 Good evening aspirants, welcome to Daily Hindu News Analysis brought to you by Shankara A.S. Academy. Today's date is 4th August 2023. Displayed here are the list of articles we are going to see today. Let's get into the discussion. Look at this news article. Tamil Nadu is not getting enough Kaveri water from Karnataka. The northern parts of Tamil Nadu is facing severe water shortage because Karnataka didn't release the Kaveri water as per the schedule. So, the Tamil Nadu government will raise this issue in Kaveri Water Management Authority meeting which is going to happen in August 11. This is the news. In this context, let us discuss some important points about Kaveri River and Kaveri Water Management Authority. Kaveri origin said Thala Kaveri in Brahma Hiri Hills. This Brahma Hiri Hills is located on Western Ghats and this is present in Kurg District of Karnataka. The important tributaries joining from the left are Harangi, Hemavadi, Shimsa and Akravadi rivers. The tributaries joining from the right are Lakshman Tirtha, Kabini, Swarnavadi, Bhavani, Noyal and Amravadi rivers. Kaveri is the third largest river in South India after Godavari and Krishna. So, it is the largest river in Tamil Nadu and it also forms boundary between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Even though the river mainly flows in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, its drainage basins cover four states Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Pudicherry. Flowing from Karnataka Plateau, Kaveri enters into Tamil Nadu Plains through Sivasamudram Waterfalls. This is an important waterfall on Kaveri River and there is a hydropower plant at this waterfall. Then Kaveri flows through Mehtur Reservoir and after this, the Amravadi, Bhavani, Noyal rivers join the Kaveri as tributaries. Then immediately after crossing Tirucharapalli district, the river divides into two parts. The northern branch is called Kuliran and the southern branch remains as Kaveri and from here only the Kaveri delta begins. After flowing for some distance, the two branches join a hind to form the Srirangam island. Then it flows through the Grand Aniket or Kallanai which is built by Kariyalachola. Below the Grand Aniket, the Kaveri again splits into two branches, the Kaveri and Vennar. These are the two branches of Kaveri. Then these branches again divide into small branches and form a network all over this region and they form the fertile delta of Kaveri. Finally, it flows into Bay of Bengal. Note that Krishna Rajasagar Dam, Bhavani Dam, Hemavati Dam, Harangi Dam, Kabini Reservoir are some of the dams built on Kaveri. So these are the basic things about Kaveri river. Now we shall see the Kaveri Water Management Authority which is in news. According to Interstate Water Disputes Act 1956, the central government has the power to establish any authority for resolving the water disputes between states. So according to this act and Supreme Court's direction, central government has constituted Kaveri Water Management Authority in 2018. This authority addresses the dispute between states over sharing of Kaveri water. That is between the four states Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and Puducherry. Now coming to the composition of the authority. It has a chairman and eight members and a secretary. The chairman of this authority is appointed by central government. He will have a tenure of five years or will serve until the age of 65 whichever is earlier. Usually the chairman of this committee will either be a senior engineer with a wide experience or he will be an all India service officer with experience in water resources. So this is about the Kaveri Water Management Authority. So we have seen basic points about Kaveri River and some important things about Kaveri Water Management Authority. That is all about this discussion. Let us move to the next topic. Take a look at this article. It says that an endangered Himalayan vulture has been bred in captivity for first time in India. This has happened in Assam state zoo in Gauhati. There has been many successful conservation breeding programs for vultures in India. They are conducted by Bombay Natural History Society, BNHS, its headquarters is in Pinjur in Haryana. So in this context let us discuss about the basic things about vultures, what are the threats to their survival and what are the conservation efforts taken by government. There are many species of vultures in the world and India has nine species of vultures. They were Oriental whitebacked vulture, long-biled vulture, slender-biled vulture, Himalayan vulture, red-headed vulture, Egyptian vulture, bearded vulture, Cenarius vulture and Eurasian griffon vulture. So these are the nine species of vultures in India. Most of these nine species faces the dangers of extinction. Now we saw the Himalayan vulture which is in news. So this Himalayan vulture has been bred in captivity in Assam state zoo. So in these nine species of vultures, bearded vulture, long-biled vulture, slender-biled vulture and Oriental whitebacked vulture, these four types of vultures are protected under Scheduled 1 of Wildlife Protection Act 1972. The rest of the vultures are protected under Scheduled 4 of Wildlife Protection Act. So why vultures are important? Vultures play a vital function in the ecosystem because they are the garbage collectors and help to clean the environment. Vultures are basically nature's trash collectors. They also play a valuable role in reducing the wildlife diseases. See the pH level of their stromac acid is the lowest for any animal in the animal kingdom. So its acidity is so strong that it can dissolve any organism, bones and even pathogens. So this helps prevent the spread of diseases. Now we shall see why are they facing the threat of extinction. In 1991, diclofenac, a drug which is used in cattle industry, was introduced in India. The cattle were injected with this drug because they acted as painkillers. So the vultures which scavenged on the animals treated with diclofenac suffered kidney failure and died. See the number of vulture population in India was 4 crore in 1991. But it got reduced to 1 lakh in 2007 and now only a few thousand vultures are left in the country. The central government has banned the diclofenac for veterinary use in 2006 but still the cattle owners acquire the drug illegally and use it. In addition to this there are some other threats like loss of natural habitats caused by anthropogenic activities. Sometimes the vultures are electrocuted by high power lines. So these are the threats faced by vulture. Now we shall see what are the steps taken by government to help preserve the vulture population. Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change launched a vulture action plan 2020-2025, a five-year plan for the conservation of vultures in the country. The plan will focus on reducing the use of diclofenac, a drug that is toxic to vultures. A vulture care center was set up in Pinjure in Haryana in 2001 to study the cause of vulture deaths. These vulture care centers were upgraded to vulture conservation and breeding centers in 2004. These centers are managed by Bombay Natural History Society and there are now 9 vulture care breeding centers in India. Another important thing to note here is that there are four fatal drugs which are causing a serious threat to the vulture population. These four drugs were diclofenac, aclofenac, nemisulite, keto-profen. Note the names of these drugs because it's important for prelims examination. These four drugs were used in cattle industry. So these drugs are causing a decline in vulture population. Note that if vultures become extinct, there will be a huge ripple effect. Others scavengers like rats and dogs may take over the place of vultures but with that comes a problem like increased incidence of rabies. So it is very important to conserve the vulture and the government is going in a right direction. That's all about this discussion. Let us move to the next topic. Look at this news article. Recently, Alagabat High Court gave permission to Archaeological Survey of India to conduct an investigation on Gyanvapi Mosque in Varanasi. Immediately after this judgment, the Gyanvapi Mosque committee approached the Supreme Court. The committee's main argument is the religious character of the place has remained a mosque since independence. So the site should be protected under Places of Worship Act 1991. This is about the news article given here. In this discussion, we will see the issues surrounding this Gyanvapi Mosque and then some points about ASI Archaeological Survey of India and then some points about Places of Worship Act 1991. First, let us have an understanding about this mosque issue. Gyanvapi Mosque is located near the famous Kashi Vishwanath Temple in Varanasi. This is in Uttar Pradesh. The mosque is believed to be built around 1669 during the rule of Muhal Emperor Aurangasip. Some people argue that Aurangasip ordered the demolition of existing Vishweshwar Temple at the same site and it was replaced by a mosque. They also claimed that material from the destroyed temple was used to build the mosque. The name of the mosque is said to be derived from adjoining well called Gyanvapi. The word Gyanvapi means well of knowledge. Many Hindus believe that the original lingam of Esther Vail Vishweshwar Temple was hidden by the priests inside this Gyanvapi well. On other hand, Muslim groups argue that the mosque has been a place of worship for centuries and should be protected as an essential religious site for them. This is all about the Gyanvapi Mosque issue. As I mentioned earlier, the main argument of Gyanvapi Mosque Committee is that the mosque should be protected under Places of Worship Act 1991. Now, let us see some important provisions of this act. This act was enacted in 1991 when the Ramandir movement in Ayodhya was at its peak. It was mainly enacted to preserve communal harmony. The act stated that religious character of any places of worship, either its temple, church or mosque, shall be maintained as it existed from the date of August 15, 1947. This act also says that any case or legal proceedings with respect to conversion of religious character of any place of worship pending before any court shall come to end. Also, no fresh cases should be filed, but the act has certain limitations. For example, Ram Janmabhumi Babri Masjid case was exempted from the act. These are some of the provisions of the act. As I already mentioned, the act aims at bringing religious harmony and maintaining the status quo. Finally, before concluding, let us see some important points about Archaeological Survey of India ASI. ASI is an Attachery Agency of Ministry of Culture under Government of India. It is a statutory body because it is established under ancient monuments and archaeological sites and remains Act 1958. The ASI is headed by a Director General and it is headquartered in New Delhi. As the name indicates, this agency engages in archaeological research, conservation, protection and preservation of ancient monuments and archaeological sites in the country. So, this is the important points about ASI. Now, let us move on to our next topic. Look at this editorial article. It is about the conflict in Ukraine has made people worry about the nuclear war again. The United States and Russia used to be bigger nuclear rivals but people paid more attention to other nuclear threats after Cold War ended. Russia has become more unpredictable under President Vladimir Putin. He has threatened to use nuclear weapons more often than his predecessors and he has also shown willingness to use military force to achieve his goals. See, the world is more interconnected than it was during the Cold War. If there is a war between United States and Russia, it would have devastating impact on entire world. So, the editorial underlines the importance of deterrence theory developed during Cold War. So, in this context, let us analyze the points mentioned in editorial in detail. Before that, I have highlighted the syllabus regarding this topic, you may go through it. So, before this discussion, we must understand what the nuclear deterrence means. Nuclear deterrence is a strategic concept which is used by many countries with nuclear weapons to prevent other countries from attacking them. It is based on the idea that having nuclear weapons and the ability to retaliate with a devastating force can discourage the potential enemies from starting a conflict. The basic idea here is that the fear of devastating nuclear retaliation will discourage other nations from initiating a military conquest against nuclear armed state. For example, USA will not initiate a nuclear strike against Russia because Russia is already a nuclear power. So, Russia and USA will not involve in a full-fledged war with each other because both the countries have nuclear weapons and the effects of war would be highly destructive to the both countries. This is called nuclear deterrence. But after Cold War, the global scenario changed a lot. The concept of nuclear deterrence is also changing. The article mentions that there were two limitations for nuclear deterrence at present. The first limitation is that the applicability of nuclear deterrence theory between two countries that have territorial dispute is questionable because USA and Soviet Union doesn't have any territorial dispute. So, the nuclear deterrence theory worked between those countries. For example, take India and Pakistan. Both are nuclear power countries and they have territorial disputes. So here, the nuclear deterrence theory may or may not work in future. So, it is in questionable nature. The second limitation is regarding the credibility of nuclear signaling. Here, the nuclear signaling is a way of communicating a country's intention to another country using their nuclear capabilities. It is like sending a message without using words, but only by showing what they can do with powerful weapons. Let me explain this with an example. During 1950s, USA conducted a vast number of atom bomb testing. Then in 1960s, Soviet Union tested SAR bomb which is a thermonuclear bomb and this test was the largest nuclear test ever recorded. So, instead of talking to each other, these both countries are testing their weapons to send messages to each other. By doing this, they both understand that they have to be careful because if one country starts to fight, the other will fight back just as hard. So, they become afraid of fighting and not to involve in a direct fight. This is called nuclear signaling. This is similar to the concept of nuclear deterrence. For this concept to work, both the countries must be equally powerful. If one country becomes more powerful than the other, then this will not work because the other country will overpower them and start a fight. So, this prevented USA and Soviet Union from engaging in nuclear warfare. But currently this is not the case. The nuclear powers all over the world have a varying level of nuclear capability. So, the threat of nuclear retaliation in some cases might not be credible. This might push the countries to engage in nuclear warfare. The author also provides some evidences where nuclear deterrence has failed in recent times. The first evidence is that before Russia and Ukraine conflict emerged, the USA tried to stop Russian aggression. In 2021 and also in 2022, USA tried to stop the Russian invasion of Ukraine. USA mentioned that Russia would face strong repercussions if it starts the war. But this warning of USA did not stop Russians from initiating a conquest on Ukraine. So, the USA's attempt to deter Russian invasion has failed. The second evidence is that Russia, which is a nuclear power, attempted to stop NATO's involvement in Ukraine. Here Putin warned that whoever tries to hinder Russia will face consequences never seen in history. He was hinting at a nuclear strike. But this does not stop NATO from helping the Ukraine. So, these two pieces of evidences prove that applicability of nuclear deterrence in present global scenario is questionable. See, currently Russia is facing heavy loss in Ukraine. At the same time, NATO and USA has been helping Ukraine despite Russia's threat of nuclear retaliation. So, the author of the editorial feels that additional measures should be created to avoid any further nuclear conflict. This is all about this editorial. We can move to the next topic. The 15th BRICS Summit was going to be held on August 22 this month in Johannesburg in South Africa. And our Prime Minister is going to attend the summit in South Africa. The summit is expected to discuss a number of issues, including the impact of COVID-19 pandemic and climate change. This summit is also expected to issue a joint declaration on the priorities of BRICS countries. This is going to be the 15th BRICS Summit and the last BRICS Summit held in Beijing in China. So, in this context, let us discuss about BRICS in general. As we know, BRICS is an acronym that refers to grouping of world's emerging economies, which includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. These five major countries together represent 42% of world's population and 18% of global trade. The first BRICS meeting was held in Russia in 2009. The three countries, Russia, India and China, attended this first meeting. This meeting held in St. Petersburg in Russia. Later in 2011, South Africa attended the third BRICS Summit in China. And with this, the BRICS reach its final composition. So, this is all about the formation of BRICS. Now, let us see the new development bank under BRICS. See this new development bank NDB was established by the leaders of BRICS countries during 4th BRICS Summit in 2012. Its main purpose is to mobilize resources for infrastructure and sustainable development projects in BRICS countries and other emerging economies. So, in 2014, during 6th BRICS Summit in Fortaleza, the leaders signed an agreement to establish the NDB. They highlighted that NDB would strengthen cooperation among BRICS countries. Now, we shall see about contingent reserve arrangement under BRICS. It is a framework designed by BRICS countries and contingency reserve agreement is a buffer against increasing global financial crisis. So, this arrangement was made in 2014 at BRICS Summit held in Fortaleza. The aim of this arrangement is to provide short-term liquidity support to the members through currency swaps. Basically, it is to protect against global liquidity pressures and to address economic volatility faced by emerging economies. This contingent reserve arrangement is seen as a competitor to international monetary fund. And it is also considered as an example of South-South cooperation. See, the BRICS has focused its attention on both geopolitical and economic dimensions. This means they discuss important global and regional issues together, and they also present a viewpoint that is different from western countries. By doing this, BRICS strengthened the trend towards multipolarity in the world. Meaning, the power is shared among multiple countries instead of being dominated by just a few countries. So, this will help reduce the influence of west in the world economics and geopolitics. So, we have seen basic points about BRICS, New Development Bank and about contingency reserve arrangement. So, with this, we conclude this topic. Let us move to the next part. Now, we have come to prelims practice questions. Look at this question. It is about a chemical called aclofenac. It is harmful for vultures and which among the following contains this chemical? Option A is wrong. Option B is also wrong. Option C is also wrong. And from the discussion, we can understand this chemical is found in the medicines like pain killers, which is used in cattle industry. So, the correct option is D. Look at the next question. It is about the reservoirs and the rivers. So, we have to match this. See the first option. Nagarjuna Sagar Reservoir is in Krishna river. So, the first option is wrong. The Krishnaraja Sagar Dam is in Kaveri river. So, the second option is also wrong. The Nizam Sagar Reservoir, it is in Godavari river and the Sriram Sagar Reservoir, it is in Godavari river. So, both the Nizam Sagar and Sriram Sagar are in Godavari. So, the option 3 is wrong. The famous dam, Sardar Sarovar Dam was in Narmada river. So, the correct option is A, only 1. Now, look at this question. It is about archaeological survey of India. The first statement is correct. It was found in 1861 by Alexander Cunningham. See here, the Alexander Cunningham, he is considered as the father of Indian archaeology. The first statement is correct. The second statement is also correct. At the time of independence, it was not a statutory body. Look at the third statement. Besides AI, some state governments are also carrying out the work of conserving the monuments. So, it is not only the ASI, other government agencies under state governments is also doing the work of ASI. So, third statement is also correct. So, the correct option is C, all the three. And this is the quiz question for you today. Try to answer it in comment section. So, this is all the prelims questions today. Now, we shall see the main practice questions for the day. So, this is the main practice question for you today. Try to write the answer and post it in comment section. We have come to the end of our discussion. If you like the video, please share it with your friends and don't forget to subscribe to Shankara's YouTube channel. Thank you.