 Hello and welcome to the Hindu News Analysis by Shankar Iyer's Academy. Here is the agenda of the day. First, we are going to discuss these news articles followed by five prelims questions discussion. Let us start the news analysis with this article. In this news article, many terms which we often seen in news are discussed. So, in this context, we will discuss all these agree-related terms in exam point of view. First, let us talk about NABART or National Ban for Agriculture and Rural Development. Know that it came into existence in 1982 by transferring the agricultural grade functions of RBI and refinanced functions of Agricultural Refinance and Development Corporation. So, it means the functions of two bodies are transferred into a single body that is NABART. So, coming to its mission, it aims to promote sustainable and equitable agriculture and rural development. And its major functions include promotion and development refinancing, financing, planning, monitoring and supervision with respect to agriculture and rural development. And know that government of India holds 100% stake in NABART. First, let us see what are the existing schemes and funds regarding agriculture and rural development. Later, we will talk about the proposed reforms under Atma Nirbar Bharatabhiyan or Self Reliant India Mission. Here comes the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund. This fund was created by Union government under NABART in 1995-96. So, as the name suggests, that is Rural Infrastructure Development Fund, it was created to finance rural infrastructure projects. At present, there are around 37 eligible activities under RIDF as approved by government. And these activities are classified under three broad categories. Agriculture and Related Sector, Social Sector and Rural Connectivity. And coming to institutions which are eligible to get fund from RIDF are state governments, state-owned corporations, state government undertakings, Panchayatraj, self-help groups, NGOs, etc. So, this is all about RIDF. Know that this fund is established under NABART and it aims to finance rural infrastructure projects. So, this is all about RIDF. And there is one more term which we often see in news that is FPO's Farmer Producer Organizations. Simply put, it is a producer organization where the members are farmers. So, the main aim of an FPO is to ensure better income for the farmers through an organization of their own. So, we can say it like this, corporatization of farming. Know that FPO's are significant for India because nearly 86% of farmers in India are small and marginal farmers. The average land holding size in the country is around one hectare. So, we need FPO's wherein small farmers come together and support each other. So, in this sense, FPO's empower farmers and increase their standard of living through better opportunities and income generation. Here it is important to know that small farmers agree business consortium is providing support for the promotion of FPO's. The same small farmers agree business consortium is also coordinating body for ENEM, that is, National Agricultural Market. Now, let us see the major reforms announced under Atma Nirbar Bharat Avyan. We know that government has come up with 20 lakh crore package to revive the Indian economy which was severely hit by Covid pandemic. And as a part of this package, a few reforms are also focused on farm sector. For example, the reforms include amending Essential Commodities Act of 1955, as well as APMC Act. And government also proposed for the setting up of Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund, similar to Rural Infrastructure Development Fund. As just said, this fund was set up under Atma Nirbar Bharat Avyan and it is aimed to incentivize private sector investments in infrastructure for dairy and meat processing, that is milk and meat. Further, this fund also promotes private investments in value addition infrastructure and establishment of animal feed plant. So, who are eligible to get funding under this AHIDF? So, the eligible beneficiaries are FPO's, MSMA's, private companies, individual entrepreneurs, etc. So, whoever wishes to get a loan, they should contribute a minimum 10% margin money. And the rest 90% will be given as a loan by government through scheduled banks. Also, the government provides 3% interest subvention to eligible beneficiaries. So, here, subvention means if normal interest rate is 7%, out of 7%, government will provide 3% and only 4% should be borne by the consumer or beneficiary. And the size of this Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund is around 15,000 crores. So, this is all about newly set Animal Husbandry Infrastructure Development Fund. And further reforms under this package include amending Essential Commodity Act of 1955. So, firstly, what is this act? Know that this act was enacted to control the production, supply and distribution of certain commodities, which are very important in the interest of general public. So, whenever a commodity is branded as an essential commodity, government puts a set of restrictions like pricing, hoarding of commodities, etc. Though this act was brought in the interest of larger public, it acted against the interest of farmers. So, because of serious restrictions on sale and storing of commodities, the farmers are losing the income. So, because of these restrictions, no large private investment has been made in this sector. So, now, under this Atman-Irbar Bharat, the act is going to be amended to enable better price realization for farmers. And this will happen by attracting investments and making agriculture sector more competitive. For example, the amendment include deregulation of agricultural foodstuffs like cereals, edible oils, oil seeds, etc. So, which means unlike previously, stock limit will not be imposed on these commodities. So, under the existing regime, government can set up stock limits for all these commodities. Now, these commodities will be deregulated. So, reducing controls under ECA would expand India's exports in agriculture and also enables a large private investment in this sector. And next proposed reforms are in APMC Act, that is, Agricultural Produce Market Committee Act. So, under this APMC Act, in many states, farmers are required to sell a large number of commodities only in markets, that is, Mondays or Market Yards. And here, farmers are supposed to pay high intermediation costs. This mandatory selling of farm produce in APMCs has led to rise of lot of middlemen. So, due to the rise of middlemen, the income of farmers have been further reduced and pushed them into poverty. In addition to this, the existing APMC acts also led to formation of cartels of buyers. So, what happens is, in APMCs, all buyers will fix a price and farmer has to sell the produce only at that price. Instead of competitive bidding, the buyers are fixing the prices, which is very non-remunerative to farmers. So, to eliminate this problem, the act will be amended to allow farmers to sell their produce outside the APMC Act. So, by doing so, this will bring greater competition amongst buyers as well as eliminating the intermediation fee and commission to middlemen. This amendment is also expected to remove barriers in interstate trade. So, by doing this, it will help farmers in the regions with surplus produce to get better prices and consumers in regions with shortage of farm produce. So, this is all what is discussed in the news article. So, today we have discussed about NABARD, Rural Infrastructure Development Fund, Farmer Producer Organizations and Reforms Proposed under Atma Nirbar Bharat Abhyan. Let us move on to the next news article. Let us take up this news article, which mentions the plight of Bhopal's Zardosi Artists. So, in this context, let us discuss the Zardosi or Sari-Zardosi craft work. So, first know that it is an art of metal embroidery. In ancient period, the gold and silver threads were used in this craft work to decorate the attire of kings and royals in ancient India. The existence of this work can be dated back to Vedic period, but it was only during the medieval era when this craft work played a significant role during Mughal rulers, and this craft work reached its peak during the reign of Emperor Anwar. Later, the proficiency of this gold thread embroidery was carried forward by the other great Mughal rulers like Shah Jahan. However, immediately after Shah Jahan, this craft suffered a major setback under the rule of Aurangazeb, and in the later periods, mainly during colonial rule, there were no patterns for this work, and it was almost neglected. Again, post-independence, this craft work was patronized and got a fresh lease of life. Know that this Zari-Zardosi is one of the most important elements of Persian culture. The name is derived from the two Persian terms, Zir means gold, and Dozi means embroidery. So, it is golden embroidery. It is one of the most famous and elaborate techniques in metal embroidery involving intricate designs of gold and silver threads, and these craftsmen were called Zardos during Mughal period. Wears note this word Zardos, a potential area where a pilgrim's cushion can be framed, and depending upon the use of raw materials, this Zari embroidery is segregated into three different types, real Zari, imitation Zari, and metallic Zari. In real Zari, pure gold and silver are used. In imitation Zari, the copper wires with silver coating are used. Finally, in metallic Zari, a metallized film is slitted over the polyester. And coming to its geographical location, in India, Zardosi embroidery is mainly a specialty of Lucknow, Surat, Bhopal, Hyderabad, Delhi, etc. And know that the Zardos of Lucknow as well as Surat are protected under geographical indication tax. I am telling again Lucknow Zardosi as well as Surat Zari are having GI tax. So, this is all about this news article where we have discussed about Zari Zardosi craft work or golden embroidery. So, how this topic can be used in your mains answer writing. If you see here, there was a previous here mains question. Highlight the Central Asian and Greeko-bacterian elements in Gandhara art. So, in this question, we are supposed to write the Central Asian, that is Mesopotamian, that is Iran, as well as Greece and Bacterian elements in Gandhara art. We can expect a similar question like write about the Persian elements in Indian art and architecture. Here you can write about this Zardosi art form, which is of Persian origin. So, this is all about this news article. The practice question will be discussed at the end of session. Let us take up this news column from editorial page. So, this article talks about the estimates of worsening poverty situation in the country, mainly because of the COVID-19. Also, the authors provide certions to roll back the livelihood shock induced by the pandemic. And this front-page news article presents us some important facts related to Megnarega or MGnarega program. So, all these details will be discussed in the coming discussion. The relevant syllabus is highlighted here for your reference. First, let us see the impact of lockdown on the quantification of the poverty. So, it means how lockdown has affected the poverty in the country. If you see, various reports and surveys highlight the massive scale of falling incomes and loss of means of livelihood. Obviously, the both are related, that is, the falling income as well as loss of livelihood, which are directly related. And these impacts of this pandemic-imposed lockdown are growing larger day by day due to high newly confirmed infections. So, what happens because of this is, many people in the country have been pushed to various depths of poverty. On the authors estimate that, even before the lockdown, around 42% of Indian population were poor. It means around 56 crores of India are below the poverty line. See, before the lockdown, around 50% of Indian population were in the margins to fall into poverty. So, here 15% is nearly equal to 20 crore. Here, margins mean the income of these 20 crore people is just above the poverty line. So, even if their income is reduced by few hundreds of rupees, they fall into poverty. As you all know, the pandemic had put a lot of pressure on the earnings of this population segment. So, these people who were slightly above the below poverty line were sucked up into the poverty due to the lockdown. So, as a result of this pandemic, two things happened. One is poverty deepening. So, what is poverty deepening? See, here poverty deepening refers to a scenario where those who were already poor are suffering a further worsening of their quality of life. It means the people are already poor, but due to new problems, they are suffering even more poverty. That is called poverty deepening. And authors state that 16% of the population were in extreme poverty. And now this number is going to increase to 47% of our population. So, this means around 31% of our population are being pushed into extreme poverty, from 16 to 47%. 47% is nearly equal to 50 crore population. So, this is the scale of poverty deepening in India due to the pandemic. The second happening is that more and more people are pushed into poverty. As we just said, many people are in the margins of the below poverty line. So, these people are being pushed into poverty due to the lockdown. So, authors estimate that an additional 40 crore people or 30% of the population were pushed below poverty line. This means, at present as per the estimates of authors, around 96 crore Indians or 72% of Indian population are living in poverty. Yes, this sounds very disturbing. So, this is how the quantification of scale of poverty is impacted due to the lockdown. And whooping 72% of Indian population is now living in poverty. So, what are the solutions given by the authors to prevent this further aggravation of poverty situation in the country? As you know, in the recent articles, many of the times we have suggested the revamping of MG Narega program. So, even today, the authors say that the revamping of MG Narega is must for improving the standards of poverty people. And authors feel that the 20 rupees wage increase is just a nominal and very negligible in comparison to the overall magnitude of the crisis. Yes, government has increased the wage by 20 rupees under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana or package, which comes under Atma Nirbar Bharat Abhyan. So, here authors say that, first the wages per day has to be further increased to arrest the economic impact which is pushing many people into poverty. Secondly, as we all know, under this MG Narega program, a minimum of 100 days of guaranteed wage employment is given to every rural household in a year. Guys, here household is important. It is not 100 days for each person, it is 100 days for each household. And here authors say that, government should revise this program for at least next 6 months. They suggest that every rural household can be given at least 20 days of employment in one month for a period of next 6 months. So, it means every household should be given 20 days of work per month in the coming 6 months. So, this is a temporary solution given by the authors. And this front page article says that, many activists are requesting the government to increase the number of employment days to at least 200 days for one financial year. So, they are asking to increase the 100 days of guaranteed employment to 200 days for next 1 financial year. So, this becomes very important as many of the households are going to complete their 100 days of work by this month, that is July. If they are going to complete 100 days of work by July, how are they going to survive the next remaining 5 months? As you know, many people have lost jobs and even livelihoods because of lockdown as well as COVID-19. So, one side they are going to complete their 100 days of work. On the other side, there are no other jobs to do. So, how will they survive? So, this is why many associations as well as activists are requesting the government to increase the guaranteed wage employment for 200 days from current 100 days. So, in this context, have a look at this enabling provision in MG Narega Act of 2005. So, this provision allows both center as well as state governments to extend the working days to any period when it is expedient to do so. So, whenever required, the state or central governments within their limits of their economic capacity can increase the number of guaranteed employment days. A next important suggestion given by the authors is to extend the Employment Guarantee Program to urban areas as well. Here it is important to note that the Narega stands for National Rural Employment Guarantee Act. So, this scheme is applicable only in rural areas. Now, a similar program is required for urban areas as well according to the authors. So, why a similar program like Narega is required in urban areas? Here answer is to arrest the rivers migration and to stabilize the urban economy. As we all know, many people from urban areas have rivers migrated to their villages due to loss of employment in cities. So, if all the people working in cities go back to their villages, then urban economy will fall down. So, to arrest this rivers migration and to stabilize the urban economy, we need an Urban Employment Guarantee Program. Here authors say that the Employment Guarantee Program is a great blessing in the present time. On one hand, this program gives employment to the people. On the other hand, the durable assets are created. But now, the government is going to have a huge demand for employment under this scheme. All that the government has to do is, the right planning to utilize the available labor resource for the creation of durable infrastructure. Next measure is to start an indirect branch of Narega program. So, this is to revive micro-small medium enterprises. So, here authors mean that government shall provide wage subsidy for MSME workers as well. As we all know, MSMEs are the backbone to Indian economy. So, by providing a wage subsidy to MSMEs, their losses can be reduced substantially, thereby helping them to come out of this economic crisis due to lockdown. So, next solution is with reference to public distribution system, that is, PDS or Targeted PDS. Here authors say that, at this moment, first priority should be given to those individuals who are not yet identified under PDS. Yes, there are few sections of people who are vulnerable, yet they haven't been identified as a beneficiary of PDS. Yes, this happened in Delhi. So, many sections of these vulnerable people were found to be excluded under PDS in Delhi. It was reported that persons belonging to scheduled costs and vulnerable people in minorities were left out of the process. So, authors say that an inclusive PDS is the need of the hover. The last assertion is that there is a need to reorient economic progress and development programs. So, this is mainly to include the vulnerable and marginalized sections, which are the poor and low income groups. Here authors say that the neoliberal or the new liberal growth we have experienced since 1990s has been largely through breaking the back of labouring class. It means, by exploiting the labour class, the Indian economy has attained very high growth. The Indian economy grew by paying less and less to workers and allowed surplus to accumulate in the hands of owners. While the government expected that the surplus would be reinvested and ultimately, labour will be benefited by getting the wages. But unfortunately, the surplus has been accumulated to a very high extent and people below poverty line also increased to a very great extent. So, this is why the authors say that there is a need to reorient economic progress and development programs in the country. Authors, to support this statement, further state that the reorienting of economic programs and progress is required to prevent the hunger deaths as well as extreme poverty. So, to prevent these hunger deaths as well as extreme poverty, all vulnerable groups have to be covered with social security benefits with much needed equity focus. Here equity means giving more to the people who are disadvantaged. Equality means giving same thing to everyone. These are the different solutions given by the authors. With this, we come to end of this news article discussion. Let us take up this opiate column written by the former senior vice president to World Bank. The author says that there is an urgent need to confront air pollution, global warming, and strengthening health systems before the next health crisis. Here, he means that before the arrival of one more COVID-19 like health crisis, the countries must be prepared by reducing air pollution and strengthening the health systems. So, in this discussion, we shall try to take the important takeaways from the news article in exam perspective. So, firstly, the author says that there are two dangers to people's health associated with efforts of government and private sector in reviving the economy. According to him, the first danger air pollution and greenhouse gases, and second danger a weak public health system. Further, author says that India must listen to the warnings which are relating health disasters with air pollution as well as global warming. So, he takes an example to explain this statement. If you see, there is an association between pollution levels in cities and COVID-19 infections followed by death rates. So, this link is observed in New York, few provinces of Italy, Delhi, Maharashtra, Gujarat, etc. So, all these places are having high level of pollution and have seen a high death rate and infections of COVID-19. So, author is trying to say that the pollution levels and health disasters are related. Later, author says that there are even other factors which decide the mortality in COVID-19. For example, the COVID-19 death rate in states like Kerala, Tamil Nadu is very less even though pollution levels are high there. This is because the second danger the author talked about that is health care system or public health system. See, many of us know that the Kerala and Tamil Nadu health systems are one of the best in the country. The author continues by saying that India is ranked as world's fifth most vulnerable country to climate change. And next article mentions the Global Health Security Index. So, according to this index, many countries including India are not ready for combating health disasters. So, in this context, let us see what is Global Health Security Index. Know that this security index is an assessment and benchmarking of health security and related capabilities of nations in the world. This index assesses about 195 countries which are state parties to international health regulations i.e. IHR 2005. So, what is this IHR 2005? It is an agreement under WHO between state parties to work together for global health security. So, this Global Health Security Index assesses and benchmarks the health security of all the state parties to IHR. So, who publishes this index? See, this index is a project of Nuclear Threat Initiative and Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. And it is developed with Economic Intelligence Unit. So, this is all about this news article. This news article discussion is going to be based on recently released World Drug Report 2020. If you recollect, on 27th June, we talked about this World Drug Report 2020. On that day, we also said that this report was released by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime. Further, we also talked about UNODC in detail on 27th June. So, to get a brief understanding about UNODC, please watch that video. Coming to this discussion, today we are going to talk about the important findings of this report. And we also see why India is vulnerable to this OPM or OPAIDS. The relevant syllabus for this discussion is highlighted here for your reference. Firstly, the World Drug Report says that 84% of total OPM was produced in Afghanistan. Apart from this, Myanmar and Lavo PDR or Laos account for around 7% and 1% of global OPM production respectively. From Afghanistan, the OPM is supplied to neighboring countries, including Europe, West Asia, South Asia, Africa, etc. In this context, the report says that the highest amount of OPM was seized in Iran followed by Afghanistan, Pakistan, and India. Yes, the India is in fourth place in terms of seizure of OPM. Similarly, the OPM produced in Myanmar and Laos is supplied to East and Southeast Asia as well as Oceania countries. And talking about one more OPAID drug that is heroin, India is a 12th position in the world in terms of heroin seizure. The highest seizure was reported in Iran followed by Turkey, US, China, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. Further, the report says that despite a decline in global area under OPM Poppy cultivation, the OPM production remained stable in 2019. Here OPM Poppy means the plant name, and OPM is the substance extracted from this OPM Poppy plant. Here are some of other important findings as per World Drug Report 2020. Almost 70% of total OPAIDs, OPAIDs means drugs from OPM. So 70% of total OPAIDs are seized from Asia precisely in southwest Asia. And Asia is host to more than 90% of global illicit OPM production, as well as Asia is also the largest consumption market for OPAIDs in the world. So Asia is not just the biggest producer, but also the biggest consumer of these OPAIDs, that is, OPM drugs. Now a doubt may arise in your mind. So why is this Asian continent highly vulnerable to OPM production? So to understand this concentration of OPM production in Asia, we should understand the golden triangle and the golden crescent. Here it is very important to know that the entire South Asian countries, including India, are wedged between the world's two largest areas of illicit Poppy cultivation. So these two largest areas are commonly referred as golden crescent and golden triangle. So when we say golden crescent, it means the OPM producing areas in Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan. As you can see, a crescent shape is formed here. And talking about golden triangle, it refers to OPM producing areas in Southeast Asia, comprising parts of Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, as well as Vietnam. So now that you can understand that two of the largest OPM producing sites are in Asia. This further coupled with huge population and weak economic growth makes Asia the largest illicit OPM producer, as well as largest consumer for OPAIDs. In Indian context, if you ask, is there any provision regarding these drugs and narcotics in our constitution? Yes, there is one provision in Article 47. Yes, Article 47 refers to direct to principles of state policy. So this Article 47 states that, the state shall endeavor to bring about the prohibition of the consumption except for medicinal purposes of intoxicating drinks and of drugs which are injurious to health. So here drugs refer to these narcotics as well as opiates. And there is one body which coordinates the control of narcotics in India, which is Narcotics Control Bureau, that is NCB. See, this NCB is an Indian intelligence agency under Ministry of Home Affairs. And this bureau is responsible for fighting drug trafficking in India. And talking about its establishment, this body was created in 1986 under Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act of 1985. So by this, you can infer that NCB is a statutory body. Its functions include, like it coordinates the actions by various officers, state governments and other authorities under the Customs Act 1962, Drugs and Cosmetics Act of 1940, etc. It also implements countermeasures against illicit trafficking under various international conventions. With this, we come to end of this news article discussion. So here we have discussed about World Drug Report, as well as Golden Triangle, Golden Crescent, Wise Asia, Biggest Producer, as well as Biggest Consumer for Opiates and the Narcotics Control Bureau under Ministry of Home Affairs. So this is all about this news article. Before moving on to next part of discussion, we shall have a small discussion about cocaine. Many of you might have heard about this name, mostly in movies. This cocaine is a one more narcotic substance mainly produced and consumed in North America as well as South America. So once upon a time, these cocaine producing mafias in Colombia almost ruled the state, I mean the Colombian country here. So one prominent name here is Pablo Escobar. He is considered the drug lord of cocaine and Colombia. Google this name Pablo Escobar and you will find a lot of interesting details. With this, we have come to the last part of today's discussion that is Prelims Practice Questions The first question, the World Drug Report is released by, as you all know, the correct answer is Option D, United Nations Office on Drug and Crime. Moving on to next question, so this question is more of an informative question and has been framed in the interest of beginners in UPSC preparation. Question states, consider the following statements with reference to latest announcements made in the form sector under Atma Nelbar Bharat Abhyan. Statement 1, the Essential Commodities Act of 1955 will be amended to impose stock limit on commodities like cereals, edible oils, oil seeds, pulses, onions, and potato, etc. Now this statement is incorrect because under the proposed reforms, this act will be amended to reduce the restrictions or deregulate this sector. Coming to statement 2, the APMC Act will be amended to allow farmers to sell their produce to anyone outside the APMC yard. Yes, this statement is correct. As of now, farmers can sell their produce only in APMC yards in many of the states. So the proposed reform is going to remove this restriction so that farmers can sell their produce even outside the yard. So statement 2 is correct. Here we should be careful since we are supposed to identify incorrect statements. So statement 1 is incorrect, statement 2 is correct. Therefore answer is option A, 1 only. So this question, consider the following statements with reference to Rural Infrastructure Development Fund. Statement 1, it was recently set up by Government of India under Atma Nelbar Bharat Abhyan. As you all know, this statement is incorrect since we already discussed that this fund was set up in as back as in 1995. Statement 2, the fund is created to finance Rural Infrastructure Projects. Yes, this statement is correct. So coming to statement 3, this fund is maintained or administered by NABOD. Yes, this statement is also correct. Since we are supposed to identify correct statements, the correct answer is option C, 2 and 3 only. Let us take up next question. Consider the following statements regarding Zari Zardosi work. Statement 1, it is an art of metal embroidery in which gold and silver threads are used. Yes, this statement 1 is correct. Here we should be careful if the statement is like this, in which only gold and silver threads are used. Then this statement goes wrong because we have seen three different types of Zardosi work, in which only in real Zari work gold and silver are used. As there is no extreme word that is only the statement 1 is correct. Coming to statement 2, the craft work reached its zenith during the British rule. The statement 2 is incorrect because this craft work reached its zenith during Mughal rule, especially during Emperor Akbar's rule. So, statement 2 is incorrect. Therefore, the correct answer is option A, 1 only. Next, consider the following statements with reference to Global Health Security Index. Statement 1, it assess and benchmark the health security and related capabilities of countries that make up the state parties to international health regulations. Yes, this statement is correct. Coming to statement 2, it is published by World Health Organization with support of Nuclear Threat Initiative and Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. No, this statement is incorrect since WHO is not associated with publishing this report. As we have already discussed, this index is a project of Nuclear Threat Initiative and Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. And it is developed with Economic Intelligence Unit and not WHO. Therefore, the correct answer is option A, 1 only.