 A very good evening aspirants. Welcome to Hindi News Analysis brought to you by Shankar IAS Academy for the date 1st of August 2022. The list of articles we are going to discuss today is displayed on the screen. You can go through it. Now let's start the discussion. See this news article here. This news article talks about a state scheme called the Aurunodai scheme. Today's news is that under the scheme additional amount will be provided to beneficiaries to buy flags. Why because in this month we will be celebrating our 75th Independence Day. Okay, so let us focus on the scheme now. See Aurunodai or Aurunodai scheme as I said it is a state scheme. It was launched by the government of Assam in 2020. The name Aurunodai means sunrise and it is social welfare scheme that has been objectives. One is the economic empowerment of women and second is to bring the poor households out of the below poverty line. Under the scheme monetary benefits are provided to the poor or economically backward households in the state. It aims to cover more than 24 lakh poor households. See actually the beneficiaries are the women of the poor household. Women are given importance as they are the primary caretakers of the family. So through this money the scheme aims to provide financial assistance to the women of the family. And this is why if there is no woman in the family that household would be excluded from the benefit and such beneficiaries should be a permanent resident of Assam and currently reside in Assam and their composite household income should not exceed 2 lakh per annum. So what is the monetary benefit here? A sum of Rs.1000 is provided every month through direct benefit transfer scheme. Note that from this October the amount is increased to Rs.1250. The state government has a rationale behind this amount. It is to be used for procuring medicines, pulses, sugar and essential fruits and vegetables. So through this financial assistance the scheme aims to take care of health needs, nutritional needs and medical needs of a family. This is the first significance of the scheme. Secondly it provides an assured minimum monthly cash flow to the underprivileged families. Thirdly by fulfilling these needs the scheme envisages poverty eradication and socioeconomic inclusion. Fourthly such unconditional cash transfers act as a recognition of women's unpaid domestic and care work. See this amount is definitely not equivalent with women's unpaid domestic and care work but still it offers some recognition. So that is all about this news article. In this news article we saw about Orunoda scheme of Assam and its benefits. With these learned points let us move on to next news article discussion. See this text and context article here. This article is about the Technology Powering Hybrid Electric Vehicles. So this article is wholly about the hybrid electric vehicles shortly referred as HEP. So in this discussion we are going to see what is the hybrid electric vehicle, how does it work, how is it different from normal electric vehicles and finally we will see some pros and cons of hybrid electric vehicle. Before that the syllabus relevant to this article discussion is highlighted here for your reference. You can go through first of all what is the hybrid? See hybrid is something that is a mixture of two very different things. So hybrid vehicle is the one that uses two or more distinct type of power. For example submarines use diesel when surfaced and use batteries when submerged. So it uses both battery and diesel. So it can be called as hybrid vehicle. Now what is the hybrid electric vehicle? It is a type of hybrid vehicle that combines a conventional internal combustion engine with an electric propulsion system. Okay that is all. See the powering mechanism of a hybrid electric vehicle is quite complex when compared to a regular internal combustion engine powered car. This is because the mechanism has both the components of electric vehicles and the conventional internal combustion engine system. When we use the components of both these electric vehicles and internal combustion engine the complexity develops. Okay now let us see the powering mechanism in an HEV. See hybrid electric vehicle powering mechanism are designed to power cars in a serial parallel or serious parallel methods. So what are these methods? Now let us see that. See in serious HEV it uses only the electric motor to drive the wheels. Here the internal combustion engine powers the generator which in turn reaches the battery. Okay this is about serious HEV. Now coming to parallel hybrid electric vehicle it uses the best power source to power the vehicle based on the driving condition. Now what does this mean? It means that a parallel HEV will alternate between the electric motor and the internal combustion engine to keep the car moving. Okay now what is this serious parallel HEV? As the name suggests it offers a combination of both the bow models meaning the combination of both the serious and parallel model. Basically it allows to split the power. Moreover in all three designs the battery is charged through regenerative braking technology. What is this regenerative braking technology? See just remember when you apply the brakes on the vehicle some sort of energy is wasted. This wasted energy is used to recharge the car's batteries. This is called regenerative braking technology. Okay that is when you apply the brake the energy is regenerated. That is how you have to remember. Okay we have seen so many examples in the news for example Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara and Toyota Urban Cruiser. They are all hybrid vehicles. Okay now let's see some advantages in using hybrid electric vehicles. The first advantage is fuel efficiency. See it is a major factor for most people who are considering to buy a car. Most vehicles with hybrid technology offer better fuel efficiency and more power and this leads to the second advantage which is it has a minimum emissions. When the fuel is used efficiently of course there will be a minimum emission. Okay now coming to the third advantage it gives increased mileage. When our car is fuel efficient it will obviously increase the mileage right and the factor that helps in achieving this increased mileage is the design of hybrid vehicles with reduced engine size and the car weight when compared to other vehicles okay. Moreover with the increase in the total power and torque this hybrid electric vehicles can deliver instant torque and provide high torque even at low speeds. These are the advantages. Now let's see some challenges. One of the major challenges for this vehicle that is the hybrid electric vehicles is the high cost of the vehicle. You should know why it has high cost because the battery which is a vital component of this vehicle increases the cost of this vehicle and we also discussed about this regenerative braking system right. This also adds to the higher cost of this vehicle and this is a major factor because India is a price sensitive market. When the price is high the people will be demotivated to buy any vehicles. See we know that the automotive industry is undergoing a transition with an increasing focus on hybrid and battery electric vehicles because there are certain factors which drive the growth of the global electric vehicle market. These factors includes the rise in the fossil fuel prices and the increase in the adoption of clean mobility solutions and stringent government norms for emission control drive okay. Finally the strong hybrid electric vehicles will play a critical role in reducing fossil fuel consumption, carbon emissions and pollution. Additionally it also plays critical role in creating a local EV parts manufacturing ecosystem okay. So it will ensure a faster and disruption free technology transition okay. So that's all regarding this news article. In this news article we saw about what is hybrid and what is hybrid electric vehicles and then we saw some pros and cons regarding the hybrid electric vehicles. With these learned points let's move on to next news article discussion. See this editorial article. This editorial article talks about the issue of public stock holdings of grains for food security purposes. See the WTO's 12th ministerial conference took place from 12th to 17th June 2022 at World Trade Organization headquarters in Geneva. Ministers from across the world attended the conference to review the functioning of multilateral trading system and in that India demanded for a permanent solution for the issue of public stock holdings of grains for food security purposes. So in this backdrop let us quickly go through some of the important points mentioned in the news article. Before that the syllabus relevant to this news article is given here. Please go through it. So first of all what is public stock holdings of grains? See public stock holding program is a policy tool under which the government procure crops like rice and wheat from farmers at minimum support price that is MSP. Then the grains are stored and distributed to the poor people. Here MSP is a form of market intervention by the government of India. It is the price at which the government procure certain crops from farmers. Why it is done? This is done to insure them against any sharp fall in prices. So MSP is normally higher than the prevailing market rates meaning it is like an indirect form of subsidy given by the government and they are sold at a low price for poor people to ensure food security. You should know why we are doing this. See according to many reports two-third of people of India live in poverty. Around 70% of Indian population lives on less than $2 per day. So to address this government distributes food grain to the people who are living below poverty line. But the World Trade Organization's agreement on agriculture which we call AOA agreement limits the ability of a government to purchase food at MSP because under WTO law such price support based procurement from farmers is considered as a trade distorting subsidy and if the grains are supplied in excess of the permitted limit it violates WTO regulations. According to global trade norms WTO member countries food subsidy bill should not breach the limit of 10% of the value of production based on the reference price of 1986 to 1988. But there is something called peace clause. See under peace clause countries cannot bring legal challenges against price support based procurement for food security purposes. So India as of now has a temporary relief due to this peace clause. But the issue here is that India cannot use this clause indefinitely because beyond a limit India cannot prove that it is procuring food grains only for food security purposes. So a permanent solution to this issue is crucial. So this is the background of the issue. Now we shall see three perspectives of the issue. First we shall see about why WTO considers MSP as a trade distorting subsidy. Then we will see about India stand on the issue and finally we will see about the Arthur's perspective on the issue. Now let us start with AOA agreement of WTO. See under the agreement on agriculture subsidies are categorized into two parts on the basis of their trade distorting nature. First is the green box subsidies. These are permitted subsidies because they have either no or minimal trade distorting effect. Subsidies by developing countries most notably the US and the European Union fall under this category. There is no limit on the amount of green box subsidy as of now. The other category is amber box subsidies. They are defined under article 6 of the agreement on agriculture. These subsidies have a potentially damaging effect on trade and distort the relevant market or in other words WTO law prohibits countries from exporting food grain procured at subsidized prices. There is a sound economic rationale behind it because allowing a country to export food grain procured at subsidized prices would give that country an unfair advantage in global agricultural trade. The country concerned will sell food grain in the international market at a very low price which in turn will depress the global prices and it will have an adverse impact on the agricultural trade of other countries. Because of this reason WTO says that the subsidies need to be gradually reduced to ensure compliance with global norms. WTO members had first negotiated these commitments at the Uruguay round of negotiations and thereafter it has been discussed at subsequent ministerial conference and committee meetings of the WTO. Now let us see the India stand. See in the recent past there were many uncertainties ranging from the COVID-19 pandemic to the recent Russia-Ukraine war. Especially the Russia-Ukraine conflict has triggered a food crisis in a number of countries. India wished to extend its hand to support the countries which is currently facing food crisis but it could not export more beyond a limit. So during the recently concluded ministerial conference, first India demanded the WTO to allow export of food grain from public stocks for international food aid and for humanitarian purposes. That too on a government to government basis. Here India indirectly insisted on a permanent solution to public stock holding policy. Secondly, India insists that it should also be allowed to export food most notably wheat from the pool of food grain procured under MSP. Here India's concern is that it should have the policy space to hold public food stocks using the MSP which is just a price support instrument. So these were the India's concern. Now according to para 10 of Geneva ministerial food security declaration it is stated that countries may release surplus food stocks in the international market but it should be in accordance with the WTO law. Remember that the waiver for wheat exports is still pending. It is not completely agreed upon. Okay? Also under article 93 of the WTO agreement waivers can be adopted only in exceptional circumstances. But according to the author, even once in a century pandemic like COVID-19 was not even acknowledged as an exceptional circumstances for the IP waiver. That means intellectual property waiver is restricted to only COVID-19 vaccines and it does not cover diagnostics and therapeutics. So there is a very narrow possibility of recognizing the ongoing war as an exceptional circumstance to adopt a waiver for wheat exports from public stocks. Okay? So what the author tries to say is that even COVID-19 is not an exceptional circumstance to avail WTO waiver. So India cannot use the reason of ongoing war for wheat exports from public stocks. Okay? That is it. Now let us see the author's perspective. See developed countries have historically opposed India's public stock holding program because they argue that India might divert some of its public stock to the international market depressing global prices. If India actively pushes for exporting food from its official granaries, then it will provide new opportunities for these developed countries to strongly oppose India on public stock holding issue. So according to the author, India should revisit its stand on asking for a waiver for wheat exports from its public stock holding. So instead of delaying the permanent solution for the public stock holding program, India should have a crystal clear negotiations at the WTO by adding new objectives because shifting gold posts might result in falling between two stools. Okay? So that is all regarding this news article, this editorial article we saw about the public stock holding program of India, WTO's agreement on agriculture, India's stand on food grains exports and finally we saw about the author's perspective regarding this issue. With these key learned points, let us move on to next news article discussion. See this article, this article mentions about Lingayeths. According to the article, the Akhilaparada Veerashiva Mahasabha have demanded the Karnataka government to recommend the inclusion of Veerashiva Lingayeths on the central OBC list. While this is going on one side, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has visited certain powerful Lingayeths Madhas in central Karnataka. Let us not get deep inside the issue here. Instead, let us quickly learn about Veerashiva or Lingayeths. Firstly, who are the Lingayeths? See, the Lingayeths were a religious community and they preeminently observed the tenets of Shaiva religion. That is, it is a sect devoted to the worship of Shiva. But now, this sect has developed into a caste. They are also known as Lingavans, Shivabakas and Veerashivas. But among these, the preferred name is Veerashivas. That is why in the news article, they are referred with this name. They possess a non-caste religion. They acknowledge the supremacy of the Vedas but they descend from the performance of the sacrifices. This religion is predominant in the present day Karnataka. Now, talking about the origin of Lingayethism. See, the tradition of Lingayethism is known to have been founded by social reformer and philosopher Basavanna in 12th century in Karnataka. While it is debatable whether Basavanna founded the sect or simply reorganized an existing order, there is no doubt that under his leadership, the community acquired the form of well-organized, structured mass movement. Followers of the sect continued to revere him as the founder and prime philosopher of their religion. Now, we shall see about Basavanna. See, he is one of the prominent social reformers. He had egalitarian views. That is, he believed in the principle that all people are equal and deserve equal rights and opportunities. He believed in the enlightenment and welfare of all including the people belonging to the so-called low caste or outcast, that is the persons who are rejected by the society as untouchables. Another important reform proclaimed by him was the remarriage of widows. This is also one of the biggest bones of contention with Brahmanas who were opposed to it. He even established the Anupavamantapa, which means spiritual parliament. In this Anupavamantapa, hundreds of Sharanas, men and women took part in the spiritual discussions. Sharanas means those who had dedicated themselves to serve humanity and God. All of them together condemned the categorization of the society based on caste, sub-caste and its various connotations including untouchability. They gave wisdom to everyone through their Vachana writings. Vachana means poetry. By this, they established a Kalyana Rajya. Here, Kalyana means welfare. Rajya means state. So, they established a welfare state. So, this is about the article. In this article discussion, we saw about Lingayaths, the origin of Lingayathism. And finally, we saw about Basavanna. With these key learned points, let us move on to the next news article. See this article here. This article talks about a rescue center that has been helping injured and rescued wildlife. It is significant because it is the first of its kind by the Tamil Nadu Forest Department. This rescue center is located inside the Gindi National Park in Chennai. The article states that the pelican with an injured wing and a monkey which was being bitten by dogs were rescued by the officials. The officials also constructed a new post-mortem room. This news is significant because we rarely see such rescue center exclusive for animals. You can quote about these kinds of rescue centers in your main sansa writing regarding biodiversity conservation. It will be unique. Now, coming to the Gindi National Park, it is the eighth smallest national park in India. And it is one of the very few national parks located inside a city. For instance, Gindi National Park is situated inside Chennai. The park is an extension of a ground surrounding Rajpavan, formerly known as Gindi Lodge, which is the official residence of the governor of Tamil Nadu. This green patch with the multitude of trees, scrubs and herbs purifies the air and also acts as a habitat for a wide number of fauna species. Though this tiny area is surrounded by a concrete jungle and human habitations that exert intense biotic pressure, the biodiversity inside the park is amazing. It is one of the last remnants of tropical dry evergreen forest of the Coromandel Coast. The ecosystem consists of the rare tropical dry evergreen scrub and tron forest that receive about 1200 millimeters of rain annually. About 350 species of plants have been identified so far, including trees, scrubs, climbbers, herbs and grasses. Also know that Gindi Snake Park is located next to the Gindi National Park. It gained statutory recognition as a medium zoo from the Central Zoo Authority in 1995. Here one can see king gobras, pythons, vipers and other reptiles. See the ecosystem services provided by this kind of protected area have immense value. They include sequestration of carbon dioxide, release of oxygen, conserving soil, preventing floods, mitigating climate change, improving water quality, generation of employment opportunities, revenue generation in addition to recreational aesthetic and spiritual benefits. So that is all regarding this news article. In this news article, we saw about the rescue center located inside the Gindi National Park. Then we saw in brief about the National Park and Gindi Snake Park. Then we finally ended our discussion by seeing the ecosystem services provided by this kind of protected areas. With these learned points, let us move on to next part of our news article discussion which is preliminary practice question discussion. Today we have two questions. Look at the first question. Schemes are displayed on one side and the associated governments are displayed on another side. We have to find the correct pair. Statement one, Lakshmir-Bandhar, West Bengal, Griha-Adhar scheme, Goa, Urunodhai scheme, Azam. Look at the first pair. It is correct. Lakshmir-Bandhar is a state scheme of West Bengal. It provides an assured monthly income to the female members of all families of the state to improve their financial condition and promote women empowerment. All female residents aged between 25 to 60 years are eligible. Women from scheduled cast or scheduled tribes, households gets Rs. 1000 per month and other women get Rs. 500 per month. The second scheme, Griha-Adhar scheme, it is also correctly matched. It is a scheme of Goa government. The objective of the scheme is to address the problem of spiraling prizes and to provide support to the homemakers from middle, lower middle and poor section of the society. This will help them to maintain a reasonable standard of living for their families. Under this scheme, a monthly disbursement of amount of Rs. 1500 is provided every month directly at the hands of homemakers. Now coming to the third pair, it is also correct. This we saw in the discussion itself, right? So, the answer here will be option C on three pairs. Now look at the second question. It is regarding Lingayats. Consider the following statements about the Lingayats. Statement 1, they bury, they're dead. Statement 2, they are great believers in the caste system especially in theory of purity and pollution. Statement 3, they are against child marriage and favor widow remarriage. We have to find the correct statement here. See, statement 1 is correct because they believe that on death, the devotee will be united with Shiva and will not return to this world. So, they ceremonially bury their dead. Statement 2, it is wrong because as we saw in the discussion, the Lingayats challenge the idea of caste and the pollution attributed to certain groups by Brahmanas. Statement 3, it is correct because they were against the post puberty marriage and favored the remarriage of widows. So, the correct answer for this question is option D, 1 and 3 only. The main questions based on today's discussion is displayed on the screen. You can write the answer and post it in the comment section. If you like the video, hit the like button, post your comments and share the video with your friends. And don't forget to subscribe Shankar IAS Academy YouTube channel. Thanks for watching.