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Mathura-Vrindavan, one of India’s largest pilgrimage centres, aims to become a “net zero carbon emission” tourist destination by 2041.
This means that tourist vehicles will be banned from the entire Braj region, which includes famous pilgrim centres such as Vrindavan and Krishna Janmabhoomi. Instead, only electric vehicles used as public transport will be allowed into the area.
All 252 water bodies and 24 forests in the area will also be revived, officials privy to the UP government’s draft redevelopment plan said.
According to the plan, the Braj region’s annual pilgrim-tourist footfall is expected to multiply from the current level of 2.3 crore to six crore by 2041.
Keeping this in mind, there is a need for eco-friendly development of the area which while aiding the local economy does not have an adverse effect on the environment.
While the draft masterplan was submitted in March, the strategy document will be submitted this month following which the plan will be released for public consultation.
To attain a net zero carbon emission status, greenhouse gas emissions must be reduced to as close to zero as possible, with any remaining emissions re-absorbed from the atmosphere, by oceans and forests for instance.
To facilitate this in Mathura-Vrindavan, the plan divides the entire region into four clusters, each containing two of the eight key cities.
The idea is to form small circuits called ‘Parikrama Paths’ which the pilgrim can undertake either on foot or using electric vehicles.
In case they want to travel from one destination to another they can avail electric mini-buses,” Shubham Meena of Design Associates, the company which has drafted the plan. This will be the first such carbon neutral master plan for a tourist destination in India, he claimed.
Tourists would park their vehicles outside the cities and use only electric vehicles such as e-rickshaws and mini-buses to travel within these small circuits.
The plan envisages three to five charging points for electric vehicles in Mathura and Vrindavan and two each in other key towns. Each Parikrama Path will include water kiosks, centres distributing prasad, dining halls and resting spaces for tourists.
All employees can opt for EPFO pension scheme: SC (Page no. 1)
(GS Paper 2, Government Policies and Interventions)
The Supreme Court upheld the Employees’ Pension (Amendment) Scheme, 2014 of the Employees’ Provident Fund Organistion as “legal and valid” while reading down certain provisions.
Most important, the court used its extraordinary powers under Article 142 of the Constitution to allow eligible employees who had not opted for enhanced pension coverage prior to the 2014 amendments, to jointly do so with their employers within the next four months.
The court struck down a requirement in the 2014 amendments that employees who go beyond the salary threshold (of ₹15,000 per month) should contribute monthly to the pension scheme at the rate of 1.16% of their salary.
The requirement to contribute 1.16% of the salary to the extent that such salary exceeds ₹15,000 per month as an additional contribution made under the amendment scheme is held to be ultra vires to the provisions of the Employees’ Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952, a three-judge Bench led by Chief Justice U.U. Lalit held.The court suspended the implementation of this part for six months.
We suspend the operation of this part of our order for six months. We do so to enable the authorities to make adjustments in the scheme so that the additional contribution can be generated from other legitimate sources within the scope of the Act, which could include enhancing the rate of contribution of the employers,” the judgment said.
The court held that the amendments to the pension scheme notified in August 2014 would apply to the employees of “exempted establishments” in the list of the EPFO, which number over 1,300 companies and entities.
The dispute primarily concerned the controversial amendments made to clause 11 of the EPS-1995. The 51-page verdict, authored by Justice Aniruddha Bose, came in an appeal filed by the EPFO challenging the decisions of the Kerala, Rajasthan and Delhi High Courts quashing the 2014 amendments on “determination of pensionable salary” under the EPS of 1995.
Before the amendments were introduced, every employee, who became a member of the Employees Provident Fund Scheme of 1952 as on November 16, 1995, could avail the EPS. In the pre-amended version of EPS-1995, the maximum pensionable salary was ₹6,500.
However, members whose salaries exceeded this cap could also opt, along with their employers, to contribute up to 8.33% of their actual salaries to the pension fund.
The 2014 amendments to the EPS, which included changes in Clause 11(3) and insertion of paragraph 11(4), raised the cap from ₹6,500 to ₹15,000. Paragraph 11(4) said only employees, who were existing EPS members as on September 1, 2014, could continue to contribute to the pension fund in accordance with their actual salaries. They were given a window of six months to opt for the new pension regime.
Editorial
The real issue at COP27 is energy equity (Page no. 6)
(GS Paper 3, Environment)
In a starkly unequal world, what does the urgency of climate action imply? This has been a central question in the climate change negotiations since the Rio Earth Summit (1992) and will also be at the root of contestations at the upcoming 27th Conference of Parties (COP27, beginning November 6, in Egypt) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
In the run-up to COP26, last year in Glasgow, several developed countries had declared their intention to reach net-zero emissions by 2050. These declarations did not square with the requirements of “keeping 1.5 deg. C alive”.
Four-fifths of the global carbon budget to limit warming to 1.5°C (with 50% probability) has already been exhausted. Developed countries are responsible for more than half of these historical CO 2 emissions.
Nevertheless, there was much celebration of these targets. There was also high drama at COP26, with moral grandstanding by many developed country negotiators who invoked the future of their children, because India and other countries understandably balked at the singling out of any one fossil fuel for immediate action.
It is important to recall some of these shenanigans at COP26, as in the last year, it has become clear that developed countries may be unlikely to meet even the inadequate targets they have set, keeping to the trend of the last three decades. The rhetoric of COP26 appears unconscionably hypocritical if we consider the reality of global energy inequalities.
Global energy poverty is concentrated in the developing countries. In 2021, 733 million people had no access to electricity and almost 2.6 billion people lacked access to clean fuels and technologies. The average per capita energy use of the richest 20 countries is 85 times higher than that of the 20 poorest countries.
Addressing this stark energy poverty in developing countries is important because there is a strong correlation between energy supply and human development.
The average annual per capita electricity consumption of sub-Saharan Africa is 487 kilowatt-hours (kWh), alongside an infant mortality rate of 73 per 1,000 live births; maternal mortality ratio of 534 per 1,00,000 live births, and per capita GDP of $1,645.
On the other hand, the OECD group of countries have a per capita electricity consumption of 7,750 kWh, corresponding to an infant mortality rate of seven, maternal mortality ratio of 18, and per capita GDP of $42,098.
The reality of global inequality was acutely evident during the COVID-19 pandemic. Several countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America are facing severe agricultural and industrial slowdowns in the post-pandemic period.
News
Under MakeII project, 5 tech products get Army nod (Page no. 8)
(GS Paper 3, Defence)
The Army has approved five Project Sanction Orders (PSOs) for development of niche technology by the Indian industry under Make-II route of defence procurement.
The projects include High Frequency Man Packed Software Defined Radios (HFSDR), drone kill systems, Infantry Training Weapon Simulator (IWTS), Medium Range Precision Kill Systems (MRPKS) and 155mm Terminally Guided Munitions (TGM).
Make II projects are essentially industry funded projects involving design, development and innovative solutions by Indian vendors for development of prototypes. An assurance of order is given after successful prototype development.
The Army is already progressing 43 projects under the Make II procedure of capital acquisition. Seventeen out of 43 projects have been initiated through suo motu proposals received from the industry, which has generated enthusiasm and confidence in the Indian defence industry for participation in the “Make procedure”.
The PSO for development of prototype of HFSDR under Make-II scheme has been issued to 14 Developing Agencies (DA). These radio sets will replace the existing HF radio sets in the inventory, which have limited data handling capability and obsolete technology.
Similarly, PSO given to 18 DAs for procurement of 35 sets of drone kill systems under the Make-II scheme, post successful development of prototype.
The project is reserved for start-ups and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs). Drone kill system is a hard kill anti-drone system against low Radio Cross Section drones.
The IWTS is the first triservice Make-II project with the Army as the lead service, the statement said. The PSO has been issued to four DAs to develop the prototype for subsequent procurement of 125 systems. This is also reserved for MSMEs and start-ups.
Similarly, PSO has been issued to six DAs for development of 155 mm TGMs while PSO has been issued to 15 DAs for developing a prototype of MRPKS.
On the 155mm TGM, the Army said variants of the ammunition have been held in the inventory, sans the precision strike capability.
The Indian Army therefore plans to procure approximately 2000 rounds of 155mm TGM against High Value Targets with assured precision and lethality for mission accomplishment and minimum collateral damage.
On the progress on Make-II progress so far, the statement added that 22 out of 43 projects are now in prototype development stage, which is 66% of projects by cost, ₹18,000 crore out of ₹27,000 crore.
World’s rhythms, a delectable India at dance fete (Page no. 10)
(GS Paper 1, Art and Culture)
From what looks like an elaborate spread served to this bunch of teenagers from north Sumatra, they pick chapatti — the humble Indian flatbread — as their favourite. For all the similarities between Indian and Indonesian cuisine, wheat is a rarity back home, and they would like to indulge in this local staple in the limited window on offer, they say.
Seated a few tables away are Marco Pandelich (25) and his troupe from Serbia. For this group — all members of the Talija Art Company who have been performing together for the past 20 years and have travelled across the globe — the standout part about India is the sheer number of people who turned out to watch their dance performance here.
They were among the representatives from 10 countries sharing their experiences in India while they had converged in Raipur for the National Tribal Dance Festival.
The third edition of the three-day event that the Chhattisgarh government claims is one of its kind anywhere in the world, concluded.
While teams from all over the country competed in the festival, the international contingent, comprising artists from Mozambique, Mongolia, Togo, Russia, Indonesia, Maldives, Serbia, New Zealand, Rwanda and Egypt, were invited to add an international flavour to an event, that Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel said, was aimed at uniting the world for the rights of tribals.
While the crowd enjoyed their performances, the dance troupes also described the experience as enriching, getting a glimpse of diverse Indian culture as well as fellow international participants.
ShahiraNafisha, a 15-year-old from Indonesia, said her group was formed combining students from different schools in her region and they had been practising for a month to improve coordination.
Their group leader DewiMarlina Marv who has been to India before, said that on their way to Raipur, the troupe’s members had many questions about the country.
They asked me questions like ‘Is dance mandatory for girls in India’ or ‘what are the various dance forms they have’ or ‘how is the food there’. I was pleased to share whatever I knew.
Language was a barrier for many contingents, such as the ones from Indonesia and Mongolia, but using a handy mix of interpreters and modern tools such as Google Translate, they managed their interactions with media and others.
One aspect of India that most from this cross-section is familiar with is Bollywood and marquee names such as Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol.
World
China’s homegrown Beidou satellite system eyes global footprint (Page no. 11)
(GS Paper 3, Science and Technology)
China on November 4, 2022 outlined plans to further expand the global reach of its home-grown Beidou satellite navigation system, billed as its alternative to America’s Global Positioning System (GPS).
A white paper released by the Chinese government said Beijing is “strengthening regional cooperation with organisations such as ASEAN, the African Union, the League of Arab States, and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States”.
Beijing has, since 2020, also made an outreach to South Asia and is already working, or in discussion with, a number of countries in the region, including Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, over adopting the Beidou satellite (BDS) navigation system.
The Belt and Road (BRI) countries are our priority,” Ran Chengqi, Director of the China Satellite Navigation Office.
Mr. Ran said the BDS, which now has a “constellation” of 30 satellites in orbit, began its international outreach once the set up was finished in 2018. It is now in use “in more than half of the world’s countries”. China is also helping several BRI partners, including Pakistan and Sri Lanka, launch communication satellites.
Saudi Arabia is using Beidou in surveying and mapping, positioning people and vehicle in the desert,” he said. “Tajikistan is using BDS to monitor dams and lakes with precision. Lebanon is using BDS at Beirut port for marine survey and construction. In Burkina Faso, it is being used for survey and construction of hospitals.
Pakistan and Russia are two significant Beidou hubs. Mr. Ran said China and Russia have signed a strategic framework on their two navigation systems, taking forward a 2015 deal on interoperability between Beidou and GLONASS.
Pakistan in 2014 became the first foreign country to set up a Beidou network. South Asia and Southeast Asia – both of which are key BRI regions – are a current focus of expanding Beidou’s presence.
Beidou has set up a first of three Continuously Operating Reference Stations (CORS) for its network in Thailand in 2013, to serve as a hub for ASEAN.
China and Sri Lanka also agreed plans to set up 10 CORS, according to reports in Chinese official media, which said “CORS in Thailand and Sri Lanka will extend the BDS coverage at least 3,000 km more towards Southeast Asia and South Asia.
In 2020, Beijing reached out to Bangladesh and Nepal. That year, Bangladesh Post and Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar told the official Xinhua news agency Dhaka “will consider cooperation with BDS”, while China has invited Nepal officials to Beijing for training on the Beidou system.
Mr. Ran said the next focus was to improve Beidou’s capabilities, which have, in China, closed the gap with GPS in terms of accuracy, although its overseas services still lag behind.
Its application in China, he said, now included use in guiding drones, autonomous cars, in agriculture and forestry, as well as launching with Chinese mobile phone companies, using Chinese chips, satellite-powered messaging for smartphones that provides for connectivity in remote areas even in the absence of ground reception.