CrPC, Evidence Act (Page no. 14)
(GS Paper 3, Polity and Constitution)
The Rajya Sabha passed the Bharatiya Nyaya (Second) Sanhita Bill, the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha (Second) Sanhita Bill, and the Bharatiya Sakshya (Second) Bill, which will replace the Indian Penal Code, 1860; the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898; and the Indian Evidence Act, 1872; respectively.
Hailing the passage of the Bills as historic, Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar said the Bills would replace the colonial-era criminal justice system.
The Opposition members boycotted the proceedings demanding a statement from Home Minister Amit Shah on the Parliament security breach. The Bills were passed unanimously in their absence.
Mr. Shah said the Bills would mark a new beginning in the history of the country’s criminal justice system. He said the Bills would form the base of making the country’s justice system the most modern in the world.
Mr. Shah said the criminal justice system was being governed by the three laws brought by the British after the 1857 struggle for freedom.
Centre approves deployment of CISF in Parliament complex (Page no. 15)
(GS Paper 2, Polity and Constitution)
The Union Home Ministry has approved the deployment of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) in the Parliament complex, according to a government order.
The decision comes days after the December 13 security breach in the Parliament. Eight Delhi police security personnel who were responsible for frisking and baggage scanning were suspended after the incident.
“In-principle approval of the competent authority is conveyed for carrying out the survey of the Parliament premises and its buildings for regular deployment of CISF (both Security Wing and Fire Wing) on comprehensive pattern under Government Building Security (GBS),” the order issued on Wednesday read.
The paramilitary force is deployed at other Central government buildings, airports, and Delhi Metro stations.
WHO prequalifies a malaria vaccine by Serum Institute (Page no. 16)
(GS Paper 2, Health)
The World Health Organization (WHO) on Thursday added the R21/Matrix-M malaria vaccine, developed by Oxford University and manufactured by Serum Institute of India, to its list of prequalified vaccines. In October 2023, the WHO had recommended its use for the prevention of malaria in children.
The R21 vaccine is the second malaria vaccine prequalified by the WHO. The prequalification means larger access to vaccines as a key tool to prevent malaria in children, with it being a prerequisite for vaccine procurement by UNICEF and funding support for deployment by Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance.
It added that both vaccines have been shown to be safe and effective in clinical trials, for preventing malaria in children.
Malaria, a mosquito-borne disease, places a particularly high burden on children in the African region, where nearly half a million children die from the disease each year. In 2022, there were an estimated 249 million malaria cases in the world, and 6,08,000 malaria deaths across 85 countries.
Missing for 42 years, Namdapha flying squirrel resurfaces in Arunachal Pradesh (Page no. 16)
(GS Paper 3, Environment)
A nocturnal flying squirrel has resurfaced in Arunachal Pradesh after going missing for 42 years.
The Namdapha flying squirrel (Biswamoyopterus biswasi) was last described in 1981 based on a single individual found in the 1,985 sq. km. Namdapha Tiger Reserve in Arunachal Pradesh’s Changlang district.
The failure of zoologists to locate the arboreal mammal during several expeditions thereafter generated two theories — that it could have been mistaken for the very similar red giant flying squirrel (Petaurista petaurista) sharing the same ecosystem or worse, become history.
Ten of these expeditions were by teams from Aaranyak, an Assam-based biodiversity conservation group, for a total of 79 days in 2021. A team from the group finally sighted the Namdapha flying squirrel in April 2022.
The team led by Firoz Ahmed included Sourav Gupta, a field researcher, and Sourav Mardi, a volunteer. Tajum Yomcha, a research officer with the Arunachal Pradesh Forest Department, aided the search for the elusive species.
Business
RBI releases draft omnibus framework for SROs, seeks views (Page no. 17)
(GS Paper 3, Economy)
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) placed on its website, a ‘Draft Omnibus Framework for recognising Self-Regulatory Organisations (SROs)’ for Regulated Entities (REs) to develop better industry standards for self-regulation and sought comments from stakeholders.
The rapid growth of REs in terms of number as well as scale of operations, and an increase in the adoption of innovative technologies and enhanced customer outreach had made it difficult for the RBI to regulate the sector effectively, spurring the need for SROs.
The framework contains broad parameters such as objectives, responsibilities, eligibility criteria, governance standards, application process and other basic conditions for grant of recognition to the SRO.
World
China urges Philippines to make ‘rational choice’ over maritime tensions (Page no. 18)
(GS Paper 2, International Relation)
China on Thursday voiced growing frustration and anger with the Philippines’s unexpectedly bold tactics in contested South China Sea waters recently, warning its neighbour to “make the rational choice”.
But Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos hit back later, vowing not to succumb to “coercion”, insisting recent tense stand-offs in the disputed area highlighted his nation’s “courage”.
Videos released by the Philippine Coast Guard showed Chinese ships blasting water at Philippine boats this month, and there was also a collision between vessels from the two countries during tense clashes at flashpoint reefs.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said that Beijing hoped the Philippines “can make a rational choice and work with China to properly handle and manage the current maritime situation”.