 A very good evening aspirants. Welcome to the Hindu newspaper analysis brought to you by Shankar IAS Academy. Today's date is 17th of June 2023. Displayed here are the list of news articles that we are going to discuss today. So without much delay, let us get into the first news article discussion. Take a look at this friend page article. This article talks about the ongoing violence in Manipur state. We already have discussed about the background of the ongoing Manipur violence. So let's straight away go into the news article. See yesterday a mob attacked the residence of the union minister of state for external affairs Rajkumar Ranjan Singh. His residence is situated in Impal which is the capital city of Manipur. Many of the people have opined that it was communal violence. In response to this mob attack and several opinions, Mr. Singh insisted that it was not a communal incident. The minister said that he is a Hindu and the attackers were also Hindus. So he pointed out the incident is not a communal violence and it is a mob attack. So this is about the news article given here. So in this news article discussion, let us understand about Communalism. The cause is for Communalism in India and we will also see some of the measures to tackle Communalism. Before that the syllabus relevant to this news article is highlighted here. You can go through it. So what is Communalism? See Communalism is an ideology that refers to strong attachment to one's own community. This results in a division between the group of people or communities based on the factors of ethnicity, religion, belief, values and etc. To say it simply, when people of one community or religion go against the people of another community or religion, then it is termed as Communalism. For example, let us take the communal droid that happened months before India's independence. See between January and March 1947, communal violence took place in several parts of India between the Hindu and Muslims. And what was the reason for such communal violence? It is due to the demand of Muslims headed by Muhammad Ali Jinnah for a separate state. But the demand was consistently opposed by the Congress members and this led to the communal violence between Hindu and Muslims. This is one such example of communalism. So what are the causes for communalism in India? See the first and foremost cause of communalism in India is divisive politics. See some political parties in India are using religious and cultural differences to gain popularity among the people. This divisive politics will ultimately lead to hatred among the different communities and end up in communal violence. Then the second cause is economic backwardness. See in India, the majority of the minority communities have not been properly represented in public services, manufacturing, trade and so on. This is because of their educational backwardness. So this uneven representation aggravates the communalism feelings. Then the third cause is psychological factors. See psychological factors plays an important role in the growth of communalism. For example some of the Hindus believe that Muslims are extremists and they are unpatriotic. On the other hand the Muslims feel that they are not properly represented in India. So these emotions contribute to the growth of communalism. The fourth cause is geographical factor. See in India there are several variations in mode of life, culture, belief and social norms between various religious groups like Hindu, Muslims and Christians. This is due to the geographical location of particular communities. So the variations due to geographical factors may cause conflict between two different religious groups and end up in communal unrest. The fifth cause is historical factors. For example, let us say a communal violence was happened in the city of Chennai on one such historical day, a year back. Here the probability of reoccurrence of communal riots in Chennai is twice stronger than the town when such riots have never happened. So the historical factors are also one of the reasons for communal riots in India. Finally the role of media is also a very important cause. See the media in India often spread rumors about two different communities to create sensation. This results in further tension between two rival religious groups. Apart from this social media have also emerged as a powerful medium to spread the messages relating to communal tensions or riots in any part of the country. So these are some of the causes of communalism in India. Now let us see about the measures to deal with communalism. See firstly, the government should ban all political parties that rely on religious loyalties. This would be very helpful to stop the spread of communal ideas in India. Apart from this, non-political cultural organizations should also be actively monitored for any communal preach. Secondly, the youth group and other associations should be formed in every state. Those groups and associations should allow people from different communities so that they come together and they get to know each other. This will encourage the brotherhood feelings among people of different communities and also encourage them to practice inter-religious marriages. This in turn reduces the social divide between members of religious groups. Thirdly, the government has to conduct various awareness programs with the help of NGOs and civil society organizations to index the feeling of nationalism into people's mind. This will help to unite the people from different communities and build stronger community relations by cultivating the values of communal harmony. Fourthly, the government should increase the representation of minority communities and weaker sections in all wings of the government. In addition to this, the government should launch minority welfare schemes to address the challenges and discrimination faced by the men, jobs, housing and daily life. This would create belief among the minority community and divert their communal thoughts. That's all regarding this news article. So in this news article discussion, we saw in detail about what is communalism, the causes of it and how to address the issue. So with these learnt points, now let us move on to the next news article discussion. Now this news article is also talking about Manipur. It is regarding the ongoing issue of granting scheduled tribe status to Maiti community. See the Maiti community, which is dominant in Manipur, wants scheduled tribe status. We know that right. So the Maiti parties had filed a review petition in the Manipur High Court regarding its scheduled tribe status. But this time the High Court adjourned this case. So in this background, let us understand who can grant a scheduled tribe status to a community and what are the benefits a community will get. If it is granted with a scheduled tribe status. Now before that we will see some basic information about scheduled tribes in India. See the term scheduled tribe is defined in article 366 clause 25 of the Indian Constitution. The definition of a scheduled tribe is given here for your reference. You can have a look at it. Know that scheduled tribes constitute about 8.6% of the total population in India. And the Ministry of Tribal Affairs is responsible for it. Now let us briefly see about the procedure for conferring a scheduled tribe status to a community. See firstly the concerned state government will identify tribes which are eligible to be given the scheduled tribe status. And it recommends through the governor. Then this proposal will go to the registrar general of India. If he or she approves then national commission for scheduled tribes will consider the claim. And if they have given the green light then president will issue a public notification. Then parliament by passing a law can confer scheduled tribe status to a community. But remember not all the community will be conferred scheduled tribe status. There are certain criteria. Let us see them one by one. Firstly the community should have the indications of the primitive tribes. Then they should have a distinct culture. Then they should be geographically isolated community. Apart from this they should have shyness of contact with community at large. And the final criterion is back awareness. So based on these criteria assessment for the proposal for inclusion or exclusion will be made. So what are the benefits a community will enjoy if they are specified as scheduled tribe. See if a community is given with scheduled tribe status then they can avail all the schemes of ministry of tribal affairs which aims to improve the socio-economic condition of the tribes. The students from the community can avail many scholarships like post metric scholarship, overseas scholarship and etc. Then they can also get concessional loans from the national scheduled tribes finance and development corporation. Apart from this the most important benefit is that they are entitled to benefits of reservation in educational services and employment. So that's all you have to know about scheduled tribe status. With these learnt points now let us move on to the next news article discussion. Take a look at this news article. The cracks of the article is that heavy rainfall in Mizoram caused a significant landslide on national highway 6. Actually this road connects the state with the rest of the country. The landslide occurred in the Huntaar area near Aizwal. Very fortunately no fatalities have been reported. Now efforts are underway to clean the debris and restore the affected structures of the national highway. Additionally the continuous rain in recent days has resulted in multiple landslides across various parts of the state. So in this context let us understand few facts about landslides in this discussion. See landslide is defined as the movement of a mass of rock, debris or earth down a slope. That is it occurs when a large amount of rocks, soil or debris move down a slope. It can happen quickly or slowly over time. Think of it like this. You are playing with a pile of sand on a hill. If you pour a lot of water on it the sand becomes wet and heavy right. It can't stick together like before and it starts to slide down the hill. That's similar to what happens in a landslide. Now what are the types of landslides? See there are different types of landslides like slides, spreads, flows, falls and topples. Also sometimes a landslide can be a combination of these types. See landslide and spreads involve large amounts of non-fluid materials like a rock moving down a slope. So it's like when a chunk of soil or rocks that slides and spreads downwards. Then we have flows. When the material moves more like a fluid it's called a flow. Think of it like a river of mud or debris that flows downhill. Lastly we have falls and topples. These happen when the material falls vertically to the ground. Now let's talk about why landslides happen or the factors responsible for landslides. See there are many reasons. Firstly when the material on a slope becomes weak. Remember when we were children we used to build sandcastle on beach. You would have noticed if the sand gets too wet or loose it does not hold its shape anymore. The same thing can happen to rocks and soil on a slope. The second factor could be water. See when water gets into the ground and makes it soggy it adds weight and makes the slope weak. Then erosion is another factor. If a river or the sea keeps veering away the bottom of a slope it eventually becomes too steep and can't hold itself up and landslide can occur. Then the steepness of the slope itself is also important. The steeper the slope the more likely a landslide can happen. So if a hill gets even steeper because of coastal erosion it becomes more unstable. Also different types of rocks and how they fit together can affect the chance of a landslide. Some rocks are more prone to landslides. This depends on their shape and how they break apart. Then weathering processes like freeze, thaw can also weaken the rocks. We know that when water freezes and expands in a crack it makes the crack bigger like you can see in the image. Later when the ice thaws water goes even deeper like you can see here in the image. Again when it freezes it expands. So this makes the rock less stable. Apart from this vegetation can also be a factor. See we know that plants and trees can actually help keep the soil together. So if we remove vegetation from a slope it increases the risk of a landslide. Here you should also know that even volcanoes can cause landslides. See valkanoic landslides are called lahars and they are among the most devastating type of landslides. Finally there are also human activities that can contribute to landslides. For example mining or construction work can change the way water flows on a slope. This makes it more unstable. Also deforestation and shifting cultivation or other man-made factors that causes landslides. The root of the trees hold the soil in place but if people cut down all the trees the soil becomes loose and result in landslide. Now we will see some India specific points about landslides. See India is prone to landslides. According to the Geological Survey of India, GSI about 12.6% of India's land area that is around 0.42 million square kilometers is prone to landslides. The areas are most vulnerable to landslides are Firstly the mountainous regions of the northwestern Himalayas which includes Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarkhand Then the sub-Himalayan terrain of the northeast which includes Sikkim, West Bengal, Darjeeling, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Mahalaya, Mizoram, Nahaland and Tripura. Apart from this the western parts area which includes Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka and Kerala and the eastern parts area which includes Arakku area of Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu these regions are more susceptible to landslides. So that's all you have to remember about landslides. Hope we have covered landslides entirely. Make note of it and use it in your main sansa writing. So these learnt points. Now let us move on to the next news article discussion. Now take a look at this news article. This news article is about the appointment of a new chief information commissioner and other information commissioners in the state of Tamil Nadu. Retired IPS officer Mr. Shakil Akhtar was appointed as the chief information commissioner of Tamil Nadu. He took oath in the presence of the governor Mr. R. N. Ravi. So in this context let us revise few facts about national information commission and state information commission in problems perspective. See both the central and state information commissions were established under the provisions of the Right to Information Act 2005. They were constituted through an official gazette notification. It is an independent body which plays an important role in maintaining transparency in governance. Now talking about the composition of the central and state information commission. See both the information commissions consist of a chief information commissioner and not more than 10 information commissioners. Talking about their appointment in case of central information commission chief information commissioner and other information commissioners are appointed by the president on the recommendation of the committee consisting of prime minister, leader of opposition in Lokshaba and union cabinet minister nominated by the prime minister. Similarly in case of state information commission chief information commissioner and other information commissioners are appointed by the governor on the recommendation of a committee consisting of chief minister, leader of opposition in legislative assembly if there is any and the state cabinet minister nominated by the chief minister. Now talking about the conditions for appointment see the CIC that is the chief information commissioner and the information commissioners should not be a MP or a MLA. They should not hold any office of profit or connected with any political party or perceiving any profession. Now talking about the tenure and service conditions see chief information commissioner and other information commissioners of both central and state information commissions should hold the office for such term prescribed by central or state government or until they attain the age of 65 years whichever is earlier. One important point to note here is that they are not eligible for reappointment. Now talking about the removal procedure see in case of central information commission the president can remove the chief information commissioner and other information commissioners similarly in case of state information commission governor can remove them from the office. They can be removed for the following reasons you can pass the video and have a look at it. Remember they can also be removed on the grounds of proved misbehavior or incapacity. Finally we'll look at the powers and functions of central and state information commission firstly it is their duty to receive and inquire into a complaint from any person on issues related to getting any information under RTI Act of 2005. Then they can order an inquiry into any matter if there are reasonable grounds on a sumoto basis. So while conducting enquiries the commission has the power of a civil court then the commission has access to all public documents during inquiry for examination. The commissions submit an annual report to the government and they place them before their legislative organ. So that's all you have to remember about central and state information commission with these learnt points now let us move on to the next news article discussion. Now take a look at this news article it says that the pre monsoon flood has affected many people across love and districts of Assam. Apart from this landslides have also been reported from several places in Assam due to constant rainfall. This is about the news article given here in this context let us understand how to control floods. Let's start with what is a flood. See a flood happens when water overflows onto land that is normally dry. Floods can result from rains, snow, coastal storms, overflow of rivers, dam failure and etc. Now we'll see the effects of flood. See some of the effects of flood include loss of human life, damage to property and infrastructure, crop, destruction and livestock loss, housing displacement and other economic impacts. Now we'll look into the important flood control measures. See the first flood control measure is the construction of reservoir. See by constructing the reservoirs in the course of the river we could store extra water at the time of flood. By doing this we have a double advantage. One it would be very helpful to mitigate the damages caused by the flood and two the water stored at the time of flood can be used during drought times. So the constructions of reservoirs is one such good idea to control the flood. Secondly building of embankments. See embankments is nothing but the raised structure or wall that is made up of stone or concrete to prevent a river flooding. So building an embankment on the banks of the river will help to address the overflow of the river during flooding. Thirdly carrying out afforestation practices. See by planting trees in the catchment areas of the river we'll be able to minimize the effects of the floods. This is because the trees are able to control the speed of floods during heavy rains. So afforestation practices can also help to control floods and finally the floods can be controlled by restoring the original drainage system. See the original drainage system across the country are encroached for various purposes like construction of roads, railways, buildings, canals and etc. Due to this the excess water during the rainy season cannot be able to drain which in turn causes floods in urban areas. So if the original drainage system is restored then we'll be able to control floods. So that's all regarding this news article. With these learnt points now let us move on to the next news article discussion. Look at this news article according to the news article Mr Senthil Balaji a minister of Tamil Nadu was arrested by the enforcement directorate in a money laundering case. He was hospitalized due to his heart ailment. Yesterday the principal Sessions Court of Chennai allowed ED to conduct custodial interrogation for eight days at hospital itself after obtaining the opinion of his doctor. So in this context let us learn few facts about enforcement directorate, its jurisdiction and its powers. Now before that you have to know that enforcement directorate is a multi-disciplinary organization which works on the investigation of money laundering and violation of foreign exchange laws. ED comes under the Department of Revenue Ministry of Finance. See the origin of enforcement directorate dates back to 1st May 1956 and enforcement unit was formed in the Department of Economic Affairs for handling violations under foreign exchange regulation act 1947. In 1957 this unit was renamed as enforcement directorate. See the core value of ED includes integrity, accountability, commitment, excellence and impartiality and it is responsible for the enforcement of four different acts which includes prevention of money laundering act 2002 foreign exchange management act 1999, fugitive economic offenders act 2018 and foreign exchange regulation act 1972. See apart from the enforcement of these acts ED is empowered to sponsor cases of preventive detention with regard to contraventions of foreign exchange management act. Now talking about the functions of ED see some of the important powers of enforcement directorate include firstly the power to investigate any person or legal entity. See ED can investigate under the provisions of PMLA, FEMA and Fugitive Economic Offenders Act. Apart from this they can conduct searches and can seize any record or property found as a result of such searches. Apart from this under section 50 of PMLA enforcement directorate has the power to summon any person if it considers necessary and apart from this it can also recover fines, penalties and areas of penalties under the PMLA and FEMA. So that's all regarding have to know about enforcement directorate. So these learned points now let us move on to the next part of the news article discussion which is the preliminary practice question discussion. Now look at this question about central information commission three statements are given and you have to find how many statements are correct here. Statement one central information commission is a constitutional body see this statement is actually incorrect because constitution does not mention anywhere about central information commission so this statement is incorrect. Now look at the second statement the chief information commissioner is not eligible for reappointment. See this statement is actually correct they are not eligible for reappointment. Now the third statement says that chief information commissioner holds the office for the term of five years or 65 years of age whichever is earlier. See this statement is actually incorrect because the chief information commissioner holds the office for such term prescribed by the central government or until they attain the age of 65 years whichever is earlier. So the correct answer for the question is option A1D1. Now look at this question about landslides five factors are given and you have to find how many are the potential causes of landslides. Statement one earthquake, volcano, forest fires, erosion and mining. See here all these factors can cause landslides. In case you are not sure if volcanoes can cause landslides or not but you are sure with the other facts. Now look at the option you do not have an option only four which means your answer must be all five. So even now it's always wiser to look at your options even though UPSC no longer allows us to eliminate techniques. So the correct answer here is option D all five. Now look at this question about flood control four statements are given construction of dam center somewhere, a forest station, building embankments, construction of diversion channels. You have to find how many of these practices would help to control the floods. See here the correct answer for the question is option D all the four all the practices given here would help to control the floods. So the question displayed here is the main practice question for you today. Just go through the question, try to write an answer and post it in the comment section. With this we came to the end of the news article. If you like the video hit like, do comment and don't forget to subscribe to Shankar IAS Academy YouTube channel. Now thank you for listening.